Gil Brandt's all under 25 team defense

saintswhodi · 06-01-2005, 11:41 AM

Brandt's all under-25 team: defense

By Gil Brandt
NFL.com Senior Analyst

(May 31, 2005) -- Putting together the all under-25 offensive unit was extremely difficult. Putting the defensive version together was practically impossible. We nearly resorted to flipping a coin to select the makeup of the team.

The average NFL fan is in for a treat in the coming years as there is a plentiful amount of great, young defensive talent.

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For instance, if you were a head coach and desired a young safety, whom would you pick from Seattle's Ken Hamlin, Philadelphia's Michael Lewis, Pittsburgh's Chris Hope, Carolina's Colin Branch, Indianapolis' Bob Sanders and New England's Eugene Wilson? Pretty much anyone you pick out of that bunch will do the job well. But not only couldn't we pick one of those guys, we actually chose other guys!

If a player you would expect to see didn't make the team, it doesn't mean he's not good. It probably means I didn't have room for him on our already-overloaded roster.

Remember, to make the team, you must be born on or after Jan. 1, 1980. Some of the names you might expect to see on the team, but won't, include New England's Richard Seymour, Cincinnati's Justin Smith, Detroit's Shaun Rogers and the Giants' Will Peterson. That's because they're 26 years of age.

Also, we've added defensive players who were either second-day picks or undrafted to our all-unheralded squad. You'll actually see one name on both the defensive list and the unheralded list, but at different positions. See if you can recognize who that person is.

Here is the 2005 all-under 25 defense:

DE Dwight Freeney Indianapolis Feb. 19, 1980
DE Ty Warren New England Feb. 6, 1981
DT Dewayne Robertson N.Y. Jets Oct. 16, 1981
DT Kevin Williams Minnesota Aug. 16, 1980
Pass rush
specialist Jared Allen Kansas City April 3, 1982
MLB Nick Barnett Green Bay May 27, 1981
OLB D.J. Williams Denver July 20, 1982
OLB Will Witherspoon Carolina Aug. 19, 1980
3-4 LB Terrell Suggs Baltimore Oct. 11, 1982
3-4 LB Jason Babin Houston May 24, 1980
CB Dunta Robinson Houston April 11, 1982
CB DeAngelo Hall Atlanta Nov. 19, 1983
SS Troy Polamalu Pittsburgh April 19, 1981
FS Madieu Williams Cincinnati Oct. 18, 1981
P Mike Scifres San Diego Oct. 8, 1980
PK Nate Kaeding San Diego March 26, 1982
ST Bryan Scott Atlanta April 13, 1981

No Saints, but we wanted DJ Williams and Dunta Robinson, and we could have picked Kevin Williams or Troy Polamalu or Madieu Williams or Terrell Suggs or Ty Warren, or we could have gone after Witherspoon as a resticted FA, but it's all good.

creole_t · 06-01-2005, 10:46 PM

Will Smith is the only starter we have that is under 25 isn't he? Surely he'll be in that category real soon. But I do feel ya pain on the ones we passed on...

WhoDat · 06-01-2005, 10:58 PM

Watson, Buckwoldt, Sullivan (if he ever started), Green, Karney...

I think Bentley was last year. Stallworth too. Charles Grant was 25 last season I think.

Danno · 06-02-2005, 07:57 AM

On offense we have 7 starters 25 years old or under.

On defense we have 7 starters 26 years old or under.

But when you finish DFL on defense should anyone be considered for any all-whatever team?

WhoDat · 06-02-2005, 10:04 AM

Sullivan was a shoe-in for the All-Fat-and-Lazy team.

Dead last or not, Will Smith should make Gil eat his words this season.

06-01-2005, 11:41 AM	#1
saintswhodi 5000 POSTS! + Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: San Antonio, TX Posts: 6,941	Gil Brandt's all under 25 team defense Brandt's all under-25 team: defense By Gil Brandt NFL.com Senior Analyst (May 31, 2005) -- Putting together the all under-25 offensive unit was extremely difficult. Putting the defensive version together was practically impossible. We nearly resorted to flipping a coin to select the makeup of the team. The average NFL fan is in for a treat in the coming years as there is a plentiful amount of great, young defensive talent. NFL Network NFL Network Analysis, opinions, features and more! Download Super Bowl XXXIX radio broadcasts and highlights to your MP3 player! Field Pass Listen LIVE to NFL games, plus watch video news and features of your favorite team. For instance, if you were a head coach and desired a young safety, whom would you pick from Seattle's Ken Hamlin, Philadelphia's Michael Lewis, Pittsburgh's Chris Hope, Carolina's Colin Branch, Indianapolis' Bob Sanders and New England's Eugene Wilson? Pretty much anyone you pick out of that bunch will do the job well. But not only couldn't we pick one of those guys, we actually chose other guys! If a player you would expect to see didn't make the team, it doesn't mean he's not good. It probably means I didn't have room for him on our already-overloaded roster. Remember, to make the team, you must be born on or after Jan. 1, 1980. Some of the names you might expect to see on the team, but won't, include New England's Richard Seymour, Cincinnati's Justin Smith, Detroit's Shaun Rogers and the Giants' Will Peterson. That's because they're 26 years of age. Also, we've added defensive players who were either second-day picks or undrafted to our all-unheralded squad. You'll actually see one name on both the defensive list and the unheralded list, but at different positions. See if you can recognize who that person is. Here is the 2005 all-under 25 defense: DE Dwight Freeney Indianapolis Feb. 19, 1980 DE Ty Warren New England Feb. 6, 1981 DT Dewayne Robertson N.Y. Jets Oct. 16, 1981 DT Kevin Williams Minnesota Aug. 16, 1980 Pass rush specialist Jared Allen Kansas City April 3, 1982 MLB Nick Barnett Green Bay May 27, 1981 OLB D.J. Williams Denver July 20, 1982 OLB Will Witherspoon Carolina Aug. 19, 1980 3-4 LB Terrell Suggs Baltimore Oct. 11, 1982 3-4 LB Jason Babin Houston May 24, 1980 CB Dunta Robinson Houston April 11, 1982 CB DeAngelo Hall Atlanta Nov. 19, 1983 SS Troy Polamalu Pittsburgh April 19, 1981 FS Madieu Williams Cincinnati Oct. 18, 1981 P Mike Scifres San Diego Oct. 8, 1980 PK Nate Kaeding San Diego March 26, 1982 ST Bryan Scott Atlanta April 13, 1981 No Saints, but we wanted DJ Williams and Dunta Robinson, and we could have picked Kevin Williams or Troy Polamalu or Madieu Williams or Terrell Suggs or Ty Warren, or we could have gone after Witherspoon as a resticted FA, but it's all good.

06-01-2005, 10:46 PM	#2
creole_t Registered Join Date: Nov 2002 Posts: 53	RE: Gil Brandt Will Smith is the only starter we have that is under 25 isn't he? Surely he'll be in that category real soon. But I do feel ya pain on the ones we passed on...
creole_t Registered Join Date: Nov 2002 Posts: 53

06-01-2005, 10:58 PM	#3
WhoDat 5000 POSTS! + Join Date: Sep 2002 Posts: 5,631	RE: Gil Brandt Watson, Buckwoldt, Sullivan (if he ever started), Green, Karney... I think Bentley was last year. Stallworth too. Charles Grant was 25 last season I think.
WhoDat 5000 POSTS! + Join Date: Sep 2002 Posts: 5,631

06-02-2005, 07:57 AM	#4
Danno Truth Addict Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Spanish Fort, AL (via NO and B/R) Posts: 24,723	RE: Gil Brandt On offense we have 7 starters 25 years old or under. On defense we have 7 starters 26 years old or under. But when you finish DFL on defense should anyone be considered for any all-whatever team?

06-02-2005, 10:04 AM	#5
WhoDat 5000 POSTS! + Join Date: Sep 2002 Posts: 5,631	RE: Gil Brandt Sullivan was a shoe-in for the All-Fat-and-Lazy team. Dead last or not, Will Smith should make Gil eat his words this season.
WhoDat 5000 POSTS! + Join Date: Sep 2002 Posts: 5,631

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