How each Free Safety in the draft stacks up

[fishspill]

I've seen every game Pool has played in college and would be fine with the Cowboys drafting him.

Bringing up the A&M, OSU and USC games is fair, Pool made mistakes. So did Nicholson, Bassey, Onyenegecha, etc. They each had their time in the doghouse for playing like idiots. I don't think, though, it's a good idea to ignore all the good Pool has done in his career by overstating a few games.

The OSU game was a rivalry game against a team with a couple of nice receivers and a QB that took chances that paid off. It happens.

The A&M games was looking just as bad when, low and behold, Stoops burned the redshirt on Walker and the defense held A&M to 7 second half points. Of course, having Reggie out might have had a lot to do with that but just let me use Bassey as a goat instead .

And of course you had to remind me of the USC "game" as many call it. In actuality it was a cruel joke played on this fat man by God. I can't recall a game where a QB throwing for 50% overall is hitting 40 yard+ passes on the nose. At any level you count on long passes being off a yard this way or that MOST OF THE TIME but again and again they dropped in perfectly despite good coverage in most cases. Leinert was hot deep, the fronts got handled, an *** kicking occured.

There is also the possibility that the OU coaching staff chemistry didn't work. It's easy to say Pelini coordinated Nebraska and went to OU and did the same things and it didn't work so the talent must be the problem. But Pelini was a co-defensive coordinator this time and what he did in conjunction with what Venables did simply didn't jibe like Mike Stoops and Venables working together. Perhaps?

Pool is a talented, versatile defender. He may take a year to season but will be a credit to any team taking him. I promise, he's a really good player .

[WoodysGirl]

Originally Posted by Natedawg44

Sounds like B.J. Ward had a great workout. I haven't heard much about him or where most think he will go. Correct me if I'm wrong I thought woodysgirl was pretty high on him at the start of the year.
Anybody got any profiles?

Minor Clarification:

B.J. Ward has never been on my radar.

Not that I'm an expert or anything, but I liked what I saw of Marlin Jackson just off what I saw on the Combine coverage. He looked real fluid in those change of direction drills (forget what they're called at the moment) shuttle??

[Natedawg44]

B.J. Ward has never been on my radar.

My bad someone on this site was pumping him up at the start of the year though and I just want a little more first hand info on the guy.

Thanks Fishspill I appreciate the breakdown I'll tell you why I have to lay alot of the blame on Pool in those games. He is the last line of defense in a Zone D which they play a ton of and he just didn't get the job done in any of those games. Maybe I could write if off if he was younger but that was his third year in the D and he kept making the same mistakes in all three. Some of the others deserve the blame as well, but we aren't talking about spending a high second rounder on them. As far as Pelini is concerned, from everything I read he coached the secondary was in charge of assignments and their splits on the field. Maybe the chemistry wasn't good but its hard not to see the difference in the two years Bullocks and Pool had with the same coach and conclude the only difference is lack of chemistry. The bottom line for me is I saw enough of Pool last year to know I don't want to see anymore and am happy he will be playing on Sundays instead of Saturdays. I will be much happier watching what Tony Cade and Jason Carter have to offer at free safety which for me is the most telling thing of all.

[Natedawg44]

You contribute a lot and I respect your opinion, but I'm going with them on this one.

Thanks for the kind words, just so you know its just a difference of a opinion nothing personal.

[MichaelWinicki]

Originally Posted by Woody'sGirl

Minor Clarification:

B.J. Ward has never been on my radar.

Not that I'm an expert or anything, but I liked what I saw of Marlin Jackson just off what I saw on the Combine coverage. He looked real fluid in those change of direction drills (forget what they're called at the moment) shuttle??

I like him too WG... nice second round pickup. Would make a good FS.

[zagnut]

Originally Posted by BigWillie

wayne_motley, I believe I addressed the coverage issue pretty good, don't you? Hopefully I don't have to go over it again. But to keep it simple, Bullocks excels when you allow him to play as a true FS, rather than putting him out in man coverage. Although not inept, he isn't the greatest guy man-up in coverage.

HeHateMe, Pool played in the same system Bullocks THRIVED in. What coaching hurt him?

Lastly, zagnut, I don't know where you have heard Bullocks was injured, but it is wrong. The only two men from Nebraska's secondary that were injured were Fabian Washington and Cortney Grixby.

I read it in the same profile I quoted, fool.

Josh is an excellent talent and with his speed his talent projects very favorably in the pros because he is good enough to play corner also. Injured in 2004 but has recently declared for the 2005 NFL Draft. Safety Josh Bullocks, who quietly had one of the better overall combines, was times at a 4.46 and 4.52 in Lincoln, an improvement from Indianapolis. Bullocks was the most popular player amongst scouts. Afterwards several teams including the Chiefs and Texans had him do individual drills. For their part the Dallas Cowboys are thrilled with Bullocks and feel he could immediately produce for the squad.

I did 2 minutes of research and he actually was injured/banged up in late October, 2004. He was subbed by the younger brother of none other than Dallas' Scott Shanle -- Andrew Shanle. He injured a shoulder in practice and barely played vs Kansas St. What I'm wondering is how much the shoulder affected him through this past season.

Shanle has proven himself at the Division I-A level. In Nebraska's loss last year at Kansas State, he filled in for an injured Josh Bullocks and recorded seven tackles, including a 10-yard sack of Allen Webb.

http://www.journalstar.com/articles/...a197608489.txt

[fishspill]

I hear what you're saying, Nate.

And here's to hoping Cade can keep his temper in check enough to get on the field a little more. He might be a safety we can both agree on.

[Redball Express]

Good points all.

I think the selection of a FS is clouded as in the Dallas schemes, at least the present 4-3 ones, the SS/FS is sort of interchangable. Now, in a 3-4, if that becomes a bread and butter defense for '05..the need may change to more of a cover man, not so much a duplicate SS to play FS.

So until we know how the defense stacks up..this is a tough call for anybody trying to guess what Dallas will want to do.

I think the key will be what Dallas does to fill the LB/DE pass rushing positions. If they go for a non-3-4 type DE with that first choice, that will mean the 4-3 is the base defense and that then means we are going to draft a physical safety like a Woody for strong safety one they can mix coverages and blitzes with Roy Williiams to disquise the defense at the snap. Just as they have done for years.

If any of the #1 choices is a Merriman or other type of 3-4 player to help with the passrush, then that means the 3-4 is to be the base defense and the safety drafted later in the draft is going to be a coverage guy, not a physical hitter-type like Woody or Williams is because the coverages will be very different than the 4-3. The FS in those schemes will be downfield in deep coverage and will need more range than we saw in Woody or Williams.

I also keep remembering things that Parcells has said about Roy Williams being a bisquette away from being a LB. I've always had the feeling that with Williams' size and domination at the line of scrimmage, that the Cowboys might experiment with moving him closer to the line of scrimmage as a hybrid SS/OLBer in some way to get even more DB's on the field in obvious passing downs and thus be able to use Williams better in the blitz packages. So keep that in mind, too, if the 3-4 becomes a reality.

Williams may have a position created for him and that might be pretty interesting if we go 3-4. I could see Williams as a OLBer if the CB's hold up and b/w what we draft and what we already have, we can stabilize the safety positions, too.

So we just have to wait and see what falls to us in the 1st round or what trades in that round effect who we are targeting nad go from there.

I don't think even the Cowboys really know what type FS they are going to want. Not yet.

later.

ParcellsWaterBoy

[HeHateMe]

Originally Posted by Natedawg44

Thanks for the kind words, just so you know its just a difference of a opinion nothing personal.

Always.

Thats what makes this board great.

That I can want player A because I think hes better and you want player B because you think hes better.

All we can do now is wait to see who can say, "I told you so".

[BigWillie]

Bullocks did seperate his shoulder, zagnut, but never missed any time because the injury wasn't severe. I actually had forgotten about it because the injury never plagued him and never hindered him whatsoever.