Tomlin gives some Steelers' secret sauce! The FO might want to take note.

[top dawg]

Yes, forum police, this is not necessarily Panthers related, but I think Mike Tomlin brings up an interesting point that NFL junkies like me certainly appreciate, and I'm also wondering if Tepper has this little tidbit of philosophy in the recesses of his mind as pertaining to the way he would like the Panthers constructed when drafting legacies squares up with our needs and considerations during the draft.

A football pedigree can be really important. We see it with Mccaffrey. We even see it with the Bucs Antoine Winfield Jr. after only two games in the league. Not to say that talent doesn't supersede bloodlines, but bloodlines can raise the quality of the talent (if you will).

From Steelers.com:

The Steelers locker room is filled with players who come from strong blood lines. This week the talk is all about T.J. and Derek Watt, who followed in the footsteps of their older brother, Texans defensive end J.J. Watt with impressive NFL careers. But it's not just them. Terrell and Trey Edmunds, whose brother Tremaine plays for the Buffalo Bills, followed the footsteps of their father, Ferrell Edmunds, a former All-Pro tight end who played for the Miami Dolphins and Seattle Seahawks, while Devin Bush Jr. followed the path of his father, Devin Bush Sr., who was the No. 1 pick of the Atlanta Falcons in 1995.

"Just in terms of the lineage aspect of it, a lot can be benefited by being around this game at this level and having those close to you have experience in that area," said Tomlin. "I think there are less unknowns when you come from the circumstances (of those players). I think they have a better perspective of the challenges that lie ahead. I think all of that allows them to work more efficiently, be surprised less, and to be better prepared from the neck up in terms of meeting the challenges.

"Your dad's exposure, your brother's exposure doesn't make plays for you, but it does educate you and hopefully raise the floor. I think it's helpful from a knowledge, exposure and expectation standpoint."

https://www.steelers.com/news/tomlin-s-takes-on-chase-bloodlines-masks-more

 

I think that this is just a little tidbit to keep on our minds going forward, particularly due to that Steelers tie via David Tepper and his experience (not the old guy). The Steelers have had their critics of late (especially on the Tomlin front), but one thing they always seem to do well is keep a strong group of personnel that has great depth...and apparently infused with good bloodlines. It certainly keeps them on solid footing on a raised floor!

[Tbe]

[Jeremy Igo]

11 minutes ago, Tbe said:

LMAO

[Tbe]

In all seriousness (Matt K aside), this is a good strategy. Jeremy Chinn is the nephew of NFL Hall of Fame safety Steve Atwater.

[Khyber53]

Sometimes, though, they fall off the cliff. Like the drop off between Kellen Winslow and Kellen Winslow, Jr. Whew, dang.

[LinvilleGorge]

The generic piece probably plays a bigger role than the family NFL experience. The reality is that it's a tiny percentage of the population that has the athletic ability to play in the NFL. If mom and/or dad weren't really good athletes themselves, you were pretty much doomed from birth.

[stbugs]

CMC’s been solid. Pretty good lineage and results for us.

[hepcat]

53 minutes ago, Khyber53 said:

Sometimes, though, they fall off the cliff. Like the drop off between Kellen Winslow and Kellen Winslow, Jr. Whew, dang.

To be fair, Kellen Winslow Jr was physically talented. But his brain, well...maybe he has CTE.

[Waldo]

The genetics matter, the experience is a bonus if they are physically what the NFL requires to thrive. 

[Jon Snow]

2 minutes ago, hepcat said:

To be fair, Kellen Winslow Jr was physically talented. But his brain, well...maybe he has CTE.

I would think mental capacity would override physical ability in just about every instance.  But I will admit that coaches and GM's (our GM especially) get caught up in the physical stuff and ingnore evidence that said physical beast may be a bit unstable.

[Mistuh Jones]

47 minutes ago, hepcat said:

To be fair, Kellen Winslow Jr was physically talented. But his brain, well...maybe he has CTE.

LOL at maybe 

[Khyber53]

56 minutes ago, hepcat said:

To be fair, Kellen Winslow Jr was physically talented. But his brain, well...maybe he has CTE.

That will be the excuse given, eventually. 

[Khyber53]

And I guess we'd be remiss to leave out Archie Manning from the discussion. He had a couple of kids that got some jewelry. Can't seem to remember their names.

[kungfoodude]

I think the genetics help but the even bigger portion is the experience to know what it takes to succeed and the experience of knowing the pitfalls to avoid. 

I have a friend who was a successful running back in high school and college but he didn't have people around him that valued the education when he was in high school. He had offers from big schools but couldn't accept because his grades didn't make the requirements to the Div. 1 schools that offered him scholarships. His son is also an athlete(Div. 1 scholarship basketball player) but his dad knew to value the education and so he had exceptional grades all throughout his HS and AAU career. He passed on all the knowledge of the process, as did some of his mentors like David West. 

Having that experience around of what it takes to be a successful athlete is absolutely invaluable. There is no school of hard knocks and you can prepare for things long before you ever experience them with the trust of knowing the person giving you that advice has been through those scenarios.