The No. 1 overall pick in the 2013 NFL Draft has struggled badly in plain sight. And no one has taken notice.
There are a lot of terrific, surprising stories surrounding the 3-0 start by the Kansas City Chiefs. Eric Fisher's play has provided one early reason for concern.
Fisher, playing right tackle, was called for holding twice during the Chiefs' 26-16 win over the Philadelphia Eagles on "Thursday Night Football." He appeared to give up at least two sacks. Pro Football Focus had him down for five total pressures, including a few plays where Eagles defensive lineman Fletcher Cox almost instantly beat him off the line of scrimmage. We noticed the Chiefs sliding their protection toward Fisher's side to help.
Mitigating factors help explain Fisher's struggles. He's playing a new position, after lining up at left tackle in college. Central Michigan to the NFL has been a big step. And, well, he's a rookie.
The Chiefs still have to be concerned. Fisher's struggles date to training camp and the preseason, when he uniformly received shaky reviews from onlookers in practice and games. PFF's ratings system is hardly perfect, but it can be an effective tool to evaluate play. Fisher ranked 144 out of 157 offensive tackles in PFF's preseason rankings, and he's 66th out of 68 in the regular season.
It's not just that Fisher has experienced some rookie struggles. He's struggled to compete at the pro level. If he was taken later in the draft, he would have been benched by now.
High picks at offensive lineman are supposed to be safer than other positions, but Fisher and the No. 2 overall pick, Jacksonville Jaguars tackle Luke Joeckel, have gotten off to rough starts. (Joeckel's struggles have been less dramatic.) The two picks faced off in Week 1, and no one seemed to notice.
It's a story that hasn't gotten a lot of traction in Kansas City, where the focus has been on the position. A simple Google news search reveals Fisher barely has been written about since the season started.
If not, the Chiefs' biggest offseason addition might turn into a serious liability for a team with playoff aspirations.
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