I can't imagine that he did. Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't Mitchell considered a project that would take at least a season before he was ready to contribute on the O-line? Either way, he's done a great job when he's been healthy, which is definitely encouraging for the future of the O-line considering what we've now seen from AVT.
I believe you are correct. I read the same that he was a project and that the CS did not expect him to develop so quickly. If I recall correctly when he was drafted they said two things would keep him from playing this year one he was from a small school and needed a year to sit and learn second he was pretty light for a tackle and needed to gain 10 to 15 lbs. I read that he gained 10 to 15 pounds between the draft and sometime in camp. Nice thing for Mitchell is he got to play 3.5 games and now he gets 6 weeks or so to sit and learn, gain knowledge and let things soak in. Maybe taking a step back will allow him to develop even faster. Although, he could also lose his job permanently if AVT becomes a permanent RT.
It's a bit concerning Mitchell got a 6 week injury only after 4 games. Hopefully he will be more durable, we have enough injury prone tackles on the roster. We need to be able to rely on one of these tackles. Hopefully this was just a freaky non repeatable occurrence. Looking forward to seeing him back and performing at even higher level without any more injuries this season.
What's more concerning is why this pandemic of injuries to Tackles? Is it really just that Douglas only finds fragile ones? Or is there some other common denominator having to do with the Jets: turf; practice regimen; blocking scheme? I don't believe it's just coincidence or bad luck.
Mitchell was rated the top “true” RT in the draft but was a little underweight and played for the rajun cajuns so he hadn’t been tested against too much (if any) top talent.
It’s the blocking scheme. They (teams who run this scheme) don’t run the scheme in practice to avoid injuries
