Football Grump

It's so rare that I say that a defensive back coming out of college is ready to play in the NFL right away, and I have no concerns.

And I can say that with Caleb Downs.

And I also think that he probably improves the room right away.

And like you said...

I, I like what cranky fan says when he is improving a roster, he likes to get as close to the football and the center of the field as possible.

So trenches and then working your way back in the middle.

So like he likes to build from the inside out and from the football back.

So safety being the middle of the field, that's something that he, you know, like the heart of your defense, when you think about like Dexter Lawrence, Tremaine Edmonds, and then who's this, who's the safety that an offense is worried about?

Not Tyler Newben and not Javon Holland.

But Caleb Downs, maybe in 2027, Caleb Downs is coming off of a push for defensive rookie of the year.

I don't think that that's totally out of the question.

Obviously, the rest of the defense is going to play into that.

He's not going to have a ton of production or anything like that if the corners are losing right at the release.

But we'll...

you know, right down the middle of the defense like that, like Caleb Downs would be that guy that they're worried about jumping routes, baiting quarterbacks, that sort of thing.

Yeah, I mean, well, I would say that Sonny Stiles is also an answer, but I'll still agree with your point that linebackers have a higher bust out rate, especially in the first round than safeties do.

And also not for nothing, but Sonny Stiles is a fairly recent position transfer.

So, you know,

I feel pretty confident that Sonny Stiles is going to be a good player, but if anyone is going to bust at a position, it's probably someone who's switching positions.

Well, that's not my point.