Can Cam Wake play linebacker? | FinHeaven - Miami Dolphins Forums

Can Cam Wake play linebacker?

ZILLA

ZILLA

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IMO this is a very interesting storyline going into next season... we all saw him explode everytime he got a chance to play... and nobody can deny he is a great pass rusher...

but can he cover tight ends and running backs and can he stop the run?...

it will be interesting to find out whether cam will stick as a situational pass rusher or if he will earn a bigger role in our defense...
 
He seems like the perfect 4-3 end.
That being said even if he is a situational pass rusher im sure Nolan will get him more chances than Paul did
 
Didn't show any ability to play LB this year. That being said, if Nolan can turn Dumverville into a great pass rushing OLB, I'm confident he can do the same to Wake. Now whether he can stop the run or play the pass, who knows, but Dumerville can't do anything but rush the passer either.
 
took Starks a year to be the player he is,and lets no forget that Cam is around the same age as Randy,so its not like hes a rookie.

give him more time....
 
we won't know until we give him a shot. dude's not getting any younger - so that shot needs to be next season.
 
No..., he won't be an every down LB...!!

What's the problem with a situational player who knows his assignment..., and is the "ace" at what he does..., many teams are still trying to become yesteryears Pats moving away from the run towards the air and so a player who can come in 2nd and 3rd and long is optimum...
 
I think Wake will always be in a role that Trace Armstrong used to be in back in the day. Trace I don't believe was a starter, he was a situational pass rusher, and he did a damn good job.

That is the problem on this team . . . we have great depth . . . we just don't have those starters in place yet. We really need a good draft.
 
ZILLA said:
IMO this is a very interesting storyline going into next season... we all saw him explode everytime he got a chance to play... and nobody can deny he is a great pass rusher...

but can he cover tight ends and running backs and can he stop the run?...
it will be interesting to find out whether cam will stick as a situational pass rusher or if he will earn a bigger role in our defense...
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that's the million dollar question.
 
Kdawg954 said:
I think Wake will always be in a role that Trace Armstrong used to be in back in the day. Trace I don't believe was a starter, he was a situational pass rusher, and he did a damn good job.

That is the problem on this team . . . we have great depth . . . we just don't have those starters in place yet. We really need a good draft.
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Trace Armstrong was a full time player prior to coming to MIA.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trace_Armstrong

On April 4, 1995, the Dolphins traded a 2nd and 3rd round draft pick for Armstrong. He was acquired to fill a role as a designated pass rusher, a player who comes into the game in likely passing downs in an effort to give the team's pass rush a boost. This is a role Armstrong filled the rest of his career, however, in five seasons, injuries to the starting ends forced Trace into a starting role
 
MiamiDolfan85 said:
took Starks a year to be the player he is,and lets no forget that Cam is around the same age as Randy,so its not like hes a rookie.

give him more time....
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Starks showed flashes before coming to MIA, and then did a very good job in 08.

And Wake is going to be 29 next season I believe, how much more time do you want? I see Wake as a guy who can come in on long passing downs and be effective off the edge in a 3 pt stance. He showed nothing that says he would be just as effective in a 2pt stance.

The key to Wakes game is all about his 'twitch' in the 3 pt stance. He does come out of his 3pt stance quite fast/quick and very low. He needs to broaden his game in that aspect w/ different moves. Someone said earlier he is the 'ideal' 4-3 end, not a ideal 3-4 OLB. More time won't change that imo.

And I'm one who didn't think he would amount to much in the NFL prior to the season. But seen some flashes this season. Sad thing those flashes were all from the 3pt stance, which makes him a 1 trick pony, a good pony, but a 1 trick pony none the less.
 
its to late to teach any of that just leave him there as pure pass rusher
 
DolfanDuBbZ~ said:
Starks showed flashes before coming to MIA, and then did a very good job in 08.

And Wake is going to be 29 next season I believe, how much more time do you want? I see Wake as a guy who can come in on long passing downs and be effective off the edge in a 3 pt stance. He showed nothing that says he would be just as effective in a 2pt stance.

The key to Wakes game is all about his 'twitch' in the 3 pt stance. He does come out of his 3pt stance quite fast/quick and very low. He needs to broaden his game in that aspect w/ different moves. Someone said earlier he is the 'ideal' 4-3 end, not a ideal 3-4 OLB. More time won't change that imo.

And I'm one who didn't think he would amount to much in the NFL prior to the season. But seen some flashes this season. Sad thing those flashes were all from the 3pt stance, which makes him a 1 trick pony, a good pony, but a 1 trick pony none the less.
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Yea Wake will be 28 next year . . . obviously Miami knew this guy was a project, which is why he got a 5 year deal worth 5 million. Maybe the role he is in now, is the role Miami wants him in. Maybe they don't want to develop him as a full time LB. This is by far the most important offseason for the Dolphins.

By the end of this offseason . . . we will know if they addressed the LB position and we will know the status of Ronnie Brown. Those 2 things are the 2 things the Fins need to worry about the most.
 
I don't think it's too late for anything, this was basically the guy's first year playing in the NFL.

It wasn't too late for Randy Starks to turn on his game and become a valid Pro Bowler. I still can't remember who it was that swore to me it was absolutely impossible for Starks to be anything more than he's been, but that was a funny conversation now that I look back on it.

Here's the deal for me. We don't know what Wake has to offer as a linebacker because he was RARELY allowed to play the position. Yeah, I guess you can take a stance of, he would have been playing if he showed any aptitude for it...but, seriously? Have we not seen this coaching regime make mistakes before, with respect to who to play and when? Randy Starks didn't "suddenly" come on. His metrics were on fire a year ago and this year was only a continuation of it. Yet how much did they keep him on the bench and continue flirting with Phil Merling, who they admit doesn't really show well in practices? What about having Cobbs as KR over Ginn?

Coaches are human, they make mistakes, especially when it comes to the notion of taking one of the best pass rushers in recent NFL history (whether it be Porter or Taylor) off the field in order to get Wake onto it. Complicating that is the fact that, as per Ethan Skolnick, Joey Porter would regularly send back whoever was supposed to replace him (probably Wake)...even after having been suspended a game. The coaches didn't mess with Porter's playing time because they didn't want to "rock the Joey boat". Could be one reason Paul Pasqualoni is no longer here.

So all I'm saying is we don't really know what Wake has to offer on this front because they haven't tried him out in the games. One practice report from the beginning of the season by a beat writer whose eyes are somewhat questionable when it comes to knowing what he's seeing on a football field, does not qualify as enough evidence to damn a man to an eternity of rotational play.

The dude is a STAR pass rusher in the making. Find ways to let him shine.
 
Rhody Phins Fan said:
He doesn't have to cover that well since I doubt we would have him in coverage very much. Being adequate in coverage should do it.
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That's another excellent point to bring up. In this defense, Joey Porter rushed the passer on something like 80 to 85% of pass snaps. Elvis Dumervil did the same in Denver.

Having tracked Nolan's defense a little, I think he likes for one guy to be a primary rusher and another guy to be a primary coverage backer. Haggan rushed the passer something like only 40% of pass snaps in Denver. Back in San Fran, it looks to me like Haralson was a primary rusher and Lawson was a guy who was half-n-half.

That's a little bit of a difference from what we did here in Miami the last two years. Jason Taylor and Matt Roth were not 50/50 when it comes to rush/cover. They were more like 70/30.
 
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