Chargers Signing Nick Vigil

[like54ninjas]

Good depth/ST add.

[blueman]

Uh, who’s starting ahead of him? White? Really?

[Steve]

Perryman, Vigil & Tranquill are the only established starting level LBs on the roster. Nick is a good get, particularly with Perryman having been unreliable. We have some young, unestablished LB wannbes but I wouldn't take Simmons off the board just yet.

I am not all that sure Simmons will be there when we pick.

I wouldn't hesitate to bench any LB on our roster to reshuffle to make room for Simmons, if he is there.

He is similar in terms of being a run defender to Perryman, although maybe not quite as physical. However, he is slightly better in pass coverage. He is a good depth guy because he has played all 3 LB for the Bengals over the course of his career, although he mostly plays Mike or Will. He is more of a steady guy. Perryman has actually showed signs that he can be very good, but then disappears. Vigil is not going to show the flashes, but he doesn't completely disappear as much (still does a little though). He is also durable.

Vigil is getting paid fairly well for a backup, but not enough to make him a sure starter. More like a super-sub (borderline starter) and even if he is starting for us, he would probably be the 1st LB off the field when we go to the nickel. He is only a part time guy. Solid depth pickup that could look very good this time next year, if we need him on the field, but probably won't be an impact player.

[Charge!]

He reminds me of Dzub

much, much better tackler,,,,,,, Dzub is an effort guy who really didn't do anything really well.......

[dmac_bolt]

We went from great pickup to Nifty Wiffty in record time ...

[Steve]

We have struggled with depth at LB, and he adds some. A very reasonable price for a player who can probably produce on the same level as Davis did last year. For the most part, LB are not all that exciting a player anymore. They are jack of all trades, master of none types. That is why Simmons is so interesting, is that he is one of the few who is not outmatched against the players he will be facing. Everyone talks about playing more of a college style of offense, but I have yet to hear people talk about playing college style of defenses in the NFL.

[beachcomber]

not sure why Denzel gets knocked for his pass D so much, as recall looking @some advanced stats awhile ago, and despite that Drue regularly is perceived as the better coverage LB, Denzel's stats were the better deal, and.... Vigil doesn't hold a candle to Denzel in run D.... not even close.

[alex8080]

We have struggled with depth at LB, and he adds some. A very reasonable price for a player who can probably produce on the same level as Davis did last year. For the most part, LB are not all that exciting a player anymore. They are jack of all trades, master of none types. That is why Simmons is so interesting, is that he is one of the few who is not outmatched against the players he will be facing. Everyone talks about playing more of a college style of offense, but I have yet to hear people talk about playing college style of defenses in the NFL.

i've wondered if lac preferred to play more nickel an dime because their own preference towards that D, that like for their db's, etc or their lack of depth at lb because that could have certainly been improved if they wanted? preference vs need?

[Formula 21]

Who do you see as our starters in base D next year. And if we play a 4-2-5, why would we need to pick any LBs in the draft. And that means taking an OT over Simmons.

[dmac_bolt]

Who do you see as our starters in base D next year. And if we play a 4-2-5, why would we need to pick any LBs in the draft. And that means taking an OT over Simmons.

Simmons would be elite in the 5 group as a thumper safety/lb Hybrid. He’s a guy that never needs to come off the field. My only question about him was is he strong enough to stand up in a base 4-3-4 at LB if an offense runs a two TE / bigs power package straight at them - this forum convinced me he can so I’m on board all the way for him.

QB1 is still more important than any two other, maybe any 4 other players. By far the most important position on the field, its not even close and that is why top QBs get 30M now. the salary reflect the value. If they can get a franchise QB at 6, gotta do it. Even if he’s “10” on your board, the positional value is through the roof.

[Heatmiser]

Hoping Vigil is better than Dzubinar, who maxed out at a decent special teams cover guy and nothing else. So athletically limited he cannot play defense at all.

TG

[Steve]

i've wondered if lac preferred to play more nickel an dime because their own preference towards that D, that like for their db's, etc or their lack of depth at lb because that could have certainly been improved if they wanted? preference vs need?

You might have a point except that ALL NFL teams have played way more nickel D than base since the early 1980's. This is not a new trend (40 years old). For all (practical) intents and purposes, this is the way it has been forever. We are only the exception only in the sense that we play more dime than nickel (prior to Phillips getting hurt).

There are only a few LB in the NFL who can cover well enough to stay with pass catching TE, 3rd down RB and/or WR. NFL football is all about situational football and getting matchups, and LB are the mismatches in a BAD way. Almost every offense in the NFL, even the 49ers and KC, if they have a tactical/mismatch problem that comes up in a game, the answer that they come up with is in the passing game, not the running game. NFL offenses play around 60-70% of their snaps in their 11 personnel (1RB, 1TE, 3WR).

Few teams have 2 good run blocking TE. There is a big shortage of TE who can block, and most of the ones that can, are terrible pass catchers. Only a handful of NFL teams have a FB at all, and those that do, most are athletically limited. The bottom line is most NFL teams might have bigger players on the field when the offense was in base personnel, but they aren't necessarily going to knock a nickel or dime defense around. Our Dime package is perceived to be a weakness vs the run, but the dime players were much better vs the run, than the base players. The extra FB and TE simply cannot block DB in space. We stood toe to toe with Baltimore, and they had the best heavy personnel in football the last 2 years, by a wide margin. The NE game kept getting quoted as the problem with the dime and quarters personnel group, but it was the LB and DT who were getting knocked around, missing tackles and unable to finish plays.

The other thing to consider is that the modern NFL and college offenses are doing more and more zone read and RPO's. Those are option football. The way college teams stop and beat option football is to get as fast as possible. GB didn't get killed vs SF zone offense because they got outmuscled in the playoffs. They got killed because they couldn't match the 49ers speed.