prisco--over & under

He's overrated because he just signed a contract that makes him one of the richest LBs in the NFL, and he has never had more than 6.5 sacks in a season.

 

I'll buy him being slightly overrated based on the money he was given...but there's a myth on this board that needs to end now.

Pace was NOT asked to be solely a pass rusher for the cardinals last season. Pace will NOT be asked to be solely a pass rusher for the jets.

Pace will be playing the SOLB spot. The job mainly entails fighting off double teams of the TE and RT in the running game, and covering either Tight ends, Slot WR's or RB's in the passing game. In that role for the cardinals he racked up the aforementioned 6.5 sacks, but also included 98 tackles.

Many jet fans just assume he's come here to be an answer to the pass rushing woes b/c we needed a pass rusher and b/c Pace was drafted as a pass rusher. But the fact is...although he is capable of being a pretty good pass rusher, he was brought in to play the strong side spot..which ive already explained has alot more to it than knocking down the QB.

Anyone expecting 10+ sacks a season from Pace..is setting themself up for dissapointment...and perhaps some off base criticism of Pace and the front office.

 

Pace = Our Mike Vrabel.

Similar size. Similar athleticism. Similar motors. Very intelligent on the field. Versatile.

Vrabel flourished in BB's defense. I think we'll use Pace alot like the Pats have used Vrabel, though I'm not sure if we'll ever actually start Pace at ILB.

We paid a couple more bucks than the Pats did for Vrabel but thats gonna happen in the FA market right now.

 

ding ding ding. that makes him a candidate.

 

In a couple years when Merriman and Ware get paid this contract won't be so stunning.

 

if anyone on our team is overrated its kerry rhodes because he is only the 2nd best player ever in the nfl... not the first like probably everyone thinks.

 

The Pace contract isn't as bad as people make it out. Sure, he gets $21M guaranteed but only $11M of that is a signing bonus. Another $9M of that is a roster bonus in 2009. If he turns out to be a bust this year we dump him and forego that $9M. If he continues to develop as a strong-side OLB in our 3-4 then he's worth it (well, nobody is worth it but if that's the going rate then good for him). I was and continue to be pretty damn excited about the Pace signing. It only seems better after we grabbed Gholston at #6. The Jets D is going to put some fear in opposing QBs this year, something that has been sorely missing.

Pace contract details: nyjetscap dot com slash calvinpace

 

David Harris will be a stud and he will eat those words bigtime! Pace reeks of contract year bust!

 

I still don?t really understand all that contract-stuff. But why is a Roster-Bonus guaranteed? doesn?t guaranteed mean we have to pay him nomatter what?

 

Yes. Even if we cut him the $9m is still due because the bonus is guaranteed. It's just called a roster bonus for cap reasons.

 

signing bonus is guaranteed, roster bonuses are not if the player is cut before the bonus is due.

The pats cut Stallworth this year for this very reason. He had a 9 mil roster bonus due on 03/01/08

 

Very optimistic assessment of Pace's ability. This is one of the few times I'm going to agree with the "expert". He was definitely overrated to receive the kind of contract he received.

Then again, knowing what we know and having seen Bryan Thomas play the last few years... this could turn out to be one of the best signings... I guess we'll see.

 

I thought the same thing when we signed him. Then I wanted to know, what we paid that money for, and I watched some Cards-Games of 2007 again, and I now understand why they think he would be great for us.

 

I saw the Bears-Cards game and was completely unimpressed. Perhaps I need to go back and watch more but the little I did see of him he never seemed to be around the ball, and always kind of showing up when the play was already over. That is too much of what we already see on a regular basis for my blood.

The real problem with Pace is that if he comes in here and performs the way Thomas did in '06 then many will consider it to be a successful signing because he reached that benchmark, however I completely disagree. I think Pace needs to be exceptional (to the tune of best LB on the squad)... say, 14 sacks, top 10 in the league in hurries, and plenty of good run stopping tackles that aren't 5 yards past the line of scrimmage. I honestly don't see him performing at that level, when that is what his contract commands.

 

Generally, yes, but this specific roster bonus is guaranteed as part of the contract.

 

Dude has yet to play a real game yet, and the previous year he "seemed" to fit into the 3-4 well so is given 20 mil guaranteed. That's what you would call overrated

 

Harris is overrated when the NFL is so impressed by our new ILB? I go out of my way to ignore what Prisco says and writes. He's worthless.

 

I think David Harris is underrated to Prisco, and Calvin Pace is his overrated player.

 

I was watching NFL replay last night. Cardinals vs. SF. Pace wasn't impressive in the pass rush per se but was sniffing out runs and screens. He was in stand up position and 3 point stance as well. Dropping in coverage short and long. He was in on plenty of tackles. When he did rush the passer it was a short burst then he'd back off or get stuck in a block. Of course the game plan was probably to be aware of Gore so maybe in that game watching for the draw or screen was more important. He was running down plays from behind like you mentioned. Sometimes right away or 7 yds downfield. I'd like to see a game against a passing dominant team. See how he performed.

I don't foresee a sack master unfortunately but maybe a player who can disrupt a running game and short passing game.