At 6-foot-4 and nearly 330 pounds, you would not expect a person of that size to be fast at all.
Well, Chargers nose tackle Linval Joseph is here to defy those odds.
Head coach Brandon Staley said Joseph was clocked at 16 miles per hour at one point during last Sunday’s victory over the Eagles, which was the fastest mark in the game among defensive tackles.
That would not be the first time that Joseph showed he could turn on the jets.
In 2018 while he was with the Vikings, Joseph knocked the ball out of quarterback Carson Wentz’s hands and returned it 64 yards for a touchdown.
Linval Joseph (323 lbs) takes the fumble recovery 63 yards for a TD. Big man can run!pic.twitter.com/Ls92ZPceQv
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) October 7, 2018
The big man athleticism was not Joseph’s main highlight against Philadelphia. Instead, he was a key piece of the turning point of the run defense in the second half.
Not only did he take on single and double teams, but Joseph also used his brute strength to shed blocks and make plays on ball carriers, finishing the game with nine tackles, which was the most by any Charger in Week 9.
Currently, Joseph has 19 run stops, which ranks second in the league among all interior defensive linemen, per Pro Football Focus.
Set to be a free agent at the end of the season, Joseph is making his case to be re-signed.