***The Official Chiefs OTA's Thread***

[Mr_Tomahawk]

Might as well get this started since we are within a week of it beginning.


OTA offseason workouts: May 27-29, June 3-5, June 10-13
Mandatory minicamp: June 17-19


Feel free to post Chiefs camp updates here.

https://twitter.com/ChiefsCamp/lists/kcc

[The Franchise]

Terez A. Paylor ‏@TerezPaylor 1h

Interesting tidbit from Donald Stephenson: Said he found out he would be starting this year at the end of last season.

[BoneKrusher]

Originally Posted by Pestilence

Terez A. Paylor ‏@TerezPaylor 1h

Interesting tidbit from Donald Stephenson: Said he found out he would be starting this year at the end of last season.

Sounds about right to me.

[Mr_Tomahawk]

Chiefs Insider‏@ChiefsInsider_·52 secs
The #Chiefs wrap-up another day of OTAs. View photos here: http://chfs.me/1le01Ma

[CoMoChief]

Originally Posted by ct

S.Smith has got to be the tallest CB who cannot win contested jump balls ever

Eric Warfield syndrome.

[Halfcan]

Terez A. Paylor‏@TerezPaylor·2 mins
Enjoyed seeing Tyler Bray absolutely gun a pass to a WR on an out route. He’s got a lot of work to do but the talent is there.

Not sure how we can cut this guy and keep Chase. Bray is improving and has the strongest arm in camp.

[OldSchool]

Can't wait for the Pre-Season games.

[Tribal Warfare]

Originally Posted by Halfcan

Terez A. Paylor‏@TerezPaylor·2 mins
Enjoyed seeing Tyler Bray absolutely gun a pass to a WR on an out route. He’s got a lot of work to do but the talent is there.

Not sure how we can cut this guy and keep Chase. Bray is improving and has the strongest arm in camp.

IMO, Bray will make the roster and Murray will go on the PUP list. If they don't cut Daniel, though it seems more likely IF Bray is finally getting his shit together.

[thabear04]

Originally Posted by Tribal Warfare

IMO, Bray will make the roster and Murray will go on the PUP list. If they don't cut Daniel, though it seems more likely IF Bray is finally getting his shit together.

Maybe they might try and trade Daniel during the season.

[Oxford]

Originally Posted by thabear04

Maybe they might try and trade Daniel during the season.

Someone is going to need a fill-in starter or backup. I would never cut him, trade is another story

[planetdoc]

Chiefs Defense Strikes Back In Wednesday OTA
by Bob Gretz

Day-to-day it’s hard to make chiseled-in-stone pronouncements about a football team and where it stands in June and how that translates to success or failure when playing the regular-season schedule.

Given that reality it would be foolhardy to make conclusive evaluations of the 2014 Chiefs based on what’s happening on the practice field in the final week of OTAs and next week’s full-squad mini-camp. June performances while wearing shorts and no pads often trend up and down on roller coaster tracks.

Still, there are visible early signs of what the Chiefs might be about this coming season. The offense has been efficient and productive, far ahead of the group’s pace last year at this same time. The defense lagged behind, especially when the first group went against the No. 1 offense.

Then, in Wednesday’s OTA at the team’s facility, the defense answered back. Quarterback Alex Smith’s completion percentage dropped as the defenders kept breaking up passes. Linebackers, cornerbacks and safeties all contributed to incompletions. A couple of those throws were intercepted by the defense.

“They say they come in bunches,” inside linebacker Derrick Johnson said of deflections and interceptions by the defense. “We definitely don’t want to get discouraged when we don’t have a lot of picks or don’t knock the ball down. Today, we had a lot of PBUs (passes broken up.) Myself, I had a couple of PBUs. We just have to get on the Jugs (machine) a little bit more so I can catch the ball.”

Through the practices over the last several weeks, Smith has been on the mark when throwing the football and the defense had very few INTs or PBUs.

“Defensively, we are pounded about getting more interceptions and more turnovers,” Johnson said. “Alex Smith isn’t having it right now. It’s one of those things where he’s making us better. You have to get closer to the ball if you’re going to get one of Alex Smith’s passes. There are not a lot of mistakes going on out there.”

Safety Husain Abdullah had a very athletic interception of Smith on Wednesday, running at full speed and going high in the air to grab the throw down the left sideline. Two plays later, Johnson knocked down a pass. Defensive back Malcolm Bronson was working in the slot coverage position in the Chiefs dime package, and he knocked down several short, quick throws. Cornerback Marcus Cooper ran stride for stride with running back Jamaal Charles and broke up the pass.

Near the end of practice, safety Eric Berry was able to corral a deflection of a Chase Daniel pass for an interception. Outside linebacker Josh Martin dropped an interception when a Daniel pass went high and right to him.

The most veteran of Chiefs thinks the increased incidents of getting defensive hands on the ball is another sign of the growing confidence within the defensive huddle.

“I feel very confident, a lot more confident than last year,” Johnson said. “Last year, we were just putting this crazy system in. I call it crazy because it’s very exotic with blitzes coming from everywhere. I have a lot of responsibility in this defense. It’s fun and it helps me to move fast on the field during this time (OTAs.)

“Right now it’s kind of hard to tell what we have because we are just running around in our shorts and helmet. You separate the men from the boys when you put on the pads. You’ll see early in training camp what we have.”

Chiefs add a new fullback

The formation is called Poe Heavy and the Chiefs offense showed it several times in Wednesday’s practice. That’s when nose tackle Dontari Poe rolls into the offensive huddle as a fullback in short-yardage and goal-line situations.

In Wednesday’s work, Poe had four snaps with the offense and several times went in motion before the snap. On all four plays, he was a blocking back, either for the running back that took the handoff or blocking down on the defensive end in pass protection.

Everyone, especially his teammates, wait for the moment when he gets his hands on the ball.

Notes from OTA #8 on Wednesday

There were eight players that did not participate in Wednesday’s work: running back DeAnthony Thomas (NFL rules), wide receiver Junior Hemingway (unknown), wide receiver Kyle Williams (knee), tight end Travis Kelce (knee), outside linebacker Justin Houston (contract), cornerback Brandon Flowers (contract), cornerback Chris Owens (unknown) and cornerback David Van Dyke (hamstring). Wide receiver A.J. Jenkins (hamstring) worked in the positional period, but then left the field.

The rotations on the right side of the offensive line continue on a daily basis. In Wednesday’s work, rookie guard Zach Fulton was paired with veteran tackle J’Marcus Webb. He had been working with Jeff Linkenbach, who was matched with guard Rishaw Johnson.

The field goal team worked on setting up quickly with time running off the clock and the kicker running onto the field from the sidelines. They got the field goal attempt off every play, with still at least one second on the play clock. Ryan Succop and rookie Cairo Santos made all four FGs.

The Chiefs have OTA sessions on Thursday and Friday.

[planetdoc]

Highlights from the Chiefs’ OTA practice No. 8
by TEREZ A. PAYLOR

Here are some observations from practice No. 8 of the Chiefs’ offseason training activities:

The Derrick Thomas Memorial Big Play of the Day goes to newly-signed rookie WR Deon Anthony, who hauled in a contested jump ball over Sean Smith for a long completion near the sideline. Anthony made the catch, by the way, despite giving up three inches to the 6-foot-3 Smith.

Receiver Weston Dressler had another nice practice. Had a leaping grab over the middle and also made a diving catch. He’s getting plenty of work with the ones while Junior Hemingway has been out sick.

We saw both the good and bad sides of Donnie Avery. He used his blazing speed to beat cornerback Ron Parker for a deep touchdown and also made a leaping grab. But he had an egregious drop near the goal line in which he was wide open and muffed a very catchable pass on what looked like a curl route.

Rookie receiver Darryl Surgent came through with an excellent one-handed touchdown grab from quarterback Aaron Murray on a deep pass right down the seam.

Alex Smith continues to be the best quarterback here. He looked great near the goal line when he threw touchdown passes to receiver Dwayne Bowe, tight end Anthony Fasano and tight end Demetrius Harris.

Safety Jerron McMillian showed a lot of competitiveness. He was matched up in coverage once with tight end Richard Gordon, and Gordon appeared to haul it in near the sideline but McMillian ripped the ball out as they fought for it going to the ground. McMillian is a former fourth-round pick of the Packers in 2012.

I enjoyed seeing Tyler Bray absolutely gun a pass to a WR on an out route. He’s got a lot of work to do — his pocket presence, accuracy and decision-making all need work — but his arm talent is strong, and on the occasions he puts it all together (meaning he teams a good decision with a strong, accurate pass) you can’t draw it up much better.

Here’s your daily Jamaal Charles-Is-A-Professional update: Charles caught a pass over the middle in 7-on-7, turned to run upfield and then fumbled, which was recovered by Eric Berry, who turned to run the other way. Charles proceeded to run toward, get the ball back when the play was dead and finish running to the end zone like he always does after every single carry. That, my friends, is how a professional does it.

Safety Husain Abdullah continues to have a strong camp. Alex Smith hasn’t been picked off much — in fact, he’s looked great — but Abdullah got him once today on a deep pass near the hash, I believe.

Eric Berry caught a deflected pass thrown by Chase Daniel that was intended for tight end Sean McGrath.

[planetdoc]

Chiefs’ Donnie Avery shows his big-play ability
by Randy Covitz

Donnie Avery demonstrated during Wednesday’s offseason practice why the Chiefs feel their passing game will improve this season even though they didn’t draft or sign a free-agent wide receiver.

Avery, whose first season with the Chiefs was marked by inconsistency, flashed his speed when burning cornerback Ron Parker for a 50-yard completion from Alex Smith during seven-on-seven drills; and in team work, he leaped high to grab another pass from Smith.

Only a dropped pass in the end zone during a goal-line session spoiled his day.

“The big thing about Donnie is he played three-fourths of the year last year with one shoulder,” said assistant head coach David Culley, who oversees wide receivers. “Now, he’s completely healthy. This off-season, he’s been a different guy from the standpoint of extra speed, staying healthy, and if he can maintain his healthy, you’ll see a different Donnie, a more productive Donnie.”

Avery caught 40 passes for 596 yards and two touchdowns last season, and added a franchise playoff-record 79-yard touchdown catch in the Chiefs’ first-round AFC playoff loss at Indianapolis before he left the game because of a concussion.

The Chiefs believe he can be an effective compliment to Dwayne Bowe, and coupled with the improvement of Junior Hemingway and A.J. Jenkins, can offset the lack of newcomers.

“We won 11 ballgames last year with this group,” Culley said. “The one thing about the guys who weren’t starters for us last year, like Junior Hemingway and A.J. Jenkins, the last game of the season at San Diego, those guys played the whole ballgame and did a nice job and were very productive.

“We saw there that there was something to those guys, when they were put in a situation to be productive, and hopefully if those guys take the next step with Dwayne and Donnie and anyone else who steps in there, I feel we’ll be productive.”
Familiarity breeds success

A year ago, the Chiefs were learning the offensive scheme of coach Andy Reid and defensive system being installed by defensive coordinator Bob Sutton. This year, they’re a lot more comfortable in what they’re doing, and both sides of the ball are benefiting when facing each other.

“Right now, defensively we are pounded about getting more interceptions and more turnovers,” said Pro Bowl inside linebacker Derrick Johnson. “Alex Smith isn’t having it right now. It’s one of those things where he’s making us be better. You have to get closer to the ball if you’re going to get one of Alex Smith’s passes.

“It’s one of those things where the whole team is looking better. There’s not a lot of mistakes going on out there.”
The DeVito diet

During the off-season, defensive end Mike DeVito embarked on a diet and conditioning program designed to make him quicker and help his pass rush so he can stay on the field on passing downs.

He says it’s working.

“You can feel it, you can tell a huge difference,” said DeVito, who started 14 games in the base defense but was not on the field enough to get a sack. “I feel like I can move a lot better and my wind, I feel like I can have a lot more energy out there. So, you can tell even changing just a couple of pounds that the muscle has been good.”

DeVito says he’s still weighing between 305 and 310 pounds, but the weight is better distributed.

“My body fat is way down,” said DeVito, who turned 30 on Tuesday. “It has made a real difference and if you can feel it out here in OTAs. I’m sure I’ll keep it up in training camp even better. It’s always a fight about keeping yourself healthy and keeping yourself strong and fast.”
Injury report

Hemingway missed his second day of practice because of illness, and cornerbacks Chris Owens (hamstring) and David Van Dyke (hamstring) and linebacker Ben Johnson (hamstring) did not practice.

Cornerback Brandon Flowers and linebacker Justin Houston missed their eighth consecutive voluntary practice.

[Discuss Thrower]

The formation is called Poe Heavy and the Chiefs offense showed it several times in Wednesday’s practice. That’s when nose tackle Dontari Poe rolls into the offensive huddle as a fullback in short-yardage and goal-line situations.

In Wednesday’s work, Poe had four snaps with the offense and several times went in motion before the snap. On all four plays, he was a blocking back, either for the running back that took the handoff or blocking down on the defensive end in pass protection.

Everyone, especially his teammates, wait for the moment when he gets his hands on the ball.

Oh my.


... and slick editing. "Everyone wait for the moment.."

Seriously?

[SAUTO]

So Gretz says flowers isn't here over contract reasons... He has a contract. Surely isnt asking for more...
Posted via Mobile Device

[Mr_Tomahawk]

Originally Posted by planetdoc

Highlights from the Chiefs’ OTA practice No. 8
by TEREZ A. PAYLOR



I enjoyed seeing Tyler Bray absolutely gun a pass to a WR on an out route. He’s got a lot of work to do — his pocket presence, accuracy and decision-making all need work — but his arm talent is strong, and on the occasions he puts it all together (meaning he teams a good decision with a strong, accurate pass) you can’t draw it up much better.

Flashes of a franchise QB. Keep at it Tyler. The goal every day is progress, and you're meeting it!