Absolutely.

The thing is, we've tried adding free agents that provide that veteran leadership in the past with less than desirable results.

Bryce Paup was either miscast in our defense, finished as a player, or both.

We added Carnell Lake, who had one good year for us, then was done.

Same with Hardy Nickerson.

Hugh Douglas was an unmitigated disaster both from a production and leadership standpoint.

Reggie Hayward and Aaron Kampman were likely good examples in the locker room, but both got seriously injured early and did not stick around to make much impact.

But Calais Campbell has surpassed all of my expectations for him by a wide margin, and I'm thrilled.

He isn't the caliber of player Reggie White was.  Not a knock on Campbell at all.  But him coming here appears to be having a similar impact on and off field as White had when he went to Green Bay.

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I agree completely with this, especially the part in bold.

I would say White or Woodson would be the best comparisons as far as production and leadership. I just don’t get it. I understand he was 31 but the dude is playing elite football why on earth would the cardinals, who appeared to be in win now mode, let him get away?

I was about to say I had no idea.  Then I remembered that video that showed Campbell in the free agency process, and the Cardinals decided they couldn't match the deals we and Denver were offering. 

They seemed to have a really low offer.

I had my doubts about him producing at this level, but I'm thrilled they let him go, and I'm thrilled he's here.

If I recall correctly, Campbell has played most of his career in a 3-4, but he is having the most productive year of his career in a 4-3.  I wonder if the front is helping make him more productive.

If so, what could he have done sack wise in a 4-3 over the years?

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Worst to 1st.  Curse Reversed!

I would say White or Woodson would be the best comparisons as far as production and leadership. I just don’t get it. I understand he was 31 but the dude is playing elite football why on earth would the cardinals, who appeared to be in win now mode, let him get away?

I was about to say I had no idea.  Then I remembered that video that showed Campbell in the free agency process, and the Cardinals decided they couldn't match the deals we and Denver were offering. 

They seemed to have a really low offer.

I had my doubts about him producing at this level, but I'm thrilled they let him go, and I'm thrilled he's here.

If I recall correctly, Campbell has played most of his career in a 3-4, but he is having the most productive year of his career in a 4-3.  I wonder if the front is helping make him more productive.

If so, what could he have done sack wise in a 4-3 over the years?

Possibly. He is an anomaly for his body type and height. Not really fast but fast enough. Has length and elite strength. He also is a technical monster. It may have been defensive coordinators just didn’t know how to use him. He has been more of the set the edge guy. It could have simply been changing the scheme to make him this productive sack wise. 

Now I will say he has always been tops in the league when it comes to creating pressure. There’s some article out there that shows him being top 5 I think when it comes to just creating pressure on the qb. So I guess he was creating havoc just not getting the sacks. He sure is a shining star now.

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I was about to say I had no idea.  Then I remembered that video that showed Campbell in the free agency process, and the Cardinals decided they couldn't match the deals we and Denver were offering. 

They seemed to have a really low offer.

I had my doubts about him producing at this level, but I'm thrilled they let him go, and I'm thrilled he's here.

If I recall correctly, Campbell has played most of his career in a 3-4, but he is having the most productive year of his career in a 4-3.  I wonder if the front is helping make him more productive.

If so, what could he have done sack wise in a 4-3 over the years?

Possibly. He is an anomaly for his body type and height. Not really fast but fast enough. Has length and elite strength. He also is a technical monster. It may have been defensive coordinators just didn’t know how to use him. He has been more of the set the edge guy. It could have simply been changing the scheme to make him this productive sack wise. 

Now I will say he has always been tops in the league when it comes to creating pressure. There’s some article out there that shows him being top 5 I think when it comes to just creating pressure on the qb. So I guess he was creating havoc just not getting the sacks. He sure is a shining star now.

The secondary is giving him the extra half second to convert those pressures into sacks.
I do love his constant praise of the secondary.

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Possibly. He is an anomaly for his body type and height. Not really fast but fast enough. Has length and elite strength. He also is a technical monster. It may have been defensive coordinators just didn’t know how to use him. He has been more of the set the edge guy. It could have simply been changing the scheme to make him this productive sack wise. 

Now I will say he has always been tops in the league when it comes to creating pressure. There’s some article out there that shows him being top 5 I think when it comes to just creating pressure on the qb. So I guess he was creating havoc just not getting the sacks. He sure is a shining star now.

The secondary is giving him the extra half second to convert those pressures into sacks.
I do love his constant praise of the secondary.

I don't doubt that is a factor, but he's had good secondaries in Arizona, too, and he never had a year like this.

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Worst to 1st.  Curse Reversed!

Remember when this guy was on his way out basically right after tossing some guys groceries in a lake?
I said it would go away if he performed on the field.... he's performed well.

Hopefully he keeps getting better

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I was thinking that this morning.

He deserves a ton of credit, in my estimation.

I think Campbell as a mentor as much as Campbell as a player is a big factor as well.

Agreed. Big influence, IMO.

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Big time bust. Its quite obvious.

LOL!!!!

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The worst part is Fowler is actually playing out of position, that guy is a linebacker. Just so happens he can rush the passer...somewhat.

You can tell by the way he tackles, and when the play breaks down instead of rushing forward he drifts back in coverage.

It really is his problem that he's just overcoming. Dude is really a LB.

But he's doing very well right now. He would excel as a 3-4 linebacker.

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Not a LB.

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This thread is pure gold. Soooooo many idiots out there.

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Coughlin when asked if winning will be a focus: "What the hell else is there? This is nice and dandy, but winning is what all this is about."

You must be one of the Alfie minions.  There are always people like you that say "yeah but" for whatever reason.  The guy has been producing and is listed as #12 in the league in sacks.  It may not impress you (as if that really matters) but he's been pretty solid.  I'll take that any day when you have two of his teammates above him on the list.

Nah, sack totals just don't mean that much to me. There is far too much noise in numbers that are so small one or two fluke plays in either direction can significantly skew the truth. I simply remember several games where we were collectively asking if Fowler was even playing in the game and then a silly play would happen where Flacco had a design roll right into him, or a RB or TE were designed to block him 1-1, etc. I am still not seeing him beat OTs (other than the aforementioned Giacomo who is the worst RT in the league) very often at all.

What are you even talking about dude, so your telling me you watched every single top 15 sack guy in the NFL every play to see how they got their sacks and who it was against? You do know Fowler is on the field a lot less then Yanick and still have numbers close to him as far as sacks, tackles, ff's ect.

You just dont want to give the guy his credit.

One thing I never understood about his haters, he is a guy who plays hard 100% of the time, you would think people would like that.

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<B><FONT color=cyan>Jags this is your year</FONT></B>

The worst part is Fowler is actually playing out of position, that guy is a linebacker. Just so happens he can rush the passer...somewhat.

You can tell by the way he tackles, and when the play breaks down instead of rushing forward he drifts back in coverage.

It really is his problem that he's just overcoming. Dude is really a LB.

But he's doing very well right now. He would excel as a 3-4 linebacker.

This thread is the gift that keeps on giving apparently.

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I still haven't been that impressed. He isn't making very many impactful plays while the game still matters. He beats cellar dweller RTs (Giacomo dead last in pressures), a lot of TE and RB, and then he piles on at the end of blowouts.

Those two plays at the very end of the Jets game are really the only two plays that have opened my eyes as impact plays that actually might/should have mattered to the outcome. Other than that it looks like a guy who takes advantage of being the forgotten 4th best pass rusher on a dline that defenses just occasionally forget to account for.

I see what you're saying, but at the same time Fowler can't dicatate who he goes up against.  Fact of the matter is, he is getting those sacks, that's all there is to it.  He isn't the only player teeing off on scrubs.  If it was that easy to get to the QB everyone would be doing it.  And this coming from a former Fowler basher.  I changed my mind on him in the preseason when it was obvious that he improved.

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Why would anyone resurrect this thread? Gotta prove that you were the one person not on the "Fowler is a bust" band wagon?

No, it was bumped to show how stupid it is to call a player a bust half way through his first season played, not to mention coming off an ACL.  Not counting the penalties, Fowler's play last year wasnt as bad as some made it sound.  He didnt really have that bad of a rookie year and people was calling him a bust half way through it.

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I thought he was just in his "2nd" year, and had five or so sacks in seven games. Certainly not a bust, maybe looking better than reality due to the secondary being super good.

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"Gentlemen, it is better to have died a small boy than to fumble this football" - John Heisman

I see what you're saying, but at the same time Fowler can't dicatate who he goes up against.  Fact of the matter is, he is getting those sacks, that's all there is to it.  He isn't the only player teeing off on scrubs.  If it was that easy to get to the QB everyone would be doing it.  And this coming from a former Fowler basher.  I changed my mind on him in the preseason when it was obvious that he improved.

Yes he gets credit for actually doing it, it shows up in the box score. I am simply adding more nuance to it. He is more talented than other 4th pass rushers and he takes advantage of being the forgotten man. If he were counted on to be one of the keyed upon pass rushers like he was drafted to be we would be calling him a big disappointment still.

Also, I was never one that called him a bust nor would I now. Just pointing out that the box score can lie, especially when it comes to sacks, and in Dante's case it is fibbing at least. He's doing fine for what his role is, but I've seen plenty of people saying he should get pro bowl consideration and gtfo with that nonsense.

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Jerrad, Yo Boy, and Brooklyn.....the real brains of this message board. Whatever they say, it's the opposite.

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Jerrad, Yo Boy, and Brooklyn.....the real brains of this message board. Whatever they say, it's the opposite.

Can't really dispute that... unless you live in mama's basement and play Madden all the time.

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There are 10 kinds of people in this world.  Those who understand binary and those who don't.