Is Jourdan the future at FS?

Teague31

Teague31

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The new contract for Lewis never made sense to me. Almost everyone thinks we draft a corner at 10 or 44. If we do that the later immediately starts opposite of Diggs. That leaves Brown and Lewis fighting over the slot. In the past Brown has always won this battle. If he wins again we are paying a decent chunk of change to a #4 corner: so is it possible they will convert him to FS? As it stands Kazee is really the only true FS on the roster and he is coming off injury and on a one year deal. Height and weight of the two are almost identical: could the plan be for Lewis to learn under Kazee and start next year if Kazee goes elsewhere? Of course the team could draft a FS high in the draft and blow this whole post up but I’ll believe that when I see it.
 
DasSchnitzel

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IMO Jourdan Lewis is an example of a guy who could make the transition.

Everytime this convo comes up about a CB everyone always says "not anyone can do that, it won't work" but the truth is that some corners can indeed make the transition and I think Lewis might be one.

It's also worth noting that "making the transition" isn't necessarily a yes/no thing. For example, no one was super satisfied with Byron Jones at safety and everyone likes to mock the experiment in hindsight. But at the time we had like nobody at safety and Jones' combine measurables and intelligence were promising so for all intents and purposes yes, BJ made thar transition as far as Dallas was concerned at the time.

I won't get too far into it because I'm not an expert and you can find experts discussing it on YouTube. Suffice to say that I won't guarantee Lewis can make the transition but I think he's got decent odds and I think it would be an error to not give him a chance. Imagine if you've got a just fine backup free safety on the roster and you didn't know because you were insistent it couldn't be done.

Anyway going back to the OP, you need 3 good corners in today's NFL. We have one. If our pick hits we might have two but even a good rookie CB is just an average NFL player. Diggs looked incredible for a rookie but overall he's still a middle of the pack CB league wide at his age and experience level. So no, I don't see a problem at all with picking up Lewis even if the plan is to leave him as CB4.

Personally I wouldn't even put a position on him other than "defensive back" and then just let him fill roles on plays as his skill set allows. I would actually do this with everyone in the defensive backfield because the year is 2021 and I think handwringing about "free vs strong safety" or "nickel CB vs rangy 3rd LB" or whatever are all outdated questions. So for example I literally couldn't care less about the ongoing conversation regarding whether Neal is a LB or S. He's just a cover guy with tackle skills, give him his assignment.

Curious what @Future has to say about that last paragraph because he's usually pretty opinionated on team building philosophy
 
Kolemmitt

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mardwin said:
Not enough height. He is either a nickel or outside.
Click to expand...

I am not saying that he is our FS of the future, but Kazee is 5'11" 174 and Jourdan Lewis is 5'10" 170...so I don't think size is an issue.
 
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jrumann59

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Personally think CB have different mentality, sort of like a dog thye see it they chase it. FS should be assignment sound unless they are generational talents.
 
darthseinfeld

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Teague31 said:
The new contract for Lewis never made sense to me. Almost everyone thinks we draft a corner at 10 or 44. If we do that the later immediately starts opposite of Diggs. That leaves Brown and Lewis fighting over the slot. In the past Brown has always won this battle. If he wins again we are paying a decent chunk of change to a #4 corner: so is it possible they will convert him to FS? As it stands Kazee is really the only true FS on the roster and he is coming off injury and on a one year deal. Height and weight of the two are almost identical: could the plan be for Lewis to learn under Kazee and start next year if Kazee goes elsewhere? Of course the team could draft a FS high in the draft and blow this whole post up but I’ll believe that when I see it.
Click to expand...
I would say no. However back in 2017, when Kazee was a draft prospect, I would have laughed at you for suggesting Kazee was an NFL S
 
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Kolemmitt

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Teague31 said:
The new contract for Lewis never made sense to me. Almost everyone thinks we draft a corner at 10 or 44. If we do that the later immediately starts opposite of Diggs. That leaves Brown and Lewis fighting over the slot. In the past Brown has always won this battle. If he wins again we are paying a decent chunk of change to a #4 corner: so is it possible they will convert him to FS? As it stands Kazee is really the only true FS on the roster and he is coming off injury and on a one year deal. Height and weight of the two are almost identical: could the plan be for Lewis to learn under Kazee and start next year if Kazee goes elsewhere? Of course the team could draft a FS high in the draft and blow this whole post up but I’ll believe that when I see it.
Click to expand...

I'm not saying it's going to happen, but it would not surprise me. His contract did make me scratch my head - it an awfully big deal for a player that is competing to be your nickel CB.

Plus, there is this:
Both Kazee and Lewis played CB in college.
Quinn moved Kazee to FS with some success.

Look at their draft profile:
Kazee - 5'10" 185, 4.54 -40
Lewis - 5'10" 195, 4.54 - 40

Kazee did play a few snaps at FS last year.

Here is a film breakdown:
 
fivetwos

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Career CB4 and backup slot.

They sure paid him like more though didn't they?

I guess they couldn't let all three of the misfit DBs from that draft walk and still save face.
 
speedkilz88

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Kolemmitt said:
I am not saying that he is our FS of the future, but Kazee is 5'11" 174 and Jourdan Lewis is 5'10" 170...so I don't think size is an issue.
Click to expand...
Numbers on these guys are pretty dated even though they are what nfl.com & wiki use.

Kazee has been more recently listed 5-11 190 (draft scout has 5102 as the exact height) and Lewis 5-10 195 at dc.com (5100 exactly at draft scout) So pretty close.
 
Gaede

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I hope he can do it, to be honest. I've always rooted for him as a player, but he hasn't performed as well as we all expected. If he can make the switch, and thrive, that'd be pretty cool

I remember Lewis was quoted as saying Quinn told him he was going be allowed to run. Maybe that means from a deep safety position.
 
Future

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Kolemmitt said:
I'm not saying it's going to happen, but it would not surprise me. His contract did make me scratch my head - it an awfully big deal for a player that is competing to be your nickel CB.

Plus, there is this:
Both Kazee and Lewis played CB in college.
Quinn moved Kazee to FS with some success.

Look at their draft profile:
Kazee - 5'10" 185, 4.54 -40
Lewis - 5'10" 195, 4.54 - 40

Kazee did play a few snaps at FS last year.

Here is a film breakdown:
Click to expand...

That video is way too long, but those first two snaps are exactly what I'm talking about. That position - call it a safety or CB - is where he'll play. But not over the top.
 
jrumann59

jrumann59

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Gaede said:
I hope he can do it, to be honest. I've always rooted for him as a player, but he hasn't performed as well as we all expected. If he can make the switch, and thrive, that'd be pretty cool

I remember Lewis was quoted as saying Quinn told him he was going be allowed to run. Maybe that means from a deep safety position.
Click to expand...
Would be pretty Ironic considering Richard pretty much buried him on the bench.
 
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