2023 Official Roster Build Thread - The Initial 53 / Practice Squad

[Topcat]

Interesting thought, but I’d hate to put Derwin at FS and take him out of the action. He needs to be in the middle of the D, not a deep,last line of defense guy.

Derwin at FS last year was only about 60 snaps less than SS:

"According to PFF, James primarily spent his time in the box (356 snaps), but also lined up frequently at free safety (296 snaps) and slot corner (174 snaps) last season."

https://www.chargers.com/news/pro-football-focus-derwin-james-best-safety

[21&500]

Interesting thought, but I’d hate to put Derwin at FS and take him out of the action. He needs to be in the middle of the D, not a deep,last line of defense guy.

My personal preference would be to play him 90% at FS because of how much I value that position in todays passing game over SS which many other mortal DBs can play at a high level. And I especially despise him playing 5 positions in a game.
If James were allowed to live at FS, he could potentially have an Ed Reed type impact, no hyperbole. I'd gladly sacrifice his contributions close to the LOS for game changing pass defense.
I also think some fans confuse "not being in on a play" with "not effecting the play"
At FS you can bet his mere presence there is effecting the offense's playcall and QB decisions. So no, you won't see him be Mr. Swiss Army Knife, but he would still effect every play.

EOD, I believe we're accruing negative returns by spreading him thin in an attempt to, "Maximize James".
quite ironically too.

[Ghost of Quacksaw]

He had better ball out . . . . . . . if he starts making 'business decisions' on the field tp prolong his career he won't have a job next year (a la JJ). No-one's going to want a 29(??) year old RB with questionable motivation.

Sounds like the kind of guy the Raiders are known to take a gamble on.

[dmac_bolt]

My personal preference would be to play him 90% at FS because of how much I value that position in todays passing game over SS which many other mortal DBs can play at a high level. And I especially despise him playing 5 positions in a game.
If James were allowed to li e at FS, he could potentially have an Ed Reed type impact, no hyperbole. I'd gladly sacrifice his contributions close to the LOS for game changing pass defense.
I also think some fans confuse "not being in on a play" with "not effecting the play"
At FS you can bet his mere presence there is effecting the offense's playcall and QB decisions. So no, you won't see him be Mr. Swiss Army Knife, but he would still effect every play.

EOD, I believe we're accruing negative returns by spreading him thin in an attempt to, "Maximize James".
quite ironically too.

I still find it amazing that some here don’t think he’s not impacting the defense.

Ed Reed was slower than Pokey.

[21&500]

I still find it amazing that some here don’t think he’s not impacting the defense.

Ed Reed was slower than Pokey.

He is, just not as efficiently as he can be and that's on Staley imho.
I think Staley would agree. I expect his role to continue to evolve into more concentrated areas as the defensive personnel gain a better understanding of the defense and/or we continue to add talent ala Kendricks.

[Topcat]

My personal preference would be to play him 90% at FS because of how much I value that position in todays passing game over SS which many other mortal DBs can play at a high level. And I especially despise him playing 5 positions in a game.
If James were allowed to li e at FS, he could potentially have an Ed Reed type impact, no hyperbole. I'd gladly sacrifice his contributions close to the LOS for game changing pass defense.
I also think some fans confuse "not being in on a play" with "not effecting the play"
At FS you can bet his mere presence there is effecting the offense's playcall and QB decisions. So no, you won't see him be Mr. Swiss Army Knife, but he would still effect every play.

EOD, I believe we're accruing negative returns by spreading him thin in an attempt to, "Maximize James".
quite ironically too.

Good point...we need an enforcer type at FS like Derwin on at least half the field, or we're going to get torched by intermediate and long passes...for the other deep safety spot, Gilman dukes it out with Woods or one of the other young bucks...my preference is Gilman at SS...

[dmac_bolt]

Good point...we need an enforcer type at FS like Derwin on at least half the field, or we're going to get torched by intermediate and long passes...for the other deep safety spot, Gilman dukes it out with Woods or one of the other young bucks...my preference is Gilman at SS...

at least half the field? like, 2/3 of the field? Why not just expect Derwin to cover the entire field and we can pin down the reason for your disappointment with our best defensive player?

you're either describing a common FS centerfielder or your describing an enforcer method of playing safety that the league outlawed (e.g.Rodney). That is not a modern enforcer. We don't need to underutilize Derwin's unique physicality and skills to laying back as a deep pass defender, any fast FS with cover skills (in partnership with CBs) can do that.

Modern Enforcer is SS and Derwin is the NFL prototype, best in the league. The Modern SS Enforcer punishes offenses all over the field, they don't just lay back in deep patrol. They enforce in the box, behind the LOS, in the middle and cover in both mid and deep secondary. Limiting him to deep centerfield is a waste of his unique abilities.

I completely disagree with the advice to not use Derwin's full set of skills. Lay Derwin deep and the defense will just get gashed all day long on 10-15 yard plays. Fangio's design is based on the Cover 2 (e.g. 2 deep Safeties) zone being described and the Chiefs and Eagles of the NFL have already solved how to beat it in the seams and mid-range gaps it creates. Staley should bring new innovative Cover 1 ideas coupled with more man-press and coverage disguises and twists to update that now-aging scheme and unleash our most potent SS beast anywhere and everywhere in unpredictable ways

Never mind one particular TPB alum insists Derwin can't even cover receivers (he can).

[sonorajim]

In my memory, DJ had most impact when setting up within 5 yds.
Somebody put up some diagrams or vids of where he usually plays and where you want him.
In my mind FS is behind everybody and just gets involved when everyone else has screwed the pooch.
I want DJ to be proactive.

[chargeroo]

Pokey reached into the sky
To snare a Herbie missile
he swaggered back to huddle
with a smile and a whistle

the gray beards at the blue saloon
Weren’t rarin’ to ride his show
they sputtered in their sassafras
“I hear that pokey’s slow”

I didn't know you were a poet. Well done!
Here's the truth about what I believe regarding the speed of a player; I really doubt the difference between a 4.5 guy and a 3.8 guy is as big a deal as most people do. I've seen guys that are supposedly slow get open deep on many occasions. It's simply not all about speed. Our own best at getting deep has been Williams and he's not the fastest guy on the team.
I do think when a guy's fast enough to run a sub 4.3 he has an advantage and he can change a game. But, guys like Pokey that run a 4.5 forty can be very successful receivers in the NFL. It's been happening for as long as I can remember.

[SuperCharged]

I didn't know you were a poet. Well done!
Here's the truth about what I believe regarding the speed of a player; I really doubt the difference between a 4.5 guy and a 3.8 guy is as big a deal as most people do. I've seen guys that are supposedly slow get open deep on many occasions. It's simply not all about speed. Our own best at getting deep has been Williams and he's not the fastest guy on the team.
I do think when a guy's fast enough to run a sub 4.3 he has an advantage and he can change a game. But, guys like Pokey that run a 4.5 forty can be very successful receivers in the NFL. It's been happening for as long as I can remember.

That poem reeks of Ai.

[21&500]

I didn't know you were a poet. Well done!
Here's the truth about what I believe regarding the speed of a player; I really doubt the difference between a 4.5 guy and a 3.8 guy is as big a deal as most people do. I've seen guys that are supposedly slow get open deep on many occasions. It's simply not all about speed. Our own best at getting deep has been Williams and he's not the fastest guy on the team.
I do think when a guy's fast enough to run a sub 4.3 he has an advantage and he can change a game. But, guys like Pokey that run a 4.5 forty can be very successful receivers in the NFL. It's been happening for as long as I can remember.

whoa!! 3.8?!?
JK, I know what you meant.

[21&500]

That poem reeks of Ai.

With Ai, we are all doomed.
hopefully we win 1 championship before then.