Todd Haley is almost as awkward as bellichek (Sp)?

heh. Yep. I saw that since day 1. His on air persona is so Bellichek like its scary....

His issue was that he hated playing next to another ILB, and I don't think it matters what version of the 3-4 he's in in that regard; it's going to be a problem. He wants to be a 4-3 MLB, because that's what he's most comfortable doing.

That's kind of what I'm afraid of. I thought he was the player we needed most in the draft last year. While he didn't really impress, what chance did he have with the surrounding cast and "coaching"? I really hope he doesn't get kicked to the curb because he doesn't fit the new regime/scheme. I don't see us getting much compensation for him if we do lose him - nothing like what we invested - and that would suck. Hopefully he thrives in the 3-4 end position or at least gets to play to his strengths as a 4-3 DT.

In the 3-4, you have a guy that plays similar to a 4-3 MLB and you have the other ILB play a role similar to a 4-3 WLB. Zach Thomas was in the "will" and he wants to play the Mike. Doesn't matter if it's 4-3 or 3-4. In the 3-4 he just wants to be the OTHER ILB.

They may not have much invested in him personally, but he's still on a 5-year, 50+ million contract, with nearly half of that guaranteed. So I doubt he gets kicked to the curb without a serious look. And Haley's talked about how they want to use him prior to now. Like I said, I think he was just caught off-guard by the question, and he just didn't answer it very well, because he's not all that media-savvy yet. I wouldn't read too much into it. Especially not on April 25th. If he sounds like that on August 25th, there might be more to it.

Hopefully.

Whether or not it will work remains to be seen, but I fully expect to see Dorsey playing NT this coming season.

if they looking at him in a " penetrating role" :Elvis: then he'll likely play DE in the 3-4 formation.

I don't think they will be, but that's just me.

Perhaps they will try Dorsey as a penetrating NT similar to what Ratliff and Dockett do.

Arizona plays a 4-3 under, so Dockett is still playing the 3T rather than the nose.

In the interview you referenced he directly stated that he was signed here as a middle linebacker and that's the way he liked it. He made a point about being a MLB again.

Ok Jay Ratliff that might be the comparison for Dorsey he is a completely different kind of NT than any other team has.

It's probably the best comparison, though Wade's 3-4 is a one-gap scheme and that is probably not what Pioli intends to construct. It's very different from what New England does.