Overrated: OLB Bruce Irvin

[warden]

Bruce Irvin is under-rated

Sure he did not get big sack numbers in his second year, not a good fantasy football choice, not big stats

but

It is an extremely difficult thing to do to switch positions in the NFL. Bruce does exactly what his coaches ask him to do and has done a very good job doing so. It is a laugh that people blame the scheme for the lack of stat numbers. That scheme has helped produce a number one defense and Superbowl champion, so the scheme has being working very very well. Team results trump individual stats.

The Seahawks under this management has proven that they are exceptional at developing players and know what the he11 they are doing. I look forward to see how well Irvin evolves and combines the skills that he learned playing one year as a pass rush specialist combined with one year as a linebacker. There remains a strong possibility that they could wind up developing Bruce into an exceptional player, they will just do it in a different fashion then the media and fans expect them to do it.

 

[lukerguy]

Bruce is going to eat this year. Pending no injury, he's going to have 8.5 sacks minimum...

While he has been a disappointment based upon how I originally projected him, I think he'll do great this year.

 

[Largent80]

I could care less if players are over or underrated. It simply matters not.

 

[jdemps]

I think this is all nitpicking to the extreme with nothing else to talk about. You can't say someone on the O-line is overrated because they were terrible last year. Russ was terrific. RB's were solid. Receiving corp was half infirmary/ half breakout. The defense was outstanding (obviously) and the only person who didn't have an amazing campaign was Irvin (who was suspended/ learning new position). Sure, his numbers were "down" but when everyone else was playing out of their minds, he appears the weak link (might be a slight liability against the run, still TBD IMO). Next year, he'll have a full season at LB and there'll be threads praising Irvin for having a breakout year.

Is it September yet?

 

[kearly]

Irvin was a poor choice. Despite his sack numbers Irvin was a barely break-even contributor as a rookie, and at times he was a liability that contributed to losses (most painfully, the Atlanta game). He was never a liability in 2013. He didn't stand out much, just a quietly solid player who by seasons end was slightly above average on the whole.

My pick for most over-rated Seahawk in 2013 would probably be Max Unger. Yes, he was injured, but his level of play was extremely poor in power run situations particularly and he had no business earning a pro-bowl nod. Really, it just shows that the pro-bowl is more about reputation than merit sometimes. Unger was a very good player in 2012 and 2011, so it's pretty unfair to call him over-rated. It's really a testament to the roster that it is so hard to find players that are not as good as their 2013 reputation.

 

[G-Money]

Coach Pete Carroll hinted SLB Bruce Irvin (hip) may not be ready for the start of the season.

"He’s dealt with it for a long time and it just got to a point where we thought it was better to have a chance to have him back for the start of the season, which is a possibility, so we’ll see what happens," Carroll said. Irvin underwent hip surgery earlier this month and seems to have already been ruled out for camp. K.J. Wright, Malcolm Smith, and O'Brien Schofield will get the summer reps.

 

[ManBunts]

I like Irvin at OLB as a spy. Look how well last year the Texans shut down Wilson's ability to stretch plays by having Mercilus spy on him. We still beat them (thank god), but with a run threat like that, having someone dedicated and quick enough to react would be a huge benefit. And with the LOB's ability to cover ground, we can afford to dedicate someone to a position like that when necessary.

And to echo other thoughts, it was his first season at OLB, and learning to drop back into coverage and read the QB is way different than an edge rush or contain. I'm giving him the benefit of the doubt. I wish I had stats about throws and runs to his side, because I imagine we'd see some good numbers. Any linebacker's success is partially predicated by the abilities of those opposite him to cover their zones. Bobby and KJ had great years, which tells me Bruce was holding up his end of the bargain. So he wasn't putting up Lawrence Taylor numbers. He did enough.