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What first six Commanders games have told us about rookie Sonny Styles
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- What first six Commanders games have told us about rookie Sonny Styles
The Commanders used a top 10 NFL draft pick on a non-premium position. Selections that high are normally reserved for a handful of spots, valued above all others, including quarterback, edge rusher, cornerback, offensive tackle and, at times, receiver.
An off-the-ball linebacker isn't in the mix. Yet the Commanders confidently and without hesitation took Ohio State linebacker Sonny Styles at No. 7 overall .
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There are exceptions to every rule.
Styles was one.
The athletic freak with an off-the-charts RAS was taken without hesitation, as a defensive anchor point for years to come.
Styles has played just six games to this point, but the evaluation's pretty clear. This dude is legit.
We officially learned that in Week 3, when he covered Seattle running back Jadarian Price like a blanket on a deep route, which he expertly knocked away with an outstretched arm.
Price runs like a gazelle. Styles is 6-foot-5 and 245 pounds. Guys that big shouldn't run like that. The play we recall here wasn't the biggest stat. We're talking about a pass defensed on a day where he had five tackles, a forced fumble and an interception .
He was named NFC defensive player of the week after that showing. Yet, somehow, the man has done better. He had 13 tackles against the Giants. And 13 more against the 49ers heading into last week's bye.
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It's even more than the stats. It's instinctual plays like this:
Or when he introduced himself to the NFL by obliterating Saquon Barkley in Week 1.
The bye provides us a time to check in on Washington's first-round pick, who sure seems like a foundational player already. There's always a learning curve at linebacker considering all the mental requirements involved with the position, but Styles is playing fast and furious and seems to be getting better.
He's so nonchalant about it all, but that's his personality. He seems to know that he belongs, but his first six performances have proved that.
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The Styles stat line to this point: 46 tackles (leads the team), three TFLs, an interception, a sack, a forced fumble and four passes defensed.
Here are his best plays through six weeks:
He does all that yet barely raises his voice above a mumble. Defensive coordinator Daronte Jones (jokingly) said he saw Styles smile once, a hyperbolic tribute to how deeply serious he is about his craft.
While we never know this early how draft picks will pan out, it feels super safe to say that the Styles selection was a good one.
Give us your early evaluations of Sonny Styles and his potential in the comments below:
