Gibril Wilson, anyone? Umm ... maybe not
by Ed Valentine on Feb 10, 2010 10:14 AM EST
in News
53 comments
I received an e-mail from a New York Giants fan Tuesday asking about former Giants safety Gibril Wilson. Dan Bruskewicz writes the following:
"Should the Giants bring back Gibril Wilson?! He's definitely gonna get cut. I'd say do it, let him earn a job. There are much worse 3rd safeties on a lot of teams."
So, let's talk about Wilson. He was a popular Giant who left for a big-money deal with Oakland after the 2007 Super Bowl season. After one year there, the Raiders let him go and he signed a five-year, $27.5 million contract with the Miami Dolphins.
Now, it seems the Dolphins can't wait to shed Wilson just like the Raiders did. So, what is the deal?
I reached out to our man Matty, who does a fabulous job writing about the Dolphins over at SB Nation's Miami blog, The Phinsider. I got a very candid answer in return.
"He was terrible this year playing the FS spot. He got burnt left and right, surrendering big play after big play. But worse yet, Wilson was supposed to be a solid tackler. Right? Wrong. He missed countless tackles, including ones that resulted in long runs and touchdowns. By the end of the season, he was losing playing time to a 5th round draft pick.
"The Dolphins made a mistake with his signing and most expect them to bite the bullet and cut him loose."
Matty also pointed me in the direction of the Miami Herald, which has recently had plenty of critical things to say while predicting Wilson's ouster from the Dolphins.
Here is one entry from Herald football writer Armando Salgeuro.
I was talking to a Dolphins source about Wilson and without prodding, he told me, "All I know is we can get rid of anyone we don't think can do the job without it hurting our ability to get other players." So that tells me the Dolphins are strongly leaning toward getting rid of Wilson if they haven't decided to do so already. A free safety is supposed to be the final line of defense and it seemed like Wilson was instead an open invitation to score touchdowns. Add to that the fact he didn't bring any game-changing plays to the table, and I think you get the idea.
Here is another entry from Salgeuro. This one comes complete with a YouTube video you probably saw Sunday without realizing it was Wilson who was victimized.
You missed tackles to the point your pee-wee league coach called you to ask you what's wrong (true story). You didn't have an interception even though no less than four passes hit you in the hands throughout the season.
You temporarily lost your starting job midway through the season (for one game) only to regain the job but then lose it again the final game of the regular season. You had trouble in coverage. You had trouble communicating with the media to the point you seemingly gave up on the idea.
It was by any account a bad season because you know your new team -- the third you've played for in three seasons -- is considering dropping you like a bad habit to absolve itself of your toxic contract.
Wilson made 72 solo tackles this season, his lowest number since his rookie year with the Giants in 2004. He also had no interceptions, the first time in his career he has put up a doughnut in the category.
In my mind Wilson as a Giant was a decent safety who was athletic, but never became a huge play-maker. He cashed in big on the Giants' Super Bowl title, but it seems two organizations in two seasons have now found Wilson not worth the price.
Assuming he will be free shortly, and that he is no longer in a position to command a big-money contract, would you still be interested in bringing Wilson back to New York? He has to be an upgrade over C.C. Brown and Michael Johnson. Doesn't he?
(E-mail Ed at bigblueview@gmail.com)
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NO WAY!
He’s terrible, I’d rather have 10 defenders on the field.
I can’t believe how many time I’ve seen that Reggie Bush highlight without noticing it was Wilson he was flying over, pretty funny.
15 is a good number
I think that you got that "this" year
With C.C. Brown out there, it was like having 10 defenders on the field.
To be fair
Wilson made the right play on Bush, going low with a good angle, he just got posterized by an incredible leap.
by giantblue63 on Feb 10, 2010 11:11 AM EST up reply actions
He did not make the right play!
watch here, to me, it looked like he was falling down as he was approaching to make the tackle, then he tried to protect himself from Bush’s foot after he realized he was a human hurdle. He did have a good angle though, he either stumbled, or just dove prematurely, IMO.
15 is a good number
by I_Formation27 on Feb 10, 2010 11:16 AM EST up reply actions
great video
but I agree with 63, looks like Wilson made a reasonable attempt (didn’t appear to stumble), but just got burned by a stunning play from Bush. Not sure that there are more than a handful of Safetys in the league that would have dealt with that one. Doesn’t mean I would want to have Wilson back.
They've done studies you know, 60% of the time, it works everytime.
i wouldnt be satisfied with g wilson out there…but to answer the question.. yes, he is better than ccbrown.. slightly below the status of mjohnson right now.
he is way better than Michael JOhnson
and if kenny phillips comes back he would be playing next to a safty better than any other safty he ever played next to which definetly would help
and guys there are many good free angent safteys out there this year
the problem is if no salary cap most are RFA
DAwan Landry
Merriweather (i think)
OJ Atogwe
and more
by shenkthetank592 on Feb 10, 2010 5:39 PM EST up reply actions
NAH!
He was horrible in the SB season too. That’s three bad years in a row. Sorry, Gibril
To be honest about Gibril
He might be an adequate player, but I have no idea how two teams in a row have given him big-money deals. He must have a great agent.
I didnt think he was that good when we had him
He just happened to have a fantastic front seven in New York
disguising his abilities or lack thereof
You can see a lot just by observing-Yogi Berra
He is what he is
Wilson’s 1st 3 seasons in NY he was a pretty physical player, but not great in coverage.
In 2007 Spags put the safeties in deeper coverage, and turned up the heat with the front 4. Since then Wilson hasn’t been physical or a good cover safety.
He has 1 forced fumble in 3 years. His last 2 contracts have guaranteed him about $25M, unless he blew it all in Vegas, I’m guessing we are talking about a lightly motivated, soft hitting safety with below average cover skills.
I’d rather see Vince Anderson and Sha’ref Rashad get a shot than throw money at this guy.
great summation GB63
Originally I was in favor of a low budget, low commitment deal – let him win a job, or not.
But there was favorable talk about both Anderson and Rashad in last year’s camp and now I agree that he should not even get the snaps if it is at their expense. One or both of them could turn out well.
And he will be lightly motivated as well as merely adequate skill-wise. If re-evaluating him is not at the expense of a good look at those two, then OK. If it is, nah.
bring him back!
what is wrong here, how quick we are to forget what he bought to this team when he was here. we were talking about him in the same vein as we now talk about KP. he had 1 bad season(check his numbers in Oak., then tell me he was bad) and he is still young. he is an instant upgrade over everyone except KP, and we still don’t know what he will be when he returns from his knee. as giantblue63 said, he is what he is. he’s a hitter. put him at SS, KP at FS, cut MJ, and let’s get this puppy on the road.
I don't know anyone
that talked about Gibril like KP.
And how many guys like him have a career renaissance. Plenty of GMs sign guys to bad contracts.
Look at his rookie year
he put up 3 sacks, 3 picks, 1 FF and 50 tackles in 8 games. i know I was talking about him like i talk about KP now!
how can you call it a career renaissance? he had 1 bad season. this isn’t a continuing trend, it was 1 season in which he played out of position. he’s also not old, he’s only 28. younger than Osi, and 1 year older than Tuck. Not a wash up by far.
No Way
This is simple. You don’t improve your team by adding people who, at best, are mediocre. I know nothing of his performance in Miami except what is above. Based on that, I don’t see why we would expect anything different.
When you find yourself with a hole to fill mid-season, different story—you take what you can get. But, before camp begins, there’s no reason to do this. Rather give that opportunity to the practice squad guys whose upside is unknown until they see time on the field. People say “they’re on the practice squad for a reason.” Maybe yes, maybe no. Anybody could have picked up Kurt Warner; anyone could have drafted Tom Brady. Every GM missed on them. I’d rather see what Anderson brings to the table.
Sorry GiantBlue63
I didn’t intend to quote you almost verbatim! I saw your post after I made mine. Glad I’m not alone in my thoughts though.
by NorthwestFan on Feb 10, 2010 11:39 AM EST up reply actions
What they said after Oakland cut him
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/127291-breaking-news-raiders-release-safety-gibirl-wilson
You can see a lot just by observing-Yogi Berra
No.
If the still had Spags or even Sheridan, it might make sense. No idea what system the Raiders run on D (do they even run a system?) and the Dolphins really I dunno.
But in a cover 2 or whatever sort of system Fewell’s running, I don’t think someone like Gibril would work.
He might just go to St. Louis?
Tho if we’re talking about a cheap deal, getting Gibs back for cheap would be fine.
There’s nothing wrong with depth and I doubt that he’s any worse then CC Brown, Mike Johnson or Aaron Rouse.
I’d take Gibs as a backup anyday over these clowns.
Rectum? Damn near killed em!
the way i see it....
he’s better than CC, Rouse, MJ….
so yes, i would bring him back for a year as a backup…and for dirt cheap.
I think if we learned anything this year it’s that you need a quality backup at S.
Of course my dream scenario is drafting ET…..someone at ESPN mentioned it, but everytime ET gets a pick 6
"If you don't know what you're doing... just rush the quarterback" - LT
hit "post" too soon...
but every time Thomas brings one back to the house we can say ET…Phone Home!!!
corny i know…but clever none the less….
"If you don't know what you're doing... just rush the quarterback" - LT
He is not terrible
The raiders let him go without merit and because he was getting too much money but he led that team in tackles and did a hell of a job his only dwn year was this yr on the dolphins dnt know why. I would give him a chance……LEADING ALL SAFETIES IN TACKLES FOR THE LAST 5YRS or so warrants one more chance on the field but only at SS not FS
But dont tell em i told you that !!!!!
Yes, but only on a short-term, low-budget deal
I think he probably took the money and decided to slack off. I think if we could get a solid player and just use him as a backup then we should be OK, but definitely no big money for this guy.
Gibril was one of the best tacklers we had and each year under spag we was a top tackler on the team. Personally I believe he is a lb in a db body. He goes to ball like its a magnet. I want him blitzing from a safety position or running up on ground and screen plays. He plays well and needs some fine tuning but he’s worth bring back I think.
If he does not cost much
bring him to be the third saftey and compete for a roster spot that might not be a bad idea. I was shocked to read how bad of a tackler he’s turned in to. He was a fine tackler hear and played his position well when he was with the G-Men. Not great but was not bad.
I will say after his rookie year I thought he was going to be really really good but he never improved much. I think part of the problem is he played a lot of strong saftey his rookie year but he is a bit small and he took a pounding so he played more free saftey and he does not have great range so he’s never really developed.
yeah the missed tackles did surprise me too
i always loved that Gibril wasn’t afraid of contact, and 9 times out of 10 finished his tackles. to watch the dolphins games i caught and see my man whiff like that….disappointing.
I think thats why JR does not put much stock in safteys
he figures the better your pass rush the better your D-backs. Nice point Troy
JR dropped the Ball with CC but
he was right in not overpaying for Gibril. Lets see how he adresses the saftey position this year.
No way, we cut ties with him already lets move forward
I’d rather they give snaps to the 2 rookie free agents rather than someone whos been cut by both the raiders and dolphins.
by mclaren_is_the_best on Feb 10, 2010 5:02 PM EST reply actions
At this point he is
CC Brown and Danny Clark. We don’t need anymore washed up, slow, bad players. I’d rather go with a rookie free agent unknown than someone we know isn’t any good.
Why is he washed up?
i consider washed up to be someone past his prime, age wise. Gibril is only 28! one year older than Tuck, and Kiwi. Yet we talk about them being in there prime. how is he washed up, and slow? or bad? he had one bad season out of 6. i don’t know, i don’t consider someone who’s had three 100 tackle seasons out of 6 not any good.
Aren't we talking about the same thing with Bernard?
A veteran who accepted a huge contract deal before being exposed as ineffectual and a waste of money? I just can’t gather why we’re adamant on dropping Bernard and even considering Wilson.
here's the difference
Rocky’s 30. that is usually the magic number for football players who aren’t kickers/punters, or QBs. Usually, 30 means your on the other side of that hill, or close to.
Gibril is 28. he is 1 year older than kiwi and tuck, and 1 year younger than osi. all who we mostly agree are in there primes. that tells me Gibril has at least another season or 2 in him before we can start comparing him to rocky.
Rocky Bernard never put up ridiculous numbers except for one season, 2005. that means’ he is now 4 years removed from greatness. other than that he’s been an average tackle.
Gibril is ONE year removed from a great season. and when he’s been on the field except for last season, he made plays. so i wouldn’t call last season a trend quite yet. look at it like this:
- in his career, Gibril has had 100, 112, and 129 tackle seasons. that last one he was second on his team(behind Kirk Morrison) and second among all safeties that year.
- before last season, he had at least 2 picks each year, and 13 in 5 seasons. for a strong safety, that’s great.
- before getting injured his rookie season, he was on pace for a 112 tackle, 6 sack, 6 int., 2 FF season. that’s KP territory right there!
AND HE’S ONLY 28 is my point. he won’t ask for the same money he asked for from the dolphins or raiders, and he won’t command it from any other team either. we can get him cheap. let’s do it.
Not only all of that BUT
he will cheaper than Bernard. IF was going to cost a lot, yea I’d say don’t sign him but he won’t so why not bring him in even as a backup he would provide good depth.
he's good at the right position
Gibril Wilson was a good STRONG safety for us. His skill is playing in front of him and stopping the run. His last year, he was moved to FREE safety mostly because we had no one else. He did not do well at FREE safety because it did not suit his style of play. The play of his that I will always remember was getting beat by Randy Moss on the second-to-last play of the Super Bowl. Thankfully Webster broke up the pass. Both Oakland and Miami tried to play him at FREE safety.
No way..
This was the first guy out of town after they won the SB, quickly followed by Mitchell the linebacker. We have to wait and see on the Phillips recovery first, let’s assume for a moment, he will be healthy. Personally I would like to see them get a veteran strong safety (although the Giants never spend on safeties, which would eliminate a Sharper)
How about his sidekick in the Saints secondary, Roman Harper? Rumors the Giants offered Shockey for him and draft pick? I would only keep M. Johnson as a backup,
Rouse and Brown should be released I feel.
At a Huge Discount?
Yes. Wilson is better than any safety we currently have on our roster, although I might actually be better than any safety on our roster, so what is that saying. Additionally, what he IS good at is blitzing, and that would help us.
However, he sucked with the Raiders and he sucked with the Dolphins. He’s not a “value” by any means and could never be considered anywhere near the level he is being paid. He was a guy that “cashed in” on the Giants run.
If he came on the cheap, I would still take him. Maybe the change of scenery back to a place where he had success would motivate him. Still, I think he would “depth” only and not a real answer.
Good story Ed
You raise some interesting points about this. All I know is that our secondary was atrocious this season and we need some big changes back there. I would not mind bringing Wilson back for a one year contract. CC Brown and Aaron Rouse are most likely done and Kenny Phillips career is still up in the air even though recent reports say he is ahead of schedule in rehab. We still need to plan as if he were not with the team in my opinion. Of course, I hope that is not the case because I love Phillips. Safety, Safety and more Safety is the name of the game this off season.
GO NY GIANTS!!
Now...
….living in South Florida I was able to catch some of the Dolphin games, brutal as it was. I’d grade Gibril at a D+ to a C-. He did miss many tackles and he did get burned often. It would be interesting to see if Fewell could help turn his career around as wilddre22 stated. To me he is Rouse. I want “The Brain” from FSU in round 5!
by Last year in Sec 127 on Feb 11, 2010 9:55 AM EST reply actions
I would
If he would come cheap and Fewell approved. Maybe since our d coordinator specializes in secondary he can help Wilson
by bigblueguru on Feb 11, 2010 3:09 PM EST via mobile reply actions
If the cost was reasonable, sure
He hasn’t completely forgotten how to play football in the last two years; the Raiders and (maybe) Dolphins have dumped him because he’s altogether not worth the contracts they gave him. On a short-term, low-cost deal (assuming he’d take one), playing under TC (who surely knows how to light a fire under the asses of unmotivated players, assuming that’s his issue), properly motivated to earn his next contract, it seems like it’d be a good move to replace a guy like CC Brown.
Gerbil
He took the money and ran, no crime. Pro players have a short shelf life to begin with. Spangnolas defense is now a thing of the past. Wilson will be out of league in a year or two, either lacks desire, eroding skills or defensive system compatibily to risk a roster spot
tough nuggies Gerbil
by sudden death overtime on Feb 13, 2010 11:50 AM EST reply actions
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