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Name: Anthony Solomon
Height: 6'1"
Weight: 212 lbs.
High school: Fort Lauderdale (FL) Saint Thomas Aquinas
Position: Linebacker
Class: Junior
Jersey number: #10
Last year: I ranked Solomon #37 and said he would be a backup linebacker (LINK). He made 5 tackles.
TTB Rating: 84
Going into the 2020 season, Solomon was considered to be the top backup at two different linebacker positions: WILL and Viper. I always thought he was too light to play an inside linebacker position like WILL, and he never got on the field there. But still, I think it was significant that he was thought to be the do-everything linebacker, which seems to be a sign that the coaches see a future for him.
Now that the 2021 season is almost here, I'm not sure where Solomon fits, if at all. He has struggled to put on weight, and if Michigan is going to play a 3-4, the inside linebackers need to be pretty stout. At the same time, the outside linebackers probably need to be taller and longer. This might be a Frankenstein year for the defense as the coaching staff takes disparate pieces to try to mold what they want, so while I don't think Solomon will start, he must be capable of doing some things that would keep him near the top of the depth chart. Considering the injury potential at linebacker (Cam McGrone, Josh Ross, and Devin Bush have each suffered season-ending injuries the past three years), Solomon may be forced into a bigger role as the year goes along.
Prediction: Backup linebacker
Solomon is another I forgot was on the roster. At his size - or lack of - I too wonder where he will fit in
ReplyDeletePositive practice reports since he got here but I think he was locked in to the viper spot last year behind Barrett. I guess we'll see about fit in the new scheme but I agree with Thunder's "frankenstein" line of thinking. At some point, they're going to have to put the best players on the field. Solomon is a decent bet to be there in some form, IMO.
ReplyDeleteI'm still a bit incredulous at the idea that Michigan won't have a place for small fast LBs who can cover in space. This just seems like a reality of modern football... unless you can recruit the 5-stars who are big, fast, and can cover in space.
How can you put 3DTs out there beside a DL at OLB, and the 'stout' i.e., slow LBs and survive against your typical spread offense? Of course you can lift someone from the front 7, you can be multiple in who you put out there, -- until somebody tempos you to oblivion or puts their speedy RB or hybrid TE in the slot and runs 4 verts.
There's limited control of personnel via substitutions on the defensive side of the ball. You need to be multiple, but you need some of your PLAYERS to be multiple too. I'm having a hard time with the idea that a SAM can drop into coverage nearly as well as a quasi-safety can use his speed to function as a SAM.
-LANK
Junior Colson will likely have more of an impact this year than Solomon. Certainly in the long run he will! Colson could be all BIG 10 in a couple years.
ReplyDelete