The “For Real?” Files: Laremy Tunsil

The premise for this series is simple: we want to know who is in our “young nucleus”. Today, we’ll vote on Laremy Tunsil.

And you might be surprised, but I’m not going to break down tape or share stats in this series. YOU watched the games just like I did, so I don’t necessarily care if your perception derives from a hard look at the metrics and data or you simply have a feeling about the guy (although I’d like to hear about your take in the Comments Section).

Plus, we’re talking about the offensive line. They’re unsexy, hideous beasts - like the ugly people who used to work in the back room at Abercrombie and Fitch, too callous-looking to be seen in the show room. (I just want to see if I can get FLY to blow a gasket, LOL).

But seriously, there’s not many meaningful stats to dissect on OL anyway. This is an “eye test” sort of thing. To frame this in what I feel is the appropriate context, the OL is defined by its whole. Yes, the individuals give shape to the whole, and you can analyze the individual parts, but the ultimate goal for a high quality OL is in its interconnectedness.

There’s 1-on-1 match-ups all over the field, but no one has the blitzkrieg of chaos and the need for communication quite like the OL.

Installment #1: Xavien Howard, 91% Yes, 4% No, 5% I’m stupid.

Installment #2: Kenyan Drake, 93% Yes, 4% No, 3% I’m stupid.

I, for one, thought Laremy Tunsil would be dominant by now. It might be unfair of me since his rookie campaign was spent at guard which potentially decelerated his transition to tackle, but I had the bar really high for him. As with just about everyone on the Miami Dolphins offensive line, he had his ups and downs: you see plays of stunning athleticism and balance, and you see plays where his reaction is slow and he loses leverage. PFF ranked him as the 47th tackle. He was the undisputed leader in penalties (12) on the 2017 Miami Dolphins roster.

The question remains: is Laremy Tunsil for real? Is this a member of the “young nucleus”?