STOP ACTING SURPRISED THAT MICHAEL SAM WAS CUT

         

Over the weekend a rookie that was fighting for one the final roster spots on the defense for an NFC West team was cut. He was a defensive end in college with an impressive resume, a sack specialist that won the Defensive Player of the Year Award for his conference -one of the largest and most prestigious ones- in his senior year.
          But he was what the NFL calls a "Tweener," not quite big and strong enough to play end in the NFL, and not quick and athletic enough to play linebacker. And he was trying to make his team at a position that was very deep and included at least one Pro Bowler.
          His name is Jackson Jeffcoat, the 2013 Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year from the University of Texas., who was trying to break into the Seattle Seahawks roster this year.

          Were you expecting someone else?
         
          Of course you were, because thanks to the mainstream media, Michael Sam was the only great college player this year that was struggling to make an NFL Roster.
          Look, Sam took a very courageous step in coming out before the NFL Draft. He put himself in a position where he would not only have to deal with his own physical shortcomings -compared to his peers not me of course- but also fight against the macho stereotypes and locker room culture that often treats homosexuality about as welcoming as an air traveler would treat a victim of the Ebola Virus that wants to sit next to him on a plane.
          But Sam's greatest battle was always going to be this; players with his type of physical tools and ability have a hard time making a dent in the NFL.
          Here are some names; Nick Reed, Cornell Brown, John Roper, Zeke Gadson. If you are a die-hard NFL Fan that rarely watches college, I am willing to bet that you have never heard of any of these guys. If you love college football and are at least 30 years old, you probably recognize every one of them.
          What do they all have in common? Aside from the fact that they all had, at best, short termed careers as backup NFL players if they ever made the league at all, each one of them was a dominant -but undersized by NFL standards- pass rushing specialist in college.
          Every year college football programs produce guys like Sam, Jeffcoat, and a bunch of other players that essentially have one major skill, they can do a mean outside pass rush and be a disruptive force -in college.
           College also allows you to be only about 6'2" or so and 250 pounds as long as you have a great burst off of the line and you can perfect just one reliable pass rush move -usually a hard outside rush with an underarm rip.
          But in the NFL, offensive tackles are about 325 pounds, and unlike a lot of college tackles they  have great feet, superb technique, and if you use one move over and over again, they will learn how to counter in quickly and force you to try something else.
         Some tweeners can still play end in the NFL if the have freakish lower body strength and make themselves into what the great football writer Doug Farrar calls "Leverage Monsters," think Dwight Freeney or Elvis Dumervill; or they are athletic enough to make the switch to linebacker, guys like Teddy Bruschi and Mike Vrabel come to mind.
          But Sam doesn't appear to have the body or the quickness to be one of those guys. He plays in the 250's and doesn't have that kind of physique. When he was asked to do linebacker drills at the combine he learned that playing in space can make a guy that has spent his entire football life putting his hand in the dirt and just taking off feel like he was trying to learn another sport altogether.
          I think the only way he can ever make a team is if he can prove to a staff that he can be an asset on special teams. Which, after watching him play, I don't see happening. Special teams play involves many of the same skills you need to play linebacker -good field vision, the ability to move laterally and backwards with ease, smooth hips- that Sam sorely lacks.
          So it is a mystery to me why NFL writers and analysts are loudly proclaiming with certainty  that Sam "can play in this league" and "Will end up on somebody's roster." Have they ever been so confident about the prospects of a seventh round draft pick? Ever? I they took a moment to review the history of players of his size and skill set they would see that he is far from a sure thing.
          And I will only buy that they actually believe what they are selling when they start talking about guys like Jackson Jefcoat with the same degree of confidence.