Free Safety Fight? … Thursday Cup O’Chiefs
Neiko Thorpe (left) and Tysyn Hartman (right) will challenge Kendrick Lewis (middle) at free safety.
Starting next week, the Chiefs will be on the field for the first of the ten OTA practices they will hold before the middle of June.
It will be an opportunity for players to perform at closer to game conditions than anything that will happen between now and the start of training camp.
If there are battles for starting positions, it’s during the OTAs when it will first show itself. There will be small signs of upward mobility for players who aren’t running with the first team. Guys that have been in the starting lineup may find changes in the number of practice snaps he takes.
Slowly, the competition builds and then in training camp it becomes obvious.
As the Chiefs begin OTAs, there does not appear to be many spots in the starting lineup where it’s realistic to say there is a chance of a fight for the position. Possibly nose tackle depending on whether the coaching staff simply plants Dontari Poe as No. 1 and lets him play his way into experience. The fifth skill position spot on offense figures to be interchangeable between fullback, a second tight end and possibly a third wide receiver.
And there may be another starting spot up for grabs – free safety. …Read More!
He was football’s first successful Bill Walsh, the best Bill Walsh that was ever part of the Kansas City Chiefs.
Twitter is a fact of life today. For those under the age of 30, if they are not tweeting then they are out of the loop. That’s certainly true among football players, both college and pro, because they love to tell everyone what’s happening in their life even down to this tweet filed by former Chiefs DB Maurice Leggett Tuesday night:
The 2012 season will be the 50th for the Chiefs in Kansas City and the franchise has put together a list of activities to honor its past and present with their fans.
Somehow he got No. 83
From the Truman Sports Complex
For the first time since Christmas Eve 2011 there will be football going on at the Truman Sports Complex this weekend.
When Phil Emery left to become general manager of the Chicago Bears, his spot as director of college scouting was not filled. GM Scott Pioli said he would wait until after the 2012 NFL Draft to make adjustments.
Why Retired Players Go Broke
Ever so slowly there is a nice pace of life coming about for your humble Internet hack. The NFL Draft is a busy time, not just the week of the draft but in the months leading into the three-day event.
Wrapping up the 2012 NFL Draft with a few tidbits of information and observations on what went down on Thursday, Friday and Saturday through seven rounds and 253 selections.
“He was a tremendously productive back,” GM Scott Pioli said of Gray. “He and (Ryan) Tannehill were the leaders on the football team down there. He played injured, played with a big problem all this year and he continued to be productive and a team leader.”
Even before the NFL Draft is over each year, the race to sign undrafted rookies begins. It’s just another important part of the personnel process. Yes these are the players that will round out the bottom of the 90-man roster for training camp.
How did a kid from South Carolina get to Michigan? “I started playing receiver the summer going into my junior year of high school and I went to Michigan for camp and played receiver,” said Hemingway. “They offered me a scholarship and stuck with me all the way through the recruiting process. So I decided to go to Michigan to play football.”
“When they were in their sub defense, he moved into their star position,” said GM Scott Pioli. “That’s the guy who covers the slot. This is a guy we were very excited to get. He was a player we were talking about.”
But he was not a starter for the Bulldogs, opening only seven games, five of those last year. Wylie struggled with injuries throughout his college career that began in 2007. He dealt with a hamstring, sprained foot and then lost an entire season save one game to a lisfranc fracture in his foot (2010).
He was a two-year starter for the Sooners at left tackle. As a freshman he took a redshirt season in 2007 after undergoing shoulder surgery that kept him out of physical action for three months. The next year he played in seven games as a reserve blocker and then did not play at all in the 2009 schedule as he served a school suspension.
But the Chiefs spoke to Allen about playing guard when he joins them for his rookie season. That’s the position he was introduced at by former Chiefs guard Will Shields, who was in New York to handle the announcement for the second round of the draft
Another 64 names will be called Friday evening as the 2012 NFL Draft continues in New York.
Half of the 32 first-round picks in the 2012 NFL Draft belonged to more than one team before the final pick came off the board Thursday night. That included six of the first seven picks. Four picks were changed hands more than once. Here’s a first-round trade roundup:
From the Truman Sports Complex
It has been 42 years since the Chiefs appeared in the Super Bowl and 19 years since their last victory in the playoffs. The Chiefs are now entering the fourth year of the Pioli regime and the sixth year since the organization decided to clean house and start with their youth movement.
David DeCastro is a serious guy. Although his friends acknowledge that he has a wicked sense of humor, he seldom smiles. Satisfied is not a word that goes with his life on the football field.
DeCastro grew up in Bellevue Washington, a city of nearly 123,000 on the eastern side of Lake Washington. Seattle is on the west side of the Lake. It’s a suburb of Seattle that was settled in 1869, but not officially incorporated until 1953. Prior to the Lake Washington Floating Bridge and it’s opening in 1940, Bellevue was largely a rural area. The first bridge and then atoner with the Evergreen Point Floating Bridge in 1963 turned Bellevue into a bedroom community for Seattle. Those who once called or still call Bellevue home include Ann and Nancy Wilson of the classic rock group Heart, baseball players John Olerud and Tim Lincecum and Layne Staley, the lead singer of Alice in Chains.
Strengths – Physically big, intelligently huge, DeCastro also carries a very large nasty streak when he plays. What else could a coach ask for from an offensive lineman. From the ground up he’s solid to exceptional in every avenue. He has good balance and footwork. He is good on the run, and can pull and locate secondary players to block. DeCastro is very good at reacting in pass protection, keeping his feet moving and He finishes blocks, has that nasty temperament to push the action right up to the whistle. He’s played in a pro-style offense and has shown top-level personal and football character. His football intelligence is off the board, combined with a non-stop work ethic.
“There’s a lot to work on — just technique in general. Football is something where you’re always chasing perfection. There’s a lot I can get better at … using my hands, being more balanced … I mean, the list goes on.”
Tom Miller was the head football coach at Wooddale High School in Memphis and he was headed out to practice one day, but getting a late start because of some paper work to take care of in the school office.
Poe was a member of the graduating class of 2009 at Wooddale High School in Memphis.
Strengths – Incredible athlete for his size, with speed, quickness and strength – rare hat trick of physical gifts alone makes him worthy of consideration. He’s almost 350 pounds, but does not look like it and is not heavy sloppy. Poe can squat 700 pounds and if needed, he can anchor his spot on the defensive line and not be moved. However, he has the foot speed to make a move in the pass rush.
At 6-1, 265 pounds Melvin Ingram is what is known in football parlance as a tweener, an in-between physical size that isn’t quite big enough to fill the role along the defensive line, or too big and not quick enough to play linebacker.
He was a member of the graduating class of 2007 at Richmond High School, part of the Richmond County School District in Rockingham, North Carolina. There are approximately 1,300 students in grades 10 through 12.
Ingram signed on at the University of South Carolina in Columbia where he enrolled in the school of African-American Studies.
Strengths – Very athletic player with a high motor, when he’s standing and rushing the passer he looks like Tamba Hali. Loose hips, loose ankles, he’s a knee bender and can contort his body on the pass rush, one of the standard physical tools to any top pass rusher. Ingram plays the run well, using his leverage to get under blockers. He’s shown he can play anywhere on the defensive front, outside, inside, at linebacker, standing, or in a three-point stance. He has very good football awareness.
The personnel guy has sat through a lot of interviews with potential draft choices over the years. None left a bigger impression on him than Boston College LB Luke Kuechly.
Kuechly grew up in Evendale, Ohio, a village in Hamilton County just off Interstate 75, north of Cincinnati. Population of the village is approximately 2,767 people according to the U.S. Census in 2010. Evendale is home to GE Aviation, a manufacturing plant providing avionics for aircraft engines. Evendale was a stop on the Underground Railroad used in the second half of the 1800s to allow slaves from the south to escape to free states and Canada.
In three years at Boston College, Kuechly established himself on the football field, in the classroom and in the community. He was enrolled at the college’s Carroll School of Management where he’s an honors student
Strengths – Appears to play the game like he was born to play football. Great instincts, great anticipation, off the charts football intelligence and he’s aware almost 100 percent of the time of the situation, who is on the field and what the rest of his defensive players are doing. Not just a heady player, but he’s got more than enough athletic ability to make plays happen. While he may not be fast, he’s quick and has very good lateral movement.
“I think one of the things about football that is overlooked is just your knowledge of the game. The more you know, the better you can be. I think football is an evolving game and it’s been evolving over the past couple of years, and I think the quicker you can adapt to the new way the game is played, I think the better off you can be.”
WWPD.
Football has always been an important part of life for Zebrie Sanders.
He was part of the graduating class of 2008 at Northmont High School in Clayton, with over 1,700 students in grades nine through 12. The Thunderbolts compete in Greater Western Ohio Conference and on the Ohio Division 1 level.
Sanders decided to accept the offer from Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida. He graduated with his bachelor’s degree in retail merchandising and product development in December 2011.
Strengths – His extra long arms and big hands make him a prototype tackle in the NFL, plus he’s quick enough on his feet that he can slide to his outside and not lose his man if he hasn’t gotten his hands on them. He has enough athletic ability to get outside and run, whether he’s pulling or just headed down field to seal off a linebacker or safety. Sanders has played a lot of snaps and done it on both sides of the offense, giving him great versatility. Intangibles are huge as he’s smart, of high character, available to play and puts the team first.
Another QB in the 2012 NFL Draft class played minor league baseball for five years, before giving it up in hopes of starting a football career.
Osweiler did not participate in physical testing at the Combine as he was still recovering from a mid-foot sprain that he suffered in the Las Vegas Bowl against Boise State. He was weighed and measure. At his Pro Day workout, all he did was run the 40-yard dash, positing times of 4.97 and 4.98 seconds. He did not do any of the other tests.
Osweiler enrolled at Arizona State University in Tempe in January 2009 and became a political science major.
Throwing motion – This is one area where Osweiler needs work, as his throwing motion is very inconsistent. Almost seems to shot put his throws, rather than using his full arm delivery and extension. At times there doesn’t seem to be a rhyme or reason to his changing his motion. The key is to get the ball in the receiver’s hands, but to do that at the NFL level a passer must be able to rely on his motion in all circumstances. He’ll need a lot of work in this area.
A scout for an AFC team said of Brock Osweiler – “Talented package that needs a lot of work. He’s one tall QB who uses that to his advantage. I think he’s enough of an athlete that he can make athletic moves and not look like Herman Munster out there. But he has a lot of work to do on the physical and mental parts of the game.”
It had to be quite a sight at high school track meets around Mississippi.
Cox grew up in Yazoo City, Mississippi, a town in Yazoo County of 11,403 people according to the 2010 U.S. Census. The town was named by French explorer Robert La Salle in 1682 as “Riviere des Yazous” in honor of the Yazoo Indian tribe that lived in the area. It’s on the western side of the state about 45 miles from Jackson. Through its history, the town has seen destruction due to the Civil War, yellow fever, fire and tornados, the most recent in 2010 that claimed four lives. Among famous folks who have called Yazoo City home were actress Stella Stevens, speaker and trainer Zig Ziglar and former Mississippi Governor Haley Barbour.
Cox decided on attending Mississippi State University in Starkville, majoring in industrial technology. Over his three years, he played in 36 games, finishing with 114 total tackles, 29 TFL, 7.5 sacks and 5 blocked kicks. He saw time playing at both defensive end and defensive tackle for head coach Dan Mullen. He was originally recruited by Sylvester Croom and his staff; they resigned after the 2008 season.
Strengths – An athletic body, with a rare combination of speed, size, quickness and strength, all built in a body that has the potential for more growth. Moves easily for a man his size, and does it quickly. Shows impressive agility in his ability to adjust and redirect to the ball. Outstanding contributions on special teams in blocking kicks; he got five in his college career and developed the habit through a lot of hard work in practice.
“He is probably one of the most athletic guys I’ve coached. He can go out here on defense, but he never comes off the field. He snaps long snaps, he does it all. You get a kid like that that can play offense, defense, special teams. If he had to punt and kick, he could do that too.” Yazoo City High School head coach Tony Woolfolk.
It’s the first item on any agenda when the conversation centers on QB Brandon Weeden.
Edmond, Oklahoma is a city in Oklahoma County with a population of 81,405 according to the 2010 U.S. Census. It’s a northern suburb of Oklahoma City and has been honored over the years as being one of the best communities in the country to live. The town first appeared as a stop on the Santa Fe Railroad line in the late 1800s. The town of Edmond was created overnight during the Oklahoma land rush in April 1889, when homesteaders staked their claims around the railroad station. Famous names that once or still call Edmond home are pro golfers Bob Tway and Scott Verplank, championship skater Shannon Miller, NBA superstar Blake Griffin and KU coach Bill Self.
Baseball
Weeden enrolled at Oklahoma State University in the Business Management curriculum in 2007. He earned his bachelor’s degree in May 2011 and took post-graduate classes in business over the last year.
Throwing motion – Among all the quarterbacks in this year’s class, he is the one guy that can manipulate his arm and mechanics and still remain effective. It’s probably a left over from his pitching days, but Weeden is able to adjust his motion when needed. The best thing, however, is that he does not do this all the time and his basic motion is quick, generally decisive and dominant in use.
South Dakota football is hardly known as a football factory, largely because the sparse population has not produced many high schoolers that ended up as pro football players.
Reiff grew up in Parkston a town of 1,500 people in Hutchinson County, in the southeast corner of South Dakota. It’s so small that the total area of the two is less than one square mile. It’s an agricultural community that became a town in the mid-1800s.
Rivals.com listed Reiff as a 3-star prospect and the No. 25 rated defensive end in the country.
Matt Cassel said he was not upset at all during the off-season, even when his team became associated in media reports with other quarterbacks.
The Chiefs announced Tuesday morning that they had signed street free agent CB Mikail Baker.
Scott Pioli and Romeo Crennel came out of the Chiefs draft bunker on Monday and met with the media horde. It’s something that goes on with every team in the National Football League as the annual NFL Draft grows near.
Ever so slowly, the Carolinas are becoming a football hotbed.
Gilmore grew up in Rock Hill, South Carolina, the fourth largest city in the state, with a population of 66,154 according to the 2010 U.S. Census. Rock Hill is actually part of the Charlotte, North Carolina metropolitan area, as it is located 25 miles south, just over the North Carolina-South Carolina border. Once inhabited by the Catawba Indian Nation, the city of Rock Hill dates to 1852, when railroad workers built a depot on the site out of rock they had removed to lay track. In the 1960s, Rock Hill was at the front lines of the civil rights movement. Nine black me were jailed when they staged a sit-in at a segregated lunch counter. In 1961, Rock Hill was the first stop in the South for the original Freedom Riders, who boarded buses in Washington, D.C. and went south. When the Freedom Riders stepped off the bus in Rock Hill, they were beaten by a mob of white residents who were uncontrolled by the police. Among the noteable natives or one-time residents of Rock Hill are baseball manager Sparky Anderson, Olympic speed skater Lauren Cholewinski and a host of former and current NFL players like Ben Watson, Johnathan Joseph, Chris Hope, Rick Sanford and Donnie Shell.
Gilmore graduated from high school in December of 2008 and enrolled for the spring 2009 semester at South Carolina. That allowed him to take part in spring practices and it helped him earn a starting job with the Gamecocks.
Strengths – Durable, available, you can count on him cornerback who did not miss a game or start during his college career. His strength is in zone coverage, although he can play press man-to-man, but will need work to be an elite cover man. Not so in zone, where he knows the assignments of every defensive player on the field and keeps his group organized. Any play in front of him has him exploding to the ball carrier. He’s very good playing centerfield and does a nice job of reading quarterbacks. He’s outstanding at being prepared and coaches rave about his team leadership.
He was 19 months old and he was in the middle of all sorts of mischief. While he played in the kitchen one afternoon, Kirk Cousins decided to reach up and grab a boiling pot of water that had spaghetti bubbling in it from the stovetop.
The Cousins family lived in the Chicago suburbs until Kirk’s seventh grade year when they moved to Holland, Michigan, a city of 33,051 people (2010 Census) that sits on the western edge of the state, along the eastern shore of Lake Michigan. The town also sits on the banks of Lake Macatawa, which flows into Lake Michigan. The town was formed by Dutch Calvinists who were escaping religious persecution in the Netherlands, and they settled in the area in the mid-1800s. Holland became the largest of over a dozen Dutch settlements in that part of Michigan. Every May they hold the Tulip Festival in Holland. It’s also home to the world’s largest pickle factory, operated by H.J. Heinz Company since 1897 and during the growing season they process over one million pounds of pickles per day.
At Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan Cousins majored in Kinesiology. He graduated in December ’11 with a 3.68 grade point average. He became the 16th player in the program’s history to be named Academic All-Big Ten Conference for four consecutive seasons.
Throwing motion – With a quick release, he has no wasted movement in his throwing motion. Very clean mechanics – he’s obviously thrown a lot of passes and done it with a lot of coaching. However, when pressured at all, he tends to double clutch on his throws, creating timing problems with receivers and dropping his accuracy.
An AFC scout said of Cousins – “He’s a great kid and very smart. He’s driven and with his intelligence, that will keep him around the league, maybe for a long time. But he won’t ever become a franchise-type quarterback. He just doesn’t have the tools.”
“He set a goal to be a starting quarterback. He wants to win championships and go to the Rose Bowl. He wants to do anything help his team get there. All of the outside stuff doesn’t bother him. It’s out of his control.” More from his father.
Back in 1957 the NFL Draft was quite a different animal than it was today. There was no TV coverage, darn little newspaper coverage, no draftniks and thus, not much interest.
Part of the process for the annual NFL Draft is what amounts to a local Combine that each team is allowed to hold at its facility. They can invite players who grew up and played high school ball or college ball in their area, which is roughly defined as anything within 45 miles of the city.
Back in the fall of 2010 the University of Washington faced Nebraska twice. The first meeting came in September when the Cornhuskers blew away the Huskies 56-21 in Seattle.
Alameda Ta’amu
Ta’amu stayed close to home in entering the University of Washington where he signed with the Huskies and head coach Tyrone Willingham. After his sophomore season, Willingham was fired and replaced by Steve Sarkasian.
An NFC scout said of Ta’amu – “A real space eater, this guy has nose tackle tattooed on his future. He could play inside in the 4-3, but he’s a perfect guy for the nose in the 3-4. I would imagine those teams will have him rated a bit higher than the 4-3 teams.”
Michael Brewster had already earned All-America status as center for Ohio State. The 2010 season ended in great controversy for the Buckeyes, with players suspended and investigations surrounding the entire program.
Although born in Kansas City, Brewster moved with his family at the age of four to Orlando, in the center of the state of Florida with a city population of 238,300 and a metro population of more than 2 million people, making it the 26th largest metro area in the country. The economy of Orlando is built on tourism with Walt Disney World and various other amusement and theme parks. Noteable natives and residents include the comedian Carrot Top, actor Wesley Snipes, former NFL DT Warren Sapp and until recently Tiger Woods.
Brewster enrolled at Ohio State University and in December 2011 graduated with a bachelor’s degree in strategic communications. He graduated high school early so he could enroll for the spring semester 2008 in Columbus. Because of surgery on a right shoulder injury, he was not able to take part in spring practice but he did jump start his academic career.
An AFC scout said of Brewster – “Average skills, but I love the way the guy plays the game. I’m not sure if he’ll have a career in the league, but they’ll have to drag him out because he won’t give up. That’s going to get him a pension, if not a trip to the Pro Bowl.”
Logan, Utah is tough to find and tough to get too. Stuck in the far northeastern corner of the state, a trip to Wyoming or Idaho is shorter than a trip to Salt Lake City.
He grew up in Ontario, California, a city of approximately 164,000 in San Bernardino County, about 40 miles due east of Los Angeles. With a long history of agriculture, there remain many farming operations that employee thousands. The biggest business operation is the Los Angeles/Ontario International Airport that serves as a cargo hub for product that has arrived at both the Los Angeles and Long Beach harbor areas. Famous one-time residents include the late musician Frank Zappa, former Royals first-baseman Mike Sweeney, Pro Football Hall of Famer Anthony Munoz
Strengths – Wagner has that ability that coaches prize: availability. He’s a durable player, in remarkable shape physically, who plays hard, but is tough and productive. He’s a patient defender and tries n ot to commit to early. He has quick hands that he used more often to attempt to break from an offensive player holding on. Does a good job on the pass rush, where he has a good enough burst that he can cause problems for blockers, especially backs that have remained in the backfield. Two time team captain as voted by his teammates.
Last year after Notre Dame lost to Southern Cal, Irish head coach Brian Kelly created a major controversy when he said there was a clear difference between the players on his team that he inherited from Coach Charlie Weis and the players he recruited. The inference was that the former staff’s players were not as committed to winning as his players.
Smith grew up in Knoxville, the third largest city in Tennessee with 178,874 residents according to the 2010 U.S. Census. The Knoxville Metro Area has a population of 655,400. The city sits on the Tennessee River in the eastern half of the state, just before the landscape turns mountainous. It was first settled in 1786. The city hosted the 1982 World’s Fair. Knoxville is home to the main campus of the University of Tennessee with an enrollment of 27,000 students. Folks who once called Knoxville home include Dave Thomas, founder of Wendy’s, director Quentin Tarantino, actress Patricia Neal, country music singer Chet Atkins, author Cormac McCarthy and record-setting basketball coach Pat Summitt.
Smith graduated in 2010 with a bachelor’s degree in management-entrepreneurship from the school’s Mendoza College of Business. He spent 2011 taking classes towards an MBA.
An AFC scout said of Harrison Smith – “He’s a fourth-rounder on my card. If he had a touch more speed he’d be a second rounder. If he had elite speed he would be a top 15 pick. He’s not slow, he’s just not fast. In college, he didn’t have many problems getting to where he needed to be with his speed. That’s won’t be the case in the NFL.”
DBU – Defensive Back University. That’s what the cornerbacks and safeties at Virginia Tech like to call themselves these days. Every year when the NFL Draft comes around, there seems to be a Hokies from the secondary getting his name called.
Hosley grew up in Boynton Beach, Florida, a city of approximately 68,000 in Palm Beach County. Despite its name, Boynton Beach is not on the Atlantic Ocean. It’s on the western side of the Intercoastal Waterway. The first settlement in this area came in 1894 by former Union Civil War Major named Nathan Boynton. Famous residents of Boynton Beach include golfer Karrie Webb, former baseball pitcher Rick Rhoden, current major leaguer Ryan Klesko and New England DT Vince Wilfork.
Hosley enrolled in the apparel, housing and resource management major. He spent three seasons playing for head coach Frank Beamer and the Hokies.
Strengths – Talented athlete who plays physically and much bigger than his listed size of less than 5-feet, 10 inches. He will provide run support and he go for the body shot any time it’s there. He has a great nose for the ball, with a dozen interceptions in his last two seasons, plus another 20 passes broken up. Hosley can explode off the snap and even in the back pedal, but he’s quicker than he is fast. He works on the mental side of the game and isn’t afraid of investing time with tape. There are some instincts there as well, especially in zone coverage where he does a good job of sensing where the quarterback is looking to take the ball. He’s a good punt returner, averaging nearly 12 yards a return over three seasons.
“My decision to leave (Virginia Tech early) was solely based upon my family and what would I gain from this, what would I lose. I felt like it was the right time. I felt like it was the right decision for me to move on to the next level. I had a great three years, it was the right time.”
When his close friend and fellow linebacker Austin Box died last May, there was no doubt in the mind of Travis Lewis that the Oklahoma Sooners defense had to honor their fallen comrade.
He grew up in San Antonio, Texas, the second largest city in Texas and the seventh largest city in the U.S., with a population of 1.3 million people in the city, which serves as the county seat of Bexar County. There are approximately 26 million tourists that visit the city. The area also serves as a strong military region with Fort Sam Houston, Lackland Air Force Base, Randolph Air Force Base, Brookes City-Base, Camp Bullis and Camp Stanley.
Lewis majored in sociology at Oklahoma and graduated in December 2011. Over four straight seasons he was named Big 12 All-Academic first or second team for his classroom work.
Strengths – He is a quick twitch athlete who flies off the snap and arrives with a pop he generates by getting up to speed quickly. Excellent read and react skills. Lewis can flip his hips and fly into a pass drop quickly. He plays instinctive football and piles up the tackles by taking down just about anything that comes across the middle. Can range side-to-sideline and can get himself to the point of attack from an inside position.
For many of the players entering pro football through the NFL Draft, success on the college level was an everyday thing over four or five years on campus. Schools like Penn State, Georgia, Florida, Louisana State, Oklahoma, Southern Cal, Oregon – every season brings more victories than defeats and seasons end with bowl games.
He grew up in Pensacola, Florida in the panhandle of Florida, where there’s a population of 52,000 in the city and more than 455,000 in the metro area. Pensacola is the westernmost city in Florida and includes the Pensacola Naval Air Station, the first in the United States. It’s home to the Blue Angels flight team. The city also has the distinction of being under the control of five different governments during its history: Spain, France, Great Britain, the Confederate States of America and the United States. The area also goes by the name of the Redneck Riviera. Famous natives of Pensacola include Emmitt Smith, Trent Richardson, Cortland Finnegan, Buck Showalter, Don Sutton and golfers Bubba Watson and Boo Weekly.
Free agency in the NFL has reached the point where the signings come in a couple of dribbles each day, after the mad rush of the first week.
He played four years for what traditionally has been the doormat of the Southeastern Conference. In his spot as a three-year cornerback for Vanderbilt’s defense, Casey Hayward has been matched up against some of the most talented receivers in the country.
He grew up in Perry, Georgia, the county seat of Houston County, located in the middle of Georgia, just south of Macon and Warner Robins. Population is approximately 10,000 people. Perry is best known as the site of the Georgia National Fair. The biggest employer in the area is Robins Air Force Base, home to the 78th Air Base Wing that helps service the Warner Robins Air Logistics Center.
Hayward majored in sociology in the College of Arts and Science at Vandy.
“It is about watching film. I guess I watch a lot of film so I kind of know what is going to happen before it comes.” On his 15 career interceptions, 13 in his last two seasons.
It was almost a year ago when Clemson DT Brandon Thompson sat in the apartment of his good friend and teammate Jarvis Jenkins watching the 2011 NFL Draft. Early in the second night at the top of the second round, Jenkins was drafted by the Washington Redskins at the No. 41 choice.
He grew up in Thomasville, Georgia, the county seat of Thomas County, a town of approximately 18,000 in the far southwestern corner of the state. The city calls itself the City of Roses and holds an annual Rose Festival. Famous natives of Thomasville include the actress Joanne Woodward, singer Elbridge Bryant of the Temptations, Heisman Trophy winner Charlie Ward, Jr. and a host of NFL players, both current and former – Guy McIntyre, Marcus Stroud, Myron Guyton, Tashard Choice, Sam Madison and William Andrews.
Thompson carried a Management major at Clemson University.
Born two months premature, the baseball glove that his father put in his crib was almost bigger than Marvin McNutt was.
McNutt was born and raised in the northern suburbs of St. Louis, most of that time in Florissant, a second-ring suburb of the St. Louis Metro sprawl. It’s one of the oldest settlements in the state, with its first system of government tracing to 1786. Population as of the 2010 U.S. Census was 52,158.
McNutt majored in interdepartmental studies at the University of Iowa.
Strengths – Outstanding athlete, with great body control and the ability to use those skills to make tough catches in traffic, or jumping through the roof. Very sure hands from his days playing quarterback. He frequently falls back on his basketball skills when he does a great job of boxing out defensive backs and assorted other defenders in making the catch. He has top-notch character with no visible off field problems. He was named to the Iowa football team’s leadership council for five consecutive seasons and was a senior captain.
As the Pro-Day Workouts headed for a conclusion last week, the talk in the NFL was over the performances of two quarterbacks – Ryan Tannehill out of Texas A&M and Brock Osweiler from Arizona State.
Now that the calendar has turned to April, we are inching closer to the three-day 2012 NFL Draft.
Mitchell Schwartz earned a rare distinction in 2011 – the big tackle from the University of California-Berkley was named first-team All-Pac-12 for his play on the field and his performance in the classroom. It’s a double honor that only two others in the conference were able to match.
Schwartz grew up in Pacific Palisades, an affluent Los Angeles neighborhood that is along the Pacific Ocean between Malibu and Santa Monica. In a series called “Mapping L.A.” the Los Angeles Times newspaper in 2009 that the population was 23,940 and the median household income was $168,000. Various television shows and movies have been filmed in Pacific Palisades, including Baywatch and Rockford Files. The famous Rivera Country Club is located there as is the Getty Museum and Will Rodgers State Park.
2011 – Named first-team All-Pac 12 Conference after starting 13 games at left tackle. He was named the program’s Brick Muller Award as Cal’s most valuable offensive lineman for the third straight year.
In early November 2011, just as Brandon Washington was getting ready to left tackle for the University of Miami against Florida State, another Brandon Washington was also busy.
Washington grew up in the Overton section of Miami, Florida, one of the roughest neighborhoods in south Florida. One of the first neighborhoods in the development of Miami, Overton is now dominated by crime, drugs and gangs. It’s a tough place to call home.
Washington had the look of an immediate contributor almost from the minute he stepped on the field for the University of Miami. With four years of eligibility, he decided he would invest only three, especially after his big 2010 performance.
An AFC scout said – “I really like the raw player here and what he could be shaped into. The worry is his background and whether he can handle the pressures of the league and the pressure he’s going to face from back home where a lot of folks are going to have their hand out.”
His name says plenty about what his father wanted for his only son when he was born:
Minnifield grew up in Lexington, the second largest city in Kentucky with a 2010 U.S. Census population of 295,803, with more than 687,000 in the area. It’s located in the Bluegrass Region of the state and is known as the “Horse Capital of the World” because of the number of facilities in and around the city where thoroughbred racing horses were raised and trained. It’s also home to the University of Kentucky and its basketball team plays downtown at Rupp Arena. Famous folks that have called Lexington home include actor Harry Dean Stanton, actress Ashley Judd and musician Vince Gill.
He spent five years in Charlottesville, earning a bachelor’s degree in sociology in less than four years. He then spent 18 months working on a Masters degree in the Curry School of Education at the University of Virginia. On the field, he appeared in 48 games with 13 interceptions.
An AFC scout said – “Good kid who works hard at the game, but doesn’t have the physical skills to be an all-purpose corner. He’ll have to play in a Cover 2 scheme because he lacks the kind of quickness and burst he would need to play on the island in man-to-man.”
The game of poker is usually thought of as a game played by individuals whose only purpose is to win money from others. While this is true for many that 
The NFL owners rolled out of their ocean side enclave on Wednesday in Florida, suitcases packed tightly with all those monogrammed robes and pool towels from The Breakers.
Whether it was in Rochester, New York where he was born, or Endicott, New York where he grew up, Chandler Jones always had someone watching over him.
Jones grew up in Endicott, a village in Broome County, New York with a population of 13,392. The town is just west of Binghamton. The towns are in south-central New York, just a few miles from the Pennsylvania border. It was in Endicott where IBM was formed and started in 1924. It would go on to become one of the biggest companies in the world. It’s also the home of the Endicott Johnson Corporation that makes shoes. Famous folks from Endicott are the Twilight Zone’s Rod Serling, former baseball umpire Ron Luciana and comedian Amy Sedaris.
Strengths – Athletic player who looks the part. He has long arms and he uses those to his advantage in creating leverage and locking out blockers. He’s quick and athletic enough to drop into coverage. He plays with good instincts and seldom gets caught out of position. He plays hard and fast and goes sideline to sideline. Jones does not have the speed and quickness to always make the play, but he runs down a lot of ball carriers from behind, dragging them down with those long arms.
He’s one of the smallest players in the class for the 2012 NFL Draft. But he has one of the biggest stories.
He’s from Wisconsin, and he’s big.
James grew up in Texarkana, Texas, located in Bowie County on the state line with Arkansas. Much like Kansas City, Texarkana is really two cities, one in Texas, one in Arkansas. Population overall is around 143,000 according to the last U.S. Census. The Red River Army Depot is the top employer with over 7,000 employees. Athletes like linebacker Jeremiah Trotter, golfer Miller Barber, race car driver Parnelli Jones, baseball Hall of Famer Eddie Matthews, Chiefs cornerback Eric Warfield, wide receiver Rod Smith and cornerback Nathan Vasher called Texarkana home.
2011 – James ran for a career high 1,805 yards and 18 TDs. He led the country in rushing during the regular season, averaging just under 150 yards per game. He became the first conference RB to run for 200 yards or more in three straight games since Marcus Allen did it for USC in 1981. Against Arizona he put up a school record 363 all-purpose yards. He missed two games with a dislocated elbow.
Strengths – A born running back, out of the Texas RB mold, with great vision, remarkable cutting ability, elusiveness, both lateral and north and south speed and quickness. Great instincts and shows very good balance, able to stay on his feet even when there’s contact. He’s a patient runner, who will allow the blocks to set up a path for him. James is especially good at “getting skinny” as they say in football, when he has to crash small cracks in the blocking front. He wasn’t asked to block much and he doesn’t shy away from the job, but doesn’t bring much power to the event.
He grew up in Waukesha is the country seat of Waukesha County, Wisconsin, located in the far southeastern corner of the state. The 2010 U.S. Census placed the population of Waukesha at 70,718. The name comes from the leader of the local tribe of Potawatomi Indians who lived in the area at the time Europeans first settled the area in 1896. Waukesha holds an important first in football history that went down on September 5, 1906 during a game between Carroll College and St. Louis University. SLU RB Bradbury Robinson threw the first legal forward pass in football history in that game, stunning his opponents and the crowd as SLU passed to a 22-0 victory. Some of the Waukesha natives include guitar pioneer Les Paul, classic rocker Steve Miller, comedian Frank Caliendo and Donald Goerke, the inventor of SpaghettiOs.
Zeitler majored in kinesiology at the University of Wisconsin, where he earned several nominations to the All-Big Ten Academic team. He played in 43 games and made 36 starts at right guard for the Badgers and head coach Bret Bielema. He did not allow a sack in his Wisconsin career.
Few potential draft choices hail from a high school smaller than Ronnell Lewis.
Lewis grew up in Dewar, Oklahoma, a town of less than 1,000 people in Okmujlgee County in the east-central part of the state. The town originated as a train depot and was not a town until 1909 when the site was established by railroad workers. In the past the town was a center for railroad, coal and the petroleum industries, which have all abandoned the town. As of the last census, Dewar had 7 businesses and 919 citizens. Lewis is believed to be the first resident of Okmulgee Country to play Division 1 college football.
Strength – Very athletic, quick and he packs a punch. With his closing speed and burst, he makes highlight reel tackles during every game. He’s got very quick hands and seems to be able to deal well with blockers. Reliable tackler, with strong hands, he’s naturally powerful and aggressive. There’s never any question about his desire, as he gives 100 percent on every play. That’s when he can be seen running from sideline-to-sideline.
He was part of the graduating class of 2008 at Edison High School in Stockton. Opened in 1941, the school now has 2,600 students in grades nine through 12.
At the University of Montana, Johnson majored in sociology and played four seasons for one of the best FCS programs in the country over the last 20 years.
Strengths – Athletically gifted to play the corner, with long arms that allow him to press at the line of scrimmage. He has great body control and can turn with his receiver. He’s a very good jumper and he has great timing, as he usually gets his hands on the ball at the highest point. Johnson has very good hands and his ability to catch the ball show his roots as a receiver. He just looks like a cornerback as he walks on the field. Hustles from sideline-to-sideline and is seldom found watching the play; he’s always moving towards getting involved.
Coming out of Edison High School in Stockton, California, Trumaine Johnson earned a start and significant playing time as a freshman for the University of Montana Grizzlies.
The big news out of LSU’s Pro Day was word that top-ranked CB Morris Claiborne had surgery last week on torn ligaments in his left wrist. Nothing major, but not something any player likes to show the NFL guys before the draft.
Sometime before the end of the second round, or maybe even the first round of the 2012 NFL Draft there will be three names called that have been linked before.
He was part of the graduating class of 2008 at Evergreen High School in White Center, Washington, part of the Highline School District.
Strengths – Outstanding athlete for a man his size with very good feet and body control. He keeps moving and his feet running on blocks and that allows him to do a good job of sealing off defenders. When he pulls or works to the outside, he’s very good at position his body and he uses hands well to control defenders and not allow them any sort of leverage advantage. His ability to play both guard and tackle and to do it successfully will attract attention from NFL teams. Kelemete plays with a bit of nastiness as well, and isn’t afraid of contact and lots of it.
The future of Vontaze Burfict in the National Football League right now is not very clear. Two years ago, he was considered a sure-fire first-round draft choice and was drawing attention for the intense nature of his play.
Burfict was part of the graduating class of 2009 at Centennial High School, part of the Corona-Norco Unified School District. Enrollment is 2,500-plus students in grades nine through 12. An estimated 27 different languages are spoken at the school, where nearly 50 percent of the students are Hispanic.
Throughout his career with the Sun Devils, Burfict had problems with penalties and his emotions. It was a constant source of discussion between the Arizona State coaching staff and the linebacker. In 2010, head coach Dennis Erickson decided to pull him from the starting lineup for a big game against Washington.
An AFC scout said – “Off our board. We wouldn’t consider him, even for a seventh round choice. Too much baggage.”
It’s been a problem that dogged Cam Johnson all through his college football career at the University of Virginia.
Johnson was a member of the 2008 graduating class at Gonzaga College High School in Washington, D.C. The Jesuit high school for boys is named in honor of St. Aloysius Gonzaga, an Italian saint from the 16th Century. It’s the oldest boys high school in the District, established in 1821. Enrollment in grades nine through 12 is just over 900 students. Yearly tuition is $18,000, with many students receiving scholarships.
Strengths – The type of defensive end that can hold the edge, with very good power in his lower body. Shows good athletic skills and stays on his feet and is able to use quick feet to dance around bodies at his feet or others trying to get him on the ground. He’s quick off the snap and goes forward with power, using his hands well on the initial collision. Strong tackler who seldom got shrugged off or juked away once he’d zeroed in on the grab. Very good in pursuit and will run down a ball carrier from behind on the other side of the field. Good straight line speed.
Kellen Moore was the leader of a Boise State offense that won 53 games over the last four seasons. No college quarterback directed his team to more victories over his career. According to Broncos head coach Chris Peterson, on the defensive side the guy in the same role as Moore on offense, was Shea McClellin.
There is a dispute in Idaho as to McClellin’s hometown. He grew up on Chicken Dinner Road which technically is within the city limits of Caldwell. However, he gravitated to the much closer and smaller town of Marsing, right on the Snake River and that’s where he went to high school. The towns are in the southwest corner of Idaho, around the north and west sides of Lake Lowell, about 25 miles west of Boise. They are hard against the border between Idaho and Oregon. The area is known as Treasure Valley and it’s considered the heart of the Idaho Wine Country. The area is relatively flat but the peeks of the Owyhee, Weiser and Boise mountain ranges surround the valley. Caldwell has a population of just fewer than 50,000 and has experienced residential growth every year for decades. Marsing’s most recent census showed just over 1,000 residents. The No. 1 business is agriculture and allied businesses. It’s the home of J.R. Simplot Company, one of the world’s largest processors of frozen foods. Shea McClellin worked on a farm where with his family he raised goats, chickens, sheep, donkeys, wild geese and ducks. They also nursed injured animals like foxes and baby skunks.
McClellin played four seasons for head coach Chris Peterson
An NFC scout said – “Not sure where he fits. He’s played just about every spot on the defense save corner and nose and he seems adaptable to all of them. But that doesn’t give us any idea where he’s best suited. Great intangibles with this kid will have teams taking a close look at him and finding a spot where he fits.”
The NFL coaching profession lost one of their great ones on Wednesday when Ron Erhardt passed away in Boca Raton, Florida. He was 81 years old.
I believe it was that old pre-Internet hack from over on the other side of Missouri may have said it best. Mark Twain wrote “if you always tell the truth, you never have to remember what you said.”
The NFL annual owner’s meeting will begin over the coming weekend in Palm Beach, Florida.
Wednesday was another roller coaster day in what has been a roller coaster month for Tim Tebow.
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell has brought the hammer down on the New Orleans Saints for the “bounty” program their defense ran for three seasons under head coach Sean Payton and then defensive coordinator Gregg Williams.
It was former Mizzou basketball guard Dibi Ray that first whispered the name Michael Egnew to the coaches at his alma mater. A native of Plainview, Texas, Ray had been a schoolboy star there, who earned himself a chance for an education with a basketball scholarship to the University of Missouri.
Plainview High School is part of the Plainview Independent School District and has a student population of approximately 1,500 in grades nine through 12. Egnew was a three sport star, for the Bulldogs, competing in football, basketball and track & field.
Strengths – Outstanding receiver for the tight end position. Catches balls in his hands and with his big paws he can snatch them out of the air. He’s athletic and able to get open and he’s gifted in jumping ability that he can go up and fight for the ball. Egnew at times can be explosive coming off the line of scrimmage or when he’s running a route. While he’s not particularly fast, he’s able to move the sticks.
There’s been more to the rise of Boise State football than the blue turf they play on at home and the offensive fireworks that has been so much a part of the program over the last decade.
Iloka grew up in Sugar Land, Texas, a suburb to the southwest of Houston. It’s one of the fastest growing cities in Texas, with population growing by more than 150 percent in the last decade. Population is approximately 85,000, but it’s also one of the most affluent areas in the state, with a median home price of more than $369,000. The area was originally a sugar plantation. The city is still the home of Imperial Sugar, as well as corporate headquarters for Minute Maid.
Strengths – Very athletic with quick feet, he plays the game fast and has the ability to cover a lot of ground. Iloka closes fast when reacting to the ball. He does a good job of shadowing receivers. Seems sound in his understanding of his defensive scheme and the offenses that he’s playing against. Does not appear to get tricked out of position and he’s patient, something a true deep safety needs to be as the play develops in front of him. OK tackler, who comes downhill and can deliver a shot.
“George used to be a guy who would just take care of himself. Now he’s starting to bring other guys along. He is coaching other guys up on and off the football field. … What we’ve been going through (in the secondary) this year, he’s shown a lot — being positive, meeting with guys on their own, getting guys to see stuff through his eyes.” Boise State DB coach Marcel Yates.
Chiefs fans have already left Eric Winston highly impressed.
The Peyton Chase is about to end, but I have to admit I lost interest when it became obvious that the Chiefs were not part of the picture.
There are a lot of football factories around the country, but there are none in New Hampshire. The state has fewer than 75 high school football programs with a population of just more than 1.3 million.
Reyes was grew up in Nashua, New Hampshire, a city of approximately 85,000 people in the far southern end of the state, right on the boundary line with Massachusetts. Located at the spot where the Nashua and Merrimack Rivers come together the area was founded as a fur training post about 1655. Nashua is annually rated as one of the country’s best communities to live in. Natives of Nashua include actress and singer Mandy Moore, former Red Sox Rico Petrocelli, Chicago Bears CEO Ted Phillips and old school baseball catcher and manager Birdie Tibbett’s.
Strengths – Big man who in the last five years has added 55 pounds, or 11 pounds a year, without losing his speed or quickness, which are both good for a man his size. At UConn, Reyes played both defensive end and defensive tackle in a 4-3 scheme and that provided the NFL with a lot of different views of him at each position. He’s very quick off the snap and can slice the A or B gaps in a flash. He’s got good movement up and down the line of scrimmage and is good at shedding blockers and chasing down running backs. He does not have much of a pass rush, but he can get blockers off balance and when he does, he leverages them into the quarterback’s lap. A team leader who was twice named team captain.
“To be honest, I get embarrassed when I look at film from high school. I say to myself, was I really doing that? I think I was just faster than everyone else then and relied too much on that.”
During his time with the Chiefs, Joe Valerio was one of my favorite players. A relatively obscure second-round draft choice in 1991 from the University of Pennsylvania, Joe was bright, articulate, but he didn’t act like some snooty Ivy Leaguer. He played in 64 games over five seasons (1991-1995) and few of his performances as an offensive tackle are memorable. Instead, it was when he would go in as a tight end in goal-line situations where Valerio shined. He ended up catching four passes in his NFL career, all four going for touchdowns, including a couple of those thrown to him by Joe Montana. Through it all, Joe never took anything for granted and even on his last day in the building, he did not lose the little kid in him that enjoyed playing football.
It’s one of the pieces of the personnel puzzle that forms the complete picture of potential draft choices for NFL teams. The Pro Day workout, or on campus visit does not always provide any type of physical numbers that will change any team’s evaluations. But it’s a chance for injured players to get their important numbers on paper, like 40-yard dash times and weight lifting totals.
The 2009 season was one of major disappointment for the University of Illinois and WR A.J. Jenkins. The Illini finished that season with a 3-9 record and Jenkins caught just 10 passes on the season, and missed the last four games because of a knee injury.
He was a member of the graduating class of 2008 at Terry Parker High School, part of the Duval County Public School District. The school has approximately 2,000 students. He played for Braves head coach Greg Stanton.
Strengths – Fluid runner, with excellent speed and he can create separation from defenders, especially on underneath routes where his slippery moves give him openings. He really stretches the defense. Very good hands and almost always snatches the ball outside his body. Jenkins has played both outside and inside and that helps any offense. He’s not afraid to go after the ball, willing to throw himself in front of the throw and the defenders if he must.
“I’m kind of known for not thinking too smart.”
Even though he played at one of the most famous football high schools in the country, there were not a lot of people interested in seeing Dwight Bentley continue his career after Pahokee High School.
Bentley was a member of the graduating class of 2007 at Pahokee High School, part of the School District of Palm Beach County system. There are approximately 800 students in grades 7 through 12 at Pahokee. The school is most famous for its football program, as the Blue Devils have won six state championships since 1989. In a two-season span (2006-07), PHS went 28-0, won two state titles and was ranked No. 6 in the nation. Among the notable football players to come out of Pahokee have been Hall of Fame LB Ricky Jackson, WR Anquan Boldin, CB Alphonso Smith, DE Eric Moore and another dozen players who have spent time on NFL rosters.
Louisiana Lafayette was the only school that serious chased Bentley into his junior college semester in Dodge City. So, that’s where he landed, becoming part of the Ragin’ Cajuns with four full years of eligibility available to him.
Strengths – Very good athlete, with quick feet and top level speed; he not only runs under 4.4 seconds in the 40, but he plays the game under 4.4 seconds. Just watching his footwork is entertaining, as he’s so quick and fluid in how he keeps himself in good position moving his feet around. He turns and backpedals and doesn’t slow down like it’s a natural move. If he gets the ball in his hands, there’s a good chance he’s going somewhere with that interception; he returned 3 of his 8 picks for touchdowns and average 28.3 yards per INT return. He’s got very good ball reaction, and he’ll stick that back foot in the ground and drive for the spot where the ball is going to be; a better performer and more comfortable in a zone, cover-2 type defense.
As the Chiefs go into the first weekend of free agency in the NFL for the 2012 season, they still have some work to do, players to talk to and hopefully some more money to spend in the second wave of free agents.
