Jacksonville Jaguar Arik Armstead-DT Thread

Originally posted by WRATHman44:

Originally posted by NCommand:

Originally posted by WRATHman44:

Originally posted by mayo49:

Originally posted by DonnieDarko:

Looks like hes trying to cut some weight to be a DE?

Yeah, he looks like a real LEO now.

...except he still has relatively short arms for a dude that tall.

That's impossible because Baalke drafted him.

33" arms are average for a 6'3" edge rusher. Dumervil has 32" arms at 5'11". Buckner's arms are almost 35"; Aldon Smith's are almost 36". Guys like clay Matthews can win w/shorter arms, but they can get LOW around the edge and win w/burst/flexibility. Armstead could struggle to get low or burst off the line. Maybe we'll see a significant increase in athleticism, due to the weight loss. Maybe he'll improve the sophistication of his hand fighting enough to negate the disadvantage of his relatively short arms. I hope he's effective early on, and that he improves with more game reps. As of this moment, I am skeptical of his ability to affect games on the edge.

Now are we assuming AA will be the LEO outside of base?

I agree about the length, while not awful it's far from ideal for a guy his size...I remember assuming he was gonna be this long athletic monster pre-combine and I was underwhelmed.

I do like to hear about all the hard work he's put in thus far doe.

Originally posted by WRATHman44:

33" arms are average for a 6'3" edge rusher. Dumervil has 32" arms at 5'11". Buckner's arms are almost 35"; Aldon Smith's are almost 36". Guys like clay Matthews can win w/shorter arms, but they can get LOW around the edge and win w/burst/flexibility. Armstead could struggle to get low or burst off the line. Maybe we'll see a significant increase in athleticism, due to the weight loss. Maybe he'll improve the sophistication of his hand fighting enough to negate the disadvantage of his relatively short arms. I hope he's effective early on, and that he improves with more game reps. As of this moment, I am skeptical of his ability to affect games on the edge.

Awesome...I was joking but those are some legit details!

Originally posted by NCommand:

Originally posted by GhostOfBaalke:

Hopefully they don't ruin Arik with this weight cut.

Right? Harold adds 30-40 pounds in one off season, Carradine's roller coaster weight, etc.

Let's hope 3rd time is a charm.

Just generically, every time someone has advocated this, i have thot it a bad idea. Right now Arik looks like a stick, but compared to the other participants in the group photo, that doesn't say much. Drastically changing a guys weight? I just think a bad idea. Either get someone the weight you want or don't take the trade/pick. Having guys play at 30 lbs under or 30 lbs over their normal weights, Bad Idea. Don't have any studies to back this up, but Arik at this weight inside at DT? Sorry, no way. He looks like a sleek , chipped , greyhound right now, and elephant looks like a good fit. But still, i hate to see guys weights rejiggered just to fit someone else's idea of what their wt should be.

I think it fair that every time baalke wanted someone to substantially change his weight, it was a bad idea. Still think that. Curious how much wt Arik has dropped.

Originally posted by NYniner85:

Originally posted by WRATHman44:

Originally posted by NCommand:

Originally posted by WRATHman44:

Originally posted by mayo49:

Originally posted by DonnieDarko:
Looks like hes trying to cut some weight to be a DE?

Yeah, he looks like a real LEO now.

...except he still has relatively short arms for a dude that tall.

That's impossible because Baalke drafted him.

33" arms are average for a 6'3" edge rusher. Dumervil has 32" arms at 5'11". Buckner's arms are almost 35"; Aldon Smith's are almost 36". Guys like clay Matthews can win w/shorter arms, but they can get LOW around the edge and win w/burst/flexibility. Armstead could struggle to get low or burst off the line. Maybe we'll see a significant increase in athleticism, due to the weight loss. Maybe he'll improve the sophistication of his hand fighting enough to negate the disadvantage of his relatively short arms. I hope he's effective early on, and that he improves with more game reps. As of this moment, I am skeptical of his ability to affect games on the edge.

Now are we assuming AA will be the LEO outside of base?

I agree about the length, while not awful it's far from ideal for a guy his size...I remember assuming he was gonna be this long athletic monster pre-combine and I was underwhelmed.

I do like to hear about all the hard work he's put in thus far doe.

I am. He's lost a lot of weight. I think he's all in on LEO. Realistically, even if he cuts all the way down to 270-280, he could still rush from the 3, but I'd be surprised if he was slimming down so dramatically just to play the edge on base downs.

Originally posted by WRATHman44:

Originally posted by NYniner85:

Originally posted by WRATHman44:

Originally posted by NCommand:

Originally posted by WRATHman44:

Originally posted by mayo49:

Originally posted by DonnieDarko:

Looks like hes trying to cut some weight to be a DE?

Yeah, he looks like a real LEO now.

...except he still has relatively short arms for a dude that tall.

That's impossible because Baalke drafted him.

33" arms are average for a 6'3" edge rusher. Dumervil has 32" arms at 5'11". Buckner's arms are almost 35"; Aldon Smith's are almost 36". Guys like clay Matthews can win w/shorter arms, but they can get LOW around the edge and win w/burst/flexibility. Armstead could struggle to get low or burst off the line. Maybe we'll see a significant increase in athleticism, due to the weight loss. Maybe he'll improve the sophistication of his hand fighting enough to negate the disadvantage of his relatively short arms. I hope he's effective early on, and that he improves with more game reps. As of this moment, I am skeptical of his ability to affect games on the edge.

Now are we assuming AA will be the LEO outside of base?

I agree about the length, while not awful it's far from ideal for a guy his size...I remember assuming he was gonna be this long athletic monster pre-combine and I was underwhelmed.

I do like to hear about all the hard work he's put in thus far doe.

I am. He's lost a lot of weight. I think he's all in on LEO. Realistically, even if he cuts all the way down to 270-280, he could still rush from the 3, but I'd be surprised if he was slimming down so dramatically just to play the edge on base downs.

It will be very interesting to see what they do with AA this yr, I think it's one of the most interesting storylines. I see him more of a LEO in base downs then moved around in nickel (and Elvis/lynch as more of the edge rushers) I'd love to be wrong and he becomes our 3 down guy on the outside

Like I said, I love that he's really taking on the role and committed to getting lean.

Originally posted by pasodoc9er:

Originally posted by NCommand:

Originally posted by GhostOfBaalke:

Hopefully they don't ruin Arik with this weight cut.

Right? Harold adds 30-40 pounds in one off season, Carradine's roller coaster weight, etc.

Let's hope 3rd time is a charm.

Just generically, every time someone has advocated this, i have thot it a bad idea. Right now Arik looks like a stick, but compared to the other participants in the group photo, that doesn't say much. Drastically changing a guys weight? I just think a bad idea. Either get someone the weight you want or don't take the trade/pick. Having guys play at 30 lbs under or 30 lbs over their normal weights, Bad Idea. Don't have any studies to back this up, but Arik at this weight inside at DT? Sorry, no way. He looks like a sleek , chipped , greyhound right now, and elephant looks like a good fit. But still, i hate to see guys weights rejiggered just to fit someone else's idea of what their wt should be.

I think it fair that every time baalke wanted someone to substantially change his weight, it was a bad idea. Still think that. Curious how much wt Arik has dropped.

I agree


If Arik was able to be an edge rusher, then why wouldn't he have done it in college? Edge rusher is much more coveted than defensive tackle, with higher pay. But now he's supposed to play edge in the NFL?

It's gonna be a steep hill to climb but anything is possible I guess. Obviously rooting for him.

Arik probably lost 15 lbs alone from the time off from working out. Hes gonna add another 7-8 lbs of muscle is my guess. Has to stay disciplined and keep his body fat low.

Originally posted by SmokeCrabtrees:
Arik probably lost 15 lbs alone from the time off from working out. Hes gonna add another 7-8 lbs of muscle is my guess. Has to stay disciplined and keep his body fat low.

He needs to lose more than 15 if he wants to be an effective LEO IMO.

I'm hoping for him to get somewhere in between Carlos Dunlap and Michael Johnson in terms of size. Dunlap is probably a best-case scenario for him.

Originally posted by WRATHman44:

I am. He's lost a lot of weight. I think he's all in on LEO. Realistically, even if he cuts all the way down to 270-280, he could still rush from the 3, but I'd be surprised if he was slimming down so dramatically just to play the edge on base downs.

I think you nailed it WRATH...while he's toning down with high conditioning, adding a leaner diet, etc. he's setting himself up for the right/lighter side of the line.

This means he can toggle between the base LEO and 3T rather easily.

Originally posted by GhostOfBaalke:

I agree


If Arik was able to be an edge rusher, then why wouldn't he have done it in college? Edge rusher is much more coveted than defensive tackle, with higher pay. But now he's supposed to play edge in the NFL?

It's gonna be a steep hill to climb but anything is possible I guess. Obviously rooting for him.

The system he played within at Oregon was primarily a rush 3, drop 8 scheme. There weren't many edge rushing opportunities, except when they sent the OLBs, which were not the DE/OLB hybrids we are used to.

Originally posted by WRATHman44:

Originally posted by GhostOfBaalke:

I agree


If Arik was able to be an edge rusher, then why wouldn't he have done it in college? Edge rusher is much more coveted than defensive tackle, with higher pay. But now he's supposed to play edge in the NFL?

It's gonna be a steep hill to climb but anything is possible I guess. Obviously rooting for him.

The system he played within at Oregon was primarily a rush 3, drop 8 scheme. There weren't many edge rushing opportunities, except when they sent the OLBs, which were not the DE/OLB hybrids we are used to.

Oh alright , thanks for the info

Kid definitely transformed his body from a 3-4 DE to looking like a LEO, nobody can deny that. Hopefully he can take and run with the job. Him, Buck and Solo will sure as hell be fun to watch regardless where they play up front

Originally posted by 49ers808:

Kid definitely transformed his body from a 3-4 DE to looking like a LEO, nobody can deny that. Hopefully he can take and run with the job. Him, Buck and Solo will sure as hell be fun to watch regardless where they play up front

Yeah, with the size we have on base downs, I'm hoping it goes a little something like this --- Body blow, body blow, right hook --- knockout!

Originally posted by WRATHman44:
I am. He's lost a lot of weight. I think he's all in on LEO. Realistically, even if he cuts all the way down to 270-280, he could still rush from the 3, but I'd be surprised if he was slimming down so dramatically just to play the edge on base downs.

Will be interesting! I see his two greatest attributes as strength and length...obviously length will still be there but will he retain his unbelievable strength at the lower weight? He held his own against two OL the last two years and on the edge will not have to do so, which could give him an advantage. But I don't see him as a quick DL needed to chase from the edge. His quickness could increase at this lower weight...but will his agility and ability to change direction; which will be needed for guys like Wilson?

As with every defense, AA's success will be a group effort. His weaknesses will be less apparent if the CBs and LBs can help fill the edge quickly.

I have a bad feeling at using him at Leo.