 |
| Brennen Beyer |
Height: 6'3"
Weight: 256 lbs.
High school: Plymouth (MI) Plymouth
Position: Defensive end
Class: Senior
Jersey number: #97
Last year: I ranked Beyer #38 and said he would be a part-time starting SAM linebacker. He started five games at SAM, seven games at defensive end, and finished with 27 tackles, 4 tackles for loss, 2 sacks, 1 interception (returned for a touchdown), and 1 forced fumble.
Beyer likely would have been a backup in 2013 but for an ACL injury to starting strongside linebacker Jake Ryan. Beyer - who had played SAM earlier in his career - immediately moved back from weakside end to linebacker and rotated with Cameron Gordon. Once Ryan returned mid-season, Beyer moved back to the defensive line. He had his best season yet and finished with 4 tackles for loss and 2 sacks, plus an interception returned for a touchdown against Iowa. I have long held the belief that Beyer plays more because of his ability to carry out his assignment rather than his athletic skills or playmaking ability. For a twelve-game starter at linebacker and defensive end to finish with just 27 tackles and so few tackles for loss, that pretty much has to be the case. After week four of last season, Beyer made zero tackles for loss or sacks.
This season Beyer appears to be a starter by default. The coaches have been throwing him in there since freshman year with mediocre results, and I see no reason for that to change now. Not only that, but Michigan is thin at defensive end and only has nine seniors on the roster. Two of those seniors are defensive ends (Frank Clark is the other), and the rest of the Wolverines need their leadership. The challengers at strongside end are sophomore Taco Charlton (2 tackles, .5 tackles for loss) and redshirt freshman Henry Poggi; they have talent, but barely a lick of experience. Beyer will still be mostly an edge player in the 4-3 Over, but I still think he's a little undersized. He will probably raise his production level a little bit just by being on the strong side and playing a lot, but I will not get my hopes up for an outstanding season. By this point in his career, we seem to know that Beyer will give a steady performance. Luckily, there are several other potential stars on the defense that can be the playmakers.
Prediction: Starting strongside end; 35 tackles, 6 tackles for loss, 3 sacks
"..... his ability to carry out his assignment rather than his athletic skills or playmaking ability ..."
ReplyDeleteThere's a nice summary of most years of Michigan defense in the modern era. It stretches from Doug Mallory all the way up to Beyer. Pat Massey is somewhere in that spectrum.
When I think of Beyer and Ryan Glasgow, I think of people like Pat Massey. I guess it's not terrible if those guys are surrounded by some playmakers, and I don't think Beyer will prevent this defense from being good. But it sure would be nice if a 12-game starter could produce more than he did.
DeleteI have never been a huge Beyer fan either, but the guy deserves some credit for '13. He had to play both Sam and SDE in the same season - that's pretty tough duty. Massey was a 3-tech only who regularly got blown off the ball. And they often left him in for passing situations, which was a complete waste. Maybe it is splitting hairs, but I think R Glasgow (if he can get on the field) and Beyer will both end their careers a notch above PM.
DeleteI like Breyer and think he's been a good Wolverine. But I am actively rooting against him. I really want to see the big kid take this position and give it back sometime in January 2017.
ReplyDeleteSystem 1, man, my intuitive processor says if Mr. Beyer is your 10th most val, your team is not that good. Wrong again? Got hopes for the D, sure, but the pass rush has to be better, and not sure that it will be. Weak for 2 years.
ReplyDeleteThink I'm downshifting expectations per the O line. Too bad, cause I think Mr. Gardener is good.
Agree that he plays a pretty big role this year as players like Poggi and Taco develop. It's true that Beyer is undersized, but he is a lean 260 and is carrying no bad weight at all. He is also apparently strong and he looked decent at 5-tech late last season even though he did not prepare for that position in the off-season. His pass rushing as gone from poor to so-so over the last three years, so maybe he can take another little step this year. Agree that he is valuable because I don't see Poggi or Taco being stout enough yet, and it does not look like Strobel is going to make an impact at DE.
ReplyDeleteStout enough? Charton is almost 280 if he's not already there now.
DeleteBeing big and being stout are two different things. Charlton probably lead the team in getting pancaked last year. In the bowl game alone, he got tossed around pretty good, especially on any loop stunts where he charged the interior. In contrast, Beyer has been somewhat of a billy goat since he arrived on campus.
DeleteThis is the part of the move to the OVER that I don't get. The LBs move around and suddenly it's ok to have a 255 lb DE, when before the SDE position was a pseudo-DT.
ReplyDeleteColor me skeptical, but it seems like we have some burgeoning depth at NT/DT and that 'extra' guys like Wormley and Godin make good old-fashioned SDEs in the UNDER, I wonder if we won't see a good bit of UNDER fronts still, at least against pro-style teams.
The 4-3 over is what I view as a traditional 4-3. If the 4-3 over and a 3-4 defense had a baby, it would be a 4-3 under. That's why the SDE is almost like a DT. In a 3-4, your DE is basically going to be a DT - like Mike Martin this year for the titans.
DeleteThe WDE in a 4-3 under is almost a hybrid linebacker-DE.
In a 4-3 over you're going to have more traditional DEs, rather than the 4-3 under. People like Calhoun at MSU. He's only around 260, but he seems to be getting the job done. You can have them on both ends, You don't need them attacking the middle, because your middle linebacker should be able to shoot down the A gaps. MSU takes advantage of this and has quite a few double A gap blitzes.
DE in a 4-3 over, what I view as the traditional 4-3, is bigger than a LB smaller than a DT.
I think the move to the Over is to get Jake Ryan, Brennen Beyer, and Frank Clark on the field at the same time. If you stay in the Under, one of those guys basically has to come off the field. Even so, you've got some talent to spread out between NT and DT. Assuming Beyer is a guy that has to be on the field (and the coaches seem to think so), I think the 4-3 Over makes sense.
DeleteThanks for the clarifications. Make sense and match what I've read.
DeleteThunder, I agree with you about Ryan/Beyer/Clark, but I think the lack of a dominant/large NT played a role in it as well.
Plus, if the staff made scheme changes in part to keep Beyer on the field....probably says we fans are maybe being unfairly harsh on him.
I felt the move to the 4-3 over was more due to interior linemen being more interchangeable than in a 4-3 under, with our lack of a space eating NT (Pipkins tore his ACL). My understanding is the 4-3 under has that one space eater NT (Someone like Pipkins), and one knife and cut DT (Someone like Mike Martin). The 4-3 over has two DTs that are much more interchangeable with similar responsibilities, rather than one demanding double teams and the other cutting in.
DeleteHave also noticed that the heavy personnel flipping by formation in the under defense has caused UM problems with hurry up offenses. I think they'll have a little more flexibility to just line up and play in this new defense (when need be). Regardless, it sounds like GMatt will still play both. He has the experience at LB to be pretty multiple this season.
DeleteVery little written above reflects a top 10 ranking. To paraphrase your text: He does his job, unexceptionally. It sounds more like you want him to get passed over than he's vital to the team.
ReplyDeleteI feel that he must be doing something right that isn't obvious to the casual observer, given he is getting so much playing time at multiple positions.
He isn't a liability. He's not going to be that play making DE that racks up 10 sacks on the year, but he's also not going to give up any big plays. He's smart and his play recognition is good.
DeleteI want him to get passed over if someone is better, but I could say the same thing about any position. If we had a better MIKE linebacker than Jake Ryan, I would want him to get passed, too.
DeleteThe reason I put him at #10 is that our depth is so precarious. I know that Beyer can do his job adequately; I do not know that about Charlton or Poggi. Some other guys ranked lower appear to be quality players but have more depth. The SDE position is arguably one of the shallowest on the current roster.
The SDE in a 4-3 Under aligns outside the tackle and is responsible for the C-gap, but he's inside the TE--so on a running play to his side the SDE will often get doubled and need to stand his ground. The SAM would be the force player who aligns outside the TE and defends the D gap. In most of the the 4-3 Over charts I've seen, the SDE is lined-up outside the TE (in a 9-technique), where he's less likely get get doubled, and has the edge responsibility, with the SAM then becoming responsible for the C gap.
DeleteIt seems to me that lining Beyer up outside the TE mitigates the impact of his size limitations, at the cost of forcing several established players to adapt to new positions. But I still think we'll see plenty of the 4-3 Under, particularly when Beyer's backups are rotating in.
It's been interesting following your countdown (been a great read, by the way). I disagree with a lot of your rankings, but certainly appreciate the time you have put into them. Just my opinion, but I would probably have Beyer around #10 for defensive players only, but I don't know near as much about the sport as you. With that said, could you see the coaches moving Wormley or Godin to 5-tech if Beyer struggles, as I suspect he will?
ReplyDeleteThanks!
DeleteI do not believe Wormley or Godin will move to the "5-tech." Keep in mind that against formations with a tight end, Beyer will not be in a 5-tech (tackle's outside shoulder) but in a 9-tech (tight end's outside shoulder). Unless there are injury problems, those guys are defensive tackles unless or until Michigan goes to the Under.
Thank you for the information. Keep up the good work!
DeleteThere was an article on Mgoblog a few weeks back that broke down formations through Nebraska. According to their analysis (FWIW) we played the base Under defense 22% of the time last year. Furthermore, we already played a lot of Over defenses last year (13%).
DeleteMaybe that inconsistency is part of why our defense struggled a bit last year, relative to our expectations for a Mattison D. Iowa seems to do well just sticking to what they do and executing it consistently... But maybe inconsistency is fine. Maybe we need to think of defensive formations more like offensive ones - flexible with core concepts executed with varying personnel. Sure, you have a "base" formation and "starters", but you switch it up a lot.
The change in base formation may be somewhat nominal. A recognition that more often than not we will play spread teams and want to a) start out with our best player on the field and b) make it harder to gameplan/isolate Ryan. Anyway, in half our games we may be playing with nickel personnel more often than 3 linebackers.
Anyway, if/when we do go to more Under-looking formations I think it's logical that Michigan would try to better utilize a position where it has depth (DT).
Beyer is only the second player you put in the exact same spot I did, the first was Hagerup at 34. I ranked the expected starting 5 OL 28-32 because they were so ineffective last year. That's probably unfair to Glasgow and maybe to Magnuson who was playing out of position, but as for the others I have a hard time assigning a high ranking to guys who struggled so badly. I ranked Smith and Green 26 and 27 for the same reason, which wasn't too far off from your rankings of 21 and 29.
ReplyDeleteThat said, I'd put a lot more weight on your rankings than on my own.
Move Glasgow up your list, Anon. He'll probably be there best and most flexible OL this year. I can't imagine him going down.
DeleteLooking forward to seeing your top 10. Mine below FWIW (created roughly 2 weeks ago and consequently does not reflect recent practice observations):
ReplyDelete10) Beyer - Same as you
9) Countess - Potential star but Lewis/Taylor/Peppers/Stribling make him somewhat expendable
8) Kalis - Likely starter but likely not a huge drop off to Bosch
7) Ryan - Moving to a new position; Could move Bolden/Morgan over, also potentially strong backup in Gedeon
6) Glasgow - Most versatile lineman; virtually guaranteed to start somewhere
5) Clark - Best source of organic pash rush, likely large drop off to Ojemudia
4) Funchess - Only "proven" target although strong depth at position
3) Wilson - No real backup, potential to breakout, working alongside unproven starter
2) Magnuson - Only real left tackle type (assuming Cole is not ready - as state above this assumption was made prior to practice hype)
1) Gardner - Self explanatory
I really like your countdown, Thunder. I have to disagree with Beyer being this high, though. I wouldn't be surprised if a younger player takes his spot somewhere in the first few weeks. Maybe Taco. I like his athleticism. I like that Beyer is at least consistent, but he isn't anything special. A defensive lineman to only have around 30 tackles and not many for a loss seems like he should be a bench guy. I have to believe that SOMEONE on the bench can have a more productive season than Beyer. Our D-Line really needs to step up this year. Everyone talks about our secondary being good this year, but the D-Line needs to pressure quarterbacks and stop the run in the backfield, or else the secondary doesn't matter.
ReplyDelete