Inside the NFL did a profile on Hugh Douglas last night, and it made me glad that Mangini and Tannenbaum haven't reacted the same way to J Vilma as Parcells did to Hugh Douglas. The similarities are there: Defensive Rookies of the Year, troubled by a switch to the 3-4, talks of trade possibilities. Douglas was traded to the Eagles after just one season in the system for a 2nd and 5th in the 98 draft, an absolutely terrible draft which is only remembered for/saved by the CMart trade. We got ZERO value for Douglas. There hasn't been much talk this season about Vilma underperforming. He seems to be growing into his role and playing well, and imagine if we had traded him away for draft picks...
The difference is that Douglas was not a "Parcells guy". I've reported here many times what I witnessed in training camp when Parcells came. Douglas was loafing during stretching and drills and often received the ire of the coaches. I predicted early on that he was good as gone. Vilma does everything the coach asks of him. If he is ever traded it will be strictly a football decision and will be for value....
The only thing I would consider value for J Vilma would be a quality player at another position, and you don't see many trades like that in the NFL. Most trades are executed for draft picks, and even a 1st rounder isn't guaranteed value.
HD was oft injured just like CP which surely did not endow himself to BP which in BP mind made him a goner as he could not be depended on
Another important thing about Vilma that doesn't equate with Douglas is his overall personality. This goes along with what baamf is saying about Douglas not being a Parcells guy. Vilma is very intellectual, and that alone gives him a step up. He's got obvious physical talent, so it's not like we're dealing with a scrub just trying to get along. You combine his natural ability with his ability to learn, (keep in mind, he's fluent in something like 3 languages), and you have someone who can learn to play any position effectively. Add to that his natural leadership skills, and you have a player you can keep as the centerpiece of your defense for a long time. Mangini knows this. That's why he's the head coach of the Jets, and all the people on this site that talk smack about Vilma are doing it on a keyboard.
The more I read your post the more I think you have another reason to blow smoke up our a$$es because you always want to see us foundering which makes the Pats look even better then they are which is damm good BTW.
This is going to be a better year for Vilma... No, not like 2004 or 2005, but it'll be much better than last year.... We're mixing in a lot more 4 man fronts this season, and you can tell that almost every time we go to a 4-man front either Vilma or Robertson is there making a play....
I'm blowing smoke up your ass? Do you even understand the meaning of that phrase? It means I'm shoveling shit down your throat, which actually I'm not. What part of what I said isn't true? And where in the 9 Hells do you get off accusing me of wanting the team to founder? Why the F*** would I want my team to lose? That's so frigging retarded it really doesn't justify an answer. Who said the Pats weren't good? Not me. I know damn well they're good, and more than likely, the best team in the league this year. All I am is realistic about our players, and each one's talent. Vilma happens to have all the tools he needs to be a star. We have far bigger problems than Jon Vilma. Stop being such a SLW.
I love Vilma, and I think he's a hell of a player, but my gut feeling is that he's gone after this season. He just can't cut it in the 3-4, and this year is no different from last year. I've seen him miss several tackles, be out of position on multiple occasions, and he just isn't around the ball as much as you'd like. (go ahead people, ask me to provide specific plays and examples which you know I damn well can't) Again, I think he's a great player, he is just being limited in the system. Is he an adequate starter for us? Sure. But we could be much better off, and I think we will get more value out of trading him and sticking with Barton and Harris in the middle. As I said above, I really don't think he is growing into his role. He may know the system better, and be more comfortable in it, but he just isn't playing up to his potential.
I'll give you that he isn't playing up to his potential. That's why I agree with the idea presented recently that he be moved to the outside. It worked for Thomas, why not Vilma?
peeps on Jetsnation are already clamoring for a trade of Vilma after two games...pretty sad if you ask me how fans are so quick to switch support lines...
How do the Pats enter into this?. People were comparing Vilma and Douglas. It's posts like this that make people think you're just a Patriot troll. Everything always comes back to the Patriots. Again, whatever do the Patriots have to do with this discussion?
Again, IMO trading a player is a last resort in today's NFL. You simply don't get good value in return on most trades. The only time a trade should occur is if a player is contributing negligible or negative value to a team (i.e. Drew Bledsoe was worthless to the Patriots after Brady's emergence). Even then, you're unlikely to get solid value. In general, it's a risky draft pick (often a lower pick than you'd like), and we all know how well this team's draft strategy goes over with the fans. The issue here isn't whether Vilma reaches his maximum potential in our system, but whether he contributes with a positive result. I believe he does. I'd even be willing to try him at OLB to see if that contribution improves. I just don't see the Jets actively seeking a trade for him as long as he keeps making tackles. Now, the flipside is that you make a very compelling argument for him to seek a trade. He won't reach the same potential in the 3-4 that he had as a 4-3 MLB. He may decide to seek a trade to maximize his potential as a player, but I'm not sure he's the type of guy who would do that either.
Then we're ahead of the pack. People on this site were clamoring for a Vilma trade during last season. It's ludicrous.
Which is why we should be playing 4-3. Yes 3-4 gives us versatility , but we can't work it without bastardising it.
So when he refuses to resign and we either franchise or lose him than what? They guy is undervalued on this team and he isn't big enough to play on the outside.
