Jonathan Rand: The Proof is in the Pads

KChiefs1 · 06-28-2005, 06:37 AM

http://www.kcchiefs.com/news/2005/06...n_the_padding/

RAND: The proof is in the padding
Jun 28, 2005, 6:38:08 AM by Jonathan Rand

After a spring of voluntary workouts and mini-camps, Chiefs coaches have seen a lot to like. Yet, in one key respect, they haven’t seen anything. That’s because of one four-letter word that means so much in football. Pads.

Many a coach has been fooled by a top-notch athlete who turns out to be much less than a top-notch football player. NFL personnel experts still get fooled every year. They see highly-regarded college players who show tremendous speed, strength and agility during workouts and can’t resist drafting them. But so many of these workout warriors lose their luster once they put on pads and start knocking heads with an opponent.

And while nobody gets into the NFL without being a decent athlete, plenty of NFL stars would never be confused with Olympic prospects. If you look at sore-kneed Chiefs tackle Willie Roaf hobbling around on the practice field, you might almost feel sorry for him. Once he gets in pads and gets the adrenaline flowing, he’s a future Hall of Famer.

And there are plenty of offensive linemen in the NFL who look like they ought to be in a sauna trying to melt their big bellies. But once they get in pads, they’ll make a defensive lineman built like Arnold Schwarznegger look overmatched. You may recall that pro wrestler Brock Lesnar was a washout as a defensive lineman with the Vikings last summer.

This is why Chiefs’ coaches try to temper their optimism, which bubbled over in recent months. Dick Vermeil and defensive coordinator Gunther Cunningham love what they see from their newcomers, especially the rookies and defensive players. But they’re quick to qualify their praise by pointing out that they haven’t seen these players in pads.

Football is the only major sport in which coaches have to worry whether Dr. Jekyll in shorts will turn into Mr. Hyde in pads. It’s hard to believe that a little basic equipment can make such a difference.

Pads, for one thing, can drastically affect a player’s speed. A player who runs like greased lightning in drills may lose his edge in pads while a player with average speed in drills may gain an edge in pads. There is speed and then there is game speed.

When players run through drills without pads, there’s no real hitting, which is the sport’s greatest equalizer. While big hitters who are too slow to catch anybody are pretty useless, a good athlete who’s a big hitter is better NFL material than a great athlete who’s not very physical.

You’ve probably noticed over the years that world-class track athletes have a notoriously high failure rate in the NFL. They’re accustomed to running in straight lines, not down-and-ins. Nobody is supposed to knock them down before the finish line. Track stars are often tried at wide receiver but find that pads slow them down and make it harder to catch a ball.

It’s mind-boggling to see how many superior athletes come and go through an NFL training facility each year. Weekend warriors would kill for just a bit of their raw speed, strength and agility.

All NFL players are athletes but not all athletes are NFL players, and coaches spend a lot of their time trying to make that distinction. So Vermeil, Cunningham and the rest of the Chiefs’ staff will have concrete opinions about the newcomers once training camp starts, right?

Nah, they’ll tell us they’ve got to see the new guys under game conditions.

06-28-2005, 06:37 AM	Topic Starter
KChiefs1 I’m a Mahomo! Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: Mid-Missouri Casino cash: $6771021	Jonathan Rand: The Proof is in the Pads http://www.kcchiefs.com/news/2005/06...n_the_padding/ RAND: The proof is in the padding Jun 28, 2005, 6:38:08 AM by Jonathan Rand After a spring of voluntary workouts and mini-camps, Chiefs coaches have seen a lot to like. Yet, in one key respect, they haven’t seen anything. That’s because of one four-letter word that means so much in football. Pads. Many a coach has been fooled by a top-notch athlete who turns out to be much less than a top-notch football player. NFL personnel experts still get fooled every year. They see highly-regarded college players who show tremendous speed, strength and agility during workouts and can’t resist drafting them. But so many of these workout warriors lose their luster once they put on pads and start knocking heads with an opponent. And while nobody gets into the NFL without being a decent athlete, plenty of NFL stars would never be confused with Olympic prospects. If you look at sore-kneed Chiefs tackle Willie Roaf hobbling around on the practice field, you might almost feel sorry for him. Once he gets in pads and gets the adrenaline flowing, he’s a future Hall of Famer. And there are plenty of offensive linemen in the NFL who look like they ought to be in a sauna trying to melt their big bellies. But once they get in pads, they’ll make a defensive lineman built like Arnold Schwarznegger look overmatched. You may recall that pro wrestler Brock Lesnar was a washout as a defensive lineman with the Vikings last summer. This is why Chiefs’ coaches try to temper their optimism, which bubbled over in recent months. Dick Vermeil and defensive coordinator Gunther Cunningham love what they see from their newcomers, especially the rookies and defensive players. But they’re quick to qualify their praise by pointing out that they haven’t seen these players in pads. Football is the only major sport in which coaches have to worry whether Dr. Jekyll in shorts will turn into Mr. Hyde in pads. It’s hard to believe that a little basic equipment can make such a difference. Pads, for one thing, can drastically affect a player’s speed. A player who runs like greased lightning in drills may lose his edge in pads while a player with average speed in drills may gain an edge in pads. There is speed and then there is game speed. When players run through drills without pads, there’s no real hitting, which is the sport’s greatest equalizer. While big hitters who are too slow to catch anybody are pretty useless, a good athlete who’s a big hitter is better NFL material than a great athlete who’s not very physical. You’ve probably noticed over the years that world-class track athletes have a notoriously high failure rate in the NFL. They’re accustomed to running in straight lines, not down-and-ins. Nobody is supposed to knock them down before the finish line. Track stars are often tried at wide receiver but find that pads slow them down and make it harder to catch a ball. It’s mind-boggling to see how many superior athletes come and go through an NFL training facility each year. Weekend warriors would kill for just a bit of their raw speed, strength and agility. All NFL players are athletes but not all athletes are NFL players, and coaches spend a lot of their time trying to make that distinction. So Vermeil, Cunningham and the rest of the Chiefs’ staff will have concrete opinions about the newcomers once training camp starts, right? Nah, they’ll tell us they’ve got to see the new guys under game conditions.
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