http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercu...rancisco_49ers
Rookie linebacker Lawson steps up to challenge
By Dennis Georgatos
Mercury News
Rookie outside linebacker Manny Lawson drew a blank Saturday when asked if he had ever heard of 49ers pass rushing great Charles Haley.
``That was before my time,'' Lawson said with a laugh.
The 49ers, though, are hoping the time is now for the 6-foot-5, 240-pound Lawson, one of the team's two first-round picks in the NFL draft on April 29.
While top draft pick Vernon Davis, a tight end, adds play-making punch to the offense, Lawson is being counted on to upgrade a pass rush that produced the second-fewest sacks (28) in the league.
Anemic pressure on opposing quarterbacks has been a persistent problem for the 49ers, who have had only one player in the past six years with more than 10 sacks in a season (Andre Carter had 12 1/2 in 2002). The 49ers haven't had a player register double-digit sacks in consecutive seasons since Charles Haley had 11 1/2 and 10 1/2 in 1988 and 1989.
``That's why I was drafted here, to put on the pressure,'' said Lawson, who teamed with the Houston Texans' No. 1 pick Mario Williams to form college football's most dynamic pass-rush tandem at North Carolina State the past two years.
``I'm picking up the scheme and learning techniques. I'm rusty, real rusty. It's just going to take some time, practice and coaching for me to get to where this team needs me to be.''
From the outset of this weekend's mini-camp, Lawson has been practicing with the first unit at the outside linebacker position held in recent years by Julian Peterson, a two-time Pro Bowl performer who signed a seven-year, $54 million deal with Seattle in March.
On passing downs, Lawson will typically line up as a rush end opposite the left tackle, where he will put his athleticism, quickness and strength to the test against some of the best pass blockers in the game.
``I'm a competitor and I love a challenge,'' said Lawson, whose 20 1/2 career sacks are the fourth most in North Carolina State's history. ``I'm going against the best, and it's just going to put me on a level as being the best. I welcome it.''
The 49ers welcome the presence of Lawson, who showcased his quickness when he ran the 40-yard dash in 4.41 seconds at the NFL scouting combine.
``I haven't had anyone with his kind of speed,'' said 49ers defensive coordinator Billy Davis, who as a Carolina Panthers assistant in 1996 coached linebackers Kevin Greene and Lamar Lathon when they finished 1-2 in the NFL in sacks with 14 1/2 and 13 1/2, respectively.
``You've got to have speed and power, but you also have to have a feel for how to do it,'' Davis said. ``The greatest ones I've been around just naturally feel it and do it. It takes reps and time. He's coming out of college with the right pedigree, and now we've just got to hope that he grows.''
Defensive end Bryant Young, who led the 49ers with eight sacks last season despite missing three games because of a knee injury, said he believes the addition of Lawson eventually will reverberate throughout the defense. He added that an intensified pass rush would also help the secondary, which gave up more yards passing than any other team in the league.
``You can do a lot with a guy that has that kind of speed coming off the edge,'' Young said. ``He'll be able to force plays, force fumbles, even if he doesn't get there. He can make the quarterback scramble and force him into other people. It's going to do a lot for everybody across the board.''
Lawson, who patterns his game after such speed rushers as Miami's Jason Taylor and Indianapolis' Dwight Freeney, is chasing those same high expectations.
When it was mentioned to him that the league's defending sacks leader played across the bay -- Derrick Burgess had 16 for the Raiders last season -- Lawson said, ``So I've heard. I'm hoping to take that away from him.''
It's manny lawson's time to shine
It's manny lawson's time to shine
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