J Train Smith

Bleu Star said:
Great? Hitchens has been "decent". Like our other LBs, (I.E. Jaylon Smith) he would benefit from a more reliably stout defensive line.

We really struck out on that DL we picked up in FA from Philly.. Thornton... But we still need for be more aggressive in FA.
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He is physical at the poa in the run game. He is competent and on time in his coverage responsibilities. His awareness and play recognition is consistently good.

Now he is not an elite athlete sure but he is an above average starter.

I'm not going to bash Jaylon as he is clearly improving but the best LB on the squad healthy the past few games has been Hitchens. If anything it furthers my point that Smith is coming along that WR is a more important need than LB.
 
diefree666 said:
so how much time are you going to waste on this obsession? Do you really have nothing better to do then dig up all this and post it like it actually means something? Pretty sad comment on your life.
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LP is funny dude.
 
AS The team gets worse, he gets better.

One of the few bright spots during this monumental collapse
 
They talk about how the scheme is simple but it is not simple for a LB. Run fills look like a huge pita. The DL have their keys and the OL block differently from play to play. Depending on how that all hashes out depends on where they are supposed to fill.

Compounding issues is the immediacy of the poa and cutbacks. Sure you may have to take on the block right in front of you but that can leave someone having to fill 2 gaps over to take away the cutback.

That is before you consider coverage where you need to know your teammates assignments and how to attack route combinations off of them. Play recognition, technique. The list goes on.

Jaylon was out of action for over a year and was brought along slowly in the offseason before thrust into a full time starting role. He was put in an impossible position but to his credit it is starting to come together for him. He has a ton of film to work off of and continues to get more. The future is bright for Mr Smith.
 
Gotta move Lee back to MIKE....ride or die
Re-sign Hitch 4/16m
Move JSmith to WILL and use him to blitz, not Lee ever
Draft a true MIKE
Let DWilson handle SAM
Tryout PS guys like Riley Bullough and Ben Boulware

Problem solved
 
Risen Star said:
I don't write him off but I also don't go into the offseason thinking he's a piece you can count on. I look to fill all three starting LB positions. Obviously you're not going to do that in one offseason but the point is no matter where that new LB fits, Sam, Will, Mike, he fits on this team.
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I agree with this. LB was a need going into the season and it clearly a need going into next season.

If the value is there in the first I'm pulling the trigger. We must not fold up if and when Lee goes down again
 
Dude is essentially a rookie and has been out of football with an injury that some thought meant he would never play football again. It's not surprising he was getting smoked when made the primary linebacker when Lee went out. It's going to take a while for him to get his football instincts back. The problem with us is we should have never put him in the position where he was the primary linebacker. He's starting to look better. I have a feeling he'll be much better as he gets a year of experience under his belt.
 
He' basically playing his rookie season not far removed from a major knee and nerve injury that a lot of people here expected to play at an elite level.
He is still a work in progress and will greatly improve next season
 
kevm3 said:
Dude is essentially a rookie and has been out of football with an injury that some thought meant he would never play football again. It's not surprising he was getting smoked when made the primary linebacker when Lee went out. It's going to take a while for him to get his football instincts back. The problem with us is we should have never put him in the position where he was the primary linebacker. He's starting to look better. I have a feeling he'll be much better as he gets a year of experience under his belt.
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Amen bro. Jaylon is one of the least of our worries.
 
I'm a huge fan of him even being on the field. He deserves credit for that. But he shouldn't of been drafted in the second round. He's good when he's splitting time with other players at this point.
 
Bleu Star said:
So what are you helter skelter people thinking of Jaylon's progress as this calamity of a season has progressed? Are any you finally seeing a glimpse the light that I see shining bright next year after a year of seasoning and truly getting back to 100%?

I'm just asking for a friend... Y'all know I wouldn't trip.
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I see some signs of progress but he is still not good.

Much if it has been mental. I'm not sure if that's good or bad.

I think he will be OK physically although maybe never 100%. He can run fast in a straight line but still has some issues with stop/start and lateral movements but it does seem a little better as the season progressed.

The main thing is they need to assume that he won't get better when planning the roster. The must get more talent at LB and that doubles if they don'tvre-sign Hitchens.
 
He played some of the worst LB play I have ever seen in my years watching football.

He has looked much better recently. I sincerely hope that the staff does not gift him a staring job next year because of his recovery- they still need to make him earn it.
 
AmericanCowboy said:
He played some of the worst LB play I have ever seen in my years watching football.

He has looked much better recently. I sincerely hope that the staff does not gift him a staring job next year because of his recovery- they still need to make him earn it.
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I guess you missed Cam Lawrence and Ernie Sims in 2013.
 
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