Thoughts on 2015 LBs

There have been a lot of great college QBs who did nothing in the NFL. Success in the NFL does not imply effectiveness in college. And visa versa. So suggesting that Price was not a good college QB based on the fact that he didn't make it into an NFL trying camp is over the top FS.

ToddTurnerLIVES said:

I think our lack of a great BUCK linebacker combined our lack of D Lineman next year could have us playing more 4-3. If that's the case then I think you see Feeney, Bierria and Littleton as our LBs. We need a true 3-4 nose tackle for last years defense to be effective and Qualls is no Danny Shelton. Maybe Vita Vea but we have no idea what to expect from him. Littleton is nowhere near Kikaha as far as pass rushing or being able to hold the edge. I think we substitute a mediocre BUCK like Littleton for a bigger body on a lot of snaps and bring a DB up into the box. We just don't really have a great hybrid LB/DL player but we might have a hybrid DB/LB in a guy like Joyner or Jo Jo McIntosh.

Da fuq? Let me introduce you to UW's 2015 BUCK. From Littleton's UW bio:

2013: Started all 13 games at defensive end ... two tackles in the win over Boise State ... five stops, including half a sack, in the victory over Illinois in Chicago ... two tackles vs. Idaho State ... posted five tackles and his first career sack in the Arizona win ... four tackles at Stanford ... notched six stops vs. Oregon ... had seven tackles, including four for loss and a sack, at Arizona State ... five tackles, including one and a half for loss and half of a sack, in the win over California ... six stops, including half of a sack, in the win over Colorado ... four tackles, plus a fumble recovery and a forced fumble, at UCLA ... five tackles, half for a loss, in the win at Oregon State ... had seven tackles, including one a half for loss and a sack, in the Apple Cup win over Washington State ... posted four tackles, including half of a tackle for loss, in the Fight Hunger Bowl win over BYU.

RoadDawg55 said:

HuskyInAZ said:

There have been a lot of great college QBs who did nothing in the NFL. Success in the NFL does not imply effectiveness in college. And visa versa. So suggesting that Price was not a good college QB based on the fact that he didn't make it into an NFL trying camp is over the top FS.

I would agree if Price ever won anything. Winning matters. The point wasn't that Price did nothing in the NFL. He wasn't even wanted after the Seahawks cut him (in June).

Kellen Moore, Ken Dorsey, Tebow, David Greene, and Jason Gesser at least lasted a little while. And they all won in college.

This board is the only place where posters say Hundley, Taylor Kelly, Sean Mannion, and Kevin Hogan suck, but somehow Price is considered a really good QB.

Hundley and Kelly had better stats and won more. Mannion threw for more yards and more touchdowns and won at basically the same clip. Hogan has won a Rose Bowl. But according to some here those guys suck, but Price is good.

So if a someone plays on a shitty team, then they are shitty? And if someone plays on a good team, they are good. Did I get that right? After all, winning matters.

Can we move Tripper Johnson to LB? He was a big safety.

TTJ said:

Kikaha led the nation in sacks. And I've called Shelton the best player to pass through UW in 20 years. Nobody is saying those guys won't be missed. Still, lots of teams would like to have a young DL rotation like this:

NT VEA/Gaines
3T QUALLS/Dissly
5T MATHIS/Dissly
BK LITTLETON/Johnson

Johnson panning out as our next BUCK would be huge for our D. I guy who came in as a pass rusher who is big enough to play the run and hopefully can play in space.

I think Littleton could be a great outside backer but he is too small to be effective in the pass rush and holding the edge defending the run. Littleton played a BUCK-like position under Wilcox but I feel like his main priority was really just to make sure that the RB and mobile QBs didn't beat him outside. He would get 3-5 yards upfield and take the right tackle out of the play and leave Feeney to blitz or cover the left side of the field.

Littleton was a lot like Andrew Hudson in the sense that he was asked to play a position that he wasn't that well suited for and did a pretty good job despite that. I think he is naturally a OLB.