(06-08-2018, 10:54 AM)jj22 Wrote: Seems as tho he's ready to take the leap.
Paul Dehner Jr.Verified account @pauldehnerjr9m9 minutes ago
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Jordan Willis wasn't exactly welcomed into the #Bengals fold last year. He admits his personality can rub people the wrong way. A year later, life on and off the field is coming together and he looks on the cusp of a big leap forward
(06-08-2018, 10:54 AM)jj22 Wrote: Seems as tho he's ready to take the leap.
Paul Dehner Jr.Verified account @pauldehnerjr9m9 minutes ago
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Jordan Willis wasn't exactly welcomed into the #Bengals fold last year. He admits his personality can rub people the wrong way. A year later, life on and off the field is coming together and he looks on the cusp of a big leap forward
(06-08-2018, 02:39 PM)Tiger Teeth Wrote: I am looking forward to all the young guys on the D-line rotation. Hopefully they push MJ to step it up, but I am losing confidence in his ability to compete with the young studs we have.
If MJ can move inside and rush the passer, he might have one more year in him. But he is definitely on the bubble.
“Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I’m not sure about the universe.” ― Albert Einstein
I've often rubbed people the wrong way being quiet in a group. I don't let it get to me and the few times it has I just moved on . Willis doesn't really have that option at this point in his career ,but I don't really worry about it. Sometimes personalities collide. It's not exactly unheard of .
In the immortal words of my old man, "Wait'll you get to be my age!"
Chicago sounds rough to the maker of verse, but the one comfort we have is Cincinnati sounds worse. ~Oliver Wendal Holmes Sr.
I recommend it for Willis, too. And he's right. It does get misinterpreted. People think you're stuck up or something, but you're really just taking things in, mortified by alot of what we see. I mean just look at the world. How we treat each other. Bombs and stuff. WTF is wrong with us? LOL
Today I'm TEAM SEWELL. Tomorrow TEAM PITTS. Maybe TEAM CHASE. I can't decide, and glad I don't have to.
I recommend it for Willis, too. And he's right. It does get misinterpreted. People think you're stuck up or something, but you're really just taking things in, mortified by alot of what we see. I mean just look at the world. How we treat each other. Bombs and stuff. WTF is wrong with us? LOL
In hs i was very shy, but stronger than most everyone at the school so I was accused of being stuck up.. The house my folks bought was new and in an area with mostly run down places so I got pegged as the rich kid on the hill despite the house not being worth much. I got in fights of course so beating the snot out of a few loud mouths kind of won a few people over. There was a real loud mouth little twirp nobody liked and the day he came within inches of getting tossed out the 3rd floor window was the day people stopped thinking i was stuck up . Lol in retrospect I'm glad the gym teacher stopped me because I had every intention of tossing him out that window . Oddly enough he never bothered me again after that day. I wonder why .
In the immortal words of my old man, "Wait'll you get to be my age!"
Chicago sounds rough to the maker of verse, but the one comfort we have is Cincinnati sounds worse. ~Oliver Wendal Holmes Sr.
(06-08-2018, 07:03 PM)grampahol Wrote: In hs i was very shy, but stronger than most everyone at the school so I was accused of being stuck up.. The house my folks bought was new and in an area with mostly run down places so I got pegged as the rich kid on the hill despite the house not being worth much. I got in fights of course so beating the snot out of a few loud mouths kind of won a few people over. There was a real loud mouth little twirp nobody liked and the day he came within inches of getting tossed out the 3rd floor window was the day people stopped thinking i was stuck up . Lol in retrospect I'm glad the gym teacher stopped me because I had every intention of tossing him out that window . Oddly enough he never bothered me again after that day. I wonder why .
LOL. I've got some of those stories. Maybe Willis, too. One of mine didn't deal with a window, but I did stuff some jerk into a gym locker. LOL
Today I'm TEAM SEWELL. Tomorrow TEAM PITTS. Maybe TEAM CHASE. I can't decide, and glad I don't have to.
I was held back in 4th then 5th grades so for several years I was bigger than everyone else in school until later in HS.. I'm not proud of being a less than stellar scholar in school , at that age, 13-16 it's not exactly the dream of every teenage boy to get great grades.. Your dreams then are to be able to kick everyone else's ass.. lol
In the immortal words of my old man, "Wait'll you get to be my age!"
Chicago sounds rough to the maker of verse, but the one comfort we have is Cincinnati sounds worse. ~Oliver Wendal Holmes Sr.
A shy introvert often puts up walls in a brand new stressful situation. It's virtually automatic however, some will perceive that initial reserve as aloofness, rudeness, disconnect. Given the time and opportunity, they will relax and their personalities will start to come out. Sounds like Willis knows himself, understands how his reserve can be perceived and is working to overcome that.
Jordan Willis did something that most rookies struggle with but not something mentioned when they do successfully.... he set the edge against the run. Willis is my breakout candidate for the 2018 season.
(06-08-2018, 04:36 PM)SunsetBengal Wrote: I wouldn't put much stock into him rubbing people the wrong way. Seems to me that perhaps the author had to dig deep to find something grabbing to tell about, and maybe make it seem like more than it actually was. If I were a guessing man, I'd say it might be a while before Jordan Willis offers up any info to that particular reporter again. It's awful convenient that the two players mentioned by name are no longer with the team. Actually, guys like Gilberry and Clarke would have pretty good motive to not be welcoming to him, after all he was drafted in the 3rd round to come and take their jobs. (I realize that Willis didn't name anyone, but the author sure brought those names right up in the next paragraph. I have read enough of these articles over the years to get what they're trying to say.)
As for him now? Hell yeah, adding 15# of muscle without losing any speed is a phenomenal achievement. If he keeps getting bigger, he just might end up in that DE/DT role that the team seems to enjoy having on board. In a worst case scenario, he might be the one to step into Carlos' role, when the inevitable day arrives.
Great points as usual Sunset, have to read through the bull.
All I know is Willis always impressed me in what he done on the football field in college.
I agree with Synric as well that this guy just might be the break out player on Defense this year.
Jordan Willis was just 255 at the combine last year. Although he worked out with the DEs his numbers were impressive even if you compare them to the LBs.
Jabril Peppers was the only LB with a better 40 time than Willis's 4.53.
No LBs matched his 39.0 vertical and Myles Garrett was the only DE to out leap him.
Willis had the fastest 3-Cone number among all DEs and only 3 LBs were better.
His 4.28 short shuttle time was 3rd among DEs and 6th among LBs.
His 10'5" long jump was 6th among DEs and 5th among LBs.
If he can move like that at 280 he will be an All-Pro. But that would be 25 lbs bigger than last year instead of just 15.
(06-08-2018, 10:54 AM)jj22 Wrote: Seems as tho he's ready to take the leap.
Paul Dehner Jr.Verified account @pauldehnerjr9m9 minutes ago
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Jordan Willis wasn't exactly welcomed into the #Bengals fold last year. He admits his personality can rub people the wrong way. A year later, life on and off the field is coming together and he looks on the cusp of a big leap forward
Wow. Great article. I am so looking forward to him this season. It sounds like he may start at RDE, but he has the added flexibility of playing at LDE as that is where he started his entire senior year at college. I was sore when we didn't get him in Rd 2 (I didn't want Mixon, more for publicity and NFL bias than anything) but was so glad when we got him in Rd 3.
He is very solid against the run, but when he is not defending the run and is just teeing off on the QB, well, that is where I see special traits.
He is up to 280lbs, is the strongest guy not named Atkins, and has a 40 time on par with Tyler Eifert, a healthy Tyler Eifert.
(06-08-2018, 11:12 AM)SunsetBengal Wrote: Adding 15# of muscle, without losing any speed, is no small feat to accomplish. Glad to learn that he's fitting in better with the team, and looking ready to take a big step forward.
He was so high-cut last year, he almost looked like a buff TE. Now, I think a little extra pudding on his body will help protect him from injuries. He already was one of the strongest guys on the team. I love Willis. Now is his chance.
(06-08-2018, 11:25 AM)fredtoast Wrote: We had our best D-lines when we had a deep rotation of players coming off the bench. There were a couple of games last year when Dunlap played over 90% of the snaps. He might be more effective if he was able to take off a few more snaps.
I don't know if Willis will start, but I believe he will get a lot more playing time. And when you have a deep rotation it doesn't really matter who is starting. Robert Geathers started in front of Dunlap the first three years of his career but 'Los still had 20 sacks.
I believe they have Hubbard rotating in behind Dunlap at LDE and Lawon rotating in behind Willis at RDE. The question becomes, do they keep MJ and his salary for a rotational DT? He was surprisingly effective in that role. But there is a lot of traffic at DT. Who knows?
My bet is they would keep him, but he won't be much of a factor.