Looking at the Packers depth chart, they have DE, DT and NT which pretty much covers it. OLBs and DE's are not close to the same, sure they both can edge rush, but 4-3 DEs seldom drop into coverage other than an occasional zone blitz. It is why we were not surprised when Kampmann moved on, because he was a 4-3 DE not a 3-4 OLB. Clay couldn't play DE in a 4-3 either.
No need to make anything more difficult than it needs to be.
Originally Posted by: PackFanWithTwins
Packers depth chart has been switching around the label with small changes from year to year... I think they're getting very close, but it wasn't long ago that they were confusing some too.
4-3 DEs and 3-4 OLB are very close to being the exact same thing in today's game... 4-3 DEs don't drop into coverage much, but neither do moderation day 3-4 OLB... in a large part to the fact the 3-4 OLBers are more often in 2-4 sub packages where the OLB lines up across from the OT just like the 4-3 DE... they're very close to being the same thing in the current game. And Matthews has been playing a lot of 4-2 DE (opps I mean 2-4 OLB, because there is somehow a difference) the last couple of years...
It's not more difficult to correctly call things as they are... it's simpler... that way you don't have to decode them later because the codes are confusing and easy for people to get mixed up.
A 3-4 DE is an interior DL
A 4-3 DE is an edge rusher
A 3-4 OLB is an edge rusher
A 4-3 OLB is a traditional LB
The DE/OLB labels being used in multiple ways is more difficult and confusing to people than simply calling the edge rushers the edge rushers.