Why Is Taylor's Death So Troubling To Us?

[JWsleep]

You always knew, that over the middle, against our defense, was no-man's land. Sean Taylor was there, and even the toughest of WRs and TEs got "alligator arms." And, in every game he played in, I am quite sure of this, there would be at least one hit where a running back or receiver would just go flying. And then you'd see it was Sean. And then, when we needed it most, a fumble, a pick six, or a returned blocked field goal setting up a win. I always felt like, whatever they do to us, we've got Taylor. If I talked to fans of other teams, no matter what they'd say about the skins, they would acknowledge Taylor. He was a truly special football player.

And then there is the man. We watched him struggle, grow, and thrive. He was the most human of the skins--the most like us in our own struggles and aspirations. Not to say we've got his talent, but we've all made mistakes, and we all hope to overcome them and grow, like we saw Sean do. And we, as fans, knew he was not the thug the media liked to portray, but a good man, a funny, loving, caring, passionate person--the kind of person that everyone from Gregg Williams to Lavar Arrington to Clinton Portis to Reed Doughty could admire and praise without qualification. He was the one who most personified the struggle, the challenge, and the triumph of, well, of getting through life and coming out on the right side of things.

I remember when he had the legal trouble with the shooting--there were times I just wanted to yell at him: "Sean! We're all with you! Get it straight, man!" And then he did, and he was thriving.

And now he's gone. There's a hole in the redskins family, and in my heart, that is not going to be filled. That is why his death is so troubling, IMHO.

(And I still just CANNOT believe it. I am going through these motions, but somewhere in my head a voice is saying, "This is a dream. It is not happening. You will wake up and laugh at the horrors your own mind can cook up, Josh." Still waiting to wake up.)

[EternalEnigma21]

I really do LOVE this team and he was my favorite player on it. I loved arrington as well, and was upset when he left, but I still see him running around, and on comcast after the game...

Sean is dead... and it hurts. One of my biggest joys in life is watching the skins and for the past 4 years he's been one of the main focal points of that joy. You can look at his face and see that even though his style of play and exterior were rugged, he had a soft side underneath...

And the fact that he was shy around the media and didn't want to bask in the spotlight and chase endorsement deals was a big plus. He was just a football player. The best football player we've had in decades, I'd say.

I think because he's such a big part of our team, though, its going to be a have a much larger impact on the fanbase.

I understand the question, though... it has really torn me up alot more than I would ever expect it to. I keep finding myself fighting back tears in front of my family.... god this sucks.

[Paintrain]

I think because he was such a mystery to us, due to his mistrust of the press, we had a different level of fascination with him that we don't have with some other players but we knew on Sunday he was going to show up to blow up.. We identified with his passion for the game, reveled in his ability and were awed by his play.. Since he was our best defender, arguably overall player, it's a huge loss on so many fronts. We saw him as still a shadow of what we were going to see him become. It's like we had our futures robbed from us as well..

Not to be insensitive and nothing personal to this player, but if this happened to say Lorenzo Alexander or Marcus Mason, it would still be as tragic but wouldn't reverberate so much.

[SUNRA]

Sean Taylor was an absolute terrorist on the football field. He spoke volumes with his game and he had a magnetic attraction to the fans young and old. I don't think I have seen a player live up to all the hype of his teammates and fans at the U and make such and impact the first year he arrived. I'm glad I kept the Redskins 2004 yearbook. It shows ST is in rookie year as #36. Man, what a football player.

[EternalEnigma21]

you're right paintrain, and I also think on my part at least, there was this hope that he was a guy we were going to get to know... that the mystery was going to be unraveled soon and he was going to let us in and now that's not going to happen.

[motorman]

Originally Posted by 12thMan

If any current Redskin had suffered this untimely and tragic death, I know we'd all be mourning and very sad today. But is it possible, as much as we hate to admit it, there's something a little more hurtful, if you will, about Sean Taylor's death. How did we come to like a player so much in such a short period of time? How did we seemingly look beyond his past transgressions and cheer so hard for him and got excited when he was in the lineup?

I hate to say it, but save maybe a guy like a Clinton Portis or a Jason Campbell, do we still mourn like this? To this extent? Why is this death, Taylor's death, so damn devastating? It's like one minute the guy is about to return from a knee sprain and the next minute he's gone. I can't fathom this.

Was Taylor just an athlete? More than an athlete or something we fixed in our minds and we're sorry to see a bad ending to our fairytale? I don't know...I'm just trying to get it all out.

I understand your feelings as I feel the same way- going to the games and seeing sean play was amazing. But, these young athletes need strong mentors. I was professionally involved in another young pro athletes incident that started at a night club in DC and ended in Northern Virginia where he was shot. He survived and I watch him on tv playing on the court now- starting. I can't described to you seeing the man laying on the operating table defenseless. We talked and only he and I know what was said - but it seems that it may have impacted him. [I hope]. I wish sean's family all the best and they are in my prayers. Sean is looking down now and he can finally see how much he was truly loved by the redskin fans and fans across the nation. God Bless you Sean.