CHIEFS CAMP BUZZ
What you need to know on offense
On a windy morning, Trent Green still looked sharp in accuracy drills. Coach Herm Edwards set up nets on the sidelines and goaded his quarterbacks, saying they spent a lot of money on the nets, so hit them. On his first strike, Green tossed a perfect pass from roughly 25 yards away. He held his arms up in a look-at-me pose, and Edwards let out a slight scoff. Green hit it again, and was solid in 11-on-11. …
It was hard to tell who got the better of a hit that Greg Wesley registered on Larry Johnson. But it was loud, and both were still standing when it was over.
What you need to know on defense
Jimmy Wilkerson, drafted as an end, should get plenty of playing time on the inside. He held his own in an offensive-defensive drill, and has looked solid in the first three days of practice. …
Green wasn’t completely accurate Sunday. He threw a pass that was intercepted by Kendrell Bell, and Bell took off running. About 10 yards downfield, he fumbled the ball.
Injury report
One day after Brian Waters injured his foot, Edwards said his return is still iffy. “It could be a couple of days, it could be a week,” Edwards said. “We’ll just wait. The good thing is it’s not something that will hold him out for the year.” Waters, a two-time Pro Bowl guard, sprained the foot during Saturday’s morning workout.
Other notable absences were receiver Craphonso Thorpe (bruised shoulder) and cornerback Lenny Walls (hamstring). Edwards said Walls’ injury wasn’t serious.
Today’s schedule
The temperature is supposed to reach near 100, a double-deodorant day.
The Chiefs will practice in pads this morning and “spiders” (shorts and jerseys) later in the afternoon.
Hermisms
“I always have a bit of anxiety for those guys. I know what they feel like. Now, it’s a little different than when I played. I played under Dick (Vermeil), and Dick will cut you at any time because we had 125 guys, so I was always nervous for 10 years. These guys will get a great opportunity … The No. 1 and No. 2 guys get all the accolades, but there are so many players that are fantastic players that did not get drafted real high or were free agents.”
— Edwards, a former undrafted rookie, on his affection for the grunts
Raves for rookies
Rookie safety Bernard Pollard drew raves in college for his big hits, and it’s obvious he’ll make an impression this fall on special teams.
Assistant Mike Priefer, who ran a one-hour special-teams workout Sunday in the late-afternoon heat, said Pollard and fellow rookie safety Jarrad Page have shown a passion for hitting and will compete for playing time.
“They both like to hit, they’re both smart guys, and they both love the game of football,” Priefer said. “When you play special teams, you want to coach guys that love the game of football. You have to love it to be covering kickoffs (and) blocking on kickoff returns.
“They’ll be a force to be reckoned with.”
Reid update
Now that the pads are finally on, linebacker Nick Reid may have a better chance of showing what made him a third-team All-American linebacker at Kansas.
Edwards said Sunday that Reid isn’t as flashy as some other linebackers, but in pads, “All of a sudden he shows up a lot better.”
“He’s a very instinctive football player,” Edwards said. “You have to be for what he’s done and the accolades he’s received. He’s here, and he’s going to get an opportunity. And when you put the pads on, it changes for a lot of guys. Some guys get better, and some guys get lost when the pads come on. He doesn’t get lost.”