Position Battles: Linebacker

[*ochocincos*]

Unless he's developed the ability to shed blocks, Lamur is out of position at the SAM. His skill set translates best to WILL. The Bengals need a player who is better at taking on and shedding blocks, strong in run support, and can occasionally rush the passer when the call is made to do so (not very often for our SAM in recent years).

The Bengals have not been able to find a truly complete SAM in awhile. The best candidate may have been Maualuga. Lawson and Harrison struggled in coverage. Lamur is better in coverage, but has not been as good in run support.

Nico Johnson might be a good candidate that can play either SAM or MIKE. I haven't watched him much personally, but his scouting report suggests he has a quality skillset for these roles (http://www.nfl.com/draft/2013/profiles/nico-johnson?id=2539193)