Originally Posted by
barracuda
What sticks with me is when he was on the bench during the last quarter, head down, with kirk trying to console him. I think he is quite a fragile character who easily loses confidence. Yes he will be very good, but getting him there is a careful process. On any analysis he is avoiding any body contact, he shirks collisions, and his tackles are soft. In my view playing him again would destroy his confidence even further and drive him away. Other than Kirk who has made Taylor his special project, the other coaches are pretty brutal and he no doubt would have got a very blunt review. The best thing for his long term development would be to run out the year in the twos focusing on the basics like body work and tackling. Then next year build him back to seniors after a solid pre-season adding extra bulk and speed. There is nothing to be gained continuing to play him in seniors with a "sink or swim" approach. Given his nature there is a very high probability he will sink.
I should add that we are seeing some of the concerns about Elijah pre draft, that he may struggle with resilience. This was the issue not a couple of beers.
And he is mickey o in the making but needs a modern nurturing approach.
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