looking forward to seeing Bodden back there.........

[fgssand]

Just found this and it reminded me how good this guy is............

YouTube - ‪Leigh Bodden Highlights‬‏

 

[Patjew]

Same here. If he's half as good on the field as he is on Twitter then he's going to be all-pro!

 

[37Harrison]

This backfield is going to be sick!

With the return of Bodden, the ridiculous ability of McCourty, the development of Chung, the wealth of depth at each position, and not to mention the potential upside of Dowling, the backfield of this defense has the makings of something special.

Dare I say... possibly better than we have ever seen!

 

[signbabybrady]

This backfield is going to be sick!

With the return of Bodden, the ridiculous ability of McCourty, the development of Chung, the wealth of depth at each position, and not to mention the potential upside of Dowling, the backfield of this defense has the makings of something special.

Dare I say... possibly better than we have ever seen!

If all goes right this could be a sick DB.

Bodden needs to be healthy and playing as well as two years ago.

McCourty needs to improve or at the very least not step back.(no reason to think he wont)

Chung needs to improve. IMO he was our best safety last year but he is young and plenty of room for improvement.

Merriweather IMO is the key to how good this DB can be. He has shown a Pro Bowl level of play at times but clearly is inconsistant and needs to stay within the system. If plays the system right then combined with the above we are in excellent shape.

Then you have Arrington and Sanders as key back ups/rotation guys/nickel guys depending if you go 3 cb or 3 safety (Chung plays close to the line not Sanders).

After that the next two key players are Ras-I and Butler. here is where the depth truly shows itself as these guys should/could be starters (based on pedigree and not based on our roster or anything shown so far).

Round that out with guys like Sergio, Barret, Whilhite, and others and that is one position that should be fun to watch in TC to see how it all shakes out and should be a strength of the D once the season does start.

 

[randomk1]

This backfield is going to be sick!

With the return of Bodden, the ridiculous ability of McCourty, the development of Chung, the wealth of depth at each position, and not to mention the potential upside of Dowling, the backfield of this defense has the makings of something special.

Dare I say... possibly better than we have ever seen!

I agree. Our DB unit could be one of the best in the NFL if Bodden returns to a high level and Dowling beasts it up. Definately excited.

Nice HL.

 

[RobertWeathers]

This backfield is going to be sick!

With the return of Bodden, the ridiculous ability of McCourty, the development of Chung, the wealth of depth at each position, and not to mention the potential upside of Dowling, the backfield of this defense has the makings of something special.

Dare I say... possibly better than we have ever seen!

1976 and 1978 secondaries were excellent.

1985 secondary was excellent

1996 secondary was excellent

2003 secondary was the best of the 3 SB

My .02$- The 2011 team will have the talent for sure. They'll need to execute on the field to gain membership into that group.

 

[BTTA]

Have we ever had three DB's who could be considered top 10 at their position? Has any recent team?

I'm sitting at Remy's at Logan, having had a few, so perhaps I'm a bit overenthusiastic?

 

[Deus Irae]

Have we ever had three DB's who could be considered top 10 at their position? Has any recent team?

I'm sitting at Remy's at Logan, having had a few, so perhaps I'm a bit overenthusiastic?

With Al Harris no longer in the equation for Green Bay, the Chiefs and Jets probably boast the closest to a pair of top ten CBs in the league. The Patriots arguably have one, but certainly don't have two or three. The Packers have Woodson and young talent that could, possibly, join him at the top before he fades.

 

[BTTA]

With Al Harris no longer in the equation for Green Bay, the Chiefs and Jets probably boast the closest to a pair of top ten CBs in the league. The Patriots arguably have one, but certainly don't have two or three. The Packers have Woodson and young talent that could, possibly, join him at the top before he fades.

The post was about DB's. So you see McCourty as one, but Bodden and Chung as not close to top 10?

 

[sbpatfan]

Bodden and Chung are not even close to top 10 DBs. I love Chung as much as anyone, but he gave up a ton of TDs last year. He seems to bring good fire and impact to the defense, but he needs to get better in coverage. Bodden is a 30 year old veteran coming off a season ending injury. He should help stabilize the secondary and bring competition to the younger guys.

Bodden top 10? No chance. Chung has the potential to be one of the best safeties in the league, but he's not there yet.

 

[ausbacker]

I've been saying it for a while. Bodden + McCourty genuinely excites me. It excites me like Sarah Palin in a redneck tavern excites a bear.

 

[Deus Irae]

The post was about DB's. So you see McCourty as one, but Bodden and Chung as not close to top 10?

Neither Bodden nor Chung are in the discussion for top 10. I'd have mentioned Meriweather being voted top 10 by ESPN, but I wasn't in the mood for the sort of nonsense that leads to here. I didn't count Nick Collins of the Packers, either, to even it out, although one could argue he belongs there (ESPN has him there, for example, actually having him in the top 3). I gave McCourty the B.O.D. based on his rookie season.

 

[TB146]

I never saw the play with the flying cartwheel foot deflection.... crazy awesome!

 

[patsfan-1982]

The post was about DB's. So you see McCourty as one, but Bodden and Chung as not close to top 10?

#1 Troy Polamalu,

#2 Darrelle Revis,

#3 Nnamdi Asomugha,

#4 Ed Reed,

#5 Devin McCourty,

#6 Asante Samuel,

#7 Charles Woodson,

#8 DeAngelo Hall,

#9 Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie,

#10 Aqib Talib,

who would you take off that list for Bodden and Chung

 

[supafly]

#1 Troy Polamalu,

#2 Darrelle Revis,

#3 Nnamdi Asomugha,

#4 Ed Reed,

#5 Devin McCourty,

#6 Asante Samuel,

#7 Charles Woodson,

#8 DeAngelo Hall,

#9 Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie,

#10 Aqib Talib,

who would you take off that list for Bodden and Chung

Your point is well taken, and makes a lot of sense. I would however, tend to disagree with Asante Samuel, DeAngelo Hall, and Aqib Talib. While at least 2 of those 3 are likely in the top 15-20, I personally don't feel that they're in the top 10 (not that there's any 'wrong answer' necessarily).

I do not think that Polomalu is the #1 DB in the game either though, as he lacks the proper coverage plenty of the time, as witnessed in the SB. He tends to freelance which leads to making nice picks, and hits hard, but pure coverage skills are probably not even top 3 worthy. Coverage-wise, obviously I want a CB--and that is likely Asomaugh or Revis in my opinion, although if DMcC shows as much promise as last yr, he could certainly be there too maybe--at least top 3-4.

I would have to consider Eric Berry from KC, and Adrian Wilson as potential safeties who are in the top 12 (overall DB's), and could pose a threat to the top 10. Also Atlanta CB Brent Grimes is another CB who is definitely better than Asante Samuel, and is quite up and and coming. And as Deus pointed out, Nick Collins is another who is certainly in there too. I would trade Hall, Samuel, and Talib out and put Collins, one of Berry/Wilson, and maybe even Grimes in there.

As far as Bodden and Chung go---I certainly agree with you. Don't even make me laugh. Bodden had a very servicable year here in 09, and we were coming off of a EH3 led CB tandem too, so the bar was set pretty low. All in all, I think that Bodden is certainly in the top 20 CB's in the league, no doubt. The potential that we have with DMcC and Bodden starting next yr is amazing, and I am hoping that the rounded out depth of Arrington, Dowling, and Butler makes it even better. Wilhite is as good as gone in my opinion.

Chung is certainly quick, and can be of great value in the box and close to the line of scrimmage. He is definitely an up and coming safety in the NFL, or at least has the potential to be. His coverage skills are average, and that's if you're being kind to him. I'd certainly put Meriweather way ahead of Pat Chung at this point. While it's exciting to have a potential player like Chung, he has not done anything at all for my confidence in pass coverage.

I'd have Meriweather first, Bodden second, and Chung third out of the 3.

 

[RayClay]

If we're talking about the best defensive backfields, it's time to send the bandwagon newbie kids to bed.

Clayborn, Haynes, Tim Fox, Prentice McCray, Rick Sanford and Roland James in 1980?

Clayborn, Haynes, Roland James, Rick Sanford and Fred Marion in 1982?

Too bad we always sucked back then and didn't have any players.

 

[RayClay]

I think Bodden fits our D just fine too. decent size and a good hitter in addition to his coverage. Best walk in free agent i can recall since Rodney.

 

[Deus Irae]

Your point is well taken, and makes a lot of sense. I would however, tend to disagree with Asante Samuel, DeAngelo Hall, and Aqib Talib. While at least 2 of those 3 are likely in the top 15-20, I personally don't feel that they're in the top 10 (not that there's any 'wrong answer' necessarily).

I was figuring top ten, by position, in the defensive backfield.

Power Rankings: Top 10 NFL safeties - AFC North Blog - ESPN

Power Rankings: Top 10 NFL cornerbacks - AFC South Blog - ESPN

Doing it that way, ESPN would have Green Bay fitting the parameters (2 CBs and 1 S), but I wouldn't put Williams in my 10 just yet.

If you use the ESPN rankings, you get GB with 3, NE, TEN and WAS with 2, and nobody else with more than 1.

 

[patriot lifer]

I think Bodden fits our D just fine too. decent size and a good hitter in addition to his coverage. Best walk in free agent i can recall since Rodney.

This is one of the nice aspects with our secondary. We don't have your Terrence Newman-type smurf corners running around following 6.5 foot receivers. Bodden and McCourty have nice long arms and can be aggressive. We have a great mix of up-and-coming youth and stability with veterans in this secondary. We can easily sustain injuries and not break apart.

All this being said, lest we forget our pass defense's ranking last year (less than great), and while it may be related to the team scoring so many points, we will be improving upon an average performance (average at best when considering other teams playing from behind and therefore passing more).

And that being said, we were already #1 in interceptions last year.
Pending injuries we're looking good, and I don't think fans of other teams will ever give the D credit until we see what they are capable of.

 

[supafly]

I was figuring top ten, by position, in the defensive backfield.

Power Rankings: Top 10 NFL safeties - AFC North Blog - ESPN

Power Rankings: Top 10 NFL cornerbacks - AFC South Blog - ESPN

Doing it that way, ESPN would have Green Bay fitting the parameters (2 CBs and 1 S), but I wouldn't put Williams in my 10 just yet.

If you use the ESPN rankings, you get GB with 3, NE, TEN and WAS with 2, and nobody else with more than 1.

I am a bit surprised at the 'panel' giving A.Samuel so much credit still. As you can see, most have him in the 4-5 range. Maybe I just am not giving him enough credit, but I think he has had a dropoff in the past year/year and a half, although I think (IIRC) he may have still had a nice INT total in 2009 again, so maybe his spot is actually well-deserved after all. I suppose it's only fair to put him in the top 10 CB's still.

DeAngelo Hall and Aqib Talib---I am not so sure they belong in the CB top 10.

To combine it into one all encompassing list, which is probably a lot harder, I would personally have it this way (for whatever THAT's worth ):

1. Asomaugh
2. Revis
3. Polomalu
4. Woodson
5. Reed
6. McCourty (at least based on last yr, anyway)
7. Bailey
8. Wilson
9. Berry
10. Samuel

(outside looking in)

11. Collins
12. Grimes

Regardless, some of these are certainly inter-changable, so different people will have different opinions obviously. I've never really been sold on Talib, and although Hall has great speed and athleticism, he seems to be lacking something...I guess maybe his pure coverage just isn't as good as some think (IMO). His reputation was certainly helped by that 4 INT game last year.

Anyway---thanks for sharing the links to the seperate CB/S positions. I think we could be in pretty good shape with ONE of the following, assuming DMcC plays up to his high standards from last yr again:

1. Bodden returns to his form of 2009, giving us potential shutdowns, or the closest thing we've seen in quite some time-- on both sides

2. Dowling shows good athleticism and picks up the scheme somewhat quickly, better than Butler's rookie season

3. Butler actually takes a step or two forward and plays a solid nickle/dime. Of course the same could be said of Arrington, who could move another step or two forward too, giving us a solid sub package and depth. All 3 of Dowling, Butler, and Arrington could eventually be vying for more playing time, although one would initially think that Arrington would start as nickle, while Dowling could be slowly blended in throughout the yr. I believe Butler is still the wild card here, and I am not sure what to make of him still.