Is anyone concerned about Pittman being able to be an every down DE? I know he was a great pass rusher, but will he be able to hold up as an every down guy?
I tdoesn't matter, because we have Melvin Oliver, Brian West and Sean Merrill and other guys that can easily contribute with as much talent.
I don't know. I do know that some people rise to the occasion when they are given the responsibility of a certain task. Every starter has to play with the idea that the team is depending on them to give 110% on every down.
Hotdog beat me to the punch... as talented as Pittman is, we don't need him to be an every down DE. I really like Melvin Oliver and expect great things from him this season. I really love the fact they he grew up in view of Auburn's campus and chose the REAL tigers. If Saban & Co believe Pittman can and should be that every down DE, then we will be fine also. We have the personnel (players and coaches) on defense, so we should be just fine. actually really fine!
The key to a good DL on the college or pro level is depth. When you have enough talented guys to rotate in-and-out of games, you keep your pass rush relentless and fresh for 60 minutes. Pittman won't have to play "every-down," but he seems to be very strong (and will get much stronger in the conditioning program) for his size and can play for series at a time, I'm sure.
You would also expect him to put on a few pounds between his freshmen and sophomore years with the quality conditioning program we have. He looks like he could add some pounds and still remain quick.
Agreed...of course, getting bigger and stronger go hand in hand, so I expect Pittman to continue to grow. Over his 4 years, I would expect him to get to be around 265 pounds since he is 6'3" currently. But, I think his NFL future may be as a Terrell Suggs-type player who was a college DE and currently plays OLB in a 3-4 defense on the next level.
