development – Syndication Server

Chiefs DE Felix Anudike-Uzomah admits he still has ‘a ways to go’

Felix Anudike-Uzomah told reporters after Monday’s practice that he still has ‘a ways to go’ in his development.

Chiefs rookie defensive end Felix Anudike-Uzomah (also known as “FAU”) has looked good through the first two weeks of the preseason, but he’ll be the first to admit that he still has plenty of learning to do.

He said as much during Monday’s press conference, just two days after the team defeated the Arizona Cardinals 38-10 in preseason Week 2.

“Development-wise, I still have a ways to go,” said Anudike-Uzomah. “I got a little bit better. I got the hang of things, but obviously, it’s just preseason … but it was good work just to have me go out there and play against real people, play against NFL people that are different than my teammates.”

Through two weeks, FAU has earned five total quarterback pressures and two tackles (both defensive stops) on 77 defensive snaps. He hasn’t yet earned his first sack, but given his pressure numbers, a sack could come soon.

It’s important to note that expectations for rookie defensive ends, even first-rounders, should be tempered in year one. For comparison, Chiefs DE Georgia Karlaftis, a 2022 first-rounder, earned plenty of QB pressures early last season but didn’t earn his first full sack until Week 11. But then, the sacks came easier – Karlaftis posted 6.5 sacks in the Chiefs’ final 10 games (including the postseason), totaling seven for the year.

Moral of the story: It’s likely that FAU will take time to find his stride. As long as he’s putting in the work and slowly progressing, things should come together for him by the end of the year (maybe even sooner).

Chiefs OC Matt Nagy spoke about player evaluations during the preseason

#Chiefs offensive coordinator Matt Nagy spoke about player evaluations during the preseason after practice on Wednesday. | from: @EdEastonJr

The long days of practice during training camp enforce the new game plans and builds chemistry among the players and coaches. The Kansas City Chiefs have their first demonstration of this knowledge starting this Sunday.

Offensive Coordinator Matt Nagy is deep into his depth chart at multiple positions rearranging plays for specific players. The motto throughout camp has been to play fast and the veteran coordinator intends to find out which players have been doing that correctly. Nagy spoke with reporters after practice on Wednesday and described his expectations for the Chiefs’ coming tilt against the Saints.

“We throw a lot at them in training camp, a lot of volume, now we pull back a little bit, and we want to be able to see them now play fast,” Nagy said. “So you can, at times, play a little slow in practice, whether you’re tired or you’re thinking in the game; they get their game plan, and they can roll. So, now we can truly evaluate them, and see and then also see to you know, there’s no scripted periods of cards or no one it’s this defense or that defense, I mean, you’re gonna go out there and defenses are usually scaled back as well.”

Nagy has a forward-thinking mindset similar to every coach around the league about using the games to showcase players to other potential teams.

“But you get to see guys’ talent, and this is an opportunity for them,” said Nagy. “And like we always say, if these games, there’s only so many people that can make the roster, and I think Coach Reid (Andy Reid) does a phenomenal job of explaining to the guys like listen if you don’t make this roster make it hard on us and make it easy for somebody else to pick you up.”

The Chiefs’ offense has depth and will be tested in the first preseason game as they determine which player can fit a specific role.

[lawrence-auto-related count=1 category=1]

Steve Spagnuolo challenging Bryan Cook to become a leader on Chiefs defense

#Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo is challenging safety Bryan Cook to become a leader on Kansas City’s defense this season. | from: @EdEastonJr

The front office of the Kansas City Chiefs, led by general manager Brett Veach, has constantly been forward-thinking about adding younger talent to the team’s roster. Kansas City hasn’t dwelled much on retaining established veterans and tends to build their squad through the draft, choosing to develop players in-house instead of turning to free agency to fill crucial roles.

A solid example of this formula was the selection of Cincinnati safety Bryan Cook in 2022. He initially played in a reserve role behind Juan Thornhill. Now, after Thornhill’s departure in the offseason, Cook will get his chance to take over a starting spot this season. Chiefs defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo met with the media after Tuesday’s practice and praised Cook’s work ethic and development in training camp.

“Bryan [Cook] is really going to become the quarterback of the defense,” Spagnuolo explained. “Him and Nick [Bolton], and [he is] especially the quarterback on the back end. One other thing about Bryan [Cook] is he’s always looking for feedback.

“He came the other day and he wanted to do some more drills. That’s one thing he’s got, we saw that when we were looking at him out of [The University of] Cincinnati, his work, he loves football, passionate about football and we’re banking on him in that regard.”

Spagnulolo had utilized Cook in many big spots, including in Super Bowl LVII. He has shown his confidence in the young safety, and fans will have to stay tuned to see how Spagnuolo will plan to maximize Cook’s talent in 2023.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1]

Matt Nagy on developing Chiefs’ young receivers: ‘There are going to be mistakes’

Offensive coordinator Matt Nagy shared his gameplan for developing the #Chiefs’ young talent at the receiver position. | from: @LazarczykLogan

Despite being fresh off a Super Bowl LVII victory, the Kansas City Chiefs are in the midst of a youth movement on their offense. Coordinator Matt Nagy is no stranger to developing young talent and should be up to the task of getting Kansas City’s promising prospects up to speed ahead of the regular season.

Nagy described what he wants to see from some of these young players, particularly at the receiver position, in training camp during the Chiefs’ post-practice press conference on Thursday.

“What you want to look for is guys [who] do not repeat the same mistakes,” he explained. “There are going to be mistakes learning the offense, there are going to be mistakes when you are going up against the defense, but don’t repeat them. That’s really what we look for. Then the guys that don’t make mistakes – you kind of combine that, then you obviously have to have traits as well.”

Kansas City’s receiving corps will be a group to watch as Nagy assesses his options to this end ahead of the regular season given their relative inexperience.

Led by veterans like Marquez Valdes-Scantling and Justin Watson, who have only been in the system for one whole season, their younger pass catchers — Justyn Ross, Rashee Rice, Nikko Remigio, and Skyy Moore — will all have to continue learning on the fly as they look to cement their roles in the Chiefs’ offense ahead of the 2023 season.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1]

Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes: Justyn Ross is ‘learning the offense fast’

#Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes seemed pleased with the development of receiver Justyn Ross, who he said is “learning the offense fast”. | from: @LazarczykLogan

The Kansas City Chiefs have one of the most interesting wide receiver corps in the NFL because of the group’s unknown potential. There is not a clear-cut top option for the team at the position, and their development at training camp has been the object of intense speculation.

Kadarius Toney has been talked about by his coaches and teammates as a potential number-one wideout, but an injury during the first week of training camp has delayed his rise to definitively take over the top spot on Kansas City’s depth chart.

One player that has flown under the radar, though, is Justyn Ross. The 23-year-old receiver was a first-round talent in the 2022 NFL Draft, but a spine injury cost him the chance to be drafted last year. Instead, he signed with the Chiefs as a free agent following the annual selection meeting and immediately became a darling of the team’s fanbase, who immediately took a liking to his collegiate film that belied his undrafted status.

After spending last year on the practice squad, Ross has worked his way up to first-team reps in the Chiefs’ 2023 training camp. Quarterback Patrick Mahomes has taken notice and told the media on Wednesday that he believes that the young receiver can make an impact for Kansas City’s high-octane offense in the regular season.

“He [Justyn Ross] has had a good one [training camp] – learning the offense fast – you can tell he has been in the offense for a year now,” Mahomes said. “Obviously [he is] making big plays. He is getting more involved in those first-team reps. [He is] a guy that I hope can be a really good player in this offense.”

With a ton of talent and heretofore unknown potential, Ross has a great opportunity to carve out a role for himself as a reliable weapon for Mahomes ahead of the Chiefs’ 2023 Super Bowl defense campaign.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1]

Urban Meyer discusses whether Trevor Lawrence will be ready by Week 1

Meyer says Lawrence isn’t ready to play right now but that he’s optimistic as the rookie continues to progress.

Any time you draft a quarterback in the first round, deciding when to play them can be a bit of a gamble. Pull the trigger too early, and it could harm their development. Likewise, coaches are under a lot of pressure to play highly drafted passers early.

This is especially true when that quarterback is taken with the first overall pick, and that’s exactly the situation Jacksonville finds itself in. Coming off a 1-15 season in 2020, fans certainly expect to see Trevor Lawrence early, possibly as soon as the first offensive snap of the season.

In an interview with USA TODAY’s Mackenzie Salmon on “Sports Seriously,” Jaguars coach Urban Meyer said the team isn’t in a rush to make a decision about the QB1 role.

“He’s not ready yet, but he doesn’t have to be ready yet,” Meyer said, according to quotes transcribed by John Shipley of Jaguar Report. “We got a long training camp coming up. He’s probably advanced maybe a little quicker than we would’ve thought, which was a positive.”

This shouldn’t come as much of a surprise, as Lawrence was limited throughout minicamp as he recovers from shoulder surgery in the spring. He should be at (or at least, near) 100% by the start of camp next month, and that will be his true chance to solidify himself as the team’s starter.

However, the work developing Lawrence started long before OTAs. In fact, it started well before he was even selected by the Jags. We know that he had the playbook before the draft, and Meyer elaborated to Salmon about what the team’s strategy was once it decided upon taking Lawrence.

“One thing that we worked on — when we made a decision that Trevor was going to be our No. 1 pick, we went from the evaluation stage to the preparation stage,” Meyer said.

“And that means that I want to see — I can’t remember the exact date, but we started installing the playbook with him well before the draft. So you can see the retention, he’s got a really good work ethic and he’s progressed very well.”

According to these comments by Meyer, it sounds like Lawrence is right on schedule in terms of his progression. Though it seems he hasn’t been the clear best quarterback so far, it probably wasn’t fair to expect him to be as he adjusts to the speed of the professional game and nurses his shoulder back to health.

Jacksonville has backups with starting experience in Gardner Minshew and C.J. Beathard, but Jags fans don’t want to see either of those players line up under center Week 1. And though he hasn’t earned the job yet, it seems Lawrence is well on track to be the guy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V11ErolOixg

Top five reasons fans are done with Tom Herman

After polling the crowd of the Texas Longhorns fan base, we have the five biggest reasons why they are frustrated with Tom Herman.

When it comes to the Texas Longhorns and head coach Tom Herman, everyone has an opinion on what the leadership in Austin should do about their embattled head coach. Continue reading “Top five reasons fans are done with Tom Herman”

Pages: 123456

What Quinn Ewers had to say about choosing Ohio State

Former Texas commit Quinn Ewers made the decision to choose Ohio State over the Texas Longhorns. Development and winning football games.

On Thursday night the Texas Longhorns fans and staff received the news they have been dreading. Back on Oct. 28 the No. 1 prospect in the state of Texas decommited from the University of Texas, on Nov. 19 he committed to the Ohio State Buckeyes. Quinn Ewers decided to leave the state much like the No. 1 recruit in the 2021 class decided to do.

Ewers spoke with Steve Wiltfong, a national recruiting analyst with 247Sports. Ewers weighed in on why he chose to go to Ohio State rather than the team he grew up rooting for.

Just their success and ability to go to the college football playoff every year.

It is no secret that the Texas Longhorns are coming off their second-worst decade in their history. From 2010-2019 they won just 55% of their games, it marked the first time since 1930-39 that they didn’t reach winning 60% of their games. Ewers, who is a junior, has really only seen the Longhorns struggle on the football field. The last time Texas played for a National Championship, he would have been around six or seven years old. All he has known is watching Ohio State play for or win National Championships.

2010-2019	Ohio State	Texas
Wins	105	71
Losses	17	57
Championship Appearances	1	0
New Years Six bowls	7	1

Those numbers would have been larger if the 2010 season wasn’t vacated. The point here is that Ohio State is consistently playing on the national stage while the Longhorns have had one year where they played for a huge bowl. Outside of that, it is either the Alamo or Texas bowl games.

The main thing I look for when I’m talking to a coach or looking at a University is development of past quarterbacks and who was as successful as they were in years past?

One of the biggest knocks on the Longhorns has been their lack of development at the quarterback position. Vince Young was a top-five selection. Colt McCoy was a third-round pick. Since that time not a single quarterback has been drafted from the University of Texas.

On the flip side of that coin, Ohio State has seen three quarterbacks drafted. The most recent being Dwayne Haskins drafted in the first round during the 2019 NFL Draft. In the upcoming 2021 NFL Draft, Justin Fields is projected to be a top-two selection. Texas quarterback Sam Ehlinger? Well, he is likely to be a day three pick.

It isn’t rumors that is killing Texas Longhorns recruiting efforts in football. It has to do with a lack of development. The fact that Texas hasn’t produced a first-round draft pick since 2015. It has to do with not winning football games. That starts at the top, Tom Herman.

[lawrence-related id=27458,27455,27449]