Why Tim Ruskell Will Target Patrick Chung

by John Morgan on Feb 4, 2009 4:47 PM PST Comment 23 comments

I said Patrick Chung is the safety Seattle GM Tim Ruskell is most likely to draft. Here's why:

Games Started: 51

Conference: Pac 10

Considered a Team Leader: Yes

Production: 236 solo tackles, 148 assisted tackles, 9 interceptions, 17 passes defensed, 4 sacks and 3 forced fumbles.

More Tackles Than: Bob Sanders

More Interceptions Than: Troy Polamalu

Team Record: 35-16

Known Weaknesses: Size, Speed

Gritty Like: Sandpaper

Instantly Improves: Seattle's punt return unit and kickoff and punt coverage

But a few factors prohibit Chung from being a slam dunk pick.

Oregon's Pass Defense: Ranked 111th

College Position: Rover

Coverage Skills: Raw

Chung could be a final piece in Seattle's transition to a Tampa 2. He would assume strong safety moving Deon Grant to free safety. Chung is a tackling machine that could have a Bob Sanders like impact on Seattle's run defense by being the first body in a gang tackle or by capping long runs before they bust free.

Seattle's pass defense is designed to limit big plays and pure coverage is not Chung's game. An easy fix, and given Gus Bradley's Tampa 2 roots, perhaps the expected fix, is to employ Grant and Chung in a cover 2 soft shell. The two would thrive covering halves. I've mentioned that Seattle seems poorly equipped personnel wise to convert to a Tampa 2, but it's amazing what a productive and focused offseason could do. This lineup looks pretty capable:

RDE: Darryl Tapp

RDT: Brandon Mebane

LDT: Jovan Haye

LDE: Lawrence Jackson

WLB: Will Herring

MLB: Lofa Tatupu

SLB: Julian Peterson

RCB: Josh Wilson

SS: Patrick Chung

FS: Deon Grant

LCB: Marcus Trufant

The line is young and the interior is disruptive. Tapp isn't elite, but he's a strong edge rusher that could provide consistent pressure. Herring is an excellent cover linebacker that would benefit from engaging running backs away from the scrum. Both Tatupu and Peterson are good cover linebackers and both are excellent run stoppers. Wilson is a natural Tampa 2 corner and would benefit from safety help over the top. Trufant is versatile, has flashed excellent ball skills and is a strong run stopper. It's not guaranteed to be elite, but it's only a second pick and a modest free agent contract from possible.

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All good points,

Chung does seem like a Ruskell type player. Good character, Pac 10, a bit small and slow. The more I think about it, the more sense it makes.

At the same time, your starting lineup makes me cringe because I’m still living in Fantasyland with our RDE being Patrick Kerney circa 2007, and our LDT being the unstoppable disruptive force otherwise known as Phat Albert Haynesworth.

by LantermanC on Feb 4, 2009 5:06 PM PST reply actions 1 recs

Can you explain why Wilson will be a good cover 2 corner?

by Nate Dogg on Feb 4, 2009 5:15 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

Ball skills, short area quickness and open field tackling ability

by John Morgan on Feb 4, 2009 5:23 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Further

he’s good at getting inside position on short routes, tracks the quarterback’s eyes well and breaks on the ball carrier, allowing him to limit run after the catch.

by John Morgan on Feb 4, 2009 5:26 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Why no Cornbread at LDT?

Is Red to much of an unknown?

by Dukeshire on Feb 4, 2009 6:00 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

He's a rotational player

and just doesn’t make sense starting at LDT if Seattle is converting to a T2.

by John Morgan on Feb 4, 2009 6:06 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I guess that's really my question,

you don’t see him as an every down player?

by Dukeshire on Feb 4, 2009 6:14 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I agree that Ruskell will definitely take a look at Chung.

The coverage skills (or lack thereof) that you discuss are a challenge, but if Deon Grant is able to swap places it becomes less of an issue. Still, I cringe at comparisons to Bob Sanders, because Chung shares the same size issues and I would hate for him to have the same injury problems.

"Hey, guess what? Nobody cares who would win in a crazy fantasy fist-fight between Anne Frank and Lizzie Borden." The Monarch

by crushedoptimist on Feb 4, 2009 6:05 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

Sanders is 5'8"

Chung is a shade under 6’

Also, Chung hasn’t had injury problems in college. Sanders did.

by John Morgan on Feb 4, 2009 6:07 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I knew Chung was healthy in college (a nice plus)

Didn’t realize Sanders had injury problems all the way back there. To be honest, my strong desire for a good safety overwhelms my reticence for Chung and a few other prospects. I just badly want someone with talent not named Russell back there. One like Chung who can help with the run defense would be icing on the cake.

"Hey, guess what? Nobody cares who would win in a crazy fantasy fist-fight between Anne Frank and Lizzie Borden." The Monarch

by crushedoptimist on Feb 4, 2009 7:15 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Somebody enlighten me

Isn’t a Cover 2 a mostly symmetrical defense?

In that system, I didn’t think there was much difference between strong and free, in that they’re each going to be lined up to cover half the field most of the time, so it’s tough to cheat one guy forward (typical SS role, more run support) and one guy back (typical FS role, more deep coverage).

Doesn’t that kind of mitigate Chung’s big strength (tackling) as opposed to a more traditional strong-side, extra-man-in-the-box role? (Although it also mitigates his weakness, pass coverage in space.) Help me out. Thanks.

by busplunger on Feb 4, 2009 7:28 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

Good question. I was wondering this as well.

Anyone?

by redwolf75 on Feb 4, 2009 7:32 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I never liked categorizing them as strong and free.

If one safety is always up playing the run, and the other one is playing help either over the middle or on a deep ball, then wouldn’t there always be something to exploit? I’d much rather have two safeties with a 70 run defense 60 pass defense and a 70 pass defense 60 run defense for their ratings than a 90 run 40 pass safety lumped with a 90 pass 40 run safety.

Then again, the ideal scenario would be to get a Polamalu type, who in my mind is top notch run stuffer as well as a top notch pass defender, not to mention an excellent playmaker.

by LantermanC on Feb 4, 2009 10:54 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I agree

Rather than a SS/FS distinction, I’ve always looked at the cover/tampa-2 as having 2 “SS’s” who just play a little deeper. Because they’re split, and one’s not stacked at the line, both of them have to be equally adept at coming up to stop the run, depending on how the play unfolds. Both S’s have to be tough-nosed and good tacklers. A rangy coverage-type S is going to struggle just as much as a slow footed in-the-box guy. So, IMO, the ideal fit for the system is a SS/FS ‘tweener type of player, or a faster SS who’s good in zone and at keeping things in front of them.

While the scheme would seem to put more emphasis on pass coverage (since both S are responsible for their deep halves) but they’ve got the CB’s on the outside and the MLB dropping in the deep middle. So they wind up being responsible for more of 1/3rd rather than 1/2, and don’t have to cover near as much ground sideline to sideline as a S in a traditional cover-1 or cover-3 would.

I’m thinking of John Lynch, who wasn’t exactly the fastest or best coverage guy around, but wound up being the perfect fit as a SS in that scheme. Chung fits that profile, IMO, and I’d be thrilled if we drafted him

by jteckmann on Feb 5, 2009 9:54 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I enjoyed that explanation.

I’m still not convinced we’re going to run a traditional tampa-2, though. With teams and coaches being phased out or retiring that have run the scheme, as well as it being rumored as deprecated, I wonder how true of a tampa-2 we’ll run? Will it be a hybrid so much so that it only includes facets of tampa-2, or will it be more towards a ‘true’ tampa-2. I haven’t seen good evidence other than intimations of such, likely due to coaching backgrounds on our staff. Maybe I’ve missed a declaration.

by Misfit74 on Feb 5, 2009 1:29 PM PST up reply actions 0 recs

here is how, from the post

Seattle’s pass defense is designed to limit big plays and pure coverage is not Chung’s game. An easy fix, and given Gus Bradley’s Tampa 2 roots, perhaps the expected fix, is to employ Grant and Chung in a cover 2 soft shell. The two would thrive covering halves.

bring back taurean green

by thomasikehara on Feb 4, 2009 8:47 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

I like your scenario here

Although I too was shocked to see some names gone, I like the youth and the price of our fantasy D.

by Surf Hawk on Feb 4, 2009 9:54 PM PST reply actions 0 recs

For arguments sake..

Lets say we take Michael Crabtree in the 1st (big 12, productive, bpa, good dude etc)

I really like Chung and I’m in agreement that Ruskell likely does too but..

that early – mid 2nd looks like it could shape up as a “hog heaven” of sorts that will dry out by our 3rd. Possible guys like Duke Robinson, Max Unger, Alex Mack and Jamon Meridith could be available there.

now, Chung likely won’t be there with our 3rd. but Derek Pegues, Courtney Greene, Michael Hamlin, David Bruton, Emanuel Cook, Curtis Taylor, Kevin Ellison should all be there at the that point.

I guess I’m saying the 3rd round safetys look a hell of a lot better than the 3rd round olinemen.

by puerto on Feb 5, 2009 12:27 AM PST reply actions 1 recs

I agree with this.

"Part, fools!
Put up your swords. You know not what you do."

by Fearless Frog on Feb 5, 2009 11:13 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

I suppose CJ Wallace is out of the question?

In college, he, too, was a “tackling machine” with size and speed concerns. But he was definitely one of those “nose for the football” guys….

by Hawkdawg on Feb 5, 2009 9:15 AM PST reply actions 0 recs

I think both Wallace & Adams have a lot of potential

And they’re currently great as ST and back-ups. But IMO both still appear to have a case of Boulware-itis and are a little too aggressive. Good pass/run recognition is probably the most important skills for a S in this system, and I’m not sure either are there yet.

My preference for S in ’09 would be Grant at one spot and either draft a guy like Chung on the first day or sign a value FA like Will Allen. Then cut Russell and have those 3 battle it out for the spot.

by jteckmann on Feb 5, 2009 10:12 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Wallace doesn't have size concerns

He’s slow.

by John Morgan on Feb 5, 2009 10:53 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs

Mora loved Adams

Maybe now that he has a wee bit more power than last year, we can see Jamar Adams starting. I know that is a leap from PS to starting but it would be sweet. I also understand we saw him tear it up in the preseason which JV light but last year all personnel decisions on D were John Marshall’s.
Or maybe big play Babs? just throwing that out there. Somebody more informed, please rip me a new one….haha

by Built2Spill on Feb 5, 2009 11:07 AM PST up reply actions 0 recs