Cameron Jordan on why he’d rather defend Kirk Cousins than Lamar Jackson or Tom Brady

Cameron Jordan shared a smart take on why he’d rather defend Kirk Cousins than Lamar Jackson — or Tom Brady, behind his highly-paid offensive line:

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Cameron Jordan has seen it all. After 12 years and 203 games in the NFL (including 11 playoff matchups), he’s got an idea of which quarterbacks are more challenging than others. And as he explained it to his young peers, some players present different challenges than others.

“Like everybody knows, a fast, wrong decision can be a right decision. A fast, right decision can be a winner. A slow, right decision gets your ass on the bench, because there’s gonna be somebody out here moving at a different speed. And slow, right decisions, we love them: call them ‘Kirk Cousins,'” Jordan said, in a video shared widely on social media from Von Miller’s annual summer pass-rush summit.

But Jordan kept the analogy going. While Cousins may be a league-average passer (he averaged 2.7 seconds to throw last year, tied with Mac Jones and Jared Goff), he’s also someone who hangs back in the pocket and isn’t much of a threat to hurt defenses with his legs. He’s only run for more than 150 yards in two seasons during his 11-year career, in 2017 and 2020. Jordan’s defense has sacked Cousins 16 times in 6 games, including the postseason, intercepting him twice and forcing him to fumble three times.

“I can whoop whoever’s at Tampa Bay 25 times, but you’ve got Tom Brady there throwing it (in) 2.2 (seconds), you barely get there,” Jordan shrugged. “You can beat the hell out of whatever offensive tackle that’s over at the Ravens, you got Lamar Jack handling business. Missed him twice. He ducked under, I hit the turf, I’m like ‘I played myself.’ Get up and chase him like I’m gonna get there, you’re not.”

That’s an important lesson for young pass rushers to learn, and the stats bare it out. Brady averaged just 2.3 seconds per pass attempt last year. Jackson was on the other end of the spectrum at 3.1, with Cousins in the middle at 2.7. While Brady was known for staying in the pocket just like Cousins, his faster processing speed and decision-making allowed him to neutralize pass rushers like Jordan. With Jackson, the inverse was true — he’s athletic enough to bail out of the pocket and dodge a rusher to keep the play alive and buy time for his receivers to get open.

Jordan’s point was that he and other defensive linemen need to be on top of their techniques and know their opponents. Studying game tape of offensive linemen is important, but from his perspective the real challenge comes in bringing down their quarterbacks after beating the blocker. If they can’t quickly disengage at the line of scrimmage and get into the backfield, nothing else matters. Hopefully it’s a lesson that his young teammates like Payton Turner and Isaiah Foskey are taking to heart.

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George Karlaftis, Joshua Kaindoh attend Von Miller’s annual Pass Rush Summit

A pair of the #Chiefs’ youngest edge rushers were in attendance for Von Miller’s annual pass rush summit.

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Von Miller, fresh off a Super Bowl win with the Los Angeles Rams, held his sixth annual Pass Rush Summit in Las Vegas this weekend.

This is a unique event where many of the NFL’s premier pass rushers, current and former, can link up and learn from one another to share tools of the trade. Hosted by Miller and former Falcons DE Chuck Smith, this year’s event had over two dozen players in attendance, including some college prospects.

But there were also two of the Kansas City Chiefs’ youngest pass-rushers in attendance. Pick No. 30 overall in the 2022 NFL draft, George Karlaftis, participated in the event. Former fourth-round draft pick, Joshua Kaindoh, was also among the players in attendance for the event. You can spot them both in the picture below:

The summit included on-field work and tutoring from Miller, Justin Houston, Chandler Jones and others. There were also several film sessions, including one on Cam Jordan, where he had a chance to break down his film in front of all the players.

It’s always good to see young players like Karlaftis and Kaindoh, who are sure to be pivotal to the Chiefs’ success in 2022, showing the desire to learn from some of the best during their free time.

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Broncos EDGE Von Miller had some high praise for Raiders DE Maxx Crosby

Broncos EDGE Von Miller had some high praise for Raiders DE Maxx Crosby

In a recent piece I put out, I set about ranking the Raiders players 1 thru 25. Topping that list was, of course, elite tight end Darren Waller. Who was next in line? Why, edge rusher Maxx Crosby, of course.

For anyone who may have questioned that ranking, Von Miller would like a word. The future Hall of Famer attended a pass rushing summit in Las Vegas this weekend. A few Raiders players attended the event, including Crosby. Miller had some high praise for the third-year edge rusher.

When a player with the array of pass rush moves that Von Miller possesses says he’s learned some things from you, that’s one hell of a compliment. Calling Crosby a “franchise guy” is appropriate as well as he’s undoubtedly the Raiders’ best defender and took that spot as a rookie.

Crosby became a full time starter midway through his rookie season and finished with ten sacks. He followed that up with seven sacks in his second season, while his tackle for loss and QB hit numbers were almost identical to his first season. He’s the real deal. Miller sees it too.

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Jags’ K’Lavon Chaisson to attend Von Miller’s pass rush summit

Von Miller’s pass rush summit is coming up soon and Jags pass rusher K’Lavon Chaisson will be checking it out.

When looking at the past decade, many would label Von Miller as one of the top pass rushers in the NFL. However, over the last few years, the veteran has put together an annual Pass Rush Summit to pass off his knowledge (and garner some, too) from the league’s top minds.

With 2020’s annual meeting being virtual, things will be getting back to normal as Miller will hold it in Las Vegas, and as always, he’s expecting the turnout to be huge. Miller told the media that he likes to garner insight from younger players and that Jags edge rusher K’Lavon Chaisson, would be one of the many players attending.

“I’m [having the camp] back in [Las] Vegas,” Miller said. “I just feel like Vegas is a  great, neutral site. Everybody loves going to Vegas, especially when I’m paying for the rooms. You have a free weekend in Vegas to come do whatever you do in Vegas and come learn some football.

“I think that’s pretty appealing to the guys. This year, we have a heavy focus on the young guys. We have [Patriots LB] Josh Uche, we got [Jaguars edge rusher K’Lavon] Chaisson. We got a lot of young guys this year. I kind of like it better that way. The young guys, they just have this spark about them where they just want to know more. [Former NFL OLB] DeMarcus [Ware] is coming. Demarcus is already a walking pass-rush summit wherever he goes. It’ll be another great time in Vegas.”

This is certainly a grand opportunity for the Jags’ first-round pick from 2020. With Yannick Ngakoue on his way out and demanding a trade, the team selected Chaisson 20th overall, and he ended up playing in all 16 games and starting in three. He ultimately ended up accumulating just one sack and 19 tackles, but the hope is he’ll take a step forward this season after getting a year under his belt.

With Jags mandatory mini-camp coming up next week and training camp coming afterward, learning a thing or two from Miller and company before things ramp up for the Jags doesn’t sound like a bad idea at all. Hopefully, Chaisson will be able to put it to use when he returns to Jacksonville as the defense is going to need him and Josh Allen to take a step forward this season.

Von Miller’s virtual Pass Rush Summit drew some big stars

Von Miller’s virtual Pass Rush Summit drew star defenders including Aaron Donald, Chandler Jones, Khalil Mack and the Bosa brothers.

Denver Broncos outside linebacker Von Miller held his annual “Pass Rush Summit” online this year because of COVID-19. The (virtual) camp drew some big-name stars on Thursday evening.

Here are some of the notable defenders who attended the summit, according to a graphic Miller posted his Instagram page:

  • Los Angeles Rams DL Aaron Donald
  • Cleveland Browns DL Myles Garett
  • Arizona Cardinals OLB Chandler Jones
  • San Francisco 49ers DL Arik Armstead
  • Chicago Bears OLB Khalil Mack
  • Tampa Bay Buccaneers OLB Shaq Barrett
  • Kansas City Chiefs DL Frank Clark
  • Los Angeles Chargers DL Joey Bosa
  • San Francisco 49ers DL Nick Bosa

Donald, a two-time Defensive Player of the Year, also attended last year’s pass rush camp in Las Vegas. Mack also has a DPoY award on his resume.

“To have everybody in one room to go over film and really compare what they’re seeing and really comparing what they’re seeing on plays is dope,” Miller said after last year’s camp. “There’s not another spot like it.”

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Von Miller will have a virtual ‘Pass Rush Summit’ this year

Broncos outside linebacker Von Miller will have a virtual ‘Pass Rush Summit’ this summer.

Von Miller’s annual Pass Rush Summit will survive COVID-19 but there won’t be any on-field work at this year’s camp. In fact, there won’t be any field at all.

Miller announced on social media on Monday that this summer’s camp will be virtual. “Pro & College guys dm me for info. Let’s link & learn. ✅” Miller wrote on Instagram.

Last year, Miller’s camp in Las Vegas was a big success.

The list of active players who attended Miller’s camp in 2019 included Aaron Donald and Calais Campbell. Ex-players DeMarcus Ware and Doug Flutie attended the Pass Rush Summit as mentors.

“We learn from each other,” Miller said after last year’s camp. “This is my way of giving back to the game that has given so much to me.”

This summer’s camp will be held online and will likely focus on film review and pass-rushing techniques that can be explained remotely.

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