Good on you, JBlood, for giving A.J. the props he deserves. Hawk ran much better in the early years even though he carried more weight back then. He made a ton of tackles and once he got his hands on ball carriers they stayed tackled. He got lighter later-on but still couldn't salvage enough speed to compensate. More than anything he got older. I can empathize.
How do you grade a player when he's not involved in the play? You don't. How do you grade a guy that should be in the play and isn't? Eye test.
Matthews' main success early on was his speed. He's had some decent moves and technique, but they were always exemplified by his speed. He's not a big guy, and while he's in my estimation been surprisingly better against the run than I would expect, time and age will catch up with him. Once his speed decreases and he remains on the small side, he will become average pretty quickly. It's sad but a fact of sports. You can never beat Father Time, but you can give him the stiff-arm to gain a few extra yards.
According to my mother's grades, Matthews finished the 2015 season in 1st place out of 1 qualified inside linebacker. She only watches the Packers.
Matthews' main success early on was his speed. He's had some decent moves and technique, but they were always exemplified by his speed. He's not a big guy, and while he's in my estimation been surprisingly better against the run than I would expect, time and age will catch up with him. Once his speed decreases and he remains on the small side, he will become average pretty quickly. It's sad but a fact of sports. You can never beat Father Time, but you can give him the stiff-arm to gain a few extra yards.
