Poor DeMeco Ryans PHI may change to 3-4 defense

[tru80texan]

Originally Posted by Corrosion

Cushing's job was getting after the QB in many passing situiations ..... he didnt often drop into coverage. Whoever starts next to him has to be solid in coverage.

Cushing is the lone ILB on obvious passing downs. That's a known fact. He is the one that will be used in coverage. This is exactly the reason why the Texans felt they could not afford Ryans who was being removed on passing downs & thus being primarly a 2 down ILB. Guess who was left on the field in those obvious passing situations....Cushing. This was also the reason some believed there would little to no drop off going from Ryans to James because James would be a 2 down ILB. Once again, leaving Cushing in for passing downs & potentially in coverage.

In the base set, Cushing could get after the QB but it is known that he is the EVERY down ILB & that is because he is capable of & expected to play in coverage.

[Grams]

Ryans on 2 downs was better than all the ones we had out there to replace him.

[CloakNNNdagger]

Originally Posted by tru80texan

You did not, but the comparison was warranted, imo, because James ultimately replaced Ryans & was suppose to be a better fit. I would beg to differ. The 3-4 specialist James seemed to be a step down. Considering Ryans was displaying improved health & thus improved production, by Kubiaks own admission, then I believe Ryans could've faired well in a 3-4 had he been given an opportunity that wasn't effected by his health & a shortened learning period in a new scheme. We will never know, but in the end it was not Ryans lack of lateral movement that ultimately got him traded.

Going from 54 tackles in 6 games (prior to injury) in 2010 to 64 tackles in 16 games in 2011 hardly displays improved health and improved production. With a 3-4, on 3rd down without 4 big dL in front of him, and with his lack of explosiveness to pass rush, and with his obvious loss of side-to-side coverage, his tackle numbers would decrease, and he would be exposed in all aspects of a 4 down ILB. If he were kept in 3 or 4 downs routinely, teams would know to how successfully game plan to those weaknesses. As for James, he was expected by Wade to be a player that could fill all those criteria to a decent extent. It didn't work out that way. The Texans, if cap allows, will still be looking for an ILB who can do a decent job of also covering to complement Cushing (unless James miraculously finds the "key" with an additional offseason in the system).

[tru80texan]

Originally Posted by CloakNNNdagger

Going from 54 tackles in 6 games (prior to injury) in 2010 to 64 tackles in 16 games in 2011 hardly displays improved health and improved production. With a 3-4, on 3rd down without 4 big dL in front of him, and with his lack of explosiveness to pass rush, and with his obvious loss of side-to-side coverage, his tackle numbers would decrease, and he would be exposed in all aspects of a 4 down ILB. If he were kept in 3 or 4 downs routinely, teams would know to how successfully game plan to those weaknesses. As for James, he was expected by Wade to be a player that could fill all those criteria to a decent extent. It didn't work out that way. The Texans, if cap allows, will still be looking for an ILB who can do a decent job of also covering to complement Cushing (unless James miraculously finds the "key" with an additional offseason in the system).

Comparing his 2010 to his 2011 stats is apples & oranges. Totally different scheme & responsibilities. In the 4-3 scheme, prior to injury, Ryans very rarely came off of the field. In the 3-4 scheme he was reduced to a lesser role which was obvious to all who watched & for those that didn't it was verified by Rick Smith, Kubiak, & Wade. Ryans was no longer on the field on obvious passing downs or passing formations as much. That is fact & is exactly the reasoning that was given when he wad traded. They could not afford to pay the type of money Ryans was earning to a player who essentially became a 2 down player. No big mystery considering it was stated by many multiple times. That being said, I think we can all agree that less opportunity could easily lead to less production. Thus your stats comparison is apples & oranges imo.

As far as his health, many acknowledged that Ryans was not 100% at the beginning of 2011, but as the season progressed so did his play & production. That seemed apparent to most & was acknowledged by Wade & Kubiak at seasons end. The improvement reference was not from season to season, it was from 2011 1st half of season to 2011 2nd half of season. So yes, that did display improved health & production DURING the 2011 season.

Concerning your scenario that 4 d-lineman would be needed in passing downs to protect Ryans, I once again politely disagree. 1st off, Ryans, nor James for that matter, were expected to be a 3 down LB. Plain & simple. Verified by the Texans coaching staff. 2nd, if he was on the field I think the scheme is a bit more complicated & could disguise who's rushing & who's not enough to prevent teams from focusing on 1 player100% of the time. Sure mismatches will be attempted but that goes w/out saying & a less then 100% DeMeco held his own while learning the system on the fly in 2011. Assuming that some how he would've gotten worse w/ increased knowledge of the system & being 100% healthy just seems silly to me. The guy returned to 100+ tackles & some how we are suppose to believe he would've been worthless in a 3-4 & all of his tackles were "funneled" to him w/ him making no plays on the edges. Okkkkk...

Once again, Ryans issue in Houston was the money he was making compared to his new role. No big secret & stated by many. I do agree the Texans are in need of an ILB that is possibly similar in skill set to Cushing to ensure versatility w/in the defense & make it more potent. Let's hope it happens because James is not the answer.

[silvrhand]

http://www.phillymag.com/eagles/2012...play-in-a-3-4/

Sounds like we should have gotten more than a 4th round draft pick...

This season with the Eagles, Ryans has played 99.7 percent of the snaps, according to Pro Football Focus. That has resulted in 146 tackles and 16 tackles for a loss, per the stats kept by the team. As Sheil has brought to light, no player in the Andy Reid era has posted more tackles for a loss in a season.

[ensign_lee]

I want DeMeco back. :'(

[Double Barrel]

He'll end up on the Ravens.

[tru80texan]

Originally Posted by silvrhand

http://www.phillymag.com/eagles/2012...play-in-a-3-4/

Sounds like we should have gotten more than a 4th round draft pick...

Straight from the horses mouth. Good find & yes we should've gotten more, but what can you do when other teams know you are desperate. Something was better then nothing when you consider that's exactly what they got for Winston...nothing.

Originally Posted by ensign_lee

I want DeMeco back. :'(

I'm with you on that one.

[thunderkyss]

Originally Posted by silvrhand

http://www.phillymag.com/eagles/2012...play-in-a-3-4/

Sounds like we should have gotten more than a 4th round draft pick...

Which makes me wonder why anyone thinks Ryans is going anywhere.

He's their Cushing. He will be the one that stays on the field, while the other guy will be the one replaced by a safety... actually, that guy would probably stay on as well, as most 3-4 teams don't remove their ILBs on passing downs. Most will go with a nickel, removing the NT. If they go to a dime then they'll take that other LB off the field, but again, most teams do not do that as often as we do.

[Rey]

Originally Posted by Fiddler

Which makes me wonder why anyone thinks Ryans is going anywhere.

He's their Cushing. He will be the one that stays on the field, while the other guy will be the one replaced by a safety... actually, that guy would probably stay on as well, as most 3-4 teams don't remove their ILBs on passing downs. Most will go with a nickel, removing the NT. If they go to a dime then they'll take that other LB off the field, but again, most teams do not do that as often as we do.

I doubt that.

The eagles took mychal kendricks last year in the top half of the 2nd round. He played Olb in their 43 but will most likely be an ilb in a 34. He's better in pass coverage than Demeco and I'd venture to say that he's their future at the MLB position.

He's a good player and I'd personally take him over every MLB I've seen in this upcoming draft. He's also really athletic and like I said good in pass coverage.

I'm not sold that Demeco would be their everydown guy in the middle. He might start off as that, but I think they'd try to get kendricks acclimated in that role.

[Vinny]

Originally Posted by silvrhand

http://www.phillymag.com/eagles/2012...play-in-a-3-4/

This season with the Eagles, Ryans has played 99.7 percent of the snaps, according to Pro Football Focus. That has resulted in 146 tackles and 16 tackles for a loss, per the stats kept by the team. As Sheil has brought to light, no player in the Andy Reid era has posted more tackles for a loss in a season.
Sounds like we should have gotten more than a 4th round draft pick...

He played well and now that he is fully recovered, neither Sharpton nor Bradie is the player he is. Neither close. Sharpton can cover better but is awful in the box (his most important duties) and Bradie is just running on pure fumes and doesn't have Ryans instinct. All that said, I'm hoping we bring in some young blood that can play better than Sharpton next season. Sharpton isn't the answer.