Seahawks DE Darrell Taylor excited for future with team
Defensive end Darrell Taylor missed his entire rookie season because of a leg injury he suffered during his final year at the University of Tennessee.
Taylor stated that he lamented staying out for the entire 2020 season, but he is fired up for 2021 now that his injury has healed and he has returned to the practice field.
“It was pretty hard last year not being on the field, but I had my teammates helping me out—older guys just whispering in my ear every now and then, coaches talking to me,” Taylor said. “So I stayed the course last year, just trying to be humble and trying to stay positive about what was going on. Just getting out here today was very exciting. Being out here with my new teammates and stuff, it was something or the books, and I’m excited and looking forward to the future, what’s coming up next.”
A versatile player, the Seahawks coaching staff has shuffled Taylor around the formation, looking to take full advantage of his abilities. He has seen reps at strongside linebacker and defensive end, among other positions.
“The SAM position is great,” Taylor said. “I like the transition. I’m still going to be playing LEO as well, trying to be a versatile player. The SAM position requires a little more dropping, but we’re trying to make the SAM a dominant player and just trying to help this defense be more dominant every year we get on that field… I played a lot of SAM linebacker at Tennessee in our 3-4 front, so it’s not really new to me. Tennessee asked me to do a lot, and the Seahawks are asking me to do the same thing, and I can take the challenge, I’m ready.”
Hopefully, Taylor will prove to be a great asset for Seattle’s defense in the short and long-term future.
