[h1]
why joey bosa might not be a bad pick after all....[/h1]
i've warmed up to joey bosa. like everyone else, i can fall victim to seeing things only as black and white.
after revisiting his tape and some out-of-box thinking, i can see this guy playing a very unique role on our team...
bosa is a monster in the run game. he plays with very advanced hand technique and leverage. he's got the type of grown man strength that translates to the NFL. hands naturally heavy like mike tyson. dude is a hammer in the run game.
this is textbook run defense
engage your man with hands inside
extend and get that long arm
squeeze down the line(this is so important! sliding down while simultaneously engaging his man)
shed the block
make the tackle
now, my knock on bosa was his ability to rush from the edge...i wish he was little more twitchy, a little bit more flexible, and had a little more closing speed. bosa is quick, but it's more of a straight-line quickness.. you guys know i love first step explosiveness. it's the first thing i look for in a pass rusher.
so, i was a little down on Bosa exclusively as a pass rushing OLB...
and then it dawned on me: he doesn't have to live on the edge.
ohio st used him inside a lot in their sub packages, and he had a lot of success, too. in ohio st's sub packages, bosa rushed inside as a 3 technique(4-3 defensive tackle). the kicker? we use 3 techniques in our pass rush packages, too.
bosa rushing from the inside
i made these to help clarify the positions. click to make bigger
bosa can play a VERY unique role in our defense as an OLB that doubles as a DT. he can live as the OLB hammer in base downs where he sets a concrete wall at the edge, and when it's time to go nickel, bosa can slide inside as an interior pass rusher. we can mix it up and keep him on the edge, too. gives our DC some flexibility to get creative.
we desperately need that interior pass rusher that demands double teams. we need someone to free up guys like aaron lynch and give them favorable one-on-one match ups.
bosa is unique in that he is gifted with a set of tools that can execute this hybrid role. combo of size(6'5 270 lbs), length(33 3/8" arm length) and staggering strength will give guards fits in the NFL. the shortest route to the QB is up the middle, and Bosa works good moving forward. he doesn't have to be as bendy and twitchy inside as an OLB would on the edge.
this would allow lynch, bosa, armstead and ahmad/tank/eli to all be on the field at once in our rush package.
oh, and he's only 20 years old.