Tag: duke manyweather

Trevor Penning trained with Terron Armstead this offseason

Trevor Penning trained with former Saints left tackle Terron Armstead this offseason. He says the five-time Pro Bowler taught him a thing or two:

Trevor Penning is playing with more confidence in Year 3. The New Orleans Saints offensive tackle has seen a lot of adversity since the team drafted him, losing most of his rookie year to injuries before being benched early in his sophomore campaign. Now he’s been asked to move to the right side after spending his career thus far at left tackle.

And he found a great resource to tap into while training in Frisco, Texas at Duke Manyweather’s OL Masterminds program: Terron Armstead, the longtime Saints left tackle who Penning was initially drafted to replace.

“He was kind of a mentor to me, Terron was. Having him kind of (share) his mental processing, the kind of stuff he does, definitely helps,” Penning told local media after Monday’s training camp practice.

Armstead was a home-run draft pick for the Saints back in 2013, starting 116 of the 120 games he’s played in the NFL while being honored at five Pro Bowls. He was recognized on the All-Pro second team in 2018. While he’s since left to continue his career with the Miami Dolphins, Armstead is still playing at a very high level, and it’s great to see him mentoring young pros like Penning.

He’s been there. Just like Penning, Armstead made the jump to the NFL from a smaller program at Arkansas-Pine Bluff. He experienced many of the challenges that Penning has dealt with after playing college ball at Northern Iowa. So what has he worked to teach Penning?

“A lot of technique. A lot of technique,” Penning repeated. “A lot of the mental side of it, kind of like a plan, was what he was trying to help me with. Kind of develop a plan before you even get to the line of scrimmage. Kind of ‘What you’re going to do to them to not let the rusher dictate what you’re going to do?’ A more offensive approach, being the guy who sets the tone over what he’s going to do.”

And how has that work paid off? Penning said he felt encouraged when reflecting on his first five days of practice, including the first session in pads, though he’s the first to admit he has more work to do before he’ll be truly satisfied with his progress.

“There’s always work you can do. So far I feel like I’ve been a lot more comfortable, even from years past and even the spring. I think so far I’m doing some good things, obviously there’s still a ton of stuff I can improve on but I’ll take that day by day. Just keep improving every day,” Penning said.”

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Trevor Penning describes flip to right tackle as a fresh start

Trevor Penning described his move to right tackle as a fresh start. Spending time training at both positions has eased his transition:

One of the biggest ongoing stories from rookie minicamp and organized team activities is Taliese Fuaga and Trevor Penning swapping positions. The Saints first round pick is a career right tackle who has been moved to left tackle this season and vice versa for Penning. The decision has been framed as gathering information, but it feels like a concrete decision for Penning.

Penning described the move as a fresh start when speaking with local media on Tuesday: “It’s a fresh start. It’s a whole new offense, new side of the line. Kind of flushed the past almost, learned from the past, move on. That’s kind of what I’ve gotten out of it. Fresh start, yeah.”

This is how offensive line coach John Benton described the move almost verbatim, having said it was always the plan. Penning added that an offseason conversation with Dennis Allen laid out the vision for his path forward in March. If he takes advantage of this fresh start, Penning is in line to be the team’s next starting right tackle.

“It’s not as much as you would probably think. Because the whole offseason we train, when I’m down in Frisco with Duke Manyweather, we train both sides. So it’s already kind of, I’ve been there (at right tackle) already. We work on that down there fifty-fifty. So it’s not too much of a change.”

It’s a move Penning has prepared for this offseason. That offseason training has made the transition during OTAs more seamless. Outside of his own transition, Penning praised the new scheme for leaning into the offensive line’s athleticism. Now that he’s healthy and getting a full offseason’s worth of work in, he’s eager to show what he’s learned.

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Numbers don’t lie: Jets RG Greg Van Roten is a liability

A well-known offensive line coach recently called Jets RG Greg Van Roten a “liability.” The numbers couldn’t agree more.

Duke Manyweather, a noted offensive line trainer, said it best when he called Jets RG Greg Van Roten “a liability.”

Manyweather, who coaches Mekhi Becton, among others, added that the Jets should pursue an upgrade over Van Roten, who has arguably been the team’s worst offensive lineman and one of the NFL’s worst guards through three games this season. Van Roten has allowed 15 pressures this season – second-most at his position – and ranks 50th among all guards.

It’s no wonder Zach Wilson leads the NFL in sacks with 15, hurries with 24, and has been pressured on 38.5 percent of his dropbacks.

All the blame can’t be pinned on Van Roten. There are a lot of issues with this Jets offense. Wilson isn’t getting the ball out fast enough, which Van Roten was quick to point out. The running game has been inconsistent. Mike LaFleur’s game plans aren’t sound. Other linemen aren’t playing well.

But Van Roten’s performances have been especially poor.

Broken down by game, Van Roten has clearly been a major contributor to the Jets’ offensive woes. The guard accounted for 43.8 percent of the Jets’ pressures in Week 2 and 37.5 percent of them in Week 3. That means Van Roten has allowed almost half of the team’s pressures in the past two games, even though he’s just one of five starting linemen.

If you’re looking for excuses for these numbers, there aren’t many. But let’s try to absolve Van Roten anyway.

The most obvious one is what Van Roten noted after the Jets’ Week 3 loss regarding Wilson. The rookie does tend to hold onto the ball too long, which gives defenders more opportunities to beat Van Roten and the rest of the line. Wilson completed just 45 percent of his passes when he didn’t throw the ball in less than 2.5 seconds and he leads the league with eight sacks that took at least 4.5 seconds, per Next Gen Stats.

But if that excuse was truly the reason for Van Roten’s failures as a blocker, shouldn’t the pressures have been more equally dispersed among the other four linemen?

Maybe his matchups were harder. The Patriots and Broncos do boast some solid interior defensive linemen. That would partly explain why fellow guard Alijah Vera-Tucker has underperformed so far as a rookie. LaFleur’s scheme could play into Van Roten’s inability to block as well. Not everyone is adept at zone blocking, especially if the running backs and tight ends are not doing their jobs well, either.

Those explanations don’t vindicate Van Roten, though. They just push the blame onto someone else. But the numbers don’t lie: Van Roten has not been a good guard through the first three weeks of the season, and the Jets have suffered as a result.

Maybe that will change as the season progresses. But for now, Van Roten is exactly what he looks like: a liability for the Jets’ pass-protection.

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