Direckshun
06-24-2007, 11:00 AM
We all know the basic rap sheet on OT Damion McIntosh, who's by far our biggest and most important FA signing we've made this offseason. Considering how thin the FA field was, especially at LT, it's amazing we got a guy who's given up his impressive stats of the last couple years.
The basic rap sheet is that he's an OG turned LT, and that he's performed admirably the last couple seasons on a patchwork Miami OL.
But how does he actually play?
I wasn't sure myself, so I scoured the internet a whopping 3 minutes to see what individual characteristics he exhibited on the field, so we could get a feel for the guy before he stepped onto the field. I've stuck with reliable sources like scout websites rather than trying to dig up anything worthwhile on ****ing Fin Heaven.
I've done this already with Jon McGraw and Alphonso Boone, and it was an enlightening experience, so there you go.
What do we know with Damion McIntosh?
The good: Great size and experience. Smart blocker with "some" quickness. Not the textbook LT that Roaf was, but still excels with angles and body leverage. I'm not well versed in types of blocking, but apparently he's adept at "cutoff" and "reach" blocks. Great at mauling defenders with his huge body. Is especially agile and can mirror and slide well. Great punch. Good nose for tricky pass rushing schemes.
The bad: Can get the job done, but isn't going to blow you away with his athleticism. Some injury history. Doesn't have much of a mean streak (I have sources that go both ways on this -- Herm himself has suggested McIntosh has a mean streak). Not a very good pulling blocker. Doesn't recover particularly well. Will struggle if he faces a pass rusher that is extremely powerful or extremely fast.
My personal opinion: while I am skeptical of our OL this season, I do think the left side of our line is set for the oncoming year. Waters + McIntosh is a great setup over there. It's entirely possible that McIntosh is a stopgap solution, but he does show the ability to hold LT down for a few years if it takes us a while to draft a stud or bring one in from FA.
The basic rap sheet is that he's an OG turned LT, and that he's performed admirably the last couple seasons on a patchwork Miami OL.
But how does he actually play?
I wasn't sure myself, so I scoured the internet a whopping 3 minutes to see what individual characteristics he exhibited on the field, so we could get a feel for the guy before he stepped onto the field. I've stuck with reliable sources like scout websites rather than trying to dig up anything worthwhile on ****ing Fin Heaven.
I've done this already with Jon McGraw and Alphonso Boone, and it was an enlightening experience, so there you go.
What do we know with Damion McIntosh?
The good: Great size and experience. Smart blocker with "some" quickness. Not the textbook LT that Roaf was, but still excels with angles and body leverage. I'm not well versed in types of blocking, but apparently he's adept at "cutoff" and "reach" blocks. Great at mauling defenders with his huge body. Is especially agile and can mirror and slide well. Great punch. Good nose for tricky pass rushing schemes.
The bad: Can get the job done, but isn't going to blow you away with his athleticism. Some injury history. Doesn't have much of a mean streak (I have sources that go both ways on this -- Herm himself has suggested McIntosh has a mean streak). Not a very good pulling blocker. Doesn't recover particularly well. Will struggle if he faces a pass rusher that is extremely powerful or extremely fast.
My personal opinion: while I am skeptical of our OL this season, I do think the left side of our line is set for the oncoming year. Waters + McIntosh is a great setup over there. It's entirely possible that McIntosh is a stopgap solution, but he does show the ability to hold LT down for a few years if it takes us a while to draft a stud or bring one in from FA.