Not every team was prepared to take a chance on Ole Miss defensive tackle Robert Nkemdiche, no matter how talented.
But the Cardinals have a certain attitude about them which not only allows them to take Nkemdiche in the first round, but to embrace his, um, colorful backstory of defenestration and exotic pets.
“I made a kind of joke about it, you get a guy who falls out of a second-story building and walks away from it, that’s my kind of guy,” defensive line coach Brentson Buckner said, via Darren Urban of the team’s official website. “Because he’s not afraid of a double-team anymore, know what I mean?”
Between that and coach Bruce Arians and owner Michael Bidwill making jokes about Nkemdiche’s dream to buy a pet panther, the eccentric Ole Miss defensive tackle may have found his perfect spiritual home.
Buckner, the longtime NFL defensive tackle, said he’s talked to plenty of people about Nkemdiche and not heard negative reviews of the player, and wasn’t worried about his reputation for taking plays off. Buckner said the fact college stars rarely come off the field instead of rotating through should solve most of the problem.
“You show me any player in the country, especially D-linemen, that plays every snap full speed, I’ll give you a million dollars,” Buckner said. “It depends on what your eyes see.. . . In the NFL you’re not going to play 90 plays. With our [roster], he’ll play 30 plays. You take that energy and condense it to 30 plays, you tell me who wouldn’t want that type of player?”
The Cardinals clearly do, and their experience with a player such as Darnell Dockett will make it an easier transition for Nkemdiche, as they’ve handled big personalties with big talent before.
