AsylumGuido

Sheldon Rankins has chance to be more effective than Nick Fairley

by Ty Anania7 hours agoFollow @AnaniaT

As news of Nick Fairley’s heart condition broke, the tentatively high hopes for the New Orleans Saints defensive line fell apart at the seams. But Sheldon Rankins has the potential to put the pieces back together.

The New Orleans Saints offseason took a major hit when news broke that Nick Fairley would miss the season. But, as is the case with the injury to Terron Armstead, the Saints are well-stocked to handle the loss.

Sheldon Rankins has the potential to be a better player — even in 2017 — than Nick Fairley. Yes, Fairley was a force against the pass last year. But he was a very hot/cold player, as Sean Payton admitted. At times he was a major force, especially against the pass. At others, he failed to win his one-on-one battles. I don’t mean this as a bash on Fairley as a player. It will take some serious development from Sheldon Rankins to match what Fairley brought to the defense. But he has the potential to be a more complete player, a more difficult matchup to gameplan against.

In an unfortunate echo of Junior Galette, Fairley had a tendency to sell out against the pass. At times he would abandon his gap responsibility and force the rest of the defense to patch up behind him. Look over his 2016 tape and you’ll see much of what you saw in Galette: consistent flashes of awesome pass rush talent, but an upsetting tendency to run themselves out of the action. Fairley was no Cam Jordan, who does his job first and gets after the quarterback second.

Against the run, Fairley left too much on the field. A damning trait for a defensive tackle. He was a willing run defender, sure. He put his head down and fought, and that’s why we all loved him. Galette never cared about the big picture. He was a sack chaser. With Fairley, I see a much more forgivable but no less damaging problem: too often he went for the homerun play. If he saw a glimmer of light, he jumped. Canny linemen used that to move him out of his gap.

Rankins, on the other hand, has all the traits that you want in a defensive tackle. He’s sound in his technique and reads and reacts with greater consistency than Fairley ever did. The tempting comparison is Aaron Donald, and with good reason. Both players are cerebral, undersized but technique-dominant tackles. Rankins doesn’t have the girth to allow him to take plays off or to coast on size. He needs to attack and conduct the trench battle on his terms. He doesn’t yet do that as well as he can, and his development very much hinges on him developing that ability. But if Rankins can provide even a fraction of what Donald provides, he has the potential to be a much bigger asset than was Nick Fairley.

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“The pessimist sees difficulty in every opportunity. The optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty.” — Winston Churchill

jnormand

I thought Rankins and Fairley were on the field at the same time alot last season (once Rank was healthy).

AsylumGuido

Yes they were, but what the article is talking about is that Rankins has the ability, in the very near term, to be a more effective presence than Fairley has shown to be. I agree completely with that assessment.

foreverfan

Thank you Captain Obvious for your thoughts...

foreverfan

hagan714

well it is "step up time"

jeanpierre

Another one of several issues I had with giving Fairley an extension was that I felt both he and Rankins were the same position...

And that posed a road block of sorts to Rankins being able to justify his high selection in the draft last season...

I understood they were used together on passing plays quite a bit, but we really need that massive NT to tye up two interior blockers...

And that'd allow Rankins to be our Aaron Donald type of disrupting 3-tech shortening that clock for the opposing offense to get a play off...

With two disrupters, if one gets hot, then they could simply swing their protection over to the hot pass rusher...

With the big NT, if you tried to pass-block him with just a center, you could potentially get your quarterback killed Jim Burt style...

It's not that my way is the right way, I just make the right way my way...

hagan714

Yep we need a run stuffing, block eating NT that can push the pocket and free him up.

Lotulelei Star is to Kawann Short

as

???????? is to Sheldon Rankins

Rankins will only be as good as the players around him.

AsylumGuido

Where is that tree from which they are plucked?

ChrisXVI

Da'Ron Payne*, NT, Alabama
Height: 6-2. Weight: 319.
Projected 40 Time: 5.10.
Projected Round (2018): 1-2.
4/13/17: Scouts who have looked ahead to the 2018 class have raved about Payne's potential. Coming from Alabama, it isn't a stretch as Payne could take on the lead role for the Crimson Tide with Jonathan Allen moving on to the NFL. Payne is a run plugger with a lot of potential to grow.

Christian Wilkins*, NT, Clemson
Height: 6-4. Weight: 310.
Projected 40 Time: 5.00.
Projected Round (2018): 1-3.
4/13/17: Wilkins played well for Clemson in 2016 as part of a tough defensive line that controlled the point of attack. The sophomore recorded 48 tackles with 13 tackles for a loss, 3.5 sacks and 10 passes batted. Wilkins made 33 tackles and two sacks as a freshman in 2015. He has a nice skill set with upside.

Vita Vea*, NT, Washington
Height: 6-5. Weight: 332.
Projected 40 Time: 5.20.
Projected Round (2018): 1-3.
4/13/17: Vea was a load at the point of attack for Washington in 2016. He totaled 39 tackles with 6.5 tackles for a loss, five sacks, one force fumble and two passes batted. Vea has a serious combination of size, length, strength, and quickness at the point of attack.

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