Broncos Ring-of-Famer Karl Mecklenburg isn't Worried About LB Josey Jewell's 40 Time

What does one former starting middle linebacker in Denver have to say about the current guy in that position? Quite a lot, actually.

Denver Broncos Ring-of-Fame linebacker Karl Mecklenburg stopped by the Legends of Mile High podcast recently. Mecklenburg talked about Denver's top linebacker this year, Josey Jewell. 

There are many opinions on Jewell’s ability to play inside linebacker at a high level, but when Mecklenburg speaks on the subject, people should take notice. He is a four-time All-Pro, a six-time Pro Bowler, and Hall-of-Fame-caliber former linebacker who played all front seven positions, with most of his career manning the middle at inside linebacker. 

Suffice to say, Mecklenburg likes Jewell’s game.

"When evaluating an inside linebacker, the 40-yard dash time is not on top of the list."  Mecklenburg said, “If I had to run 40 yards on the field, we were in trouble. That is not a realistic measure of somebody’s quickness on the field.”

Lateral movement is much more important when judging how a player will perform at inside linebacker if using athletic tests for evaluation. Jewell had a blistering time in both 3-cone drill and the 20-yard shuttle at the Combine at 6.80 seconds and 4.27 seconds, respectively. That lateral movement shows up on tape, and it makes up for his less than stellar 40 time (4.82s).

The other more important trait of a good inside linebacker is being able to read and react. If Mecklenburg could boil his success in the NFL down to one word, it would be “decisiveness.” 

That decisiveness is one of the reasons he had a Hall-of-Fame-caliber career. Decisiveness and read and react are other words for what many evaluators refer to as 'instincts.' 

Jewell has instincts in spades. He takes that first step before others as a result, putting him in position to make a play.

Mecklenburg also talked about the most important role for an inside linebacker, which is being able to make all the calls for the defense.

“First of all, an inside linebacker has got to be smart enough to control the defense. That is a huge piece of his job," Mecklenburg told me. "My role was to make sure the front seven were in the right place at the right time. When the offense adjusted, all the defensive linemen are staring at the ball or the nose of the person lined up across from of them, that is all they see, so if anything changes… it is the inside linebacker’s job to get everyone lined up right. I think that is something Josey Jewell is really good at. I watched him—his growth from his first year to his second year was tremendous. He is a guy that you can trust to get everyone lined up right, and then big plays don’t happen.”

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Mecklenburg added that if the defense is set up correctly, “you get the outside linebacker doing the right thing and you get the pressure, then there is an interception, and it doesn’t look like Josey Jewell had anything to do with it, but really he got everyone shifted around and lined up right and that is why it happened.”

Jewell is a big part of the Broncos' defense, and he will be an important piece manning the middle, especially since the player who will be lined up next to him is still in question. He can bring leadership to the defense.

Mecklenburg believes the Broncos' front seven unit will be stronger than it has been in the past few seasons and that he is “expecting Josey Jewell to be the center of it.” 

That's a big vote of confidence from a Broncos Ring-of-Fame player who knows what it takes to be elite at the inside linebacker position.

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