Free Safety

[Dirtbag59]

I've been thinking lately that FS and SS isn't all that different from LT and RT with FS being more like LT and SS being more like RT. I mean if you think about it the requirements of LT are to be athletic and more geared towards pass protection then run blocking while RT's are typically less athletic maulers that are usually better at run blocking then pass blocking.

On the other hand FS's are usually more athletic and geared towards pass defense then run support while SS's are usually more geared towards hard hitting types that are much better at run support then their FS counterparts. On top of that FS is more difficult to play hence the parallel to LT.

Originally Posted by Redskin Warrior

Wasn't O.J. the FS from the Rams under Haslett?

I want him for our defense, personally I think he'd fit like a glove.

Originally Posted by Ruhskins

This concerns me a bit...does anyone know how this has worked out for other teams before? Just curious.

Look no further then the Redskins under Gregg Williams. It wasn't until Landry came in that GG decided to designate safeties as Free and Strong.

From the Washington Examiner:

He needs to learn both free and strong safety in Jim Haslett's scheme, which does not differentiate between the two positions (Gregg Williams' defenses did not make a distinction either, until they drafted Landry and put him at strong safety and Sean Taylor at free). Landry, drafted as a strong safety, has played free safety since Taylor's death in 2007.

Washington Post after Landry was Drafted:

The Redskins do not emphasize the distinction between strong safety and weak safety. More often, Gregg Williams's defenses emphasize one safety who is "in the box" while another is playing "center field." Last year, Taylor fared better at the former than the latter, where he frequently was a step late on deep passes or took overly aggressive angles and whiffed on big hits. Now that Archuleta is gone, Landry may move fairly quickly into a role where opponents don't know, until the last second, which high-impact Redskins safety is threatening to blitz and which has deep responsibility.

Thomas Boswell - This Guy Could Be Faster Than a Speeding Bullet - washingtonpost.com