JJ Watt: best defensive lineman in NFL?

[Don Vito]

Mario had a pretty good run before he got banged. Still is pretty young but the concern is the mileage on him and the wear and tear. That Texans front is so incredibly beastly with Watt, Reed, Barwin, and Smith. It is crazy to think that this defense is dominating with the only two franchise defenders they had (Williams and Ryans) recently departed. Great drafting and smart FA decisions will do that for you, that Jonathan Joseph pick up was a great move as was the decision to let Mario walk. Cushings injury is too bad for them.

[Giantsfan1080]

The Wade Phillips hire was the most important move of all.

[BigBanger]

JJ Watt makes the most flashy plays from the DL position and he's the runaway for DPOY, but Justin Smith is so ******* good. The better player, right now, might be Smith even though Watt is making more notable impact plays. Smith is so damn dominant against the run it's unlike anything I have ever seen. He draws double teams constantly, but when he gets a single block, he dominants the OL. He draws so much attention to himself its unreal. He has single handedly made Aldon Smith a double digit sack guy. Aldon Smith is not having a great season, but he has been productive because of Justin Smith and the attention Justin is getting.

I think Watt and Smith are the clear cut favorites for best defensive linemen in the NFL this year. Either one could win DPOY and I would be fine with it. It just might be harder to deny Watt with all the sacks he's getting. But Smith is just as dominant, maybe even more so. Smith is just so much better against the run than anyone else in the league.

I've read a few comments from people on these boards saying Ngata is having a career year. I haven't seen it. I don't think he's even in the discussion this year with these two.

[P-L]

I'm not sure Justin Smith has been significantly better than Watt against the run this year. Watt has continued to play at an absurd level. He almost has double digit sacks through six games, and has at least one in every game. Amazing.

[Rosebud]

Not sure that today is the best day to be waxing poetic about Justin Smith, when JPP had a significantly better performance in the big Giants-9ers game. Dude's an ox though and will probably eat Russel Wilson out of frustration.

[MetSox17]

Haloti Ngata was washed out of the game by our **** offensive line, so i'm not sure if he's playing injured (he did leave the game for a while with an injury). I did watch him play against the Browns and he was playing at an elite level, so the talk of him doing great this year is legitimate. At this point, JJ Watt is the unanimous DPOY though.

[BigBanger]

Originally Posted by MetSox17

Haloti Ngata was washed out of the game by our **** offensive line, so i'm not sure if he's playing injured (he did leave the game for a while with an injury). I did watch him play against the Browns and he was playing at an elite level, so the talk of him doing great this year is legitimate. At this point, JJ Watt is the unanimous DPOY though.

Yeah, that was the worst I have seen him (against Dallas). He was playing hurt, I don't think there's any doubt about that. When he sacked Romo, he laid flat on his back in complete exhaustion. I didn't think he was going to be able to get up. He was getting moved down the line, five yards off the ball... he looked terrible. But that was one game. He certainly hasn't played like that all year. But I seen a few people claim he's having a career year. I don't think that's anywhere close to the truth. In 2010 he was about as dominant as defensive linemen get. This year... I think he's been good. But not to the level of play I've been accustomed to for the last three years. With that said, he's still one of the best defensive linemen in the game. Just not against Dallas. Never seen him that bad.

Originally Posted by Rosebud

Not sure that today is the best day to be waxing poetic about Justin Smith, when JPP had a significantly better performance in the big Giants-9ers game. Dude's an ox though and will probably eat Russel Wilson out of frustration.

I love JPP, but to say he had a significantly better performance is flat out wrong. JPP was not even better to begin with, let alone significantly better. He had a couple sacks. That's always nice, but Justin Smith was as dominant as ever. He played out of his mind. I don't think JPP had anywhere close to the same kind of impact Smith had in that game.

Smith was the only player on that DL that played well, and he played great. There were about 7 to 10 plays that Smith stuffed behind the line of scrimmage. There was another half dozen that ended in minimal gains because of him. They couldn't run at him unless they double teamed him with a OG and OT.

JPP had a tipped pass and a sack. He also had a coverage sack. But he played average football the rest of the way. And he got beat up inside a little bit. He spent more time flat on his back against SF (one-on-one blocks no less) than he probably has all year long. He hasn't had the statistical year to match up to what he did last year, but that certainly was not his best game from this year despite getting more sacks in that one game than he had all season. He struggled. I think he got pressure on the QB twice. They just both resulted in sacks. A little misleading.

Originally Posted by P-L

I'm not sure Justin Smith has been significantly better than Watt against the run this year. Watt has continued to play at an absurd level. He almost has double digit sacks through six games, and has at least one in every game. Amazing.

I'm not discrediting Watt in the slightest, but Wade Philips' one gap, up the field scheme takes him out of a lot plays. Watt is special, and he does a great job recovering lost ground from his initial first step, but he doesn't play the run consistently like Smith does (then again Smith is not half the pass rusher Watt is, so... there's that). Jay Ratliff turned into one of the best pass rushing NTs I've ever seen because of this scheme. It's very effective for pass rushers freeing them up for single blocks, but it does cost you in areas of the run game, and forces your LBs to cover a lot of space.

[jsagan77]

JJ Watt is also a top 3 defensive back with 8 pass defenses (true story)...
Seriously the guy is simply amazing (though Smith is another beast!!)