Why Commanders fans look foolish for ripping Chase Young over OTAs absence

Sports fans of all kinds will find any reason to complain. Even during a lengthy winning streak they’ll call up local radio shows and nitpick the finest of blemishes, essentially finding it impossible to see the positives. Is it a coping mechanism for when the team finally hits a skid? Is it a fear of being disappointed?

When it comes to Washington Commanders edge rusher Chase Young, fans similarly harp on the negatives. This past week was no different, as Young missed (not skipped!) the first week of organized team activities to continue rehabbing his surgically repaired ACL as he hopes to be cleared in time for the start of 2022.

The criticism likely stemmed from the fact that Young skipped all of OTAs last season to shoot commercials for his off-field endorsements. Not to mention, Logan Thomas, who’s also recovering from ACL surgery, was present for the start of OTAs.

Just a reminder. Not every player rehabs near their team’s facility and we’re not holding it against Young for having his own specialists after Curtis Samuel endured countless setbacks with his pestering groin injury last year.

On Tuesday, though, Young was back in Ashburn. Both Ron Rivera and Young’s teammates are thrilled to have him back. That includes left tackle Charles Leno, who took the heat off Young with a great quote about the DE’s rehab.

Commanders fans might backpedal after they eviscerated Chase Young for missing the start of OTAs.

Thank you, Leno. Maybe the folks who reprimanded Young for having the audacity to continue rehabbing his knee will come around now. Tell us what’s more important: Being present for the start of voluntary practices or making sure a top-three most important player on the defense puts this injury behind him, you know, so he can bounce back from what was a largely lackluster sophomore season, which is likely the reason fans are so bugged by him in the first place?

We maintain the notion that Young performed better than his stats suggested, but if you just look at sacks, pressure rate and QB hits, then yes, he underwhelmed. If you really want to hold it against Young for missing three voluntary practices, be our guest, but it might be time to get with the times, folks.

Take a look around the league. There are countless superstars who haven’t participated in these voluntary workouts. Tom Brady and Aaron Rodgers are the biggest of the bunch and the latter has multiple new pass-catchers to build chemistry with, including Sammy Watkins and rookie Christian Watson.

Look no further than the 49ers. As of Wednesday, Jimmy Garoppolo, Deebo Samuel, Trent Williams, Nick Bosa and George Kittle still hadn’t reported. In addition, star linebacker Fred Warner hasn’t been an active participant, along with fellow starting LB Azeez Al-Shaair and running back Elijah Mitchell.

Wow. It’s almost like missing practices where players don’t wear pads and tackling is basically prohibited isn’t a big deal. Don’t believe us? Colts All-Pro linebacker Darius Leonard, maybe the best all-around player at the position, hasn’t taken part in a OTA practice since he was drafted in 2018. In four years, he has a Defensive Rookie of the Year award and three first-team All-Pro’s on his resume.

The leadership rebuttal is fair but that should be put to bed after Young reported for the second round this week. The bottom line is Leno, an eight-year veteran, didn’t care Young missed the first week and countless high-profile stars around the league missed their team’s first round of OTAs for much lesser reasons than Young, who had his knee operated on not too long ago.

Let’s come back to reality.