Which 2 defensive players do I franchise (1 Viewer)

[eddy13]

Hey Guys I need to pick 2 players to franchise...... Scoring System is 1 point per solo tackle and 1 point per assist... Also 7 points are awarded to sacks,15 points to picks and fumble forced are 5 , recoveries 3,... Also Linebackers gets bonus points for 10 tackle games at 5, linemen get 3 bonus points for 5 tackles and dbs get 5 bonus points for 8 tackles.. Also there is a 2 sack bonus point for everyone worth 5 points and 2 ints are worth 10 bonus points...

My question is if you had 2 players to franchise who would it be ,, L Fletcher, Charles Grant, Rodney Harrison, Shayne Merriman or Lemar Marshall

 

[Mr. Know-It-All]

Hey Guys I need to pick 2 players to franchise...... Scoring System is 1 point per solo tackle and 1 point per assist... Also 7 points are awarded to sacks,15 points to picks and fumble forced are 5 , recoveries 3,... Also Linebackers gets bonus points for 10 tackle games at 5, linemen get 3 bonus points for 5 tackles and dbs get 5 bonus points for 8 tackles.. Also there is a 2 sack bonus point for everyone worth 5 points and 2 ints are worth 10 bonus points...

My question is if you had 2 players to franchise who would it be ,, L Fletcher, Charles Grant, Rodney Harrison, Shayne Merriman or Lemar Marshall

Grant and Merriman would be my choices. harrison is at the end of the road and while Fletcher and marshall are decent, I really like Grant and Merriman will be a beast.

 

[sheetstainer]

Hey Guys I need to pick 2 players to franchise...... Scoring System is 1 point per solo tackle and 1 point per assist... Also 7 points are awarded to sacks,15 points to picks and fumble forced are 5 , recoveries 3,... Also Linebackers gets bonus points for 10 tackle games at 5, linemen get 3 bonus points for 5 tackles and dbs get 5 bonus points for 8 tackles.. Also there is a 2 sack bonus point for everyone worth 5 points and 2 ints are worth 10 bonus points...

My question is if you had 2 players to franchise who would it be ,, L Fletcher, Charles Grant, Rodney Harrison, Shayne Merriman or Lemar Marshall

Because of age, i would go with Merriman for sure. After that I would probably rank them Fletcher, Grant, Harrison, Marshall.

 

[cr8f]

I'd go Fletcher and Merriman, then Grant who will rebound this year.

 

[Weiner Dog]

I'm assuming you're required to start 2-3 DL, 3-4 LB and 3-4 DB, right?? Please let me know if this is not correct.

Your have a unique league where sacks are worth 7x more than tackles (both solo and assist). This makes Grant a lock as one of your keepers.

IMO, it now comes down to Fletcher or Merriman (...Harrison is simply too old and too big of gamble, and I don't think Marshall will be a long-term starter in the NFL). With Merriman's youth and high number of sacks, he seems like the logical pick. Well...he's not. Fletcher's enormous number of tackles simply dwarfs Merriman's value. If you apply your scoring system to both players last year, Fletcher averaged more than 15 pts/game while Merriman still could not eclipse 10 pts/game. If I had to guess, probably 25+ LB's outscored Merriman in your league last year.

If Merriman stays at his same position (rush OLB) in the same defensive scheme (3-4), he will never be a 100+ tackle guy. Sure...10+ sacks on an annual basis will be doable, but his tackle upside is maybe 70-80 (in a monster year). Trade Merriman while his hype supercedes his value.

Keep Grant and Fletcher.

On a side note, why does your league award 5 pts for a forced fumble but only 3 pts for a fumble recovery?? Makes no sense. One would think a change of possession would be worth more than a potential change of possession.

 

[pretender]

Dog makes a good point but I think I would still go with Merriman and Grant. There is alot of talk that Merriman is the exception to the rule and even in the spot he plays I think the amount of sacks and the high points you get for them and the tackles he'll make will make you happy you took him over Fletcher. Maybe you can trade the rights to Fletcher and get a good draft pick for him?

 

[Achilles]

Merriman and Grant without a question.

I would not trade Merriman for nothing short of a ridiculous offer.

 

[tkrull]

I like Fletcher and Grant.

 

[Tick]

With those rules, I can't see doing anything other than Grant and Merriman.

 

[Weiner Dog]

OK...everybody needs to get their calculators out on this one.

Let's assume Merriman is the All-World of Everything for OLB's playing in a 3-4 scheme. To be "fair", I'll even compare him to the greatest 3-4 OLB in the history of the NFL...Lawrence Taylor.

Ignoring Taylor's down seasons ('91-'93) and only focusing on Taylor's Pro-Bowl seasons, Taylor averaged 0.88 sacks per game. Keep in mind...these are the best seasons of the best player of all time playing OLB in a 3-4 scheme. Also keep in mind...this is before the NFL knew how to defend a LB with Taylor's athleticism.

Let's be kind and apply these numbers to Merriman. OK...great. Merriman will average 14 sacks/season (0.88 sacks per game x 16 games) over the next decade. Why next decade?? B/c Taylor made the Pro-Bowl 10 straight times and the above-referenced 0.88 sacks/game are used from these years. In eddy13's league, Merriman will score 98 pts per season on sacks alone (assuming he doesn't get hurt).

Now...let's jump back to Fletcher. Fletcher scored 186 pts last year on just tackles and sacks. How in the heck is Merriman going to overcome the 88 pt deficit (98 - 186) he's in?? He had 57 total tackles last year, but you're still 31 pts short (57 - 88). Sure, you can sprinkle a few FF's and fumble recoveries, but one fact remains...

Merriman will have to average Lawrence Taylor's best seasons to even have a chance of equaling the scoring of a 140-150 tackle LB in eddy13's scoring system.

Don't get me wrong. Merriman is a monster. He's a freak. It's just unfortunate he plays a position where Joey Porter-like stats (50-60 tackles and 7-10 sacks) are the upside...

...unless Merriman is LT reincarnated. :X

 

[Crippler]

I agree with Weiner who did an outstanding analysis. Merriman while looking attractive is probably never going to be a fantasy force. I would trade him right now as his value is so high as the one guy who mentioned it would take a silly offer to get him from him and see if you cant get a player like AJ Hawk instead to keep or someone like this and throw Fletcher to the wayside also. Or if you think it is only a 2 keeper D side and they overall are a dime a dozen than you keep Fletcher and enjoy the points and worry about a second keeper down the road. Either option is a good option. Merriman while a great NFL player is a mediocre D player. Even in a system that favors sacks and special plays huge.

 

[Tick]

OK...everybody needs to get their calculators out on this one.

Let's assume Merriman is the All-World of Everything for OLB's playing in a 3-4 scheme. To be "fair", I'll even compare him to the greatest 3-4 OLB in the history of the NFL...Lawrence Taylor.

Ignoring Taylor's down seasons ('91-'93) and only focusing on Taylor's Pro-Bowl seasons, Taylor averaged 0.88 sacks per game. Keep in mind...these are the best seasons of the best player of all time playing OLB in a 3-4 scheme. Also keep in mind...this is before the NFL knew how to defend a LB with Taylor's athleticism.

Let's be kind and apply these numbers to Merriman. OK...great. Merriman will average 14 sacks/season (0.88 sacks per game x 16 games) over the next decade. Why next decade?? B/c Taylor made the Pro-Bowl 10 straight times and the above-referenced 0.88 sacks/game are used from these years. In eddy13's league, Merriman will score 98 pts per season on sacks alone (assuming he doesn't get hurt).

Now...let's jump back to Fletcher. Fletcher scored 186 pts last year on just tackles and sacks. How in the heck is Merriman going to overcome the 88 pt deficit (98 - 186) he's in?? He had 57 total tackles last year, but you're still 31 pts short (57 - 88). Sure, you can sprinkle a few FF's and fumble recoveries, but one fact remains...

Merriman will have to average Lawrence Taylor's best seasons to even have a chance of equaling the scoring of a 140-150 tackle LB in eddy13's scoring system.

Don't get me wrong. Merriman is a monster. He's a freak. It's just unfortunate he plays a position where Joey Porter-like stats (50-60 tackles and 7-10 sacks) are the upside...

...unless Merriman is LT reincarnated. :X

Good analysis, but career length and contract situation have to be considered. Fletcher could take a Jamie Sharper dive off the FF cliff next season if he's not back with the Bills.