Why Cam Brown is such a unique player for the NY Giants
By David Solow
Besides one strong year in 2016, the NY Giants defense has ranked near the bottom of the league for nearly a decade. Much of the blame belongs to the linebackers that the Giants have utilized throughout the years. Despite being a 6th round pick, Cam Brown has a unique skill set and can offer solutions to many problems the G-Men have encountered at the second level of their defense.
Cam Brown is very different than other linebackers the NY Giants have drafted in recent years. Besides Ryan Connelly, the only middle linebacker the G-Men have selected since 2012 was B.J. Goodson.
At his best, Goodson was a tackling machine and considered a thumper in the middle. He had a nose for the football, but he struggled in coverage and lacked the athleticism to chase down ball carriers sideline-to-sideline. He was traded last year to Green Bay for just the rights to swap 7th round picks.
A smorgasbord of starting middle linebackers like Jameel McClain, Jasper Brinkley, Kelvin Sheppard, and Alec Ogletree had similar issues with athleticism over the years. Even Antonio Pierce and Chase Blackburn, the starting middle linebackers on the two most recent Super Bowl teams, did not possess elite athletic traits and struggled in coverage. It is no wonder the team has had trouble covering tight ends down the middle of the field.
Cam Brown possesses the kind of measurables and versatility that the Big Blue linebacking corps has been missing. Although Brown was a 6th round pick by Dave Gettleman, some mock drafts had the former Nittany Lion going in the 4th round.
What about Cam Brown makes him so unique? In this article, I analyze Brown’s special traits and how they can help the NY Giants defense get back on track.