Faceoff - DB Dawan Landry, Baltimore Ravens

Posted 7/30, exclusive to Footballguys.com

Upside - by Bob Magaw

Landry was second among rookie DBs in '06, finishing 35th among overall DBs, after only Carolina's emerging star CB Richard Marshall (17th). He has nice size for a SS at 6'0" 220, as well as good bloodlines and football genes (older brother of All-American SS LaRon, the 6th overall pick in the '07 draft). He flashed ball skills and playmaking ability, finishing as the top rookie overall in INTs (5), and high up among all players, veterans included.

The surprising 5th rounder is a talented athlete with multi-faceted skill set and relatively complete, well rounded game, like LaRon... minus the blazing speed of his higher graded brother (who ran a scorching 4.3 at the Combine, in the process clocking one of the fastest times for a frontline safety prospect in recent memory). His superior instincts more than compensate for his lack of elite timed speed.

Pro Bowl FS Ed Reed spends a lot of time in coverage when not blitzing/freelancing, often leaving Landry in prime position to get tackles in run support.

Tackle numbers could have been even higher last season, but he did have one of the top LB trios in the NFL in front of him. Voracious tackle machine Ray Lewis (MLB), up 'n coming Bart Scott (WLB) and coveted Patriots free agent signing Adalius Thomas (SLB). With consensus top two defensive free agent Thomas (with the 49ers bank-breaking CB Nate Clements) moving on, and Ray Lewis perhaps beginning to shade into the twilight of his career, the arrow could be pointed up on his tackle numbers potential.

The Ravens were 13-3 in '06 (one of the top records in the league), and should be the co-favorite to win the AFC North in '07. BAL was tied 12th (with PIT) in total offense at 22.1 PPG, and #1 with a bullet in total defense at 12.6 PPG (a TD+ better than all but a handful of teams). That is a whopping differential of 9.5 PPG. They were also just one off the Chargers NFL leading 61 sacks (the next closest team had 47), which no doubt helped fuel their league pacing 28 INTs.

With many opponents forced to come from behind and under duress from a nasty, stingy, intimidating and opportunistic defense, Landry could be the beneficiary of a consistent stream of future playmaking opportunities. And a scary thought for AFC North divisional foes, with a year of seasoning, he could play even faster after becoming better acclimated to the speed of the pro game.

Great dynasty prospect at just 24 years old, with legit upside.

Downside - by John Norton

For the life of me I can't see why anyone would get excited about Dawan Landry. Sure he proved to be a very good football player last season, and was a major contributor to the success of his team. I call it the Troy Aikman syndrome. Aikman is a Hall of Fame QB but those of us who have been around a while can testify that he was a virtually useless fantasy player. In the right situation Landry could be a stud, but playing safety for one of the leagues best defenses is a far cry from being in the right situation. He slipped into the top 40 overall last season based on his five interceptions and three sacks but the guy didn't even post 50 solo tackles. Consistency is a major factor when it comes to choosing quality IDPs and Landry simply has none. Eight times in '06 he accounted for 4.5 or fewer fantasy points and 12 times he recorded 3 or fewer tackles. Not only are the Ravens very strong in the front 7, but as a unit they were second only to the Dolphins last season when it comes to having the fewest plays run against them. Baltimore defenders were 1 of just 4 teams credited with fewer than 700 solo tackles (683) while several teams were in excess of 800. Playing behind a guy like Ray Lewis, there just aren't enough opportunities. In fact the Ravens two starting safeties combined for only 96 solo stops last season despite both players starting all 16 games. There were 13 defensive backs who put up 80 by themselves. The big play potential is good so he will have more value in scoring systems heavily tainted toward those categories but simply put, Landry won't be found on any of my rosters.