Interesting Buffalo News article on Dawkins

[Mango]

1 hour ago, Warriorspikes51 said:

Yes, I'm sure you know more than the coaching staff strength, conditioning, nutrition people....who specifically put him on a plan to lose the weight   FOR FOOTBALL

Neither do you. None of us know more about anything than just about any person employed by an NFL team. This is such a low grade response that if taken seriously prohibits all conversations here about basically anything.

 

I will say I’ve worked with and spoken to a number of physiologists, S&C coaches, and RD’s across a number of different sports as part of the USOC and a couple from other National Governing Bodies. There isn’t a lot of praise for those working in football.  

[wppete]

Could be a fluff piece…. But the most telling is he wasn’t voted a captain again. That’s a huge sign. Also he look straight up awful in the preseason….. Hope he turns it around starting Monday. 

[buffblue]

It's interesting that Dion had to lose 40 pounds to get down to 330. When the Bills took him from Temple he was playing at 315 at guard. It's good that he's committed to his diet, but he could stand to lose another 10-15 lbs imo. He was a well above average LT during his rookie season of 2017 playing at the reduced weight.

[ddaryl]

22 minutes ago, buffblue said:

It's interesting that Dion had to lose 40 pounds to get down to 330. When the Bills took him from Temple he was playing at 315 at guard. It's good that he's committed to his diet, but he could stand to lose another 10-15 lbs imo. He was a well above average LT during his rookie season of 2017 playing at the reduced weight.

The issue with waiting till Voluntary Workouts to realize you need to lose weight, you are obviously not strength training nor are you getting cardio training in at a high enough level. Those calories would be made into muscle, and Cardio is always beneficial. Now that he is desperately trying to shed weight he doesn't have the benefit of the offseason to turn those calories into more lean muscle mass etc...

 

[Beck Water]

3 hours ago, Warriorspikes51 said:

hahahaha maybe Dion reads the boards

 

I don't think he needed to read the boards.  The team sets weight goals and strength/fitness benchmarks for the players.   Dion realized he wasn't gonna meet those goals, so he "manned up".

 

Sounds as though Dion did something similar to what Poyer says he did after 2020's Championship game loss, except with food instead of alcohol.

 

I'm glad he lost 40 lbs, and I'm glad he says he's "skinny" now, but I do wonder if he's got the "right" weight at 330.  I don't think that's out of line for other 6'5" LT in the league, but it may be distributed differently.

 

 

[Coach Tuesday]

LT is a key need for 2024.

[LabattBlue]

Just now, Coach Tuesday said:

LT is a key need for 2024.

…along with LB and WR. 

[Punching Bag]

4 hours ago, Warriorspikes51 said:

hahahaha maybe Dion reads the boards

 

That certainly will help weight.

 

[Nelius]

I like how he said things got a little out of hand and then proceeded to gain 40 lbs in two months. A little out of hand? If I laid on the couch and did nothing but drink beer and eat pizza I couldn’t put on half of that in only two months. Pretty scary metabolism at minimum, I agree with the concern.

[Beck Water]

2 minutes ago, ddaryl said:

The issue with waiting till Voluntary Workouts to realize you need to lose weight, you are obviously not strength training nor are you getting cardio training in at a high enough level. Those calories would be made into muscle, and Cardio is always beneficial. Now that he is desperately trying to shed weight he doesn't have the benefit of the offseason to turn those calories into more lean muscle mass etc...

 

 

Tell us you didn't read the article or the offered summation of the article above, without telling us you didn't read the article.

 

First of all, doesn't say Dawkins wasn't working out, strength or cardio training before OTAs.  There's nothing "obvious" that he's not doing strength or cardio training because he's gained 40 lbs.

 

Fat people can and do work out!  It's harder, but as a wealthy athlete Dawkins has all the access he needs to zero-g treadmills, fitness pools, air bikes etc to work out without over-stressing his joints. 

 

Second, it says he reached out at the start of March and has been working with the Bills assistant S&C coach since then.

 

Voluntary workouts start mid-April - April 17 I believe it was.

 

 

 

 

[Mango]

7 minutes ago, LabattBlue said:

…along with LB and WR. 

and DE and OC. 
 

(and maybe RT)

[Beck Water]

1 minute ago, Nelius said:

I like how he said things got a little out of hand and then proceeded to gain 40 lbs in two months. A little out of hand? If I laid on the couch and did nothing but drink beer and eat pizza I couldn’t put on half of that in only two months. Pretty scary metabolism at minimum, I agree with the concern.

 

From an interview or podcast with Eric Woods, the eating life of an NFL lineman during the season can be a challenge.  To maintain weight, some of them eat 6 or even 7 times a day (Spencer Brown said he keeps a smoothie by his bed and wakes up in the middle of the night to consume it).  They may be eating 4,000-8,000 calories a day to maintain weight or even add a little while trying to maintain their strength/fitness and play during the season.
 

I know from personal experience that if I'm getting a ton of physical exercise then I get an injury and cut that out sharply, I can gain a lot of weight super-quickly unless I really mind the calories right away.

 

 

[NoSaint]

4 hours ago, Chandler#81 said:

Personally, I don’t hold out much hope he’ll ever be dominant. Too interested in being a goof off and never really serious about health and commitment to excellence. He entered the League as a ‘good’ LT, which in its own right puts him above the pack. But -until this dramatic weight loss, he’s never really striven to excel. 
jmo, but depending how the season shakes out, LT should be high on our Draft board next April.

 

🤷‍♂️

let’s be honest - dramatic weight loss gets him back to viable nfl player, from nearly eating himself out of the league. 
 

id say the red flag on it happening is pretty large. It’ll be interesting if it’s a wake up call to be elite in those regards going forward or just back to serviceable 

[Buffalo_Stampede]

Weight problem is official now.

[Punching Bag]

1 hour ago, Mango said:

It sounds like he called somebody on the S&C team and this was the outcome. Chipotle twice per day and a couple gallons of water. I really hope this was not signed off on by somebody on the Bills staff. This is wildly irresponsible of a professional. But honestly, the NFL doesn’t necessarily attract the best physiologists and dietitians on the planet so it’s not hugely surprisingly. 

 

Bills USED to have best in the business - Rusty Jones - until he was promoted up because head coach wanted to bring in his buddy and Rusty left to Bears on Ruben Brown's recommendation.   Bills have shown they are willing to pay the best on staff other than PR and Marketing; Beane and Coach McD claim they are always looking to improve if necessary or motivate if that is what is needed.

 

Look at list of people employed by Bills - as long as some big budget movies!

https://www.buffalobills.com/team/front-office-roster/

[SectionC3]

Talk is cheap.  He has a sloppy physique that is unlikely to improve.  I hope he proves me wrong. 

[Nelius]

7 minutes ago, Beck Water said:

 

I know from personal experience that if I'm getting a ton of physical exercise then I get an injury and cut that out sharply, I can gain a lot of weight super-quickly unless I really mind the calories right away.

 

 

That makes sense although your last sentence is key. So it took him at least two months to make an adjustment? Just consuming 8k calories like it’s game time but then hitting a movie or something? Yikes, seems concerning no matter how it’s framed.

[Beck Water]

1 hour ago, Mango said:

Neither do you. None of us know more about anything than just about any person employed by an NFL team. This is such a low grade response that if taken seriously prohibits all conversations here about basically anything.

 

I will say I’ve worked with and spoken to a number of physiologists, S&C coaches, and RD’s across a number of different sports as part of the USOC and a couple from other National Governing Bodies. There isn’t a lot of praise for those working in football.  

 

You're certainly correct that if we didn't talk about stuff where NFL employees know more, this board would be a "quick read".

 

May be a dumb question but:

 

Do the people you know, actually know the people working in football to have opinions good and bad?  I could see (say) the nutritionists working with Olympic lacrosse players knowing the nutritionists working with Olympic soccer players because they all come together at various points.

 

But I could see NFL football being its its own enclave, since it doesn't overlap with an Olympic sport.

 

The other thing is, some of the nutritional demands of NFL positions are out of whack with normal athlete nutrition.  I'm trying to think of another sport where about 1/4-1/3 of the players on team are encouraged to maintain extra body mass so they can "anchor", and I can't.

 

There's actually some funny stuff in "NFL Confidential" by "Johnny Anonymous" (believed to be former Eagles backup center David Molk) about being a guy who struggled to maintain his team-mandated weight and what he went through to "make weight" (he would get up in the morning and eat a lot, drink a lot of water, and "hold in" any output until after he was weighed - then he'd run to the toilet for a 'big dump')

 

7 minutes ago, Nelius said:

That makes sense although your last sentence is key. So it took him at least two months to make an adjustment? Just consuming 8k calories like it’s game time but then hitting a movie or something? Yikes, seems concerning no matter how it’s framed.

 

I didn't think that was how it was framed.  The article quotes Dion as saying he was "binging for comfort", and yes, it's concerning.

 

My point was that I can see how weight could pack on quickly, if a guy is accustomed to eating, say, 6,000 calories a day and maintaining weight because of all the physical activity, then the physical activity drops sharply - but you still perceive 6,000 calories a day as a "normal" amount of food.

 

I don't say it's not concerning and obviously Dion knows it was a problem.

Edited September 7, 2023 by Beck Water

[Ridgewaycynic2013]

8 minutes ago, Limeaid said:

 

Bills USED to have best in the business - Rusty Jones - until he was promoted up because head coach wanted to bring in his buddy and Rusty left to Bears on Ruben Brown's recommendation.   Bills have shown they are willing to pay the best on staff other than PR and Marketing; Beane and Coach McD claim they are always looking to improve if necessary or motivate if that is what is needed.

 

Look at list of people employed by Bills - as long as some big budget movies!

https://www.buffalobills.com/team/front-office-roster/

Bills staff under analytics:

'Nithin Reddy'. 🤔

*

Coach McDermott: "I need results from the last game, third down efficiencies.  Who do I see?"

GM Beane: "Nithin Reddy."

McD: "I didn't ask if the results are ready, I expect them now."

B: "Nithin Reddy."

McD: "I'm not asking you if it's ready, it's already Thursday!"

 

[C.Biscuit97]

I like Dawkins but he still looks really out of shape. And I know these guys are humans but gaining 40 lbs as a pro athlete would make me lost my mind as coach/ executive.

 

dude is a leader and great guy in the community. Think I have always heard is he is really in love with the life as a pro athlete but people question how much he truly dedicates himself to being the best player he can be.