Anthony Barr; Hand in the Dirt

[Guest]

@"Geoff Nichols" said:

@JimmyinSD said:
is Barr really more dangerous starting with his hand in the dirt... or standing up and being able to see the play and use his athleticism to break it up or make the tackle?   He is a freak at LB... at DE I have to think he is less of a threat unless he is stronger and more skilled that I give him credit for.  hes got the frame,  but I dont know about his hand work to get off blocks vs just being able to blow right by a guy with a running start.

He's a lot faster than you think. Look back at how UCLA used him, he wasn't a refined pass rusher but he won purely on speed/length. You won't win long-term like that in the NFL. But if you get lined up at the LOS once and awhile its a skill-set I always believed could be utilized more. 

You'd end up with a lot of potential as well. You could hypothetically go across the D-line with Hunter - Richardson - Griffen - Barr with Kendricks/Gedeon in the gaps with Harrison also playing a factor near the LOS. Good luck blocking that. 

its intriguing, I just think with the better OL talent in the NFL that his limitations with his hands would be more exposed.  Maybe the best move Zimmer every makes,  i dont know.

[Guest]

@JimmyinSD said:
is Barr really more dangerous starting with his hand in the dirt... or standing up and being able to see the play and use his athleticism to break it up or make the tackle?   He is a freak at LB... at DE I have to think he is less of a threat unless he is stronger and more skilled that I give him credit for.  hes got the frame,  but I dont know about his hand work to get off blocks vs just being able to blow right by a guy with a running start.

I think the hand in the dirt was wishful speculation by the OP.  It is just an article about him working with the DL to refine his pass rushing ability.  And a very useful bit of work IMO.  It will make him more effective and spreading the word will be another thing for offense to worry about.

[Guest]

@greediron said:

@JimmyinSD said:
is Barr really more dangerous starting with his hand in the dirt... or standing up and being able to see the play and use his athleticism to break it up or make the tackle?   He is a freak at LB... at DE I have to think he is less of a threat unless he is stronger and more skilled that I give him credit for.  hes got the frame,  but I dont know about his hand work to get off blocks vs just being able to blow right by a guy with a running start.

I think the hand in the dirt was wishful speculation by the OP.  It is just an article about him working with the DL to refine his pass rushing ability.  And a very useful bit of work IMO.  It will make him more effective and spreading the word will be another thing for offense to worry about.

Exactly.  There are certain pass-rushing drills that you're just never going to have 4-3 LBs do.  So, in order to refine his technique, he's working with the DE's.  That's all it is.

[Guest]

@greediron said:

@suncoastvike said:

@Jor-El said:
There are a lot of possible things this could mean, some of which are:

• Barr wants more stats (sacks) for contract leverage.
• Coaches don't feel that any of the "toss a dart" late-round DEs (Weatherly, Odenigbo, Bower, Aruna) are showing enough to provide rotational relief for Griffen and Hunter.
• Vikings are going to be in dime a lot more and need to keep Barr on the field.

Or...it's just a minicamp experiment.

Or they are cooking up a contract for him and want to. 
1) make him earn it.
2) create more splash plays that justify it.
3) see how he looks before making that choice.

4) Zimmer likes making offensive coordinators piss themselves.

[Guest]

@Maple Surple said:

@greediron said:

@suncoastvike said:

@Jor-El said:
There are a lot of possible things this could mean, some of which are:

• Barr wants more stats (sacks) for contract leverage.
• Coaches don't feel that any of the "toss a dart" late-round DEs (Weatherly, Odenigbo, Bower, Aruna) are showing enough to provide rotational relief for Griffen and Hunter.
• Vikings are going to be in dime a lot more and need to keep Barr on the field.

Or...it's just a minicamp experiment.

Or they are cooking up a contract for him and want to. 
1) make him earn it.
2) create more splash plays that justify it.
3) see how he looks before making that choice.

4) Zimmer likes making offensive coordinators piss themselves.

Hey... I remember that play.  I was at that game with Mike and and a bunch of other losers. :p