Manning was still a very good player until he tore his ACL 3 or 4 times, which Mo hasn't done. By the way, Mo tore his Achilles, not his ACL.
I think Christian Laettner is a better example. Laugh all you want, but Laett was an All Star in 1997 before moping through 1997-98 and tearing his Achilles around this time in 1998. He returned for part of the lockout season, but his game was shot. It wasn't until this year that he settled down and relied on more of a defensive-minded approach. 10-12 months? That's as bad as it gets. I think we may have seen the best Mo Taylor we're ever going to see.
I don't know if you can really compare Mo to how Manning is now. Manning blew out his leg the first time and came back strong. But then he blew out his OTHER leg, that is why he isn't as good now as he was when he first came in the league. But with Laettner, you're talking about a guy who wasn't athletic to begin with, and you make him LESS athletic? A killer for him. I think Mo can come back from this injury and not have any serious long lasting effects physically. Mentally is another thing.
I agree. Most players have a huge decline after major injuries like this. I don't see Mo being much different.
I don't mean to come off as a Laett w**** here, though I'm not going to go into the myriad of reasons some of us aren't fans of his personality, but I can't see Taylor and Christian's athletic level being too different during the months leading up to their respective tears. I watched tapes of Laettner playing off the bench behind Alan Henderson in late 1998 recently, and while he wasn't exactly Darvin Ham, he seemed to be a draw with the Feb/Mar 2001 Mo. Just my opinion, but I don't think the difference is as big as we think. To top it off, Laettner tore his in August of 1998, and was back the next April before bruising some ribs. At best, Mo will be out until June. Mo and Laettner don't exactly like slapping the top of the backboard, but they do have gifts. When Laettner tore his: he had been an All-Star, and been around the league for six years. Sat out for seven months and took two years to make himself "respectable," though Dallas still would have rather had Cal Booth and Juwan Howard. When Mo tore his: Has played four years, has topped the 33-minute mark just once (with the Clippers...), and has to sit out 10-12 months. Whether he dropped 20 pounds or not, most of us would agree that the man still has a lot to learn about this league (not that he wouldn't have eventually learned, but still...). I hate throw the piss around, but this could be a huge millstone for a franchise ready to make the next step.
