Would this be a plausible scheme:
Line him up at OLB, and leave a safety over the top in the event Sam loses track of the RB/TE?
Why would you need to disguise his deficiencies? He already looks like a situational pass rusher, just use him in that capacity if that’s what you need.
Exactly. You don’t design a defense to hide the shortcomings of a seventh-round pick. You fit him into the scheme you have in spots where he can contribute. I did read that the Rams will use him at DE and probably on special teams. Doing workouts as an LB was probably a mistake that hurt his draft stock.
Doesn’t a player have to show some remarkable efficiencies before the team will think about covering up his deficiencies? Someone in the other thread mentioned special teams, maybe a good idea while they work out how best to use him.
This.
Thanks guys. I just am really rooting for Sam, and to have the most impact possible. I agree being on the kamikaze unit is he best shot at NFL success. I don’t know the CFL well enough to know if that league is a better fit.
What’s his ceiling? Poor man’s Dwight Freeney, IF he can bulk up some, and IF he can find his way onto the rotation of an already pretty good Rams’ front 7?
If he can get on special teams this season, that will be a victory.
It probably is. Sam isn’t really fast enough to be a regular linebacker in the NFL, nor is he large enough to be a lineman.
The CFL, aside from being an easier league, is a league in which the equation is a bit more tilted in the favour of speed and away from size; the field is much larger, and a variety of little rule differences place a bit more emphasis on running. In the CFL Sam would actually not be undersized as a lineman - the CFL has a lot of regular DLs in the 250-260 range. He would be slow for a linebacker, but that’s okay; he would have a clear position on the line, and would probably be damned good at it. In the NFL he’s caught between two positions.
If he’s a role player, no. He would just be used in a limited way that plays to his strengths. On the other hand of you have a player who is so great at one thing that you want him on the field most if the time, you look for ways to hide his faults.