Thread: Broncos' Derek Wolfe "expects to contribute" as a rookie

There is an earnest quality to Derek Wolfe that the Broncos hope never dissolves.

He is a conscientious sort, dedicated to his craft. He wants to do well. It bothers him that he doesn't know the playbook as well as he should. But with all due respect to Wolfe and his top-grade characteristics, he is a defensive tackle.

How many plays does a defensive tackle have to learn?

"If you mess up, just do it hard," Wolfe said. "If you're going to mess up, just run to the ball. You can't coach effort."

rest - http://www.denverpost.com/broncos/ci...tribute-rookie

I reallly, really like this kid.

ENGLEWOOD, Colo. (AP) – Not that long ago, Broncos rookie defensive lineman Derek Wolfe was down to his last $7 and wondering how he was going to pay rent.

Now, after recently signing a four-year, $5.2 million contract, the second-round draft choice is looking at condos and pricing out new Ford F-150 trucks.

Everything has suddenly fallen into place for the University of Cincinnati standout who once was so broke he contemplated leaving school early simply because he was sick of asking everyone for favors.

rest - http://denver.cbslocal.com/2012/06/1...-with-broncos/

I hope he continues to play like he only has 7 bucks to his name and his next meal depends on his performance.

he seems to have that Jarred Allen relentless attitude. Not saying he puts up that kind of numbers but the motor is the same

Wolfe expects to contribute as a rookie? So did Rahim Moore. Any contributions this season from Wolfe is a bonus imo.

It can take a while for even the most talented of defensive tackles to figure out the NFL game. B.J. Raji was the ninth pick in the 2009 draft, and he started only one game for the Green Bay Packers as a rookie before becoming a dominant playmaker his second season.

In that same draft, 6-4, 295-pound defensive end/tackle Tyson Jackson was the No. 3 pick of the Kansas City Chiefs. Jackson still is trying to figure it out. He has two sacks in three seasons.

The Broncos are planning on Wolfe playing plenty as a rookie. Maybe it will be as an inside pass rusher in the early part of the season, but as an every-down player at some point.

It can take up to 3 years for a DT to become any good. They didn't mention it but probably the BEST DT in football is Ravens DT Haloti Ngata. It took Ngata until his 3rd season to become the fearsome player he is now.

Wolfe does not have the same potential in all probability, but it's still going to take him some time to learn the game.

He CAN contribute his rookie season, he's just probably not going to start. The coaches like that he's a hard worker. That's part of why they drafted him.

It's like I said: "possibly a low ceiling but a high floor." There might be DTs with more natural ability who have more "upside potential" but there are few who are less likely to be busts -- like Tyson Jackson.

Although in fairness to Jackson, he's stuck in a 3-4 where he's mostly expected to take on double-teams and allow the LBs to make plays. He has NOT become a dominant DT in that defense. He probably shouldn't have been the #3 overall pick, but it was hard to see who the Chiefs should have drafted at that point.

They were stuck in a bad place, with no obviously correct draft moves. They should probably have traded down, but couldn't find anyone who wanted to trade up and pay that huge rookie salary for the #3 overall pick.

If it were this year's draft with the new CBA they could more easily have found a trade partner because the rookie wage scale for top 10 draft picks isn't so ludicrous anymore.