O-line Thoughts

[jobberone]

Flo will give us about 10 good games, then Free can finish out the year while we groom a real LT for the following season..

If Flo is injured then Free is definitely the right guy to play. He may be better now but that's unproven.

 

[casmith07]

I'm curious what all you experts think is a "real left tackle" if Free isn't it.

 

[ThreeSportStar80]

Until Free goes a full season as A LT we will not know. One cannot tell from one game. It does appear after less then half a season at RT that he can play there. LT is much tougher to play since he will face the best pass rushers there are.

Exactly....

 

[blindzebra]

Until Free goes a full season as A LT we will not know. One cannot tell from one game. It does appear after less then half a season at RT that he can play there. LT is much tougher to play since he will face the best pass rushers there are.

So a player that played a good chunk of season out of position and played well, that knows the system, and was drafted as a LT is less likely to succeed than a draft pick at the end of the first where whomever we select has big question marks?

Yeah, that's sound logic.:bang2:

 

[Thick 'N Hearty]

As usual, I've come into a conversation after numerous pages and posts. But, I will say that Kosier was a steal from the Lions. No need to look any farther than last season. Kyle went down to injury, and the line seemed to disentigrate. I'm not saying he is the key to the line, but its collapse coincided with Kosier getting hurt.

Free is the future at LT, an Columbo does a great job at RT. I would draft another OT NLT the 2nd round, and an OG 4th or later to groom.

 

[Eskimo]

Until Free goes a full season as A LT we will not know. One cannot tell from one game. It does appear after less then half a season at RT that he can play there. LT is much tougher to play since he will face the best pass rushers there are.

You can say that about everyone including the precious first rounder many of you want to put on a guy who will likely not ever be able to start at LT (Campbell or Charles Brown are the candidates most likely thought to fall that far. The surefire guys usually go in the top 10 and they aren't a lock either - see Robert Gallery.

What we did see was Free could play RT pretty well and went up against the best DEs probably at least some of those snaps. We also saw him play a half against the Seahwawks and 2.5 quarters against Jared Allen without giving up a sack at LT. He is less likely to be a bust at LT then just about any non top 10 pick out there and we don't have enough ammunition to trade up there.

 

[CF74]

You can say that about everyone including the precious first rounder many of you want to put on a guy who will likely not ever be able to start at LT (Campbell or Charles Brown are the candidates most likely thought to fall that far. The surefire guys usually go in the top 10 and they aren't a lock either - see Robert Gallery.

What we did see was Free could play RT pretty well and went up against the best DEs probably at least some of those snaps. We also saw him play a half against the Seahwawks and 2.5 quarters against Jared Allen without giving up a sack at LT. He is less likely to be a bust at LT then just about any non top 10 pick out there and we don't have enough ammunition to trade up there.

Free gave up a lot of pressure that Tony escaped primarily because it was coming from the right side. Tony is right handed so he saw it coming. The left side being the BLIND SIDE is a different story and I shudder at what might happen. As was already stated we won't know until we see Free play a significant amount of time on the left side. Till then there will be skeptics. I hope he can gain more strength this offseason and surprise us but in the mean time I pray that we hedge our bets and draft an upper tier tackle to groom.

 

[Eskimo]

Free gave up a lot of pressure that Tony escaped primarily because it was coming from the right side. Tony is right handed so he saw it coming. The left side being the BLIND SIDE is a different story and I shudder at what might happen. As was already stated we won't know until we see Free play a significant amount of time on the left side. Till then there will be skeptics. I hope he can gain more strength this offseason and surprise us but in the mean time I pray that we hedge our bets and draft an upper tier tackle to groom.

The amount of pressures Free was giving up steadily dropped as he got more comfortable at RT. He actually gave up less pressure to Allen than Flo did against the Vikings despite playing twice as much.

 

[jobberone]

Free is unproven at LT. I have hopes for him but there isn't enough data to draw conclusions yet. We still need to draft an OT and why not draft one projected to be a LT? If they fail at that maybe they are strong enough to play RT.

 

[blindzebra]

Free gave up a lot of pressure that Tony escaped primarily because it was coming from the right side. Tony is right handed so he saw it coming. The left side being the BLIND SIDE is a different story and I shudder at what might happen. As was already stated we won't know until we see Free play a significant amount of time on the left side. Till then there will be skeptics. I hope he can gain more strength this offseason and surprise us but in the mean time I pray that we hedge our bets and draft an upper tier tackle to groom.

Well if that's true than two-thirds of the league needs to draft a tackle to replace theirs because Free was 22nd in pressures allowed, playing for the first time and not at his natural position.

 

[Eskimo]

Free is unproven at LT. I have hopes for him but there isn't enough data to draw conclusions yet. We still need to draft an OT and why not draft one projected to be a LT? If they fail at that maybe they are strong enough to play RT.

The issue becomes on of "reaching". Everyone covets guys with the "potential" athletic ability and size to play LT but most of them aren't good football players. This causes teams to reach for them in the hopes that they can coach them up.

I'd rather take a very good RT (or guard or center for that matter) prospect at the bottom of the first than a reach for a LT at that spot.

 

[CF74]

Well if that's true than two-thirds of the league needs to draft a tackle to replace theirs because Free was 22nd in pressures allowed, playing for the first time and not at his natural position.

Well we can re-visit those numbers after he plays a full season...

 

[burmafrd]

Those claiming that Free can replace at LT have no real evidence to back that up since Free has only played one game at the tougher position that always has better pass rushers coming. Until he does it for at least half a season he is UNPROVEN.
I doubt a OT worth a first rd pick drops to us-and if he does you have to wonder why. Campbell scares me since I think he is a combine product. If Veldheer is still around at our #2 he MIGHT be worth it.

 

[peplaw06]

Those claiming that Free can replace at LT have no real evidence to back that up since Free has only played one game at the tougher position that always has better pass rushers coming. Until he does it for at least half a season he is UNPROVEN.

And yet, you have no evidence that he cannot.