FB playing defense? (1 Viewer)

[Bri]

This time of year there's always articles about these different prospects being switched to different positions.

I know Dan Klecko played some FB, DT, LB, TE and pretty much whatever else his coaches asked him to do. Maybe it was just in camp, maybe in games...whatever. I can't think of any besides him and the son of a former NFL NY legend can certainly be an exception here.

My Q is, why don't teams try and convert college FBs to defense?

FBs are rarely drafted, but 1-3 most years while some years none have been drafted. So I am talking about the best college FBs, not FBs in general but the best.

I have little doubt that the top FBs could really lay some smashing hit like a safety does.

I would imagine if they flip-flopped the field and were playing LB or S, that they could comprehend the play developing, where the holes are, to hit them and attack and...everything it is about being a LB or S.

There is often a pretentious notion this time of year that it's so easy to switch sides of the ball.

 

[coolnerd]

There have been a couple of guys switch back and forth with spencer at Denver being the one that has done ok coming to mind.

The answer to me is two fold

1) Modern college offenses really are not using very many FBs. FB is the place where guys go when they some combination of too slow to play RB, too short to be a TE, and w/o the lateral movement to be a LB. This leads to the 2nd problem

2) athleticism. Safety is out of the question in the modern game. The in the box thumper safety( what a FB would covert to)is nearly non-existent. Safeties need to have lateral movement and some ability to flip thier hips and run with WRs these days and generall the 5'11 235 dude's strong point is not in the open field. The conversion to ILB is the most common one, but even then I contend that the FB is not already there because quickness and lateral movement. I don't think anticipation skills/ knowledge of offenses alone make up for physical inability.