Kyle Vanden Bosch May Not Get Sack Numbers, But Is Effective Nonetheless

The signing of Kyle Vanden Bosh continues the long tradition of head coaches wanting to bring in "their guys". 

Vanden Bosch played under Jim Schwartz from 2005-08 when Schwartz was the defensive coordinator with the Tennessee Titans, and Vanden Bosch flourished as defensive end for one the best defenses in the league during that span. 

Yes, Vanden Bosch is getting older as we all are, and yes his numbers are in decline. However, I still see a lot of potential to make an immediate impact for his new club the Detroit Lions.

Vanden Bosch will no doubt benefit from working with Schwartz in the past. His familiarity with how Schwartz likes to do things should allow him to pick up the Lions' newer, blitz friendly system. In this system the linebackers are much more active at getting after the quarterback than Schwartz’s old system in Tennessee. Vanden Bosch provides a bigger body at end and is aggressive at taking on blockers. This should help those speedy linebackers in Julian Peterson and Ernie Sims get to the quarterback with fewer blockers in their way and make those plays on the quarterback. 

Against the run, Vanden Bosch is already well known for his pursuit and tackling. He has a high motor and will get up field to disrupt blocks and allow those linebackers to make plays.

In the locker room, Vanden Bosch provides experience, leadership, and attitude to help give this defense and identity. He was a team caption in Tennessee and showed a lot of enthusiasm and desire to be with the Lions. The Lions have been suffering for years and years with no one on that team having any personality that could allow them to build an identity. 

Now, with young safety Louis Delmas, veteran linebacker Julian Peterson, and now Vanden Bosch in the mix, the Lions have a fiery leader at each level of defense to help them build that aggressive identity that this team really needs.

Now comes the most intriguing part of the Vanden Bosch signing for me. The Lions hold the No. 2 pick in the draft and there are two very talented defensive tackles at the top that everyone knows about. 

What if the Lions go the way of defensive tackle? This is my favorite part. With the Corey Williams trade and Vanden Bosch signing, along with either Ndamukong Suh or Gerald McCoy, that defense line starts to really look a lot better. Suh demands a double team, once again taking up blockers so the linebackers can make plays, whereas McCoy is an up-field penetrator that plays the run on his way to the quarterback and disrupts blocks. 

Either way, it takes pressure off of Vanden Bosch to do his job and aid him to the quarterback.

I really doubt that Vanden Bosch will ever obtain double-digit sacks ever again in his career, however he will still be a solid piece of an incomplete puzzle. He will probably get around seven sacks or so with 50 or 60 tackles. But the main beneficiaries of him being there are those linebackers. He will help make them look great and help complete that defensive line.