Extending Onwenu

[mgteich]

Do you not actually watch Onwenu play?

My bet is that a large percentage of OL's are technically obese.

For the past 4 years the patriots' doctors have pronounced Onwenu healthy to play. He passes physicals each year, including meeting weight targets. He is ready when camp starts. The team has chosen to make him a starter and to keep him rather than moving on. His production has been good enough for the team and lots of mediots to think that he is at least an above average RG. Some think that he is top 10 (a bit high for me).
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WHO SHOULD I TRUST
to know whether a player is healthy to play and is likely to be a good RG for us.

1) The team staff (after they get advice from doctors and position coaches).

2) A message board poster.
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I have made my choice.

Long ago when I was over 300 pounds and technically obese, I needed a knee replacement. My primary recommended a sports doctor because of my weight. The sports doctor said that weight was not an issue (other doctors then and now balk at doing the procedure on overweight patients). He indicated that he dealt with knee issues for one of our football teams all the time. He gave me a preoperatory exercise routine and very strict rehab routine (to start a very few hours after surgery).

My point is that sports doctors really do know what they are doing. I trust them much more than a message board poster, even if he is a physician (surely you are to make such determinations).
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As an aside, when OL's retire they almost immediately go on a weight loss program to bring them down to a healthy non-sports weight.

 

[imahobgoblin]

The weight thing drives me nuts, but his play is solid. I vote for not creating new problems. Right tackle is more urgent ... maybe we squeeze one more year out of grandpa moses? I'm fine with campbell and wilson, and bradbury is acceptable... but definitely need to build the the depth. We were pretty lucky overall on injuries to the line, which is not likely to happen again.

Its a myth. He was drafted at 346 and played at 350. He had weight issues in college a bit, but not when he came to the NFL. Local media created the lie for criticism. He came in for Mayo out of shape. That does not mean he was heavy. But I don't blame any payer for the Mayo debacle.

 

[UGAPatsfan]

My bet is that a large percentage of OL's are technically obese.

For the past 4 years the patriots' doctors have pronounced Onwenu healthy to play. He passes physicals each year, including meeting weight targets. He is ready when camp starts. The team has chosen to make him a starter and to keep him rather than moving on. His production has been good enough for the team and lots of mediots to think that he is at least an above average RG. Some think that he is top 10 (a bit high for me).
============

WHO SHOULD I TRUST
to know whether a player is healthy to play and is likely to be a good RG for us.

1) The team staff (after they get advice from doctors and position coaches).

2) A message board poster.
=========
I have made my choice.

Long ago when I was over 300 pounds and technically obese, I need a knee replacement. My primary recommended a sports doctor because of my weight. The sports doctor said that weight was not an issue (other doctors then and now balk at doing the procedure on overweight patients). He indicated that he dealt with knee issues for one of our football teams all the time. He gave me a preoperatory exercise routine and very strict rehab routine (to start a very few hours after surgery).

My point is that sports doctors really do know what they are doing. I trust them much more than a message board poster, even if he is a physician (surely you are to make such determinations).
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As an aside, when OL's retire they almost immediately go on a weight loss program to bring them down to a healthy non-sports weight.

Far more reasoned post.

The initial thesis though was “extend him”. My entire point was that I’m not comfortable extending a guy who carries a lot of fat visibly even by NFL like standards AND if we are honest has shown up to camp out of shape before.

It’s just resource management. Makes me nervous to extend a guy who struggles with weight.

And you are close…Physicians of multiple specialties work for me. You do tend to learn a lot and have unusual access for questions like this. And you’re correct that the smart ones lose a lot of weight immediately after retiring. Some are clients of ours. Many of them believe the excess weight helped them anchor against D Lineman. But then I’ve talked to coaches (NFL and College) who vehemently disagree and prefer more agility. It isn’t a consensus issue.

I don’t hate the guy, opposite really. I just don’t believe there is any reason to be THAT big and he’d almost certainly extend his career and general agility by dropping some visceral fat.


Like you, I hit 300 lbs on the nose at my heaviest. Now 205 lbs and feel 25 mostly. Knee replacement staved off indefinitely. Shoulders different story.

 

[UGAPatsfan]

The biggest difference is weight can easily be monitored by the player on an ongoing basis.

Check out InBody home scales. They give about a 90% approximation of Dexa for $400. We use their commercial units in our facilities.

Not AS good, but directionally close.

One thing that won’t work for NFL players is GLP’s.

Incredibly difficult to preserve muscle mass on those. Possible, but have to lift and eat absurd amount of protein.

 

[n1997y]

No on the extension as it's only enabling players undeserving of big contracts. He had no business getting the first deal and would've been playing for the Pats on a cheaper deal had they not handed him money for no real reason.

What does that (which really isn’t true any way because he got the market) have to do with the future?
You want to hurt your team because you don’t want to “enable”? Enable what?

Enable players.

Pinching pennies to protect Bob’s bankroll is more important.

I don’t even understand what that means. How does signing a good player to an extension “enable players”?

It’s simple. Rain doesn’t agree players deserve big contracts, so he doesn’t want to enable them by having anything even hinting a player is good enough to deserve a big contract. I don’t think he’s ever agreed a player is worth what they’re asking for, and often not even what the team is offering, or paying, them.

 

[Ring 6]

It’s simple. Rain doesn’t agree players deserve big contracts, so he doesn’t want to enable them by having anything even hinting a player is good enough to deserve a big contract. I don’t think he’s ever agreed a player is worth what they’re asking for, and often not even what the team is offering, or paying, them.

Not sure how it’s simple. What does enablement have to do with it?
What are you enabling? You pay a player his market value and you enable what? The understanding that he is worth his value?
What is the goal trying to have a team full of players that think they are ****?

 

[n1997y]

Not sure how it’s simple. What does enablement have to do with it?
What are you enabling? You pay a player his market value and you enable what? The understanding that he is worth his value?
What is the goal trying to have a team full of players that think they are ****?

Oh Andy

 

[Ring 6]

Oh Andy

So you don’t know. Got it.

 

[Brick27]

No lol. Do you watch the games? I like how you don’t throw out any contract numbers or projections based on his performance. Are we pretending there are no cap implications if extending him when he is on the last year of his deal? There are some high cap deals on the horizon in Maye and Gonzalez. Let Mike play out this deal on his last year. Evaluate as it goes on. If he stays, okay, if he doesn’t, okay. Can’t look at anything in a vacuum. But again, you offer nothing in terms of a suggested contract or a definitive take, which is standard here to have an out.

 

[billdog3484]

So I like him but hes a guard m. We need to get rid of his cap hit and pay more important positions

 

[ctpatsfan77]

So I like him but hes a guard m. We need to get rid of his cap hit and pay more important positions

More likely to happen via extension/void years than a cut/trade.