NFL Films takes a look at the two most influential players at the safety position in the last 2 decades, Ed Reed and Troy Polamalu. Subscribe to NFL Films: goo.gl/XJTggL
I try to imagine all the people who don’t know what we’re talking about with the Troy in the c gap jokes. They prolly think we’re part of a cult or something
Dawkins could play the way Reed did and the way Troy did. Fact is - he did do that. No one was asked to do, and did as much, as Dawkins did at the safety position since Ronnie Lott.
Exactly this, i love Ed Reed, the man could do anything and was far better than Troy in coverage. But Troy's ability to do the unthinkable, like timing the snap and jumping over the line of scrimmage to tackle a QB. I've never seen that before, haven't seen it since and i'd be surprised if i saw it again. Troy's brain worked on an entirely different plane of metaphysics. Just different gravy altogether
Ed was a bonafide free safety and Troy was a bonafide strong safety. Ed was the most complete free safety of all time. Troy was the DEFINITION of a strong safety. Arguably the hardest hitter of all time. He was an outstanding run stopper. Both of em have rings. Both future hall of famers.
Ed was a better zone safety, and Troy was a better run support safety. We witnessed greatness and it should be left at that. Mad respect for both FIRST BALLOT hall of famers ✊. Not everything has to be argued
I swear Ed Reed's half of the video is Bill's love letter to Ed Reed. He has Tom Brady quite possibly the greatest player to have lived sitting watching Ed and all Bill is doing is swooning over Ed's abilities.
NeoN Nosferatu Tom Brady is not the greatest football player of all time are you out of your mind?? Put ANY other average quarterback in Bellichecks system and you’d get the same results. Put actually great quarterbacks in that system and the patriots don’t choke in the super bowl.
Anyone here after they both got into the hof in back to back years? As a Ravens fan, I still hate Troy for that AFC championship moment but damnit he is so deserving of being a first ballot hall of famer. Idk if we’ll ever see two safeties in a rivalry like this one between these two but it was a blessing to see everything these guys did for the game
Could you imagine if Troy and Ed played on the same team, playing opposite of each other, talk about a No Fly Zone.. both of them were the best at their positions during their careers.
And if you add Champ Bailey and Ty Law at cornerback, it's going to be a run-heavy offense, cause who in the right mind will want to throw to any of these guys.
As a Ravens fan, Polamalu drove me crazy back in the day. Nothing but respect, and it was awesome to see these two teams with these guys in the primes against each other.
I am a die hard fan of football and good hits...I've played until freshman year of college( suffered a blown knee) but hits like that I always thought were cheap..when someone isn't looking and you are going full speed it feels cheap to me
Daniel Callahan idk if this was directed at me or if you were just stating your opinion but I just thought Ray Lewis was hilarious screaming “OH MY GOODNESS”
Yeah, just like the James Farrior/Troy Polamalu Ravens. Farrior was one of those guys who always seemed to fly under the radar, generally put up similar numbers to Lewis, but he didn't have the personality, so never really got the spotlight. Man, those defenses were amazing, both the Steelers and the Ravens ruled that decade.
Actually the 2000 raven defense was the best and ed wasn't even drafted yet. If he was on that squad with a few years experience, it would be greatest D ever no question
I think troys unpredictability and instinct made him harder to play against. Dude was just everywhere on the defense, and showed up in playoffs and supervowls.
Ed was better in coverage but Troy could play strong safety or inside linebacker or outside linebacker most of the time they lined him up against the slot receivers as a nickel back.
I would say Troy is better balanced player but reed was deff ball hawk legend the way he baited qb like brady n Peyton both these players deff legends all time best safety’s to play
Its simple why you can't compare them. Ed is a free safety, role play zone and man aka coverage, focus interceptions and get tackles when you can. Troy is a strong safety, role basically a faster linebacker the enforcer of the back end, focus hit anything that comes your way no one gets passed you play man on tight ends full backs and running backs. and sometimes inside recievers and get interceptions when you can and sometimes blitz. Basically free safety stops the pass from getting behind, strong safety stops the ball carrier, not always running back can be anybody, from getting behind him
+Dajore Taylor idk y people compare them but they are the greatest safeties of all time and Ik cuz I'm a ravens fan. This is jus to say they change that position for guys like kam chancellor or reggie nelson
Yesss "one of us gon make a play". And I also recall there was one where fans or something were saying "Aww, what was that? Come on man, what was that" in the background. Maybe that was only PS2/Wii
Being a die hard Ravens fan since I was a kid. I strongly disliked the Steelers which made the rivalries all that much better but Troy Polamalu was the one non-ravens player who i wanted more than anyone else. The idea of Reed and Polamalu anchoring down the secondary is legendary. As a true football fan, that was one combo i wanted to see over any other. Ed Reed and Troy Polamalu!
As a die hard Steelers fan since I was a kid, I have to salute that notion from the other side. Both of them in the same defensive backfield would have been utterly unreal. The sort of thing that should probably be a violation of anti-monopoly laws :-D.
Which is a very contradictory statement considering the nature of this sport, lol how can you not allow contact and physicality in a sport that is literally based on a tug-of-war were people push themselves for each side to score? How can you guarantee the safety and health in this kind of sport? You can't, lol unless you change the sport to something else entirely. So go out there and take the risk, it's just like every other dangerous job
I can only imagine how awful it must be to play offense on the bengals/ browns all through the 2000s. Steelers and ravens twice a year, not to discount some of the cats on the bengals/ browns defenses while you’re there. Meanest division in the league for a long time
the ravens and Steelers used to get rivalry back when it was ray Lewis, Ed Reed, suggs, ray rice, for the Steelers big Ben, Troy, ryan Clark, it was hard hitting and physical every game
And one based on mutual respect. Physical, give n' take matchups, never or almost never ill intended. Now Steelers vs Bengals is a totally different thing. Awful.
Ropegang Dex hell no the way Ed read Offenses was unmatched but as a giants fan I know Dawkins was huge on FF and blitzing the QB he’s defiantly top 5 and underrated
troy polamalu has explosive speed he can shorten the distance on the any opponent good or bad. he also has better timing n instinct on snaps n tackling is superb 2nd to none. very physical not to say anything bad about ed but troy has always been my favorite to play safety n troy is a game changer he consistently had plays that was on the line going to the suberbowl. Absolutely phanemonal player best in my generation.
Jack12today I know I’m late to the discussion, but in all fairness superbowls aren’t the end all be all but they help strengthen a case. Why is it when a qb has no ring they get roasted for it but if any other player at another position has none or fewer than a player theyre being compared to then it’s ok cause it’s a team game? Point is, I actually agree with the team effort comment it’s just ironic that ur point is made on a comment chain that’s clearly pro-pats so they won’t shut up about importance of rings
I kind of feel bad for whoever has the job to craft Polamalu's HoF bust, mainly cause of his long locks. As a Ravens fan, I always get upset when Troy makes a big play, but man, I respect the hell out of him, and the Steelers are lucky to have a player like him on their secondary.
The whole defense on both teams was just monstrous for a decade plus. Part of Joe Thomas being one of the best ever is having to block cats like woodley, Harrison and Suggs four times a year
They're both great and awesome players. But you have to get out the mind set of making comparisons with everything. Because yes they both play safety but there's two different kinds of safetys with different roles. They just played their roles perfectly
Ppl forget early on Ed Reed was a strong safety and while Polamalu was in the nfl Ed Reed was clearly the best ss in the nfl and won dpoy as a ss had arguably his best season ever as a ss……
So many people completely ignore the years Ed Reed played STRONG safety!. His first four seasons he either split time or exclusively played strong safety and btw won defensive player of the year and 1st team all pro honors. What im trying to point out here is he was once a very capable run supporter and known to lay some wood at the time. After his nerve damage to his neck he was forced to play a less physical style of ball to stay in the league. simply put in ed reed's prime he is the most complete safety to ever play when considering this and his coverage abilities
Hinesward really fucked Ed Reed up LOL. Put Troy played more positions then Ed did and was asked to do more on the defense as well. Troy played LB and got down on the Line as well, he also played FS. QB were too scared to throw to his way.
Brian Dawkins, Rodney Harrison, Lawyer Milloy and Bob Sanders were all beasts around this time too. A lot of high-level safety play during this era of football. Great video
Polamalu will go into the Hall of Fame in 2020...he will be the 7th first round pic by Steelers since 1969 to be inducted....Greene, Bradshaw, Harris, Swann, Woodson, Faneca (to be elected in 2017)
As a Cowboys fan, Rex Ryan summed it up pretty nicely for me with Polamalu. "He plays like his hair's on fire!" and "Man, I wish he was on my team." That dude was a lot of fun to watch play football. Respect, Steelers fans are lucky, and seem to acknowledge that...
Polamalu was a harder hitter, more extravagant player, and really threw himself into the fray. Taking nothing against Reed, but Polamalu was more fun to watch.
I think the spelling is in reference to Pat McAfee's pronunciation of his name every time he gets upset remembering the day Troy ruined his life. Go watch that video if you haven't. Phenomenal.
I wouldn't be surprised to find out they're constructing the busts for both men as we comment. Both are Canton bound. I don't want to compare them. They were both great and exciting players for their respective teams. Great for the rivalry (Steelers/Ravens). Saw them both in a game and both made spectacular plays in the game. That's what they do.
Obviously, they were blessed with athletic talent but what separated these two from everyone else were their incredible instincts. Off the charts instincts.
To me. the best thing about these two. Was that they were both playing at the time when the Steelers, and Ravens were the most dominant rivalry in football. Made for some of the greatest clips in football history. Those two matched up were some of the most agreesive games ever. Both Troy, and Ed are HOF'ers. as it should be.
I've watched the NFL since the late 70's, I've seen atleast 10 guys that i would consider great at the safety position, however i never witnessed a more dynamic player than Ed Reed.
i remember when Hines ward put reed on his back then looked to the sidelines, pointed at reed and continued with the play AND THE FLAG WAS ON THE RAVENS.. Dirty play but man it's fucking funny
Yeah, but Ward was a WR, Lewis a MLB. A MLB should be able to punish and destroy a wideout. A wideout however should NOT be able to do so to a safety. But he did.
Both Phenomenal. 1a & 1b = 1 Free Saftey & 1 Strong Saftey. Both had excellent ball skills, coverage skills and would hit you like a Linebacker. Happy to have watched both for their entire career's.
