Who has impressed more, Vontae Davis or Sean Smith?

That interception against NE says it all, IMO. Davis is a freakin playmaker that can hit. Can't get much better than that.

 

i like them equally..........

 

I think Davis will end up giving us more cause for emotion screaming one way or another because I think by nature he's going to make more big plays and give up more big plays because he's going to gamble.

Smith has been above board all along, the guy has amazing range and reach.

I voted Davis in the end, but I've not been this happy at corner in a long while because I know most of the mistakes they make this year will be coached out of them and we could have two studs for the next decade.

 

I like them both because they both bring something different to the table. VD is a hitter, quick and plays the ball well. Smith, well there is reason teams don't throw to his side too often. We should consider ourselves lucky to have one of them... extremely lucky to have them both.

 

I think that part will come though, remember those picks in the preseason? He'll begin to come down with them.

Me too man, me too!

If we just had the safeties and inside linebackers to feast off the balls forced to the middle we would be happy campers.

 

Every time Smith is in a position to make a play, he doesn't. Gave up a terrible td against tampa, got schooled by Braylon in the 2nd jets game, and dropped a fairly easy pick 6 in the same game as well.

Vontae, on the other hand, has already made some big plays for us.

Not going to lie, Smiths inability to make something happen is starting to bug me at this point. He's managed to get himself into position to make some plays, but he just doesn't. I know he will, but so far we've been watching a player with limitless potential fail to make plays.

 

Be patient.

 

I think you'll find our cornerbacks pretty much cover everything shut up moss get on our horse

 

Davis is no doubt the better CB at this point. Both can cover pretty well, but Davis seems to be in better position to make the play. If you remember, Moss was shadowed very well by Davis, but Moss (being Moss) made a great catch on that 1st TD. IMO, Sean Smith does not make that INT on Moss, either. Davis also has amazing catch up speed, something that Smith lacks. I mean, Straughter from TB scored on him. He was in position, but lacked the speed to catch up to the ball, being beat by 2 yds for a TD.

Smith is also a little soft. I have seen him whiff on more than a couple of times in the open field when he was in position to at least slow down a runner. Davis explodes to the tackle! He sticks his nose in the play. Smith, at this point, seems a little too finesse for me.

It's really difficult to judge the coverage of a CB unless he is thrown at. Davis seems to have his man smothered. Why would Miami even put Davis on Moss if they did not think he could handle the pressure? I think he did a helluva job. Moss is a HOFer. He is going to get his numbers. But Davis played well against him.

 

I'm not reminded of that really. If you remember back Patrick didn't start until his second season. Six starts. Call me on that if I'm wrong please. '99

Sam was an instant starter and didn't look back with T Buck on the other side.

Both these guys are playing, getting better and are very different.

Possible shutdown guys. I wont get ahead of myself..

I like Smith's size and VD 's toughness.

I don't have the post count but I care.....

 

Davis has impressed me more. Smith started out of the gate faster looking really good in preseason, however he really hasn't shown much improvement since then and like someone said he hasn't made the plays

 

well the problem for smith is right there. He still tackles like a WR. I'm hoping that changes over time. I'm excited about Davis and Smith because for rookies they're stepping up big time. Smith just has stuff he needs to work on.

 

People like comparing them to Patrick and Sam, however the when I look at them Vontae Davis seems like a combination of Patrick and Sam Madison. He has the ability to make plays as Sam and play the run like Patrick.

Smith seems to be a guy who is a land of his own. He seems to be living off of his size and his intelligence right now. When he puts those two together he could be special.

 

Develop our rooks and we will call it the future.

Both of these guys can play.......

 

Davis has made more plays than Smith but Davis has also been burned more than Smith.

I think Davis is the better tackler even if he missed some key tackles.

 

How many times has Smith's WR been targeted?

 

Not to many people were on my side when i said VD will be the better corner, this was in thee preseason, when Sean was gettin ALL the hype.

The kid is explosive, with a nasty nice disposition.

With Ronnie being out , he is my favorite player.

VD...the disease is gonna be all over your azz.

 

VD gets beat to much to my liking. He flashes brilliance but always has those plays where he caught out of position or doesn't wrap up. Smith is similar but its not as often.

 

it should be fun to watch them grow together on opposite sides in aqua.

 

I hope they remind us of the Madison Surtain days!

 

i'm with you brother. Vontae has it all, everything you want in a corenerback, size, speed, great tackling, amazing closing burst, good speed, good leaping. He needs to work on becomiong more consistent and taking less gambles but that will come with time.

Sean Smithhas incredible size but I dont see the burst that Vontae has. His tacckling is horrible. Still, once he gets more experience he should learn how to blanket his guys a touch better and then he'll be pretty good.

VD's potential is top 5 CB. SMith's is probably closer to top 10

 

To me Smith still gives to much cushion, like hes afraid of making any contact less he draws a flag, and is relying on his height and reach to make the play. That makes him jump on the ball early and then miss it, when he cleans that up, he will truly be dangerous imho.

VD has the better skill set at this point but once Smith's eyes are wide open, look out!

I think we are lucky to have them both, thats why I didn't vote!

 

Vontae has it all. Size, athleticism, physicality, hands..... Dude plays the run extremely well and can blitz. Even a passing fan can see that he loves to hit and tackle. While he seems to give a lot of cushion sometimes, he is rarely out of position. It's no coincidence that he generally gets the other team's best receiver. I think he better all around right now.

Smith has that crazy height/length and great speed. But he's not very physical and doesn't change directions like Vontae. Hitting/tackling is almost night and day between them.

And Smith has a little more developing to do on the mental side of the game. You look at the TD he gave up against Tampa. He wasn't beaten. As Sam Madison said, he started cruising. Once he realized the ball was coming his way, he turned it back on (too late) and then mistimed his jump.

Smith is learning that you can't cruise against NFL receivers and QBs. Davis is ahead here, as he isn't having those kind of unforced errors. Smith's natural ability is undeniable though. And he's only in his 3rd year at CB after playing offense in high school and college.

As I've mentioned, I don't see Madison-Surtain here. I see Troy Vincent-Bobby Taylor. Size-wise it's almost identical. Bobby Taylor was a very good player, at his best an All-Pro and Pro Bowler. That duo was at the top along with Madison-Surtain. But Vincent was the better player and had the longer career.
Where I DO see Madison-Surtain is between plays. Those guys like to dance to the music while they await the offense.

The future is bright. We really hit on these two. They're only going to get better.

 

Totally agree with this. Although I think Vontae is coming along a bit better this year. I think Sean Smith's talent is in his ability to come off with the pick. Once he gets a bit more on step with that, I think he's going to be the guy you don't want to throw to because its going to be up for grabs, and Vontae is going to be the guy you don't want to throw to because he'll break your freaking receiver's bones if he makes the catch

 

I'm taking Sean Smith. Sure, Vontae has looked better lately with his coverage vs. Moss and whatnot, but Sean Smith has the potential to be a very special player.

Oh how quickly you all forget ...

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=azsBUSVEyQE&feature=related"]YouTube- Sean Smith INT[/ame]

That's easily one of the best interceptions I've seen in my lifetime. Freakishly good. There's a reason teams have targeted Vontae Davis this season - it's because they saw how good this kid could be in the preseason.

From a physical standpoint we're talking about a 6'4 cornerback with legit 4.5 speed. His incredible height and vertical (34") means that he doesn't need great closing speed because he can simply jump up and knock the ball away. Tampa Bay is an exception to this rule. Smith wasn't beaten - he simply mistimed his jump. The guy that Smith reminds me of right now is the Bears Charles Tillman; though I think Smith could be quite a bit better.

You just don't see skyscraper CBs all that open, and for Smith the sky's really the limit when you consider the fact that he only played the position for 2 years at Utah. The kid could be scary good.

 

They are a win-win for us.

 

Madison only started 3 times his rookie year, I'm not sure how that makes him an "instant starter."

 

Tough call, but in the end I said Smith. He quietly covers his guy, and doesn't get picked on like you would think a rookie cb would, even when WIll Allen was still starting on the other side. That tells me he is doing a consistent job of covering his man. And that is what I want primarily in a cb. Int's, big plays, yes, all good, but can he cover? Sean seems to be doing an excellent job of that, esp considering his overall lack of experience at the position. He was thrown in as a starter immedaiately, and that speaks volumes to his ability to absorb information quickly and apply it to the live game.

Love them both though, VD and that pick 6? Sweet. The int against Brady-Moss? Incredible. But there must be a reason the opposing qb goes after him more, right? His guy is more open is my guess.

 

davis, smith & clemons were a windfall
& will pay huge dividends,
each in their own way will create the base
for the new defensive backfield
they are the future shut down defense

 

You are right and I stand corrected.

The point I was trying to make is that it took Surtain a little longer to develop than Madison. Sam started every game in his second season where it took Patrick till his third season.

We have two rookie corners who could turn into shutdown corners in the future. That is only similarity between Davis and Smith. Comparing these two is like judging night versus day.

 

Those of you saying Vonte has been burned more, I ask, when? I'd say they have both been burned about equally. Although Smith has been on the field more. Vonte when on the field is usually cover the opposing teams #1. And Vonte didn't get burnt by Moss, that was clearly offensive pass interfernce. I refuse to count that.

 

See, I don't think your doing justice to Vontae saying that Stuckey "got him" Stuckey was beating him by a step, and Sanchez threw a perfectly placed pass, which allowed Stuckey to turn up field without losing any speed, instead of letting Stuckey get a catch, and tackle him right away, without even surrendering the first down (I remember that play) Vontae went for a pick, and again, he might of goten the pick, but the ball was placed perfectly.
In Mosses case, we are dealing with arguable a top 3 receiver of all time, he has been demolishing DBs for a long time, we are talking about veteran, established DBs. On first series, Vontae times his jump perfectly, out jumps Randy Moss and snatches the ball from Moss.
On Randy's catch by the enzone, Vontae was there with him the whole time, he just didn't turn his head around, and it still took Moss a great one handed grab to catch the pass. On the long TD, Vontae is in position to make the tackle, but Randy jabs him and sprints off.
Im not making excuses, im being fair. If you want to talk about getting "done" Then you gotta admit that T.O. "did" Sean couple of times, and a rookie wide out "doing" Sean.
I love both guys, and I think they will both have great carries, I think they bring two very different skillsets to the table, but i am glad that both are on this team.

 

to those mentioning that VD is being put against the best receivers, is it possible some receivers are being switched to his side?

i remember reading something about smith only defending one side of the field and some teams likely moving receivers around to avoid him.

i also remember reading something about drew brees searching for sean smith after the game to tell smith impressed he was by him, on the field.

 

Top 5 is a HUGE compliment. In a league where there are 64 starting CBs, top 5 is in the 92nd percentile, and top 10 is in the 84th percentile.

My top 5 right now....(IMO)

1. Charles Woodson
2. Asante Samuel
3. Darrelle Revis
4. Nnamdi Asomugha
5. Antoine Winfield

If Davis joins that list, then we better hope Smith can hold his own, because he's gonna get picked on all day if he can't.