Feature article on Samson

http://www.phins.com/chris/column_101607.html

Happy to be starting at center for Miami, Samson said:
“Everything’s good about this. I’m happy that I started. One goal that I had was to start against Washington (in the season opener) and not lose my spot after that.” (phins.com)


About how sometimes he gets too aggressive, Samson said:
“Yeah, sometimes I am too aggressive and need to set off the ball more. I need to do what Hud (Houck) tells me to do, not what I want to do.” (phins.com)

Phins Note: "That’s music to Dolphin ears because it shows that Satele is tremendously self-aware of what he needs to do to get better. That’s not as common a quality with young players as some might think."


About how Samson has adjusted to the demanding role of starting center, Cameron said:
“It all starts with the guy, and every rookie in this league is different. Not only with the positions they play, (because) some positions are more demanding as a rookie than others, (but) not many are more demanding than a starting center. (Satele’s) a unique guy. He’s very mature, he loves football, and he plays football for all the right reasons. He’s doing a tremendous job.” (phins.com)


About their scouting of Samson, Assistant Director of Player Personnel Mike Baugh said:
“Samson was unique because he played guard his junior year and then going into his senior year played center. So we went back and looked at his games at guard and center and tried to figure out what (best) to do with him. The first thing for offensive lineman is that you have to be intelligent, especially at the center position. You have to be able to grasp volumes of information. Physically, you’re looking for a guy with balance and knee-bend. If you watch when Samson comes off the ball, he’s always got his knees bent and his feet underneath him. It’s a hard quality to find.” (phins.com)


About what he looks for in a offensive lineman, Baugh said:
“Howard Mudd was the first offensive line coach I worked with in Seattle. He used to tell me that one of his fundamentals with offensive line play was ‘first touch’. If you look at a defender and an offensive lineman, whoever establishes that ‘first touch’ and controls the chest area of the opponent first, is probably the indicator of who is going to win the battle. These are some of the things you can look for when you see Samson (play).” (phins.com)

Phins Note: "If you’re looking for evidence of what Baugh is talking about, just watch Satele on one of those screen passes that Ronnie Brown has been tearing people up with. You’ll see Satele pulling out in front, using his nimble athleticism, leverage, and power to crush linebackers flat."


About working to live up to the standards set for Miami centers, Samson said:
“I’m working toward it. It’s not something that just going to be handed to me. Dwight Stephenson was the best center there ever was here, a Hall of Famer. I want my name to be with him, to be greater. I’m just working at it, taking it one day at a time. I’m no All-Pro yet. I still have a lot of things to work on. I love this game.” (phins.com)