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Jun 30, 2022Liked by Tyler Dunne

Who is the greatest pass rusher, or who is the greatest defensive player? Reggie White faced many more old school Fullbacks after he got passed the Tackle, and they both got chipped by Tight Ends who could block. The game was changing. Western Carolina’s Clyde Simmons became Clyde because of Reggie White. Reggie could beat the blockers at the lOS, beat the fullback and create more pressure than anybody. Reggie’s 4-3 scheme does not matter. Reggie played the run better, Reggie played every down with a better motor. Reggie was the best defensive player I saw, then Lawrence Taylor. If Buffalo played the 3-4 like Tampa Bay we would not speak of Bruce Smith, he refused to play the scheme. If Lee Roy Selmon played Buffalo’s undisciplined rogue 3-4 defensive end, then we might have to speak of Lee Roy, but Lee Roy didn’t freelance and did not quit on run plays late in his career. Lee Roy did not push up the field creating gaping seams, on obvious run down plays. I would love to study Deacon Jones, but I know from a few games that he might be the best. Alan Page and Bruce Smith both were great players early in their career, but they did not play the run as well later in their career.

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Solid points all ‘round. Definitely recall offenses running directly at Smith into the late 90s, though he did benefit big time when Ted Washington and Pat Williams (and their combined 7,679 pounds) joined that Bills’ defensive line. Such a shame the ‘99 team lost that Music City Miracle. Man, that unit was good. Reggie White’s dominance spanned so, so long. That 1998 season, he was still rocking offensive tackles. Coordinators probably feared White into the late 30s quite a bit more than Smith.

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Jun 30, 2022·edited Jun 30, 2022Liked by Tyler Dunne

It's incredibly difficult to make a case for any player because of different era and different rules and how they were enforced. Deacon Jones was famous for his head slap move which essentially gave the opposing player a concussion. There's a famous clip of Vince Lombardi stalking the sidelines saying, "Grab, Grab, Grab".... What he would be saying now I can only guess.

Older players (there are fewer and fewer around) have stated that what passes for football now has little similarity to what was played before.

I've heard Bruce Smith speak of him being number one and using the sack number as his justification. The sack was not counted in the NFL as a measurement until.1982. Using this as THE measuring stick does a a disservice for the players who went before.

Everything that I've heard is that Lawrence Taylor was a beast who changed the Linebacker Position. Reggie White's hump move was a thing of beauty. I remember sitting in the stands watching him taking over a game shortly after he signed with the Packers... They were playing Denver. Denver with Elway were attempting to make a come back. And White sacked him. Twice. In a Row.

Amazing. I said to myself... this is why he's worth the money. To dominate a game in such a fashion.

Bruce Smith was an excellent player. But, but by my figuring, he wasn't as good as White. And I know that I'm biased.

The case for the best player on the offensive side of the football is even more difficult. Who was better, Favre or Rodgers. I believe that Aaron Rodgers is the best player in the (very) modern era. Having said that, he has not had to contend with the kind of hits that Favre went through. There some bright lines where the rule changes have altered the game. Rodgers is superb, but the abuse that Favre took in that Saints playoff game was unbelievable. He was never the same. Between Favre and Rodgers, I'd give Favre the nod. I don't know if I'd say he was even the best QB. In other eras you have Johnny Unitas and others.

At the end of the day, I just enjoy the game. I'd give Don Hutson the nod on the Offensive Side of the ball. He literally redefined the receiver position and set records which stood for decades.

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Going to need to dig but I think Doug Farrar did a story once in which he watched film of all the great pass rushers pre-1982 to tally all of their sacks (Deacon Jones included), and Bruce Smith was still No. 1.

So many factors to consider.

One, offenses in the 60s, 70s just didn’t throw nearly as much as they did into the ensuing decades which obviously means less sack opportunities. But even though everyone passes like crazy today, I think we all should still be unbelievably impressed by today’s sack artists because quarterbacks are more mobile than ever and have quicker releases than ever. Not to mention how pass protection schemes have evolved to take individual players out of a game (think: Belichick zeroing in). If someone today, like TJ Watt, is able to sustain a crazy sack pace that’d actually be more remarkable - IMO - than what Deacon Jones, Reggie White, LT or Bruce Smith did. Easier said than done, of course.

(And thank you for such a substantive reply, as well!)

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You hit a hot button <G>

I remember that article (https://touchdownwire.usatoday.com/lists/most-quarterback-sacks-1960-to-1981-deacon-jones-alan-page-jack-youngblood/) about going back further to count sacks. I think that Deacon Jones ended up with 173.5

Good thoughts about how often the older generation got the chance to get the sack. Mo' Run, please! Hadn't thought of it.

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Jun 30, 2022Liked by Tyler Dunne

For me it has to be either Reggie White, Lawerence Taylor, or Ray Lewis. All of whom I've seen do other worldly things on a football field against the best at their positions. Ed Reed, Darrell Revis also being in the conversation as well.

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Lawrence Taylor at his absolute peak

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Jun 30, 2022Liked by Tyler Dunne

Reggie! Reggie! Reggie!

I saw him in the USFL, not as much when he was with Philly, and of course with Green Bay. He was a man among boys! With the game still in the balance, he had 3 sacks in one quarter of a Super Bowl vs Patriots.

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Those three sacks still irk Ben Coates, too. We got into it a bit for Blood and Guts. When the game was still back and forth through the first half, Coates was on White quite a bit and held his own. As soon as Desmond Howard went for 99, and the Patriots had to wing it, Coates was released on routes and White feasted

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Nobody could block Reggie one on one! At least not got long. He was a massive human being. I've stood near both him and Celtics cente, Rob Williams. Rob looked like Reggie's little brother, who'd gone through an extra growth spurt when they were kids.

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Jun 30, 2022Liked by Tyler Dunne

Reggie White and Lawrence Taylor are solid picks. But I think if Dick Butkus had better surrounding casts, he would be regarded as the clear No. 1. I've never seen a defensive player dominate the way he did before his knees went bad.

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Such a good point. Those Bears went south fast. Gosh, I loved the old Butkus stories from Jackie Smith. They would really go at it. To Smith’s credit, he didn’t back down. But Butkus, admittedly, usually kicked his ass.

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Jun 30, 2022·edited Jun 30, 2022Liked by Tyler Dunne

In my humble opinion, which I doubt will be shared by many, the best defensive player ever was Sean Taylor. I've never seen a defensive player carry a sorrier team to the playoffs than Taylor did with Washington. He had the coverage ability/ball skills/return ability of Ed Reed with the tackling ability and hit power of Ray Lewis. The perfect player. I've never seen anything like it and doubt I ever will again. Due to his far too early death, he likely doesn't have the longevity to garner much support, but I just can't put another player above him. And the scary thing is, he was just finally learning to be a pro the year he died. Most of what he did, he did on talent and instincts alone. That man was born to play football. Most impressive highlight reel I've ever seen. If you havent seen it, check out "The Legend of Sean" on youtube. In just 3.5 seasons, he managed to make enough plays for a 31 minute clinic on how to dominate the game of football......as a safety. Could've been an all-pro running back or receiver too. He was that good. RIP Sean. Gone but never forgotten.

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Thank you so much for going into such great detail here, Bill. I was hoping someone would go out on a limb!

I really need to spend a little time in a Sean Taylor black hole on YouTube to jog my memory. Remember him blasting Brian Moorman and both making plays on the back end and near the LOS but - to your point - I didn’t appreciate his ubiquitous play nearly as much as I should’ve. It’d be smart for us at Go Long to dig into his career deeper, too. Players who watched Taylor freakin’ idolized him. His name comes up all the time.

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I've been watching football regularly for about 2 decades. Aaron Donald is by far the best defensive player I've seen. I wish I had been able to watch Lawrence Taylor at his peak

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For me, it begins and ends with Reggie White!

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deletedJun 30, 2022Liked by Tyler Dunne
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One of the great what-ifs.

If Reggie White does not sign with the Packers, what happens? I agree, they’re not signing a good number of the free agents that followed and helped build toward ‘96. Favre was so good that it’s doubtful Green Bay would’ve just tanked. But a Super Bowl contender? Eh. Probably not. We forget how good that defense was in ‘96 — first in just about everything. He was the anchor to it all.

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