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Mario exceding expectations

TexansSeminole

Hall of Fame
Mario has 3.5 sacks in 7 games, on his current track he will have 8 sacks on the season. But what I think he is exceding expectations in is in stopping the run. He is establishing the corner and discouraging teams to run at him.

How does Mario weigh up to your expectations?
 
i think the problem is the expectations for mario far exceed those for anyone else on the team due to the circumstances of his selection. ryans is by far exceeding expectations but they were not even close to those we all had for mario. i think for a rookie he is looking very good assuming he will continue to learn and get better.

it's sad the inevitable comparisons that are made with the rest of his draft class, but i would say bush is far from reaching the expectations set for him and mario and young are perhaps right at expectations or a tad below them.

the most encouraging thing i've seen from mario is the comments from earlier in the year that he looked lost without a DE motor have gone away. this shows that he is learning and trying, so i think by the end of the year he will have exceeded expectations with around 10 sacks and general solid play from the DE position.
 
Mario is living up to expectations so far, but on defense Meco is by far the standout. He'll be a great leader for this team in the future. With these 2 guys playin well and Daniels looking dam good, we might have one of the best rookie classes in the league. Now if we can just get Winston out there on the left side(or right side) to prove himself.
 
I think he is doing well. But he does need to show some improvement in a couple of areas.

First, he needs to develop an inside move. He gets into a bit of a rut constantly rushing outside and bull rushing. I have been impressed with his bull rushing. He did it several times against Jacksonville where he just got up underneath the tackle and drove him into Leftwich. Doesn't go down as a sack or a tip or anything measurable, but definitely affected the play.

Secondly, Mario needs to be more violent with his arms on both the pass rush and in the run game. He is engaged entirely too long with the tackle and just spends too much time "riding" the block instead of disengaging and getting to the quarterback. He needs to rip his inside arm up underneath the armpit of the tackle and lift him up and get by him. Haven't seen that as of yet.

I'd like to see the Texans employ more stunts with Mario as well. In the Jacksonville game, there were several occassions where he looped inside and was working on a center or a guard and they had a lot of trouble handling him. This is the only time I saw them run that stunt.

I'd also like to see the Texans get out of this dropping Mario into "coverage" garbage. He is not a cover guy and our defense has enough trouble conventionally. Zone blitzing is not the winning edge. The TD to Vince Young on Sunday was a blown blitz package. We brought pressure with two linebackers coming to the left side of the offense. Mario dropped into coverage to the side they blitzed to. However, the one linebacker came from the right side of the defense, thus vacating the zone. The defensive end to that side needed to drop, or better yet, Mario needed to be on that side mirroring the QB. Either way, it was a silly blitz that was totally uncalled for. Send Mario and let him get to the QB. Drop someone else!

I think he totally shut down the Jags' run game to his side when he was in. Not really mentioned much, but they ran for about seven yards going to Mario's side that day.

Overall, I would give Mario a B-/C grade with the potential to definitely be an A. I think he is going to be a premier DE in this league and will be a staple of our defense for many years to come.
 
Mario has 3.5 sacks in 7 games, on his current track he will have 8 sacks on the season. But what I think he is exceding expectations in is in stopping the run. He is establishing the corner and discouraging teams to run at him.

How does Mario weigh up to your expectations?

well i knew it was going to be a few games before we saw him start to emerge as a force, but for the most part im extremely pleased. he probably gives the most effort out on the field. if the ball carrier is behind him, he pursues until he personally brings him down. he has been pretty effective as a pass rusher. 3.5 sacks is nice, and he is constantly providing the most push on the d-line. he is getting better each week. if he continues the growth trend, then i would say he was a worthy pick over bush or vince.
 
Mario has 3.5 sacks in 7 games, on his current track he will have 8 sacks on the season. But what I think he is exceding expectations in is in stopping the run. He is establishing the corner and discouraging teams to run at him.

How does Mario weigh up to your expectations?
I'd give him a solid C- and yes, he is still dissapointing to me so far. His sacks are when DeMeco forced the QB, Weaver got robbed of a sack, and his run down of Young - not in the pocket, but when Young pulled down to run. I really haven't seen him put much heat on the QB or change any plays forcing mistakes or blowing up plays. All his sacks are the by-product of other players changing the play and he is moping up. He is hustling and he disappears for long stretches but I do see flashes of potential...but that's all I see really.
 
Check out this FanHouse post: Mario Williams Getting Some Raves

Basically it is mostly just pointing out a McClain gossip blog post. From McClain:

I'm talking about Williams making plays and being disruptive. He hasn't been great, but he's been getting better the last two games against Dallas and Jacksonville. If you don't believe me, I just got off the phone with two NFL personnel directors who watched the Texans' game, and they were raving about the way Williams played and the way they think he will play. There were three NFL scouts in the pressbox. I spoke with them before, during and after the game, and they were raving about Williams and DeMeco Ryans.

So, I'm not saying Williams was worth the first pick or that he's playing great because so far he hasn't been, but the fact is that he's gotten better the last two weeks. Even Stevie Wonder could see it. If any of you want to rip on Williams this week, fine, but just remember that NFL scouts and personnel directors have a little more credibility. At least this week.

FWIW.
 
I'd give him a solid C- and yes, he is still dissapointing to me so far. His sacks are when DeMeco forced the QB, Weaver got robbed of a sack, and his run down of Young - not in the pocket, but when Young pulled down to run. I really haven't seen him put much heat on the QB or change any plays forcing mistakes or blowing up plays. All his sacks are the by-product of other players changing the play and he is moping up. He is hustling and he disappears for long stretches but I do see flashes of potential...but that's all I see really.

That is an interesting point, and true from what I have seen. Obviously it is not a bad thing that our team is working well together to get sacks, but your saying you can't solely credit Mario for those 3.5 sacks and I agree.

In the last few games I have been noticing Mario be more and more disruptive to the pass and the run. He may not break free of his lineman often and get in the QBs face like many top DEs in the league do...but he seems to push his blocker into the QB on alot of pass plays and atleast give the opposing QB a "time limit" when the rest of our defense is not gettin pressure. Before, like last year, when our defense struggled at getting pressure the opposing QB would sit back in the pocket for what seemed like 10 seconds and almost always make a play. I am seeing Mario's edition change that a little bit.

How are most of you grading him against the run?
 
How are most of you grading him against the run?

Before the Jacksonville game, I thought he was doing quite poorly. He was getting singled up against tight ends, which is totally unacceptible for a DEnd. But in the Jacksonville game, he totally dominated his side and forced the Jags to run to the opposite side.

Jags game = A++
Overall = B / B-
 
From McClain:

If any of you want to rip on Williams this week, fine, but just remember that NFL scouts and personnel directors have a little more credibility. At least this week.

heh, McClain pulling the NFL scout card. Classic.

Mario has improved, but it's obvious that he has a LOT to learn before he turns into a dominant force on the D-line.
 
I would like to see us finnaly put Mario at LDE for good with Babin or Peek on the other side. Starting him and Weaver at the same time is not a good idea and a main reason as to why he is leading the team with 3.5 sacks and no one else is even close. I think for the last couple of games he has been at LDE for the most part, and we as a team have done very well against the run. All in all, I think we had very unreal expectations from Mario coming into the season, but his progress from Week 1 to last week is obvious, and as long as it continues, I am very happy with him.
 
Titan "Tack" Fan;485542 said:
8 sacks in one season is very mediocre. I remember a guy by the name of Jevon Kearse that we drafted that had 14.5 his rookie season.

Was he drafted to a 2-14 expansion team converting from a 3-4 with no real pass-rusher? Other then Mario, who is our best lineman? ND Kalu? Weaver? You have to look at the entire situation: he is only 21, went to NC State and did not receive the premier coaching like Reggie, VY, DeMeco etc. For the first few weeks we moved him around every position on the D-line, making it pretty hard for him to adjust to NFL speed. At this point, he has recorded sacks in back-to-back games and is leading the team in sacks, not too bad for a rook. Also, he is improving every week from game to game. By the way, 87 passing yards in a game and a completion percentage below 50% for the season dosnt even constitue mediocre.
 
Was he drafted to a 2-14 expansion team converting from a 3-4 with no real pass-rusher? Other then Mario, who is our best lineman? ND Kalu? Weaver? You have to look at the entire situation: he is only 21, went to NC State and did not receive the premier coaching like Reggie, VY, DeMeco etc. For the first few weeks we moved him around every position on the D-line, making it pretty hard for him to adjust to NFL speed. At this point, he has recorded sacks in back-to-back games and is leading the team in sacks, not too bad for a rook. Also, he is improving every week from game to game. By the way, 87 passing yards in a game and a completion percentage below 50% for the season dosnt even constitue mediocre.

He scored two TDs on your precious Texans. Points are more important than yards buddy.
 
I think he is doing well. But he does need to show some improvement in a couple of areas.

First, he needs to develop an inside move. He gets into a bit of a rut constantly rushing outside and bull rushing. I have been impressed with his bull rushing. He did it several times against Jacksonville where he just got up underneath the tackle and drove him into Leftwich. Doesn't go down as a sack or a tip or anything measurable, but definitely affected the play.

Secondly, Mario needs to be more violent with his arms on both the pass rush and in the run game. He is engaged entirely too long with the tackle and just spends too much time "riding" the block instead of disengaging and getting to the quarterback. He needs to rip his inside arm up underneath the armpit of the tackle and lift him up and get by him. Haven't seen that as of yet.

I'd like to see the Texans employ more stunts with Mario as well. In the Jacksonville game, there were several occassions where he looped inside and was working on a center or a guard and they had a lot of trouble handling him. This is the only time I saw them run that stunt.

I'd also like to see the Texans get out of this dropping Mario into "coverage" garbage. He is not a cover guy and our defense has enough trouble conventionally. Zone blitzing is not the winning edge. The TD to Vince Young on Sunday was a blown blitz package. We brought pressure with two linebackers coming to the left side of the offense. Mario dropped into coverage to the side they blitzed to. However, the one linebacker came from the right side of the defense, thus vacating the zone. The defensive end to that side needed to drop, or better yet, Mario needed to be on that side mirroring the QB. Either way, it was a silly blitz that was totally uncalled for. Send Mario and let him get to the QB. Drop someone else!

I think he totally shut down the Jags' run game to his side when he was in. Not really mentioned much, but they ran for about seven yards going to Mario's side that day.

Overall, I would give Mario a B-/C grade with the potential to definitely be an A. I think he is going to be a premier DE in this league and will be a staple of our defense for many years to come.

Me personally, i don't think he absolutely HAS to to be a successful pass rusher. I say this b/c i look at guys like Freeney he just really has one unstopable move & he is extremely successful with that alone. Yeah he might throw in a bull rush every now & then but if you really sit & watch him, he'll do that spin move 3 out of 5 times. Same with Reggie White with his "hump" move. Just for him to develop one really good move, whatever it may be is good enough these days.

The 2nd bolded is where i think he has improved the most believe it or not. His hand work is light years ahead of where it was at the beginning of the year. I don't know just my opinion.
 
Titan "Tack" Fan;485542 said:
8 sacks in one season is very mediocre. I remember a guy by the name of Jevon Kearse that we drafted that had 14.5 his rookie season.

And I remember other DEs that you drafted high, that did not and are NOT doing as well as Mario Williams.

Antwan Odom '04
Travis LaBoy '04
Byron Frisch '00
Kenny Holmes '97
Bryant Mix '96
Anthony Cook '95

:stirpot:
 
I'd give him a solid C- and yes, he is still dissapointing to me so far. His sacks are when DeMeco forced the QB, Weaver got robbed of a sack, and his run down of Young - not in the pocket, but when Young pulled down to run. I really haven't seen him put much heat on the QB or change any plays forcing mistakes or blowing up plays. All his sacks are the by-product of other players changing the play and he is moping up. He is hustling and he disappears for long stretches but I do see flashes of potential...but that's all I see really.

Where have you been, The Jacksonville game the dude was all in Leftwich's face for MOST of the game. The VY sack was ALL him. The reason VY didn't throw it was b/c he got in his face with his hands up to force VY to pull it down & run.
 
Titan "Tack" Fan;485567 said:
He scored two TDs on your precious Texans. Points are more important than yards buddy.

OK, Game saving tipped pass against Miami, Pounced on loose ball against Jax at our 22. Both saving points! Turnabout is fair play. VY, and RB are not taking the NFL by storm either. And that run for a TD against Wash. and us, Hell I could have run those in and I'm 42 with a bum knee. Not to impressive except to a Taks fan or ESPN homer.
 
Titan "Tack" Fan;485542 said:
8 sacks in one season is very mediocre. I remember a guy by the name of Jevon Kearse that we drafted that had 14.5 his rookie season.

That is also what he was drafted for...to be a pass-rusher. Mario was drafted for more reasons than to be a pass rusher; he was drafted to be a complete defensive end, to stuff the run on one play and sack the QB on the next. I'd say Mario is pretty raw as a pass rusher, and I knew this b4 he was drafted. I didn't expect for him to have 3.5 sacks at this point.
 
The 2nd bolded is where i think he has improved the most believe it or not. His hand work is light years ahead of where it was at the beginning of the year. I don't know just my opinion.

I do think he has improved in this area as well. But he still does not use the strength of his arms as much as he should. He also needs to work his leverage a lot better by getting a little lower. This will help him use his strength and maximze whatever move he uses. I'm not a big fan of the spin. What I was referring to would be a stab to the outside after the second step and then ripping across the tackle's face with a hard rip with the outside arm through to the inside armpit of the tackle. The tackle is offbalance passetting for the wide outside rush and can't get the inside foot down quick enough to offer resistance to the inside rush. This is the time when the hands and arms really need to be violent.

I need to get a youtube account or something to put on a link to some game films! I have and practice cutups I have of Warren Sapp in his early days as well as Michael Strahan.

Either way, I think he is going to be a very good one.
 
we have the best pass rush this season than any other. Demeco Ryans is making every play because the d line is tying up the o line and he is free to make plays. Is that a direct reflection from Mario Williams?

I think so, I am not saying all of it...but he has some to do with it. Mario makes running backs change direction and change their mind about where they are going with the ball. I have seen countless times a running back is running and he scrapped very well and was ready to make a huge play, and hte running back just ducks inside for a small gain. Or Mario rips through inside and the running back bounces it out and another teamate gets a tackle for loss.

My point is... he is making an impact... he is making offensive lines double team him, and he is letting his other teammates get sacks. Our defense looks good this season...it really does. One more linebacker and a SS... then wow, we might have a defense that offenses will be afraid to face.
 
You have to look at the entire situation: he is only 21, went to NC State and did not receive the premier coaching like Reggie, VY, DeMeco etc.

I don't know if I would say that...NC State has a good coaching staff, especially on the defensive side of the ball, and to be even more specific their defensive line has been good for a long time now (I would expect from the defensive line coach).
 
I do think he has improved in this area as well. But he still does not use the strength of his arms as much as he should. He also needs to work his leverage a lot better by getting a little lower. This will help him use his strength and maximze whatever move he uses. I'm not a big fan of the spin. What I was referring to would be a stab to the outside after the second step and then ripping across the tackle's face with a hard rip with the outside arm through to the inside armpit of the tackle. The tackle is offbalance passetting for the wide outside rush and can't get the inside foot down quick enough to offer resistance to the inside rush. This is the time when the hands and arms really need to be violent.

I need to get a youtube account or something to put on a link to some game films! I have and practice cutups I have of Warren Sapp in his early days as well as Michael Strahan.

Either way, I think he is going to be a very good one.


Good breakdown, I believe as he gets acclimated it'll come
 
The VY sack showed the level of talent and ability Williams brings to the table.

When he first jumped up to break-up the screen pass to his side forcing VY to not make the throw, then for Williams to collect himself, find VY and chase him down from behind and make the sack!

It was an amazing play that was all him, no one handed him that sack, he earned it.

Also watching him run down RBs from behind that started the play running away from him, also tackling WRs 10 yards down field, this guy is a freak. I'm glad we have him and Kubes is right, he is only getting better each week.

His sack pace is starting to pick up, so I predict to see a true multiple sack game (2 or more sacks) and see him finish with double digit sacks by the seasons end.

Also it seems as Williams is getting better so to is our Defense overall, I think this goes hand-in-hand
 
The VY sack showed the level of talent and ability Williams brings to the table.

When he first jumped up to break-up the screen pass to his side forcing VY to not make the throw, then for Williams to collect himself, find VY and chase him down from behind and make the sack!

It was an amazing play that was all him, no one handed him that sack, he earned it.

Also watching him run down RBs from behind that started the play running away from him, also tackling WRs 10 yards down field, this guy is a freak. I'm glad we have him and Kubes is right, he is only getting better each week.

His sack pace is starting to pick up, so I predict to see a true multiple sack game (2 or more sacks) and see him finish with double digit sacks by the seasons end.

Also it seems as Williams is getting better so to is our Defense overall, I think this goes hand-in-hand

Hey man....shut up talking that logic....
 
mario so far...to me...has proven that he was worth the #1 overall pick. bush has yet to score a td, and young hasn't matched his skill to the nfl level yet. mario has 3.5 sacks (someone correct me if i'm wrong), and i just love his sideline-to-sideline speed. he's getting better getting of the blockers and casing havoc.
 
Well as I'm sure everyone here knows, RB did run back a TD to win the game for the Saints, and I say this in confidence because the next day I saw it on TV upwards of 40 times. Though to me Mario has proven himself worthy of the number 1 pick and i'm very impressed by some of the things he's shown me. The one thing I saw though, that was mentioned before, is that he always seems to be pushed to the outside, not really able to penetrate the middle as much as he did in the 'Ville game.

I really think that he will develop in to a great player, though once he starts to handle double line men on him will be when you'll know for sure.

Anyway where's the game where he has 2967527083.5 sacks? I mean you put Reggie Bush on the D line and it's a given, the QB will literally fall over before the ball is even snapped because he knows of the dominance that is sure to come his way. :rolleyes:
 
The one thing I saw though, that was mentioned before, is that he always seems to be pushed to the outside, not really able to penetrate the middle as much as he did in the 'Ville game.

I don't see the same thing...i see a guy taking outside contain....seeing as how he is the last guy on the outside besides the CB most times....
 
You might be right, being up in NJ and not having the ticket I've only been able to watch a few games and just defensive and offensive highlights of the others, so that's basically what I'm going on. The times I've seen him in actionthough it just seems like he's trying to wrap around the O Line instead of just pushing through.
 
Other than the sack for a 1/2 yard loss, he was reall quiet during the game Sunday. I don't think he made much of an impact. Demeco is much better. Maybe Mario should call Kyle Vanden Bosch and ask for some pointers. :hunter:
 
Technically Mario has 3.5 sacks but wasn't one of those sacks a finger touch on Leftwich who slipped and fell down?
 
Titan "Tack" Fan;485783 said:
Other than the sack for a 1/2 yard loss, he was reall quiet during the game Sunday. I don't think he made much of an impact. Demeco is much better. Maybe Mario should call Kyle Vanden Bosch and ask for some pointers. :hunter:

The entire defense was pretty quiet because they spent the majority of the game on the sideline. Mario recorded 4 solos and a sack, which was the only one of the day. Kind of hard to rack up sacks when you only throw the ball 15 times.
 
Yup, Williams stats might have been double, if Vince threw for 30 passes (no telling how many would have been completed).
 
You might be right, being up in NJ and not having the ticket I've only been able to watch a few games and just defensive and offensive highlights of the others, so that's basically what I'm going on. The times I've seen him in actionthough it just seems like he's trying to wrap around the O Line instead of just pushing through.

On the play he chased TravisWho?? down, he actually split the TE & LT who were trying to block him since the run went that way.
 
Titan "Tack" Fan;485783 said:
Maybe Mario should call Kyle Vanden Bosch and ask for some pointers. :hunter:
The next time Mario gets to line up against Wiegert and rush Carr, I'm sure he'll make that call... :rolleyes:
 
Titan "Tack" Fan;485567 said:
He scored two TDs on your precious Texans. Points are more important than yards buddy.

Umm, 14 points is nowhere near enough to consistantly win in the NFL. If VY lead you to a whole 14 points (half of which came from a drive which started at our 24), the Titans would be winless.
 
Titan "Tack" Fan;485783 said:
Other than the sack for a 1/2 yard loss, he was reall quiet during the game Sunday. I don't think he made much of an impact. Demeco is much better. Maybe Mario should call Kyle Vanden Bosch and ask for some pointers. :hunter:

There were only 15 pass attempts from the Titans, 20 total pass plays if you include the sack and 4 rushes by VY, its not like you guys were going to light up the sky and we knew it. As a result we concentrated on the run and completly shut down Travis Henry, the man was putting up Ron Dayne numbers. Also, like against the Eagles, you'll probably find we tried to respect VY's speed by focusing on outside contain with the DE's, neagating much of the rush. Bottom line defensivley, less then 200 yards, only 14 points allowed, half of which came on a really short field. Not a bad day at all in my opinon, and Mario was a big part of that.
 
There were only 15 pass attempts from the Titans, 20 total pass plays if you include the sack and 4 rushes by VY, its not like you guys were going to light up the sky and we knew it. As a result we concentrated on the run and completly shut down Travis Henry, the man was putting up Ron Dayne numbers. Also, like against the Eagles, you'll probably find we tried to respect VY's speed by focusing on outside contain with the DE's, neagating much of the rush. Bottom line defensivley, less then 200 yards, only 14 points allowed, half of which came on a really short field. Not a bad day at all in my opinon, and Mario was a big part of that.

Both Mario & Babin played Vince's read option perfectly. He gave the ball to Lendale when those guys were on the Tailback side of the play. Peek........ too much energy, didn't stay home, and did exactly what Vince was hoping for.

But Babin did have trouble tackling Lendale.
 
Mario has 3.5 sacks in 7 games...How does Mario weigh up to your expectations?

Not very well. He's played what? 11 games including pre-season. The sacks I've seen were unimpressive. Falling ungracefully onto QB is not my idea of a great play.

Did anyone see Julius Peppers play? That was impressive. Even when he didn't get a sack, you're attention was drawn to him. I saw him engage the lineman, separate himself, then move laterally to the center so fast you could hardly believe your eyes. The QB had to constantly be aware of Peppers. He's a distraction to the opponent.

I have yet to see a Mario play that amazed or impressed me. It should be obvious by now that Mario was NOT the most talented player in the draft. You're not supposed to use a #1 pick on a project, but we're stuck with him now. I just hope he turns into something special one day, but right now I'm disappointed.

Too bad he doesn't get paid to do cone drills. I hear he's the best.
 
Not very well. He's played what? 11 games including pre-season. The sacks I've seen were unimpressive. Falling ungracefully onto QB is not my idea of a great play.

Did anyone see Julius Peppers play? That was impressive. Even when he didn't get a sack, you're attention was drawn to him. I saw him engage the lineman, separate himself, then move laterally to the center so fast you could hardly believe your eyes. The QB had to constantly be aware of Peppers. He's a distraction to the opponent.

I have yet to see a Mario play that amazed or impressed me. It should be obvious by now that Mario was NOT the most talented player in the draft. You're not supposed to use a #1 pick on a project, but we're stuck with him now. I just hope he turns into something special one day, but right now I'm disappointed.

Too bad he doesn't get paid to do cone drills. I hear he's the best.

Statistically, Mario's stats in college were very similar to Pepper's.
Despite being a true junior instead of a red shirt junior like Peppers. And having three defensive coordinators in three years.

Stats don't tell everything of course, but it is misleading to imply that he is just a workout warrior. You read the newspapers of the franchises that had the top picks in this draft and the papers were raving over the prospect of getting Williams prior to the draft.
 
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