Tribal Warfare
09-11-2008, 07:06 PM
Chiefs’ Charles wasn’t wowed by speed of NFL (http://www.kansascity.com/sports/chiefs/story/791669.html)
By JEFFREY FLANAGAN
The Kansas City Star
You hear it all the time: The hardest thing for NFL rookies is adapting to the speed of the NFL game.
But what happens if you’re like Chiefs rookie running back Jamaal Charles and you’re already faster than most of the players on the field?
Charles admitted he wasn’t intimidated at all by the speed around him last Sunday.
“I’ve played with guys who are fast in high school in Texas,” he told me. “I’ve played with fast guys in college at Texas. I’ve played at a certain speed my whole life.
“I already knew the game speed by the time I got to college, and I knew the game speed when I got to the pros. It didn’t seem that different.”
It wasn’t any faster at this level?
“No faster than in college, I didn’t think,” he said.
So, what is the big difference in the NFL?
“They tackle better here,” he said. “They know how to wrap up. They don’t miss.
“And I think they play smarter in the pros. Way smarter.”
Charles knows why, too.
“There’s more at stake,” he said. “Games are on the line. Jobs are on the line.”
Charles may have adapted to the speed easily, but he knows he made mistakes. The big mistake was picking up the wrong rusher during a blitz, a decision that allowed blitzing linebacker Adalius Thomas to smash Brodie Croyle, causing Croyle’s injury.
“I took the guy farthest away,” Charles said. “It was my fault. I messed up. It was a blitz. The quarterback knows it’s a blitz and knows he’s got to get rid of the ball. But it’s my fault. I got one guy but not the right guy.”
No blackout?
The deadline for a possible blackout of the Chiefs-Raiders game on Sunday approaches, but the Chiefs say they feel confident the game will be sold out in time.
Games must be sold out within 72 hours of kickoff under NFL rules, or the game will be blacked out.
“We have some tickets left, tickets that were given back to us by the Raiders,” Pete Moris, Chiefs assistant director of public relations, said Wednesday afternoon.
“But I don’t really see any danger in it not being shown. It’s the Raiders, and even though we’ve got some tickets left, I’d say we’ll be fine. We can always ask for an extension (past today’s deadline) if need be. San Diego got an extension last week.”
Trivia fact?
A reader noticed that the Buffalo Bills’ roster has both punter Brian Moorman and running back Xavier Omon on it.
Moorman is from Pittsburg State, and Omon is from Northwest Missouri State, which makes one wonder whether that is the first time the two rival schools have ever had players on the same NFL roster
By JEFFREY FLANAGAN
The Kansas City Star
You hear it all the time: The hardest thing for NFL rookies is adapting to the speed of the NFL game.
But what happens if you’re like Chiefs rookie running back Jamaal Charles and you’re already faster than most of the players on the field?
Charles admitted he wasn’t intimidated at all by the speed around him last Sunday.
“I’ve played with guys who are fast in high school in Texas,” he told me. “I’ve played with fast guys in college at Texas. I’ve played at a certain speed my whole life.
“I already knew the game speed by the time I got to college, and I knew the game speed when I got to the pros. It didn’t seem that different.”
It wasn’t any faster at this level?
“No faster than in college, I didn’t think,” he said.
So, what is the big difference in the NFL?
“They tackle better here,” he said. “They know how to wrap up. They don’t miss.
“And I think they play smarter in the pros. Way smarter.”
Charles knows why, too.
“There’s more at stake,” he said. “Games are on the line. Jobs are on the line.”
Charles may have adapted to the speed easily, but he knows he made mistakes. The big mistake was picking up the wrong rusher during a blitz, a decision that allowed blitzing linebacker Adalius Thomas to smash Brodie Croyle, causing Croyle’s injury.
“I took the guy farthest away,” Charles said. “It was my fault. I messed up. It was a blitz. The quarterback knows it’s a blitz and knows he’s got to get rid of the ball. But it’s my fault. I got one guy but not the right guy.”
No blackout?
The deadline for a possible blackout of the Chiefs-Raiders game on Sunday approaches, but the Chiefs say they feel confident the game will be sold out in time.
Games must be sold out within 72 hours of kickoff under NFL rules, or the game will be blacked out.
“We have some tickets left, tickets that were given back to us by the Raiders,” Pete Moris, Chiefs assistant director of public relations, said Wednesday afternoon.
“But I don’t really see any danger in it not being shown. It’s the Raiders, and even though we’ve got some tickets left, I’d say we’ll be fine. We can always ask for an extension (past today’s deadline) if need be. San Diego got an extension last week.”
Trivia fact?
A reader noticed that the Buffalo Bills’ roster has both punter Brian Moorman and running back Xavier Omon on it.
Moorman is from Pittsburg State, and Omon is from Northwest Missouri State, which makes one wonder whether that is the first time the two rival schools have ever had players on the same NFL roster