Berry or Matthieu?

Who was better in college?

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#176
#176
Guarantee there is some Alabamian in here reading my post thinking, "What does a sleeping skunk have to do with Berry and Mathieu?"
 
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#184
#184
smokey79 said:
Honey Badger is more of a playmaker than Berry was.
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If you're counting special teams then sure. Berry did very little, but defensively I disagree.

I'm not saying berry was much better, but berry was lock down on one side of the field. He laid out bruising RBs like Tate and Moreno. He 360'd an Alabama receiver (maze) I think. He took on Tebow head on!

I remember watching the game with our anemic offense and 98% of my scoring hope came because I knew at anytime Berry could house it.

He is 2nd all time in int yards. He had 7 interceptions his sophomore year before they realized they probably should throw near him.

Berry was absolutely a play maker. Mathieu does force a lot of fumbles granted. But when you are up against big, strong receivers he gets dragged for 20 yards. Ask DaRick if that's truth.
 
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#185
#185
Mathieu is a ballhawk and a playmaker of the highest order.

But he does not match up physically with most WR's in the country. Luckily for him LSU has other elite defensive backs so he can sit back and hunt for the ball.

Berry is already an upper-echelon DB in the NFL, Mathieu does not project into the League as a cover guy whatsoever, and would be surprised if he found his way into anyone's secondary for considerable game time. He likely translates to a KR/PR dime package at best.
 
#186
#186
UTCVol said:
As far as being a pure DB, he is no EB and honestly isn't the best on his own team. Dude makes some big plays though, on both D and special teams. That's why he'll be in NYC.
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This IMO. Berry is invaluable to any team his is on, but Matthieu is just a gamechanger.
 
#187
#187
How many kicks did Berry return? Few. He played offense on a few plays. We couldn't risk it. TM makes plays , but he isn't the player Berry is. Two different styles. Berry is better on and off the field. Look at what Da'rick did to him this year. There is no way he will get away with the way he plays in the NFL. TM is better than an NFL Pro Bowl Rookie? Child please.

No need for this topic in the Tennessee football section. Merge it with the one in around NCAA.
 
#189
#189
The prettiest girl is always the last to walk by...

Eric Berry in 3 years had 14 interceptions, 3 FF, and 3 defensive touchdowns.

That's a lot of swag if you ask me. Not to mention he had 157 solo tackles.

With that said, Mathieu absolutely deserves to be compared as a collegiate player; but I think some have forgotten Berry's game changing ability. Imagine if Eric Berry played on the 2011 LSU team. Yeah, scary.
 
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#191
#191
Matthieu was non-existent until a week ago... Berry his freshmen year is better than Mattieu will ever be... he had 222 return yards and 86 tackles. Now, special teams, Mattieu is better.
If Berry was in Mattieu's position during the Tenn game, Eric Berry huge hit! - YouTube this is how it would've ended.
 
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#192
#192
davethevol said:
Dang, they'd probably have a perfect season with him playing.
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I wasn't referring to LSU's success, but the individual success as deducted by the context of the conversation. Berry played a much less talented defense where you could scheme away from him; not so much with this year's LSU defense.
 
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#193
#193
UGA insider said:
Berry was a great player while at UT, nobody can deny that.

Still, I would take Matthieu. The guy is a playmaker and should be considered for the Heisman IMO.
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Yeah, against you guys, but against us he had 1 tackle and it was him getting dragged for 15 yards.
 
#194
#194
Mathieu and Berry play very differently. Mathieu is more of a turnover creator. He doesn't try and crush people, but he manages to tie them up in situations where he can get the ball. He also returns punts, something Berry didn't do a whole lot at Tennessee.

However, I'd take Berry. Homer, yes. However, the guy is more mentally sound than Mathieu and can make adjustments on the fly. His coverage skills also outshine TM7 as well.
 
#195
#195
Both are, without question, great players but they possess distinctively different skillsets. The Honey Badger is more dynamic in the return game but how would he fare taking on Tim Tebow in the open field? I don’t think nearly as well as Eric did. Do a Youtube search for footage of that famous collision as well as the knockout blow he delivered to Knowshon Moreno. Eric Berry is the closest thing to a modern-day Ronnie Lott when it comes to a head-hunting tackler at the safety position.
 
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#196
#196
Volosaurus rex said:
Both are, without question, great players but they possess distinctively different skillsets. The Honey Badger is more dynamic in the return game but how would he fare taking on Tim Tebow in the open field? I don’t think nearly as well as Eric did. Do a Youtube search for footage of that famous collision as well as the knockout blow he delivered to Knowshon Moreno. Eric Berry is the closest thing to a modern-day Ronnie Lott when it comes to a head-hunting tackler at the safety position.
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And Ball-Hawk.
 
#197
#197
If LSU's secondary wasn't so elite, I don't think Mathieu could shine like he does. It seems like his big plays are mostly blitzing and on special teams. He does what he does very well, and I really wish Tennessee offered him. However, it's hard to say he's actually better than Eric Berry.
 
#198
#198
I'm not sure you can say for sure that Mathieu is better in the return game. Berry with the ball in his hands after a fumble or INT was as fun to watch as it was to watch Mathieu take one to the house on a punt... he had an instinct for finding holes and bouncing off people and just weaving his way through guys just like Mathieu.. difference is... we were too scared to use him back there unlike LSU since they actually have depth. I think Mathieu has a little more quickness.. but doesn't the strength and maybe around the same top end speed Berry has.
 
#199
#199
10 years ago, I would have said Mathieu couldn't play in the league.

But it's really important to have three good corners, especially a slot one. Imagine you are the Bills and you play Wes Welker twice a year. It'd be nice to have a nickel corner who can shut him down (which I think Tyrann can do).
 
#200
#200
Just imagine if the Chiefs draft him in the first round. Him on one side and Berry on the other. The Chiefs roster is loaded with SEC Boys.
 
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