2024 Vols will have the best d-line in the country....BY FAR

[PEPPERJAX]

True. It's not much. Which is why I don't get why you're not willing to say if Hooker doesn't live up to that measly standard that he was a product of circumstance here at Tennessee rather than being a superior talent.

He was a super talent at UT and that is more important to me than what VFLs do in the league. If they find success after their collegiate careers, then good for them.

 

[butchna]

True. It's not much. Which is why I don't get why you're not willing to say if Hooker doesn't live up to that measly standard that he was a product of circumstance here at Tennessee rather than being a superior talent.

You’re having a conversation with somebody else…not MY assertion. I think Hooker has a slightly better passing acumen while Dobbs is the far superior open field runner. They’re BOTH limited quarterback talents who are good enough to be longtime backup options. Which doesn’t jibe with your narrative of Dobbs as a frontline starter.

 

[calban]

Just watched some of the early footage from day 1 of fall camp and it looks like we have a loaded roster. Talent all over the field. But the group that stands out above the rest is the d-line. It's insane how much talent and depth we have at that position. We literally can go 3-deep at every defensive line position with guys who are quality SEC starters and potential future pros. I don't think there's a team in the country that comes close to our talent level on the defensive line.

2 guys who stood out to me that could have breakout seasons were #97 Jayson Jenkins and #29 Jordan Ross. Both look like grown men. Ross being a true freshman and already looking like the most impressive physical specimen on the d-line is crazy. I think he ends up being better than James Pearce when it's all said and done.

Don't know about best in C, but I 've always admired Rodney for the product he puts on the field wherever he goes. The longer he stays the better we'll get in that area.

 

[Devo182]

Was excited until I saw who OP was.

Fwiw I think a top 10 DL is a very reasonable expectation actually.

 

[VolBallGuy]

D-Line for Heisman

 

[VOLience]

Just watched some of the early footage from day 1 of fall camp and it looks like we have a loaded roster. Talent all over the field. But the group that stands out above the rest is the d-line. It's insane how much talent and depth we have at that position. We literally can go 3-deep at every defensive line position with guys who are quality SEC starters and potential future pros. I don't think there's a team in the country that comes close to our talent level on the defensive line.

2 guys who stood out to me that could have breakout seasons were #97 Jayson Jenkins and #29 Jordan Ross. Both look like grown men. Ross being a true freshman and already looking like the most impressive physical specimen on the d-line is crazy. I think he ends up being better than James Pear

 

[Dobbs 4 Heisman]

Gotta GET to year 2 first…Early Churly.

You must not be reading the practice reports from Lions camp. Hendon has been struggling. He's currently running 3rd on the depth chart with accuracy issues and throwing picks.





He needs to play well in the preseason if he wants to do what Dobbs did in Year 2 which was to win the backup job.

 

[Dobbs 4 Heisman]

You're using zero logic and, as a bonus, ignoring your own history.

Yes or no, you've repeatedly used "greatness takes time" or "just wait" when kicking the can down the road hoping for one of your prognostications to pan out. Now given that why the hell would you take Hendon to task for coming off a rookie season where

1:he was coming off major knee surgery and
2:even if healthy he was backing up the league's #2 in yards and #4 in TD's (the fact that it's Goff we're talking about makes it even funnier)

That kind of comparison could only be made by someone who put in zero thought or is an idiot.

The problem here is he's not even the backup right now. He's allegedly been running 3rd team QB in camp and struggling with accuracy.

Hendon will need a strong preseason to match what Dobbs did in Year 2. Remember the NFL is unforgiving. If Dobbs had not been spectacular in the 2018 preseason he likely would have been cut by the Steelers and his NFL dream would have ended there. Instead he balled out and is now still collecting NFL checks.

Hendon Hooker is in danger of being out of the league right now.

 

[Dobbs 4 Heisman]

You’re having a conversation with somebody else…not MY assertion. I think Hooker has a slightly better passing acumen while Dobbs is the far superior open field runner. They’re BOTH limited quarterback talents who are good enough to be longtime backup options. Which doesn’t jibe with your narrative of Dobbs as a frontline starter.

Non-sequitar. We're not talking about Dobbs potential as a starter. We're talking Dobbs vs Hooker. Your contention is Hooker was better than Dobbs because he had more collegiate success. I said that success was a product of circumstance not superior talent. To prove my argument that Hooker was not a superior talent to Dobbs I said let us look to their success in the NFL as a barometer for who was the better player. Instead of agreeing or disagreeing with me on using NFL success as a barometer for judging who was the better QB you instead engaged in the non-sequitar argument of bringing up Dobbs lack of success as a starting QB in the NFL.

Stay on topic.

 

[hndog609]

The problem here is he's not even the backup right now. He's allegedly been running 3rd team QB in camp and struggling with accuracy.

Hendon will need a strong preseason to match what Dobbs did in Year 2. Remember the NFL is unforgiving. If Dobbs had not been spectacular in the 2018 preseason he likely would have been cut by the Steelers and his NFL dream would have ended there. Instead he balled out and is now still collecting NFL checks.

Hendon Hooker is in danger of being out of the league right now.

Since you're locked up why you're argument is so poor let's simplify it for you. Forget Hooker. Make it player X. You tried to take one player with a long observable career and leverage it into a comparison with someone who has their whole NFL resume being a rookie campaign where they were on IR til mid December. It doesn't matter much with the particulars it's not a good way to frame an argument.

Now having said the above if we are going to talk Hooker I don't know how it will turn out but up to this point we're you aware of this?

MSN

 

[VolKnight9]

In his second NFL season Dobbs won the backup job behind Big Ben and played in 5 regular season games. Most were mop up duty but he did complete a significant 3rd down pass against Baltimore backed up in his goal line that helped Pittsburgh win that game. And he played extensively against the Oakland Raiders that year after Big Ben got roughed up.

So by year 2 Dobbs was making plays in the regular season. Let's see if Hooker can win the backup job in Year 2 like Dobbs did before talking crazy.

You’re comparing apples to oranges… Dobbs was making plays in year 2 because of where Big Ben was at in his career. Hooker probably won’t see the field because Goff is in the prime of his career. I don’t really understand the argument that Dobbs is/was better than Hooker anyway. Dobbs was great and I love the guy but Hooker took the team to a whole different level.

 

[butchna]

Non-sequitar. We're not talking about Dobbs potential as a starter. We're talking Dobbs vs Hooker. Your contention is Hooker was better than Dobbs because he had more collegiate success. I said that success was a product of circumstance not superior talent. To prove my argument that Hooker was not a superior talent to Dobbs I said let us look to their success in the NFL as a barometer for who was the better player. Instead of agreeing or disagreeing with me on using NFL success as a barometer for judging who was the better QB you instead engaged in the non-sequitar argument of bringing up Dobbs lack of success as a starting QB in the NFL.

Stay on topic.

You exercise Ali’s Rope-A-Dope in ALL of your clown shows, so quit flexing that anybody else veers off-course. Dobbs has a SEVEN season of fully healthy sample size to gauge his PRO LEVEL SUCCESS. Hooker is entering his first with last season rehabbing from a knee injury. Narrative spinners with their biased intentions want to compare them…but Dobbs was a fully healthy rookie and sat!

I think Hooker’s a better product…similar talent. Gonna need to live with that take or explore your options.

 

[butchna]

You must not be reading the practice reports from Lions camp. Hendon has been struggling. He's currently running 3rd on the depth chart with accuracy issues and throwing picks.





He needs to play well in the preseason if he wants to do what Dobbs did in Year 2 which was to win the backup job.

Picking and choosing your tweets to bolster your bs? How about the one from the Lions OC praising his accuracy?

 

[Woodlawn VOL]

Dobbs most of us grew up on UT football, we don’t need a lesson on it. Just quit. GBO

 

[knoxvol52]

If I didn't know better I would swear that D4H is Josh Dobb's agent Mike McCartney.

 

[LibertyVolance]

If I remember correctly, Dee Beckwith was referred to as a "physical specimen".

I don't recall who all were pumping up the debut of one Kahlil McKenzie in 2015. I certainly don't want to hang that on D4H, but it seems like I remember several people talking about how he couldn't be blocked. Some even chimed in that he was hurting our OLinesmen attempting to block him. This was before he ever played a down of college ball.

After that experience, many of us probably demanded real time game experience rather than relying on speculative claims of a recruit's ability. At that particular time, we were desperate for a stopper on the DLine. Tuttle turned out pretty good, but most of those years were lean times on our defensive front. We even cheered on a walk-on who gave us some credible minutes when he wasn't getting his head caved in. Times were hard then. Mighty hard.

 

[Dobbs 4 Heisman]

Since you're locked up why you're argument is so poor let's simplify it for you. Forget Hooker. Make it player X. You tried to take one player with a long observable career and leverage it into a comparison with someone who has their whole NFL resume being a rookie campaign where they were on IR til mid December. It doesn't matter much with the particulars it's not a good way to frame an argument.

Now having said the above if we are going to talk Hooker I don't know how it will turn out but up to this point we're you aware of this?

MSN

Wrong. I'm not talking about Dobbs accomplishments in the NFL past year 2. I said if you think Hendon is better than Dobbs then he should be doing better in Year 2 than Dobbs in Year 2. And thus far he isn't doing better. Hendon is currently 3rd on the Lions depth chart, he's struggling in camp, and there are reports he might get traded. Now Dobbs in Year 2 was in a similar circumstance. The Steelers had just drafted Mason Rudolph to replace him. The current backup was Landry Jones. Pretty much everyone had him getting cut. So what did he do? He balled out in the preseason, won the backup job, and extended his career.

Hendon's got some work to do if he wants to keep pace with Dobbs in Year 2.

 

[Dobbs 4 Heisman]

I don’t really understand the argument that Dobbs is/was better than Hooker anyway. Dobbs was great and I love the guy but Hooker took the team to a whole different level.

My argument is Huepel's offense made Hooker appear to be better than Dobbs when in reality he isn't. Put Dobbs in Hooker's shoes and we beat Georgia in 2022 and are headed to the natty. Dobbs would have been better than Hooker in the same position. And if Hooker played for Butch there's no way we go 9-4 in back to back years.

 

[Dobbs 4 Heisman]

You exercise Ali’s Rope-A-Dope in ALL of your clown shows, so quit flexing that anybody else veers off-course. Dobbs has a SEVEN season of fully healthy sample size to gauge his PRO LEVEL SUCCESS. Hooker is entering his first with last season rehabbing from a knee injury. Narrative spinners with their biased intentions want to compare them…but Dobbs was a fully healthy rookie and sat!

I think Hooker’s a better product…similar talent. Gonna need to live with that take or explore your options.

Once again another non-sequitar. I've not used Dobbs entire NFL career against Hooker. I've simply cited how each have performed thus far heading into Year 2. Right now Hendon is 3rd on the Lions depth chart and struggling in camp according to reporters. There are also reports saying the Lions might trade him. Dobbs in Year 2 played spectacularly in the preseason, won the backup job, and extended his career. In Year 2 there was a good chance if Dobbs had been cut he might not be in the league right now.

If Hooker is better than Dobbs then surely he should be able to win the backup job with the Lions like Dobbs did in Pittsburgh. I'm rooting for Hendon but if he doesn't play well this preseason he might be outta the league sooner rather than later. The NFL is very unforgiving.

 

[butchna]

Once again another non-sequitar. I've not used Dobbs entire NFL career against Hooker. I've simply cited how each have performed thus far heading into Year 2. Right now Hendon is 3rd on the Lions depth chart and struggling in camp according to reporters. There are also reports saying the Lions might trade him. Dobbs in Year 2 played spectacularly in the preseason, won the backup job, and extended his career. In Year 2 there was a good chance if Dobbs had been cut he might not be in the league right now.

If Hooker is better than Dobbs then surely he should be able to win the backup job with the Lions like Dobbs did in Pittsburgh. I'm rooting for Hendon but if he doesn't play well this preseason he might be outta the league sooner rather than later. The NFL is very unforgiving.

“Heading into year two” Dobbs hadn’t taken a snap in the regular season…just like Hooker. So “non-sequitor” another one. “Reports” after one week of camp vs the OC praising him. And you’re COMPARING Dobbs second preseason (which I assume includes GAMES?) to Hooker who has yet to play a preseason game until DETROIT plays one. I remember how much stock you took in REPORTS that Mason Rudolph would take Dobbs roster spot. Which didn’t happen only because Landry Jones was released and Mason Rudolph took over top backup spot…leaving Dobbs as third stringer…again. You were in the rafters huffin and puffin about Dobbs taking over midway during the season and never giving it up all the way to the HOF, yet he never started a game. Devlin Hodges did…but never your boy. I think I remember you digging the credibility of those REPORTERS. They that much worse than Twitter dudes from Detroit?

 

[Dobbs 4 Heisman]

“Heading into year two” Dobbs hadn’t taken a snap in the regular season…just like Hooker. So “non-sequitor” another one. “Reports” after one week of camp vs the OC praising him. And you’re COMPARING Dobbs second preseason (which I assume includes GAMES?) to Hooker who has yet to play a preseason game until DETROIT plays one. I remember how much stock you took in REPORTS that Mason Rudolph would take Dobbs roster spot. Which didn’t happen only because Landry Jones was released and Mason Rudolph took over top backup spot…leaving Dobbs as third stringer…again. You were in the rafters huffin and puffin about Dobbs taking over midway during the season and never giving it up all the way to the HOF, yet he never started a game. Devlin Hodges did…but never your boy. I think I remember you digging the credibility of those REPORTERS. They that much worse than Twitter dudes from Detroit?

If you remember I said let's see if Hooker can match Dobbs. I haven't counted out Hooker just yet. I'm rooting for him. I just wish you would admit that if he can't match what Dobbs has done in the NFL then that would mean he wasn't the better talent in college and that his superior success was a result of circumstance rather than superior talent.

 

[hndog609]

Wrong. I'm not talking about Dobbs accomplishments in the NFL past year 2. I said if you think Hendon is better than Dobbs then he should be doing better in Year 2 than Dobbs in Year 2. And thus far he isn't doing better. Hendon is currently 3rd on the Lions depth chart, he's struggling in camp, and there are reports he might get traded. Now Dobbs in Year 2 was in a similar circumstance. The Steelers had just drafted Mason Rudolph to replace him. The current backup was Landry Jones. Pretty much everyone had him getting cut. So what did he do? He balled out in the preseason, won the backup job, and extended his career.

Hendon's got some work to do if he wants to keep pace with Dobbs in Year 2.

You need a CAT scan, a psychiatrist or both. If you (meaning anyone) try to compare any portion of a veteran's career to someone (doesn't matter who) that literally is in the first fall camp of their career it makes you look like an idjit. There's simply not enough information. (If you have your meds calibration right you'll note none of that was predicated on having anything to do with Dobbs or Hooker)

Now if we are talking those two after camp/preseason you'll at least have "something" to work with.

 

[butchna]

If you remember I said let's see if Hooker can match Dobbs. I haven't counted out Hooker just yet. I'm rooting for him. I just wish you would admit that if he can't match what Dobbs has done in the NFL then that would mean he wasn't the better talent in college and that his superior success was a result of circumstance rather than superior talent.

IF. You never phrased it that way. But there’s not much to “match”. That has nothing to do with TALENT. You keep arguing that Allen is more talented than Mahomes and he hasn’t MATCHED him. Hooker won more with INFERIOR talent (by your own words). Clear case.

 

[VolKnight9]

My argument is Huepel's offense made Hooker appear to be better than Dobbs when in reality he isn't. Put Dobbs in Hooker's shoes and we beat Georgia in 2022 and are headed to the natty. Dobbs would have been better than Hooker in the same position. And if Hooker played for Butch there's no way we go 9-4 in back to back years.

I mean I guess there is a possibility that could be true but we will never know. Personally Hooker throws the ball better than Dobbs ever did. Dobbs was a better runner but stats don’t lie most of the time. What about if Dobbs played for Heupel? I mean there’s always an argument that can be made for someone in a specific system…. Like I said, the same could be said about Dobbs being a part of Heupels offense. He could have been terrible in his offense. But isn’t that the way it’s supposed to be though? You recruit based on your system and how it’s ran.

 

[LittleVol]

I can think of at least three or four schools with better quality and depth at the D line.

Alabama, Georgia, Ohio State, LSU...

Nah...

Only UGA had a better run defense than Tennessee of that list of yours...
And our line created more pressures!
Go check NCAA stat rankings

So Georgia and that's it.