Galian Beast
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A lot of people have mention that are defensive line is getting old, and that we need to fix it for the future.
I think there are a few things you have to look at especially as it pertains to this year
a) If all 4 starters on the line are healthy, we have one of the best defensive lines in football.
b) This is Marinelli's first year with our defensive line.
i) Most coaches will like to see what they are working with first before making wholesale changes.
Ex] Bill Callahan came to coach the cowboys offensive line in 2012.
Our 2011 starters:
Free - Holland - Costa - Kosier - Smith
2012 starters
Smith - Livings - Costa - Bernadeau - Free
3/5 of the starters were the same
2013 starters
Smith - Leary- Frederick - Free - Parnell
So only Smith remains a starter at the same position he was (even if Bernadeau starts at guard and free at tackle, you still see significant change).
I wouldn't be surprised to see 3 new starters on the defensive line next year. Though some of those players might already be on the team (like Bernadeau and Leary).
Crawford and Bass I think are somewhat likely candidates to start next year.
One thing we haven't really been doing under Garrett, is poaching veteran talent who played under previous coaches. We did that some with Rob Ryan, but not so much anywhere else.
We didn't bring in any of Callahan's guys (except when we tried to bring in Moore as a last ditch move) even to be stopgaps. And we haven't brought in any of Marinelli's guys, even though many of them were available. This tells me that the coaches think those players are JAGs and they can find suitable alternatives elsewhere.
In conclusion, I would say that while defensive line is certainly a worry this year as far as whether or not they can stay healthy, I think it's fairly obvious that we will focus on improving the defensive line in next years draft (even if we select a guard/tackle early).
I would actually give up the entire draft just to get Clowney. I think matching him up with Ware would be excellent. Worst case scenario, we could sign a guy like Hatcher to a couple more years. But if Bass is truly able to replace him, that's fine.
Ware - Bass - Crawford - Clowney. That works for me.
I think there are a few things you have to look at especially as it pertains to this year
a) If all 4 starters on the line are healthy, we have one of the best defensive lines in football.
b) This is Marinelli's first year with our defensive line.
i) Most coaches will like to see what they are working with first before making wholesale changes.
Ex] Bill Callahan came to coach the cowboys offensive line in 2012.
Our 2011 starters:
Free - Holland - Costa - Kosier - Smith
2012 starters
Smith - Livings - Costa - Bernadeau - Free
3/5 of the starters were the same
2013 starters
Smith - Leary- Frederick - Free - Parnell
So only Smith remains a starter at the same position he was (even if Bernadeau starts at guard and free at tackle, you still see significant change).
I wouldn't be surprised to see 3 new starters on the defensive line next year. Though some of those players might already be on the team (like Bernadeau and Leary).
Crawford and Bass I think are somewhat likely candidates to start next year.
One thing we haven't really been doing under Garrett, is poaching veteran talent who played under previous coaches. We did that some with Rob Ryan, but not so much anywhere else.
We didn't bring in any of Callahan's guys (except when we tried to bring in Moore as a last ditch move) even to be stopgaps. And we haven't brought in any of Marinelli's guys, even though many of them were available. This tells me that the coaches think those players are JAGs and they can find suitable alternatives elsewhere.
In conclusion, I would say that while defensive line is certainly a worry this year as far as whether or not they can stay healthy, I think it's fairly obvious that we will focus on improving the defensive line in next years draft (even if we select a guard/tackle early).
I would actually give up the entire draft just to get Clowney. I think matching him up with Ware would be excellent. Worst case scenario, we could sign a guy like Hatcher to a couple more years. But if Bass is truly able to replace him, that's fine.
Ware - Bass - Crawford - Clowney. That works for me.
I still don't believe in mortgaging your draft for anybody of course hindsight is 20/20 but at the time, in the moment it's too much of gamble.
