Could Calais Campbell play 3-4 OLB?

[kennyb]

Could he be used primarily as the rush linebacker, dropping into coverage sometimes...setting the edge, etc?

Or is he just too tall and awkward to be able to cover a back?

6-8 280 is probably similar in body type to 6-4 255.

[fenikz]

He carries his weight very well, not akward at all, but I think it would be a disservice to him to put him anywhere but 4-3 DE

[SaintsFanForLife]

I would say his best bet is to stick with DE on a 4-3

[thebow305]

He carries his weight very well, not akward at all, but I think it would be a disservice to him to put him anywhere but 4-3 DE

You're probably right. But he does have the athleticism and explosion off the snap to be an elite pass rusher, wherever he lines up. He does get lazy at times but he was double-teamed an awful lot this year and people are somehow overlooking that fact a lot.

My answer is yes, he could be a very good 3-4 OLB, but he would unquestionably be a an elite 4-3 end.

[Patriots16-0]

I would say his best bet is to stick with DE on a 4-3

Me too. Or even bulk up to be a 3-4 DE.

[fenikz]

I could see him being a Docket/Williams type of 3-4 DE

[thebow305]

Me too. Or even bulk up to be a 3-4 DE.

That would be doing a big disservice to him and the team that drafts him, IMO.

[TheBaronPatriot]

willie mcginest plays 3-4 OLB and he's 6"5 270
I don't know how well calais moves around, but he's not that much bigger than grandpa mcginest whose been successful at it

[Brent]

Maybe if he was on a team that occasionally ran a 3-4 just to mix things up but I would never draft him to be purely an OLB.

[nobodyinparticular]

I think a bigger problem (no pun intended) would be his height. At 6-8 he is 4 inches taller than Merriman and Ware and 5 inches taller than Wimbley and Phillips, even 3 inches taller than McGinnest. At that height, coming in standing up gives the offensive tackle or TE a much, much bigger target to get him off balance. It also puts his center of gravity much higher off the ground adding to that effect.

[D-Unit]

If he could add 15-20 pounds (which his frame could easiliy add), he would make a tremendous 3-4 DE. He'd be a better 3-4 DE in San Diego or Dallas where they have an aggressive attacking style rather than the space eating/reactionary 3-4 Defenses that Parcells runs.

[SaintsFanForLife]

I think a bigger problem (no pun intended) would be his height. At 6-8 he is 4 inches taller than Merriman and Ware and 5 inches taller than Wimbley and Phillips, even 3 inches taller than McGinnest. At that height, coming in standing up gives the offensive tackle or TE a much, much bigger target to get him off balance. It also puts his center of gravity much higher off the ground adding to that effect.

I think the key like you said will be how low can he get when engaging a OL....his center of gravity is way to high.

[wonderbredd24]

If I was a coach and the opposing team had a 6'8" OLB, I would run at him all day. Campbell would be decleated all day on leverage alone

[megansett56BC]

I'd have to say it's not so much his body type as you just wouldn't want a LB to be that tall. When he's got his hand on the ground, it's a lot easier for him to play with leverage, but when he's up that high all the time, he would be in trouble.

However, using him on the occasional zone blitz out of 4-3 could be a nice wrinkle here or there.

[asmitty45]

in the 3-4 no, not fast enough to be a rush backer and he has no experience in coverage,

I guess if he picked up on coverage then he could be a 4-3 olb but the chances of that are very very slim.

[BoltHype]

too big, lacks the hips to drop into coverage and change of direction speed is too slow. don't get me wrong, he is an incredible athlete for the defensive line but he is just a bit too big to be a linebacker in my opinion...

with that said, I would draft him to the Chargers and have him play 3-4 DE :-)

[CC.SD]

too big, lacks the hips to drop into coverage and change of direction speed is too slow. don't get me wrong, he is an incredible athlete for the defensive line but he is just a bit too big to be a linebacker in my opinion...

with that said, I would draft him to the Chargers and have him play 3-4 DE :-)

Would you bench Igor or Castillo? I would have a tough time dropping either of those guys.

[DraftKidWonder]

I don't think he would ever develop as a 3-4 LB but as an end I think he could.

[Smokey Joe]

I think his best fit is as a 3-4 DE if he can bulk up 10-15 lbs. as others have stated.

[619]

No way any team would be ridiculous enough to even consider moving someone that big to 3-4 OLB. It would just be a huge waste of talent, hes got phenomenal size for a 4-3 or even 3-4 DE and people should not mess with whats been working for him. Now I could see Long, Gholston, Harvey, Groves, etc making the move though.

[bam bam]

If he could add 15-20 pounds (which his frame could easiliy add), he would make a tremendous 3-4 DE. He'd be a better 3-4 DE in San Diego or Dallas where they have an aggressive attacking style rather than the space eating/reactionary 3-4 Defenses that Parcells runs.

Kind of like Trevor Pryce in Baltimore. Well, at least last year when he was healthy. Trevor came from a 4-3 and had 13 sacks in a 3-4.

Edit: Trevor is 6'5'' 286.

[energizerbunny]

If he is a legit 6'8(as many people think he is) he is too tall, TEs and Tackles will just get under him and drive him if he is playing standing up. I also find it hard to believe he would be fluid enough in the hips to make the transition.


he needs his hand on the ground to be successful IMO.

[energizerbunny]

Kind of like Trevor Pryce in Baltimore. Well, at least last year when he was healthy. Trevor came from a 4-3 and had 13 sacks in a 3-4.

Edit: Trevor is 6'5'' 286.



Trevor was also quite the DT early on in career, then moved outside to End much like Cullen Jenkins has done in Green Bay.

I'd also like to add to this discusion that Trevor Pryce used to be a OLB(maybe 34 OLB) at Michigan before he transfered to Clemson.

[vatech=accdomination]

NO WAY, he would gety turned around and that would be the end of it, not fluid enough.

[marks01234]

You're probably right. But he does have the athleticism and explosion off the snap to be an elite pass rusher, wherever he lines up. He does get lazy at times but he was double-teamed an awful lot this year and people are somehow overlooking that fact a lot.

My answer is yes, he could be a very good 3-4 OLB, but he would unquestionably be a an elite 4-3 end.

No he didn't.

I watched NC State/Miami, UVA/Miami and VA Tech/Miami and he was blocked by a tackle for almost all the game. NC State had a true freshman tackle who held him to something like a single tackle.

[gsorace]

I think it would be a disservice to him to put him anywhere but 4-3 DE

What he said.

[Forenci]

I don't think he could, but it'd sure as hell be fun to watch.

I think with the right system, he could be dominate as 4-3 defensive end, or if he bulked up - he could play 3-4 DE. I'd like to see him rush the edge and then on situational downs rush inside. Not sure how well he'd be able to do it though.

Besides, who needs leverage when he could just leap frog the offensive tackle?

[TheBaronPatriot]

keep in mind with 6"8 he was massively long arms which the 3-4 OLB is supposed to use to keep blockers away from him.
I doubt there is any tackle in the NFL with the wingspan to lock on to him assuming he gets his technique straight.

I'm not saying he should be a 3-4 end, only asking due to his long arms whether or not he could compensate for the massive blocking target.

[BoltHype]

Would you bench Igor or Castillo? I would have a tough time dropping either of those guys.

Chargers rotate 5 down-linemen during a game...its part of their philosophy on defense and helps keep guys fresh

[DSlay4]

No he didn't.

I watched NC State/Miami, UVA/Miami and VA Tech/Miami and he was blocked by a tackle for almost all the game. NC State had a true freshman tackle who held him to something like a single tackle.

QFT

I watched him play a bunch of times because of all the hype he was getting, and he was hardly the dominant force he was touted to be. Anybody who thinks he's going to dominate in the NFL is flat out kidding themselves. He's only being recognized because of his potential and we all know how that works out.