Wednesday 4 February 2009

McGuire interviews Michael Oher

Matt McGuire caught up with Michael Oher during the Senior Bowl and today published the interview. In the conversation, Oher compares himself to Walter Jones and talks about his aims for the NFL. The big left tackle helped Ole Miss to a Cotton Bowl victory over Texas Tech recently.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Always nice to actually hear from a player that is on the Hawks' radar. That being said, it sounded like standard fare in regards to saying all the right things that people want to hear. Nothing wrong with that at all, just nothing too telling.

Anonymous said...

Actually, considering Oher's past, I would say that the fact that there was nothing unusual about his interview speaks volumes.

He gave what appears to be a a run-of-the-mill interview and for a kid who had severe social disabilities growing up, I think that shows what huge strides he has made off the field. I don't know if he'd be the right pick for the Hawks but I hope he does well in the NFL.

Anonymous said...

You know I was really down on the Hawks potentially picking him. I'd read a lot about him, and it sounded like he was so behind socially, emotionally and academically from his horrible childhood. But now that interviews are coming out, I really don't think that's an issue any more. I think he's a bright guy was just born into a horrible situation. Think of it this way, if he does have intelligence issues, would he have been able to turn his life around so much in such a short amount of time?

Anonymous said...

I don't doubt his intelligence either. I think if someone grew up on a desert island and had no interaction with other people, they would have social problems too. And that's basically how Oher was raised. He essentially had no concept of family and no one he could rely on. To attain the success he has had at this point in his life is quite an accomplishment.

That being said, I think there are OTs in this draft whose talents better suit the Seahawks, namely, Jason Smith and Eugene Monroe.

Rob Staton said...

Oher's story is truly inspirational. I think there are going to be some lingering 'intelligence' issues but the teams will find out if they hold any substance in interviews and research. My main worry with Oher is his consistency. He can be really dominant one play, and completely switch off in another. It's no good only being dominant some of the time because it's the times he switches off that the QB is going to take a big hit.

I expect he will get taken in the top 15 picks because he has potential, if he can become more consistent he could even be the best tackle from this class. But I don't think he'll go in the top five picks like some touted during the 2008 season.

Anonymous said...

I agree Rob. Besides QB, LT is the one position that I don't want inconsistency at. I've seen about 4 of Oher's games this past year and he just doesn't bring it more than 60-75% of the time. In college his size and athleticism allowed him to get by without giving maximum effort but put him against Tuck or Ware or Peppers etc. and over the course of the game he will put your QB at risk several times.