Zach

[CChambers7284]

Im so sick of Magazines ranking him so low. Im sick of nobody ever mentioning him when talkin about dominating defensive players or the top players. He constantly makes the pro bowl, leads the league in tackles (until he gets hurt, which hopfully wont happen this year). He plays tough, doesnt complain, doesn't make outlandish remarks, plays every down. He uses finess when tackling and every once in awhile delivers a big blow i.e. the broncos game or the jets game.

This is a shame that people talk more about James Farrior and Derrick Brooks, Ray Lewis etc. rather than a guy that has been at the top of the charts every year since his rookie season.

Every magazine says he isnt getting any younger and this may be the year he drops off. It's like Mariano Rivera, until I see it, it doesnt happen. My Bias Jet fan friend even thinks he is the best linebacker in football. He also thinks Chad Pennington walks on water but we wont go there.

It is just pathetic how a guy that isnt big, isnt fast but gets the job done year and year out, plays hard and plays hurt. When he basically ripped the ball out of almight Antonio Gates hands, ESPN said S***. If Brian Urlacher did that it would be all over the place. When he gets 16 tackles in a game, nobody talks about it.

Damn guys what should he do? Should Zach act like a jerk ala Ray Lewis, Joey Porter to finally get some notoriety. I guess there is no room for blue collar NFL Players anymore. People like the pre madonna TOs and Randy Moss' of the league.

 

[Fin D]

Best angry rant/post ever. :rawk:

 

[shadpop]

Zack

You pretty much answered your own question. All he does, year in and year out, is play great football. he doesn't whine or complain. He doesn't rant or rave. HE PLAYS FOOTBALL! he leaves it on the field every game and he will get nothing but respect from me until he decides to walk away. Thanks zack.

 

[Mike13]

Every magazine says he isnt getting any younger and this may be the year he drops off.

They always say that, and it hasn't happened.

 

[timbowens95]

And from what I've heard from people who met him, he's one of the nicest guys you'll meet.

 

[HybridPHIN 23]

Hells yah Zack had no worse a year than Urlacher and Urlacher only plays at that level every few years. Zack is too often overlooked, but he'll always be a modern legend in my mind. The dude is smaller than the bus and has plowed him down.

 

[Geforce]

Zach Thomas is a lot like Art Monk was. All he does is his job and doesn't draw attention to himself for doing what he's being paid to do. Unfortuately, this doesn't help in getting national attention, especially these days. I think Zach only cares about getting the respect of his teammates and peers and it doesn't bother him too much if some sports writer doesn't think he's one of the best.

 

[D-Wade]

TV announcers always respect him and praise him every game.

 

[BlackRob]

Im so sick of Magazines ranking him so low. Im sick of nobody ever mentioning him when talkin about dominating defensive players or the top players. He constantly makes the pro bowl, leads the league in tackles (until he gets hurt, which hopfully wont happen this year). He plays tough, doesnt complain, doesn't make outlandish remarks, plays every down. He uses finess when tackling and every once in awhile delivers a big blow i.e. the broncos game or the jets game.

This is a shame that people talk more about James Farrior and Derrick Brooks, Ray Lewis etc. rather than a guy that has been at the top of the charts every year since his rookie season.

Every magazine says he isnt getting any younger and this may be the year he drops off. It's like Mariano Rivera, until I see it, it doesnt happen. My Bias Jet fan friend even thinks he is the best linebacker in football. He also thinks Chad Pennington walks on water but we wont go there.

It is just pathetic how a guy that isnt big, isnt fast but gets the job done year and year out, plays hard and plays hurt. When he basically ripped the ball out of almight Antonio Gates hands, ESPN said S***. If Brian Urlacher did that it would be all over the place. When he gets 16 tackles in a game, nobody talks about it.

Damn guys what should he do? Should Zach act like a jerk ala Ray Lewis, Joey Porter to finally get some notoriety. I guess there is no room for blue collar NFL Players anymore. People like the pre madonna TOs and Randy Moss' of the league.

Hey man I agree with u all the way!!! The "class acts" get no recognition while the a**holes get all the attention & props. Its a damn shame I must say...:shakeno: :shakeno: :shakeno:

 

[Aqua4Ever04]

He will be a first ballot hall of famer no doubt! Zach and Jason have been the heart and soul of this team for years!

 

[RoninFin4]

Zach Thomas is a lot like Art Monk was. All he does is his job and doesn't draw attention to himself for doing what he's being paid to do. Unfortuately, this doesn't help in getting national attention, especially these days. I think Zach only cares about getting the respect of his teammates and peers and it doesn't bother him too much if some sports writer doesn't think he's one of the best.

Well said, well said.

 

[Mike13]

TV announcers always respect him and praise him every game.

Thats true, they usally say ''There's Zach Thomas, one of the best in the sport'' or something to that effect.

 

[ihateyou134]

i actually read somewhere that the way the dolphins gives out assist tackles isnt completely right.... like they give them too often or something and it was in relation to the amount of tackles zach had or something and that could be another reason why bc they mite not belive he has as many tackles as he does

 

[ckparrothead]

I think Zach will get more recognition when Miami finally wins something substantial. If you think about the players that they keep talking about, Urlacher has gone deep into the playoffs, Ray Lewis as a linebacker LED an entire team to a Super Bowl victory, Derrick Brooks also won the Super Bowl with Tampa, James Farrior and Joey Porter weren't highly talked about until they won the Super Bowl with the Steelers, etc.

But let's face it, Miami went to the playoffs a few times with Zach here under JJ but it was mostly us getting bounced out in the first or second round, and we haven't been to the playoffs since 2001 when we got peed on (literally) and washed out by the Ravens in the first round at home.

Zach hasn't lost a thing. I think we've all got that ticking clock thing going on in our own heads about Zach wondering when the ability will go (like Offerdahl) but honestly I felt 2005 may have been his BEST year as a pro. I'm serious there too. In all my years watching Zach play I can't remember him making more plays BEHIND the line of scrimmage and making more big plays in general.

He had more tackles than he's ever had in any season, including ones where he played 16 games (he only played 14 this year).

The only time he's ever had more solos was in his rookie year 1996 when he had 122 solos in 16 games. This year he had 107 solos in 14 games. Both work out to 7.6 solo tackles per game with his 2005 solo production actually ever so slightly edging his 1996 solo rate.

He had 2.0 sacks this year, and the only time he's ever gotten more was 2001 when he had 3.0 sacks in 15 games.

He had only 1 interception this year where he's had anywhere between 1 and 3 every year since he was a rookie (2004 the only year without one). In 1998 he had two returned for a TD and he's returned 4 for TDs in his career, but he did not return one in 2005.

The big one though to me is in 2005 he had 4 forced fumbles. That's twice as many as he's ever had in any given year. He's only got 14 forced fumbles in his 10 year career and 4 of them came this year. The system he played in before was mop-up tackling and this time I felt like he was allowed to attack better and that made all the difference in the world.

I remember a long time ago the NFL use to track "Stuffs" as basically the NFL equivalent of TFLs that are tracked in college. I wish they still tracked that because this year I would be willing to bet that Zach had more stuffs than ever before.

In total if you track forced fumbles, fumble recoveries, sacks, and interceptions as "big plays" then he had 9 big plays in his rookie season, 8 in 1998, and 8 in 2005. Now you might argue that he had his best year in 1998 because of the two interception touchdowns...but IMO his tackle production wasn't very close to what it was in 2005 and those return TDs were as much luck as anything else...I'm pretty sure Robert Jones had one as well that year. Otherwise you say Zach made more big plays in 1996 and I say Zach made more smart plays in 2005...cuz he's better now than he was as a rookie.

In the old system, if you remember a lot of Zach's tackles use to come on pass plays into man coverage. They'd dump the ball off in the flat and Zach would be playing man and would immediately tackle him. This time around he had a lot more zone coverage responsibility, and so his tackle count came a heck of a lot more against the ground game than against pass completions.

The only thing that was really missing in 2005 was a return touchdown....which as I said is pretty much luck a lot of the time.

Otherwise I felt he was making more plays in the ground game as opposed to pass completions, more plays behind the line of scrimmage, more plays closer to the line of scrimmage, as many big plays in general as he's ever made, while not wearing down at the end of the season after a full season of battering causes our DTs to get tired and let Zach get mauled by OLs.

To have THIS kind of season in the first year of a very new, extremely different (night and day), and extremely complex defense just shows that Zach is as good or better now than he's ever been...especially when that D was supposed to be the type of 3-4 D that leaves its ILBs out to dry when it comes to protecting them from OL.

But again, he won't GET that type of recognition until Miami wins something substantial.

 

[biggfish72]

zach is 1 of da best lb in da game no dought