Cowboys are about to make a big mistake with LB deployment

[Floatyworm]

And ....No this isn't about signing Dak to this horrendous extention....

It's about how they are gonna deploy their linebackers.

From what is being heard through the grapevine....Your starting unit is...

SLB-Lee
MLB-J.Smith
WLB-LVE

I don't even know how you begin to quantify this...

SLB- Lee.....Can't cover
MLB-J. Smith...taking on O-linemen @ the point of attack isn't his strong suit.
WLB-LVE...playing him here...takes away his greatest attibute...being able to play from sideline to sideline. Your basically taking half the field away from him..making him a hash to hash player. Big mistake.

Then in the nickle package....they are gonna take out LVE..and deploy Lee and Smith.

I'm sorry....any defense without LVE as your primary middle LBer...is asking for trouble. He is the heart of your defense.

We will see if the whispers coming out of camp are true...hopefully...not.

 

[Oz-of-Cowboy-Country]

There are people on this site that would agree with you. Jaylon at strong, Lee at weak, and LVE in the middle. But once you use the word horrendous and associate that with Dak, you're just asking for trouble.

 

[noshame]

I love Lee
But honestly, if he makes it through TC I'll be shocked
End of controversy.
If you need a controversy ask why is Witten here.
I love JW but it's time to buy a car dealership.

 

[beware_d-ware]

I think that LVE at Will and Jaylon at Mike is the right call. In college, he was your classic speed guy who struggled to get off blocks, but post knee recovery, I just haven't seen that be an issue at all. He got much stronger during rehab. And LVE is so good one on one in space.

Lee is a square peg at Sam, but he's just so much more talented than JML or Covington that it doesn't really matter. I would like to see Jaylon at Sam though, because I think he has some serious potential as a pass rusher that's going untapped in this scheme.

 

[Little Jr]

Then in the nickle package....they are gonna take out LVE..and deploy Lee and Smith.

I haven't heard or read that.

 

[cern]

Ben bloom has proven himself to be a good lb coach. I think they'll get it right.

 

[Hawkeye19]

Lee won’t be on the field much at SLB. We are in the nickel at least 50% of the time. Wilson was in on about 26% of the defensive snaps last year— which lines up with what they have been saying the plan was for Lee’s snaps. Sean has bulked up for the role— and his fire and intelligence will make him fine at SLB. And— he is fine in coverage for the record. It’s actually one of his best attributes as a LBer over his career.

Jaylon was built to be a MLBer. LVE can play it too (so can Lee for that matter)... but the plan when they drafted Jaylon was for him to be the mike. His athleticism and speed make him a great piece to have in the middle of the D.

LVE at the WILL is just pure abuse to opposing offenses. He is the biggest and rangiest of the three LBs— and he will be now be running the most free? Pure dynamite. The kid will be all over the field destroying people and making plays.

Bottom line: we arguably have the best LB trio in the league. It is at least a top 3 unit— and they haven’t come close to their ceiling yet. With improvements along the DL as well— our front 7 is going to take a step forward this year— it is just a question of how big that step will be.

 

[Stash]

I haven't heard or read that.

Thanks, I thought I was the only one questioning that ridiculous assumption.

I guess the Boise State fan is now dreaming up assumptions to be miffed about?

 

[Sydla]

Thanks, I thought I was the only one questioning that ridiculous assumption.

I guess the Boise State fan is now dreaming up assumptions to be miffed about?

My first thought was this was some sort of Boise State slight thread. LOL.

 

[Stash]

My first thought was this was some sort of Boise State slight thread. LOL.

You'd think the guy would be happy, given the number of alumni from his favorite school are current Cowboys?


But nope, now it's fabricating things to get mad about.

 

[Rayman70]

ITS MAY for cryin out loud. lol...NOTHING is settled. The sky isn't falling at linebacker. I do agree that Sean Lee shouldn't be starting at the position. THATS SAID, he really should be on a pitch count and not starting at all. He is a depth guy...role player these days.I think that's what will be realized as we move thru camp and preseason. Nothing is penciled in just yet,too premature.

 

[Stash]

Lee won’t be on the field much at SLB. We are in the nickel at least 50% of the time. Wilson was in on about 26% of the defensive snaps last year— which lines up with what they have been saying the plan was for Lee’s snaps. Sean has bulked up for the role— and his fire and intelligence will make him fine at SLB. And— he is fine in coverage for the record. It’s actually one of his best attributes as a LBer over his career.

Jaylon was built to be a MLBer. LVE can play it too (so can Lee for that matter)... but the plan when they drafted Jaylon was for him to be the mike. His athleticism and speed make him a great piece to have in the middle of the D.

LVE at the WILL is just pure abuse to opposing offenses. He is the biggest and rangiest of the three LBs— and he will be now be running the most free? Pure dynamite. The kid will be all over the field destroying people and making plays.

Bottom line: we arguably have the best LB trio in the league. It is at least a top 3 unit— and they haven’t come close to their ceiling yet. With improvements along the DL as well— our front 7 is going to take a step forward this year— it is just a question of how big that step will be.

I think they're simply putting it on Sean Lee to stay healthy. I fully expect that they will have a backup plan and player ready if and when Lee gets hurt. But to me they're simply saying at this point "stay on the field, don't get hurt". And if he manages to stay healthy? Great! As you said, one of the best linebacking trios in the entire league. But if he does? There will be a plan so it doesn't kill the team.

 

[Whirlwin]

You'd think the guy would be happy, given the number of alumni from his favorite school are current Cowboys?


But nope, now it's fabricating things to get mad about.

.

You'd think the guy would be happy, given the number of alumni from his favorite school are current Cowboys?


But nope, now it's fabricating things to get mad about.

I get things wrong sometimes it's hard to remember 60 years a football. But I tend to agree with you on this particular poster. Seems to make things up where is the integrity .

 

[Typhus]

ITS MAY for cryin out loud. lol...NOTHING is settled. The sky isn't falling at linebacker. I do agree that Sean Lee shouldn't be starting at the position. THATS SAID, he really should be on a pitch count and not starting at all. He is a depth guy...role player these days.I think that's what will be realized as we move thru camp and preseason. Nothing is penciled in just yet,too premature.

Lee still has role, he isn't breaking the bank, Lee is a 20 percent players in this Defense... people need to understand that their is no true 4-3 D left in the league, it simply no longer exists.
The Cowboys will employ a 5-2-4 most of the time, Lee is a valuable asset at this time at his price.

 

[CouchCoach]

I admit it, I think the coaches that do this for a living and may have their wagons hitched to Garrett's star know more than I do about deploying the LB's. I trust them to do their job, put the best man at the best position to be his best.

And Jaylon at MLB takes advantage of his sideline to sideline ability and the man covered WR's at ND.

As far as Lee is concerned, he may just have the best recognition and D mind of any Cowboy.....ever. Landry would have loved to have built his Flex around him. Yes, he did struggle a little through the injury last season and that has been a problem in the past but if there's one player I trust to be at his best, when healthy, it is Sean Lee. You start listing the qualities of a football player you'd want on your team, just give me a pic of him. I do believe if not for his health issues he would be a first ballot and be considered one of the top 10 LB's of all time.

 

[ESisback]

Ben bloom has proven himself to be a good lb coach. I think they'll get it right.

Yeah, needless worrying.

 

[ESisback]

I admit it, I think the coaches that do this for a living and may have their wagons hitched to Garrett's star know more than I do about deploying the LB's. I trust them to do their job, put the best man at the best position to be his best.

And Jaylon at MLB takes advantage of his sideline to sideline ability and the man covered WR's at ND.

As far as Lee is concerned, he may just have the best recognition and D mind of any Cowboy.....ever. Landry would have loved to have built his Flex around him. Yes, he did struggle a little through the injury last season and that has been a problem in the past but if there's one player I trust to be at his best, when healthy, it is Sean Lee. You start listing the qualities of a football player you'd want on your team, just give me a pic of him. I do believe if not for his health issues he would be a first ballot and be considered one of the top 10 LB's of all time.

Oooh, CC, you’re asking for trouble!

 

[lukin2006]

Nothing will change on defence as long as RM is allowed to continue on as DC...he should be fired.

 

[VACowboy]

From what is being heard through the grapevine....Your starting unit is...

SLB-Lee
MLB-J.Smith
WLB-LVE

JS and LVE are pretty interchangeable. They subbed for each other last year but started and played a majority of their snaps at Mike and Will, respectively. Sean Lee is a better linebacker right now than Damian Wilson has ever been, regardless of position. I don't see a problem.

I don't even know how you begin to quantify this...

Do you mean qualify, because if the quantities you're considering are the stats from last year it seems pretty easy to me. Smith totaled four sacks to go with his 121 tackles on the season. Vander Esch racked up 140 tackles, along with two INTs and seven PBUs as he established himself as one of the best all-around sideline-to-sideline players in the game. Even if you're going by the eyeball test I don't see the argument here. At all.

SLB- Lee.....Can't cover

Sean has actually been one of the best cover LBs in the league over his career and is certainly better than Damian Wilson has ever been. The position doesn't see a ton of snaps anyway, perfect for a player in a limited role. Big-time upgrade if Lee can stay healthy, but that's always a huge if.

MLB-J. Smith...taking on O-linemen @ the point of attack isn't his strong suit.

Wasn't a problem last year as he tackled guys 121 times and took on O-linemen en route to the QB.

WLB-LVE...playing him here...takes away his greatest attibute...being able to play from sideline to sideline. Your basically taking half the field away from him..making him a hash to hash player. Big mistake.

Running fast and making plays all over the field is exactly what Rod Marinelli's WLB is supposed to do and exactly what got LVE to the Pro Bowl and almost won him Defensive Rookie of the Year.

Then in the nickle package....they are gonna take out LVE..and deploy Lee and Smith.

Says who? Lee played some nickel last year but once he missed games and LVE showed everyone what kind of player he was, LVE and JS played a vast majority of the LB snaps, in all packages, even when Lee was healthy. Heck, Lee was a healthy scratch one game. No?

I'm sorry....any defense without LVE as your primary middle LBer...is asking for trouble. He is the heart of your defense.

Oh, I disagree there, all around. I think Jaylon showed everybody what a fantastic MLB he is in '18, and he's only going to get better. If there is a heart of this Dallas defense not named Sean Lee I'd say that it's this pair of young LBers. LVE is passionate about playing football and it shows on the field, but Smith calls the defense and is unquestionably the emotional and inspirational leader of the group. IMHO, anyway.

Dallas was the only team in the league last year with two guys in the top-15 in tackles.

 

[cowboyec]

LVE and Jaylon managed it at a high level for 16 games last year...now all of a sudden they won't.
Van Jaylon's got it.
of the things to worry about...this ain't one.
CLEAR.
EYE.
VIEW.