Jermichael Finley is going to be the best tight end in football.
Not eventually now. This season. It seems so obvious that, while making this prediction, you almost feel as if youre missing something. Why isnt everyone predicting this?
The evidence was building last season, and the revelation came in the wild-card playoff shootout between the Packers and the Cardinals in January. Finley had six catches for a franchise-playoff-record 159 yards. Cardinals safety Adrian Wilson said of Finley, who was then 22 years old: Hes very comparable to Antonio Gates. Hell of a player. He can do it all.
It may sound ludicrous, but Finley is actually better than Gates at least athletically. Finley, a third-round pick from Texas, is taller (at 6-5), longer, faster and more agile than the Chargers Gates, a six-time Pro Bowler. Like Gates, he has uncanny body control and ball-adjustment skills. In his last eight games last season, counting the playoff loss, he had 44 catches for 575 yards and 4 touchdowns.
Still, to say that a third-year pro with a reputation for immaturity and only 12 starts will be the best player at his position seems overzealous. When you get Finley on the phone, as I did recently, you immediately share your opinion, then say, Am I smart or am I crazy?
Youre half-hoping he says crazy. If he does, hell have to explain why. That will mean plenty of quotable phrases about working hard, aspiring to improve and overcoming challenges. More important, it will allow you to ride the fence. It will be the green light to write an article that projects Finley not as the best tight end in 2010, but rather as potentially the best tight end. Its safer.
Problem is, Finley doesnt bail you out.
I think youre a genius, to tell you the truth, he said.
Well, what about the effect of that kind of hype? Does the expectation of being the best tight end in football add undue pressure?
I dont think it adds pressure whatsoever, he said. Finley casually mentions that his speed creates mismatches against linebackers. He discusses the importance of his off-season regimen, which now includes boxing (a trend in the N.F.L.). He cites blocking as the element of his game needing the most improvement. He talks about a big strength, his hands. His tone isnt boastful, brash just confident.
Finleys back story is not unlike those of other tight ends. He was a standout basketball player growing up. He entered Texas as a wide receiver. When he was moved to tight end, he had a few reservations about blocking. But coaches quickly asserted that, given his athleticism, the tight end position presented a special opportunity.
With Jermichael, we did a lot of different things, said Bruce Chambers, the Longhorns tight ends coach, in a recent phone interview. We flexed him out a lot like theyre doing with him now in Green Bay. He spent a lot of time in the wide receiver two-point stance. The only difference was, instead of running his routes on corners, he ran his routes on linebackers and safeties. He became very special when he moved inside. Best thing that ever happened to him, in my opinion.
The only potholes on Finleys path have been off the field. His immaturity has been well documented most recently in an article by The Milwaukee Journal Sentinels Greg Bedard, in which Finley spoke about drama with agents, tardiness for meetings, broken curfews (including one the night before the playoff loss in Arizona) and youthful cockiness.
To the Packers relief, those problems seem to be easing. Living in Green Bay with a wife and 2-year-old son has a way of shepherding a man out of the fast lane. As Finley said, If you get in trouble, its because youre looking for it.
As long as he doesnt look, Jermichael Finley will be the N.F.L.s best tight end in 2010.