If this is indeed the deepest draft in a decade or more and the best you do is Kony Ealy at 16, you are doing it wrong.
I don't get how someone can talk out of one side of his mouth saying pass defense feeds mostly off pass rush, then talk out the other side of his mouth saying he wants to spend first round picks on guys that can't rush the passer.
Tolbert was another 4th rounder.
And just because Spencer didn't come off the field, doesn't mean he shouldn't have. He was NOT a career 8 sack guy. He was a career 5-6 sack guy and he was a waste of space as a pass rusher until 2012.

Ealy will be a fine player.
You can't use Ware as the standard of success. He's a once in a generation type. I'd be very happy getting a Patrick Kerney or Will Smith.
That's not "talking out of both sides of your mouth" dumbass, because I'm not advocating not getting a pass rusher.
If there was one, I'd rather him. I'd also rather an elite OT.
But I'll take a solid 8 sack DE over a DB or a WR or probably even a LB. Because that, uh, actually does help your DL.
The other part you seem to be missing is that run defense is still important.
You can find a pretty good number of bigger 4-3 ends who have been drafted in the past decade outside the top 10 who have had successful careers. I said the other day, Nick Perry, Chandler Jones, Adrian Clayborn, Cameron Jordan, JPP and Muhammed Wilkerson.
I see no reason to take a shit on any of those guys, and Ealy could be just as good as them. I'd be happy with that kind of guy with a pick in the first, especially after a trade down.
If you (speaking generally, not "you" as in Ravidubey) don't think Ealy is as good as those players, fine. But if you are someone that thinks that those players aren't worth firsts just because they aren't all elite pass rushers, just shut the F up because you don't know what you're talking about. Those guys are studs and just because they aren't dominant pass rushers doesn't mean they aren't great players who wouldn't be tremendous upgrades over George friggin' Selvie.
Run defense is important. It's also cheap. You don't need to spend a first round pick on a guy who holds his own and doesn't make a play. That's the difference between Chris Canty and Marcus Spears. You can get Chris Canty or Red Bryant on any street corner. 1-800-useless-against-the-pass is a number you can call in a passin league.
Run defense is important. It's also cheap. You don't need to spend a first round pick on a guy who holds his own and doesn't make a play. That's the difference between Chris Canty and Marcus Spears. You can get Chris Canty or Red Bryant on any street corner. 1-800-useless-against-the-pass is a number you can call in a passin league.
And Schmitty...since you find a LDE that is bigger important, why not Martin? I think he's superior to Ealy in terms of investment and does about the same kind of stuff half the time.
It is more likely to be cheap, but it's not necessarily so. It's a vital part of defense, so if you can get one of the better players at it, I'm all for it. And again, we're not talking Chris Canty with a career high of 4 sacks, we're talking about a Chris Canty LIKE player with more pass rush ability, in the 8 sack range.
Hmmm. Eight sacks. Sounds like Greg Ellis.
Hmmm. Eight sacks. Sounds like Greg Ellis.
If you could guarantee me a Greg Ellis without the late career bitchiness I'd take him at 16 no problem.
Right, exactly.
Good analogy. I'll take that, especially if its after a trade down.
Not my first choice. I'm not saying we should be actively targeting Ealy. But I certainly could see a scenario where he's the top rated player on the board in the 20s.
If you have to trade down then its not exactly right.
That's not "talking out of both sides of your mouth" dumbass, because I'm not advocating not getting a pass rusher.
If there was one, I'd rather him. I'd also rather an elite OT.
But I'll take a solid 8 sack DE over a DB or a WR or probably even a LB. Because that, uh, actually does help your DL.
The other part you seem to be missing is that run defense is still important.
