I looked at this coming season as make or break for Matt Roth and I have to say that I love the guy and think he's doing a HECK of a job! Made a nice play to get that sack on Jacksonville and has been progressing at OLB where he may have found a new home! I think he'll be a playmaker this year... What do you guys feel? I know he's had a lot of naysayers.
I still think that he needs to drop weight and could only get better if he were to play at about 260 lbs instead of the 275-280ish that he is now (he was 285 at the beginning of TC).
We'll see how it plays out. He'll more than likely do some nice things rushing the passer, but I can't believe he wouldn't be a liability against the pass on early downs, especially if he's going about 275.
I want him to succeed. He's going to have quite a challenge adapting to pass coverage as an OLB. He could do it, I guess, but he seems awfully stiff for that sort of assignment. If I were a DC, I'd want to exploit that.
I've been rooting for his success since we got him. Probably like a lot of people on here. I actually believe this time he will flourish the way the coaches are utilizing him. This is the frist time i actaully thought that way too.
I want him yo do well but I just dont know how he is going to do it pass coverge. But if he was not good at pass covering they would not keep him there so I really hope he does well
Yeah, I think at OLB, he'd be more effective at the 260-265 lb area, but it must not be an issue with the coaching and training staff as there hasn't been one mention of an issue with his playing weight... But he has played well so far and I am looking forward to seeing him develop as the year goes on...
Hmm...how about Matt Roth is our AJ Duhe..... I doubt Matty is 285 anymore, he has been working at OLB for a while now, it would not be a stretch to assume that the Staff has told him to drop some weight to up his movement.
I'm an official Roth naysayer. I am not easily swayed by neat tattoos. I want him to do well, just like I want ALL Dolphins to do well. He needs to be an impact player this season or he'll be a big-time bust. That's right, I said the b-word. He was a second round pick that's done next to nothing on the field...so far. I wish him the best, but I ain't ready to give him any props yet.
LB "officially", when I tried to google him I did not find out very much about his position. His wiki is sort of barren, he had a whopping...8 sacks in 8 years...and 3 int's all in the game against the Jets....but I do recall him playing up and down, as did Kim Bokamper who started as a LB... Duhe was alot like Vrabel is, larger guy who could move well for his size, could play inside or outside, and had a knack for making a play.
Well as far as the weight my opinion there would be he's waiting to see his final position or to see if he'll be retaining OLB fulltime before shedding some mass. If he plays DE and OLB he may want to keep a little extra. Look at Dallas though, Ware and Ellis ain't little guys... If he can pick up the pass coverage a little I think he'll end up staying at LB.
I am not really cocerned about the coverage aspect. He has been dropping back and not picked on at all so far. The position does not have to entail much more than jamming the TE and dropping into a short zone. He isnt going 30 yards downfield in man coverage vs Antonio Gates. Physically, he is on the slow end, but hardly unheard of. What did Terrell Suggs do, like a 4.90?
I'm actually convinced that if at 278 lbs he was a 4.82, he's probably a low 4.7 if he's in the low 260s. That's fast enough to play OLB.
The strange things is I always envisioned him being a good ILB at about 255-260 lbs (just about the weight he came to Iowa, except way stronger and in much better shape). At that spot a 4.7 is actually quite normal. In the end however I think we're getting a bit too caught up in the time rather than how he plays out there.
Roth will get props at the same time Hagan does: When they do something in a regular season game, not impress in practice and TC only.
He's a bit stiff but Parcells is using him as effectively as you can in our system. He's looked good on a few occasions. I think alot of people were down on him unfairly last year. he played the entire year with a bad hamstring or quad (dont remember exactly) that he injured in training camp. It looks to me like he's back to his rookie self but in a new position that suits his abilities
I was under the impression he didn't run at the combine, but I've seen pretty repeatedly he ran a bad time somewhere at least... http://www.kffl.com/article/1065/123 For comparison's sake, this is what I dug up on Roth: 4.85 40, 26 bench reps, 32.0" vertical, 9'4" broad jump, 7.65 three-cone, 4.36 short shuttle. Pretty well identical, except for the three-cone. However, the other agility drill, the short shuttle, Roth had an insignificantly better time.
1977 - RDE in the 3-4 1978 - same 1979 - same 1980 - RILB in the 3-4 1981 - LILB in the 3-4 1982 - same 1983 - same 1984 - same When he was a ILB, he would often move around from down to down, usually on down and distance that said pass, and could line up in several possible places. One of the Redskins' plans in the Super Bowl was to use formations and personnel packages that would more or less force Duhe to remain more than usual at ILB. They didn't want him roaming around and attacking from multiple positions and were able to fairly well neutralize him in that regard. If they ever show the replay of that Super Bowl again, either Gibbs or Bugel, as I recall, talks about what exactly they did to game plan against Duhe. I don't recall for sure since it was long ago, but it seems like he wasn't even in the game on Riggins historical TD run that broke our backs. BTW, Roth doesn't come close to displaying the ability to drop in coverage, or the lateral agility that Duhe had, although if he slims down to 260 and works at it, he may improve.
His wiki is effd up then. Duhe's sacks: 1977- 7 1978 - 8 1979 - 2 1980- 5.5 1981 -7.5 1982 - 3 1983 -5.5 1984 - 1 INTS: 1 each in '81, '82 and '84, as for regular season, which would not include of course the 3 in the playoff game vs the Jets
I can't tell you what time he ran but I do remember hearing the guys on the radio saying how he will fall in the draft because of his slow 40 time. At the time I was sitting there thinking "Thats stupid".
for all of yall that havnt done your research..........roth went into college as a middle linebacker and was so fast and furious that they had to move him to DE. now he has the experience of line play, which will factor in, this being a passing league and all. he is probably going to fit in perfectly with what the mindset of the team is going to be... CONTROL THE LINE OF SCRIMAGE
Sparano said he's liked what he's seen and I think it takes only him looking good one more game for the brass to possibly start him. I think switching him, JP and VH around during the season would be sweet too!
and those numbers don't really show how good Aj Duhe was, he had that knack of making the key sack or tackle his football instincts and IQ were off the charts IMO. His trouble was health, he was rushed back from a serious groin injury and never really recovered, I was shocked when we cut him. As for Roth, we'll see, not sure he has the hips to really excell at OLB, his turn and go is a bit...stiff....
He played real good last game. It doesn't look like teams are going to be able to turn the corner on him at all.Also i only saw one play where he wasn't playing a zone and playing man. If he can take 1/3 of the other teams running game away and they just ask him to play zone.He could have a pro bowl year. I know some here will think i'm crazy but go re~watch last weeks game.He did a real good job.
I was one of the first ones to suggest moving him to OLB and I am glad someone on the team noticed If he doesn't succeed there then he's a gonner. He just isnt very good at DE... If he can't make the move over to OLB, game over for him here. Although I always thought that if he could work on his speed, he would be a very good LB so we'll see if he can continue to develop.
