The House of Blue

I saw Ukwu Saturday and he looked fine to me. It's probably not a major surgery.

Don't think Rump and Cobble are big enough space eaters for the "true" 3-4.
I think the move for Miles maybe more a combination of weight/strength gain and depth at Safety with Neloms, Faulkner, Benton, Lowery showing strongly there.
But then wasn't Miles a backup on Guy's position?
I'm guessing it's more from bulking up then and being able to be more of a traditional lber.

If Rumph and Cobble aren't big enough space eaters then who is? Another year in the weight room and those guys should be absolutely massive.

Cobble is plenty big enough to play the nose, and Rumph could probably get by as well. The question would be the 5-tech (3-4 DE) spots. I'd imagine that if we did go to a full-time 3 man front we'd start go with Rumph-Cobble-Ukwu across the front, with Coleman being the first man in at both end spots. They certainly have the athletes in the FR and SO classes, along with Ridge and Wyndham, to come-up with a pair of pass-rushing outside 'backers. Inside is a bit more questionable, as we lack some bulk there, but that isn't necessarily a killer depending on the type of 3-4.

Honestly, I have no idea what Minter is looking to do long-term. I always assumed the Safety-hybrid spot was just a way to get the best players on the field at once, and not a long-term tenet of the defensive scheme. That doesn't appear to be the case though, since they've been actively recruiting for guys to fill that role. I'm very curious to see what this D looks like going forward.

Agreed, only I think Rumph is even bigger than Cobble. They would both do just fine along the DL in a 3-4. Like others have noted, its the other DE spot that would worry me as I'm not sure Ukwu has the size and strength to play End in a 3-4. Outside of Dupree and Wilson, I'm also not sure we have the manpower for the OLB positions in a 3-4 either as those guys are usually jumbo LB/DE types.

I actually like the attacking hybrid 3-4 we used this past season with 3 down linemen, the DE/OLB hybrid, 2 traditional LB's, and the OLB/S hybrid as the front 7. I think that type of scheme provides so much flexibility and allows you to attack from all different areas, but it creates a lack of size one at least one side of the LB's where they are asked to take on the lead blocker, be it a pulling Guard or a FB.

Cobble has the correct body type for nose tackle in a 3/4 - short, about 6' 1" or so, chunky, with a wide body. Another year in the weight room and he could be a real solid player there IMO. Rumph is more of a 3 tech.