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Cincinnati was in love with Carl Lawson when Day 3 of the NFL Draft began, and they were lucky to get him where they did. 

by Jason Marcum@marcum89  May 12, 2017, 5:30pm EDT

 

It’s no secret the Cincinnati Bengals were thrilled to get edge rusher Carl Lawson where they did in the draft, and for good reason.

Coming into the NFL Draft, Lawson was viewed as one of the top pass-rushers in a class full of them. some thought Lawson could be drafted sometime in Round 1, and he was almost certain to go sometime within the first two rounds. 

Somehow, the Bengals got him in the early part of Round 4. The shocking fall was somewhat of a mirror image of what happened to Andrew Billings last year, as he too was a late first/early second-round prospect who fell into Round 4 before Cincinnati scooped him up.  Carl Lawson is the pass rush enthusiast the Bengals needed.

 

But Lawson was a bit more special of a get for the Bengals, who reportedly had him atop their board heading into Day 3 of the draft, and they attempted to trade up for him, according to Bengals.com’s Geoff Hobson.

They coveted Auburn pass rusher Carl Lawson so much that they put him No. 1 on their board for the last day and tried to trade up to get him. They think (Jordan) Willis and Lawson were not only big-time college producers, but that they’re also try-hard practice guys that bring a great mentality up front.

There is some uncertainty as to how the Bengals will use Lawson as a rookie and beyond. It sounds like they’re going to work him into a hybrid linebacker/defensive end role in order to utilize his great pass-rushing talents, but also hide his weaknesses as a smaller guy. 

At 6’2” and 261 pounds, it’s hard to see Lawson becoming a full-time defensive end in a 4-3 defense, especially in a Bengals defense that tends to favor longer, bigger ends. More from Hobson on that:

I don’t think they’re (the Bengals) being insistent on Lawson. He lined up a lot of times as a pass rusher as well as a linebacker in the rookie minicamp and I think that’s where you’ll see him this season. A situational pass rusher from the edge. They’re just going to see what they’ve got, but he clearly makes the team and I would think they count him as a down lineman instead of a linebacker. 

Still, Lawson is a tremendous pass-rusher who will be a great asset to this defense as a rookie if used properly. He’ll likely stick to being a nickel edge rusher on passing downs early on, which all he needs to be with Carlos Dunlap, Michael Johnson, Jordan Willis and maybe even Marcus Hardison getting most of the end snaps this season.

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I always take these type of stories with a grain of salt.

 

It is easy to make claims like this after the fact.  It would have been much more believable if they had made the comments before they drafted Lawson.

 

But where ever the Bengals had him rated I am glad we ended up with him.

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55 minutes ago, fredtoast said:

I always take these type of stories with a grain of salt.

 

 

 

Makes me wonder why they fell out of their projected first round spots, if anything.  What did all the other teams see that ours didn't?

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Isn't it well documented that the reason he fell was because of injury concerns?  If he can overcome that then he'll be a solid contributor.  Besides, they don't need him to be Geno Atkins of Carlos Dunlap because they already have those two.  If he can be a better pass rusher than Michael Johnson at a minimum then he will help this defense.

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1 hour ago, Dautcom08 said:

Isn't it well documented that the reason he fell was because of injury concerns?  If he can overcome that then he'll be a solid contributor.  Besides, they don't need him to be Geno Atkins of Carlos Dunlap because they already have those two.  If he can be a better pass rusher than Michael Johnson at a minimum then he will help this defense.

 

 

Well, they do now.  What happens when they don't?  A roster spot for a tweener DE/LB you wouldn't want to start at either spot weakens the depth chart at 2 positions.  I think he needs to turn into more than just a 3rd down pass rusher.

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5 hours ago, T-Dub said:

 

 

Well, they do now.  What happens when they don't?  A roster spot for a tweener DE/LB you wouldn't want to start at either spot weakens the depth chart at 2 positions.  I think he needs to turn into more than just a 3rd down pass rusher.

 

You have no clue about situational personnel packages.

 

A "tweener" who plays more and produces more than back up LBs and DEs makes the roster stronger instead of weaker.

 

Does keeping a punter who only plays in certain packages and can not start at any other position also weaken the roster?  A pass rush specialist is "first team" in a nickle package just like a punter is "first team" in our npunting package.

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9 hours ago, T-Dub said:

A punter takes up a single roster spot designated for a punter.  If we carried a 2nd punter just for fake punts and had him take a WR spot, your comparison would make sense.

 

We aren't, so it doesn't.

 

 

A pass rush specialist takes up a single roster spot designated for a pass rush specialist.  He is "first team" in the nickle package. A punter who did nothing but fake punts would not be "first team" on the punt unit.  

 

If we kept a back up pass rush specialist who we only used on an A-gap blitz your comparison would make sense.

 

We aren't, so it doesn't.

 

 

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8 hours ago, T-Dub said:

So they go heavy on DL spots? We don't have a starting NT right now.  Cuts are going to be interesting.

 

They really like Billings and Sims can play that spot if he doesn't work out. 

 

I think Billings is going to be a stud, he's a good kid with a strong work ethic that has immense talent. 

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Lawson has been the talking point of this off-season, but last year it was a different guy who saw ~100 total snaps for the year.

 

The success rate for moving College DE's to LB is practically non-existent. Lawson, at best, takes the SLB role that has been a non-producer even for former pro-bowl players.

 

If he's the 3rd linebacker, we don't use him very much. If he's a situational pass rush guy, is he any better than Clarke? Can he play in space well enough to use him on 3rd and long without giving away that he's the blitzer?

 

These little off-season man-crushes rarely amount to much. Get excited if you want, but don't be surprised if he's nowhere to be found on Sunday's next fall.

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19 hours ago, LostInDaJungle said:

Can he play in space well enough to use him on 3rd and long without giving away that he's the blitzer?

 

That's what it may come down to, I agree.  

 

Although.. Our offense has been comically bad at overthinking that sort of "Chess Match" stuff, so I guess it's only fitting if the defense ignores it completely in favor of mindlessly bashing a square peg into a a round hole.

 

 

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3 hours ago, T-Dub said:

 

That's what it may come down to, I agree.  

 

Although.. Our offense has been comically bad at overthinking that sort of "Chess Match" stuff, so I guess it's only fitting if the defense ignores it completely in favor of mindlessly bashing a square peg into a a round hole.

 

 

 

Reality of the situation is that he was considered too stiff to play DE much less line up against TE's in coverage.

 

Quote

 Hips are tight and restrictive in lower half. Needs better knee bend throughout the rep. His momentum is sometimes too much to overcome. Washed up and around the arc and unable to drop anchor and take a stand. Poor tackle production. Pursuit is too measured and uneven. Below-average lateral agility limits tackle radius.


That's from the NFL.com draft profile.... 

If he's a DE who can stand up, MJ93 could stand up well enough, how often did we drop him in coverage? MJ93 is pretty agile. I believe it was "rare athleticism" used to describe him on draft day.


So, where does Lawson play? SLB? Is he on the field before Vigil? DE? Does he get to see grass before Willis, Hardison and Clarke?

https://www.cincyjungle.com/2015/8/4/9094679/will-clarke-stepping-bengals-depleted-de

Because 2 years ago, Will Clarke looked awesome and was really ready to make a contribution. He could play both sides of the line and even line up at DT if we needed him to. He put on good weight without losing any of his speed... 

Clarke barely saw the field that year. 

You know three years ago Margus Hunt spent the offseason with Kevin Greene and really looked awesome. So strong and quick. Really developed that nasty streak he needed. It was going to be a breakout 2014 for him...

 

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