Post by Funkytown on Oct 29, 2022 22:39:54 GMT -6
I know there was another thread or two discussing some of this stuff, but this thread works just the same. More "Zimmer is a big meanie head" stuff.
‘I got my swagger back:' How Cameron Dantzler's 180 explains the Minnesota Vikings
Rest at link:
www.golongtd.com/p/i-got-my-swagger-back-how-cameron
‘I got my swagger back:' How Cameron Dantzler's 180 explains the Minnesota Vikings
We know players now wake up with a smile on their face, but how exactly does that smile manifest into victories? Look no further than one of the happiest members of the team: third-year cornerback Cameron Dantzler. The team’s turnaround is best reflected in his turnaround. The 2020 third-round pick out of Mississippi State brings everything Newman detailed to life. Under Zimmer, he felt like a “robot.” Under O’Connell, he found his mojo. Immediately. He’s a difference-maker on one of the NFC’s best defenses, and the reason why is this seismic culture shock. We can drone on and on about analytics until the cows come home. We can study the All-22 footage over three pots of coffee.
Football is not quantum physics.
Dantzler looks like a new player with 34 tackles, four pass breakups and one forced fumble through six games because, bluntly, he’s playing with a free mind. He’s himself again. He brings to life the sort of #culture talk that can sound opaque.
There’s an upbeat tone to his voice. He’s thrilled to drive to the facility in the morning.
“I got my swagger back,” Dantzler says. “They have faith in me with what I can do and they make me play freely and be me.”
Because he’s valued. Everyone is.
“Nobody,” Dantzler begins, “knows the inside story. There was more to it with me and coach last year. Outside looking in, you really don’t know as much. There was a lot going on last year. It was a roller-coaster for me.”
I know, I know. There’s no need for us all to again swim in the sewage. It’s not much fun reliving just how miserable life was under Zimmer’s reign. But to understand Dantzler’s breakout season, it’s inevitable. He needs to bring up the last two years.
As a rookie, in 2020, Dantzler believed he was truly turning a corner through December. Yet into the 2021 offseason, Dantzler popped his quad. He suffered a Grade 2 tear and tried to fight through it when players reported back for OTAs in June. He didn’t want to miss anything and — as all players know — it behooves you play through injuries under this head coach. Then, it popped again. Two days later, on June 8, the team signed eight-year veteran Bashaud Breeland and plugged him in as the starter opposite Patrick Peterson. Fresh off back-to-back Super Bowl appearances, with 95 career starts, Breeland was deemed more trustworthy before a true competition was even held.
“They brought Breeland in and I feel like they just threw me to the side,” Dantzler says. “I was like, ‘Damn. Am I good enough?’ I was questioning myself. Young guy. Second year. Just coming off a… I wouldn’t say ‘great’ rookie year. But toward the end, I improved a lot. I had that confidence and swagger into Year 2. And then when I got hurt, it was, ‘OK, we don’t need him anymore. Let’s throw him to the side.’ I felt abandoned.
“Everybody tried to make it seem like I was out-battled. Breeland is a great player. But I don’t feel I was out-battled. My spot was given away before it was even fought for. It was like, ‘OK. He’s going to be the starter. He’s going to be our guy.’ They just threw me to the side.”
He describes Zimmer as a DB guy. They used to speak every day.
Over time, he felt nothing but a general coldness. He can remember straight-up asking Zimmer, “Coach, you don’t mess with me anymore because I’m injured?”
The head coach’s response? Per Dantzler? “I don’t talk to guys who are hurt.”
“I’m like, ‘Whoa. OK.’ Those words came out of his mouth,” Dantzler says. “I’m an outgoing person. People like my personality. I bring joy to the room. I don’t know. He’s an old school type of guy. He wasn’t feeling it.”
Not that actually playing in this defense was a bundle of fun. Dantzler started 10 games in Year 1, seven in Year 2 and the thoughts running through his mind mid-play were exactly what Newman described. To a “T.” He was downright terrified to make a mistake. He played an instinctual position on eggshells because Dantzler knew one misstep would get him destroyed in the film room. There was no operating on feel or instincts. Period.
That’s the biggest change in 2022. It’s as if a burden was completely lifted.
Dantzler feels zero pressure before games now.
All butterflies? Gone.
“Because you know yourself,” he explains. “You know how you play. Just go out there and show it. I feel like I don’t have to be a robot anymore. My first two years? I had butterflies a lot. I felt like, ‘If I mess up, I might get taken out. I was a robot. Now, I’m free. ‘KO’ let me be free. I can go out there with confidence and swagger like, ‘Hey, ain’t nobody catching anything on me today.’ That’s how I feel.”
Dantzler wasn’t alone. All young players felt the same way, he adds, because every single step was hyper-scrutinized. Players were accosted in those film sessions like they broke a law which naturally zaps spontaneity. That’s a major reason why this defense broke down so many times late in games. In Part II of our series, ex-Viking linebacker Ben Leber, who works as a sideline reporter for the team, specifically cited Dantzler as the player who’d benefit most from a new culture. He nailed it. Too often, it appeared Dantzler was a split-second slow in coverage before. If there’s one player on a football field who cannot afford to tap the brakes, it’s a boundary cornerback trying to shadow wideouts with 4.3 speed and every conceivable rule in their favor.
Think too much, let a blip of hesitation enter the mental equation, and… you’re toast. Peace.
Dantzler explains.
“When I say ‘robot,’ it makes you not want to make plays and be a ballplayer,” he says. “It’s ‘OK. He told me to do it this way. So, if I don’t do it this way, he’s going to take me out.’ Or like at practice, ‘He told me to do it this way, so if I don’t do it this way, I’m not going to play.’ So it turns into: ‘I could’ve made that play but my coach told me to do it this way.’ You know?”
Several sources indicate that how the Vikings treated injuries in the past was borderline reckless. It’s no coincidence that this team struggled to stay healthy.
Overhauling the strength and conditioning staff was a must. One of the most underrated acquisitions in the entire league was Minnesota stealing Tyler Williams from the Los Angeles Rams. He oversees the entire operation as the team’s executive director of player health and performance.
Understandably, Dantzler is still bothered by how Zimmer treated him when he popped that quad.
“Seriously,” he adds, “all of these players fighting for you every day, we’re all fighting for our jobs. Including yours.”
The new staff arrived and Dantzler felt his swagger return.
Football is not quantum physics.
Dantzler looks like a new player with 34 tackles, four pass breakups and one forced fumble through six games because, bluntly, he’s playing with a free mind. He’s himself again. He brings to life the sort of #culture talk that can sound opaque.
There’s an upbeat tone to his voice. He’s thrilled to drive to the facility in the morning.
“I got my swagger back,” Dantzler says. “They have faith in me with what I can do and they make me play freely and be me.”
Because he’s valued. Everyone is.
“Nobody,” Dantzler begins, “knows the inside story. There was more to it with me and coach last year. Outside looking in, you really don’t know as much. There was a lot going on last year. It was a roller-coaster for me.”
I know, I know. There’s no need for us all to again swim in the sewage. It’s not much fun reliving just how miserable life was under Zimmer’s reign. But to understand Dantzler’s breakout season, it’s inevitable. He needs to bring up the last two years.
As a rookie, in 2020, Dantzler believed he was truly turning a corner through December. Yet into the 2021 offseason, Dantzler popped his quad. He suffered a Grade 2 tear and tried to fight through it when players reported back for OTAs in June. He didn’t want to miss anything and — as all players know — it behooves you play through injuries under this head coach. Then, it popped again. Two days later, on June 8, the team signed eight-year veteran Bashaud Breeland and plugged him in as the starter opposite Patrick Peterson. Fresh off back-to-back Super Bowl appearances, with 95 career starts, Breeland was deemed more trustworthy before a true competition was even held.
“They brought Breeland in and I feel like they just threw me to the side,” Dantzler says. “I was like, ‘Damn. Am I good enough?’ I was questioning myself. Young guy. Second year. Just coming off a… I wouldn’t say ‘great’ rookie year. But toward the end, I improved a lot. I had that confidence and swagger into Year 2. And then when I got hurt, it was, ‘OK, we don’t need him anymore. Let’s throw him to the side.’ I felt abandoned.
“Everybody tried to make it seem like I was out-battled. Breeland is a great player. But I don’t feel I was out-battled. My spot was given away before it was even fought for. It was like, ‘OK. He’s going to be the starter. He’s going to be our guy.’ They just threw me to the side.”
He describes Zimmer as a DB guy. They used to speak every day.
Over time, he felt nothing but a general coldness. He can remember straight-up asking Zimmer, “Coach, you don’t mess with me anymore because I’m injured?”
The head coach’s response? Per Dantzler? “I don’t talk to guys who are hurt.”
“I’m like, ‘Whoa. OK.’ Those words came out of his mouth,” Dantzler says. “I’m an outgoing person. People like my personality. I bring joy to the room. I don’t know. He’s an old school type of guy. He wasn’t feeling it.”
Not that actually playing in this defense was a bundle of fun. Dantzler started 10 games in Year 1, seven in Year 2 and the thoughts running through his mind mid-play were exactly what Newman described. To a “T.” He was downright terrified to make a mistake. He played an instinctual position on eggshells because Dantzler knew one misstep would get him destroyed in the film room. There was no operating on feel or instincts. Period.
That’s the biggest change in 2022. It’s as if a burden was completely lifted.
Dantzler feels zero pressure before games now.
All butterflies? Gone.
“Because you know yourself,” he explains. “You know how you play. Just go out there and show it. I feel like I don’t have to be a robot anymore. My first two years? I had butterflies a lot. I felt like, ‘If I mess up, I might get taken out. I was a robot. Now, I’m free. ‘KO’ let me be free. I can go out there with confidence and swagger like, ‘Hey, ain’t nobody catching anything on me today.’ That’s how I feel.”
Dantzler wasn’t alone. All young players felt the same way, he adds, because every single step was hyper-scrutinized. Players were accosted in those film sessions like they broke a law which naturally zaps spontaneity. That’s a major reason why this defense broke down so many times late in games. In Part II of our series, ex-Viking linebacker Ben Leber, who works as a sideline reporter for the team, specifically cited Dantzler as the player who’d benefit most from a new culture. He nailed it. Too often, it appeared Dantzler was a split-second slow in coverage before. If there’s one player on a football field who cannot afford to tap the brakes, it’s a boundary cornerback trying to shadow wideouts with 4.3 speed and every conceivable rule in their favor.
Think too much, let a blip of hesitation enter the mental equation, and… you’re toast. Peace.
Dantzler explains.
“When I say ‘robot,’ it makes you not want to make plays and be a ballplayer,” he says. “It’s ‘OK. He told me to do it this way. So, if I don’t do it this way, he’s going to take me out.’ Or like at practice, ‘He told me to do it this way, so if I don’t do it this way, I’m not going to play.’ So it turns into: ‘I could’ve made that play but my coach told me to do it this way.’ You know?”
Several sources indicate that how the Vikings treated injuries in the past was borderline reckless. It’s no coincidence that this team struggled to stay healthy.
Overhauling the strength and conditioning staff was a must. One of the most underrated acquisitions in the entire league was Minnesota stealing Tyler Williams from the Los Angeles Rams. He oversees the entire operation as the team’s executive director of player health and performance.
Understandably, Dantzler is still bothered by how Zimmer treated him when he popped that quad.
“Seriously,” he adds, “all of these players fighting for you every day, we’re all fighting for our jobs. Including yours.”
The new staff arrived and Dantzler felt his swagger return.
Rest at link:
www.golongtd.com/p/i-got-my-swagger-back-how-cameron
... and neither is this Chris guy.