Top 5 players at every position (Defense)

[Logicallylethal]

Yeah Sean Lee is really good but he's not better than any of the middle linebackers listed in my top 5. I would actually have Carlos Dansby ahead of him if anything

 

[UK Cowboy]

Top 5 LB's dont let this happen to them....

Obviously, you never played football above Jr High, because that type of thing happens to everyone at one point or another. And Lee's better than any LB on your team

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

Obviously, you never played football above Jr High, because that type of thing happens to everyone at one point or another. And Lee's better than any LB on your team

I'd take Willis or Bowman over Lee… Any day

 

[UK Cowboy]

I'd take Willis or Bowman over Lee… Any day

Same type of players, but not better. Lee and Ware are every bit as good as Willis, Bowman and Smith. Any day of the week

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

Same type of players, but not better. Lee and Ware are every bit as good as Willis, Bowman and Smith. Any day of the week

Ware wasn't part of the discussion until you just threw him in their to support your claim… Your original claim was Lee > Any 49er LB… And that was absolutely ludacris

 

[Logicallylethal]

Same type of players, but not better. Lee and Ware are every bit as good as Willis, Bowman and Smith. Any day of the week

Lol first off no one mentioned Ware. I believe I have Ware listed as #2 on my rankings

Second of all...you are making these claims that Sean Lee is every bit as good as Willis and Bowman but what proof do you have to back that up besides your own biased opinion?

Patrick Willis averages 130 tackles a year for his career. He's had multiple seasons getting 3 or more sacks a year. Sean Lee has 0 sacks for his entire career. Patrick Willis averages at least 2 forced fumbles a year...Sean Lee has 2 for his entire career

Bowman on the other hand has had over 140 tackles for 3 straight years including 5 sacks, 4 forced fumbles and 2 ints this year with one of them being a crucial pick 6 that helped his team get into the playoffs

So how exactly is Sean Lee every bit as good as Bowman and Willis?

 

[Scooby-Doo]

Same type of players, but not better. Lee and Ware are every bit as good as Willis, Bowman and Smith. Any day of the week

I get you are passionate about the Cowboys, but you are flat out wrong. Wills and Bowman are better than Lee. I think if you polled any 100 Non-Cowboy fans, players or coaches, at least 75% would take Willis or Bowman (before the horrific knee injury) over Lee.

 

[Logicallylethal]

Honestly the linebacker position is so loaded. Great players are bound to get left off top 5 lists and rankings

I had to leave off Karlos Dansby

122 tackles 6.5 sacks and 4 ints. He has a much better case than Sean Lee or Lance Briggs

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

Honestly the linebacker position is so loaded. Great players are bound to get left off top 5 lists and rankings

I had to leave off Karlos Dansby

122 tackles 6.5 sacks and 4 ints. He has a much better case than Sean Lee or Lance Briggs

That's why I don't like top 5 lists… If this was a top 10, then there would be more to debate about. Top 5 lists are too opinionated.

 

[Great Dayne]

No Clay Matthews = epic fail

 

[UK Cowboy]

No Clay Matthews = epic fail

He's like Lee, just a backup on the Niners lol. If not for injuries, Lee would be taken before any MLB but Kuechley by real GM's

 

[UK Cowboy]

Lol first off no one mentioned Ware. I believe I have Ware listed as #2 on my rankings

Second of all...you are making these claims that Sean Lee is every bit as good as Willis and Bowman but what proof do you have to back that up besides your own biased opinion?

Patrick Willis averages 130 tackles a year for his career. He's had multiple seasons getting 3 or more sacks a year. Sean Lee has 0 sacks for his entire career. Patrick Willis averages at least 2 forced fumbles a year...Sean Lee has 2 for his entire career

Bowman on the other hand has had over 140 tackles for 3 straight years including 5 sacks, 4 forced fumbles and 2 ints this year with one of them being a crucial pick 6 that helped his team get into the playoffs

So how exactly is Sean Lee every bit as good as Bowman and Willis?

You also had Burfict and Alonzo in front of Lee and no Clay Matthews. Good list, but ya missed a spot

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

You also had Burfict and Alonzo in front of Lee and no Clay Matthews. Good list, but ya missed a spot

You're still dodging the argument… Again… Here's another reminder

Your argument: Lee > Any 49er LB

And remember, Ware has nothing to do with it.

 

[UK Cowboy]

You're still dodging the argument… Again… Here's another reminder

Your argument: Lee > Any 49er LB

And remember, Ware has nothing to do with it.

OK. Go on any National talk show, say NFL XM, ask an actual GM, if they knew Lee were going to stay healthy, would they trade him for any backer on the Niners. Dare ya

 

[Scooby-Doo]

OK. Go on any National talk show, say NFL XM, ask an actual GM, if they knew Lee were going to stay healthy, would they trade him for any backer on the Niners. Dare ya

meh.. Whats the point.

 

[FaCe-LeE-uS]

OK. Go on any National talk show, say NFL XM, ask an actual GM, if they knew Lee were going to stay healthy, would they trade him for any backer on the Niners. Dare ya

That's all here-say… If you had written statements then maybe I'd believe a FEW GM's would… But I'm sure its close to 96.87% (31/32 teams) would take Willis or Bowman over Lee… Don't even try to kid yourself

 

[UK Cowboy]

That's all here-say… If you had written statements then maybe I'd believe a FEW GM's would… But I'm sure its close to 96.87% (31/32 teams) would take Willis or Bowman over Lee… Don't even try to kid yourself

Depends on the scheme. Lee was outstanding in a 3-4, but there are only 1-2 MLB's of his caliber for a 4-3, Kuechly and Wagner IMO

 

[gkekoa]

It's a severely flawed list.


How do you have Patrick Willis as a top five middle LB and not have Navorro Bowman on that list but have Navorro Bowman as a top five inside LB and not have Patrick Willis?


ILB and Middle LB are interchangeable. Most would use ILB as a descriptor on a 3-4 defense while the "mike" is a 4-3 defense.


How do you judge an OLB? Do you base it off the totally different responsibilities they have in a 3-4 and a 4-3 or do you just stat watch? A 3-4 OLB will definitely have more sacks than a 4-3 OLB because their responsibilities are totally different. For that reason, OLB rankings will be biased for the 3-4 defense even though an OLB's responsibilities in a 3-4 are closer to that of a DE in a 4-3.


From there, we haven't even got to the interior defensive line. To not have JJ Watt as the #1 player in whatever category you have him is flat out wrong. He is the best and most valuable defender in football. Again, you have to compare a 3-4 DE to that of a 4-3 DT more than a 4-3 DE.


If you want a fair break down you have to make the front 7 defense specific:
DE
DT
3-4 DE
3-4 OLB
NT
CB
S


Even then you don't really get to see the importance and varied skill set of a slot corner.

 

[Logicallylethal]

It's a severely flawed list.


How do you have Patrick Willis as a top five middle LB and not have Navorro Bowman on that list but have Navorro Bowman as a top five inside LB and not have Patrick Willis?


ILB and Middle LB are interchangeable. Most would use ILB as a descriptor on a 3-4 defense while the "mike" is a 4-3 defense.


How do you judge an OLB? Do you base it off the totally different responsibilities they have in a 3-4 and a 4-3 or do you just stat watch? A 3-4 OLB will definitely have more sacks than a 4-3 OLB because their responsibilities are totally different. For that reason, OLB rankings will be biased for the 3-4 defense even though an OLB's responsibilities in a 3-4 are closer to that of a DE in a 4-3.


From there, we haven't even got to the interior defensive line. To not have JJ Watt as the #1 player in whatever category you have him is flat out wrong. He is the best and most valuable defender in football. Again, you have to compare a 3-4 DE to that of a 4-3 DT more than a 4-3 DE.


If you want a fair break down you have to make the front 7 defense specific:
DE
DT
3-4 DE
3-4 OLB
NT
CB
S


Even then you don't really get to see the importance and varied skill set of a slot corner.

You are more than welcome to provide your own top 5/10 list with your specific breakdown of every position if you'd like

There's no particular formula to rank players that will satisfy everyone.

 

[Logicallylethal]

You also had Burfict and Alonzo in front of Lee and no Clay Matthews. Good list, but ya missed a spot

Vontaze Burfict (171 tackles and 3 sacks) had a monster year and he was the anchor of that Bengals defense that played really well this year despite losing Geno Atkins.

Kiko Alonso also had an incredible year. The Bills defense dramatically improved with the addition of Alonso to the team.

Sean Lee is a really good player but my question is...who would you kick off that list to put Sean Lee on for?

Not Kuechly? Wagner? Willis? Burfict? Alonso?

And what about Karlos Dansby...I would argue that he is actually next in line and not Sean Lee