How would Bruce Smith have fared in a 4-3 setup

[BillsfaninSixburgh]

Without Darryl Talley motivating his butt, it wouldn't have mattered whether he was in 3-4 or 4-3, he wouldn't have become the player he was. In a 4-3, he would have gotten more sacks.

[leh-nerd skin-erd]

I got to thinking today that Bruce spent most of his career as an elite end on a 3-4 setup...any thoughts as to how he would have done if Buffalo was a 4-3 for all those years?

not to flog a dead horse, he would have had to fight through a lot of diversity, but he would have been....astronomical.

[BADOLBILZ]

But don't all good pass rushing DEs have multiple sack games that pad their stats? I'm sure it's the same for Smith. He had one sack in four super bowls, after all.

 

He also had two sacks against Williams in three games, not one in three. White lined up against Dallas four times in the playoffs, but only faced Williams three times because Williams missed the January 1995 game due to a knee injury (caused by his infamous car crash): http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Erik_Williams. Williams also played essentially ten full seasons for Dallas, not just a handful ( http://www.pro-football-reference.com/players/W/WillEr01.htm ).

 

 

Having said all of this, I would choose Smith, just like you. But I do think there's an argument for White. It's not an open and shut case.

 

Btw, I haven't ignored any of your points - I basically agree with you. In terms of the particulars re: Smith, your analysis of his game is entirely spot on. I'm just offering an alternative view.

 

I'm certain the game I am thinking about where White was totally shutout was with Philly. It was at the point where the two were officially crossing each other, the Cowboys becoming a champion and clearly passing the Eagles. It likely wasn't the playoffs but I haven't been able to find tackle stats for individual games on White that far back. Williams was a shadow of his previous self after the car accident.

 

And yeah, I'm not arguing against the value of multi-sack games. I never do that. It's a popular arguing technique here on the wall though.

[lets_go_bills]

20 sacks/year if he was an end in the 4-3. But with his size he may have been moved inside on occasion. It's a moot point because he already is the greatest DE/sack artist of all time.

[dave mcbride]

I'm certain the game I am thinking about where White was totally shutout was with Philly. It was at the point where the two were officially crossing each other, the Cowboys becoming a champion and clearly passing the Eagles. It likely wasn't the playoffs but I haven't been able to find tackle stats for individual games on White that far back. Williams was a shadow of his previous self after the car accident.

 

And yeah, I'm not arguing against the value of multi-sack games. I never do that. It's a popular arguing technique here on the wall though.

I definitely believe you're right about that sort of thing happening in an important late season Eagles-Dallas game (essentially a playoff game) -- Williams was *that* good prior to the balls-to-the-wall (literally) car crash at 75 mph. He never was as good afterward, but he did become a Runyan-like RT. Certainly not bad. Not that the pro bowl means anything, but he made it a bunch of times in the late 1990s.