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Posted
11 hours ago, soflabillsfan1 said:

I was surprised when his uncle Matt flamed out with the Ravens. He was a playmaker at FL.  Their emotional leader and an all-American.  He goes to the perfect team in the Ravens and totally busts.  Head scratcher.

 

How Matt Elam became a 1st round bust:

  • Showed flashes as a rookie in Baltimore. 77 tackles, 1 interception
  • Got exposed in 2nd year. Was often out of position and couldn't tackle. Lost his starting job after 11 games.
  • 3rd year tore a bicep. Lost for season. Ravens decline 5th year option.
  • 4th year got hurt again in preseason. Missed 7 games.  Stayed a backup.
  • 5th year:

Was arrested in February for possession of Marijuana and Oxycodine, while reckless driving right before becoming a free agent.

3 months later he was arrested AGAIN for a phone incident with his girlfriend.  No team picked him up.

 

Went to CFL a year later.

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Posted
17 hours ago, KDIGGZ said:

What's more shocking is that more of these guys don't get in trouble. I'm reading the list of first round rookie signings across the league. $30 mil guaranteed, $20 mil guaranteed. You are just handing someone who has never had money before a check for tens of millions of dollars. I don't know if I would have been responsible with that kind of loot as a 21 year old. I can only imagine the types of characters coming out of the woodwork with their hands out. It would be easy to make some bad choices and end up in some tough situations with people you shouldn't be hanging around with. The types of people we all hung out with at one point in our lives or another, and then as we matured we have likely distanced ourselves from those types of people that are going nowhere with their lives. Good luck to all of these guys and hopefully they have someone around them to help them make responsible decisions!

 

Absolutely true.  Many kids who come from money can't handle their wealth when they do get their share of the family wealth and run through millions.

 

I think that recently the NFLPA has taken some steps to provide young players with financial mentoring because many players come from poor backgrounds, but even kids from middle class families can be overwhelmed by NFL salaries.  Marshawn Lynch has really been outspoken about younger players taking care of their financial situations as have other current and former players recently.

Posted (edited)
25 minutes ago, unbillievable said:

 

How Matt Elam became a 1st round bust:

  • Showed flashes as a rookie in Baltimore. 77 tackles, 1 interception
  • Got exposed in 2nd year. Was often out of position and couldn't tackle. Lost his starting job after 11 games.
  • 3rd year tore a bicep. Lost for season. Ravens decline 5th year option.
  • 4th year got hurt again in preseason. Missed 7 games.  Stayed a backup.
  • 5th year:

Was arrested in February for possession of Marijuana and Oxycodine, while reckless driving right before becoming a free agent.

3 months later he was arrested AGAIN for a phone incident with his girlfriend.  No team picked him up.

 

Went to CFL a year later.

Rare total disaster for Ozzie.

Edited by Rico
Posted

Good talk, folks.

 

Let me clarify. My point here was not to say this behavior is genetic. Neither because of race, nor something specific to the "Elam" family.

 

Rather, I think it's pretty clear it's based on economics, opportunity, and environment. Which would apply to all of us in the same way if put into certain situations.

 

You have a family where 3 out of 5 siblings are killed in street violence. But 2 are able to get out and get high-paying jobs, and it seems to break the cycle right away.

 

I wont say too much more so this doesnt get relegated to the PPP dungeon, but I absolutely believe Kaiir has a great head on his shoulders, has learned from the mistakes of his predecessors, and is setup to succeed as a grown man in his profession.

Posted

Kaiir Elam went to a very well to do private school for HS. School had the kids of Jack Nicklaus, Greg Norman and Ian Baker-Finch go there. While most families had money, they also had strict discipline at the school. Quite a few students have been booted from the school, despite their family's status. He was around a lot of good kids, who were good influences on him. How, exactly, he got that opportunity to go there, I do not know. Part of the process was vetting the young man, both by the school, once he applied, and by the Bills.

 

He was a fit for the Bills, and rated as a first round talent. Glad we got him. 

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