So everyone seems to think something is going on with him whether it be physical or mental, nobody really knows. The fact that he really hasn’t missed any time though makes people believe it is mental. I do think this is probably most likely with his contact and everything this year and the idea he might be traded.
My hare brained theory is that it could be a physical problem although not necessarily an injury. I think Petey has a bit of a chip on his shoulder about being too small and having being asked about it his whole life. With how competitive he is, it would make sense he wanted to do something about it during last offseason. Remember all those videos of him doing relatively heavy deadlifts and people were commenting on how he looked stronger. Now this is all well and good, but one thing that comes with increasing strength and muscle mass is the loss of flexibility and quick reflexes. Deadlifts in particular are very hard on the entire body including all your core muscles and small muscles in your joints. I personally know how much less athletic overall I am now compared to
when I was not doing lots of deadlifts.
Everything from running, jumping, reaction time all significantly worse.
I would like to hope pro athletes would know better, but you never know…