I think you're a little off on a couple of things. Linval Joseph is an elite 4-3 nose tackle, Robison is an elite 4-3 DE, and Griffen has put up massive numbers relative to the amount of work he's put in. Giving him a shot in a full-time role only makes sense for us, and while he hasn't actually proven anything in the starting role, he has proven himself as a pass rusher. As for Floyd, I'm not that worried about him. He has a lot of physical talent, he only stands to improve on his technique by the time the season rolls around, and playing next to a legit nose tackle in a scheme that should make good use of his skill set ought to help him out a lot.Eli wrote:I'll believe it when I see it. I certainly don't see much of an upgrade in talent. Linval Joseph is a 2nd or 3rd tier defensive tackle in this league. And it puts a lot of hope in the development of Sharrif Floyd. The only thing I see as improvements are that they're getting younger and maybe more balanced with a true nose tackle in Joseph. Brian Robison is a solid, if unspectacular DE and Everson Griffen is still a long way from proving himself to be an elite pass rusher in a full time role.
Overall, I can't say we have the #1 defensive line, but I definitely think that it has elite potential written all over it. Getting Joseph was absolutely huge.
Coach Zimmer is very involved in the process of who he wants and doesn't want. If he likes Griffen, I'm sure he's confident that he can fit him in with the scheme.Demi wrote:That's my question. Once teams start game planning against him as a full time starter. Can he even have the success he's had as a part time pass rusher? The talking heads like to bring up how Zimmer's defense is "stop the run" first for ends, is this going to be an issue? And once he's full time on the outside, is he going to be smothered regularly? Especially on rushing downs when he can't just focus solely on his quickness and explosiveness at the snap? We'll see but seems a pretty big question considering his contract and how he'll likely get a majority of the snaps, even with the signings.