Rey Maualuga

A knee injury robbed Maualuga of three games last season, but he still managed to record 75 combined tackles, a sack and an interception. Staying healthy will be key if he hopes to approach his produciton from two seasons ago when he ranked among the top 20 tacklers in the NFL (122).

Maualuga, who started the last two seasons at middle linebacker, is coming off a season in which he recorded 122 tackles. He may be headed back to the strong side -- where he played his first two seasons -- and if that occurs, his tackle numbers are bound to take a hit.

Maualuga is a suspension concern due to a February misdemeanor assault charge that has since been resolved by mediation, but he’s likely to hit triple-digit tackles if he avoids missed time. Although he has been a disappointment after three NFL seasons and doesn’t post good solo tackle totals, Maualuga nonetheless had a strong total tackle figure last year with 88 in 13 games. That would translate to roughly 108 over 16 games. It’s worth noting, that Maualuga is in a contract year for 2012, a variable that sometimes results in a convenient improvement of stats.

Maualuga is a wild card due to uncertainty over what position he will play in 2011. If he plays at outside linebacker again, he probably won’t be anything special as an IDP. If he can win the starting middle linebacker job, on the other hand, he should be in position to put up big numbers. Journeyman Dhani Jones totaled 354 tackles as the team’s starting middle linebacker the last three years, so it’d be a big disappointment if the former USC star couldn’t make a similar impact were he put in the same role.

A second-round pick out of USC, there's no doubt that Maualuga will see a lot of action. But there is some question whether and where he'll start. In college he was stationed at middle linebacker, but that position is manned by Dhani Jones, the team's leading tackler last year. In offseason minicamps, Maualuga saw a lot of action at the SAM spot, splitting time with last year's starter, Rashad Jenty. Look for Maulaluga to ultimately displace one of the two as the starter by midseason.