Josh Rosen may have trouble concentrating in NFL, says former coach

One of the top prospects in this year’s NFL draft may limit his potential because he has interests outside football, according to his former college coach.

Josh Rosen has been tipped by some to go to the Cleveland Browns with the No1 overall pick in this month’s draft. However Jim Mora, Rosen’s former coach at UCLA, believes the Browns should select another quarterback, Sam Darnold, No1 because he has “the underdog mentality that I think will fit so well in Cleveland, a franchise that’s really been down.”

Mora’s comments break with tradition as college coaches usually talk up the prospects of their former players when they enter the professional game. Mora said he still believed Rosen is the best player in the draft and called him a “franchise changer” but said his status as a millennial may let him down.

“He needs to be challenged intellectually so he doesn’t get bored. He’s a millennial. He wants to know why,” Mora, who was fired as UCLA coach in November, told Sports Illustrated on Monday. “Millennials, once they know why, they’re good. Josh has a lot of interests in life. If you can hold his concentration level and focus only on football for a few years, he will set the world on fire. He has so much ability, and he’s a really good kid.”

Mora’s reasoning is odd given the fact that nearly every NFL player is a millennial (in fact, following the general belief that millennials were born between 1981 and 1996, Rosen is too young to be one). What Mora may be hinting at is that Rosen’s independent thinking will not fit in a league where players are expected to keep quiet and follow orders. In the past Rosen has said a college football career and studying are incompatible, and caused controversy when he played golf in a “Fuck Trump” hat at one of the president’s courses. Others have hypothesized that Rosen’s comfortable background – his father is a surgeon – means he lacks the hunger to be a great player.

NFL teams tend to have an aversion to outspoken players. Many owners saw the recent anthem protests as a distraction and potentially alienating to the many NFL fans. Colin Kaepernick and Eric Reid – two players who were central to the protest movement – remain unsigned despite strong career pedigrees.

(THE GUARDIAN)