Who converts to DE in 2019? (1 Viewer)

 Coaches get fired, teams change schemes... who’s a 3-4 OLB or DE on waiver wires who could become a decent 4-3 DE next season?

Looking through the 3-4 teams, I see the following that could have a new coach next season:

• Denver (Chubb, VMiller, SRay)
  
• Green Bay (Matthews, Perry, Fackrell)
  
• Baltimore (Suggs, ZaDarius, TWilliams)
  
• Jets (Copeland, Jenkins, Attaochu)
  

I only listed the OLBs... could any of the 3-4 DEs on those teams be productive in a 4-3?

Hopefully, Jadaveon Clowney, he is a free agent I believe

Okwara will be a DE on MFL after they botched his designation for this season.

Young 8 said:

Okwara will be a DE on MFL after they botched his designation for this season.

Click to expand...

Was just posting this.  ?

What's the situation with Olivier Vernon? I just grabbed him off waivers as a LB, in a rebuild and desperate for a LB that played (bye weeks). Any chance for future DE classification?

Ranethe said:

What's the situation with Olivier Vernon? I just grabbed him off waivers as a LB, in a rebuild and desperate for a LB that played (bye weeks). Any chance for future DE classification?

Click to expand...

https://www.bigblueview.com/2018/8/29/17795750/odell-beckham-contract-has-serious-2019-cap-ramifications-for-ny-giants-eli-manning-janoris-jenkins

Olivier Vernon — The defensive end will be in the fourth season of his five-year, $85 million deal. The last $12 million of his guaranteed $40 million is being paid this season. Vernon is unlikely to go anywhere next season. Sure, the Giants could save $11.5 million against the cap by cutting him. They would, however, carry a massive $8 million is dead money. They aren’t doing that.

Click to expand...

So, probably still a Giant next season, and since their coaches are in their first year, there's a decent chance they don't change schemes... so Vernon is probably stuck at LB next season.

Tick said:

https://www.bigblueview.com/2018/8/29/17795750/odell-beckham-contract-has-serious-2019-cap-ramifications-for-ny-giants-eli-manning-janoris-jenkins

So, probably still a Giant next season, and since their coaches are in their first year, there's a decent chance they don't change schemes... so Vernon is probably stuck at LB next season.

Click to expand...

Bummer. Thank you for the info.

Chubb, yes.  At 6'3 245 I can't imagine Shane Ray plays end.  He's a free agent too.  So, if a 4-3 guy comes in then he's out and signs with a team that runs at least some 3-4.  I'm just gonna assume Von Miller is already on a roster.

A new head coach in Green Bay could certainly lead to a DC change, but Pettine is good at what he does so he seems like a strong candidate to stick around no matter what happens above him.  Fackrell and Perry could be worthwhile enough, but I'd prioritize others first.  Especially because both strike me as better OLB's than ends anyway.

Tim Williams falls into a similar boat as Ray - too small to play end.   

Za'Darius Smith is a more interesting add because he is a free agent.  Not because of a potential (likely?) regime change.

Suggs is gonna be 37 years old.  I think he's more likely to retire than be an interesting play in 2019.

Attachou's teased long enough without doing anything of substance - pass.  And he's behind at best a rotational guy in Copeland.  

I could see speculating on Jenkins if you just look at his situation, but I think that's more in the Fackrell/Perry neighborhood.  Gonna be difficult for the Jets to flip to 4-3 given their current personnel.  If they do it'll probably strike me as square peg-round hole.  Which is also what I think Jenkins would be if they tried him out at end.

I wouldn't totally dismiss Vernon ending up back as a DE.  The Giants defense has been (predictably) somewhere between mediocre and bad and Shurmur may need a scapegoat to get the attention away from his shoddy offense and buy another year.  Not likely, but it's certainly possible.

Clowney is gonna get franchise tagged as an OLB then his fight with the Texans about it is going to be fugly.

Speaking of franchise tags, I imagine Dee Ford is getting one.  And even if he didn't (probably a cap thing) he'd probably go somewhere else to play OLB.  Because I'm not sure he can hold up as an end either.  But there's at least some what if there.

---

So, Chubb and Z Smith would top my list.  I'd be mildly surprised if Chubb is available though.  Plan C...it's quite a big drop off.  I guess I'd rather deal with the Clowney headache than chase the many what-if's that surround Fackrell and Perry.  And I'd probably lean towards the Vernon then Ford long shots over the Packers as well.  But I'd more likely just ignore all of them.

Thanks for the thorough post, @MAC_32