Cowboys, Chargers boast best 'backers in the NFL

[BK Arsonist]

More hate :D

1. Dallas Cowboys
The Cowboys have three outside linebackers who can get after opposing quarterbacks and DeMarcus Ware is as good as it gets at the position. Ware can do it all with his rare blend of quickness off the ball, pure speed and ideal body type for the position. He sacked the quarterback 14 times last year, but his ability to stay with backs and tight ends in coverage is often overlooked and Ware is a Defensive Player of the Year candidate who keeps getting better. Greg Ellis returned from injury to have a very productive 2007 season while Anthony Spencer, last year's first-round pick, is going to be tough to keep of the field due to his ability to rush the quarterback. For now, though, Spencer is simply an exceptional No. 3 outside linebacker who could see time on throwing downs and make things very difficult on opposing protection schemes. Bradie James plays inside on the strong side and is a thumper who is always around the football. Zach Thomas came on board to finish his career at home in Texas and will play alongside James on the inside. Thomas played in a 3-4 alignment some in Miami and was very effective, and the transition to playing a 3-4 full-time should not be difficult for such a fundamentally-sound player. Dallas does not have much invested in Thomas so the risk is minimal, but if he can stay healthy it will be interesting to see how much he has left in the tank. Bobby Carpenter has yet to live up to his first-round selection and has shuffled from inside to outside, and while he does provide depth he needs to step up and become more of a contributor. Kevin Barnett is yet another talented young player who will find it hard to get on the field unless injuries intervene, which just goes to show how great this group is overall.

[CP]

Thomas played in a 3-4 alignment some in Miami and was very effective, and the transition to playing a 3-4 full-time should not be difficult for such a fundamentally-sound player.

LMAO @ expecting any impact from Zack Thomas.

Dude has been done for YEARS.

But I wouldnt be surprised to see him in the probowl this year since hes a Cowboy :rolleyes:

[BK Arsonist]

LMAO @ expecting any impact from Zack Thomas.

Dude has been done for YEARS.

But I wouldnt be surprised to see him in the probowl this year since hes a Cowboy :rolleyes:

wow, even you're taking shots CP?

[A Disciple]

LMAO @ expecting any impact from Zack Thomas.

Dude has been done for YEARS.

But I wouldnt be surprised to see him in the probowl this year since hes a Cowboy :rolleyes:
His impact can be more than just what he does on the field. his education to a very young LB crew can be valuable.

[CP]

wow, even you're taking shots CP?

@ Zack Thomas? HELLLLL YEAH. You didn't hear me disagree or criticize the rankings, just the idea that Zack THomas will have an impact ;)

[jerseyjay14]

i like what the titans and jets have at linebacker this year. i think you will see alot of noise from the LBs on these 2 teams.

last year thornton and bullock were insane. i think they will only get better after a year together.

Gholston/Pace/David thomas is a VERY underrated group

[conviction]

zach thomas will be trash lol

[CP]

His impact can be more than just what he does on the field. his education to a very young LB crew can be valuable.

What is he going to teach them? How to be notoriously dirty? They already have Roy Williams for that

:p

[CP]

i like what the titans and jets have at linebacker this year. i think you will see alot of noise from the LBs on these 2 teams.

last year thornton and bullock were insane. i think they will only get better after a year together.

Gholston/Pace/David thomas is a VERY underrated group

David Harris JJ!!!!!!

[metal]

This is the only "Best" list I feel the Bears should be very high on.

[Indecline]

Zach Thomas doesnt have it in him anymore, hes washed up

Demarcus Ware great player probably the base of that defense

Tank Johnson Ive never really thought he was that great of a player he had played along side one of the best, Tommie Harris and that meant the Center was helping to block Harris and he had only one guy to get through

Ken Hamlin Good Man Coverage player, another good side of the Defense.

Roy Williams General Horsecollar is the weakest part of that defense, I say he gets burned 30 times this year.

Pacman Jones Good player but I wouldn't be suprised if he got in trouble again midway through the season

Greg Ellis, Could Pass rusher but cant stop the run.

Id rank the Cowboys D maybe 5th or 6th, not first

[sportfan88]

Zach Thomas doesnt have it in him anymore, hes washed up

Demarcus Ware great player probably the base of that defense

Tank Johnson Ive never really thought he was that great of a player he had played along side one of the best, Tommie Harris and that meant the Center was helping to block Harris and he had only one guy to get through

Ken Hamlin Good Man Coverage player, another good side of the Defense.

Roy Williams General Horsecollar is the weakest part of that defense, I say he gets burned 30 times this year.

Pacman Jones Good player but I wouldn't be suprised if he got in trouble again midway through the season

Greg Ellis, Could Pass rusher but cant stop the run.

Id rank the Cowboys D maybe 5th or 6th, not first


Well this is just linebackers that they are ranking.

[theanalogkid]

Zach Thomas is too undersized for the 3-4. He's slightly bigger than Vilma. He also should be retired with the amount of concussions he's had, maybe the next one will knock some sense into him.

[H1tStick]

Cowboys have better LBers than the Seahawks?

REALLY??

I would like someone to explain this to me.

[rjmcc01]

Dude...I'm as against home town bias as anybody I know but please explain how ANYBODIES LB's are better than SEA's...

I've read multiple articles that say SEA is on top so I'm not too butt hurt but seriously....

[QBStokes4]

This is the only "Best" list I feel the Bears should be very high on.

Don't forget the return game!!!!!!!!!!! :D

[QBStokes4]

Dude...I'm as against home town bias as anybody I know but please explain how ANYBODIES LB's are better than SEA's...

I've read multiple articles that say SEA is on top so I'm not too butt hurt but seriously....

100% agree with this

[QBStokes4]

Ken Hamlin Good Man Coverage player, another good side of the Defense.



i mean...the rest of the list was correct

[GAV]

When I take a dump, it is usually on the Dallas Star.

[H1tStick]

5. Seattle Seahawks
The Seahawks might have the best pair of linebackers in the league in MLB Lofa Tatupu and OLB Julian Peterson. Tatupu is a natural playmaker who is around the ball on seemingly every play. He is a superb leader, an underrated athlete and someone every defensive coordinator would like to have leading his unit, and Tatupu's pass coverage improves every season. Peterson is a special talent and the rare player who can do just about anything asked of him in any scheme. His athletic ability is off the charts and he makes plenty of plays that make you stand up and say wow. He is adept both in coverage and against the run and excels coming off the edge in blitz situations. Leroy Hill often goes unnoticed alongside his Pro Bowl teammates, but he has been starting since midway through his rookie season and is an impressive player in his own right. Hill is better coming forward than playing in reverse, but he can be a force as a pass rusher and against the run by making plays in the opponent's backfield. Depth behind these three standout starters is worrisome and that hurts the overall ranking of this group just a bit, but linebacker remains the Seahawks' strongest position.

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all that and the Cowboys are supposedly better?

[Cards77]

There is no way in hell the Bears should be rated above the Seahawks. That's just retarded. I mean you can make a case for the Cowboys and the Chargers, but seriously, put Seattle against the Bears corps man for man.

This is what you get:

MLB: Urlacher vs. Tatupu - If anything it's a draw but I'd be ok with Urlacher having a slight edge, just for being an all around better athlete, but not necessarily the better MLB.

WLB: Julian Peterson vs Briggs - Peterson is probably the best OLB in the game, he may be the best blitzer in the game even over Merriman and edges Briggs.

SLB: Hunter Hillenmeyer vs Leroy Hill - It's not even close, Hillenmeyer is average at best. Hill blitzes better, covers better and tackles better.

Neither has very good depth but you'd have to take Seattle's depth over Chicago.

Advantage: Seattle

I laugh at this guy alot he's a name recognition guy.

[BK Arsonist]

5. Seattle Seahawks
The Seahawks might have the best pair of linebackers in the league in MLB Lofa Tatupu and OLB Julian Peterson. Tatupu is a natural playmaker who is around the ball on seemingly every play. He is a superb leader, an underrated athlete and someone every defensive coordinator would like to have leading his unit, and Tatupu's pass coverage improves every season. Peterson is a special talent and the rare player who can do just about anything asked of him in any scheme. His athletic ability is off the charts and he makes plenty of plays that make you stand up and say wow. He is adept both in coverage and against the run and excels coming off the edge in blitz situations. Leroy Hill often goes unnoticed alongside his Pro Bowl teammates, but he has been starting since midway through his rookie season and is an impressive player in his own right. Hill is better coming forward than playing in reverse, but he can be a force as a pass rusher and against the run by making plays in the opponent's backfield. Depth behind these three standout starters is worrisome and that hurts the overall ranking of this group just a bit, but linebacker remains the Seahawks' strongest position.

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all that and the Cowboys are supposedly better?


I guess you can't read...

[rjmcc01]

I guess you can't read...

I don't think that the depth should determine who has the best LB CORE

The CORE LB's are the best....Like I said before I hate hometown bias but this is my exception...That is ONE article...it's the only one I've ever read that put SEA at 5...

[BK Arsonist]

I don't think that the depth should determine who has the best LB CORE

The CORE LB's are the best....Like I said before I hate hometown bias but this is my exception...That is ONE article...it's the only one I've ever read that put SEA at 5...

well, If I have 5 good guys and you have 3 good guys, which unit is better?

They didn't say starters or backups, they said Linebackers which means the entire unit.

What do you mean by hometown bias?

[rjmcc01]

well, If I have 5 good guys and you have 3 good guys, which unit is better?

They didn't say starters or backups, they said Linebackers which means the entire unit.

What do you mean by hometown bias?

Well if that's the case you could be correct...I was under the impression that we were refering to the lb CORE, not unit....

As far as hometown bias I hate all the guys who make ridiculous claims about how guys from their hometown teams are better than others when they really aren't...or how guys totally hate on guys with a rival team....I really try to stay away from that bs and just stick to the facts.

Either way, I'm not too worried about our backups...a team that has GREAT backups means that they have good players sitting on the sideline....waiting for an injury is just crazy.

[BK Arsonist]

Well if that's the case you could be correct...I was under the impression that we were refering to the lb CORE, not unit....

As far as hometown bias I hate all the guys who make ridiculous claims about how guys from their hometown teams are better than others when they really aren't...or how guys totally hate on guys with a rival team....I really try to stay away from that bs and just stick to the facts.

Either way, I'm not too worried about our backups...a team that has GREAT backups means that they have good players sitting on the sideline....waiting for an injury is just crazy.

I basically grabbed these threads with the Cowboys #1 to piss off my Eagles buddies... When evaluating a team, you look at the entire team and not just the starters. The games are played on the field, who cares what scouts, inc. thnks?

[T.J. Davis]

There is no way in hell the Bears should be rated above the Seahawks. That's just retarded. I mean you can make a case for the Cowboys and the Chargers, but seriously, put Seattle against the Bears corps man for man.

This is what you get:

MLB: Urlacher vs. Tatupu - If anything it's a draw but I'd be ok with Urlacher having a slight edge, just for being an all around better athlete, but not necessarily the better MLB.

WLB: Julian Peterson vs Briggs - Peterson is probably the best OLB in the game, he may be the best blitzer in the game even over Merriman and edges Briggs.

SLB: Hunter Hillenmeyer vs Leroy Hill - It's not even close, Hillenmeyer is average at best. Hill blitzes better, covers better and tackles better.

Neither has very good depth but you'd have to take Seattle's depth over Chicago.

Advantage: Seattle

I laugh at this guy alot he's a name recognition guy.

I like Tatupu as much as the next guy but your homerism...well it's really homer-ish.

[metal]

Don't forget the return game!!!!!!!!!!! :D

No kidding, guess I'm takin #23 for granted.

[Cards77]

I like Tatupu as much as the next guy but your homerism...well it's really homer-ish.

Refute with logic or stfu.

[T.J. Davis]

Refute with logic or stfu.

That is a logical comment. :rolleyes:

[A Disciple]

Refute with logic or stfu.


That is a logical comment. :rolleyes:

lol, this made me chuckle