Aaron Maybin Hoping To Expand Role in 2012

Maybin was a little bit of a revelation last year, he was brought in as Buffalo's version of Vernon Gholston. He had no sacks to his name in his first two years in the league. However as a pass rush specialist in New York last year, he was our leading sack man with 6, and he added 4 forced fumbles to that as well.

In an effort to see more action on first and second down and on running plays, Maybin is packing on 20 lb's this year to move his playing weight from 230lb's in 2011 to 250lb's in 2012. He is currently taking in between 5,000 and 6,000 calories a day in an effort to reach his goal weight.

Speaking to the New York Post, Maybin explained his decision to increase his weight

"They wanted me to be able to play every down," Maybin said of the coaches. "Feasibly, [for] somebody that’s 228, 229, it’s hard to do that. It’s not impossible, but when you’re going against guys that are 330, 340, 350, you get to play 40, 50 [percent] of the game, it’s tough. I definitely felt it last year. After the season, I had to take a few weeks to really just get my body together.

"Having a little bit of extra weight on you, it helps you deal with the ground and pound of the season and all that kind of stuff. It definitely gives you a better anchor when you’re playing against the run. That was a big goal of mine during the offseason, to become a better run defender as well as improve my pass rush."

Maybin went back to basics in 2011 and it paid off, now it's time to start building him up the right way. He was pretty much put on the field and asked to do one thing from the edge. As Costello comments, the Jets are looking to move him into a down lineman position, move him inside on some plays. Now that he has a grasp on the play-book you can start to think about increasing not only his work load but his responsibilities.

At the end of the day, he'll still be a pass rush specialist. However if we can get some snaps out of him at first and second down, it could fulfill one of the teams most glaring needs at outside linebacker. With the defensive line getting a boost with Coples and Wilkerson having another year, we could see Maybin get close to 10 sacks this season. I wouldn't be surprised at all.