After amassing more than $440,000 in fines during a career which has seen him sanctioned for stomping, choking and kicking opponents, it’s easy to see why Ndamukong Suh is often described as the “NFL’s dirtiest player.”
On Sunday, Suh will be hoping to terrorise Tom Brady when the Los Angeles Rams take on the New England Patriots in Super Bowl 53 in Atlanta.
The Rams defensive linchpin is at pains to emphasise, however, that his uncompromising approach on the field of play does not reflect his true personality.
“I would say people think I’m a villain, on and off the field,” Suh told AFP. “I want to impose my will. I want to be a dominant force when I’m between those white lines. 
“But that is not who I am 24/7. Don’t take my play as an indicator of who I am as a human being.”
There are many in the NFL, including some former teammates, who are unpersuaded by Suh’s Jekyll-and-Hyde persona.
“He’s a dirty player,” was the verdict of Suh’s former teammate LeGarrette Blount in 2016. “He has always been a dirty player. He’s going to always be dirty player.”
The case for the prosecution can point to a rap sheet that boasts a veritable full house of skullduggery.
Suh was hit with a two-game suspension for stamping on Green Bay Packers linebacker Evan Dietrich-Smith in 2011.
He kicked Texans quarterback Matt Schaub in the groin in 2012 and stepped on Packers star Aaron Rodgers in 2014. He was also fined $100,000 for a dangerous low block on Minnesota’s John Sullivan in 2013.
In 2017, Suh was in hot water again after grabbing Baltimore quarterback Ryan Mallett around the throat, but escaped a fine. Suh maintains, though, that he is mostly misunderstood, and is eager for the curious to engage him when he is off the field.
“Truthfully, think of me in a space where you’ve actually taken the time to look at me as a human being,” Suh said.
“Maybe ask who I am, talk to me, ask me questions, have a conversation with me. Don’t just take somebody else’s opinion. Create your own opinion and let it be unbiased.”
So who is Ndamukong Suh?
“That’s a longer conversation,” he says. “There’s a lot of dimensions that go into who I am.”
What is not in dispute is Suh’s talent. The son of a Jamaican mother and a father from Cameroon, Suh was chosen with the second overall pick in the 2010 draft after a dazzling college career.
While his checkered disciplinary history has often overshadowed his play, he remains a potent force on the field.
After three years in Miami, he signed for the Rams this year determined to seek Super Bowl honors. He finished the season with 59 tackles and 4.5 sacks and was a key figure in the Rams defeat of New Orleans in the NFC title game.
“I had to make a tough decision in the off-season,” said Suh, when asked about his choice of signing for the Rams. 
“I think I made the right decision. And I hope that after Sunday I’ll be able to say that even more.”