2023 Linebacker Thread

[maury77]

Drew Sanders

 

[maury77]

Trenton Simpson

 

[maury77]

Noah Sewell

 

[maury77]

Jack Campbell @HawkeyeJet

 

[maury77]

DeMarvion Overshown @RobR

 

[maury77]

I really wanted to post some Henley videos but there aren't any good ones I could find. 

Share your thoughts!

[BklynJetsFan85]

I like Noah Sewell the best of these but also really like DeMarvion Overshown:

Needs to bulk up but he plays with the intensity and violence that I love and look for in players


Sent from my iPhone using JetNation.com mobile app

[HawkeyeJet]

35 minutes ago, maury77 said:

Jack Campbell @HawkeyeJet

 

To me, Campbell is the perfect fit for what this regime wants from a character standpoint and what the coaches want from a MLB physically.  He has all the tools to be an all-pro.

[RobR]

33 minutes ago, maury77 said:

DeMarvion Overshown @RobR

 

This kid is a football player....would love to see him in green and white. He's a perfect fit for our defense and it looks like he might have killed some kids back in his HS days. 

[RobR]

10 minutes ago, HawkeyeJet said:

To me, Campbell is the perfect fit for what this regime wants from a character standpoint and what the coaches want from a MLB physically.  He has all the tools to be an all-pro.

The bigger question is if we do go LB early, do we go OLB or MLB because CJ will still be here one more year and Sherwood looked pretty good when he replaced him.

[BCJet]

13 hours ago, HawkeyeJet said:

To me, Campbell is the perfect fit for what this regime wants from a character standpoint and what the coaches want from a MLB physically.  He has all the tools to be an all-pro.

I didnt watch much of Iowa this year, but reading up on campbell he seems like an ideal fit for an NFL team character wise and then he goes out last week and puts up a ridiculous RAS score to go with elite size for the position.  I think his height will help make up for whatever coverage deficiencies he might have because at 6'5 thats a lot of size for the middle of the field to throw over.  I hear first round buzz for him but id imagine its more like the top half of the second round?

As for LBs in general, I think its a great year to find the off-ball LB that we really need. Any one of Simpson, Drew Sanders or Campbell offers athleticism for the position along with the ability to play the run, pass and blitz.  I like Sherwood and hope he develops but we are going to need a replacement for CJ in 2024 and would love to see one of these guy paired with him this year and then take over alongside someone like sherwood in 2024.  

[kdels62]

The answer is Jack Campbell. He's gonna be one of those guys that takes over some games and sets the tone for a defense for a long time. LBers fall but I think he'll rise rapidly. 

[jetsons]

16 hours ago, maury77 said:

Drew Sanders

 

He's my #1... my #2 Jack Campbell 

 

[NYDreamer]

22 hours ago, HawkeyeJet said:

To me, Campbell is the perfect fit for what this regime wants from a character standpoint and what the coaches want from a MLB physically.  He has all the tools to be an all-pro.

He would be my selection if there in the third round.

[RobR]

[maury77]

Drew Sanders

Pros - Really moves explosively in all directions on the field. It's a shame he didn't test at the combine, but hopefully he tests at his pro day because he should put up some nice numbers. He's new to linebacker as he used to be an edge rusher yet his instincts at linebacker are suprisingly good for someone so new to the position. He's an excellent blitzer (although I don't think the Jets will value that a ton as they don't blitz their LBs if I recall correctly) and shows good instincts in coverage. Does a nice job of disengaging blockers to get to the RBs. 

Cons - Thinly built at 235lbs. Has some scheme limitations as he's probably not going to be the player you send to plug a hole on a running play. He has some poor analytics as far as missed tackles so you have to hope that its a technique issue with him. 

Overall, there is a lot to like about Sanders (especially since he is thriving so early at a new position). 

[kdels62]

1 hour ago, maury77 said:

Drew Sanders

Pros - Really moves explosively in all directions on the field. It's a shame he didn't test at the combine, but hopefully he tests at his pro day because he should put up some nice numbers. He's new to linebacker as he used to be an edge rusher yet his instincts at linebacker are suprisingly good for someone so new to the position. He's an excellent blitzer (although I don't think the Jets will value that a ton as they don't blitz their LBs if I recall correctly) and shows good instincts in coverage. Does a nice job of disengaging blockers to get to the RBs. 

Cons - Thinly built at 235lbs. Has some scheme limitations as he's probably not going to be the player you send to plug a hole on a running play. He has some poor analytics as far as missed tackles so you have to hope that its a technique issue with him. 

Overall, there is a lot to like about Sanders (especially since he is thriving so early at a new position). 

What I like about Saleh’s scheme is that evaluating players for the scheme is relatively easy. Knowing the roles and usage of the players within our defensive scheme I don’t see Sanders as a great fit. Sanders is versatile and a great athlete but he doesn’t do the things we ask of our MLB consistently. 

Sanders has an easy comp to Micah Parsons and if his athleticism checks out he’ll go early to a team like the Patriots who values versatility. 

 

 

[LAD_Brooklyn]

Dorian Williams ran a 4.49 @ the combine. 

 

[maury77]

Trenton Simpson

Pros - He is an absolute bullet on the field. When he gets his cross hairs on a ball carrier or QB, he gets there in an instant. His athleticism aids him in man coverage as well as he can play man coverage decently. Very good tackler as well. 

Cons - Not the biggest guy in the world and has issues dealing with blockers once he is engaged. With his relatively slight size, this may continue at the pros (or get even worse as the players will be bigger at the NFL level). Simpson also struggles when he is asked to analyze rather than attack. 

Simpson is not going to be a fit for all schemes. I think he's going to be best as a WLB in a 4-3 where he is mostly asked to attack the line of scrimmage or play man in coverage. He has some of the traits that bothered me about Darron Lee coming out but I can also see Saleh employing Simpson in a successful manner. 

@sec101row23 what are your thoughts on Simpson?

[derp]

Interesting that Campbell tested so well at his size, but man he's huge. Staff had Mosley cut down to 231 and he's the biggest linebacker who plays on the team - Campbell was 249 at the combine. Fred Warner as the ideal guy for this scheme is like 230. Maybe not a problem because he tested well, but he's definitely an outlier.

Sometimes I get the prototype track record stuff wrong, but Campbell to the Jets would surprise me. Unrelated, feel like he almost inevitably lands in New England. Linebackers generally have gotten smaller around the league.

[BCJet]

On 3/10/2023 at 10:49 AM, derp said:

Interesting that Campbell tested so well at his size, but man he's huge. Staff had Mosley cut down to 231 and he's the biggest linebacker who plays on the team - Campbell was 249 at the combine. Fred Warner as the ideal guy for this scheme is like 230. Maybe not a problem because he tested well, but he's definitely an outlier.

Sometimes I get the prototype track record stuff wrong, but Campbell to the Jets would surprise me. Unrelated, feel like he almost inevitably lands in New England. Linebackers generally have gotten smaller around the league.

I think this analysis makes a lot of sense and if we do need a faster, coverage type LB then fine.  The problem that I see though is that the scheme is too specific and saleh refuses to make tweaks to it, to the detriment of the team.

We struggle to stop the run a lot of times because our DTs arent occupying gaps, they penetrate upfield leaving us susceptible to big plays and the DT and LBs are too light and can get pushed around by good interior OLs.  

My point is, why not add someone like Campbell who clearly has the athletic ability to cover (no he wont be Fred Werner but who is) but who could actually help us stop the run on early downs.  Im not saying that we find a plodding, run stopping 3-4 ILB, im just saying that adding someone who isnt in the "typical saleh" mold, might not be a bad thing.

[derp]

19 minutes ago, BCJet said:

I think this analysis makes a lot of sense and if we do need a faster, coverage type LB then fine.  The problem that I see though is that the scheme is too specific and saleh refuses to make tweaks to it, to the detriment of the team.

We struggle to stop the run a lot of times because our DTs arent occupying gaps, they penetrate upfield leaving us susceptible to big plays and the DT and LBs are too light and can get pushed around by good interior OLs.  

My point is, why not add someone like Campbell who clearly has the athletic ability to cover (no he wont be Fred Werner but who is) but who could actually help us stop the run on early downs.  Im not saying that we find a plodding, run stopping 3-4 ILB, im just saying that adding someone who isnt in the "typical saleh" mold, might not be a bad thing.

Can always argue what they can do versus what they should do. I think the scheme is a bit of a work in progress still. Remember it was less than a year ago many maintained the Jets weren’t going to draft Sauce because the scheme didn’t value man cover corners.

That all said, I think everything still comes back to coverage in todays NFL. If they draft Campbell I think it’d be because of a belief that his height and athleticism would make him be able to get good depth and be hard to throw over the top of when dropping back over the middle.

They rotate so much on the DL that IMO the easiest run defense tweak comes with an early down DT, not linebacker.

[maury77]

I'll start up the breakdowns again after Aaronpalooza is over. 

[Jets Voice of Reason]

2 hours ago, maury77 said:

I'll start up the breakdowns again after Aaronpalooza is over. 

These threads are helping me catch up on prospects so thanks for posting. 

[maury77]

5 hours ago, Jets Voice of Reason said:

These threads are helping me catch up on prospects so thanks for posting. 

Feel free to give your feedback on players too! 

[Chrebetfan80]

I am not convinced we will be going with an LB until at most the 3rd round.  More than likely we will use any early picks to fix the OLine and D Line if possible.  A guy I look at later in the draft that is super intriguing is  Owen Pappoe.  Ran a 4.39 40 at the combine at 6'0 230.  With a defense like this, speed is at a premium and he packs a ton of it into a productive player profile.  I think if we're looking to add an LB later in the draft this is someone I would really be interested in. 

[OilfieldJet]

On 3/9/2023 at 1:15 PM, LAD_Brooklyn said:

Dorian Williams ran a 4.49 @ the combine. 

 

Really like this guy in Day 3.

[kdels62]

On 3/10/2023 at 10:49 AM, derp said:

Interesting that Campbell tested so well at his size, but man he's huge. Staff had Mosley cut down to 231 and he's the biggest linebacker who plays on the team - Campbell was 249 at the combine. Fred Warner as the ideal guy for this scheme is like 230. Maybe not a problem because he tested well, but he's definitely an outlier.

Sometimes I get the prototype track record stuff wrong, but Campbell to the Jets would surprise me. Unrelated, feel like he almost inevitably lands in New England. Linebackers generally have gotten smaller around the league.

I think the testing shows that Campbell has the speed and athleticism to play the modern LBer role at the next level. With athleticism it feels like the trend has been everyone gets smaller and more athletic and then everyone gets bigger and keeps the athleticism. I think LBs get bigger and stay just as fast in the near future Campbell might just be the first. 

[maury77]

On 3/15/2023 at 8:33 AM, Chrebetfan80 said:

I am not convinced we will be going with an LB until at most the 3rd round.  More than likely we will use any early picks to fix the OLine and D Line if possible.  A guy I look at later in the draft that is super intriguing is  Owen Pappoe.  Ran a 4.39 40 at the combine at 6'0 230.  With a defense like this, speed is at a premium and he packs a ton of it into a productive player profile.  I think if we're looking to add an LB later in the draft this is someone I would really be interested in. 

Do you think Pappoe played out of position at MLB? I've read some people that question his processing ability at MLB and I wonder if playing him at WILL or in sub packages can allow him to attack more and analyze less. 

[Chrebetfan80]

10 minutes ago, maury77 said:

Do you think Pappoe played out of position at MLB? I've read some people that question his processing ability at MLB and I wonder if playing him at WILL or in sub packages can allow him to attack more and analyze less. 

It's possible.  I think their philosophy there was that he was the fastest player they had on defense, at the Mike position you really cant run away from him.  Here i think with mosely in the middle you can put him at one of the outside spots and let him fly around.  Him and Quincy would greatly improve the LB speed and coverage in the flats when we have 3 lbs on the field. Also, great to have that kind of speed from an LB on special teams. 

As a Day 3 pick if you want an LB at least he provides upside with his physical abilities. 

[AFJF]

Love this LBer class.  Henley has been my top guy all year but also love Campbell, Sanders and Overshown.

 

 

 

 

Edited March 18 by AFJF

[section314]

On 3/14/2023 at 8:14 AM, maury77 said:

I'll start up the breakdowns again after Aaronpalooza is over. 

See you in August.?

[NYDreamer]

I wanted to revisit this thread and have read through the pro's and cons.  Campbell stands out to me but I agree looking at what Saleh did with Mosley and Sherwood with cutting down weight it makes sense for a guy like Drew Sanders or Simpson who play with that frame already.  

Iowajetsfan I trust with his evaluation and feedback regarding Campbell even though there may be a little bias. As I listened to Kirwin and Miller on NFL sirius they began to compare his skill set and appearance to Brian Urlacher.  I would take that immediately as I have not heard that comparison recently. 

[Sperm Edwards]

On 3/27/2023 at 5:37 AM, NYDreamer said:

I wanted to revisit this thread and have read through the pro's and cons.  Campbell stands out to me but I agree looking at what Saleh did with Mosley and Sherwood with cutting down weight it makes sense for a guy like Drew Sanders or Simpson who play with that frame already.  

Iowajetsfan I trust with his evaluation and feedback regarding Campbell even though there may be a little bias. As I listened to Kirwin and Miller on NFL sirius they began to compare his skill set and appearance to Brian Urlacher.  I would take that immediately as I have not heard that comparison recently. 

He had Mosley cut down on his weight because he was slow AF. Then he cut his weight down and became weak AF.

If Campbell is fast and good in coverage at that weight I’m all for the Jets taking him in round 2. Frees up the preposterous $17MM/year for the impossibly overpaid CJM. These dopes will keep him for another season of unduly getting every snap, though.