Pass rush and using Lawson

by sam23 on Sep 28, 2008 12:04 AM PDT

So I know a couple people have commented on how little Manny has seen the field due to the number of nickel and dime packages we've run out there and Fooch alluded to it in his most recent main post. But why haven't we heard of Lawson playing any DE in these nickel and dime scenarios? He's a bit light, but I'd think he could be a very good speed rusher still and its where he played full time in college after all. Would he be too small to be effectiveon the line for even a couple downs in those situations? I'm curious to hear what others think about this. I feel like we may be wasting one of our most talented and athletic players and potentially our best pass rusher, despite the fact that we dont have that many super athletes our natural pass rushers to begin with. I'm pleased with what Haralson, Smith and Green have shown, and the pass rush seems much improved regardless.

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I could be mistaken but..

I pretty sure I read that Lawson was drafted to be a pass rusher but the niners quickly found he, with his speed, was better in pass coverage. That said I still don’t see why he is not on the field for the nickel and dime packages. Best 11 Nolan says, makes me wonder if Lawson is not 100% yet?

by tanos135 on Sep 28, 2008 7:43 AM PDT reply actions

Yeah

Lawson’s been a GREAT coverage linebacker since he was drafted. However, he’s never made much of an impact as a pass rusher. I’m not sure how much that has to do with the defensive line being really bad the last few years, but at this point he’s so good in coverage that I’d rather just see us take advantage of his skills in that area. He might never be as good of a pass rusher as he is in the open field.

That’s not to say NEVER use him to rush, but it is to say don’t play him like he’s the kind of pass rushing specialist that a lot of fans have never been able to let go of the idea that he is, At this point, he’s an all purpose LB with a coverage specialty..

I wish we’d used him more the last couple weeks, too. You just can’t keep a guy as talented as he is on the bench and really expect it to improve your defense.

My Dave Righetti is better than your Dave Righetti.

by howtheyscored on Sep 28, 2008 10:00 AM PDT up reply actions

seems a little like a waste

that he is a coverage specialist and we can’t cover a corpse right now. Yet he still barely sees the field.

by lacrosse_cat on Sep 28, 2008 7:36 PM PDT reply actions

Yeah… I’m not very thrilled with any of the playcalling. And the defensive gameplanning has been consistently awful. I’m still too bitter to say anything that isn’t filled with explicit language… so I’ll try to work reasonably through my feelings sometime later.

My Dave Righetti is better than your Dave Righetti.

by howtheyscored on Sep 28, 2008 10:37 PM PDT up reply actions