Igor Olshansky

[Guest Aloysius]

PFW has a nice scouting report on the free agent 3-4 DE:

 

Chargers DE Igor Olshansky (UFA)

 

By Michael Blunda

Feb. 15, 2009

 

News: After spending five seasons in San Diego, Olshansky will opt out of his contract with one year remaining and become a free agent. With the Chargers extending DE Luis Castillo’s deal last offseason and with Ryon Bingham waiting in the wings, they’re not expected to retain Olshansky, meaning he’ll hit the open market. Teams in need of a 3-4 end or possibly a 4-3 tackle may look to bring him in to bolster their line. Following a lackluster 2008 campaign, the Oregon product should benefit from a change of scenery.

 

Notes: Since Olshansky joined the Chargers in 2004, their defense has been in the top half of the league in points allowed each season, and they never have had a losing record. He switched from right end to left end prior to the ’07 campaign and proceeded to have his best season. That year he racked up 49 tackles, 3½ sacks, one interception and three passes defended. He has been a starter in San Diego since Day One. With so many stars on the team’s defense, Olshansky was often overlooked, but he always was a quiet contributor who didn’t crave the limelight.

 

Strengths: Playing the difficult DE spot in the 3-4 formation, Olshansky has helped give the Chargers one of the league’s more formidable D-lines since entering the NFL in 2004. At 6-6, 309 pounds, he has a large frame and is very difficult to block coming off the line. He’s extremely athletic for his size and has tremendous strength, giving him the ability to easily shed blockers. His powerful lower body makes him stout against the run. He can create double-teams, freeing up his linebackers to get clear shots at opposing quarterbacks. He has the versatility to line up at either end or tackle, depending on the system in which he’s playing.

 

Weaknesses: Olshansky can be very streaky. He makes some big plays but then disappears for long stretches. He doesn’t react all that well and isn’t an instinctive player. For a D-end, he doesn’t have much in terms of pass-rushing moves, totaling just 11 sacks in five seasons. He sometimes allows his emotions to get the best of him, resulting in unnecessary penalties. He has never reached 50 tackles in a season.

 

Risk factor: Moderate. Olshansky, who turns 27 in early May, will give a team a solid defensive lineman with many good years still ahead of him. However, his production in the pros never has been stunning, so there’s not a whole lot of upside here.

 

[WPB Dawg Fan]

PFW has a nice scouting report on the free agent 3-4 DE:

Sounds like a guy we can use. Even if R.Smith comes back, he is in his 30's...and we need somebody to keep the OT's off of our OLB.

 

As for the lack of sacks...this is a 3-4 DE...not supposed to have a ton anyway...as long as he is occupying his gaps.

 

[BernietheKid]

Sounds like a guy we can use. Even if R.Smith comes back, he is in his 30's...and we need somebody to keep the OT's off of our OLB.

 

As for the lack of sacks...this is a 3-4 DE...not supposed to have a ton anyway...as long as he is occupying his gaps.

 

 

Good Points WPB. Then we can worry about other positions of need in the draft like ILB, OLB and RB. Which might be more pressing and your picking him up in his prime at 27 years old it's not like he's over 30.

[JewDago]

it really seems like he'd be a solid rotational player for us, at the worst, and we could really use some help at DE, particularly from someone who's played the position before.

 

though he's still young, one of his biggest contributions could be what he can teach the other guys on the team about being a 3-4 DE. none of them particularly had experience before coming to cleveland except maybe robaire smith (which i'm not sure about; he might not have and just picked it up well), but olshansky's knowledge of the position could be just as useful as his play.

 

however, there are going to be quite a few teams after him, particularly green bay and denver, which means the ensuing bidding war will likely move him out of the browns' price range, or certainly out of what i'd like to see them pay for a second-tier DE.

[Guest Aloysius]

however, there are going to be quite a few teams after him, particularly green bay and denver, which means the ensuing bidding war will likely move him out of the browns' price range, or certainly out of what i'd like to see them pay for a second-tier DE.

That's the key point. Olshansky's a good run-stuffer, but do you enter the bidding war for a guy who'll come off the field in obvious passing situations? One of the reasons Olshansky didn't produce as much last year was that DC Ron Rivera played a lot of nickel, and Olshansky came off the field whenever they did. He's got about a half a pass-rush move, which is disappointing given that he's got the strength and athleticism to be a decent pass-rusher.

 

[Guest Dacaddyman]

If pursuing him would hinder our chances of landing Bart Scott or Suggs or Peppers I wouldn't We need linebackers more than him. Yes we need more depth at the DL but our linebacker s are in worse shape

[WPB Dawg Fan]

If pursuing him would hinder our chances of landing Bart Scott or Suggs or Peppers I wouldn't We need linebackers more than him. Yes we need more depth at the DL but our linebacker s are in worse shape

 

I honestly think we need 1-2 LB's

 

But we also need 2 DE's.

 

C.Williams is a maybe at best.

R.Smith is coming off an injury.

S.Smith is a NT and sucks as a 3-4 DE

Thompson is a journeyman at best.

Purcell hasn't even seen the field.

 

We need 2 starters and I named one...R.Smith...and he is coming off injury.

 

[Legacy Fan]

He switched from right end to left end prior to the ’07 campaign and proceeded to have his best season. That year he racked up 49 tackles, 3½ sacks, one interception and three passes defended.

 

Isn't Merriman on that side? Easy to have a nice season when the offense is focusing on the guy coming in behind you...

 

 

If we can nab him for the price of a rotational DE, I say absolutely.

[Guest Dacaddyman]

I honestly think we need 1-2 LB's

 

But we also need 2 DE's.

 

C.Williams is a maybe at best.

R.Smith is coming off an injury.

S.Smith is a NT and sucks as a 3-4 DE

Thompson is a journeyman at best.

Purcell hasn't even seen the field.

 

We need 2 starters and I named one...R.Smith...and he is coming off injury.

The way I see it is that our offense is closer to being were it needs to be so what I was thinking is we can get center and right tackle in FA and maybe RB but if we do that do we still have enough cap space to go after guys like Scott ,Suggs,and Peppers? I say improve the offense as much as possible in the FA because we already proved that we can be a winning team witha horrable defense. I'd go after Derrick Ward,Birk,and the best RT available. Then try to land Scott or Suggs or both(nice to dream . Then you can draft another linebacker(curry) and maybe you can pickup a DE prospect later in the draft.

[Guest Dacaddyman]

My point is that IMO the draft is deep with defensive players this year and we can greatly improve our defense through the draft alone. I wouldn't spend too much money on defense through FA unless its guys like i mentioned before.

[Jason J]

it really seems like he'd be a solid rotational player for us, at the worst, and we could really use some help at DE, particularly from someone who's played the position before.

 

though he's still young, one of his biggest contributions could be what he can teach the other guys on the team about being a 3-4 DE. none of them particularly had experience before coming to cleveland except maybe robaire smith (which i'm not sure about; he might not have and just picked it up well), but olshansky's knowledge of the position could be just as useful as his play.

 

however, there are going to be quite a few teams after him, particularly green bay and denver, which means the ensuing bidding war will likely move him out of the browns' price range, or certainly out of what i'd like to see them pay for a second-tier DE.

 

 

I'm with you JD. Olshansky's gonna drive some pretty decent money this offseason. 3-4 ends are a rare commodity. What's worse is that he's not really a great one. He's good... but not a (to use an NBA term) "max-deal" kind of guy. He's of the Keisel/Smith ilk... OK maybe a bit more explosive than Keisel, but decidedly unspectacular. Either way, he's going to come at a hefty price.

 

Rumor has it that Robaire Smith may be done for good. That leaves the Browns with Williams on one side and... eh, Santonio Thomas? on the other. The Browns are going to have to take a long look at Olshansky, and Chris Canty, and probably Steven Bowen... do I hear an Orpheus Roye?

 

-jj

[Guest Aloysius]

Here's PFW's scouting report on Canty:

 

Cowboys DE Chris Canty

 

By Eric Edholm

Feb. 14, 2009

 

Notes: Like most 3-4 ends, Canty’s statistics are not overly impressive. In the Cowboys’ system, his job is not to rush the passer all out like Ware. Rather, Canty most often is asked to hold the point and sometimes take on guard-tackle double-teams. He has played right end in this system since college under Al Groh at Virginia and has the perfect build for the spot at 6-7 and 300 pounds. He has had 6½ sacks the past two seasons combined, which is right about what you’d expect, given the system and his responsibilities. Canty often helped pave the way for Ware, who had one of the best seasons of any pass rusher in the past five seasons, notching 20 sacks lining up right behind Canty.

 

Strengths: Canty has long arms and can close down passing lanes. He gets good leverage and can drive and move big offensive tackles. Canty adequately takes on double-teams and will surprise once in a while with his pass-rush technique. As right ends go, he’s a strong run defender — and those are hard to find. His experience in the system and coachability are both big positives for 3-4 teams.

 

Weaknesses: Scouts have said for two years that Canty lacks a mean streak and needs to play with a lot more ferocity, which would make him a terror given his rare physical skills. No one has expected him to put up big sack totals, but Canty’s lack of forced fumbles and other big plays have been surprising for a three-down player. He has been a slow starter the past few seasons, although he has finished strong. That said, there are some who question Canty’s motor just a bit and believe that top-notch tackles can neutralize him.

 

Risk factor: Low. Canty had two serious injuries his senior season at UVA that caused him to fall from the first round to a fourth-round pick, but he has played every game — starting the past 48 — since entering the league in 2005. He is what he is, a good base 3-4 end who can kick inside to tackle in four-man-front pass defenses, and the market is almost certainly not going to reach Kelly heights. Canty won’t make a ton of plays for you, and his ceiling might not be much higher, so you know pretty much what you are getting.

[JewDago]

if we're going to give a lot of money to any d-line guy this offseason, it should be canty. he's proven, injury-free and productive. out of the DEs available, he's easily the best option.

 

however, if it's going to take a ton of money, i still wouldn't like the signing until we're completely assured that we can't get terrell suggs (even though he's stated that he'd like to stay in baltimore). he's the guy, to me, who can help our team the most by giving us a pass rush. canty will help us against the run and may help us generate a pass rush, but we should remember that he's transitioning from a one-gap system to a two-gap system, which changes his approach a bit and would definitely decrease his numbers.

 

edit: it seems suggs' negotiations with the ravens have hit a standstill. while there aren't any details in the article, it seems like they aren't offering him a satisfactory deal yet. it could be just a step in the negotiation, it's only monday after all, but let's hope there's enough ill will brewing there to get him out of baltimore. if there's a guy that i'll be okay with being our only FA signee this offseason, it's suggs.

[Guest mz.]

Signed by the Cowboys.

[Skinny]

Good digging for the old post mz the pussy

[Guest Aloysius]

Interesting that he's staying in a one gap 3-4. He has tons of experience in it, but he may be a better fit in a two gap scheme, where he wouldn't be expected to penetrate and be as much of a playmaker.

 

[Guest Aloysius]

Some info on Olshansky's deal:

 

Thanks, but no thanks: If you were wondering why the Packers weren't more involved with San Diego Chargers defensive lineman Igor Olshansky, here's why: He got $8 million of guaranteed money from the Dallas Cowboys.

 

Olshansky received a five-year deal worth $22.5 million. It included a $6 million signing bonus and $2 million more of guaranteed base salary. Olshansky is expected to fill the void left by the free-agent departure of end Chris Canty, who signed with the New York Giants for $16 million in guaranteed money.

Last year, we signed Corey Williams to a six-year deal worth $38.6 million, including $16.3 million in guaranteed money.

[Guest John McClane]

I was never interested in this guy. I am glad we didn't sign him.