Praising the progress that David Veikune has made due to his increased opportunities at ILB, Cleveland head coach Mangini said:
"I believe that David's really benefited well from some opportunities that have been created at the inside linebacker spot without having D'Qwell [Jackson] here. He's gotten quite a few reps and I think he's done a nice job." (WFNY)
WFNY Note: "Most individuals selected in the second round of the NFL draft are looked to to be instant impact players - even more so for a rebuilding franchise. Selected with the 20th pick in the round out of Hawaii, thoughts were that Veikune could provide some much-needed rushing on the outside of the Browns 3-4 defense. Spending most of his time on the defensive line for the Rainbow Warriors, Veikune earned conference honors for his production. But when Veikune would stumble out of the gates during his transition to the next level, he would fail to record a single statistic for the 2009 season. The only catch for Veikune's transition is that he is presently being used on the inside of the 3-4 as opposed to the outside where most defensive ends would transition."
About moving Veikune from DE in college to inside LB, Mangini said:
"I don't think it's unusual. For one, for the team to go through the process of figuring out where the right spot is, and then you know sometimes its better inside, sometimes its better outside. Tedy Bruschi was a defensive end who worked primarily in sub his first year and then we moved him in, when we got to New England, moved him into an inside backer spot." (WFNY)
WFNY Note: "Bruschi has many similarities to Veikune. Both players were Pac 10 pass-rushers, both were selected outside of the first round in their respective drafts, and both were transitioned to linebacker. But this would be where the similarities currently end. Bruschi played every game as a rookie in 1996, albeit mostly on special teams. He would play in every game during his second season as well. Other players mentioned by Mangini include Willie McGinest, Mike Vrabel, and Rosevelt Colvin – all of whom were pass-rushing linebackers.
Fortunately for Veikune, the absence of the veteran linebackers ahead of him have provided him extra opportunities to become more comfortable with Rob Ryan's defense."
My Note: Veikune played in the WAC, not the Pac-10, while he was at UH.
Hoping that Veikune's progress continues through to the contact-based drills, Mangini said:
"I think some of the value with linebackers really has to be determined once the pads come on. You can see where they fit, you can see their drops, you can see their communication, but part of playing that inside linebacker spot is your ability to go up and thump and I think that is something that David showed in college. He showed different levels last season, but this is good work for him in terms of processing everything." (WFNY)
About how the ability to play both OLB and ILB may help Veikune get more playing time this year, Mangini said:
"The nice thing is the 3-4 is pretty flexible. When you have guys that can play both spots, you can become more flexible with where you can put them and how you move those pieces around. That's something I'm always looking for." (WFNY)
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment