”He was a heat-seeking missile from
Napsal: sob 06. říj 2018 5:42:36Marcus Mariota ran to his right Womens Terrell Suggs Jersey , looked to pass and found nobody open. So the Tennessee quarterback pump-faked, darted left and flew past rookie linebacker Harold Landry III.
Yes, Mariota is looking very healthy in the opening days of training camp.
And the quarterback isn't wearing a knee brace either. It's a perfect combination for Mariota learning yet another new offense with his third different head coach. A healthy Mariota gives the Titans the chance to maximize their offense with the quarterback going into his fourth NFL season with the team already having picked up his fifth-year option for 2019.
"To have the opportunity to go out there and get reps physically, it's so pivotal for me," Mariota said Friday. "You know, I'm definitely a reps guy. I'm definitely a mental guy, so when I'm out there, and I get the opportunity to practice, it means the world to me, and I think that being healthy has just given me that opportunity."
Mariota came to Tennessee in 2015 as a Heisman Trophy winner and the No. 2 pick overall in the draft with Ken Whisenhunt as his first head coach. That relationship ended with Whisenhunt fired in November with his quarterback missing two of the first seven games with a sprained knee.
Mike Mularkey took the job for the rest of that season with Mariota missing the final two games after spraining his other knee. Mariota has missed only one game each of the past two seasons with the Titans going 9-7 in each, but the quarterback broke his right leg on Christmas Eve of 2016 . Mariota missed a loss in Miami last season after hurting a hamstring.
Mariota led the Titans to their first playoff berth since 2008 and first postseason win since January 2004 last season, and he put on a show once there.
He became the franchise's youngest quarterback to win a playoff game, rallying the Titans from an 18-point deficit to beat Kansas City with the second-largest comeback by a road team in NFL postseason history. Mariota became the first quarterback in league history to complete a pass to himself in the postseason Kyle Brodziak Jersey , catching a batted pass for a touchdown .
But Mariota ranked 30th with 3,232 yards passing last season and tied for 26th with only 13 TD passes leaving plenty of room for improvement.
Capitalizing on Mariota's skills prompted controlling owner Amy Adams Strunk to fire Mularkey after a divisional playoff loss in New England and hire Mike Vrabel as his replacement . Vrabel hired Matt LaFleur, who also interviewed for the same job, as his offensive coordinator to install a scheme to maximize what Mariota can do both throwing and running with the ball.
"Who else is there that we would rather have than Marcus as our leader?" wide receiver Taywan Taylor said. "He's the engine to this offense. He's so poised and confident, we feed off him. He's been our guy, so we're looking forward to it."
On Friday, the Titans signed two-time Pro Bowl left tackle Taylor Lewan to a five-year extension to keep protecting Mariota. They also signed three-time Pro Bowl tight end Delanie Walker through 2020 to keep a favorite target around.
The biggest key for Mariota has been time not wasted this year on recovering from yet another injury. That has allowed him to work with his wide receivers throughout the offseason. He also hasn't missed a snap as the starter during the offseason program or so far in training camp.
Mariota also has been practicing without a knee brace, perhaps the biggest sign of just how healthy he feels. Whether that continues in the regular season remains to be seen.
"Honestly, I'm not really even thinking about it ...," Mariota said. "Looking back on it, it was a long journey, and I'll never take any of that for granted, so when I'm out here Ryan Johansen Jersey , I have an opportunity to get better with these guys, I do enjoy it."
The bar was set high for Brian Urlacher when he joined the Chicago Bears as a first-round middle linebacker back in 2000.
Few teams are as closely identified with one position as the Bears are at middle linebacker with players like Bill George, Dick Butkus and Mike Singletary personifying the Monsters of the Midway on the way to Hall of Fame careers.
Urlacher lived up to that lofty standard and will join that talented trio in Canton when he is inducted into the hall on Saturday.
”It wasn’t even on my mind when I played,” Urlacher said after getting voted into the hall on his first try in February. ”I didn’t think this would ever be a possibility. So many things have to go right. You have to stay healthy, you have to play well, you’ve got to win some games, do some things. This is the summit of playing football right here.”
Urlacher did not make himself available for interviews leading up to inductions.
Urlacher was a different type of middle linebacker than his predecessors in Chicago, the perfect piece in the NFL of the 2000s with the speed and coverage skills that allowed him to play safety in college. That helped him match up against running backs and tight ends and roam sideline to sideline.
He also had the ability to drop deep into coverage, making him the perfect middle linebacker on coach Lovie Smith’s Tampa 2 defense that Urlacher helped make so stout in Chicago on the way to a Super Bowl appearance following the 2006 season.
”I’ve had an opportunity to be around so many great linebackers, but some of them are just made for the position,” Smith said. ”Derrick Brooks is made to be a Will linebacker, an outside guy in our system. Brian Urlacher, you can’t draw it up any better. Everybody knew that he looked the part and he played the part.”
Smith knew about Urlacher’s physical talents when he arrived as the new coach in Chicago in 2004 after Urlacher had made the Pro Bowl in each of his first four seasons http://www.officialislanders.com/authentic-adidas-adam-pelech-jersey , and was a two-time All-Pro. An early team meeting taught him about Urlacher’s mentality when he told the defense he expected the unit to lead the league in turnovers. Urlacher stayed after and set the tone for those dominant Bears defenses.
”He said: `Coach, let me get this right. In order for us to lead the league we have to wait for the offense to turn the ball over?”’ Smith recalled. ”That was the first time I’d looked at it that way. Brian called it a takeaway on the defensive side of the ball. The offense turns the ball over. Defensively, your job is to take the ball away every time. No one bought into us taking the ball away as much as Brian did.”
No defense took the ball away more than the Bears in the nine seasons Smith and Urlacher were together, with 292 takeaways. No linebacker other than fellow 2018 Hall of Fame inductee Ray Lewis took the ball away more than Urlacher during his 13-year career: 22 interceptions and 16 fumble recoveries.
Urlacher also had 41 sacks and finished his career as the Bears’ all-time leading tackler. He won awards as the top defensive rookie in 2000, Defensive Player of the Year in 2005, earned five All-Pro selections, eight Pro Bowl bids and helped the Bears win four division titles.
”Brian was the best,” said Packers quarterback and longtime NFC North rival Aaron Rodgers. ”He was probably one of the smartest players I ever played against. Just a great feel for the scheme, the game, reading his keys. Just incredibly instinctual player. Great hands. Average elusiveness, I can say that, because I tackled him one time. But one of the best to ever do it at that position in an era where some of the louder guys maybe got the attention – expecting the middle linebacker to be a loud yeller or rah-rah guy. Brian went about it in a very classy way. Played the game the right way and was an incredible player.”
Urlacher was not always destined for greatness. He was lightly recruited out of high school and ended up at New Mexico after Texas Tech didn’t offer him a scholarship.
But he thrived with the Lobos and made himself a first-round pick.
”I’ve had some great freshmen, but from the minute he arrived Womens Travis Kelce Jersey , every coach stood up and took notice,” former New Mexico coach Dennis Franchione said. ”I remember sometime in the first 10 days of two-a-days, six of the nine assistant coaches came in – although independently, I didn’t think they talked about it – they said, `Coach, when are you going to play Urlacher.’ And I said, `I’m not sure yet.’ They said, `I’ll take him at my position.’ I think that was everybody except the quarterback coach, the line coach and the receivers coach. That’s how versatile he was. …
”He was a heat-seeking missile from the time he arrived on campus. Not only that, he was a really coachable, bright young man. Made other people better. You can just go on and on about him.”
—
AP Sports Writer Andrew Seligman contributed to this report.
—
Los Angeles Rams Jerseys
Yes, Mariota is looking very healthy in the opening days of training camp.
And the quarterback isn't wearing a knee brace either. It's a perfect combination for Mariota learning yet another new offense with his third different head coach. A healthy Mariota gives the Titans the chance to maximize their offense with the quarterback going into his fourth NFL season with the team already having picked up his fifth-year option for 2019.
"To have the opportunity to go out there and get reps physically, it's so pivotal for me," Mariota said Friday. "You know, I'm definitely a reps guy. I'm definitely a mental guy, so when I'm out there, and I get the opportunity to practice, it means the world to me, and I think that being healthy has just given me that opportunity."
Mariota came to Tennessee in 2015 as a Heisman Trophy winner and the No. 2 pick overall in the draft with Ken Whisenhunt as his first head coach. That relationship ended with Whisenhunt fired in November with his quarterback missing two of the first seven games with a sprained knee.
Mike Mularkey took the job for the rest of that season with Mariota missing the final two games after spraining his other knee. Mariota has missed only one game each of the past two seasons with the Titans going 9-7 in each, but the quarterback broke his right leg on Christmas Eve of 2016 . Mariota missed a loss in Miami last season after hurting a hamstring.
Mariota led the Titans to their first playoff berth since 2008 and first postseason win since January 2004 last season, and he put on a show once there.
He became the franchise's youngest quarterback to win a playoff game, rallying the Titans from an 18-point deficit to beat Kansas City with the second-largest comeback by a road team in NFL postseason history. Mariota became the first quarterback in league history to complete a pass to himself in the postseason Kyle Brodziak Jersey , catching a batted pass for a touchdown .
But Mariota ranked 30th with 3,232 yards passing last season and tied for 26th with only 13 TD passes leaving plenty of room for improvement.
Capitalizing on Mariota's skills prompted controlling owner Amy Adams Strunk to fire Mularkey after a divisional playoff loss in New England and hire Mike Vrabel as his replacement . Vrabel hired Matt LaFleur, who also interviewed for the same job, as his offensive coordinator to install a scheme to maximize what Mariota can do both throwing and running with the ball.
"Who else is there that we would rather have than Marcus as our leader?" wide receiver Taywan Taylor said. "He's the engine to this offense. He's so poised and confident, we feed off him. He's been our guy, so we're looking forward to it."
On Friday, the Titans signed two-time Pro Bowl left tackle Taylor Lewan to a five-year extension to keep protecting Mariota. They also signed three-time Pro Bowl tight end Delanie Walker through 2020 to keep a favorite target around.
The biggest key for Mariota has been time not wasted this year on recovering from yet another injury. That has allowed him to work with his wide receivers throughout the offseason. He also hasn't missed a snap as the starter during the offseason program or so far in training camp.
Mariota also has been practicing without a knee brace, perhaps the biggest sign of just how healthy he feels. Whether that continues in the regular season remains to be seen.
"Honestly, I'm not really even thinking about it ...," Mariota said. "Looking back on it, it was a long journey, and I'll never take any of that for granted, so when I'm out here Ryan Johansen Jersey , I have an opportunity to get better with these guys, I do enjoy it."
The bar was set high for Brian Urlacher when he joined the Chicago Bears as a first-round middle linebacker back in 2000.
Few teams are as closely identified with one position as the Bears are at middle linebacker with players like Bill George, Dick Butkus and Mike Singletary personifying the Monsters of the Midway on the way to Hall of Fame careers.
Urlacher lived up to that lofty standard and will join that talented trio in Canton when he is inducted into the hall on Saturday.
”It wasn’t even on my mind when I played,” Urlacher said after getting voted into the hall on his first try in February. ”I didn’t think this would ever be a possibility. So many things have to go right. You have to stay healthy, you have to play well, you’ve got to win some games, do some things. This is the summit of playing football right here.”
Urlacher did not make himself available for interviews leading up to inductions.
Urlacher was a different type of middle linebacker than his predecessors in Chicago, the perfect piece in the NFL of the 2000s with the speed and coverage skills that allowed him to play safety in college. That helped him match up against running backs and tight ends and roam sideline to sideline.
He also had the ability to drop deep into coverage, making him the perfect middle linebacker on coach Lovie Smith’s Tampa 2 defense that Urlacher helped make so stout in Chicago on the way to a Super Bowl appearance following the 2006 season.
”I’ve had an opportunity to be around so many great linebackers, but some of them are just made for the position,” Smith said. ”Derrick Brooks is made to be a Will linebacker, an outside guy in our system. Brian Urlacher, you can’t draw it up any better. Everybody knew that he looked the part and he played the part.”
Smith knew about Urlacher’s physical talents when he arrived as the new coach in Chicago in 2004 after Urlacher had made the Pro Bowl in each of his first four seasons http://www.officialislanders.com/authentic-adidas-adam-pelech-jersey , and was a two-time All-Pro. An early team meeting taught him about Urlacher’s mentality when he told the defense he expected the unit to lead the league in turnovers. Urlacher stayed after and set the tone for those dominant Bears defenses.
”He said: `Coach, let me get this right. In order for us to lead the league we have to wait for the offense to turn the ball over?”’ Smith recalled. ”That was the first time I’d looked at it that way. Brian called it a takeaway on the defensive side of the ball. The offense turns the ball over. Defensively, your job is to take the ball away every time. No one bought into us taking the ball away as much as Brian did.”
No defense took the ball away more than the Bears in the nine seasons Smith and Urlacher were together, with 292 takeaways. No linebacker other than fellow 2018 Hall of Fame inductee Ray Lewis took the ball away more than Urlacher during his 13-year career: 22 interceptions and 16 fumble recoveries.
Urlacher also had 41 sacks and finished his career as the Bears’ all-time leading tackler. He won awards as the top defensive rookie in 2000, Defensive Player of the Year in 2005, earned five All-Pro selections, eight Pro Bowl bids and helped the Bears win four division titles.
”Brian was the best,” said Packers quarterback and longtime NFC North rival Aaron Rodgers. ”He was probably one of the smartest players I ever played against. Just a great feel for the scheme, the game, reading his keys. Just incredibly instinctual player. Great hands. Average elusiveness, I can say that, because I tackled him one time. But one of the best to ever do it at that position in an era where some of the louder guys maybe got the attention – expecting the middle linebacker to be a loud yeller or rah-rah guy. Brian went about it in a very classy way. Played the game the right way and was an incredible player.”
Urlacher was not always destined for greatness. He was lightly recruited out of high school and ended up at New Mexico after Texas Tech didn’t offer him a scholarship.
But he thrived with the Lobos and made himself a first-round pick.
”I’ve had some great freshmen, but from the minute he arrived Womens Travis Kelce Jersey , every coach stood up and took notice,” former New Mexico coach Dennis Franchione said. ”I remember sometime in the first 10 days of two-a-days, six of the nine assistant coaches came in – although independently, I didn’t think they talked about it – they said, `Coach, when are you going to play Urlacher.’ And I said, `I’m not sure yet.’ They said, `I’ll take him at my position.’ I think that was everybody except the quarterback coach, the line coach and the receivers coach. That’s how versatile he was. …
”He was a heat-seeking missile from the time he arrived on campus. Not only that, he was a really coachable, bright young man. Made other people better. You can just go on and on about him.”
—
AP Sports Writer Andrew Seligman contributed to this report.
—
Los Angeles Rams Jerseys