Tank Tyler has all the tools a NT needs. he has some off field problems but from all accounts is really a good guy. He once spit at a referee. Guys grow up though. If ERIC likes him, he will be a JET.
I know it's a pipe dream - but I really hope that Mangini sees a kid who he can "get through to". He has the talent to do what we need done. Too bad he doesn't have the head <sigh>
Better prospect than Branch I would say, number 2 on my list next to Okoye. I am sure that if Mangini met with him and sat down he would find out for sure if there was potential, he seems to be a good character judge. If he comes then great, if not then he could be another Rodrique Wright
I think there is an obvious discrepancy in terms of how Drob performmed last year at NT and his long term projections. His performance the first 5 weeks of the season was poor, as he was a complete liability. But after the bye week, he improved his technique, started playing more aggressively, and truthfully, was our front 7's best player by FAR.He was strong, stout and disruptive in all facets. I have been on board w/ finding a more pure Nt and moving D rob to RE. That notion is not due to lack of performance at Nt by D rob, but rather that i think he'd be even better at RE where he'd be able to use his athleticism alittle more and wouldnt have to use such a wide base which limits his playmaking ability. W/ that said, there is a growing myth in this league that your 3-4 NT needs to be a 6'3+ 340+ lb monster who simply eats up blocks and pushes things backwards. There are 2 concerns within this myth which has spread throughout this board. 1. These type of NT's are extremely hard to come by. Jamal Williams, Vince Wilfork and Casey Hampton, re pretty much all there is right now, and all of them will most likely spend the rest of their careers w/ their respected teams. 2. You can have a different style player at the spot w/ success. D rob was extremely good the second half of the year. He brought things to the position that gave offense's fits. Many experts were raving about his play. As long as he can avoid being pushed backward, and maintains his gap, there's no reason he cant continue to be successful...and you add in his speed and pass rushing ability...and we have quite an asset at Nt right now...which is why Mangini is so high on D rob. SO again, if we can find a suitable replacement, to allow drob to move to RE..by all means, move forward. But this is not the desperate need many have insisted based on a superficial myth that extends throughout the NFL fanbase.
I strongly agree with your point that NT's don't have to be a certain size. Jason Ferguson is a perfect example. I want to replace DRob at NT mainly because I worry about his knee history. The sooner we get a stout fellow to man the NT position the sooner I can feel secure in our long term success in the 3-4.
the NT myth could you stop with this "we need a big NT" crap please? d-rob takes on triple teams on a regular basis, its impossible for a guy who gets triple teamed to control the line of scrimmage. i've said it over and over again. what we need is AT LEAST one DE who can play the run (coleman). oelhoffen and ellis are pathetic against the run. to see 300 lbs DEs like ellis&oelhoffen getting blocked by friggin TEs is just ridiculous. they're supposed to take on double teams and they cant even handle a god damn TE... thats how our defense looked last year -----Kimo-----------Robertson---------------Ellis--- ----Tackle---Guard---Center---Guard---Tackle---TE so as you can see, it was absolutely impossible for any of our NTs to control the line of scrimmage. ellis had to deal with the opposing TE a lot and he didnt dominate at all. kimo just flat out sucked and couldnt even handle the 1 on 1's either how it SHOULD look like: --------Kimo------Robertson--------Ellis------------ --Tackle---Guard---Center---Guard---Tackle---TE there. thats how it should look like. both defensive ends need to take on the tackles AND the guards. not on every down, of course. now imagine how easy it would be for robertson to dominate the line of scrimmage if the two guys next to him would actually do their job. so please stop throwing around names like jamal williams, vince wilfork or casey hampton alright? we dont have DEs like richard seymour, aaron smith, luis castillo, ty warren or olshansky on our defense
id like to see ian scott (the DT from the bears) hes 6-3 305. he went to UF and is a solid guy in the middle. i think hes still on the FA market (i didnt hear of him getting signed). i was also hoping for terdell sands....and i wanted langston walker (RT from oak, signed with Buff so we will be seeing a lot of him anyways).
i would have to agree and say d rob is doing fine at NT and i dont see the problem with ellis...the real place i saw a problem was with von ol hoffen he was just terrable. We need to get our hands on a de with power speed and great pass rushing ablilities. Whoever it is rest assured that mangini will pick the right guy for the job!
The more I read/hear about the Tank Tyler, the more I want him. But I know I know...he's not a Mangini guy.
