theoneandonly

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There's one particular comparable being tethered to Leighton Vander Esch that has the Dallas Cowboys excited, and he just offered his opinion on the rookie.

Brian Urlacher, a Hall of Fame linebacker at both the collegiate and professional level, played 13 seasons in the NFL after being selected with the ninth-overall pick in the 2000 NFL Draft. His career with the Chicago Bears was legendary, striking terror into opposing offenses whenever he took the field. Vander Esch enters the 2018 season with an eerily similar draft hype, the Cowboys grabbing him with the 19th-overall pick to fill a gaping hole in their defensive second level.

The Mountain West Defensive Player of the Year and First Team All-Mountain West talent brings a lot to the table for the Cowboys and while early comparisons to a legend like Urlacher are credible pre-NFL, he'll have a lot of work to do to reach the heights of the eight-time pro bowler. The good news is, Urlacher believes Vander Esch has the chops, if he adapts quickly to the more complex playbook and duties of playing middle linebacker at the highest level of the sport

Helping the rookie get a leg up will be the fact his new defensive coordinator, Rod Marinelli, coached Urlacher from 2009 through 2012 before moving to the Metroplex. That gives the gold-jacket LB unique insight into what Vander Esch is walking into.

"With middle linebacker, the thing he's going to have to learn is the terminology first of all," said the four-time All Pro to NBC DFW. "It's a big change [going] from college to the NFL, and there's so many things that happen pre-snap. Lucky for him, that defense is simple. I played that defense for five years, [or rather] my last nine years but under coach Marinelli for five years.

"[It's a] simple defense and that's not going to be hard for him to learn. It's just getting the terminology down and getting the communication part right because there's a lot of communication that takes place in that defense. So if he learns that, once you get out there, play fast. And he's athletic or they wouldn't have drafted him where they did, so I think he'll do well. Just gotta learn the simple things early.

"...In college he was pretty good. He played in the Mountain West. I played in the Mountain West as well. He played at Boise State and he's similar to my [college] size, and he runs well so I think all the measurables are there for him."

The Cowboys are confident Vander Esch will impress early on, rookie learning curves at the most difficult defensive position aside. It certainly doesn't hurt to have All-Pro LB Sean Lee standing next to him helping him every step of the way, along with a fully-healthy and resurgent talent like Jaylon Smith covering his strong side and/or rotating in at MIKE to spell him as needed. With both Marinelli and Kris Richard overseeing the development of Vander Esch, the latter responsible for coordinating the passing game, all the pieces are in place to make sure the comparisons to Urlacher remain well-founded.

Already pegged as a potential Defensive Player of the Year candidate, the bar is set sky-high for Vander Esch. All he has to do now is get to work.

247Sports
 

theoneandonly

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And BTW he had some injury issues in college.
 

cml750

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Given he is already injured when we need him perhaps we should be comparing him to Sean Lee rather than Urlacher? :stirpot
 
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NoMoRedJ

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Given he is already injured when we need him perhaps we should be comparing him to Sean Lee rather than Urlacher? :stirpot

Jerry buying low and getting a steal on an injured player . . . . . :giggle
 

allpurpose

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Jerry must be looking at Mike Brown of the Bengals as his draft whisperer.. Draft em injured and pay peanuts till they wash out of the league..
 

theoneandonly

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I dont see the Urlacher comp. Urlacher was a safety at one point which gave him a leg up in coverage. I also dont think Urlacher played 8 man football in high school.
 

SixisBetter

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Yeah, 11 man squad no doubt. His high school is about 30 miles from me. We heard about him quite a bit back in the day. He lined up wherever he needed to on both sides of the ball. IIRC he returned punts, played RB and even QB a couple times, plus safety, of course.
 

dbair1967

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Unfortunate he might be missing mini camp but the important thing is make sure he's 100% for TC.

Smart kid who works hard by all accounts. This shouldn't hurt him.
 

ThoughtExperiment

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I have this weird gut feel that LVE might be really good.

And I've never even seen him play. But he is big and fast. And he might just be one of those kids who slipped under the radar because of his tiny high school and being a late bloomer. That's one of the profiles of kids who turn out to be top players.
 

Doomsday

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I have this weird gut feel that LVE might be really good.

And I've never even seen him play. But he is big and fast. And he might just be one of those kids who slipped under the radar because of his tiny high school and being a late bloomer. That's one of the profiles of kids who turn out to be top players.
And from all accounts, appears to be intelligent. That can't hurt.
 

CouchCoach

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And keep a sorry coach around year after year.
Brown has one upped Booger in that department, he won't even let his HC quit. Damned guy tries to fall on his sword and finds out Brown replaced it with a rubber knife.

One thing all billionaires have in common, having it their way and to hell with everybody else. Booger keeps Garrett around because they trained him to his role, do not upstage the boss. Be the good adopted son.
 
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