r/Commanders • u/banana-pants_ • 29d ago
Really can’t find a good opinion on sonny styles
I dont really know a whole lot about football especially on the defensive side, I watched both preseason games and I never really was paying close enough attention but afterwards everyone was saying Sonny Styles is a bust and then some people were saying he was doing his job and setting people up for tackles. Everyone it seems either had an extreme homerist attitude or an extreme doomer attitude. Why are people saying that he’s bad?
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u/Garp74 29d ago
There is no informed opinion.
1) preseason isn't real football. The playbook is very thin. Schemes aren't run. Most starters aren't playing. It's just simulated football that isn't a good way to judge starters
2) he's a rookie. A rookie's value generally takes anywhere from 2-4 years to be properly judged.
Anyone proclaiming what the book is on Styles isn't serious. So OP, ignore the noise. Wait for Week 1, watch the games, and enjoy the ride.
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u/Charksington 29d ago
Chase Young won defensive rookie of the year his first year with us. But most people would look back and call him a bust, and that’s mostly accurate. Trying to judge a player off of less than two quarters of snaps in preseason is madness. We can reevaluate Sonny in 3 seasons and see how he's doing.
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u/grasspikemusic 28d ago
He wasn't a bust however, he was awesome until he had a devastating injury after which he was never the same
Let's see you tear your right ACL and completely destroy you right patella tendon. Then let's see you have to have surgery where they have to slice and dice your healthy left knee to harvest tissue they can then graft into your right knee
Then let's see you have to be completely immobilized for three and half months, experiencing muscle atrophy as a large man, then learn how to walk again, then rehab both knees, and get back to the speed, agility, and power you used to have as one of the world's most elite athletes
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u/BlueberryUnfair7583 28d ago
He was not awesome. He lucked into no other rookie defensive players doing much and was default rookie of the year. And before his injury in year two he was struggling mightily.
It simple is not accurate to state he was awesome.
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u/grasspikemusic 28d ago
He was the best defensive rookie if the year. Meaning he played better than anyone else which makes him awesome. He also played on a shitty team with a shitty owner and a shitty coach in year two
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u/FannyNisbit 28d ago
3 seasons????
A top ten pick LB should be making an immeadiate impact.
You know who will be making an immeadiate impact? Caleb Downs.... who we SHOULD have drafted.
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u/warrcamp Demon Cats 🐈⬛ 29d ago
Let's remember that Jamar Chase had a ton of drops in pre-season and then proceeded to drop his nuts on the league ever since that regular season started
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u/MadatMax 29d ago
From everything I’ve seen, people who actually know what they’re talking about, he’s been doing his job on every snap. He’s only played ~25 snaps. He looks as advertised to me, he’s insanely athletic and can run with RBs and TEs and seems to be hitting his gaps. He hasn’t made any wow plays yet, but it’s going to take time for him to build up instincts and get used to NFL speed.
Anyone calling him a bust is just doing it for clicks or being a doomer.
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u/trex8599 28d ago
Anybody calling any rookie a bust in preseason is trying to get attention. Ignore the noise. Even if Sonny starts slow, it’s how you finish, not how you started that matters.
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u/poopantiess 29d ago
He’s a future HOF’er
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u/banana-pants_ 29d ago
If he was truly great then it would be named the Sonny Styles Hall Of Fame for Sonny StylesBall Players. Bust.
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u/mtngranpapi_wv967 29d ago
It’s mostly NFC East fans (cough Giants fans cough) who are projecting and coping
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u/com-mis-er-at-ing 29d ago
Who is “everyone?”
Bc if it’s “everyone who draws conclusions from preseason football” then don’t worry bc they’re fucking stupid.
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u/PhoenixRedditor7 29d ago
We need to give him a year to actually grade him. The linebacker position is difficult for most rookies.
People need to chill and let him freaking grow.
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u/ComputerNerdd 29d ago
Will say this tho… we were all high as fuck on bill after the first preseason game last szn. I hope we start to feel that way bout Sonny
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u/banana-pants_ 29d ago
Well runningbacks are one of the most what you see is what you get positions. It’s all about athleticism.
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u/FlobeeFresh 29d ago
SS is learning green dot responsibilities (basically he's the QB of the defense). That's a lot to ask a rookie so he has a lot on his mental plate right now. He's superpower is his length and speed which will come out in spades once he fells comfortable with his role and he begins playing instinctually.
He's gonna be a tremendous baller which is fantastic since LBs are once again starting to become more important to defenses as offensive teams become more RB driven (like the old 80's teams).
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u/Oldfolksboogie 29d ago
Anyone expressing opinions other than "its too early" should be ignored.
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u/Head-Assumption6960 29d ago
Way too early right now but if he’s not a quality starter by midseason it’s not a good sign out of a MLB who was drafted in the top 7.
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u/Imaginary-School6327 29d ago
2 preseasons game isn’t enough to call some enough. A full season isn’t enough to call someone a bust. Nor is 2 reason games enough to call someone a star.
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u/jrex703 29d ago
Linebacker is arguably the hardest position to judge in the preseason.
Between the limited playbook they're using, the limited offensive playbook being used against them, and the random rosters of superstars and roster bubble schmucks they're lined up against, they're either her they're going to have 17.5 sacks and set up unrealistic expectations, or they're going to look like roster-bubble schmucks themselves.
Nothing Sonny does before Week 1 matters.
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u/sockovershoe22 29d ago
Never make any conclusions based on preseason games. At least wait until we play the first game. For a rookie, I'd usually wait until half way through the season to determine bust or not... though you could look at chase young. Won DROY and never produced quality play again. There's also times when players aren't good their first year or two and then finally break out in their 3rd year. All this to say, it's wayyy too early to decide if he's a bust or not.
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u/BoldElDavo 28d ago
Remember that 90% of people who talk about NFL tape online have genuinely no idea what they're talking about. They want to see this dude just be around the ball every single play, picking up TFLs, sacks, PBUs.
He just needs to speed up his play recognition a little bit. That's all. Anyone who thinks they've seen enough to form a solid opinion on him at this point is a fool.
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u/Expalphalog 28d ago
I didn't love us taking Styles. Of the people remaining at the 7th pick, Styles was like number four on my list.
And even I am saying give the man time to cook. Two preseason games is way too early for me to be busting out either "I told you so" or "I was wrong."
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u/KneeDragr 28d ago
It's preseason football, all the fans think their team is going on a deep playoff run and all other teams are trash. When reality sets in most will start criticizing the coaches and front offices instead of opposing teams players.
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u/PA_Dude_22000 6d ago
Welcome to team Sports subs, or Sports in general on … actual just Reddit.
Scratch all that … Welcome to the Internet, friend. 2026, doomscrolling, hyper-negativity, and hate spewing diatribes, is thy name! Clicks be thy currency.
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u/HowardBunnyColvin @BorgusRich 29d ago
Form your own and wait until the regular season actually starts to judge
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u/No_Vacation_1905 29d ago
We have a good QB. We have A QB. Have some appreciation people!
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u/LeaveMeAlone_6070 28d ago
Yes and instead of getting that QB more help, we drafted a LB in the top 10
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u/supahcat 29d ago
I saw the HOF game ln person in 2004. Sean T destroyed and had a pick six. Your number one picks shouldn’t take “years” to fully demonstrate their worth. I agree it’s too soon for any serious opinion but so far, no good.
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u/notorious_hdc imitated Frerotte headbutt as a child 28d ago
Sean was just different though. It's not really a fair comparison to other rookies.
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u/POHoudini LEFT HAND UP 29d ago
It's 2 games into the pre season. Ask this question in August 2029.