The transition to an NFL locker room can be tough on a rookie, but Chiefs rookie center Creed Humphrey has some good things going for him since his arrival in Kansas City.
Humphrey recently joined former Oklahoma Sooners and NFLers, Gabe Ikard and Teddy Lehman, on their podcast, “The Oklahoma Breakdown.” The three discussed a number of topics, but one thing they kept coming back to was Humphrey’s transition to an NFL locker room.
The rookie detailed his experience in Kansas City and what differed from his college days in Norman, Oklahoma.
“It’s definitely different than a college locker room,” Humphrey told Ikard and Lehman. “People have pictures of their wife and kids up in the locker, things like that. So, it’s definitely different. There’s not too much hanging around outside of the facilities with each other, they’re going back to their families and stuff. That was definitely a little weird for me at the beginning, but I’m used to it now, I understand it. It was definitely different, though, than a college environment.”
Something that has helped Humphrey stay grounded as a rookie is the familiar faces in the locker room. One player, in particular, seemed to ease his transition, and that player is new to the locker room as well.
“Yeah, he’s been a huge help for me in this transition so far,” Humphrey said of Orlando Brown Jr. “Me and him are really close, we were at OU too. It’s been really great having me around, he’s kind of just showing me the ropes, taking me under his wing up there so far. It’s been good.”
In addition to Brown Jr., there are also a few more former Sooners players that have helped out.
“We also have Blake Bell up there and James Winchester and some other guys I know from OU,” Humphrey said. “It’s been good to see some familiar faces for sure.”
One thing about an NFL locker room that is different from the NCAA is that you’re now surrounded by the best of the best. There are players that are going to have freakish skill sets compared to what you’re used to seeing at the college level. Humphrey explained that at least one of those guys exists in the Chiefs’ locker room and seeing him up close is different than watching him on TV.
“We have a pretty fast receiver on our team, so you could kind of say that he’s a freak, Tyreek Hill,” Humphrey said. “Seeing him in person, just this ball of muscle that can run like lightning, it’s pretty insane. I’d definitely say he’s one of the freaks for sure.
One thing similar to college is that there are a number of players who’d be described as “characters” in the locker room. In the past for the Chiefs, it has been guys like Dustin Colquitt or Anthony Sherman. According to Humphrey, there is a new player stepping up and taking that role for Kansas City on the offensive line.
“Characters in the locker room, you know, Orlando (Brown Jr.) is one of them,” Humphrey said. “Orlando is hilarious, he’s always fun to be around, he’s always entertaining. So, it’s always good to have a guy like Orlando around, who can crack a joke and make everybody laugh all the time and things like that.”
Be sure to check out “The Oklahoma Breakdown” with Gabe Ikard and Teddy Lehman to hear the rest of the interview with Humphrey.
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