Is Miami football alum Calais Campbell NFL’s Kevin Durant?
Miami football alum Calais Campbell finished second in the NFL Defensive Player of the Year voting in 2017. CBSSports.Com recently posed the question of which “Star players who could be NFL’s version of Kevin Durant for these 10 Super Bowl contenders.”
Campbell likely isn’t going anywhere after signing a four-year $60 million contract with the Jacksonville Jaguars during the 2017 offseason. CBSSports had fun with their question what if certain players joined other teams and the difference they would make much like Durant has with the Golden State Warriors.
Durant joined an already powerful Warriors team during the summer of 2016. Golden State was an NBA record 73-9 during the 2015-16 season. They were coming off their second consecutive appearance in the NBA Finals. The Cleveland Cavaliers upset the Warriors in seven games in 2016 to win their first title.
With Durant in the lineup the last two seasons the Warriors have gone 125-39 in the regular season. As of this post near the timing of the NBA Finals game four tipoff, the Warriors are on the verge of their second consecutive NBA title with Durant. He was the MVP of the 2017 NBA Finals with Golden State.
Campbell’s presence in 2017 helped vault the Jaguars defense from 25th in scoring in 2016 to second in the league in last season. Some might argue he is the Jaguars version of Durant.
Before Campbell arrived, Jacksonville went 3-13 in 2016 and finished in last place in the AFC South. They improved to 10-6, first place in the Divison and a trip to the AFC Championship game in 2017.
CBS speculated how the New England Patriots could be if they had Campbell on their team. They conversely had Aaron Rodgers going to Jacksonville as the difference maker in raising the Jaguars to a championship level.
Some would say that New England is already there without Campbell. CBS gave the former Hurricane props for his work ethic fitting into the Patriots way of doing things. They compare him to his former Arizona Cardinals teammate Larry Fitzgerald.
"“Aside from the great Larry Fitzgerald, Campbell is perhaps the most Patriot-like player who has never been on the Patriots. He absolutely embodies the team’s “do your job” ethos, whether that job is penetrating gaps to rush the passer, occupying blockers to free linebackers to make plays, or stuffing the run himself.Campbell is enormous (6-foot-8, 300 pounds) and impossible to deal with on the interior, but he also has the quickness to play on the outside. His versatility would be a great fit for a New England defense that likes to change its fronts and strategies based on the next opponent.When you consider that the Pats have never really been a team that employs the star outside rushman-type of player that so many think they need at this time, it becomes clear that Campbell is really the type of player they should target if they could get anyone they wanted.”"
If New England was to target Campbell it would likely have to be via trade. Unless Tom Brady turns into George Blanda, by the end of Campbell’s contract in Jacksonville the four-time Superbowl MVP and three-time NFL MVP could be retired.
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Campbell had a career year in 2017 at age 31. He won’t turn 32 until shortly before the season starts in September. He set career highs for sacks, assists and approximate value in 2017.