91 replies to this topic

[KillerBirds11]

Ok all ive been hearing is that the eagles personnell are not a good fit for a 34 defense. Well im here to argue that.. We have 4 3-4 Lb's on our roster, Ryans-Kendricks-Matthews-Graham.. Theyve all played in a 3-4 before. Fletcher Cox was projected as a 3-4 DE coming out of college and theres absolutely no reason he cant make the switch. Jenkins played 3-4 DE in green bay and played great.  Graham is a perfect fit for a 34 OLB.

Now the #4 overall pick is ours. Youve got 2 options if you want to go defense and bolster this 34 D. 1- Star Lotuleli , monster DT who everyone projects as a 3-4 NT. If he is gone by #4 than you go option 2- Jarvis Jones- Monster OLB/DE hybrid out of Georgia to start at OLB. Than grab a Big NT in rd 2 or 3. Most likely than you trade Trent Cole, maybe for a NT, maybe for a Safety, but if you take Jarvis than its a MUST you trade Cole to fill a different need.

Now take a look at your D the way I am seeing it.. as the roster stands now + draft.

LDE - Cox.....NT-Lotuleli or- rd2/3 draft pick....RDE- Jenkins (Backups- Landri, Dixon, Thornton)
LOLB- Graham.... ILB- Kendricks, Ryans......ROLB- ? (Jarvis Jones? or Cole?trade?FA?) (Backups- Curry,Matthews,Chaney,Tapp)


Now Looking at that 7 man Front, i see a question mark at either NT or ROLB, because you cant draft Star and Jarvis both.. so something needs to happen. There are a couple other good NTs who can be had in round 2 or 3. I think with whoever our new DCord is who is going to know the 34 D, and this lineup as it stands now is a good fit. Than you still have the rest of the draft, and trades and FA to go through.


There really is NO PROBLEM IF WE SWITCH TO A 3-4. So people need to chill. All i hear on the radio is these idiots saying it cant work bc we dont have the personnell, but yes we do.

[VaBeach_Eagle]

3-4, 4-3... 2-9, I don't care what we run as long as we win.

[Sean Jerz]

VaBeach_Eagle, on 25 January 2013 - 06:18 PM, said:

3-4, 4-3... 2-9, I don't care what we run as long as we win.

2-9.......lmao!

[VaBeach_Eagle]

Sean Jerz, on 25 January 2013 - 06:24 PM, said:

2-9.......lmao!

You don't think that would work?

[macgregor]

Sean Jerz, on 25 January 2013 - 06:24 PM, said:

2-9.......lmao!

I'd use it against Reid in the red zone when he goes empty backfield.

I just don't want us to have to junk talent to go to a 3-4 and I never said we had to. if we can do it with what we have or can acquire, I'm all for it. One question though, wasn't our primary defensive stud Demeco Ryans acquired because he didn't want to play in a 3-4?

[FanSinceWayBack]

VaBeach_Eagle, on 25 January 2013 - 06:26 PM, said:

You don't think that would work?

We dont have 1 good person in the secondary let alot 9 .. Unless the 9 represents the LB's ... if thats the case ... I see no problems

[Hypocrisy]

When arguing a point... spelling the word ARGUMENT correctly makes you look like you can do it efficiently... FYI.

[Golfesv]

I think this a valid point and I am intrigued about switching to a 3-4. Does anyone have video of the hybrid that some teams are using I am not sure I grasp it. Watching a video would help rather than someone explaining it.

[jonnyeagles12]

I think this team could make the transition to 3-4 a lot quicker then people think.

You can't just take one NT in the draft and expect him to play every snap, he could get injured week 1... So depth could be an issue.

[GoEagles614]

You've missed one point. You need run stuffing MLBs who won't miss tackles.

Big guys that won't get pushed back, and can get through the right hole to stop runs.

I'm not confident in any of them in that respect.

[Hypocrisy]

The 3-4/ 4-3 hybrid is basically just switching alignments based on down and distance... on run downs you would want to have the 4-3 alignment to fill the gaps in the line... on passing downs you would want the 3-4 alignment to provide a pass rush that could come from anywhere... We have the Smallish D linemen... the DT's could play end in the 3-4 and the DE's could play rushing LB's... all we would need, would be a BIG DT or two to play the Nose in the 3-4... Thornton is one... if you draft a guy who's HUGE... you can have him as a second 3-4 NT to rotate with Thornton... It's all about personell... in a 4-3 if you use a the Big Guys in the middle you can have Bigger DE's in Cox and Jenkins to stop the run... On Passing downs the ends move to DT and Cole and Graham can play DE... you could even do a 2-4 alignment with Thornton and a new Huge DT in the a gaps and stand up Graham,Cole, Ryans,Kendricks, and then have an extra DB on the field... a Hybrid defense could be a great thing... with the right DC... and that's the issue... who do you Hire for that position?

[alasi]

This has been mentioned before, doesn't matter if we run the 3-4,4-3,2-9 or the Bristol Stomp. If we don't shore up the secondary it'll be a long season.

[T. McGee]

We can't play any scheme b/c our guys can't tackle. They're soft. So who cares who we draft. Fixing the D is a 2-3 year process. Of course, that 2-9 may actually work. RB's roam freely through our secondary anyway. May as well have 9 guys back there to try to stop them.

[OldEagle1960]

[wildturtle]

I am warming up to the idea.  Word is that Seymore will be out in Oakland they can't afford him and although his play hasn't declined the amount of time he does it has.  Not a big deal because the eagles should also draft star at 4 because I expect the tackle to be gone already.  that gives you both your NT's.  I think Cox and Landri could transistion well to the DE role.  Curry and Graham to the OLB.

That leaves us with some displaced players most notably Cole, Jenkins(left GB because of the switch), and Ryans (thrown out of Houston because of the switch) it would be rosemans job to turn that into two MLB's and some depth. Shouldn't be hard with one of the best DE's a solid MLB and a solid DT

[time2rock]

VaBeach_Eagle, on 25 January 2013 - 06:26 PM, said:

You don't think that would work?

With the lack of talent in the secondary, it'd probably be better to run a 9-2.  

[rvernet]

wildturtle, on 25 January 2013 - 09:57 PM, said:

I am warming up to the idea.  Word is that Seymore will be out in Oakland they can't afford him and although his play hasn't declined the amount of time he does it has.  Not a big deal because the eagles should also draft star at 4 because I expect the tackle to be gone already.  that gives you both your NT's.  I think Cox and Landri could transistion well to the DE role.  Curry and Graham to the OLB.

That leaves us with some displaced players most notably Cole, Jenkins(left GB because of the switch), and Ryans (thrown out of Houston because of the switch) it would be rosemans job to turn that into two MLB's and some depth. Shouldn't be hard with one of the best DE's a solid MLB and a solid DT

Seymore is 33. I'd rather stay young and build there.  When I think of 3-4 I think of big time LB'ers. Matthews, Graham don't fit that bill.  Think of SF and BAL LB'ers. Aldon Smith, Navarro Bowman, Patrick Willis, T. Suggs, Ray Lewis, etc.  I don't see that here.  I wouldn't mind having the 3-4 look on a few snaps, but with the personnel we have, it seems like we will give up a lot to get there.  We have a ton of DT's and DE's.  Some would never see the field with that scheme.  We drafted Curry, Cox. We have Cole Graham.  Just don't see how it will fit 100% of the snaps.

[Englisheagle123]

Did matthews play 3-4 for oregon in college now hes a bit bigger he cantackle so at worst the LBers could be

        cox star jenkins/thorton
graham ryans matthews kendricks

i stress matthews is an at WORST scenario

[KillerBirds11]

GoEagles614, on 25 January 2013 - 08:05 PM, said:

You've missed one point. You need run stuffing MLBs who won't miss tackles.

Big guys that won't get pushed back, and can get through the right hole to stop runs.

I'm not confident in any of them in that respect.

alot has to do with scheme.. I would be totally fine with Ryans & Kendricks at ILB. Kendricks starred at Cal and Ryans came from Alabama (who is known for their 34 D) and played 3-4 successfully at houston.. Ryans only was traded because they werent comfortable with him coming back from his injury, and they had Cushing to take over as Leader of their D. Ryans is 250 lbs.. kendricks is 240. (comparison - Willis is 250 and Bowman is around 245) Ryans and kendricks arent "small"..

Matthews played good at oregon in the 34 and under chip kelly dont forget.. Hes a capable backup. Chaney played decent at MLB for us too btw.

All we REALLY need to switch is a NT and ROLB. and if we do switch.. Cole is a big bargaining chip.

[gibsonplyer]

It could be done.  The top young talent on defense can play in either scheme.  Cox can play DE and Kendricks was an ILB in college.  Graham could play OLB.  Its not a sure thing but he seemed interested in the idea after the season and some projected him there.  Our one real star older player in Ryans was traded by Houston just because he cost too much against their cap and because Cushing was the center piece of their D.  Jenkins did play 3-4 end in Greenbay and they missed him when he left.

The guys who are more unknown are Curry and Cole.  Curry is an unknown either way and Cole after last year is no longer a player you have to build around.  If he no longer fits is not the same loss of talent as it would have been a couple years ago.  The main guys on the defense as it stands now are Cox, Kendricks, and to a lesser extent Graham.  Build around the young talent.  Figure out if the guys coming out of college are better in the 3-4 or 4-3 and plan accordingly.

[Golfesv]

Why not switch everything else is up in the air this point might as well do it now establish it with a new coach and build from this point on.

[biglou22]

VaBeach_Eagle, on 25 January 2013 - 06:18 PM, said:

3-4, 4-3... 2-9, I don't care what we run as long as we win.

Yep.
And none will matter without the right players.

[biglou22]

alasi, on 25 January 2013 - 09:28 PM, said:

This has been mentioned before, doesn't matter if we run the 3-4,4-3,2-9 or the Bristol Stomp. If we don't shore up the secondary it'll be a long season.

Never gave that a thought.
But hell why not. We have all these fans so infatuated with the 3-4 for some friggen reason, lets really go crazy. lol

[EhsanT]

KillerBirds11, on 26 January 2013 - 04:51 PM, said:

alot has to do with scheme.. I would be totally fine with Ryans & Kendricks at ILB. Kendricks starred at Cal and Ryans came from Alabama (who is known for their 34 D) and played 3-4 successfully at houston.. Ryans only was traded because they werent comfortable with him coming back from his injury, and they had Cushing to take over as Leader of their D. Ryans is 250 lbs.. kendricks is 240. (comparison - Willis is 250 and Bowman is around 245) Ryans and kendricks arent "small"..

Matthews played good at oregon in the 34 and under chip kelly dont forget.. Hes a capable backup. Chaney played decent at MLB for us too btw.

All we REALLY need to switch is a NT and ROLB. and if we do switch.. Cole is a big bargaining chip.

Like you said, it's all about scheme. The Steelers 3-4 defense is different then the Cowboys 3-4 defense is different then Baltimores 3-4 defense.

If you look at Houston and Dallas (the Wade Phillips defense), it's built around their ILB's. They want big, physical ILB's which is why Bradie James was signed away from Dallas. In turn, they use smaller, undersized NT's to shoot the gaps. They complement each other well because the NT's won't draw double teams but in turn, the ILB's can take on the blockers themselves.

Compare that to Baltimore or SF's scheme. They want athletic LB's to run sideline to sideline to make plays. That in turn means you need a big NT to draw those double teams and keep them clean. Thats what you have with Cody in Baltimore, Raji in GB, and Sopoaga in SF.

So, depending on the scheme we run, Ryans could fit in. If we go after a coach who's going to run the later scheme, we'll need to draft a big NT....whether it's Star or a mid to late round pick doesn't matter...we'll need someone big to keep Ryans and Kendricks clean.

If we go with the former scheme, we could get by with Cox/Patterson at NT, but we'd need to replace Ryans, and possibly Kendricks because neither one is physical enough to take on blockers at the POA.


Both Ryans and Kendricks played in the later scheme. Saban and Pendigrast both built their 3-4 schemes around big, physical DL's that can keep their LB's clean.



As for Seymour....depending on the salary he wants, I'd be interested. He could play DE for us and provides leadership which is always important for a young team.

[Sean Jerz]

VaBeach_Eagle, on 25 January 2013 - 06:26 PM, said:

You don't think that would work?

Nah boss, it wouldn't with our secondary. They're the leagues worst IMO..

[Utebird]

why are there multiple posts by multiple posters projecting thornton as a NT in a 3-4 defense, the guy is a smallish DT i think he weighs what 295 most NT in a 3-4 other than ratliff in dallas are around 340. thornton would fit better as a DE than a NT in a 3-4 in my opinion.

[ronlandis]

All they need is an NT, every other spot has a player the fits exceptionally well.  Most people on this board have no clue what 3-4 personnel looks like, they just don't like change.

[StevieLeftCollege]

Clay Matthews and Mychal Kendricks would be the smallest MLBs in 3-4 history.

They may not even equal one player.

[wildturtle]

ronlandis, on 27 January 2013 - 07:40 PM, said:

All they need is an NT, every other spot has a player the fits exceptionally well.  Most people on this board have no clue what 3-4 personnel looks like, they just don't like change.

there will be NT's available.  a lot of teams run the 3-4 and a lot of teams are over the cap

[KillerBirds11]

StevieLeftCollege, on 27 January 2013 - 07:45 PM, said:

Clay Matthews and Mychal Kendricks would be the smallest MLBs in 3-4 history.

They may not even equal one player.

see like this crap right here.. Kendricks is a shade under 6'0 and hes 240 lbs. Matthews is about 6'1 and 245 lbs.... They are not small...  Kendricks and Matthews both played 34 in college, Ryans is our biggest ILB and he is 6'1 250.

now keith "the bullet" adams was small. Ernie "Shark" Sims was small.

You look at Ray Lewis and even he is only 6'1 250 lbs.. Willis - 6'1 250, Bowman 6'0 245, Sean Lee 6'2 235 lbs.

what do you want a 6'4 280 lb MLB?

wildturtle, on 27 January 2013 - 07:45 PM, said:

there will be NT's available.  a lot of teams run the 3-4 and a lot of teams are over the cap

not to mention theres alot of big NTs in the draft.