More Chiefs rookies fielded questions from the media Sunday about areas of improvement as well as what they’ve experienced thus far. OG Zach Fulton from Tennessee discussed how tough camp has been so far as well as what coaches want him to improve on.
“It is pretty physical despite popular belief,” said Fulton. “It does get pretty physical down in the trenches. I’m still working on my hand placement and my footwork and things like that. It’s the fundamentals.”
When asked about which areas he could get better at, he responded, “They want me to be more flexible. That’s what they want. It will help me move a lot better, move a lot faster.”
Fellow rookie CB Phillip Gaines is focusing on his strength and size, as he came into camp at 183 lbs. He said, “I honestly don’t know how big I can get, but I’m sure once I start eating right and lifting right, I could definitely get to the 190s consistently.”
Gaines then explained the benefits of what the NFL weight-training program could do for him as a cornerback. He said, “Especially being in press a lot of the time, being strong with the receivers and getting hands on them and being strong with them, so that way they can’t move you off your place. Once you get that and the technique and the strength, all of that bundles into one and you get a good corner.”
Fifth-round pick OL Laurent Duvernay-Tardif has been focusing on a career in medicine at McGill University, but has now found himself trying out for an NFL team. He responded to a question asking if it’s been easier on him since he’s strictly focused on football. “I wouldn’t say easy because I have a lot to learn on the technique side and my learning curve is pretty big. But at the same time to know that now I’m going to have the focus only on football for the next couple weeks, it’s going to be 100 percent football, I think I’m going to be able to learn a lot more and progress a lot more in the system,” said Duvernay-Tardif.
He acknowledged he has some ground to make up in regards to technique, however he seems quite confident in his ability to get up to speed. He said, “I think I’m a bit behind in term of technique, but I think I’m athletic and I go after it when I play. Those two aspects of the game are harder to coach and the technique aspect is maybe a bit easier. So I think I’m going to be able to learn that over the next couple weeks.”
Duvernay-Tardif gave a nice explanation when asked how he switches mindsets from helping people to hurting people. “I don’t want to hurt people when I play,” he said. “I just want to be really aggressive and do my job. I mean, for sure it’s two different aspects of life. I enjoy it. I love taking care of people. I love communicating with people, trying to find solutions. I also love working with my teammates as a team and trying to get the job done on the field.”
