Strong Safety

[jbcjr14]

I think Bowen will be the SS. Lott is still young and will be a good backup. Don't forget the "great white hope" Todd Franz either!

[jermus22]

Interesting thoughts on all sides. One thing to note: Strong safeties are typically bigger and more physical than free safeties. Strong safeties generally line up over the tight end and occasionally play up in the box like an extra linebacker. Free safeties often play center field or help cornerbacks in double coverage. As we all know, Sean Taylor is something of an anomaly, a player with linebacker's size and cornerback's speed, so he can play either position fairly easily; free safety suits him best because it allows him to use his ballhawking skills, coverage ability, and ferocious open-field hits to make more plays. At the SS, Bowen is better suited to start than Lott simply because of the size/tackling factor. I'm not saying Lott isn't a good tackler, but coaches have been encouraging him to be more physical.
One possibility (going back to Gibbs earlier days) is to rotate safeties depending on down/distance situation. Alvin Walton, though never a big player, started at strong safety from 1987-1990, and I'm pretty sure he led the team in tackles every year. He was known mainly for his ability to flatten people (a.k.a. The Crushin' Kansan), but the team sometimes replaced him in passing situations or used him to blitz (he sacked John Elway twice in Super Bowl XXII). Of course, we no longer have Richie Pettibon as defensive coordinator so maybe I have no clue what I'm talking about. Regardless, I think Bowen will start at SS, but I expect to see a lots of Lott in the dime.

[JWsleep]

Good post, jermus. I wouldn't be surprised to see some rotation. But I recently read (today's WP?) that Williams likes to have players that can go on every down. I would guess that Bowen is the guy right now, but if he blows his assignments week after week, forget it, soemone else will be in there. Gibbs and Williams are pretty hardcore about sticking with the team plan (just ask Iffy...), so if Bowen gets out of position like he did last year, we'll see a lot of Lott.