How Would Chase Young Fit in This Defense

The War Room Detroit Lions — The Den
1

The time is now to consider how Chase would fit here and how we would use him.

First…just a quick look at size. On line listed size is never 10% accurate but it is a starting point regarding looking at a player and maybe the kinds of players a team likes.

Chase is roughly 6’5" and 265 pounds. Okwara is 6’4" and 263 area, Flowers is 6’2" and 265, Hand is 6’3" and 293 pounds while Austin Bryant is 6’4" and 261 pounds. LBer Kennard is 6’3" and 260ish.

Leaving rushing downs aside we need to look at pass rush affect, I think a line up of Young, Flowers, Hand, a re-signed Mike Daniels and Kennard/Austin Bryant with Okwara mixed in there too as well as another DT on certain downs.

Think of the stunts and moves we can make with Flowers, Young, Hand and Daniels as our primary rush players with Kennard/Bryant in the mix too. Yea, I am down with that.

In terms of rush and setting the edge Young can be brought along slowly as a run defender behind Flowers. Hand needs to play too but there is room for everyone.

I mention Mike Daniels as we need that role filled and I am not sure we will be able to get a better deal than Daniels IF Mike is finally healthy and gives us a discount as we gave him a hell of a lot of $ in 2019 and didn’t get the return we needed.

Chase, Flowers, Hand and a Daniels 3 tech. DT is a winning pass rushing defensive front.

Add to that the free agency depth at DT and this is a winning defensive line with Young.

The Liosn must be thinking the same thing as free agent moves need to be considered if Young is available. Or at least we need to be ready if the Skins pass on Young or they trade the pick and the new team goes QB.

Going after Daniels and another free agent DT is the move to make paving the road for Chase Here as I think he will fit right in.

That increases the need to Slay as that makes a top rookie unlikely. Now we can still go CB early in rd. 2 of course but CB remains an issue even if we keep Slay. Now…we could go after a free agent CB again but that is never cheap. Quinn has found re-treads pretty much every year at CB that have helped and maybe we are forced in this direction again.

But I think Chase would be really good here, I think we will be able to use him and I think he will be a BIG part of getting pressure with a four man defensive front. Thoughts about what role Chase would play here if we drafted him?

2

I agree. Being able to slide Flowers to the 3T and letting Young cut his teeth on the RDE spot can really be of benefit to the defense on obvious passing downs. Hopefully, our LBs can cover long enough to make it worth while.

3

With his quickness and athletic ability, I think he could be excellent in coverage in the red zone, especially inside the 10 vs. TEs and big WRs.

4

I think he plays Jack if we go with a heavy 3 man front over Kennard. He replaces Okwara at LDE in a 4 man front. He can play RDE when Flowers reduces inside. He doesn’t have to come off the field unless he’s gassed. Some of his best snaps that I’ve seen is when he’s rushing from the left side in a 4 man front. I think that’s where we see him the most.

My question is this. Is JD here next year? They all say how much they love him, but is he the 1st string MLB and Tavai 2nd string? I feel like if they made him a JACK and put him over Kennard, we’d get the best out of him in this scheme. He cannot succeed in coverage. He has to do something else. I think he can run and chase around behind the LOS if you keep him away from the A gaps. I don’t think he’ll ever live up to being a 1st round pick, but we could use him better if we keep him. Should we give him the KVN treatment and just get whatever you can to free up a roster spot? If they are going to keep him at MLB, I wish we would.

5

Young is an Edge player. Day 1 he’s the starting DE on the left side. Flowers would remain on the right for the most part. They’d both move all over the place, including dropping back into zone on occasion.

Inside, Hand is 293, not 263. He’s our 3-tech. Daniels will also take 3-tech snaps, but if he’s on the field with Hand, he’ll likely be the 1-tech or Nose. Hand will largely be found lined up over the Right Guard. Daniels and Robinson move around a bit more.

6

Right, Hand is 293. I fixed my typo.

The thing is Hand needs to play. Flowers needs to play. Harrison/run stuffer needs to play on run downs.

Fitting Chase into passing downs is easier to see.

On say 2nd and 3 for example? I want Harrison, Flowers and Hand our there. Who plays the A’shawn role?

7

If the Lions think Hand can play 3 tech… that means Mike Daniels is not as important, right?

8

I agree Hand needs to play and would continue to.

Flowers and Young would be magnificent outside defenders. Hand + an upgrade over Snacks would make for an excellent inside pairing.

Snacks, Daniels and Strong Jr would be my picks for interior backups, not starters. They can each play from the Center (0) out to the OT (5). Daniels is a better rusher than the other 2 backups, but there’s no way I’d consider him a starter.

9

Great comments, brothers.

But my fear is, Young will be there - and they’ll either trade out, or, take Okudah, because “he fits”

10

This article seals my thought here that Young and Flowers can flourish here as well as Hand as a 3-tech with room for run stuffer too:
" Not much was expected out of the rookie in year one, but he proved to be a star. He was the most effective pass rusher on the Lions defensive front and was the best interior pass penetrator to wear a Lions uniform since Ndamukong Suh.

His stats don’t jump off the page, only being credited with 27 combined tackles and three sacks before his season ended with a late-season knee injury. He did notch two forced fumbles, though.

While Hand was drafted as a defensive end out of Alabama, he primarily played on the interior of the defensive line in his rookie year. Before the arrival or Damon Harrison Sr. midway through the year, Hand played a lot of snaps at nose tackle.

He was very effective when he rushed from the nose. Hand is incredibly strong and is great off of the snap. He uses his hands well and is able to come off of the snap fast and get beneath the pads of his opposition. The rookie gets inside leverage and has the strength— and effort—to collapse the interior of the pocket and force the quarterback to drop into a more vulnerable spot."

This is important as it means Hand will just do what he already did for us in 2018. Young would enable us to limit Kennard’s pass rush snaps which is also smart.

It looks to me like Young would help hide assignments and maybe make Hand even better here.

I get the concern that the Lions might look to a CB out of need but Chase Young represents a lot of what the Lions also want:
pressure from a varied front enabling us to go man-to-man while still confusing a QB.

That same 4 man front can also be really solid V. the run ad that us equally important.

Knowing how we used Hand in 2018 is important as it limits the need for a free agent 3-tech (Mike Daniels for example).

It does raise the question about why the Lions spent that kind of on Daniels when we had Hand though. It may also signals that the Lions felt that position was SO important they needed depth there and with Hand making rookie maybe that made the decision easy? Daniels could also help Hand in year two. Also, Hand ended 2018 on IR with a knee issue. It ended up that both Daniels and Hand were mostly MIA for the Lions in 2019 and that really hurt this defense.

If Hand is healthy that is important for the Lions. It also means Chase Young can play here with Hand as well as Flowers. That could be a great and affordable DL for the Lions the next 2-3 years.

11

CY would fill the Chandler Jones role.

12

Variability. Daniels can move around. We’re going to have 5 interior guys anyway. Hand is just one of them.

Hand isn’t just a 3-tech in the pass-rush sense. He’s lining up there most snaps for sure, but he’s also playing with a bit of read-and-react. That’s what makes him so good a defender. He’s a really good talent against the run, too.

13

I don’t think the Lions “think” hand can play 3t. He DOES play 3t and did it at a very high level his rookie season. Daniels was going to be a big part of the rotation, but he could never get on the field. Unfortunately neither did Hand last year. Alas, we sucked. I’m not saying we’d be a playoff team with those two guys, but then you add Bryant out, Flowers was slow to get back, Harrison took half the season to get in shape, A’Shawn didn’t take another step forward, and then it really went to crap overall.

Unless Daniels wants to give us a freebie because he knows he stole from us last season, he gone. A’Shawn? Gone. Harrison? 50/50. So we are basically bringing back Flowers, Hand and Okwara plus our JACKs in Kennard and Bryant for sure with everyone else up in the air. We need some help on the Dline no question. Young would be a great addition and like I said, would only need to come off the field when he needed a breather. I’d take Daniels back, but only on a low money deal as we could not count on him for more than a rotational player based on his injury history. He needs to be a bonus in he stays on the field, not someone we are counting on to start.

14

Pretty sure the Lions drafted Hand as a 3T. They spoke with him at prodays, he was working as a DE and BQ said he would be a 3 tech in our defense. They know he can play the 3, just needs to stay healthy.

15

Hand is becoming very overrated. He should not be counted on in any way, shape or form. He is probably going to be often injured and even his “impact” his rookie season is being grossly overstated ( yes I know he graded well through PFF). He’s just another Lions folk hero like so many before him.

16

Young plays as much as possible.

Hand plays inside as much as possible

Snacks plays limited downs in obvious run plays

Flowers plays inside and out

Okwara and Kennard get reps on passing downs

Tavai out on passing downs

Davis is best in Kennards role. I’m almost for cutting Kennard and letting Davis get a year audition there to see if he can be kept longer cheaper in that role.

Jones in and out situationally.

Even with Young, the screaming need is a cover linebacker.

17

Young has speed, power, moves, and bend as a pass rusher. And he’s underrated at setting an edge.

I’d buy a Young jersey the next day if fortune smiles on the Lions and they’re able to snag him.

I’m not a big “does he fit the scheme?” guy. Get the most talented players you can, and work with them.

3 Likes
18

He’s saying that it’s more than “think” he can play the 3t. He actually “does” play. It’s beyond thinking and is a proven position. As I pasted in the pictures from the Giants game, Hand was either at the 3 or the 0.

Darn good player, that guy. Just hope he can get and stay healthy.

19

Love ya, bro, but this isn’t so. Davis is an off-the-ball linebacker and will remain there. Kennard is a flexible LB that can play multiple LB roles, on and off the ball, including being a de facto Left Defensive End.

1 Like
20

Yeah, true. In a scenario above w Chase and Okwara, we don’t need Kennard or Davis replacing him to do that LDE though. Davis looks like a read/react rush WLB to me given his body of work. Giant waste of a 1st rd pick, but at this point he is still young, knows the system and in a very limited role can be a long-term piece.

What he isn’t is what he’s been used as, so time to change his tasking. Kennard will be gone in a year (I think) so why block a chance at finding out if Davis is worth a crap, long term? Especially when we are bringing in Chase in this case.

If Davis fails, we sign or draft an Actual Cover Linebacker, which this scheme desperately calls for and needs, yet hasn’t been given for four freaking years

1 Like