On the first day of training camp in San Jose, I walked over to the other defensive linemen and the first thing I thought was, shit, there are 3 guys here and only 2 will start. So I thought I was going to have to outperform these other guys.
We start training and I'm definitely the strongest of the three. I start feeling pretty good about my chances at starting. After the first day of training camp is over and everyone else is leaving, Bert says "I think I'm gonna do some running and sprints." I turn to him and say he's crazy and I'm exhausted." as I leave.
After training camp, the coach assigns us our starting roles, but even though we had 3 DTs, he has roles for all of us. Bert ended up flexing around more because he was more versatile and fast. We all had great roles to play in the defense and it's working well. Now we were no longer competitors, but friends trying to accomplish the same goal.
Anyways, we start getting a feel for each others play style in pre-season and things are clicking pretty well. I was the hammer and he was the nail. I could knock defenders over and his extra speed made him lightning fast. If there was ever a hole, he would punch through and make the play.
This really culminated during week 2.
Between the two of us, we combined for 20 tackles, 5 sacks and a safety. I'm glad we didn't injure draxel but I hope he got checked out after those hits. Ideally I want people to play in the league as long as possible, I don't need anything weighing on my conscious.
Anyways, This game was fantastic. If the offensive line sent more coverage to prevent Bert from getting a side angled attack, I would easily punch in and make a play. If they ran the ball, Bert was already on top of the running back after I disrupted the line. We felt really in sync and it's definitely nice to have that kind of synergy between players.
Seeing him go is definitely tough. It's almost like losing a limb, I felt like we could read each other perfectly as plays were happening. He has definitely impacted me as a player. His work ethic has definitely impacted me on trying to better myself. I see how fast he is and know that I can achieve that if i work hard enough.
I know he will do great things with the hawks but our defensive line will definitely miss him. Take care Bert, and good luck.
Edit: Fixed otters -> hawks
We start training and I'm definitely the strongest of the three. I start feeling pretty good about my chances at starting. After the first day of training camp is over and everyone else is leaving, Bert says "I think I'm gonna do some running and sprints." I turn to him and say he's crazy and I'm exhausted." as I leave.
After training camp, the coach assigns us our starting roles, but even though we had 3 DTs, he has roles for all of us. Bert ended up flexing around more because he was more versatile and fast. We all had great roles to play in the defense and it's working well. Now we were no longer competitors, but friends trying to accomplish the same goal.
Anyways, we start getting a feel for each others play style in pre-season and things are clicking pretty well. I was the hammer and he was the nail. I could knock defenders over and his extra speed made him lightning fast. If there was ever a hole, he would punch through and make the play.
This really culminated during week 2.
Between the two of us, we combined for 20 tackles, 5 sacks and a safety. I'm glad we didn't injure draxel but I hope he got checked out after those hits. Ideally I want people to play in the league as long as possible, I don't need anything weighing on my conscious.
Anyways, This game was fantastic. If the offensive line sent more coverage to prevent Bert from getting a side angled attack, I would easily punch in and make a play. If they ran the ball, Bert was already on top of the running back after I disrupted the line. We felt really in sync and it's definitely nice to have that kind of synergy between players.
Seeing him go is definitely tough. It's almost like losing a limb, I felt like we could read each other perfectly as plays were happening. He has definitely impacted me as a player. His work ethic has definitely impacted me on trying to better myself. I see how fast he is and know that I can achieve that if i work hard enough.
I know he will do great things with the hawks but our defensive line will definitely miss him. Take care Bert, and good luck.
Code:
440 words
Edit: Fixed otters -> hawks