The Cincinnati Bengals wrapped up their three days of practice Thursday with the South team for the 2020 Reese’s Senior Bowl, with the game taking place on Saturday.
The team also found out which two NFL legends will be serving as their captains for the game. They will be former Chiefs and Chargers linebacker Donnie Edwards and the great Rams wide receiver Torry Holt. The North will be led by longtime fullback Tony Richardson and Panthers legend Mike Rucker.
Holt was taking in Thursday’s practice with the Bengals and couldn’t help but be excited to take part in the game, especially since he couldn’t do so himself.
“I played in this game, but I was only here for the week and then I got hurt, so I had to leave because I hurt my knee. But I wanted to play in this game and I was telling them this is the premier game,” said Holt, who came into the NFL in 1999 out of North Carolina State. Holt was set to take part in the game but injured his knee during a practice and was unable to take part in the game.
Holt still went on to become the sixth overall pick in the 1999 draft by the St. Louis Rams and helped orchestrate the Greatest Show on Turf and won Super Bowl XXXIV in his rookie season.
Despite not playing in the game, Holt was still inducted into the Senior Bowl Hall of Fame in 2014, along with Bill Kollar and DeMarcus Ware.
Getting a chance to come back to Mobile to be involved in the Senior Bowl is a great opportunity for Holt not just for himself, but to allow him to take in the newest wave of prospects and help guide them as they make their way into the NFL.
“The Senior Bowl gives them confidence. They haven’t heard what they’re not good at,” Holt said. “Here, you’re going to hear what you’re not good at. But the goal is to go from here and work on those things and get ready for the Combine. Where you’re strong, continue to build on those but where you’re weak, work on those things, because the coaches, they’re taking notes. They know where you’re weak, where you’re not. They want to see if you’ve made those adjustments from now to the Combine.”
Holt also pumped himself up, saying “it’s good to be around and it’s good for me to get the juices flowing.” Holt was feeling eager to get back on the field himself. “I want to put my spikes back on.”
Holt discussed his opportunities, along with the other legends, to share their experiences with the upcoming prospects and let them know what to expect at the next level.
Being at the Senior Bowl also means the ability to adapt to the new rules and changes that have been made since Holt left the league after the 2009 season, totaling ten years in St. Louis and one year in Jacksonville.
“The rules are always constantly changing,” said Holt, also alluding to the experimental rules the league is trying out this Sunday at the Pro Bowl, including a 4th-and-15 opportunity for a team in place of the onside kick and relaxing wide receiver false start rules.
Not only the rules but the terminology is always evolving and Holt had to adjust to seeing similar plays but in different verbiage.
“We’re all talking the same language, but it can be different. Learning that, learning new coverages, it’s a learning curve for me as well.”
Holt referenced a play during practice where the call was a long call and turned to one of the Texas Tech players and asked if that was part of his offense and the player told him they used one call, which signaled everything in the defense.
Holt also made reference to how social media has become a major factor in the football world.
“The way these guys are learning now is a lot different than when I came out too. We didn’t have social media. They can get tape anytime they want, we didn’t have that when I was coming out. These guys learn a lot quicker.”
Back in the day, very little film was available on players. Today, thanks to sites like Twitter and Facebook, we can find clips of just about any player anytime we want. There are sites dedicated to creating film clips of draft players for the public to view.
Even in high school, with a site like MaxPreps, teams and players can easily upload and view videos of opponents. The world of film is much more advanced than it has been in the past.
As far as his thoughts on the receivers, Holt is a fan of both groups this week. He talked about how big receivers can get in and out of their breaks, which some of the receivers in Mobile certainly qualify for.
The teams are very fortunate to have these legends share their expertise. Perhaps the Bengals having Holt on their side can bring some good luck to them this week at the Senior Bowl as Zac Taylor leads the South squad against the Matt Patricia-led North team.
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