03-17-2021, 04:29 PM
(03-17-2021, 03:44 PM)TJHoushmandzadeh Wrote: Why bring race into it?
I suspect it is more likely to be because his sack totals for the last four years are 2, 0, 4.5 and 13.5. There may be good reasons for that but when it comes to something as volatile as sack numbers that's a likely red flag. Add in that he hasn't been great against the run and that fits the profile of many a bust.
Now I hope he's an ascending player - I note that the Bengals have targeted young players who should still be ascending the last two free agencies rather than players on the wane - but you surely have to acknowledge that this is a player with boom or bust potential rather than a surefire thing.
Sean Payton himself attributed T-Rex's sudden ascension to playing at "the correct weight".
https://www.nola.com/sports/saints/article_6c5e3d22-c223-11e9-b6e0-9b8967f8e00c.html
He started to come on strong in 2019, then they massively increased his snaps last season.
It's a natural progression of a young player. He figured things out, got to a good weight, then balled out every time he touched the field.
So it's not really a red flag.
The training, nutrition, medicine, fitness, playbooks and rules evolve. The athlete does not.
