wakes123
Manager⭐
I follow Coker on Instagram and he definitely plays the 'class clown' - but now he's out injured.I was listening to a NFL podcast a while back when they were talking about the draft and one of the things a team personnel director said one of the things they look for in 1st round picks is charisma. It had never occurred to me before that this would be such a desirable trait in a sportsman (although it probably overlaps with leadership) but I think it is spot on and is just what this team needs.
Someone like Barrett had that charisma. His enthusiasm, pride and energy was infectious and rubbed off on those around him - not just team-mates but on the crowd as well.
A dressing room consists of a mix of characters. They aren't just footballers but individuals with different personality types. A team of clones won't work. You need some vocal players, but if everyone is too vocal everyone gets shouted out. You need serious, focused individuals because it is work but if everyone is too serious and too focused you get too tense. So you need a joker, a clown who can say the right thing at the right time to loosen the mood or lighten things up when you're going through a spell like this.
Maybe we already had the right mix of personalities and injuries have removed them from the dressing room but I'm struggling to identify too many boisterous types, a player of two who sees the lighter side of the game, a leader that rallies the troops. Maybe we miss Timlin and maybe Anton Ferdinand here as much for their personalities as for their waning football abilities. I expect someone like Wordsworth would crack a joke or two, who is now the class clown? Maybe Dru is a bundle of positive energy but if so there are too few like him.
Above all what we need is an individual(s) who wants to take the game by the scruff of the neck when things start going awry and will it by sheer force of personality. We have largely competent players. What we lack - besides in Hopper's absence a targetman - is someone with this sort of charisma to bend things to their will. If they lead, I think the others will follow.