08-30-2021, 02:32 PM
(This post was last modified: 08-30-2021, 09:19 PM by Crunk. Edited 1 time in total.)
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He never quite saw himself as a vocal leader, but he was asked by upper management if he could answer the call. More of a lead by example kind of player, Leonard was slow out of the gate with only one sack in his first four games. They started the season one and three and heading into the middle of the season they were still at the bottom of the standings with a record of three and five. Taylor had finally had enough and knew this squad was not playing up to their potential given all of the talent they had on the team. Everyone was able to discuss their issues and their thoughts on how this season had played out so far. Sensing that this could be it for a large portion of the team they knew they had to change or things could get out of hand quickly.
It's not something he was used to but around this same time there was a feeling that if things could not get any better than the team would look to go in a different direction. Shipping off your defensive captain and reigning defensive end of the year is not something Taylor thought was a possibility, but the more the season progressed the more this season felt like a swan song. The front office was being approached by multiple teams and it did not take long for those words to make it into the headlines. At this point there was only one thing left to do and that was go out and win. Starting in Week Nine, the Wraiths were able to rattle off seven straight wins and claw their way into the playoff picture. However, with each win the trade talks only increased. His production had increased back to his award winning ways as he finished the season with thirteen sacks in the last twelve games. With the trade deadline approaching the management group decided there was enough here to get them into the playoffs. The trade value they sought after wasn't enough for them to throw in the towel on a playoff berth, and that call worked out. They were playoff bound and even secured home field for their week one showdown with Berlin.
To say the Berlin game was out of hand was an understatement. The score was twenty-four to two midway through the second quarter with the only Yellowknife points coming off of a Leonard Taylor safety. A last second touchdown brought the game closed but going into the second half they knew that a lot had to change. The second half was better but they still made too many mistakes down the stretch and were unable to capitalize and score when they needed it the most. Outside of the sack, Leonard was mostly quiet. It was obvious that Berlin's gameplay was to contain the Defensive End of the year candidate. As time expired there wasn't a lot of talk around the locker room. It was then that Fly had announced he was hanging up his proverbial GM cleats followed by retirements of two key players. Not even twenty-four hours later Slammu was already basking in the sun in Honolulu. There is still a ton of talent on this team and a lot of great personalities, but has the clock finally run out?
Arkz has stepped in and in his exit interview before heading off for some much needed rest Leonard has stated that he loves it here and would do anything for this team. There is a mutual respect between the organization and the former first round pick. The management moved the former linebacker to defensive end and is now a potential two time award winner. If he does win this offseason he would tied with Hall of Famer Nero Alexander for defensive lineman awards, and with multiply peak seasons left the sky is the limit. After a slow start to his career, if you can call eight sacks a slow start, Taylor has then been top ten the last three years with first place finishes in the last two. His forty five sacks in his first four seasons is currently tied for second most over that span for defensive ends. He is also third in tackles, sixth in tackles for loss, and tied for first in fumbles forced. Another award would certainly put him on a fast track for one of the best defensive ends in Yellowknife history.
The questions still linger for the pass rusher. Can he continue to lead this unit and keep up his performance level in lieu of moving parts? Or is it more likely that Yellowknife and Taylor are simply two stars moving in opposite directions. As soon as the playoffs ended teams were already talking about acquiring the defensive end, but would they be able to pry the dominate player from Yellowknife? Right now Leonard is concentrating on getting ready for the award presentation and then getting back to work. There is still some work that needs to be done on his game and will be looking to be even better next season. For now Taylor is head down committed to continuing raining down destruction upon opposing quarterbacks. One rival GM said that Taylor is one of the best defensive ends he has seen in some time. He even went so far to say that he could one day be the Defensive player of the year.
When asked about his opt out clauses in his contract Leonard just laughed.
"I had nothing to do with that. Those are just a formality and I have no plan on using those. There is no reason for me to leave this team unless management wants to trade me. I'm the best at what I do and if they can get a haul for me and help their organization then I'll go to a new team with that same mindset. I'm here to destroy offensive lineman and cause mayhem. I let people that get paid more than me decide what they want to do. Leonard Taylor is only worried about one thing and that's his play on the field."