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Posted by Micheal Jorden on August 17, 2024 at 3:08am 0 Comments 0 Likes
Turns out there were enough bodies on offense for the Kansas City Chiefs to practice after all.
The Chiefs opened a three-day rookie minicamp on Saturday after selecting six defensive players in last week’s draft Redskins Authentic Jerseys , though one of them – defensive tackle Kahlil McKenzie – is expected to transition to offensive guard. But with 14 rookie free agents and another 43 players in for tryouts, there were plenty of bodies to make up an offensive, defensive and special teams unit.
Don’t sleep on the unknown guys, either.
Chiefs coach Andy Reid pointed out that just a few years ago, an unheralded wide receiver named Albert Wilson impressed him during the same weekend. Wilson hung around for the next phase of the offseason program, survived training camp and ultimately made the Kansas City roster.
This past offseason, Wilson signed a $24 million, three-year deal with the Miami Dolphins.
”Albert just made about $8 million,” Reid said with a smile, ”so there’s been a few. You invite them to the next phase and the next and eventually they make the roster.”
Still, it’s the draft picks that will draw the most attention this weekend.
The Chiefs didn’t have a first-round pick, so they used their initial selection on Ole Miss pass rusher Breeland Speaks in the second round. Speaks is expected to push last year’s second-round pick, Tanoh Kpassgnon, for playing time right out of the gate opposite standout linebacker Justin Houston.
”I did get the playbook,” Speaks said. ”My first reaction was, `I can do this.’ I looked at a few defenses we installed today and went over those and know those by heart already.”
With two third-round picks Authentic Brian O'Neill Jersey , Chiefs general manager Brett Veach continued to shore up his defense. He grabbed 315-pound run-stuffer Derrick Nnadi out of Florida State and then Clemson hybrid linebacker Dorian O’Daniel, both of whom could also factor into the starting rotation this fall.
The Chiefs were thin along the defensive front, even after signing Xavier Williams in free agency and retaining Rakeem Hunez-Roches as a restricted free agent. And with the expected departure of erstwhile pass rusher Tamba Hali, and injury woes to Dee Ford, finding another linebacker was paramount.
McKenzie, the son of Raiders general manager Reggie McKenzie, was also in attendance, as were fellow sixth-round pick Tremon Smith and Texas A&M safety Armani Watts, who could be the steal of the draft.
Watts dropped to the fourth round after concerns about his workouts at the combine, but the four-year starter said he had bulked up in the hopes that it would help him out. Instead, it only slowed him down and already Watts has reverted to his lean, fast playing weight.
The Chiefs are hopeful that he factors into the defense right away.
Star safety Eric Berry is returning from a season-ending Achilles tendon injury, and reliable safety Ron Parker was released in a cost-saving move. That leaves plenty of questions at the back of the defense.
”It’s a little bit different for those safeties,” Veach said, ”because they are like the quarterbacks of the defense where they have to line up people and make the calls and adjustments. That is no different than any safety, even if you draft them in the first round.
”Breeland is someone who we feel can come in and help us right away. Derrick Raiders Arden Key Jersey , Dorian and Armani can certainly do some different things while he grows and understands the system a little bit better.”
UNDRAFTED FREE AGENTS
The Chiefs signed 14 rookie free agents on Saturday, including former Kansas State wide receiver Byron Pringle. The local product left school a year early and has intriguing size at 6-foot-1, 205 pounds, but he needs to showcase better hands than he did playing just down the road.
The Chiefs also signed RBs Darrell Williams and J.D. Moore from LSU; OL Ryan Hunter (Bowling Green), Jimmy Murray (Holy Cross) and Devondre Seymour (Southern Illinois); TE Blake Mack (Arkansas State); WR Elijah Marks (Northern Arizona); QB Chase Litton (Marshall); DB Arrion Springs (Oregon) and D’Montre Wade (Murray State); LBs Ben Niemann (Iowa) and Raymond Davison (California); and DT Dee Liner (Arkansas State).
BERRY’S BROTHER
The Chiefs also had 43 players on tryouts during the three-day rookie minicamp, including DB Elliott Berry. The undrafted rookie from Tennessee is the younger brother of the Chiefs’ star safety, Eric Berry.
—
Two miserable seasons. One measly win.
Still, Cleveland coach Hue Jackson continues to have the "unwavering" support of owners Dee and Jimmy Haslam, who believe his third year will bring out the best in him 鈥?and the Browns.
"I think we will see the real Hue Jackson," Jimmy Haslam said Saturday before practice.
Jackson has lost 31 of 32 games since taking over a Cleveland franchise that has undergone numerous coaching changes and front-office upheaval since the team's NFL expansion return in 1999. However, the Haslams feel the worst is over, and thanks to a roster overhaul directed by general manager John Dorsey, Jackson has the pieces to win.
"He has good quarterbacks, he has some skill players, he has a veteran offensive lineman 鈥?now, we have to figure out left tackle 鈥?and three really good (running) backs and a good defense."
Jackson has also been helped by not also handling offensive coordinator duties. With some urging and the blessing of the Haslams http://www.redskinsauthorizedshops.com/authentic-jonathan-allen-jersey , he turned his offense over to Todd Haley, who was fired after six seasons with Pittsburgh.
"You have to give Hue credit for bringing in Todd Haley, which I think will allow Hue to be the head coach," Haslam said. "I think this will be the first opportunity Hue will have to do what we know he can do as head coach as a leader. Even though Todd will be calling all of the shots on offense, I think Hue will obviously have some impact there like he will defense. We are excited to see it."
The Browns went 0-16 last season, matching the 2008 Detroit Lions as the only teams in NFL history to lose all 16 games. But while there were many Cleveland fans calling for Jackson's firing, his players remained united behind him and the Haslams decided to bring him back for another year.
That doesn't mean Jackson's job is permanently safe, but Haslam refused to say there was a mandate on wins this season.
"No, we're excited about Hue Jackson," Haslam said. "I think our commitment to him has been unwavering and still is."
Jackson is grateful for the Haslams' backing.
"I said all last year, I felt like I had their full support," he said following the Browns' first practice in pads. "They were always in communication with me, and I thank them for that. I'm glad they feel that way. My job is to go out and coach this football team and get them better and we've got to do it better than we've ever done it since I've been here. We have some players that I think are going to help make the difference, but at the same time, it's just all talk right now.
"We have to go do it. So we've just got to keep working, but I do thank them for that."
As the 2017 season unraveled Isaiah Oliver Jersey Falcons , the Haslams chose to fire head of football operations Sashi Brown, whose analytics-heavy approach yielded mixed results and not enough wins. Dorsey, who guided Kansas City's turnaround from 2013 to 2016, replaced Brown and spent this past offseason acquiring talent.
Haslam felt it was fair to assess Jackson's upcoming third season as his first.
"I think in some ways you could say because of the talent he's had, particularly at quarterback, particularly last year, it could view it as his first year, but we don't look at that," Haslam said. "I know everybody's saying Hue has to win this many games or he has to win that many games. We don't look at it (like that)."
"We're really excited about the relationship that Hue and John have and not just that they have but their staffs have, how the building is working together. I mean we're in here at 7 this morning talking about who else we might need to add to the roster. So we feel good about the chemistry, we feel good about the work ethic, but at the same time, we all understand we've got to win games."
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