標題: GOLD COAST Khari Willis Jersey [打印本頁] 作者: elaine95 時間: 2019-8-14 15:45 標題: GOLD COAST Khari Willis Jersey
GOLD COAST Khari Willis Jersey , Australia (AP) — He can laugh about it now, the concept of being “too big” that led him on this extraordinary journey to the Philadelphia Eagles.Jordan Mailata has made the cut for the Super Bowl champions’ 53-man roster less than a year after first putting on a helmet and is ready to start his rookie season.Mailata grew up in western Sydney, dreaming of making his living in Australia’s National Rugby League. He got close, too, with his work ethic and his pure bulk impressing the senior coaches at South Sydney, the NRL club owned by the actor Russell Crowe.But, somehow, a theory that at 6-foot-8 and more than 350 pounds Mailata was too big for a game that relies so heavily on aerobic fitness became a potential roadblock to a lucrative contact. So his agent put together a highlight video of this human wrecking ball rampaging through defenses and making crunching tackles in the NRL’s under-20 competition and sent it around.The video was designed, Mailata said, “to help generate interest in the rugby universe.”It did way more than that.“At the same time it generated attention in the NFL,” he said. “I was quite lucky when I reached the crossroad in my life Josh Allen Jersey , the NFL pathway reached out to me as another avenue to pursue. That’s what it came down to.”Navigating the NFL’s International Pathway program and the draft and then making the Eagles’ roster has been, as the 21-year-old offensive tackle put it, “surreal.”A couple of nights before the Eagles were scheduled to open the season against Atlanta, Mailata was doing a telephone conference with reporters in Australia, where his story is making news even as the rugby league season heads into the playoffs. It was Wednesday morning in Sydney, and Mailata prefaced his response to the first question: “Good to hear another Aussie on the phone.”And with that, he may have single-handedly increased the NFL’s audience Down Under.Mailata didn’t play football high school or college and wasn’t even thinking about the game in his late teens. He had two heart operations in 2015 which interrupted his junior rugby league progress, but has been given the all-clear. All in all, it has been a very non-conventional approach to the NFL.“I guess it’s every American football player’s dream to be part of an NFL team and I’m quite lucky to be living my own dreams and theirs,” Mailata said.While being so big was a benefit in short bursts, it was also the concern for top-flight rugby league coaches who figured Mailata would lack endurance.Michael Maguire guided South Sydney to a drought-breaking NRL title in 2014 and remained as coach of the Rabbitohs until last year Jawaan Taylor Jersey , when he crossed paths with Mailata. He saw plenty of character in Mailata, but realized as soon as reports filtered back about him being interested in the NFL scouting combine that the young player was better suited to the American game.“He’s huge, obviously, but he’s also explosive out of the blocks and agile for a man his size,” Maguire wrote in an article for PlayersVoice. “Whereas the repeat efforts required in rugby league weren’t suited to a bloke of his genetics, the explosiveness needed in the NFL definitely is.“Short bursts of maximum effort. That’s a great match for him.”Mailata is confident he can handle the physical elements of the NFL. The tactical and technical side of the game is his focus right now, and he’s dedicated to learning the playbook.The Eagles list Mailata at 6-foot-8 and 346 pounds, so he’s big but not the biggest player in the league. He would have been the biggest player in the NRL, and that would have made him a big target for defenders.“I didn’t feel I was too big to play. It wasn’t a self-proclaimed label I gave myself — it was something I was told,” he said. “There were a lot of second-grade contracts up for grabs. Personally, I wanted a full-time contract so I could develop.“Making the decision to transition was a shot I was willing to take once I was labeled too big to play rugby Josh Oliver Jersey ,” he added. “I laugh at it now.” THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. (AP) — Todd Gurley still isn’t shedding much light on the injured knee that limited him down the stretch with the Los Angeles Rams.Gurley was in camp Monday for the opening of the Rams’ offseason program and their first team activities since their Super Bowl loss to New England.Gurley said he is “feeling good” after 2 1/2 months of rest for his left knee. When pressed for specifics about the injury that appeared to limit one of the NFL’s biggest offensive stars in the most important games of his career, Gurley retreated to generalities.“All I have to worry about is how I’m feeling right now,” Gurley said. “I don’t know how I’m going to be feeling six months from now. Just keep working hard, doing what I’ve been doing these past couple of years. Really just taking it day by day and trying to make sure I feel the best once the season comes.”Yet many Rams fans still have questions about Gurley’s health, which caused him to miss Los Angeles’ final two regular season games and apparently shrank his effectiveness throughout the last two months of the Rams’ first Super Bowl season in 17 years.The 2017 NFL Offensive Player of the Year managed fewer than 50 yards rushing in four of his final five games, struggling to make an impact except in the Rams’ playoff win over Dallas.Gurley rushed for just 45 combined yards and caught two passes in the NFC championship game and the Super Bowl. After the final game in Atlanta, Gurley insisted he was not particularly injured — just weary.“Injuries are going to come,” Gurley said Monday. “That’s what this sport is, 100%. Everyone is going to get hurt, no ifs Deandre Baker Jersey , ands or buts about it. It’s just how you come back from it. It’s not going to be the first time I’ve been hurt. It’s not going to be the last time I’ve been hurt.”Late-season signee C.J. Anderson did much of the ball-carrying work for the Rams down the stretch, but he parlayed that success into a new contract with Detroit. The Rams expect to return in the fall with Gurley backed up by Malcolm Brown, who signed an offer sheet with the Lions before the Rams matched it.Gurley and Brown have been teammates throughout their four-year NFL careers. Coach Sean McVay’s staff has long touted Brown as a potential star, but the Rams don’t currently expect Brown to play as much as Anderson did last season.“Todd has shown that he is capable of carrying the workload,” McVay said. “We have a lot of confidence in Malcolm, (but) for us, you want to be smart about that. Todd is a guy that’s been a focal point of this offense. He’s going to continue to be. … Unless I’m told otherwise, he’s a pretty versatile back and we’re going to continue to utilize all of his skillsets.”Gurley traveled around the U.S. and went to Europe during his two months off, half-joking that he decided to see the world because “I finally got the money I deserved.” Gurley got $45 million guaranteed in his new contract last July, the biggest in NFL history by average annual value for a running back.He probably won’t take any significant wear and tear until September: McVay essentially confirmed he plans to hold out many of his key players for the entire preseason, just as he did last summer.NOTES: Cornerback Marcus Peters http://www.newyorkgiantsteamonline.com/oshane-ximines-jersey , edge rusher Dante Fowler, linebacker Cory Littleton and cornerback Troy Hill were among the veterans who missed the first day of the voluntary offseason program, according to McVay. Littleton and Hill are still unsigned restricted free agents. … The Rams re-signed six free agents with varying limitations on their mobility: safety Blake Countess, defensive end Morgan Fox, cornerback Dominique Hatfield, receiver KhaDarel Hodge, kick returner JoJo Natson and defensive back Kevin Peterson. … McVay said he has spoken to Chargers coach Anthony Lynn about teaming up for joint training camp practices. LA’s teams hold camp just a few miles apart in Orange County.作者: christian398 時間: 2022-12-31 08:26