Fall Depth Chart

[Big23Head]

Question for you guys. This is something I heard Diaco say in an interview and forgot to bring it up but Keith Arnold brought it up in one of his articles.

Diaco stated that he considered Steve Filer equivalent to a starter as well. Also Kelly has said in the past that it is going to be the coaches job to get him on the field due to his talent. So my question is where? With all the praise Fleming has gotten I doubt that it's there. (I realize he is Fleming's backup, but Fleming won't leave the field much will he?) And they will put Lynch in when we go to a 4 man line. So where does he go? Next to Manti sometimes?

Thoughts?

 

[Old Man Mike]

This rings no bells with me. I'll believe Filer on the field in something other than special teams when I see it. [I WISH that he has suddenly blossomed at the last moment, but i don't remember any such thing.] I've heard Diaco say what you say about Motta and about Calabreese.

 

[Whiskeyjack]

As implausible as it sounds on its face, Diaco has stated that he considers Fleming and Filer to be 1(a) and 1(b). So Big23Head definitely has that right.

Whether that will actually be reflected in minutes played... I have my doubts, mainly because there's no apparent situation where Filer (or Ishaq for that matter) can safely spell Fleming.

 

[Old Man Mike]

Since Diaco said that, I'm betting on "psychology" then. Diaco knows he wants two "ready" Cats, and that Ishaq is NOT ready. Niklas has gone to the other side, leaving the thought that Filer might have to give Fleming a blow. As there is no way in my understanding of reality that Filer can have "caught up" to Fleming, the "1a"/"1b" business must be motivational.

 

[Big23Head]

I agree with this. I really wish/hope Filer has gotten it together. Not necessarily to be 1a/1b with Fleming but to make the statement true that the coaches need to find ways for him to be on the field. We all know he is a pure beast of athletic talent, if he is now focused that is awesome. (Unfortunately I wish Filer was redshirted and was not done this year, I think the coaches have woken him up too little too late)

 

[Whiskeyjack]

I'd feel a lot better if I knew how the staff plans to rest Fleming.

On passing downs? I doubt the staff trusts Ishaq or Filer in coverage, and how can you take one of your best pass rushers off the field in those situations?

Maybe they like Filer against the run. Something to hope for, I guess.

 

[koonja]

Maybe the real Steve Filer and Deion Walker are in the mysterious truck trailer that everyone's curious about and they're going to come in and have a great year as we once expected they would. As the little kid in the Angels in the Outfield once said, "Hey, it could happen".

 

[ErieIrish13]

Maybe the real Steve Filer and Deion Walker are in the mysterious truck trailer that everyone's curious about and they're going to come in and have a great year as we once expected they would. As the little kid in the Angels in the Outfield once said, "Hey, it could happen".

I say to put each of them in during a tough situation. Might not be the best coaching strategy, but it will show Kelly if they know how and want to play.

 

[Old Man Mike]

I haven't heard anything out of Kelly's mouth specifically about pattern-substitution for Fleming, but a possibly analogous comment about EJohnson and KLM said that they'd get some first and second down substitutions through the game to ensure they'd be fresh on third downs. If Coach wants Fleming fresh every third [passing] down, then the blows would come on some first and second down series. [I don't believe that he sees DE as quite the same deal as this, as Heaven knows he wants to see Lynch rush the passer].

 

[Whiskeyjack]

I haven't heard anything out of Kelly's mouth specifically about pattern-substitution for Fleming, but a possibly analogous comment about EJohnson and KLM said that they'd get some first and second down substitutions through the game to ensure they'd be fresh on third downs. If Coach wants Fleming fresh every third [passing] down, then the blows would come on some first and second down series. [I don't believe that he sees DE as quite the same deal as this, as Heaven knows he wants to see Lynch rush the passer].

The DE situation is pretty straight-forward. Two-gap responsibility on standard downs is hard, so that's where EJ and KLM will get most of their reps. One gap responsibility on passing downs is simple, so that's where Lynch and Tuitt will give the starters a blow.

For the Cat, Fleming needs to be in on passing downs, which leaves standard downs. If the staff likes Filer's ability to set the edge against the run, then that might make sense, but the Cat has to be ready to cover, set, or rush on standard downs, and I'll be very surprised if the staff suddenly trusts the wayward senior to make those reads correctly.

 

[koonja]

I say to put each of them in during a tough situation. Might not be the best coaching strategy, but it will show Kelly if they know how and want to play.

Maybe they're just huge gamers? It's happened before I'm sure. Although I doubt that's the case.