01-23-2021, 05:38 PM
(01-23-2021, 01:49 PM)Deacon Wrote: Dang. They asked for unpopular takes and you delivered. Looking forward to see the defense of these points (though, aside from #2, I'm with you on the rest) Great takes though, all of them.
But about ML and his LB drafting - I don't think he was as bad as first glance might appear.
Pollack had his career cut painfully short - granted we're talking about what could have been but he was showing above average play
Thurman was a beast on the field, he just couldn't stay on it
Maualuga took a boatload of crap on these boards, but he improved the LB corps in his first 3 years. ML's drafting talent can't predict if a guy is going to get fat and lazy
Landon Johnson wasn't a world-beater, but for a 3rd rounder he was serviceable journeyman player.
I'd argue Caleb Miller was snakebit and never got the chance to properly develop as a player
Rivers got his dang head taken off and was never the same after that. Again, a failure in coaching, for sure, but not in terms of talent evaluation.
He's had a couple of whiffs, but those named above are the majority of his LB picks.
Yeah, Malik was a bust, so was Moch, and Vigil was arguably a questionable pick. Even then, I think Vigil is good when utilized properly in the right system, and that sits fine with me for a 3rd rounder. He was pressed into service in a depleted LB corps that never came together, and when injuries came, it only compounded the isssue.
Zac has drafted a couple quality LBs in Pratt and Wilson. Jury is still out on ADG.
Let's give Zac a larger sample size, because right now, I'd say most people could look at a two year sample of ML's drafts and make the argument that his drafting was just as good.
I get what you are saying. It just seems like the team has more stability at the position after Taylor's first couple of years. I'd bet on Pratt and Wilson being mainstays on the defense for a long time, with ADG still yet to be determined.
Marvin took risks drafting guys with high upside and jacked up character. Sometimes it worked and other times it bit him. I just recall Marvin coming here fresh off of being a DC in Washington and Baltimore and having some really nasty, swarming linebacker groups. That never seemed to materialize here, with the exception of perhaps Burfict, who came with a price, obviously.
