Best #1 pick for 3-4 Defense

The Kraken

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Yeah, Bosa is a natural 4-3 DE. That's his best fit.

I think the Cardinals want to get a legit offer to trade out of the pick, preferably.
His brother who has basically the same body type had ZERO problem as an edge rushing, 34 LB in his first year with San Diego playing for John Pagano...

10.5 sacks in 12 games, playing out of position...similar production moving to a 43 SDE he had 12 sacks in 16 games.
 

Broseph

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Bosa is the best defensive player in a loaded defensive player draft. Watch tape on him, his hands and footwork are elite and he has an explosive motor. Dude is about as a sure thing as you can get.
 
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In terms of pure 3-4 fit I have to guess Quinnen Williams is a perfect fit. But for interior DL he isn't the game wrecker you covet with a 1st overall pick. He isn't Suh from a pure prospect standpoint, doesn't have the burst and quickness of Donald, and isn't the same monster like Watt. Tough comparisons since we are talking about surefire HOF guys. Quinnen is still top 5 pick worthy and should we trade down and he is available, then well played.

However, I think in terms of 1st overall pick it has to be Bosa regardless of scheme. Being a great pass rusher already with plenty of moves, as well as being stout against the run, are traits that work in any scheme. Although there is no question that Bosa is a prototype 4-3 DE.

Regardless of scheme, a premier edge rusher is more valuable than a premier interior DL.
 
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TheCardFan

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His brother who has basically the same body type had ZERO problem as an edge rushing, 34 LB in his first year with San Diego playing for John Pagano...

10.5 sacks in 12 games, playing out of position...similar production moving to a 43 SDE he had 12 sacks in 16 games.

Great point. Joey (older bro) is a bit bigger than Nick but not much.

I really like the idea of Bosa and Chandler as OLB.

Would KJ Wright fit into a 3-4 or is he purely a 4-3 Will?

I think Mayowa would be better suited to play 3-4 DE than Golden. Is that accurate? They are both FA, so it may not matter.
 

The Kraken

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Great point. Joey (older bro) is a bit bigger than Nick but not much.

I really like the idea of Bosa and Chandler as OLB.

Would KJ Wright fit into a 3-4 or is he purely a 4-3 Will?

I think Mayowa would be better suited to play 3-4 DE than Golden. Is that accurate? They are both FA, so it may not matter.
I think KJ Wright is instinctive and gets off blocks enough he could make the transition to one of the ILBs.

I would be concerned with both Mayowa and Golden as a 5 tech end, they are both too light and would get swallowed on combo blocks with the guard and tackles.

Great point on Joey being slightly bigger, Nick should have no problem making the transition.
 

JeffGollin

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3-4 DEs are usually bigger/taller guys. Aren’t Williams and the Houston kid both about 6’2 and more inside players?

Don’t think you want to draft a nose tackle #1 overall.
I would if the dude was unstoppable - especially vs. the run.
 

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With Bosa and Chandler Jones the scheme doesn't really matter much. Both are out there to hunt the QB on passing downs and to set the edge against the run. No need for many exotic blitz packages when you have such edge rushers. Comparable to Von Miller and Demarcus Ware in Denver.

Blitzing is cool and aggressive and can help you to get home when used wisely and at the right time. But many veteran QBs and OCs know the blitz tendencies and have perfect counters that will burn you. If you ask all 32 DCs all will confirm that a great 4 man rush is the best way to put the heat on. You can do so many things with the other 7 players in coverage and if you blitz, your opponent won't see it coming.

I'm a huge fan of our Bowles style defense which was continued by Bettcher. Glad we going back to it. But there were also times where I wished we had a better 4 man rush, mainly in the NFC Championship game where Cam carved up our blitzes.
 
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TheCardFan

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With Bosa and Jones on the edge and PP, Baker in the secondary, this could be an exciting defense.

We definitely need more talent at LB, DL, and a true #2 corner.

How does Bynes translate to 3-4?

Do we think Reddick can play better in that scheme? He improved this year but wasn't great.

Does Bucannon come back (now 3-4)...do we want him?
 

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His brother who has basically the same body type had ZERO problem as an edge rushing, 34 LB in his first year with San Diego playing for John Pagano...

10.5 sacks in 12 games, playing out of position...similar production moving to a 43 SDE he had 12 sacks in 16 games.

It's not the rushing part I'm concerned with; rather the other responsibilities of a 3-4 outside linebacker and whether he's athletic enough to manage them.
 

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Great point. Joey (older bro) is a bit bigger than Nick but not much.

I really like the idea of Bosa and Chandler as OLB.

Would KJ Wright fit into a 3-4 or is he purely a 4-3 Will?

I think Mayowa would be better suited to play 3-4 DE than Golden. Is that accurate? They are both FA, so it may not matter.

Golden would play 3-4 OLB as he did in the past and generated 12 sacks. Mayowa would have to put on a bit of weight to play D-end in a 3-4. We have Gunter and Pierre as better suited to the role at this point.
 

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It's not the rushing part I'm concerned with; rather the other responsibilities of a 3-4 outside linebacker and whether he's athletic enough to manage them.
Couldn't be any worse than watching a 43 team drop a DE into the flat or hook to facilitate a zone blitz (common practice for aggressive 43 teams)...
 

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There are more exotic 3-4 defenses where all linebackers must be able to drop into coverage. Mainly this is used when having no dominant OLB, so you can blitz from all angles and make it hard on the QB to guess who will drop or rush.

On the flip side, a more conventional system with 2 stud edge rushers in the OLB roles is also possible.

Before Chandler Jones got here, we were more of the former. With Chandler Jones being an elite pass rusher, we get home with a 4 man rush much more often than previously, which points towards the latter approach. If we indeed draft Bosa, our 4 man rush will be deadly. So we would basically be a 3-4 defense on paper but in terms of going after the QB acting like a classic 4 man rush.
 

slanidrac16

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I kind of feel Golden is going to want to much money and will bolt. Will Bosa replace him? Bosa and Chandler could reek havoc. Who would be our inside lb’s? Bynes and Reddick/ Buchanan? What if Golden stays? Does that change our thoughts/ needs? Many of these questions will be answered through free agency.
 

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Bosa is a good pass rusher and a solid DE versus the run.He isn`t just a paasrusher..he plays both well.everything I have seen and read says he can play 4-3 DE or 3-4 DE.The choice is simple..take the best defensive guy.
 
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TheCardFan

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Bosa is a good pass rusher and a solid DE versus the run.He isn`t just a paasrusher..he plays both well.everything I have seen and read says he can play 4-3 DE or 3-4 DE.The choice is simple..take the best defensive guy.

He is not an elite bender like Von Miller (also doesn't have VM speed/quickness) but he is a double digit sack guy and better at run support. He has better hands and a great motor.
 

juza76

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Josh Allen 42 starts 220tackle 42tackle for a loss 32 sacks

Nick Bosa 29 starts 77tackle 29tackle for loss 17.5 sacks

The tackles difference is huge
Josh Allen cover much more field!!!

Another point, Josh Allen is faster, without injury history, more suited to play 3/4 olb

Why bosa should be considered ahead of him?
 

Finito

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Josh Allen 42 starts 220tackle 42tackle for a loss 32 sacks

Nick Bosa 29 starts 77tackle 29tackle for loss 17.5 sacks

The tackles difference is huge
Josh Allen cover much more field!!!

Another point, Josh Allen is faster, without injury history, more suited to play 3/4 olb

Why bosa should be considered ahead of him?

Allen is really really good. Bosa is a stud but like I've said on here before it's the two season ending injuries he's already had concern me.
 

DVontel

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Josh Allen 42 starts 220tackle 42tackle for a loss 32 sacks

Nick Bosa 29 starts 77tackle 29tackle for loss 17.5 sacks

The tackles difference is huge
Josh Allen cover much more field!!!

Another point, Josh Allen is faster, without injury history, more suited to play 3/4 olb

Why bosa should be considered ahead of him?
Allen is still kind of raw & lacks good hand usage. That goes a very long way. College stats be damned. I actually like Brian Burns over him.
 

JeffGollin

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Golden would play 3-4 OLB as he did in the past and generated 12 sacks. Mayowa would have to put on a bit of weight to play D-end in a 3-4. We have Gunter and Pierre as better suited to the role at this point.
Forget scheme and skill-set for a moment.

What do we need to do to stop the run better?

What do we need to do to better cover short slant patterns and reduce opponents' 3rd down conversions?
 

Lagerfilled

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Forget scheme and skill-set for a moment.

What do we need to do to stop the run better?

What do we need to do to better cover short slant patterns and reduce opponents' 3rd down conversions?

Ummm... hire Todd Bowles. Oh wait!!!
 

Ohcrap75

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The best comp I have seen with Bosa is Jared Allen. Both are very good, but not elite athletes. They have excellent strength, effort and hand usage. Basically, they both just know how to get to the QB. Much like Chandler Jones, can cover, but just let them do what they do best (KISS)
 

wa52lz

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I kind of feel Golden is going to want to much money and will bolt. Will Bosa replace him? Bosa and Chandler could reek havoc. Who would be our inside lb’s? Bynes and Reddick/ Buchanan? What if Golden stays? Does that change our thoughts/ needs? Many of these questions will be answered through free agency.
I think you're right about him looking for big money, hopefully he doesn't get it and we can get him back for a decent price. However, if we do draft Bosa to play OLB, not sure if he'll think a rotation job here will be the path to a big contract. Then again you'd hope the new DC would be able to get all three of them (CJ, Bosa and MG) on the field at the same time in situations. Maybe he'd benefit from the attention the other two will draw and parlay that into nice sack numbers.

A quote from Golden, “I know who I am and I know what I can do,” Golden said. “I can play football and I can make plays. I’m a big-time player. I can help teams win big games, like I’ve been doing since I’ve been here. I’m going to get back to myself. I’ve just got to grind it out and get healthy.”

https://www.azcardinals.com/news/impending-free-agent-markus-golden-i-m-a-big-time-player
 

AZCrazy

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Maybe with one or two shrewd picks on defense, we'd have guys playing in their proper positions and could take the existing talent back to the heights it enjoyed a couple years ago.
Gunter and Nkdemiche are more ideally suited to play DE than interior line, so naturally we have them over the guards this year. They're too 'small' at 290-295 to be interior DL. They can be effective farther out (they're not freakazoids like Aaron Donald, but then, who is?)
Reddick and Bucannon have been used so out of position its hard to see where they fit in.
Keep Golden, make him your interior beast like Ray Lewis. Makes a lot more sense than trying to put Buc there.
All you really need is a quality CB2 and a big meathead NT.

........Nkdemiche............Meat..............Pierre...........
Bosa............Golden...............Reddick............Jones

CB2........Baker............................SS..............Peterson


Maybe if Dexter Lawrence lasts till #33, he'd be a monster NT.
 

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