K.J and Malcolm

On official team web site depth chart now lists K.J Wright and Malcolm Smith as two starting outside linebackers along with Bobby Wagner. It will be interesting to see which linebacker primary plays strong side and which plays weak side backer. Because of K.J.'s size, I've thought he fits the traditional strong side role and Malcolm the mode weak side traditional pursuit backer. Of course last year, K.J played more weak side and Malcolm strong side.

It's a little bizarre to me. Malcolm Smith played like the best WLB we have had in many years in those final six games. And in the Super Bowl, when all the LBs were healthy, they had Smith at Will and Wright at Sam. That allowed Smith to make big plays in space, while Wright used his size to hold the edge and shut down the TE. Irvin saw spot duty at SLB and LEO.

Yet, Smith is still listed at LOLB/SLB? And Wright at ROLB/WLB? Unless this is a typo, like last year during Irvin's PED suspension, I feel there is a determination to hold the SLB position for Irvin with a placeholder so that he can be shoehorned into a starting role upon his return. Irvin does a solid job holding the edge, but he does not play great in space and takes bad angles. For this reason, Irvin was one of the worst OLBs in the league in run stop percentage. He was very solid but not as spectacular as Wright was at SLB during the 2012 season and the Super Bowl.

After watching the Oakland game, I'm concerned about Malcolm's run defense. He's not nearly as good a stopper as Wags or KJ. Good coverage backer, though.

RiverDog":2kjr2aou said:

After watching the Oakland game, I'm concerned about Malcolm's run defense. He's not nearly as good a stopper as Wags or KJ. Good coverage backer, though.

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It's an interesting observation, but the stats don't really bear that out. Malcolm was a Top 5 OLB in run stop percentage last season, while Irvin was in the Bottom 5.

https://www.profootballfocus.com/blog/2 ... ntage-lbs/

Whomever is playing LB better stay in their lane and not over pursue, a problem that seems to creep up at times.

Sports Hernia":3a5grgnq said:

Whomever is playing LB better stay in their lane and not over pursue, a problem that seems to creep up at times.

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Agree 100% on this. The LBers have to stay disciplined!

I saw that too Riverdog.
I don't know if he's fully recovered but he seems a bit slow in pursuit and out of position. Missed the tackle on the rb in the hole that he usually makes. I think he'll get himself in game shape before long though.

Quinn's defense is kind of janky in that when he came in he basically flipped Bradley's defense (source SI's Championship Edition)

Bryant went from Strongside (playing over the TE?) to the Weakside (over tackle).

As did, Wright who was allowed to play more in space and use his length and instincts to be a play-maker.

As a result, Clemons and Irvin both were asked to play the Strongside.

For Clemons, it meant he had less pass-rush opportunities and more responsibilities in run defense, setting the edge.

Same for Irvin, which is why Quinn said the LEO and SLB were basically the same.

Then Earl and Kam switched high-and-low responsibilities which allowed Kam to play up to the line.

The Defense in itself was basically a 3-5-3... and it worked because it basically took away Sherman's Side of The Field and forced QBs to almost always throw across their bodies.


What does this have to do with KJ Wright and Malcolm Smith?

I just think Quinn, when Wright isn't hobbled, just trusts Wrights superb instincts, and playing WILL allows him to play in space rather than take on blocks. And we've seen what KJ Wright can do, he's pretty solid whether if its at Sam, Mike, or Will.

But I also think the switch was made last year to reduce Wright's wear and tear. Even though he came into the League at 245, he has a lot of length at 6'4. He's also not particularally the strongest or the most athletic especially in our stable of LBers. To me he's one of the most cerebral players on the team, so I can see why he has more value in playing in space being in the best position to track the Ball Carrier.

I think Quinn like Smith at SAM, even though he's naturally suited for WILL is because Smith is stout, he came into the league at 5'11, 225 but I think last year he played 235. So at the point of attack Smith is just a lot stouter. He's also the strongest of the LBers which helps him engage and fend off blockers a little bit better without getting fatigued. But above anything else his elite athleticism and 4.4 speed allows him to do a variety of things like rush the passer, set the strongside edge, drop into coverage, protect the flats, while being able to play sideline to sideline.

Which is why they probably have Irvin starting over Malcolm because even though Bruce is/was incredibly raw and lacks/lacked experience compared to Smith, he's basically the 6'3, 255 pound version of Smith as an athlete.

Russ Willstrong":336qs5l3 said:

I saw that too Riverdog.
I don't know if he's fully recovered but he seems a bit slow in pursuit and out of position. Missed the tackle on the rb in the hole that he usually makes. I think he'll get himself in game shape before long though.

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If we are to pretend this is true (that Malcolm Smith is a liability against the run), then it makes even less sense to line him up on the strongside where he will often have to contend with shedding blocks against the TE in the running game.