ChiefsPlanet - Chiefs Teicher: Rookie cornerback Carr has impressed Chiefs

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When he first joined the Chiefs last month as a fifth-round draft pick, the quick pace of the pro game caught cornerback Brandon Carr unaware.

Judging by this weekend’s minicamp, Carr appears to have adjusted nicely.

“The game has slowed down a lot for me,” said Carr, who played at Grand Valley State, a Division II school in Michigan.

Carr’s rapid improvement is making his push for a starting spot the most interesting of the Chiefs’ ongoing position battles. Carr is already the third cornerback, playing when the Chiefs go to their nickel defense. Carr plays cornerback while fellow rookie Brandon Flowers, a second-round pick, becomes the nickel back.

Carr also is getting some of veteran Patrick Surtain’s first-team snaps. While it might be unrealistic for Carr to unseat Surtain, a former Pro Bowler, by the Sept. 7 season opener at New England, some Chiefs officials are expecting it to happen sometime during the year.

“He’s doing (well),” coach Herm Edwards said of Carr. “He’s gained a lot of confidence. If you look at him, he’s a big guy. I like guys like that. When he gets his hands on people he can disrupt them. He can knock them out of the way because he has strong hands and weighs 200 pounds, is 6-feet and can run. He has a good temperament.

“Every day now he’s starting to make plays. He’s not overwhelmed by it. He keeps playing. Hopefully, he’ll continue to understand what we’re trying to do.”

The Chiefs drafted Flowers and immediately made him a starter to replace the departed Ty Law. They selected Carr with the idea that he would someday replace Surtain, who will turn 32 later this month.

That day may be coming sooner than the Chiefs initially thought. It could happen as soon as Edwards can stomach the idea of starting two rookies at cornerback. While it’s difficult to believe Edwards could have the fortitude to try that against Tom Brady, Randy Moss, Wes Welker and the rest of the Patriots, he acknowledged that a tie might be decided in favor of the younger player when he’s locked in a battle with a veteran.

“If it’s tied, then basically that means the young guy deserves to play, too,” he said.

Surtain, who watched as Law and several other veterans were sent away during the offseason, is taking the challenge seriously.

“I’ve seen what’s happening here,” Surtain said. “Herm put up a list in the meetings the other day and I’m the fourth-oldest guy on the team. That opened my eyes.

“I’ve been in this league long enough to know that’s part of it. As you get older in your career, you know they’re looking for the next guy to replace you. I take that as a challenge.”

The Chiefs conclude their three-day minicamp today at their Truman Sports Complex practice facility. They will practice three more times later in the week to finish their offseason work.

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While cornerback Brandon Carr’s challenge to Patrick Surtain might be the most compelling of position battles as the Chiefs edge closer to training camp, it’s far from the only one. Here’s how some of the others are progressing:

Linebacker
When the Chiefs signed Atlanta’s Demorrio Williams early in the free-agency period, the initial plan was to start him on the outside and move Donnie Edwards to the middle and Napoleon Harris to the bench.

So far, the Chiefs have held to their linebacking lineup from last year, which also includes Derrick Johnson at the other outside spot. Williams at minicamp started in place of Edwards, but only because of Edwards’ sore hamstring.

Plenty of time remains for the Chiefs to make their initially planned changes. Some of their officials expect Williams to eventually wind up as a starter instead of Harris.

“They told me I’d have the chance to come in and play,” Williams said. “They couldn’t promise me any more than that. It’s up to me to earn the job.”

Wide receiver
Free-agent addition Devard Darling is at the head of a long line of players hopeful of joining Dwayne Bowe in the starting lineup. But the Chiefs are a long way from making this call.

Other candidates include Jeff Webb, rookie Will Franklin and Maurice Price, who may be having the best offseason of any of the contenders. Price joined the Chiefs last season as a rookie free agent but broke his collarbone and missed the entire season.

Fullback
This position is so wide open that the Chiefs have rotated several players in with the first unit. Oliver Hoyte, Steven Jackson, Chris Manderino and rookie Mike Cox each had a turn.

Cox has a good chance of winning the job. He played for offensive coordinator Chan Gailey at Georgia Tech, so he knows the system better than any of his teammates. Some Chiefs officials wonder whether he is athletic enough, but he made a difficult catch of an off-target pass during Saturday’s practice and even recovered to make some yardage after the grab.

Offensive line
Two positions are set. Brian Waters is set at left guard. The Chiefs are increasingly confident that rookie Branden Albert will be fine at left tackle, which also means Damion McIntosh is the right tackle.

Rudy Niswanger is currently the center and Adrian Jones the right guard. They are backed up, respectively, by Wade Smith and Anthony Alabi.

Plenty of time remains for the Chiefs to make changes. Lineman are far easier to evaluate at training camp, when full contact is allowed.

Don’t expect the Chiefs to make those changes. They want to give their starters as much time as they can to work together.