Perhaps Ndamukong Suh is a cool loner at heart.
An individual, according to the Urban Dictionary, is a person "who does their own thing, doesn't really care what others think, rejects most people, yet is looked up to and follows their own lead. Usually are hated or loved."
For me, that definition works for Suh, whom nobody really knows but is admired for his actions -- which makes him wildly popular or widely criticized.
When he met the media last week at the Lions' compound in Allen Park, he addressed a myriad of topics with a nonchalance that was cryptic and bizarre.
Especially peculiar was his revelation that he chose the Lions on Draft Day 2010, not the other way around.
"I could have gone elsewhere when I was drafted, had that decision in my hands," Suh said. "I chose not to take it."
Suh also pointed out that he's not a Lions captain right now because captains are chosen by the team each year. He was elected captain for last season, when he did exactly what he did this year -- missed all of the team's voluntary workouts.
In recent days, Lions coach Jim Caldwell has praised Suh for his leadership. And over the past several weeks, his teammates have asserted that Suh has his own workout routine and when he arrives in Detroit, he's in shape and ready to play.
How Suh conducts his affairs doesn't concern me at all.
This is his fifth year as a Lion, and it's pretty apparent that the organization and the players have learned to live with Suh's eccentricities.
He might have his quirks, but on the field, he's one of the very best.
If Suh were a determent to the team, we would all know about it. Word always has a way of seeping out of the locker room.
I'm not saying that that it's all smooth sailing between Suh and his teammates. Stuff happens on a team.
For years, Lions players always urged Barry Sanders to take a more vocal role within the team, especially when it came to voicing concerns to management. Barry always declined.
But Barry was Barry, and Suh is Suh. They're both difference-makers.
In this era of Lions football, Suh is Detroit's best defensive player, on a unit that's void of proven talent.
With Suh on the Lions, they're a much better team. He commands the attention of the opposition.
If he were more gregarious, Suh could own Detroit.
When you think about it, though, he sort of already does -- in his own unconventional, cool-loner way.
