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We're now to one of the beefiest parts of the roster, defensive tackle. By virtue of adding Paul Soliai this offseason, among their other moves and scheme alterations, they have their largest nose tackle since Grady Jackson clogged up the middle of the team's lines back in the mid-2000's. That's a fine thing to see.
Please keep in mind that I'm handling this the same way I handled defensive ends, which is assuming the depth chart will be organized along 3-4 lines. That's why you'll only see three names here.
Projected 2014 Defensive Tackle Depth Chart
Paul Soliai: 20 tackles, 1.5 sacks, 1 pass deflections, 2 forced fumbles
Travian Robertson: 10 tackles
Corey Peters: 20 tackles, 2 sacks
I keep waffling on Robertson. He hasn't shown a ton up to this point, but Donte Rumph doesn't appear to be ready to mount a serious challenge for a gig, there's no one else that's standing out and Peters may not be immediately healthy. He's certainly not an ideal replacement for Soliai at nose tackle if he has to go out, so in sets that require it, having someone like Robertson on hand could be useful. I don't expect him to do a ton, even when he's in the game.
Soliai is the obvious choice as a starter, and having him in the middle of this line should help to majorly upgrade the team's run defense. I think he'll have a hand in a couple of sacks just by virtue of destroying the center of opposing lines, and if you get hit by the guy, you may well cough up the football. He'll be a true anchor.
Project away, friends.