Sony Michel has had a bumpy NFL career thus far. The highs are pretty high, the lows are pretty low.
It's those lows, Michel believes, that make him a better player.
"It made me a better player, a better person, especially knowing how to take care of your body, trying to get your body back to where it was, if not even better," Michel said Saturday. "And being a better person, and knowing how to deal with a little bit of adversity and trying to come back from some of those little setbacks."
The lows Michel alludes to there come from his 2020 season, which saw him appear in just nine games, having his campaign stagnated by injuries and a stay on the COVID-19 list.
All told, Michel missed Weeks 4-10, and by the time he came back Damien Harris was proving to be perhaps the top New England Patriots running back.
"Injuries come and go. It comes with the profession. It comes with the game," Michel said. "I take the good with the bad. I appreciate it. It helps me learn what I have to do to be a professional and that’s what I did."
With his fifth-year option declined by the Patriots, this is the first contract year of the 26-year-old's NFL career. There have been a fair amount of times that he can be a productive rusher, but the inconsistencies are what too often have defined his career.
The upcoming campaign is a prime opportunity for him to prove he can be a useful back every week for an entire season.
