Start Me Up: Left Tackle
Over the next few days, we are going to take a quick look at each and every position of starters on this team. Now, we’re talking about the offensive line and will work through the rest of the offense and across the ball.
Just another D’bustinthewall? Yeah, I don’t think so.
It’s not been an easy first two years for the guy that was hoped to be the cornerstone of the new regime, but to be fair he hasn’t had the best supporting cast either. Now three years in, D’Brickashaw Ferguson is growing into his frame, and was an offseason workout award winner … if you’ve seen him … it shows as his pads seem to be fitting a little less streamlined than in years past. As a rookie, Brick got tired as the year went on, and his svelte frame seemed more like that of a defensive lineman’s than of an offensive tackle. Brick had a rocky first year, but was aided by Pete Kendall’s steadying influence to his right. Without Kendall, things fell apart quickly last season, and Brick allowed even more sacks in his second season than in his first alone on an island, facing some of the league’s better pass rushers. This offseason, the Jets buttressed their line with Alan Faneca, until Favre’s arrival, a key piece of their offseason strategy. Yes, people might say that Alan Faneca is too old, but let’s be honest, even if he is, an old and busted Alan Faneca is better than a spry and nimble Adrien Clarke any day of the week. With matters settled to Brick’s right on the field, Brick should learn from Faneca’s nasty style of play, something that we fans would like to see more out of the athletic tackle. If D’Brickashaw is more squared away and starts playing up to his potential this year, it will help the offense immensely in trying to run behind him and Faneca to the left (the team was unable to move the ball to the left last year) and should free up RB/TE checkdowns for the passing game if Brick can hold his blocks long enough, and he should knowing he doesn’t have to worry about anything to his right.
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This guy is a monster. hes built for the position and will do well and be steady. Just because he was a fourth pick doesnt mean hes a bust with the last two years. He cant block by himself, people! its a scheme! a scheme that sucked last year. Doesnt this dude have a black belt in Shotokan?
Like Ryu and Ken?
FANECA has at LEAST three years left in him! he may BE old but doesnt LOOK/PLAY old!
Shy-ru-ken!!!
this is going to be the year where people will compare him to gene upshaw, wait was he a left tackle oh well , point is D Brick can really be as good as joe thomas , who was good in his rookie year only because he had steinbach next to him , if h edidnt have him he would have had a rocky year
One thing concerns me about Brick. I noticed in O-line drills during training camp that he tends to push off with his arms rather than absorbing the other man’s momentum with his chest. Faneca is a chest man. I don’t know enough about playing the position to judge whether this is a bad thing or simply the difference between tackle and guard that I never noticed before.
I’m sure that tackles have to deal with more range of motion from opposing pass rushers. Long, powerful arms are a big asset when a defensive guy can go upfield ten yards without running into another blocker. Still, I was a little concerned that Brick might not really like contact.
If he is avoiding contact, then he’ll always be a technique guy and never make a Pro Bowl. Still, if he winds up to be a quality blocker who gets beat less than six times a year, who am I to complain.
Andrew Weiss,
One of the major things a tackle is judged on is his arm length, the longer the arms the better. It’s important for a tackle to keep defenders off their bodies, and they do so by pushing off the their arms. I is paramount for a tackle to be fluid and be able to move with the rush, if a defender gets into a tackle’s body its all over. D’ brick graded out as having excellent arm length when he was scouted. Guards on the otherhand, by virtue of their position as interior linemen take the impacts to their bodies.
good thoughts andrew and ram … the arm length thing is key which is one reason many short armed guys become guards … tackles use the space to ride their quicker and more athletic end out and around the pocket where guards have to “bellyup” on their generally bigger and slower tackles.
Andrew:
To answer your question regarding Brick’s useage of his arms, it depends on whether it is a passing or running play.
If Brick is pass blocking, he needs to do EVERYTHING in his power to prevent the D-Lineman from getting HIS hands on Brick’s chest. That is why his long arms are an asset (and Woody’s short arms are a concern for a tackle). Idealistic pass-blocking technique (i.e., for 75% of all players, even in the NFL) has you using a series of punches to keep the DL from getting into your chest. If D’Brick gets a really good “shock” on his punch to the DE’s chest, he will neatralize his momentum and can take a step back and hit him again, or if the DE decides to move outside hard, D’Brick can “pop his hip pocket” and encourage the movement so far outside so as to take him off the path towards the QB.
-You probably see Faneca getting his chest on the guy, even during pass plays, b/c he will be dealing primarily against the “bull-rush” and only elite DT’s have any real pass-rushing moves to speak of, other than rips, bull-rushes, etc. Getting his chest and arms on a guy should be sufficient to stop a DE, or a blitzing LB.
HOWEVER, if the DE gets HIS hands on D’Brick, he will throw him around like a little girl (which has happened a lot to Brick). It will allow for the DE to do a “push-pull-swing”, a “rip” or to feign moving outside with his momentum and swing inside (or vice-versa), creating a patented D’Brick “look-out block”. Unfortanately, “look-out blocks” are what Brick has specialized in the past 2 years (getting beat, looking back and screaming “look-out” to Chad and Clemens).
Running plays are a bit different. In that case, BRICK — or any lineman for that matter — is the one trying to get in and STAY in on the DE or DT or LB. Not only does he need proper hand placement (similar to pass-blocking), he also needs to get his helmet up in there into a proper “fit position”. He will want to start low, with helmet right around where the laces are on the shoulder pads, and try to explode up through the DE/DT/LB while rolling his hips, and THEN finishing the block by extending his arms.
*This is all idealistic. In reality, you want to incorporate as much of these techniques as possible “when the rubber meets the road”.
Thanks for the great explanations, ramble and dsmizzle.
Incidentally, Brick did a nice job of warding off rushers with those arms in practice. He also had a much better defined lower body than I remember him having last year.
I still think he may be a little too upright in his blocking which puts him off balance at the point of contact. Still, Faneca should allow him to limit the number of threat directions, which will surely help him.
there are two things that concern me about d’brick. first his attitude–bassett wrote that he hopes d’brick can learn nastiness from faneca. but i fear that a nasty attitude isn’t something a player learns but rather something a player has as an innate characteristic, much like height.
the second, is d’brick’s physical size. he may have lifted enough weights to have gotten over 310 or so, but if you look at his head and wrists, he’s not a huge person. i saw bruce matthews in an airport once, and his head was as big as my entire torso. his hands too were enormous. bruce matthews had natural o-line size. d’brick does not. that’s why i had hoped that joe thomas would fall to number 5.
based on these two shortcomings, i doubt d’brick will ever be more than an adequate run blocker, but i still hold out hope that he can be a consistent pass blocker and amount to an average NFL left tackle.
Again guys. Too much is made out of left tackle, left guard etc. Its all about OL cohesiveness. To be effective pass/ run mode they must play as one. Stats prove that out.
Bust