Holmgren Report: Linebackers

Now that The Big Show Mike Holmgren has shored up his front office roster, it’s time for him–and for us–to look at the team’s roster. We’ve borrowed from the Department of Homeland Security and will be looking at each position group day by day, finishing with a roster upgrade ranking based on need. Check back each day this week for a new position group. Previous Reports: RB, OL, WR/TE, QB, ST, DB

When Eric Mangini was hired, many wondered if he would keep the 3-4 defense, or adapt a defense to the seeming strengths and weaknesses of the Browns’ personnel and move to a 4-3. We all now know that he chose the former, and so it warrants mentioning that the lynch pin of a successful 3-4 defense is the linebacking corps.

Mangini went to work on trying to bolster the group of LBs by going out and bringing in some of his former Jets players (Eric Barton, David Bowens) as well as using a couple of draft picks at the position (David Veikune, 2nd round; Kaluka Maiava, 4th round). Injuries coupled with some 2009 draft picks apparently being deemed not-quite-ready-for-prime-time left an already-thin group of linebackers even more exposed as the season wore on.

The 2009 Season

Starters: Kamerion Wimbley, David Bowens (OLB); D’Qwell Jackson, Eric Barton (ILB)
Key Reserves: Jason Trusnik, Kaluka Maiava, Matt Roth, Ray Ventrone, Blake Costanzo, Marcus Benard, Alex Hall, Arnold Harrison

I know it’s probably silly to include so many of the guys at the bottom, given that they are mostly special teamers, but I did it to show how dire the situation really is at LB: the third- and fourth-most sacks from the group came from Matt Roth, who showed up prior to week 12’s matchup with Cincinnati, and Marcus Benard, who was signed off of the practice squad in November and played in only six games. Marinate in that stat for awhile.

The long list is also presented to show how much of a revolving door there was at LB this year due to injuries and overall ineffectiveness, and finally to illustrate that the second rounder (David Veikune) who was brought in to play OLB was active for 10 games, and did not accumulate ANY STATS. Bet you thought I forgot to add him to the list. Nope. He literally did not have a tackle all season. Brilliant!

Some of the ineffectiveness from this group did stem from the lack of offense for most of the year, which led to overworking the defense. A lot of the damage that was done to them, however, was due to an inability to generate much of a pass rush—one of the responsibilities that falls primarily upon the linebackers in a 3-4 defense. The linebackers racked up 24 sacks on the year, which, while a slight improvement from 2008, is just not enough for a 3-4 defense. And go back up to the stat in which you were instructed to marinate: 7.5 of the 24 sacks (or, just over 31%) were collected by two players who didn’t join the roster until November.

Finally, given the weakness of the secondary, the lack of a consistent pass rushing threat from the linebackers is only amplified in the stats (29th against the pass / 244.7 yards per game) and on the scoreboard. The ‘backers didn’t appear to be much better against the run, as the team finished 28th in the league against the run while giving up 144.6 yards per game.

There were some highlights, though not too many. David Bowens was solid enough (and arguably the Browns’ best linebacker) and emerged as the late-season leader of the defense during the four-game winning streak to close out the season; Kam Wimbley had his best season since his 11 sack, 62 tackle tackle rookie year in 2006 while working in Rob Ryan’s defense; Matt Roth was definitely a solid pick up off of the waiver wire in November (still not sure whose dog he ran over to get the boot in Miami); and D’Qwell Jackson was still having one of his solid seasons before getting hurt: 59 tackles in SIX GAMES, which put him on pace to eclipse his stellar 154-tackle effort from 2008.

But, the problems are pretty evident when a guy like Jason Trusnik is your fifth leading tackling linebacker in a 3-4 system. This is not a knock on Trusnik at all, either, considering the role he most likely was expected to play when he came over in the Braylon Edwards deal hyped as “a great special teams player”. Trusnik found himself thrust into the starting lineup much more than anyone would have expected or hoped, and he more than held his own considering what was actually expected of him.

Further indicative of the issues at linebacker is that, given all of the stats and rankings above, the 53rd overall pick in the 2009—David Veikune—led a list of 2009 draft picks who totally underwhelmed from start to finish during the year. Veikune notched exactly zero tackles on the season, and was one of those players that often left us scratching our heads about: 1) what the scouting department must have seen in him at Hawaii to make him a second round pick, and/or 2) how awful he must have looked in practice in order to never crack the lineup. In fairness, he was moving from the DE position in college to the OLB position in the NFL, but Wimbley made a similar move in 2006 and still managed to play and put up a solid year. Wimbley was a first rounder, but Veikune was picked in the second; it’s not crazy to expect your second rounders to play and have some kind of impact. Veikune was placed on injured reserve at the end of the year which also begs the question as to whether or not he had some kind of lingering injury that the hush-brigade of Eric Mangini was keeping under wraps.

Fourth round pick Kaluka Maiava did about all you could expect from a fourth round pick being stuck into the lineup on a bad, bad team. He made mistakes; he made some plays; he showed some flashes, and definitely pulled his weight on special teams. The future remains uncertain for Maiava, however, as one would expect that the linebacking corps would be a target for upgrade this off-season, and Maiava may not have the ability to crack the lineup against improved depth. At least, one could hope as much…

Browns Roster Upgrade Advisory: High

2010 Contract Situations

• Eric Barton – 2010: $2.3 million; 2011: $3.05 million; 2012: $3.5 million
• Marcus Benard – RFA
• David Bowens – signed through 2012 at $1.8 million per season
• Titus Brown – RFA
• Blake Costanzo – RFA; made $460,000 in 2009
• Alex Hall – 2010: $470,000; 2011: $555,000
• D’Qwell Jackson – RFA; made $745,000 in 2009
• Kaluka Maiava – 2010: $395,000; 2011: $480,000; 2012: $565,000
• Matt Roth – UFA; made $700,000 in 2009
• Jason Trusnik – RFA; made $460,000
• David Veikune – 2010: $395,000; 2011: $480,000; 2012: $565,000 (his cap number, if there is a cap, is higher though given his $1,343,632 signing bonus [!!])
• Kamerion Wimbley – 2010: $1.065 million; 2011: Free Agent (Voided Year)

There are a lot of names there, but I would be shocked to see half of them still on the roster come training camp. Shocked, I tell you. Well, “disappointed” would be a good word, too, but I digress…

Despite what I consider a grave need of one ILB and OLB each, it looks like Eric Barton and David Bowens will be here for awhile, given their three more years remaining. With their age and Barton’s injury history, those contracts may end up being a couple of albatrosses, though Barton’s contract is certainly heftier than Bowens’ is. Resigning D’Qwell Jackson looks to be a bit of a priority, and given that he’s a restricted free agent the Browns should be able to make that happen.

I would like to see the Browns make an effort to keep Matt Roth (he just finished his fifth season, so he is definitely unrestricted) as he brought effort, toughness, and production even in his limited time with the Browns. He is solid depth, if nothing else. Obviously, Kam’s not going anywhere, and I can’t imagine Mangini would want to get rid of Veikune and Maiava, though the former definitely underwhelmed in 2009 and the latter may not fit in the numbers game of this roster if Heckert and Holmgren look to upgrade this unit via the draft and/or free agency. Trusnik is a “Mangini Guy” and has definitely earned his money, and his value as a special teamer probably keeps him here. It looks like the “Alex Hall Athletic Freak Experiment” may be coming to an end, as this will be his third FO regime and he hasn’t really done much to impress during the first two. Finally, guys like Marcus Benard, Titus Brown, and Blake Costanzo are probably practice squad guys, at best, if additional depth is brought in.

Speaking of depth, where could it be found this off-season? Let’s look at the draft first. Though the top of the LB talent is definitely on the inside in the first round, it looks like the odds of finding an OLB are much better top to bottom in this draft. The top eight from both the inside and outside positions has more OLB depth up in the first two rounds, whereas past McClain—who is the top-rated linebacker, I must point out—and Spikes there is less impact depth at MLB. Per Scout.com, the highest rated LBs coming out of college are (draft position):

ILB

Rolando McClain, Alabama (early first round)
Brandon Spikes, Florida (mid/late first round)
Sean Lee, Penn State (late second/third round)
Daryl Washington, TCU (third round)
Micah Johnson, Kentucky (fourth round)
Darryl Sharpton, Miami, FL (fourth round)
Jamar Cheney, Mississippi State (fifth round)
Boris Lee, Troy (sixth round)

OLB

Brandon Graham, Michigan (mid/late first round)
Navorro Bowman, Penn State (late first/early second round)
Ricky Sapp, Clemson (early/mid second round)
Sean Weatherspoon, Missouri (second round)
Jerry Hughes, TCU (second round)
Sergio Kindle, Texas (second round)
Eric Norwood, South Carolina (third round)
Rennie Curran, Georgia (third round)

I say this in a vacuum (in other words, not considering other available players): I could live with McClain at #7, and as the resident Michigan Fan Whipping Boy of WFNY I could certainly get on board for Brandon Graham if the Browns trade down again or if he is on the board at 39 (though I don’t think he will be). I don’t like Spikes as much as the national media, but then again I also hate Florida with a passion. At OLB it looks like there is plenty of value in the second and third rounds, as some of those “second rounders” per Scout.com will definitely be around in the third… it happens every year. It would not make sense to go LB-crazy in the top rounds of the draft given the other needs on defense and offensive line, but there is certainly plenty to pick from at the top of the draft.

If the Browns opt to go in a different direction with their early-round selections, the current free agent list has some potential—though the “best” players here are probably not going to be truly available (whether it is because of the CBA and the move to RFAs instead of UFAs, or via the franchise tag). Some highlights in free agency include:

Shawne Merriman (SD)
Barrett Ruud (TB)
Karlos Dansby (ARI)
DeMeco Ryans (HOU)
Kirk Morrison (OAK)
Thomas Davis (CAR)
Thomas Howard (OAK)
Derrick Johnson (KC)

There are also some “names,” though most are on the wrong side of 30 years old: Gary Brackett (IND), Keith Bulluck (TEN), Larry Foote (DET), Zach Thomas (KC), Jason Taylor (MIA) if you consider him an OLB in a 3-4.

Some other lower-level names on the FA horizon to consider given the arrival of new GM Tom Heckert from the Eagles are three Eagles FA linebackers:

Chris Gocong
Omar Gaither
Akeem Jordan (RFA)

Gaither, considered a natural weakside linebacker, was the starter at middle linebacker after Jeremiah Trotter’s departure in 2007, played the “Will” linebacker in 2008, and was back in the middle in 2009 after an injury to starter Stuart Bradley. He is coming off of a Lisfranc sprain, so his health is a question. Gocong is a bit of a tweener, having played the “Sam” linebacker position in Philly, though never really holding down any kind of consistent starting job. He lost his starting “Sam” job to rookie Moise Fokou later in 2009. Jordan is an RFA, so who knows what he might get from Philly. He moved into the right outside backer spot, ironically beating out Gaither, in 2009. He had 71 tackles despite missing four games in the middle of the year.

All in all, this position HAS to be upgraded if the Browns are serious about improving their defense in 2010. There are plenty of options out there to consider, both in the draft and in FA. If the Browns stand pat at linebacker, it definitely would be a bad, bad move—especially given how much potential improvement is out there this off-season.