Early LB Rankings (1 Viewer)

[kerpow]

Curious as to why DJ Williams was so low at #31. One of only 5 guys to get 100 solos :whoosh:

My league only awards 1pt for solo, none for an assist. Perhaps thats why.

 

[Jene Bramel]

Curious as to why DJ Williams was so low at #31. One of only 5 guys to get 100 solos My league only awards 1pt for solo, none for an assist. Perhaps thats why.

The current consensus from the local media is that Williams will be moved to an OLB position. Williams had a very nice stretch at WLB during his rookie year, but it's still tough to project him to 90+ solos until we see what his role will be. 31 may be a little low, but I'm a tier guy. As I posted earlier in the thread, that tier is a big one -- anyone in the 21-35 range could be a solid LB2-elite LB3. If Williams cements a MLB spot, he'll rank in the upper teens.

 

[Tick]

The current consensus from the local media is that Williams will be moved to an OLB position. Williams had a very nice stretch at WLB during his rookie year, but it's still tough to project him to 90+ solos until we see what his role will be. 31 may be a little low, but I'm a tier guy. As I posted earlier in the thread, that tier is a big one -- anyone in the 21-35 range could be a solid LB2-elite LB3. If Williams cements a MLB spot, he'll rank in the upper teens.

The first half of your post makes perfect sense, but the last sentence surprises me.If Williams cements a MLB spot, how does he slip all the way to the upper teens after finishing 9th last year in Zealots, mostly based on tackles? He was billed as an elite athlete, he'd be at the premiere position, coming off a very good first year at the position. If he's the MLB, I'd put him more like 8th than 18th.

 

[Jene Bramel]

The current consensus from the local media is that Williams will be moved to an OLB position. Williams had a very nice stretch at WLB during his rookie year, but it's still tough to project him to 90+ solos until we see what his role will be. 31 may be a little low, but I'm a tier guy. As I posted earlier in the thread, that tier is a big one -- anyone in the 21-35 range could be a solid LB2-elite LB3. If Williams cements a MLB spot, he'll rank in the upper teens.

The first half of your post makes perfect sense, but the last sentence surprises me.If Williams cements a MLB spot, how does he slip all the way to the upper teens after finishing 9th last year in Zealots, mostly based on tackles? He was billed as an elite athlete, he'd be at the premiere position, coming off a very good first year at the position. If he's the MLB, I'd put him more like 8th than 18th.

I think we're probably on the same page. Again, to me, we're splitting hairs in many cases within tiers. 7 KIRK MORRISON8 JONATHAN VILMA9 BRIAN URLACHER10 ZACH THOMAS11 NICK BARNETT12 MIKE PETERSON13 RAY LEWIS14 ANTONIO PIERCE15 KARLOS DANSBY16 LOFA TATUPU17 WILL WITHERSPOON18 EJ HENDERSON19 LANCE BRIGGS20 ERNIE SIMSBy upper teens, I was thinking 11-13 when I glanced back at my list. But, you're correct, on closer inspection, it'd be a couple rungs higher than that. If I knew for certain today that Williams had beaten out the current competition to stay at MLB, I'd trust him over Peterson and Lewis and Pierce. But from Morrison through Barnett, I don't see much difference. All have 105 solo potential, all have the ability to throw in some big plays.I know the tiering doesn't show through on the rank pages, and that's most of the reason to have these discussion threads. It forces me to think about the differences in the top and bottom of each of my tiers and make the finished product as close to a true cheatsheet as possible.

 

[BearsFan]

The current consensus from the local media is that Williams will be moved to an OLB position. Williams had a very nice stretch at WLB during his rookie year, but it's still tough to project him to 90+ solos until we see what his role will be. 31 may be a little low, but I'm a tier guy. As I posted earlier in the thread, that tier is a big one -- anyone in the 21-35 range could be a solid LB2-elite LB3. If Williams cements a MLB spot, he'll rank in the upper teens.

The first half of your post makes perfect sense, but the last sentence surprises me.If Williams cements a MLB spot, how does he slip all the way to the upper teens after finishing 9th last year in Zealots, mostly based on tackles? He was billed as an elite athlete, he'd be at the premiere position, coming off a very good first year at the position. If he's the MLB, I'd put him more like 8th than 18th.

I think we're probably on the same page. Again, to me, we're splitting hairs in many cases within tiers. 7 KIRK MORRISON8 JONATHAN VILMA9 BRIAN URLACHER10 ZACH THOMAS11 NICK BARNETT12 MIKE PETERSON13 RAY LEWIS14 ANTONIO PIERCE15 KARLOS DANSBY16 LOFA TATUPU17 WILL WITHERSPOON18 EJ HENDERSON19 LANCE BRIGGS20 ERNIE SIMSBy upper teens, I was thinking 11-13 when I glanced back at my list. But, you're correct, on closer inspection, it'd be a couple rungs higher than that. If I knew for certain today that Williams had beaten out the current competition to stay at MLB, I'd trust him over Peterson and Lewis and Pierce. But from Morrison through Barnett, I don't see much difference. All have 105 solo potential, all have the ability to throw in some big plays.I know the tiering doesn't show through on the rank pages, and that's most of the reason to have these discussion threads. It forces me to think about the differences in the top and bottom of each of my tiers and make the finished product as close to a true cheatsheet as possible.

Even if he plays WLB, I still see him as top 20.

 

[Toads]

Help, please:

1.) Redraft rank (Jene: 3/19) for Harris, David is #3

2.) Dynasty rank (Borbely: 3/09) for Harris, David is #18.

Why is the long term outlook dimmer than the short term outlook?

Borbely Dazed? Dict In The Knob?

:crystallball: ?

 

[Jene Bramel]

Help, please:1.) Redraft rank (Jene: 3/19) for Harris, David is #32.) Dynasty rank (Borbely: 3/09) for Harris, David is #18.Why is the long term outlook dimmer than the short term outlook?Borbely Dazed? Dict In The Knob?:crystallball: ?

My dynasty rankings would look an awful lot like the redraft rankings; I believe in a pretty small dynasty window for the most part given that so much is dependent on scheme and opportunity. There seems no sense in dismissing a DJ Williams v. early 2007 in the dynasty rankings because he may not stay in his current role and giving up a potential top ten season.I may have Harris too high in the grand scheme of things, but he's still far and away the best tackling option in a front seven that's likely to be on the field a lot.I'll be interested to hear what Tony thinks.

 

[ditka85]

Jene,

Bullock REALLY dropped in your rankings. Do see last year as more of the norm here on out? I'd like to believe it was more of a fluke.

 

[Jene Bramel]

Jene,Bullock REALLY dropped in your rankings. Do see last year as more of the norm here on out? I'd like to believe it was more of a fluke.

I think it's definitely a fluke, but I'm having trouble trusting that he'll get back to the 90+ solo plateau. So he's in that fourth tier of LB2-high LB3 types for me. The top of that tier starts around the 21 slot. It's very possible, however, that I'm falling prey to the same error I did with Barnett last year (who I left too low despite a strong feeling that 2006 was a mess). I didn't see a major decline in Bulluck's talent during the second half of 2007, but there's this nagging doubt that he's no longer the player he once was since he wasn't injured and had a solid set of DTs in front of him (unlike Barnett).There's definitely an argument to move him up to that 12-20 tier.

 

[Anthony Borbely]

Help, please:1.) Redraft rank (Jene: 3/19) for Harris, David is #32.) Dynasty rank (Borbely: 3/09) for Harris, David is #18.Why is the long term outlook dimmer than the short term outlook?Borbely Dazed? Dict In The Knob?:crystallball: ?

My dynasty rankings would look an awful lot like the redraft rankings; I believe in a pretty small dynasty window for the most part given that so much is dependent on scheme and opportunity. There seems no sense in dismissing a DJ Williams v. early 2007 in the dynasty rankings because he may not stay in his current role and giving up a potential top ten season.I may have Harris too high in the grand scheme of things, but he's still far and away the best tackling option in a front seven that's likely to be on the field a lot.I'll be interested to hear what Tony thinks.

I think the Jets offense is going to be quite a bit better this year, especially the run game with the addition of Faneca. Even if they aren't as good, I expect them to have the ball more on offense and also expect their games to be closer. Last year, their opponents ran more than 500 times. I think that number will drop some this year, which will lower the opportunities for Harris.One other factor is that I have Harris a little lower on the talent scale, so that is part of the overall ranking.

 

[Toads]

Help, please:1.) Redraft rank (Jene: 3/19) for Harris, David is #32.) Dynasty rank (Borbely: 3/09) for Harris, David is #18.Why is the long term outlook dimmer than the short term outlook?Borbely Dazed? Dict In The Knob?:crystallball: ?

My dynasty rankings would look an awful lot like the redraft rankings; I believe in a pretty small dynasty window for the most part given that so much is dependent on scheme and opportunity. There seems no sense in dismissing a DJ Williams v. early 2007 in the dynasty rankings because he may not stay in his current role and giving up a potential top ten season.I may have Harris too high in the grand scheme of things, but he's still far and away the best tackling option in a front seven that's likely to be on the field a lot.I'll be interested to hear what Tony thinks.

I think the Jets offense is going to be quite a bit better this year, especially the run game with the addition of Faneca. Even if they aren't as good, I expect them to have the ball more on offense and also expect their games to be closer. Last year, their opponents ran more than 500 times. I think that number will drop some this year, which will lower the opportunities for Harris.One other factor is that I have Harris a little lower on the talent scale, so that is part of the overall ranking.

Good explanation. Thanks, Anthony.Are you a "tiered slotter" too? Is Harris in a slot in your rankings....say the top of the third tier of your rankings? Or, do you see him as being at the bottom of maybe the second tier with some upside potential?

 

[Anthony Borbely]

Help, please:1.) Redraft rank (Jene: 3/19) for Harris, David is #32.) Dynasty rank (Borbely: 3/09) for Harris, David is #18.Why is the long term outlook dimmer than the short term outlook?Borbely Dazed? Dict In The Knob?:crystallball: ?

My dynasty rankings would look an awful lot like the redraft rankings; I believe in a pretty small dynasty window for the most part given that so much is dependent on scheme and opportunity. There seems no sense in dismissing a DJ Williams v. early 2007 in the dynasty rankings because he may not stay in his current role and giving up a potential top ten season.I may have Harris too high in the grand scheme of things, but he's still far and away the best tackling option in a front seven that's likely to be on the field a lot.I'll be interested to hear what Tony thinks.

I think the Jets offense is going to be quite a bit better this year, especially the run game with the addition of Faneca. Even if they aren't as good, I expect them to have the ball more on offense and also expect their games to be closer. Last year, their opponents ran more than 500 times. I think that number will drop some this year, which will lower the opportunities for Harris.One other factor is that I have Harris a little lower on the talent scale, so that is part of the overall ranking.

Good explanation. Thanks, Anthony.Are you a "tiered slotter" too? Is Harris in a slot in your rankings....say the top of the third tier of your rankings? Or, do you see him as being at the bottom of maybe the second tier with some upside potential?

I slot by tiers, and he is near the bottom of his currently. These rankings this early are tough and I am pretty liberal with the size of the tiers right now compared to later. He could be ranked from 12-20 or whatever and it still be the right rankings. And also consider my rankings are dynasty rankings. I'd probably have him a little higher in redraft.

 

[womb]

I may have Harris too high in the grand scheme of things, but he's still far and away the best tackling option in a front seven that's likely to be on the field a lot.

I hate to say this, but with that revamped OL that offense looks to be staying on the field significantly longer - especially if they are leading in the 2nd half of games. And if they get a good DL or DL/LB, we can see more three-and-outs than we did last year - way more.

 

[Phil4]

What about Paul DiGiorgio ? What can we expect for him ?

 

[Zoomanji]

What about Paul DiGiorgio ? What can we expect for him ?

John DiGiorgio?Back to the bench.Crowell, Poz and Kawika Mitchell will start.Ellison and DiG. will come off the bench

 

[kerpow]

Any thoughts on how the rankings would be affected by low tackle scoring. Ours is 1pt for solos only, so while its great to get a MLB with 90-100 solos per season, the guys that make big plays can compensate.

Wait for IDP Cheatsheet?

 

[Jene Bramel]

Any thoughts on how the rankings would be affected by low tackle scoring. Ours is 1pt for solos only, so while its great to get a MLB with 90-100 solos per season, the guys that make big plays can compensate.Wait for IDP Cheatsheet?

It's all relative. What are the points for sacks, FF, INT and PD? If you're getting a ratio of 5:1 for sacks and INT, you need to bump the ILBs that blitz and the rush OLB and drop the ILB and WLB that don't cover well or rush on passing downs.

 

[bcr8f]

What about Paul DiGiorgio ? What can we expect for him ?

John DiGiorgio?Back to the bench.Crowell, Poz and Kawika Mitchell will start.Ellison and DiG. will come off the bench

Yeah sounds about right. Any chance Ellison becomea a safety?

 

[Jene Bramel]

What about Paul DiGiorgio ? What can we expect for him ?

John DiGiorgio?Back to the bench.Crowell, Poz and Kawika Mitchell will start.Ellison and DiG. will come off the bench

Yeah sounds about right. Any chance Ellison becomea a safety?

Probably not. He didn't earn his keep as a cover LB well enough to stay on in the nickel, and he'd have to cover more territory in the backfield. I suppose it's possible he could become a swing player (like Coy Wire), but it'd be a backup at best.

 

[BearsFan]

If I recall, the following older thread was followed by some later analysis by Jene where he'd found that Wilhelm was the highest 2-down LB on the list in terms of team tackle %.

What's changed on the Matt Wilhelm front in SDC to warrant #23 in redraft? Is that based on 2-down or 3-down?

Dynasty ranking for him is much lower. ...Trying to reconcile the two rankings.

 

[JPeso]

What about Paul DiGiorgio ? What can we expect for him ?

John DiGiorgio?Back to the bench.

Crowell, Poz and Kawika Mitchell will start.

Ellison and DiG. will come off the bench

Make him an obvious drop, even in tackle-heavy leagues?

 

[Jene Bramel]

If I recall, the following older thread was followed by some later analysis by Jene where he'd found that Wilhelm was the highest 2-down LB on the list in terms of team tackle %.

What's changed on the Matt Wilhelm front in SDC to warrant #23 in redraft? Is that based on 2-down or 3-down?

Dynasty ranking for him is much lower. ...Trying to reconcile the two rankings.

Wilhelm seems way too high to me.

Until I hear that Anthony Waters is fully healthy and challenging for the job, I'm projecting Wilhelm is the man. With Weddle now starting and Florence elsewhere, I think Wilhelm gets many more nickel snaps (less dime from the Chargers) than last season. Missing a number of nickel snaps last year, Wilhelm still projected to 85 solos and was better in coverage on base downs than expected. Cottrell played more 2-gap than Phillips did, but I think Wilhelm has a shot at 90 solos this year.

 

[Zoomanji]

What about Paul DiGiorgio ? What can we expect for him ?

John DiGiorgio?Back to the bench.

Crowell, Poz and Kawika Mitchell will start.

Ellison and DiG. will come off the bench

Make him an obvious drop, even in tackle-heavy leagues?

Yup unless one of those 3 get hurt, he won't see the field.I am kind of enjoying watching guys bid on him in some of my RFAs that are going on now.

 

[biggamer3]

Jene any hope for Stephen Tullock to get real playing time?

I thought he was a top notch tackler coming into the NFL

 

[Jene Bramel]

Jene any hope for Stephen Tullock to get real playing time?I thought he was a top notch tackler coming into the NFL

Not with Fowler still in the picture and the unlikelihood of him fitting into the nickel picture with Bulluck/Thornton around. Certainly not a good sign that he couldn't keep the team from signing Fowler to the RFA deal and then being unable to force himself back into the picture. Hard to say whether he'll end up more like Shelton Quarles or Alfred Fincher.

 

[biggamer3]

Jene for the future who would you rather have Tullock or Gerald Hayes?

 

[Jene Bramel]

Jene for the future who would you rather have Tullock or Gerald Hayes?

Future is a difficult term for me. I don't know that it's appropriate to look more than one season into the future for middle of the road talents. So, it'd be Hayes for me. He's proven himself a capable every down backer in a multiple front defense while Tulloch has yet to beat out a replacement level plugger for full time, base defensive down only snaps.