The Blind Side is really two stories told in parallel: the story of Michael Oher (familiar to those who saw the movie) and the evolution of football that made the left tackle the second most important player on the field.

The second story starts with a transcendent player named Lawrence Taylor. LT had a blend of strength, speed, and ferocity never before seen. In the Giants he found a team that knew just how to use him as a pass rusher. He was so good statisticians and sportswriters invented a stat—the sack—after his rookie season. College teams—especially southeastern powerhouses like FSU—started recruiting freaks of nature (see: Williams, Mario) as specialized pass rushers.

The Blind Side benefits from Lewis’s background as a financial journalist. Lewis understands there is a market for all things, including NFL players. The value of great pass rushers pushed up the price for good blind side rushers, which in turn pushed up the price of good blind side pass protectors and quarterbacks (more risk requiring more reward and all). The titular blind side is the quarterback’s blind side (his left, for a right-handed QB).

This great, technical insight is bolstered by and intertwined with a human element. Some is Lewis telling the story of hobbled former left tackles, but mostly it is the story of Oher. Oher’s story is by any means incredible. A child of the ghetto, he wound up adopted by a wealthy white family and attending a private school. He would go on to overcome his extensive disadvantages to become a blue chip recruit and (after the book’s publication) a high round NFL draft pick. Told in tandem, both are spellbinding.