Positional value; defense.

[Kiwibrown]

I have been an NFL fan for a long time, and as of recent years it seems that two positions have really solidified as the most important on defense. Corner and Pass rusher, usually an edge rusher. 

 

Furthermore it seems that, to some at least there is a descent in value for other positions, linebacker, defensive tackle, and maybe safety too. This is  not to dispute the value of the  two best defenders of our time JJ Watt and Aaron Donald, who were inside or interior guys to a greater and lesser extent respectively.

 

When talking about great players, I mean guys who are not hall of fame levels of talent, so we can remove Aaron Donald, Ed Reed, or a Luke Keuchley, all of which were so unique that we are literally unlikely to not see another one of these guys for 10-20-30 or more years. They are like the Barry Sanders of their respective positions,  especially Reed and Donald, who I doubt we will ever, get again.

 

So this asks a question, with the modification of offense towards a passer friendly environment, are linebackers and defensive tackles less valuable than ever before?

 

Has safety become less or more valuable with the shift in the nfl with more, and better efficiency with passing?

[bigbadbuff]

43 minutes ago, Kiwibrown said:

I have been an NFL fan for a long time, and as of recent years it seems that two positions have really solidified as the most important on defense. Corner and Pass rusher, usually an edge rusher. 

 

Furthermore it seems that, to some at least there is a descent in value for other positions, linebacker, defensive tackle, and maybe safety too. This is  not to dispute the value of the  two best defenders of our time JJ Watt and Aaron Donald, who were inside or interior guys to a greater and lesser extent respectively.

 

When talking about great players, I mean guys who are not hall of fame levels of talent, so we can remove Aaron Donald, Ed Reed, or a Luke Keuchley, all of which were so unique that we are literally unlikely to not see another one of these guys for 10-20-30 or more years. They are like the Barry Sanders of their respective positions,  especially Reed and Donald, who I doubt we will ever, get again.

 

So this asks a question, with the modification of offense towards a passer friendly environment, are linebackers and defensive tackles less valuable than ever before?

 

Has safety become less or more valuable with the shift in the nfl with more, and better efficiency with passing?

I think the inside line backer position is the least valuable position on defense currently. 
 

As far as defensive tackle, it depends if you can rush the passer, like the Donald’s, Cox’s of the world. Obviously those are the upper echelon but that style is what is valuable. The run stuffing nose tackle is a thing of the past.

The pass rusher will always be the most important piece to a defense, while the current era has made the defensive back position as a whole number 2

[fluhartz]

safety... not that they aren't important..but LB's that can cover and DT's that can penetrate are just so important.. 

LB

LB 

[Awsi Dooger]

1 hour ago, bigbadbuff said:

I think the inside line backer position is the least valuable position on defense currently. 
 

As far as defensive tackle, it depends if you can rush the passer, like the Donald’s, Cox’s of the world. Obviously those are the upper echelon but that style is what is valuable. The run stuffing nose tackle is a thing of the past.

The pass rusher will always be the most important piece to a defense, while the current era has made the defensive back position as a whole number 2

Agreed. Interior pass rushers have massive value. It doesn't have to be a pure defensive tackle. Swing guys who can move inside fit the bill also. Frankly I don't think the league has fully caught up with the significance of the inside rusher. Defensive ends are easily nullified. Once they are detoured upfield it's like having one less player on the field. But that interior guy who can push forward and has instincts in traffic is always causing problems, even if he never gets there. A defensive tackle who has instincts to wait until the last second to put his hands up is a huge asset. Whenever I watch tapes of batted passes the hands are almost never up early. The quarterback senses that. It is the guys who fool the quarterback by raising the hands very late who get the deflections.

This may sound weird but IMO the league should prioritize interior guys who can rush and who are left handed. The quarterback assumes the right hand is the threat. That left hand suddenly in the passing lane can startle the quarterback. We had one lefty on my high school team who made a living doing that, including batting some to himself for interceptions.

As a Dolphins fan I'm really annoyed at the presence of Raekwon Davis at defensive tackle. He offers no pass rush ability whatsoever and his instincts in general are pathetic. He belonged in a different era. 

Edited April 28, 2022 by Awsi Dooger

[Daniel]

Off the ball LBs in general are pretty easy to find later in the draft than safeties IMO.

Stud LBs that can do it all are probably slightly more valuable than stud safeties, but it’s close.

DTs are way ahead of both IMO.

[Rich7sena]

Defensive tackles are extremely important, it's just easy to find good ones. I think teams can get what they need from defensive tackles via a good rotation.

Conversely, linebackers are less important than defensive tackles, and it's hard to find good ones. However, having "bad" linebackers typically doesn't crater your defense if you have a good defensive line and safeties. They also tend to have shorter careers.

Safeties are like defensive tackles in that it's easy to find good ones ones. However, they aren't as involved play to play as defensive tackles so they aren't as important.

Edited April 28, 2022 by Rich7sena

[CWood21]

IDL and EDGE are easily the most valuable positions on a defense followed by CB.  Safeties aren't going to normally be impact players, but liabilities are very obvious.