CLEVELAND, Ohio (92.3 The Fan) – Dalvin Tomlinson is just a guy who loves gaming and computers off the field, but on it he looks to vanquish the opposition by any means necessary.
It’s why the Browns newest defensive tackle enjoys and relates so well to the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
“Off the field I’d love to be Tony Stark, but on the field I'm definitely Thanos,” Tomlinson told Nick Wilson and Dustin Fox Tuesday on Afternoon Drive on 92.3 The Fan.
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Tomlinson, who is a big fan of Iron Man, refers to his right hand as “The hand of God” because of the strength with which he uses it to shed blockers to get into the backfield.
“I pretty much got it from the Avengers MCU, the Infinity Gauntlet,” Tomlinson explained. “It's this thing when [Thanos] snapped everybody out the existence. That's pretty much my thing.
“I love Marvel. That's why I got the stones, the Infinity stones.”
Forget the Hulk smash, Tomlinson, who was a three-time state champion in high school wrestling that won his final title match in nine seconds, explained succinctly why he prefers 'The snap' instead when it comes to how he plays football.
“Thanos beat up The Incredible Hulk, man,” Tomlinson said.
Tomlinson agreed to a four-year deal worth $57 million that included $27.5 million guaranteed late Monday night to leave Minnesota to bolster the interior of the Browns defensive line that struggled to generate any pass rush outside of Myles Garrett or stop the run.
Teaming up with Garrett, who is coming off back-to-back 16 sack seasons, is among the things Tomlinson is looking forward to in Cleveland.
“I'm super excited to play with Myles,” Tomlinson said. “We were in the same draft class and just throughout the years, everybody knows Miles is one of those freak athletes, generational players you get to play alongside. And just to be able to get out there and make some chemistry out there on the defensive line with him is going to be amazing.”
Garrett of course went No. 1 overall in 2017 to Cleveland while the New York Giants picked Tomlinson in the second round and like Garrett with natural history and dinosaurs, Tomlinson has his own passions off the field – outside of the MCU.
“I guess you could say I'm a nerd,” Tomlinson said. “I built a couple gaming PCs. I'm a big gamer. I love anime. I draw a little bit here and there.”
From a football standpoint, new defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz’s schematic approach also appealed to Tomlinson, who added that he knew he was on the Browns free agency scouting radar last fall.
“I feel like just go here and to be able to attack offensive linemen from all points of the defensive line is going to be super fun,” Tomlinson said.
“Getting off the rock, just getting off the ball and attacking. That's the biggest thing I wanted to do. Just to be able to attack and use my strength to my advantage.”
Tomlinson is entering his seventh season after spending the first four with the Giants and the last two in Minnesota where he has totaled 13.0 sacks, 37 QB hits, 26 tackles for loss, seven pass breakups, two forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries while starting all 93 games he has appeared in.
Last season for the Vikings Tomlinson had 2.5 sacks, 10 QB hits, three tackles for loss plus a forced fumble and fumble recovery in 13 games played.
“I feel like my biggest strengths are, if it's batting the ball down, getting some QB hits, getting sacks, or even just helping other guys get free enough to get one-on-ones and so we can win our one-on-ones in the game, help somebody else get to the quarterback,” Tomlinson said.
“You can expect a dog, a guy who's going to not give up no matter what the circumstance is. A guy who wants to help everybody around to get better and not be selfish on the field and just pretty much just like I want all of us to succeed because we’re as strong as our weakest link. So I'm going to bring everything possible and go out and get some wins.”
This fall the Browns are counting on Tomlinson, like Thanos, to be inevitable.