Chiefs rookies eager to hit the field for minicamp
2021 rookie class learning standards, expectations are high in the NFL
Creed Humphrey experienced the euphoria of draft night, hearing his name called when the Chiefs made him the No. 63 overall selection in the 2021 NFL Draft. The next day he took the stage at the team’s Draft Fest on the grass at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.
None of that, however, prepared the offensive lineman for pulling on his brand new red No. 52 jersey and taking the field for his first NFL practice.
“It didn’t really set in completely until I got up here for the rookie minicamp,” Humphrey said on Friday as the Chiefs opened their three-day rookie initiation. “I’m just so excited to be up here. Obviously, the fans are some of the best in the league, the team is one of the best in the league, so I’m coming into a great spot and I just can’t wait to get to work.”
Humphrey isn’t alone in feeling the adrenaline of this welcome-to-the-NFL weekend. Linebacker Nick Bolton, however, said he’s making every effort to stay within himself as he sees his NFL dreams come to reality.
“Trying to soak in the moment, trying to get everything up and get everything settled in, getting up here and trying to give myself a chance to compete,” Bolton said. “Just being in Kansas City, thankful to be here, I'm ready to get to work. Other than that, that's kind of my mindset, that's how I've been.”
The expectations that come with joining the two-time Lamar Hunt Trophy winners and Super Bowl LIV champions are off the charts, as defensive end Joshua Kaindoh said he’s learned upon his arrival in Kansas City.
“What I’ve come to realize is the standards here are high,” Kaindoh said. “A team with great tradition and a family just like other places. Today I put on that practice jersey, got out on the field—it was just a little walkthrough – but definitely a surreal moment just getting out on the field and getting coached up by the coaches here.”
This three-day minicamp has multiple purposes but for the rookie draft class, much of the focus is on learning the ropes, acclimating to their new environment and diving into a brand new playbook.
Humphrey sees some similarities and definitely differences in Andy Reid’s playbook compared to the offense he learned at Oklahoma.
“There’s a lot of stuff that I like,” Humphrey said in his first review of the Chiefs’ offensive playbook. “Great run schemes, great passing plays, everything like that. I’m excited to dive into it deep and really get everything down.”
On the other side of the ball, Bolton finds himself trying to pick up as much as he can about all three of the Chiefs’ linebacker positions in an effort to carve out a role.
“I don’t really have a position,” Bolton said when asked what role he expected to play in Kansas City. “I’m just trying to learn as much as I can throughout the next three days and OTAs. I really don't have a position. I’m just trying to come in every single day trying to compete and get better. Just trying to expand my knowledge of the playbook.”
All three of the team’s top draft picks share a similar enthusiasm for their first NFL practices this weekend but each has a different agenda when it comes to impressing their new coaches. Bolton wants to prove that he’s a competitor; Humphrey wants to demonstrate his coachability. Kaindoh has a much simpler goal.
“What do I want to show? I just want to show that I can play ball, just like anybody else,” he said.