As Dontari Poe prepares to show off his pass rushing prowess with the Atlanta Falcons, he’s decided to play at a lighter weight to make it easier to do so.
Part of the incredible story of Dontari Poe’s success was his ability to do so much while being so large. The defensive tackle commonly played just under the 350 lb. mark, yet could use his athleticism to split linemen or offer a quick burst to make the tackle. After several years and over four thousand snaps, Poe is ready to play at a lighter weight in order to make life easier—and to potentially make more money.
Dontari Poe said he's at 340 pounds now and expects to play at 330 during the season.
— vaughn mcclure (@vxmcclure23) March 17, 2017
The Kansas City Chiefs took advantage of Poe’s size and stamina to the tune of 4,242 defensive snaps over the last five seasons. The result was a decline in quality of play as well as a herniated disc in his back. For such a large player, back issues tend to linger and/or get worse, and the Chiefs ultimately decided to let Poe walk in free agency—perhaps due to concerns about his health or ability to play as well in the future. The Falcons bit and plan to use Poe in a different manner.
The Falcons play a 4-3 defense which will take the pressure off of him to take on double teams. Poe reportedly was willing to take a one-year deal in free agency in order to better show off his pass rushing skills and re-enter the market one year later, maybe when there are less options for teams available in a year when Brandon Williams was the hottest commodity.
With the Falcons, Poe wants to play at a lighter weight—330 pounds—in the hopes of making it easier on him over the long term. That difference in playing weight should, on paper, make it easier for Poe to get the burst he needs to collapse the pocket that much faster. In addition, the ups and downs throughout a game will be easier to take with that much less weight on his frame. Whether or not it will keep his production at a higher level through the course of a full season remains to be seen.
Dan Quinn has already said the team will not use a snap count on Poe, but for a team with Super Bowl hopes, Poe will needed for up to 19 or 20 games, not just 16 for the regular season. A lighter weight might help, but he also might need a lighter overall load. It will be interesting to follow Poe’s success in the next several months to see whether his experiment for more money worked after all.