That idiom is a great description of how Los Angeles Rams ILB Mark Barron was squeezed into his NFL career.
Barron was originally drafted seventh overall in the 2012 NFL Draft by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. As an extremely productive safety at Alabama, Barron was expected to excel in the NFL. While Barron was still productive in two-and-a-half seasons in Tampa Bay, he never quite fit the role of the modern day strong safety whose coverage ability needs to be above average, though he always fit the description of a hard-hitting box safety who could impose his will on offensive players.