 |
| The last of the "cheap" properties, the light purples can often be a secret weapon in a winning Monopoly strategy. Plus - HEY! - Virginia Avenue. Everybody loves a homer. |
I'm a huge LaRoy Reynolds fan, but I think Greer is in fact our single best linebacker. He's fundamentally sound, and the kind of film room rat who is perfect at the center of an aggressive, attacking 4-3 defense. He's also a bit of a tackle machine. You heard it here --- Steve Greer is the heart of the defense in 2011. He's a lot like Jon Copper in that he has some physical limitations, but works so hard that he overcomes them... and then some. Steve Greer is a player who is easy for coaches to love and easy for fans to pull for.
He flies all over the field and makes a bunch of amazing plays, but he also makes too many misreads and gets out of position. Going into his second season as a starter (and now on the weak side, where he's a much better fit) I think we'll see him clean up his game substantially... and I think he'll be a bit of a beast. On a defense built around speed, this type of run-and-hit linebacker fits well. I love watching Roy, he's one of my absolute favorite players on the team. Is he a game-changing playmaker? I think he has that potential. [It might seem unheard of, but after these next 12 (13? 14?) games, I think he'll be on the NFL's radar, as that league moves more and more toward the pass rush / coverage model. Roy is fast, he can deliver a hit, and he knows how to drop back in pass defense.]
If I'm saying Greer is an underrated star and Reynolds is a potential big-time playmaker, then I have to go ahead and admit that I think Aaron Taliaferro could be the achilles heel of an otherwise good linebacking unit. His career has seen a rebirth under Mike London and Jim Reid, and thus, he earned the nickname "Lazarus" during last summer's training camp. He had a decent enough season in 2010, totalling 36 tackles as a part-time starter in the middle. But as the season progressed, he began to yield more and more PT to Greer and Darnell Carter, and eventually Taliaferro was sort of lost in the mix. He became "just a guy." And now that guy is going to give it another shot as a starter, this time on the outside, playing over the tight end. I think Lazarus will be fine as a starter, for the most part. I also think he'll be a player offenses target in their game plan. Taliaferro just isn't really a difference-making type of talent.
Community Chest -- Henry Coley, redshirt freshman / Daquan Romero, true freshman / Tucker Windle, junior / Ausar Walcott, junior
Coley is a favorite of London's, and he gave Greer a hard push in the spring. Since that time, Greer has distanced himself from the freshman, but I still think we'll see a lot of Coley this fall. I'm excited to see what he can do. DaDa Romero enrolled in January, and found a niche for himself as a nickel pass rush specialist. His potential is great, and I think he'll get his feet wet rushing the passer and then use that experience to improve quickly in the base 43. He's a potential future star at Sam. Windle is a guy who was nearly lost in the shuffle during the coaching change, but it seems like he's found a solid spot on the two-deep for this season. Walcott began his UVA career at safety, then moved to linebacker and played a lot at Will last season. Then he was suspended for off-field indiscretions, then was moved to defensive end, and now has found his way back to linebacker. He's got a ton of talent, but has to get his head screwed on straight and stay on the field. Overall, there is still a relative lack of depth in the linebacking corps, which is a big part of the reason this group is light purple and not something further around the Monopoly board.
Chance -- Greer has a big season, hitting triple digits in tackles. Reynolds emerges as a force for the defense, and makes a few head-turning big plays to help the team win. Taliaferro gives away his starting spot to Walcott, who settles in as an above-average starter for the rest of the season. Coley and Romero show enough glimpses to make us salivate for the future. Still, the linebackers find a way to give up too many big runs, mitigating the overall effectiveness of the defense to some extent.
Greer, Reynolds, Coley, Romero, Walcott... the upside is there for this unit to really take off this season. I think Greer and Reynolds are both poised to take that proverbial next step this season. It's a defense predicated on speed, and one built from the front seven's ability to bring pressure in the pass rush. I like this group of 'backers (especially Romero and Walcott) a lot with those things in mind. These guys have the potential to improve and grow into their roles by leaps and bounds this season. That being said, there isn't a superstar here... yet. Kwontie Moore arrives on Grounds next summer.
No comments:
Post a Comment