O'Brien Schofield to be fulltime LEO

"This year, from what I understand, I’m going to solely be focused on playing with my hand on the ground, so I am excited about that."

“I promise you, you’ll hear my name.”

http://seattle.cbslocal.com/2014/05/22/ ... r-my-name/

Makes sense. There's a hole at LEO that needs competition. Probably not gonna be many reps available at LB with Kevin Pierre-Lewis added to the mix and Malcolm Smith emerging.

So Since Avril is our starting Left End and Bennett is the Right End, how do you see the following guys stack up on the depth chart and do you project any other guys with a chance at the End spots.

O'Brien Schofield #2 LE
Greg Scruggs #2 DT/#3 RE
Benson Mayowa #3 LE
Cassius Marsh #2 RE
Jackson Jeffcoat. Practice Squad

DavidSeven":24qxe3qp said:

Makes sense. There's a hole at LEO that needs competition. Probably not gonna be many reps available at LB with Kevin Pierre-Lewis added to the mix and Malcolm Smith emerging.

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Yeah... I think Malcolm has pretty much already emerged. He did that thing a couple months back that seems to have gotten him a little bit of notice. I think he won an award of some sort...

But yeah, I concur. Log jam at LB, makes sense to put him at LEO.

I don't want to nitpick, but Schofield to be fulltime defensive end would be a better description. In the interview, OBS said he'd be competing in "one specific role" as a starter at defensive end in nickel packages, probably RDE. Basically the position Cliff Avril played last season which was as a full-time pass rusher, so not quite exactly the LEO position.

From what we've heard the Sam/Leo are interchangeable in this scheme, meaning 3-point stance or standing up, so if he'll be playing "solely" with his hand on the ground the coaching staff my want him focused on his one role and having Benson Mayowa or other backing up the LEO spot behind Cliff Avril...which kills my prediction of BM getting 9+ sacks next year

Wenhawk":37cvroug said:

So Since Avril is our starting Left End and Bennett is the Right End, how do you see the following guys stack up on the depth chart and do you project any other guys with a chance at the End spots.

O'Brien Schofield #2 LE
Greg Scruggs #2 DT/#3 RE
Benson Mayowa #3 LE
Cassius Marsh #2 RE
Jackson Jeffcoat. Practice Squad

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They mix their personnel groups so much it's difficult to assign a depth chart. I'm probably a bit off in some spots, but I see it something like this:

"Heavy" Base Defense (25% of snaps)
LEO: Avril
1-tech: Mebane
3-tech: Williams
RDE: McDaniel (not so sure McD moves over or stays at 3-tech)
Backups: Benson Mayowa #2 LDE, Jordan Hill #2 1-tech, Greg Scruggs #2 RDE

"Mix and Match" Base Defense (25% of snaps)
LEO: Avril
1-tech: Mebane
3-tech: McDaniel
RDE: Bennett
Backups: same as above

Nickel Package (50% of snaps)
LDE: Avril/Mayowa
DT: Hill/Scruggs
DT: Bennett/Marsh
RDE: Schofield/Bennett/Scruggs
Backup: nickel package will change a bunch depending on situation. It's hard to predict the starters or backups out of this group.

So where's Bruce Irvin in your scenarios? I thought he was supposed to get worked out at Leo. Or is he going to split time with Malcolm again?

Not sure why, but I really want to see Mayowa succeed here. He came in and showed a lot of raw talent at DE and then Chris Clemons took him under his wing. But he really didn't play much last year. The loss of Clemons, and to a lesser extent Bryant, means these young guys have a legit shot to compete for those roles, where maybe last year they really did not. Going to be fun to watch.

From my personal observation, Schofield is impressive as an edge rusher.

From the "emperor is wearing no clothes" perspective, I personally believe his technique as an edge rusher is much better than Irvin's. Irvin may be a better, quicker athlete, but Schofield's game is noticeably more advanced. At this snapshot in time, I would prefer to see Schofield as an edge rusher over Irvin until Irvin begins to show better technique. Irvin seems to be caught in "no man's" land. They are trying to find a place to use his athleticism, but the truth is, he is being outplayed by other players wherever they put him (ie. Malcom Smith, Cliff Avril). More a testimony to other players stepping up their game than a knock on Irvin. Mark me down as one who believes that this season will determine if Seattle eventually exercises the fifth year extension option on Irvin. Based upon his current play, I don't believe they would. (on second thought, was he drafted/signed before the new contract structure was implemented?). Having said that, he is too much of an athletic freak to easily give up on. They will lend him every opportunity to step up his game.

Due to unforeseen attrition, I would feel very confident with Schofield playing every passing down at Leo. He would hold his own competently. The thing is...the Seahawk defensive scheme is one of a handful of places where Schofield can excel. Leo was built for "Tweeners" or undersized defensive ends. League wide, there isn't a lot of spots available for players like Schofield. For this reason, Seattle will always be "stacked" at the LEO position.


On another note:

The Seahawk defensive philosophy is innovative and brilliant. Normally, undersized defensive linemen would be a huge liability in the run game, but it is more than compensated for by the oversized defensive backfield. Chancellor takes on offensive linemen as well as any linebacker in the league and Thomas is fearless in run support. Maxwell (and before him, Browner) is very competent at sealing the edge and forcing runners back to the middle or outright tackling for loss or no gain. Even Lane has demonstrated similar ability. Running to Sherman's side? Well that is where the "big" defensive end plays. Further, Richard isn't afraid to stick his head in there either. Because of this, Seattle can put lightning quick players (albeit undersized) on the edge, with their hand on the turf. Brilliant!

In our defensive scheme, I don't think anybody is a "full time" anything.

Recon_Hawk":knt47o24 said:

I don't want to nitpick, but Schofield to be fulltime defensive end would be a better description. In the interview, OBS said he'd be competing in "one specific role" as a starter at defensive end in nickel packages, probably RDE. Basically the position Cliff Avril played last season which was as a full-time pass rusher, so not quite exactly the LEO position.

From what we've heard the Sam/Leo are interchangeable in this scheme, meaning 3-point stance or standing up, so if he'll be playing "solely" with his hand on the ground the coaching staff my want him focused on his one role and having Benson Mayowa or other backing up the LEO spot behind Cliff Avril...which kills my prediction of BM getting 9+ sacks next year

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Well said. Schofield is (and has always been) a liability against the run no matter where he plays, and he's not a natural pass coverage player, which makes/made the Sam LB spot a stretch for him. In reality, they're saying he's simply going to be competing for a spot on the team as a designated pass rushing DE in sub packages. Unfortunately for Schofield, that one-dimensionality is going to make it VERY difficult for him to make the team. Even if the Hawks carry 5 DE's on their 53-man roster, at best Schofield is competing with Mayowa for the 5th spot with Bennett, Avril, Scruggs and Marsh all locks for spots.

Recon_Hawk":3qi5zdj4 said:

Well said. Schofield is (and has always been) a liability against the run no matter where he plays, and he's not a natural pass coverage player, which makes/made the Sam LB spot a stretch for him. In reality, they're saying he's simply going to be competing for a spot on the team as a designated pass rushing DE in sub packages. Unfortunately for Schofield, that one-dimensionality is going to make it VERY difficult for him to make the team. Even if the Hawks carry 5 DE's on their 53-man roster, at best Schofield is competing with Mayowa for the 5th spot with Bennett, Avril, Scruggs and Marsh all locks for spots.

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This is exactly what I am seeing here. I am pretty sure the front office doesn't see this guy as a primary role player but more as a depth guy. Curious as to how much special teams action OBS saw last season and if it was enough to help his cause.

RiverDog":2pps0azd said:

So where's Bruce Irvin in your scenarios? I thought he was supposed to get worked out at Leo. Or is he going to split time with Malcolm again?

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Crap, I forgot about Bruuuccee. The way I see it, Irvin will play as a 2-down starting strongside linebacker in the base defense with the chance to get snaps at defensive end in nickel packages. I'd be great to see Bruce handle both roles, but that will depend on him. Can he play the SAM without mistakes and then make the transition to DE? In his rookie season, he was getting by purely with his athleticism, so to improve his game at DE it would take some of his practice reps away from linebacker drills. The coaching staff may want his attention fully on the SAM position and use him at DE sparingly.

We've seen them use Irvin as a QB spy before, for example against Kaepernick, so he could see time in that role against the 49ers, Panthers, and Redskins next year.

They may also use him in the "Spinner" role, which was discussed a lot last year, but I don't remember seeing much used in games. That means have a 3-man defensive front and letting Irvin move along the line, blitzing from anywhere.

RiverDog":2z0dqqho said:

So where's Bruce Irvin in your scenarios? I thought he was supposed to get worked out at Leo.

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No, that was never the case, and the coaching staff has made that abundantly clear again this off-season. Bruce is a full-time strong-side (Sam) linebacker now in the base defense. He'll also compete for a role as a pass-rushing DE on obvious passing downs, but that's not the same as being a Leo. The Leo DE position is a role in the base defense. The Hawks tried Irvin there as a rookie, but his inability to hold up at the point of attack against the run triggered his move to OLB. Again, Irvin is a Sam OLB now, who will likely rush the passer from a DE position from time to time in sub packages, but that is not the same as the Leo position, nor is the same as 'being' a Leo DE.

Am I the only one that thinks we are going to be even better on the line this year? Im thinking we are going to lead the league in sacks.. we are loaded!

BlueBlood":2ewk6a5w said:

Am I the only one that thinks we are going to be even better on the line this year? Im thinking we are going to lead the league in sacks.. we are loaded!

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I think we have a chance to be an even better pass rushing unit, yes, but I also think there's a chance we could take a step back vs. the running game in our base D, depending on who is deployed as our Leo and 5-tech DE's in the base D and how those guys perform.

Schofield had a lot of eyecatching stops against the run last season, I'd almost say his run defense is better than his pass rush, at least in terms of how he makes his big plays.

I hope whatever medical issue it was that scared New York away won't impact him this season. With Clemons being gone and Mayowa still unproven his workload could become fairly substantial, especially if we have injuries to other pass rushers.

kearly":24h4ms3f said:

Schofield had a lot of eyecatching stops against the run last season, I'd almost say his run defense is better than his pass rush, at least in terms of how he makes his big plays.

I hope whatever medical issue it was that scared New York away won't impact him this season. With Clemons being gone and Mayowa still unproven his workload could become fairly substantial, especially if we have injuries to other pass rushers.

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The only "injury" was to the Giants fans who had never heard of him and the scrutiny that followed due to what is deemed a terrible cpontract!

kearly":yz2toni0 said:

Schofield had a lot of eyecatching stops against the run last season, I'd almost say his run defense is better than his pass rush, at least in terms of how he makes his big plays.

I hope whatever medical issue it was that scared New York away won't impact him this season. With Clemons being gone and Mayowa still unproven his workload could become fairly substantial, especially if we have injuries to other pass rushers.

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"A lot" might be a stretch? He had 8 total tackles combined in 139 defensive snaps. Most of these came in the first 4 games when Clem was not well, so you definitely could be onto something there. He has some experience filling in, and he did 'OK'.

This is definitely one of the competitions I am excited to watch.

Wenhawk":1wbct7x5 said:

So Since Avril is our starting Left End and Bennett is the Right End

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Source?