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Originally posted by Icebolt
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Caldwell can be a little bit disruptive and get penetration. Don't kid yourself and think he is the next coming of Aaron Donald or Chris Jones. Caldwell adds some inside push into the offensive backfield, without losing the bulk and leverage. He still lets our LB to run to the ball while Jamaree clogs the inside gaps. A TFL here or there, the occasional sack. Caldwell had a lot of plays last year for Oregon (and back in Houston) that didn't show up on the stat sheet. He was knocking OL back into the backfield, and while he may not make the play, it gave his teammates a chance to finish the play. Harmon got a lot of 1 on 1 situations because Caldwell is big, physical and quick. It's too hard for a C to take on by himself.
That is how we set up our pass rushers for later downs. Poona did that last year and that really helps our D.
A lot of teams are willing to sacrifice some of the size and physical play to get the penetration. They mentioned in the video of JH2 calling Caldwell, that he is square to the line. Too many college and pro guys spend too much time getting skinny and trying to fly through the gap and make a play in the backfield. It's great when it works, but mostly it doesn't. Caldwell may not have the disruptive upside, but he doesn't allow that cheap crap. He stays square and makes teams double him and holds the ground, and then gets the occasional big play for the D. The guys who dip their shoulder and get driven out of the gap, Caldwell is still holding his ground. So, overall he comes out way ahead.
The other thing that I think will be great is watch him continue to develop his body. Before last year he did an interview where he had played in Houston at 325lb, although he looks much larger than when he played in Oregon at 330-335 lbs. That means he is probably turning a lot of fat into muscle. He certainly plays with better leverage and power than when he was at Houston. I can't wait to see him pair up with Ben Herbert and keep improving his body. He is clearly a pretty focused and serious guy, but giving him professional guidance will make him even more effective.
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