Who Leads? Let’s Talk Leadership on the 2022 Chiefs | Defending The Kingdom 5/18

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Speaker 1: Thank you vantage on the day A right when you

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Speaker 1: get opportunity game they can play. Oh Michael, don’t do

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Speaker 1: one touchdown Kansas City. The Chiefs are right in the

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Speaker 1: thick of it, baby, and hello once again, Chiefs Kingdom.

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Speaker 1: It is time to rev up defending the Kingdom. Mitchelds

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Speaker 1: with you voice to the Chiefs along with senior team reporter.

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Speaker 1: I gotta get this right since you’re duly promoted and

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Speaker 1: long overdue. Matt McMullan aka the Matt stat this episode,

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Speaker 1: we’re going to call who leads. We are going to

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Speaker 1: get into team leadership, not only for the Chiefs, but

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Speaker 1: what works in the National Football League and why the

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Speaker 1: Chiefs Kingdom, which is concerned about this topic, can get

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Speaker 1: excited about the future of the internal leadership of this team.

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Speaker 1: But before we do that, mattest tradition, let’s go around

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Speaker 1: the world. In defending the Kingdom. We’re gonna go around

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Speaker 1: the world. So I typed up all five million names

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Speaker 1: in places that we had we have decided to consolidate

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Speaker 1: to thirteen different people for now, just for now, for now,

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Speaker 1: and read I read all of thirteen seconds. Why not

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Speaker 1: you know it still just has a warm place in

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Speaker 1: my heart. So we’re gonna pick thirteen. Just do it

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Speaker 1: from people around the world. So we have Julius in Norway,

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Speaker 1: Timo in Germany, a long time listener. Michael is listening

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Speaker 1: from North Hamptonshire, England. We’ve got Juan Pablo in Guayaquil, Ecuador,

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Speaker 1: Khalid in West Africa, and then I didn’t mention it,

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Speaker 1: but we also have Australia in Asia. So we were

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Speaker 1: represented by every continent this time around, with the exception

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Speaker 1: of the elusive Antarctica, but oh well, still search still

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Speaker 1: searching for that one. We also have Daniel he declared

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Speaker 1: Queen Creek, Arizona as the Kansas City Red Sea. Love that.

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Speaker 1: Jonathan declared his outpost in Nashville, Tennessee as chiefs Kingdom

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Speaker 1: of Titan Fall. I’m a fan of that one. Nick,

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Speaker 1: and the historic Northeast in Kansas City, Missouri, he was

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Speaker 1: listening and he was also at Draft Fest a few

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Speaker 1: weeks ago, so shout out to you, Nick. We’ve also

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Speaker 1: got Ralph listening driving down I ten in western Arizona.

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Speaker 1: Don declared Oxford, North Carolina as chiefs Kingdom East. David

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Speaker 1: declared himself the Guardian of the western slope of Colorado.

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Speaker 1: I always loved the Kingdom Defenders up in Colorado. Jeff

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Speaker 1: and deb are in Yorba Linda, California, otherwise known as

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Speaker 1: West Coast Chiefs Kingdom. And then lastly one that you’ll like,

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Speaker 1: Morgan is listening from Ocean Springs, Mississippi, but she’s from Plainsville, Kansas. Wow.

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Speaker 1: The Cardinals, Yeah, Plainville or Plainsville, Planeville, Plainville, can’t get

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Speaker 1: that wrong. Our trival of the Big rid of Smith Center, Yeah,

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Speaker 1: our travel Yeah, spilled a lot of blood in Plainville.

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Speaker 1: But hey, awesome to hear. Wells. I got a couple

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Speaker 1: of fun ones here. Gary Stevenson. He’s from Metama, Illinois,

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Speaker 1: which I looked this up. It’s just northeast of Peoria.

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Speaker 1: Really in the heart of Bears Country. Quite honestly, this

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Speaker 1: is this is big Bears Country folground. Gary comes to

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Speaker 1: every game Metamora, Illinois to the hellowground of Geha Field

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Speaker 1: at Arrowhead Stadium. Every game Gary Stevenson and actually hooks

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Speaker 1: up with the people that we know the Saint Joe

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Speaker 1: Mafia we call him. They’re not the mafia, but they’re

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Speaker 1: they’re awesome folks in Saint Joe that we see a

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Speaker 1: training camp every year and then another one. This one’s

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Speaker 1: kind of fun. This was a couple ran into them. Actually,

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Speaker 1: you know, I was going to crash m Patrick mahomes wedding,

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Speaker 1: decided not to do it to get arrested, but getting

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Speaker 1: ready to do a whale. Watch right, this guy goes,

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Speaker 1: are you Mattults Like it’s one of those I’m like, oh, okay, yeah,

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Speaker 1: but he goes, I’ve never been to Arrowhead. I listened

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Speaker 1: to every Defending the Kingdom. I watch all your shows,

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Speaker 1: watch IV Chiefs, Insider love Matt love you. I’ve never

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Speaker 1: been to a game. I grew up in the shadows

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Speaker 1: of the Oakland Coliseum. Wow, never been to a game.

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Speaker 1: But he’s this biggest Chief fan ever. He was the

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Speaker 1: anti in his family eats fans. Yeah, and so he

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Speaker 1: became the anti. And it was back in the days

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Speaker 1: of Lenny Doss and the choir huddle, and so this

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Speaker 1: guy adopted him and there we are. Another great Kingdom story.

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Speaker 1: But I’d like, dude, you just gotta come to Arrowhead

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Speaker 1: for a game. He’s never been Arrowhead. Yeah, come for

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Speaker 1: a Raiders game. Come for the Raiders game. Let’s do it. Yeah.

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Speaker 1: So anyway, we have some fun with those folks. And

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Speaker 1: I don’t know if you saw it on Twitter, I

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Speaker 1: retweeted it. A farmer in Aurora, Nebraska has a corn

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Speaker 1: planter for you folks and agriculture. A corn planter that

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Speaker 1: is painted in Chiefs read with the logos like we

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Speaker 1: see vans, like the people use tailgating and buses and vans.

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Speaker 1: This is a corn planter. That’s the coolest thing I’ve

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Speaker 1: ever seen of This guy custom painted for the Chiefs Kingdom.

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Speaker 1: So there you go, love it, Love the Kingdom. Loved.

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Speaker 1: The spirit of the Kingdom comes in all shapes and

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Speaker 1: sizes and from all the continents, sands Antarctica. So get

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Speaker 1: in here, Admiral Bird, let’s go. Okay speaking of this,

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Speaker 1: speaking of explorers or people that have to have leadership,

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Speaker 1: I know you get asked this a lot, and we’ve

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Speaker 1: been asking every also way, shape or form about concern

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Speaker 1: about the leadership for the twenty twenty two Kansas City Chiefs,

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Speaker 1: especially on the defensive side of the ball. Melvin Ingram

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Speaker 1: has now signed with the Miami Dolphins. He was great

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Speaker 1: last year as a leader for this team. And we

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Speaker 1: know Tyron Matthews now in New Orleans Saint But it

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Speaker 1: leads us to and begs the question who leads for

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Speaker 1: this Chiefs team? As many have predicted the demise of

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Speaker 1: the Chiefs in twenty twenty two. You and I think differently,

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Speaker 1: and you and I look at this leadership component very differently.

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Speaker 1: So let’s get into and let me give you the

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Speaker 1: characteristics in my brief twenty eight seasons the National Football League,

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Speaker 1: what I’ve learned that leaders in this league have to have,

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Speaker 1: and one is they have to have performance before leadership.

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Speaker 1: You have to have performance, and not just performance, Matt,

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Speaker 1: but consistent performance. I can’t be a flash in the

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Speaker 1: pan and then yell at you to do your job

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Speaker 1: if I’m not trying to do it better than you

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Speaker 1: or doing it better than you. And like the Darryl

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Speaker 1: Greens of the world, come to mind, the people that

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Speaker 1: have played at a consistent level, at a high level

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Speaker 1: for years and years. Derek Johnson is another guy that

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Speaker 1: comes to mind in the Chief’s Kingdom. And then, thirdly,

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Speaker 1: have to handle flash points. One of the underrated parts

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Speaker 1: of coach Andy Reid in his nine seasons of winning

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Speaker 1: here in Kansas City is every year, sometimes two a

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Speaker 1: year there have been flashpoints where the season could have

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Speaker 1: come off the rails. Last year at the end of October,

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Speaker 1: a three and four start again, everybody predicting the demise

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Speaker 1: of the Chiefs. Okay, that being said, your thoughts on

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Speaker 1: these characteristics of leadership, and we’re going to dive into

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Speaker 1: who we think could be potential leaders for this team. Yeah. Well,

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Speaker 1: I think being a good leader is a subjective thing, right,

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Speaker 1: I mean, leadership, you can’t quantify it. You can’t say

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Speaker 1: this guy is this good of a leader, and that’s

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Speaker 1: just a fact. I mean, leadership is subjective, and people

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Speaker 1: lead in different ways, and different people respond to certain

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Speaker 1: leadership styles in different ways. And I think that right

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Speaker 1: now the Chiefs, in terms of their personnel at some

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Speaker 1: certain position groups, are going through a bit of a

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Speaker 1: phase here of transition where there have been some players

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Speaker 1: that have been here a long time that we look

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Speaker 1: at as leaders and they’re just not here anymore. And

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Speaker 1: it’s been in different areas. Think about the offensive line

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Speaker 1: last year, when Mitchell Schwartz retires, Eric Fisher moves on,

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Speaker 1: I mean, those are your book ins for a long time.

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Speaker 1: Those are the leaders along the offensive line, and they

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Speaker 1: move on and We’ll talk about some new guys along

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Speaker 1: the offensive line that came in last year and we’re

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Speaker 1: tremendous leaders right away, but it’s in other areas this

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Speaker 1: time around. Anthony Hitchins at linebacker, he’s not here anymore,

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Speaker 1: and he’s been one of those guys in the middle

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Speaker 1: of the linebacking Chord’s been here a very long time.

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Speaker 1: The younger players have looked up to Anthony Hitchins. The

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Speaker 1: receiver room has a ton of new phases. I mean,

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Speaker 1: Micole Harman in terms of guys that have been here

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Speaker 1: for several years, is basically the only guy that’s still

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Speaker 1: here from that group. A lot of new faces in

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Speaker 1: the receiver room, and Tyron Matthew, as you mentioned, is

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Speaker 1: the biggest one because he’s always been revered for leadership.

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Speaker 1: We’ve seen it and Tyrne has been a great leader

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Speaker 1: during his time in Kansas City, but he has moved

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Speaker 1: on now. When you hear about all this turnover, at first,

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Speaker 1: it could be kind of alarming, Like you said, you

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Speaker 1: kind of worry about that, but it’s also an opportunity

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Speaker 1: when you have a lot of good young players who

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Speaker 1: are maybe ready for that next step, they can move

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Speaker 1: into that leadership role, and it’s really an exciting time.

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Speaker 1: If we didn’t have the young players in the position

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Speaker 1: to do that, that’s where it’s troubling. But a lot

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Speaker 1: of the players that will talk about that have joined

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Speaker 1: this team in recent years or who have been waiting

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Speaker 1: for their chance. I think this is a big season

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Speaker 1: for them to really step up and be that leader,

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Speaker 1: and I think they can help continue the culture that

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Speaker 1: we’ve enjoyed for years and years beginning with those guys.

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Speaker 1: So it’s an exciting time I think for the leadership

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Speaker 1: on this team, particularly on defense, very well stated, and

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Speaker 1: it’s why we’re dedicating this Defending the Kingdom podcast to

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Speaker 1: that very thing. Who leads. Now, let me give you

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Speaker 1: an example I think is the gold standard. And he

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Speaker 1: wears a gold jacket here, but he’s near and dear

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Speaker 1: to the hearts of many people who work in the

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Speaker 1: Chiefs Kingdom who came with coach Read from Philadelphia, and

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Speaker 1: that’s Brian Dawkins. Okay, Brian Dawkins played in the National

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Speaker 1: Football League for sixteen seasons. He was a safety, hard charging,

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Speaker 1: hard hitting safety. His career was a pinnacle of sustained success, consistency, reliability,

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Speaker 1: and a servant spirit. This guy, Brian Dawkins with the

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Speaker 1: nine Pro Bowls. He was a five time All Pro

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Speaker 1: and it’s just very interesting that they have the Brian

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Speaker 1: Dawkins Lifetime Achievement Award at Clemson, which was his alma mater.

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Speaker 1: And it’s interesting. Barbershop Sean Barber was going to join

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Speaker 1: us today, but guess where he’s at. He’s at the

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Speaker 1: Brian Dawkins Golf Tournament in Philadelphia because he played with

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Speaker 1: Brian Dukins. What a flex though, Like there’s a humble flex, like, Hey,

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Speaker 1: I’m gonna tech shops if he can come do DDK

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Speaker 1: and I’m like that sounds great, and then actually he

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Speaker 1: can’t go. He’s in the Brian Dawkins Golf Tournament. He’s like, what,

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Speaker 1: that’s pretty cool. Good for shop. Well, But Dawkins was

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Speaker 1: the epitome of what we’re talking about in strong, consistent

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Speaker 1: leadership in the right way. And there’s two guys in

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Speaker 1: this build that will three guys because Andy Reid just

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Speaker 1: said he was like the cornerstone of their teams. But

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Speaker 1: a Rick Burkehulter, who’s our vice president for Sports Performance

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Speaker 1: and considered to be the top athletic trainer in the

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Speaker 1: National Football League, just swears by Brian Dawkins talks about

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Speaker 1: his year after year after year influence on the entire

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Speaker 1: football team. And then Rob Alberino, who’s the vice president

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Speaker 1: we know for content and production, who was a round

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Speaker 1: doc for a long time. But that thew leads us

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Speaker 1: into this discussion. Now, Brian Dawkins was a safety, but

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Speaker 1: you look at the safeties on this team, and a

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Speaker 1: couple of guys I want to bring up here I’ll

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Speaker 1: get your thoughts on him, would be Justin Reid first

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Speaker 1: and foremost. The Chiefs picked him up from the Texans

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Speaker 1: in the offseason as a free agent. And then one Thornhill. Okay,

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Speaker 1: One Thornhill now is in his fourth year in this system.

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Speaker 1: Remember he was having an outstanding rookie year. The last

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Speaker 1: regular season game he tears his acl. He misses the

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Speaker 1: run to Super Bowl fifty four in the championship. I

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Speaker 1: remember seeing one after the game. Everybody’s in euphoria and

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Speaker 1: he’s so excited, but he was setting in front of

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Speaker 1: his locker like I want to be a part of this.

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Speaker 1: I was not on the field for this, but to me.

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Speaker 1: And let’s get into these two guys because to me,

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Speaker 1: they are potential leaders for this team, not just in

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Speaker 1: twenty twenty two, but beyond. It’s funny because if you

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Speaker 1: look at the safety position for the Chiefs, we’ve enjoyed

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Speaker 1: some really great leaders over the years, and two in

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Speaker 1: particular are Eric Berry and Tyron Matthew. But what’s funny

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Speaker 1: about them is they were both great leaders in totally

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Speaker 1: different ways. Like Eric Barry was very much of a

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Speaker 1: silent warrior, like you’d lead by example and he’d be

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Speaker 1: loud when he needed to be, but kind of a

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Speaker 1: quiet guy honestly Eric Berry and Tyron Matthew was the opposite.

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Speaker 1: I mean he would lead by example but also be

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Speaker 1: mister Rara and it worked, you know, and it helped

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Speaker 1: lead the Chiefs to a Super Bowl championship. But it

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Speaker 1: shows that different kind of styles in terms of leadership

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Speaker 1: can be successful. And justin Reid, I’m excited to what

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Speaker 1: kind of leader he is. We know what he did

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Speaker 1: in Houston and he was a tremendous leader there and

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Speaker 1: I think it says a lot about him because particularly

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Speaker 1: the last couple of years, that team has really struggled

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Speaker 1: and it would be really easy, particularly as a young player,

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Speaker 1: to really maybe not give it your best or not

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Speaker 1: care about being a leader in that situation, but he

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Speaker 1: did by all accounts. I mean, he was a tremendous

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Speaker 1: leader there, even though they weren’t winning football games. But

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Speaker 1: we don’t know what kind of leader he’ll be here yet.

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Speaker 1: But what we can see is what he’s done already

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Speaker 1: in Kansas City, and it’s been very obvious that he

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Speaker 1: is interested in being a leader, and not everyone is,

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Speaker 1: and that’s not a bad thing. Some people just don’t

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Speaker 1: want to be a leader on their football team, but

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Speaker 1: Justin Reid clearly wants to be one. And you can

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Speaker 1: see him reaching out to his new teammates, doing stuff

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Speaker 1: on social media, being very active on social media, encouraging

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Speaker 1: fans and his teammates about next season, and also doing

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Speaker 1: stuff in the community. I mean, Justin Reid is already

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Speaker 1: incredibly involved in Kansas City and he only got here

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Speaker 1: what like a month ago, So it’s very obvious that

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Speaker 1: Justin Reid wants to be a leader here. I can’t

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Speaker 1: wait to see what kind of leader he will be.

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Speaker 1: But you know, when you lose a guy like Tyrn Matthew,

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Speaker 1: you want to replace him with a guy that wants

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Speaker 1: to be a leader on the back end, and I

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Speaker 1: think we have that in Justin Reid. In terms of

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Speaker 1: one Thornhill, I’m excited for one because earlier I mentioned

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Speaker 1: how maybe some younger players are coming up and it’s

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Speaker 1: their turn to be a leader. Right. Well, he might

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Speaker 1: not seem like he’s very old. He’s twenty six, but

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Speaker 1: if you look at players in the secondary, he’s tied

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Speaker 1: with Lonnie Johnson for the second oldest among anyone in

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Speaker 1: the secondary. Dion Bush is the oldest at twenty eight.

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Speaker 1: But wan Thornhill not very old, but a veteran in

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Speaker 1: terms of players in the secondary for the Chiefs. And really,

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Speaker 1: this is his opportunity to step up and be a

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Speaker 1: leader in that room. I know he’s been one since

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Speaker 1: he’s been here, but really, now with some of the

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Speaker 1: older players no longer in the secondary, it’s his time.

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Speaker 1: It’s his chance. And younger players come in here, a

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Speaker 1: guy like Brian Cook, They’re gonna follow wal Thornhill around.

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Speaker 1: See how wan Thornhill practices. What’s he say. It’s going

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Speaker 1: to stick with him a little bit more. How do

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Speaker 1: you study? And I think that kind of thing is

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Speaker 1: so important in the The great thing about one as

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Speaker 1: I think he understands that. Not all young players kind

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Speaker 1: of understand that, but I think one does. So for

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Speaker 1: both these guys, Justin Reid and Wan Thornhill, different kinds

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Speaker 1: of personalities, but really a perfect mixture, I think in

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Speaker 1: this dB room. So again to think about the characteristics

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Speaker 1: of what constitutes an NFL player leader, and it’s necessary

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Speaker 1: to have player leadership. We know there’s strong leadership with

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Speaker 1: head coach Andy Reid and this coaching staff strong coordinators

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Speaker 1: as leaders, but there has to be locker room leadership

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Speaker 1: and another characteristic so consistent performance over a long period

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Speaker 1: of time. Two of handling flashpoints three is also waiting

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Speaker 1: your turn. I’m glad you mentioned that, because let’s take

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Speaker 1: Justin Reid. Justin Reid played with Tyrone Matthew in Houston.

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Speaker 1: He was a teammate in the Texans with Tyrone Matthew.

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Speaker 1: He also grew up not far from Tyron Matthew in

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Speaker 1: LSU country. He just decided to go to Stanford. His

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Speaker 1: brother played at LSU. The other part of just read

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Speaker 1: an Juan Thornhill as You’ve got to weave back through

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Speaker 1: their past because not only do they wait, they defer

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Speaker 1: to the leader of the that’s already in place. They

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Speaker 1: don’t battle that leader. They wait and learn. Think of

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Speaker 1: Patrick Mahomes will get to him in a second. But

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Speaker 1: he waited and learned because Alex Smith was the leader

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Speaker 1: of the team that in twenty seventeen, Justin read the

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Speaker 1: same thing. He has waited his turn, but he was

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Speaker 1: a high school team captain back in Dutchtown, Louisiana. They

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Speaker 1: were an outstanding program. He goes to Stanford, which is

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Speaker 1: a school that flourishes in the fact that not only

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Speaker 1: are getting this incredible education, but they work on leadership.

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Speaker 1: He was undergraduate as management science and engineering major. I mean,

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Speaker 1: there’s a lot to Justin Reid in planning and developed

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Speaker 1: being a leadership one Thornhill, same thing. Went to a

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Speaker 1: smaller high school in southern Virginia, but he was the

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Speaker 1: leader of not only the football team, but of that school.

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Speaker 1: Same thing with the University of Virginia. This was a

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Speaker 1: high school quarterback. This is a guy that has shown

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Speaker 1: consistent performance and I think he’s been underrated and lived

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Speaker 1: in the shadows. But he too, has waited his turn

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Speaker 1: because he had to be a teammate with Tyrone Matthew.

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Speaker 1: He didn’t work against Tyrone Matthew, but one Thornhill’s thirty

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Speaker 1: eight and eleven as a starter, consistent performance, consistent winner,

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Speaker 1: five interceptions, the pick six that he had his rookie season.

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Speaker 1: He has not missed a regular season game, and I

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Speaker 1: think we would win a bet if we put that out.

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Speaker 1: They’re going like, well, he may he’s missed some time. Well,

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Speaker 1: he missed the postseason in nineteen, but he fought his

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Speaker 1: way back from that ACL injury. If you weave back

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Speaker 1: through one Thornhill’s life, the same with Justin Reid. To me,

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Speaker 1: built to be a potential leader. I mean definitely, And

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Speaker 1: if you think about one, he’s now several years are

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Speaker 1: moved from that ACL injury. Those things are tough to

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Speaker 1: come back from. And I don’t mean just physically being

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Speaker 1: out there, I mean truly being yourself again. And he

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Speaker 1: even mentioned that after the first year back that it’s

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Speaker 1: hard to go out there. You have to first of

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Speaker 1: all trust it, but also just find your athleticism again,

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Speaker 1: find what made you such a great player in the

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Speaker 1: first place. And to his credit, he was pretty good

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Speaker 1: in that second season coming off of the injury, but

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Speaker 1: now being several seasons removed and with the additions the

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Speaker 1: Chiefs have made in their secondary I really think one

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Speaker 1: is just going to flourish this year. So I can’t

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Speaker 1: wait to see what he can do, both as a

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Speaker 1: player and as a leader. In another note on Justin Reid,

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Speaker 1: you mentioned his brother Eric. I think that is a

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Speaker 1: big reason why he is the player that he is,

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Speaker 1: cerebrally because Eric Reid had been in this league a

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Speaker 1: long time before Justin and I read an article after

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Speaker 1: we signed Justin about how he would hang out with

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Speaker 1: his brother and ask him just how do you watch film?

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Speaker 1: How do you go about certain things? Because his brother

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Speaker 1: was already in the league, and having that influence and

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Speaker 1: that advice when you’re a young player, it makes you

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Speaker 1: wise beyond your years. So even though Justin Reid is

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Speaker 1: a very young player in this league and has only

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Speaker 1: been in the league for a couple of seasons, really,

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Speaker 1: I mean four seasons right in the NFL, he goes

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Speaker 1: about himself as a player that’s been around much longer

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Speaker 1: because he has a brother who has been so I

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Speaker 1: think that helps him a lot, both as a player

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Speaker 1: and as a leader, and it’ll help the Chiefs over

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Speaker 1: the next several years. Another guy he was around Kareem

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Speaker 1: Jackson in Houston, So it wasn’t just Tyron Matthews, also

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Speaker 1: Kareem Jackson, who’s proven to be an outstanding safety in

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Speaker 1: this league over a long period of time. And it’s

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Speaker 1: just he learned instead of bucking those guys and thinking

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Speaker 1: he’s the smartest dude in the room. He’s been around

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Speaker 1: a lot of alpha dudes in his life. Same thing

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Speaker 1: with one Thornhill. He’s been around, of all, a lot

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Speaker 1: of alpha dudes, not only in this league but other

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Speaker 1: spots in his life. But to me, they are poison

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Speaker 1: ready to go. The other thing, and this goes back

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Speaker 1: to Brian Dawkins, you’re really on defense. You want two

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Speaker 1: positions to be your leaders. One obviously he’s linebacker. We’re

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Speaker 1: gonna get to Nick Bolton next. But the other is safety.

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Speaker 1: Why you need in baseball, Let’s give you a baseball analogy.

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Speaker 1: Who do you want to be one of your strong

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Speaker 1: leaders of your team in baseball? And they’re hard to

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Speaker 1: find or catchers. Think of Salvador Perez. He’s the only

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Speaker 1: guy that has the entire game in front of him.

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Speaker 1: He can see the whole game in front of him.

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Speaker 1: All the other eight players on defense, and the hitter

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Speaker 1: and the poorers on base. Safeties in the same way,

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Speaker 1: all twenty one of the other humans on the field

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Speaker 1: are in front of them most of the time. So

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Speaker 1: it’s good to have a safety who can understand from

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Speaker 1: a football standpoint to have them be a leader. So

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Speaker 1: safety is another good position, or is a good position

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Speaker 1: of a defensive leader on this defending the Kingdom again,

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Speaker 1: we’re exploring who leads, who takes over in leadership’s roles

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Speaker 1: for this twenty twenty two team. Now let’s move the

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Speaker 1: linebacker on the defensive side. And Nick Bolton did not disappoint.

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Speaker 1: You were so excited when we drafted Nick, so was I.

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Speaker 1: But he did not disappointing the least. This was one

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Speaker 1: of the top performing rookies in the league last year.

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Speaker 1: When you look at his tackle total and his tackle

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Speaker 1: for lost total, it was somewhat historic. Yeah, he was incredible.

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Speaker 1: So I don’t want to get this wrong. I’m doing

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Speaker 1: it off the top of my head, but I believe

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Speaker 1: he was one of just nine rookies since two thousand

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Speaker 1: to have one hundred and ten total tackles and ten

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Speaker 1: tackles for loss in a single season in the first

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Speaker 1: since Darius Leonard. I mean, he was just awesome, and

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Speaker 1: a lot of that was kind of being a part

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Speaker 1: time player. Nick was just incredible. I think he was

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Speaker 1: everything we could have hoped for when you’re looking at

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Speaker 1: a rookie second round pick at linebacker, and he’s earned

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Speaker 1: himself now an opportunity to be not just a huge

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Speaker 1: playmaker and a starter on this team, but a big

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Speaker 1: time leader. Because Brett Veach has mentioned it, he’s going

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Speaker 1: to be the middle linebacker and the green dot on

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Speaker 1: this team. Huge responsibility as a second year player, but

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Speaker 1: based on what we know about Nick, he can handle it.

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Speaker 1: I think back to training camp last year when there

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Speaker 1: was some injuries in the linebacker corps. Willie Gay was

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Speaker 1: hurt and so was Anthony Hitchins. So Bolton, who they

412
00:20:38,960 –> 00:20:41,359
Speaker 1: were planning on easing into things, all of a sudden,

413
00:20:41,440 –> 00:20:45,479
Speaker 1: was like the dude at linebacker. And his first couple snaps,

414
00:20:45,520 –> 00:20:47,639
Speaker 1: one of them he had to pick six, he had

415
00:20:47,640 –> 00:20:49,800
Speaker 1: a deflection. He was awesome in his first practice in

416
00:20:49,920 –> 00:20:53,119
Speaker 1: that role. That continued over the next several practices, and

417
00:20:53,160 –> 00:20:55,720
Speaker 1: then as the season got going, really every game he

418
00:20:55,800 –> 00:20:58,359
Speaker 1: just seemed to get better. I remember there was a

419
00:20:58,400 –> 00:21:00,639
Speaker 1: time in the season opener when Bake or Mayfield was

420
00:21:00,680 –> 00:21:04,320
Speaker 1: scrambling and Nick stood his ground and stopped him. And

421
00:21:04,400 –> 00:21:05,960
Speaker 1: after the game they’re like, were you a little bit

422
00:21:06,000 –> 00:21:07,399
Speaker 1: nervous there? He’s like, yeah, but you know, once I

423
00:21:07,440 –> 00:21:09,440
Speaker 1: hit him, it was just football again. And I really

424
00:21:09,480 –> 00:21:12,160
Speaker 1: think from that moment, all Nick Bolton did all year

425
00:21:12,200 –> 00:21:14,879
Speaker 1: long was grow and he’s earned this opportunity now to

426
00:21:14,880 –> 00:21:17,040
Speaker 1: be a major leader on this team with Hygeens no

427
00:21:17,119 –> 00:21:19,119
Speaker 1: longer in town and the big plays. The scoop and

428
00:21:19,200 –> 00:21:22,919
Speaker 1: score against Denver was a defining moment of the twenty

429
00:21:23,000 –> 00:21:26,120
Speaker 1: twenty one season. But Nick too, if you go back

430
00:21:26,119 –> 00:21:27,880
Speaker 1: and look all the way back to Lone Star High

431
00:21:27,920 –> 00:21:31,320
Speaker 1: School in Frisco, Texas and then at Missoo might have

432
00:21:31,400 –> 00:21:34,560
Speaker 1: been the main leader. At least that’s what Massoo was saying.

433
00:21:34,600 –> 00:21:36,800
Speaker 1: I mean, he was the twenty twenty team captain. He

434
00:21:36,800 –> 00:21:41,359
Speaker 1: gets Massoo through COVID and was the centerpiece for that

435
00:21:41,440 –> 00:21:45,120
Speaker 1: football team. The other part of it, Remember the characteristics

436
00:21:45,119 –> 00:21:51,120
Speaker 1: of an NFL leader. Performance has to proceed proceeded leadership too.

437
00:21:51,160 –> 00:21:53,960
Speaker 1: You have to perform over a consistent period of time. Three,

438
00:21:54,000 –> 00:21:56,399
Speaker 1: you have to handle flash points. Four you wait for

439
00:21:56,440 –> 00:21:59,440
Speaker 1: your turn, and he waited last year instead of trying

440
00:21:59,480 –> 00:22:03,199
Speaker 1: to have a coup day talk against Anthony Hitchins. He

441
00:22:03,280 –> 00:22:06,639
Speaker 1: soaked Anthony hitchins teaching in. He learned that Anthony was

442
00:22:06,680 –> 00:22:09,600
Speaker 1: a willing teacher, same thing where Alex Smith was a

443
00:22:09,640 –> 00:22:12,760
Speaker 1: willing teacher for Patrick Mahomes, but Nick soaked it in.

444
00:22:13,160 –> 00:22:15,480
Speaker 1: I’m excited for Nick Bolton. Not only is he back

445
00:22:15,480 –> 00:22:18,520
Speaker 1: in thirty two, folks, he’s switching numbers back to his

446
00:22:18,640 –> 00:22:21,840
Speaker 1: collegiate number of thirty two. But I’m excited for Nick

447
00:22:21,840 –> 00:22:24,920
Speaker 1: Bolton in an increased role even in his second year,

448
00:22:25,520 –> 00:22:28,080
Speaker 1: of providing much what he did at Mazoo, not just

449
00:22:28,200 –> 00:22:30,320
Speaker 1: on the field mat but off the field. And I

450
00:22:30,359 –> 00:22:33,560
Speaker 1: mentioned earlier how guys lead in different ways. Nick leads

451
00:22:33,560 –> 00:22:35,440
Speaker 1: in kind of a different way. First of all, he

452
00:22:35,520 –> 00:22:38,639
Speaker 1: leads by example big time. You mentioned earlier about how

453
00:22:38,680 –> 00:22:40,639
Speaker 1: your performance has to kind of back up your words,

454
00:22:40,720 –> 00:22:42,639
Speaker 1: and I think that’s the case for Nick Bolton, and

455
00:22:42,680 –> 00:22:45,240
Speaker 1: he gets fired up. But Nick Bolton isn’t necessarily the

456
00:22:45,280 –> 00:22:48,600
Speaker 1: guy who’s super rah rah right. He’s not super loud

457
00:22:48,640 –> 00:22:49,960
Speaker 1: out there, and really he can be kind of a

458
00:22:50,040 –> 00:22:53,040
Speaker 1: quiet guy at times. But first of all, players feed

459
00:22:53,080 –> 00:22:55,480
Speaker 1: off of his energy when he’s out there, but he

460
00:22:55,520 –> 00:22:59,920
Speaker 1: also communicates effectively, and it’s hard to discern between someone

461
00:23:00,000 –> 00:23:02,640
Speaker 1: being very loud and communicating effectively. Some guys can do both,

462
00:23:02,880 –> 00:23:04,879
Speaker 1: but Nick is a kind of a quiet guy, but

463
00:23:05,000 –> 00:23:07,600
Speaker 1: yet he communicates tremendously when he’s out there, and you

464
00:23:07,680 –> 00:23:10,119
Speaker 1: need that from your middle linebacker, and that’s why I

465
00:23:10,160 –> 00:23:12,880
Speaker 1: think he can handle this responsibility. And it’s just fun

466
00:23:12,920 –> 00:23:15,400
Speaker 1: to think about the Chief’s linebacker corps right now because

467
00:23:15,440 –> 00:23:17,840
Speaker 1: we’re going to watch these guys grow before our eyes.

468
00:23:18,160 –> 00:23:21,000
Speaker 1: Having Willie Gay out there and Leo Chanelle, it’s just

469
00:23:21,040 –> 00:23:23,800
Speaker 1: a very talented group of linebackers and Nick Bolton’s right

470
00:23:23,800 –> 00:23:25,479
Speaker 1: in the middle of it, and it’s safe to say

471
00:23:25,520 –> 00:23:27,640
Speaker 1: he’s the leader right now of this group. I think

472
00:23:27,640 –> 00:23:30,639
Speaker 1: they’ve added some depth to their Elijah Lee, who’s a

473
00:23:30,680 –> 00:23:32,720
Speaker 1: Blue Sprinx kid who played at Kase State, was a

474
00:23:32,800 –> 00:23:34,920
Speaker 1: leader at KSE State. He gives them an out depth.

475
00:23:35,040 –> 00:23:37,320
Speaker 1: Was a good player for the forty nine ers, especially

476
00:23:37,400 –> 00:23:39,880
Speaker 1: on special teams. Darius Harris has been around a while,

477
00:23:40,119 –> 00:23:44,000
Speaker 1: and you mentioned Chanelle. Chanelle actually fits this leadership rule too.

478
00:23:44,240 –> 00:23:46,719
Speaker 1: But it’s another thing I like about this rookie class.

479
00:23:47,080 –> 00:23:48,960
Speaker 1: They don’t feel like they’re going to walk in and go, hey,

480
00:23:49,000 –> 00:23:51,640
Speaker 1: watch us take over the team. You have to wait

481
00:23:51,720 –> 00:23:55,600
Speaker 1: your turn. You have to learn to be effective in

482
00:23:55,600 –> 00:23:58,560
Speaker 1: the National Football League as a long time leader. So

483
00:23:58,600 –> 00:24:00,880
Speaker 1: I’m fired. You know, I’m glad you made Willie Good junior.

484
00:24:00,880 –> 00:24:02,440
Speaker 1: I’m not going to leave him out of this discussion,

485
00:24:02,480 –> 00:24:05,200
Speaker 1: because he too seems ready, willing and able to take

486
00:24:05,200 –> 00:24:08,120
Speaker 1: on more responsibility, not just on the field. I remember

487
00:24:08,160 –> 00:24:10,280
Speaker 1: when Willie first got drafted. It was right in the

488
00:24:10,320 –> 00:24:12,400
Speaker 1: middle of COVID and it was really difficult for those

489
00:24:12,440 –> 00:24:15,440
Speaker 1: guys because they had no OTA’s, no rookie mini camp,

490
00:24:15,480 –> 00:24:18,879
Speaker 1: all the things that may not seem important on the outside,

491
00:24:18,960 –> 00:24:21,160
Speaker 1: but for these guys when they’re trying to get ready

492
00:24:21,200 –> 00:24:25,159
Speaker 1: for an NFL training camp as a rookie, they’re tremendously beneficial.

493
00:24:25,400 –> 00:24:27,520
Speaker 1: Just to go out there in shorts and have coach

494
00:24:27,560 –> 00:24:29,240
Speaker 1: Ree tell you a few things you get used to

495
00:24:29,280 –> 00:24:32,760
Speaker 1: stuff right, those are really important. I remember Willie after

496
00:24:33,000 –> 00:24:35,000
Speaker 1: not having any of those things and going through his

497
00:24:35,080 –> 00:24:37,720
Speaker 1: first couple practices at training camp, he was like, you

498
00:24:37,760 –> 00:24:40,080
Speaker 1: know what, I’m looking at it as an advantage, Like

499
00:24:40,119 –> 00:24:42,280
Speaker 1: everyone else gets those things. I didn’t get it, but

500
00:24:42,359 –> 00:24:44,520
Speaker 1: I’m going to be stronger because of it. That’s just

501
00:24:44,560 –> 00:24:47,320
Speaker 1: a great mentality, I think. And Willie, it’s been fun

502
00:24:47,359 –> 00:24:49,560
Speaker 1: to watch him grow over the last couple of years

503
00:24:49,560 –> 00:24:52,000
Speaker 1: because he used to be kind of quiet too, But

504
00:24:52,080 –> 00:24:54,600
Speaker 1: Willie is one of the most energetic guys that as

505
00:24:54,640 –> 00:24:57,119
Speaker 1: on this defense now, I think, and he’s just been

506
00:24:57,160 –> 00:24:59,439
Speaker 1: awesome and his play has backed it up as well.

507
00:24:59,520 –> 00:25:01,960
Speaker 1: The of Willy Gay, the potential that he had coming

508
00:25:01,960 –> 00:25:03,679
Speaker 1: out of school. We are like, he can be this

509
00:25:03,760 –> 00:25:06,800
Speaker 1: true hybrid linebacker that can cover sideline to sideline. We

510
00:25:06,880 –> 00:25:09,119
Speaker 1: saw that a lot last year and he’s only going

511
00:25:09,200 –> 00:25:11,200
Speaker 1: to get better. And you’re right, he’s also a leader

512
00:25:11,240 –> 00:25:14,119
Speaker 1: on this team. So again, this defending of the Kingdom

513
00:25:14,320 –> 00:25:17,800
Speaker 1: is dedicated to who leads a lot of You’ve asked

514
00:25:17,840 –> 00:25:19,879
Speaker 1: about a lot. Are you concerned about it, especially on

515
00:25:19,920 –> 00:25:23,080
Speaker 1: the defensive side. Offensively, you’re not as concerned because you

516
00:25:23,119 –> 00:25:26,920
Speaker 1: know about Patrick Mahomes. Not only is the most proficient

517
00:25:27,000 –> 00:25:29,919
Speaker 1: quarterback in NFL history in his first four years as

518
00:25:29,920 –> 00:25:33,000
Speaker 1: a starter, with this fifty eight wins and sixteen losses

519
00:25:33,000 –> 00:25:35,320
Speaker 1: and all the metrics, he’s the best in NFL history

520
00:25:35,359 –> 00:25:37,880
Speaker 1: with all these starts, in all the starts that he’s had.

521
00:25:38,480 –> 00:25:40,960
Speaker 1: It’s also the fact that he is a strong leader

522
00:25:40,960 –> 00:25:43,520
Speaker 1: on this team, just what he did in Dallas, taking

523
00:25:43,560 –> 00:25:45,720
Speaker 1: all the guys there to work him out before they

524
00:25:45,760 –> 00:25:48,199
Speaker 1: came up here to work out the fact that he

525
00:25:48,200 –> 00:25:52,280
Speaker 1: takes responsibility. We know about his consistent performance, he also

526
00:25:52,480 –> 00:25:55,720
Speaker 1: waited his turn. He checks all the boxes of what

527
00:25:55,840 –> 00:25:58,040
Speaker 1: has made great leaders in the National Football League of

528
00:25:58,080 –> 00:26:00,640
Speaker 1: a long period of time. But I do think we

529
00:26:00,720 –> 00:26:04,640
Speaker 1: overlook the fact that he waited and learned and absorbed

530
00:26:04,880 –> 00:26:07,520
Speaker 1: it that initial year from Alex Smith. I always think

531
00:26:07,520 –> 00:26:11,400
Speaker 1: about this when rookie quarterbacks start early on in their

532
00:26:11,520 –> 00:26:14,639
Speaker 1: rookie season, and I know everyone is always excited to

533
00:26:14,680 –> 00:26:18,159
Speaker 1: see the new player that you acquired. But man, the

534
00:26:18,200 –> 00:26:21,000
Speaker 1: Patrick Mahomes Alex Smith model worked pretty well, didn’t it.

535
00:26:21,119 –> 00:26:23,760
Speaker 1: And most teams just aren’t patient enough or don’t have

536
00:26:24,040 –> 00:26:27,200
Speaker 1: a willing teacher to do it. And Alex Smith is

537
00:26:27,240 –> 00:26:29,240
Speaker 1: so unique in that way. And we’ve had a chance

538
00:26:29,280 –> 00:26:31,840
Speaker 1: to see him since he was on the Chiefs when

539
00:26:31,840 –> 00:26:34,960
Speaker 1: he’s come back here and he’s like a proud dad

540
00:26:35,080 –> 00:26:38,080
Speaker 1: when he’s you know what Patrick Mahomes has become. But

541
00:26:38,359 –> 00:26:40,800
Speaker 1: it was the combination of a very unique opportunity where

542
00:26:40,800 –> 00:26:42,879
Speaker 1: you have a great head coach Nandy Reid, a willing

543
00:26:42,920 –> 00:26:45,639
Speaker 1: teacher and a very competent player, and Alex Smith. I

544
00:26:45,640 –> 00:26:47,000
Speaker 1: mean he went out there and had I think his

545
00:26:47,080 –> 00:26:49,760
Speaker 1: best season as a pro in twenty seventeen, and a

546
00:26:49,800 –> 00:26:53,080
Speaker 1: willing learner in Patrick Mahomes. It was perfect. Most teams

547
00:26:53,400 –> 00:26:56,120
Speaker 1: don’t have that. But what Patrick has grown into now

548
00:26:56,400 –> 00:26:59,040
Speaker 1: learning from Alex and learning from coach Reid, is just

549
00:26:59,080 –> 00:27:01,400
Speaker 1: one of the best leaders I’ve ever seen, and we’ve

550
00:27:01,400 –> 00:27:03,520
Speaker 1: seen that throughout his time in so many different ways.

551
00:27:03,760 –> 00:27:06,160
Speaker 1: I think about the AFC Championship game against the Bills

552
00:27:06,160 –> 00:27:08,399
Speaker 1: a couple of years ago when McCole Hartman had the

553
00:27:08,440 –> 00:27:10,719
Speaker 1: coat over his head and Patrick comes back to him

554
00:27:10,760 –> 00:27:13,119
Speaker 1: and says, hey, we’re gonna need you, and then trust

555
00:27:13,240 –> 00:27:15,720
Speaker 1: him later on and throws a touchdown pass his way.

556
00:27:15,800 –> 00:27:19,000
Speaker 1: That was cool. Also, I remember last year against the

557
00:27:19,080 –> 00:27:21,520
Speaker 1: Raiders in Vegas. This is a smaller profile one, but

558
00:27:21,960 –> 00:27:24,119
Speaker 1: Noah Gray. I don’t think it was his fault, but

559
00:27:24,160 –> 00:27:26,600
Speaker 1: Noah Gray had a couple of passes that bounced off

560
00:27:26,600 –> 00:27:29,879
Speaker 1: of his hands. Well, Patrick kept going his way and

561
00:27:30,000 –> 00:27:32,399
Speaker 1: through Noah Gray a touchdown in a big moment. Later

562
00:27:32,480 –> 00:27:36,280
Speaker 1: in that drive. So Patrick endgame as a tremendous leader.

563
00:27:36,320 –> 00:27:37,959
Speaker 1: But you also mentioned how he’s getting the guys all

564
00:27:37,960 –> 00:27:41,719
Speaker 1: together down in Texas for basically extended OTAs like, Hey,

565
00:27:41,720 –> 00:27:43,320
Speaker 1: if you want to come down and get better, like,

566
00:27:43,440 –> 00:27:45,400
Speaker 1: come on down here. We have great facilities and we’ll

567
00:27:45,400 –> 00:27:47,720
Speaker 1: get better together. And when you have new players like

568
00:27:47,760 –> 00:27:50,960
Speaker 1: the Chiefs do, particularly an offense, they’ve had a chance

569
00:27:51,000 –> 00:27:52,760
Speaker 1: to get to know each other before they were even

570
00:27:52,760 –> 00:27:54,960
Speaker 1: in the building together. So we could have an entire

571
00:27:55,000 –> 00:27:58,480
Speaker 1: hour long podcast on the examples of leadership we’ve seen

572
00:27:58,480 –> 00:28:01,359
Speaker 1: from Patrick. But makes me feel very good as a

573
00:28:01,440 –> 00:28:04,800
Speaker 1: Chiefs fan when your superstar quarterback isn’t only the best

574
00:28:04,800 –> 00:28:06,720
Speaker 1: player in the NFL, he’s the best leader in the

575
00:28:06,840 –> 00:28:10,680
Speaker 1: NFL too. It’s easy for players to be jealous of Patrick.

576
00:28:11,640 –> 00:28:16,000
Speaker 1: They’re not. They love him because he just emanates that

577
00:28:16,080 –> 00:28:18,800
Speaker 1: to those rest of this whole locker room. I’ve noticed

578
00:28:18,840 –> 00:28:20,399
Speaker 1: some teams are trying to emulate it. I think the

579
00:28:20,440 –> 00:28:21,760
Speaker 1: Titans are trying to do that a little bit with

580
00:28:21,880 –> 00:28:25,000
Speaker 1: Ryan Tannehill and Malik Willis. You see that they would

581
00:28:25,000 –> 00:28:26,760
Speaker 1: love to do what the Chiefs have done. It’s just

582
00:28:26,920 –> 00:28:29,639
Speaker 1: it’s you’re right, it’s rare to have the teacher in

583
00:28:29,720 –> 00:28:32,320
Speaker 1: Alex Smith, to have the pupil who’s willing to learn

584
00:28:32,440 –> 00:28:35,040
Speaker 1: in Patrick Mahomes. But there are other leaders on this

585
00:28:35,119 –> 00:28:38,040
Speaker 1: offense that I think are of no tier. Because it’s

586
00:28:38,080 –> 00:28:41,280
Speaker 1: why you and I are excited about the young guys

587
00:28:41,280 –> 00:28:44,160
Speaker 1: on this team. Now. Thornhills was in the class of nineteen,

588
00:28:44,880 –> 00:28:48,040
Speaker 1: Willie K Jr. In the class of twenty. Bolton comes

589
00:28:48,080 –> 00:28:50,040
Speaker 1: in in the class of twenty one, but he has

590
00:28:50,160 –> 00:28:53,000
Speaker 1: classmates on the offensive side of the ball that fit

591
00:28:53,160 –> 00:28:58,480
Speaker 1: this narrative. Creed Humphrey was born to be a long

592
00:28:58,600 –> 00:29:01,720
Speaker 1: time leader in the National Football League. He too, checks

593
00:29:01,760 –> 00:29:04,200
Speaker 1: all the boxes. He came in as a two time

594
00:29:04,240 –> 00:29:07,000
Speaker 1: captain at the University of Oklahoma. If you go back

595
00:29:07,000 –> 00:29:09,960
Speaker 1: to his days at Shawnee High School in Oklahoma, where

596
00:29:09,960 –> 00:29:12,120
Speaker 1: he was the leader again of that high school and

597
00:29:12,200 –> 00:29:17,280
Speaker 1: a wrestling champion. Oklahoma almost immediately put him in a role,

598
00:29:17,320 –> 00:29:19,560
Speaker 1: but he waited his turn. Remember that’s a part of

599
00:29:19,640 –> 00:29:22,160
Speaker 1: leadership is to learn and absorb, which he did. But

600
00:29:22,240 –> 00:29:25,600
Speaker 1: then OU for two years made him a team captain

601
00:29:25,640 –> 00:29:29,760
Speaker 1: in twenty twenty COVID year in twenty nineteen. It was

602
00:29:29,800 –> 00:29:33,800
Speaker 1: impressive to watch him fit into this same genre because

603
00:29:33,840 –> 00:29:36,600
Speaker 1: he too last year absorbed and learned. He said, I’ve

604
00:29:36,600 –> 00:29:38,080
Speaker 1: got to look to learn to play in the National

605
00:29:38,080 –> 00:29:41,000
Speaker 1: Football League. But Krean Humphrey reminds me of a Brian

606
00:29:41,080 –> 00:29:43,360
Speaker 1: Dawkins kind of guy who could be not only a

607
00:29:43,360 –> 00:29:45,360
Speaker 1: great player in this league, but a long time leader.

608
00:29:45,600 –> 00:29:48,240
Speaker 1: I think it was during the Pro Bowl when Patrick

609
00:29:48,280 –> 00:29:50,520
Speaker 1: Mahomes is miked up and talking to somebody. It might

610
00:29:50,560 –> 00:29:52,960
Speaker 1: have been Max Crosby, that’s a great one, and they’re

611
00:29:53,000 –> 00:29:56,160
Speaker 1: talking about Creed and Patrick’s like, man, he doesn’t care

612
00:29:56,200 –> 00:29:58,600
Speaker 1: about anything but football. Let us walk around the facility

613
00:29:58,680 –> 00:30:01,320
Speaker 1: just wearing crocs because care about anything. Just want us

614
00:30:01,320 –> 00:30:03,640
Speaker 1: to be better at football. Like Creed, Humphrey is the

615
00:30:03,720 –> 00:30:06,760
Speaker 1: ultimate like football guy. Just a football guy, that’s what

616
00:30:06,760 –> 00:30:08,680
Speaker 1: he is. And he’s really good at it. And he

617
00:30:08,760 –> 00:30:11,600
Speaker 1: demands respect when he’s out there. He’s not like barking

618
00:30:11,640 –> 00:30:15,600
Speaker 1: in guy’s faces, but he is out there mauling dudes,

619
00:30:15,800 –> 00:30:18,320
Speaker 1: and you just respect it right away. He earned that

620
00:30:18,440 –> 00:30:20,640
Speaker 1: from like the first day of like rookie minicamp, when

621
00:30:20,640 –> 00:30:22,520
Speaker 1: we were watching were like, this guy is really good.

622
00:30:22,960 –> 00:30:25,600
Speaker 1: And when you’re a younger player, even though Creed is

623
00:30:25,640 –> 00:30:28,200
Speaker 1: only going into his second year in the NFL. When

624
00:30:28,240 –> 00:30:30,400
Speaker 1: you’re a younger player and you see a guy like

625
00:30:30,480 –> 00:30:33,240
Speaker 1: that carrying himself the way that he does and having

626
00:30:33,240 –> 00:30:35,960
Speaker 1: this success that he’s already had just going into a

627
00:30:36,000 –> 00:30:39,440
Speaker 1: second year in the league, you follow that guy. And

628
00:30:39,480 –> 00:30:42,200
Speaker 1: I mentioned this was important for the Chiefs, and we’ll

629
00:30:42,200 –> 00:30:44,320
Speaker 1: talk about Trey Smith too, but this was important for

630
00:30:44,320 –> 00:30:46,600
Speaker 1: the Chiefs when they remade their offensive line to find

631
00:30:46,640 –> 00:30:50,040
Speaker 1: guys like this because it was a very necessary but

632
00:30:50,240 –> 00:30:53,240
Speaker 1: dangerous thing to do when you basically replace all five

633
00:30:53,280 –> 00:30:56,240
Speaker 1: of your starters along the offensive line. I mean, when

634
00:30:56,240 –> 00:30:58,280
Speaker 1: you have guys like Eric Fisher and Mitchell Schwartzho I

635
00:30:58,320 –> 00:31:00,200
Speaker 1: mentioned earlier that have been here a long time, I’m

636
00:31:00,280 –> 00:31:03,600
Speaker 1: that are the leaders along the offensive line, they go elsewhere.

637
00:31:04,200 –> 00:31:05,959
Speaker 1: You got to find some guys not only who are

638
00:31:05,960 –> 00:31:08,280
Speaker 1: good football players, but who are also going to continue

639
00:31:08,320 –> 00:31:11,880
Speaker 1: on a certain culture. And these guys epitomize it, like

640
00:31:11,920 –> 00:31:13,840
Speaker 1: the Chiefs couldn’t have found a better guy to be

641
00:31:13,880 –> 00:31:16,200
Speaker 1: their center than Creed Humphrey, not just because of the

642
00:31:16,200 –> 00:31:18,600
Speaker 1: player that he is, but because he is the ultimate

643
00:31:18,680 –> 00:31:22,560
Speaker 1: football dude in every use of the word. And I

644
00:31:22,600 –> 00:31:24,520
Speaker 1: just can’t wait to see what happens with Creed over

645
00:31:24,560 –> 00:31:26,480
Speaker 1: the course of his career. But if you look at

646
00:31:26,480 –> 00:31:28,560
Speaker 1: Pro Football Focus numbers, he was the best center in

647
00:31:28,600 –> 00:31:31,800
Speaker 1: the NFL since twenty seventeen last year, and he was

648
00:31:31,840 –> 00:31:35,560
Speaker 1: just a rookie. So Humphrey pretty good at this football thing.

649
00:31:35,680 –> 00:31:38,080
Speaker 1: And when you look at the great centers in Chiefs history,

650
00:31:38,280 –> 00:31:42,720
Speaker 1: J Hallam Super Bowl Champion, Jack Rudney, the Chiefs ring

651
00:31:42,720 –> 00:31:44,520
Speaker 1: of On or Tim Grunner just went up on the

652
00:31:44,560 –> 00:31:46,960
Speaker 1: ring of On or even Rodney Hudson in the first

653
00:31:47,040 –> 00:31:49,520
Speaker 1: days of coach read here. There is a long litany

654
00:31:49,600 –> 00:31:53,920
Speaker 1: of center leaders, and Creed Humphrey so excited about his

655
00:31:53,960 –> 00:31:56,520
Speaker 1: future not just as a football player, but as a

656
00:31:56,600 –> 00:31:59,400
Speaker 1: leader in a lynchpin in the locker room. Here in

657
00:31:59,440 –> 00:32:05,280
Speaker 1: the Chiefs Dam. Tray Smith also fits this narrative. All

658
00:32:05,320 –> 00:32:07,840
Speaker 1: you have to do is when you’re done listening and

659
00:32:08,040 –> 00:32:13,360
Speaker 1: watching or watching this podcast, find his acceptance speech when

660
00:32:13,400 –> 00:32:15,680
Speaker 1: he was the Jason Witton Collegiate Man of the Year.

661
00:32:16,280 –> 00:32:20,840
Speaker 1: Tray Smith is an unbelievable dude. Tray Smith could be

662
00:32:20,880 –> 00:32:24,360
Speaker 1: a civic leader and will be probably someday called the

663
00:32:24,400 –> 00:32:26,920
Speaker 1: steal of the entire twenty twenty one draft. That’s what

664
00:32:26,960 –> 00:32:29,400
Speaker 1: the experts said after they saw him, going, oh my gosh,

665
00:32:29,440 –> 00:32:31,840
Speaker 1: this is a first round talent the Chiefs got in

666
00:32:31,840 –> 00:32:35,400
Speaker 1: the sixth round. You and I had glimpses when we

667
00:32:35,440 –> 00:32:38,840
Speaker 1: researched him, and you’ve got Tennessee fans in your family,

668
00:32:39,240 –> 00:32:41,760
Speaker 1: so there was a little bit more of an understanding

669
00:32:41,760 –> 00:32:44,560
Speaker 1: of what Tray Smith is all about. But once he

670
00:32:44,680 –> 00:32:47,680
Speaker 1: got here, once we did even a further deep dive

671
00:32:48,040 –> 00:32:50,560
Speaker 1: into what he’s like as a person and as a leader,

672
00:32:52,280 –> 00:32:55,160
Speaker 1: this guy’s off the charts. I mean, this is an

673
00:32:55,160 –> 00:32:58,239
Speaker 1: incredible person who has got the ability to be a

674
00:32:58,240 –> 00:33:00,840
Speaker 1: long time leader in the national football You can find

675
00:33:00,840 –> 00:33:03,880
Speaker 1: that acceptance speech on the Chiefs YouTube page. It was

676
00:33:03,920 –> 00:33:07,520
Speaker 1: a feature called Before the Kingdom. One of our producers, Danny,

677
00:33:07,800 –> 00:33:09,680
Speaker 1: did that and it was awesome. You can find that

678
00:33:09,760 –> 00:33:11,800
Speaker 1: on the Chiefs YouTube page. And I’ll give it a watch,

679
00:33:11,840 –> 00:33:13,320
Speaker 1: just a couple of minutes, but you’ll come away from

680
00:33:13,320 –> 00:33:18,280
Speaker 1: it thinking, I’m proud this guy is on our team. Yeah. Yeah,

681
00:33:18,320 –> 00:33:21,160
Speaker 1: I mean, I mean it’s incredible. And you know, the

682
00:33:21,240 –> 00:33:25,280
Speaker 1: thing about Trey is a lot of great athletes NFL

683
00:33:25,360 –> 00:33:28,320
Speaker 1: athletes have been really good for a long time, and

684
00:33:28,360 –> 00:33:30,640
Speaker 1: they don’t face adversity until they get to the NFL

685
00:33:30,680 –> 00:33:33,040
Speaker 1: because they realize it’s hard and they overcome that and

686
00:33:33,120 –> 00:33:37,480
Speaker 1: it’s great. But Tray Smith encountered significant adversity to the

687
00:33:37,520 –> 00:33:39,200
Speaker 1: point where he didn’t know if his career was going

688
00:33:39,240 –> 00:33:43,440
Speaker 1: to continue, and you know, he persevered, he fought through it,

689
00:33:43,640 –> 00:33:46,240
Speaker 1: and he once he figured out I can safely continue

690
00:33:46,240 –> 00:33:48,880
Speaker 1: playing football, I’m gonna keep playing football because I love it.

691
00:33:48,920 –> 00:33:51,480
Speaker 1: And I really admire that about him, and he he

692
00:33:51,520 –> 00:33:53,600
Speaker 1: didn’t just go out there and say I’m gonna play again.

693
00:33:53,640 –> 00:33:56,960
Speaker 1: I’m gonna play at an elite level. And the fact

694
00:33:57,040 –> 00:33:59,800
Speaker 1: that he went i think number two, twenty six overall

695
00:34:00,120 –> 00:34:02,880
Speaker 1: in the draft when he should have been probably a

696
00:34:02,920 –> 00:34:05,680
Speaker 1: first or second round pick, it’s just crazy to me.

697
00:34:05,720 –> 00:34:08,560
Speaker 1: And he is the steal of that entire draft class.

698
00:34:08,960 –> 00:34:11,520
Speaker 1: But it’s not just his physical ability. Once again, it’s

699
00:34:11,520 –> 00:34:15,000
Speaker 1: his ability mentally to fight through adversity, to not let

700
00:34:15,040 –> 00:34:17,719
Speaker 1: those things weigh on his mind and to go out

701
00:34:17,760 –> 00:34:20,040
Speaker 1: there and just too mal dudes. I mean, if he

702
00:34:20,080 –> 00:34:22,480
Speaker 1: watch his film from last year, he’s just a maller.

703
00:34:22,520 –> 00:34:25,520
Speaker 1: He’s just like Creed Humphrey. And even though he’s a

704
00:34:25,560 –> 00:34:28,320
Speaker 1: young player, when you have a young guy like Darian Connard,

705
00:34:28,400 –> 00:34:30,840
Speaker 1: for example. He’ll come in here and he’s kind of

706
00:34:30,840 –> 00:34:33,400
Speaker 1: a maller himself. But when you get to the NFL

707
00:34:33,719 –> 00:34:35,959
Speaker 1: and you see how Tray Smith, you see how Creed

708
00:34:36,040 –> 00:34:39,200
Speaker 1: Humphrey and the other guys along the offensive line, Joe Tuney,

709
00:34:39,320 –> 00:34:42,279
Speaker 1: Orlando Brown Junior, you see how they’re carrying themselves, You’re like,

710
00:34:42,320 –> 00:34:44,719
Speaker 1: all right, this is how I do things as a pro,

711
00:34:45,080 –> 00:34:48,040
Speaker 1: and then you rely on your physical gifts after that.

712
00:34:48,040 –> 00:34:50,520
Speaker 1: That’s the beautiful thing right now about the Chief’s offensive

713
00:34:50,560 –> 00:34:53,920
Speaker 1: line is they have arguably one of the best offensive

714
00:34:53,920 –> 00:34:57,160
Speaker 1: lines in all of football. They’re all super young, they’re

715
00:34:57,160 –> 00:35:01,319
Speaker 1: all willing to teach, and they’re all maller and to

716
00:35:01,400 –> 00:35:05,359
Speaker 1: have that being your culture up front is just a

717
00:35:05,400 –> 00:35:08,040
Speaker 1: great thing for the Chiefs when you’re protecting Patrick Mahomes

718
00:35:08,160 –> 00:35:11,360
Speaker 1: and trying to make this offense go so Tray Smith

719
00:35:11,520 –> 00:35:15,120
Speaker 1: getting him in the sixth round, it’s pretty phenomenal looking

720
00:35:15,120 –> 00:35:18,319
Speaker 1: back at it a year later. They’re also all continuing

721
00:35:18,360 –> 00:35:21,080
Speaker 1: to be willing to learn, all of them. And that’s

722
00:35:21,120 –> 00:35:23,359
Speaker 1: the thing about all these guys we mentioned all want

723
00:35:23,360 –> 00:35:26,040
Speaker 1: to continue to learn. You have to be good enough

724
00:35:26,040 –> 00:35:28,319
Speaker 1: in the National Football League. We know that that’s an

725
00:35:28,320 –> 00:35:31,160
Speaker 1: obvious statement. These are the best athletes in the world

726
00:35:31,200 –> 00:35:36,440
Speaker 1: in many ways, but consistently winning teams in the NFL

727
00:35:36,640 –> 00:35:41,880
Speaker 1: must have something else. They’ve got to have an internal leadership. Remember,

728
00:35:42,080 –> 00:35:46,520
Speaker 1: you have performance proceeds leadership too. That performance has got

729
00:35:46,560 –> 00:35:50,000
Speaker 1: to be consistent. The third box to check is you

730
00:35:50,120 –> 00:35:54,160
Speaker 1: handle flashpoints. They happen all the time. They are personal

731
00:35:54,160 –> 00:35:57,680
Speaker 1: flashpoints and they are team flashpoints. And fourth, and this

732
00:35:57,719 –> 00:36:00,279
Speaker 1: one is a little more sublime. You have to wait

733
00:36:00,680 –> 00:36:04,200
Speaker 1: your turn. You absorb until that time comes. But when

734
00:36:04,200 –> 00:36:07,239
Speaker 1: the time comes, you seize that time. And all the

735
00:36:07,320 –> 00:36:10,720
Speaker 1: names that we mentioned in this episode to me are

736
00:36:10,760 –> 00:36:14,000
Speaker 1: ready to take that step. Yeah, it’s preparation meets opportunity

737
00:36:14,120 –> 00:36:16,200
Speaker 1: for a lot of these guys. And you mentioned how

738
00:36:16,280 –> 00:36:18,600
Speaker 1: these guys are never satisfied. I was just thinking again

739
00:36:18,640 –> 00:36:22,040
Speaker 1: about Trey last year. Mid season, everyone’s like, man, you’re

740
00:36:22,440 –> 00:36:24,399
Speaker 1: doing great. I mean, you were a sixth round pick.

741
00:36:24,440 –> 00:36:26,359
Speaker 1: Shouldn’t have been, but you were a sixth round pick.

742
00:36:26,680 –> 00:36:29,560
Speaker 1: From day one. You’ve been the starter at guard and

743
00:36:29,600 –> 00:36:32,040
Speaker 1: you’ve looked really good. Like, how would you evaluate your performance?

744
00:36:32,040 –> 00:36:34,600
Speaker 1: And he’s like, I don’t think i’ve been good at all.

745
00:36:34,760 –> 00:36:36,839
Speaker 1: I mean there’s a million things I can get better at,

746
00:36:37,239 –> 00:36:39,520
Speaker 1: and to have that kind of mindset as a young

747
00:36:39,600 –> 00:36:41,839
Speaker 1: player when it would be really easy to go out

748
00:36:41,880 –> 00:36:44,440
Speaker 1: there and be like people think I’m good. You know,

749
00:36:44,520 –> 00:36:46,120
Speaker 1: I’m just gonna write on this like I’m good. I

750
00:36:46,160 –> 00:36:48,799
Speaker 1: don’t have to worry about anything. He’s like, no, there’s

751
00:36:48,800 –> 00:36:50,600
Speaker 1: a million things I have to get better at. All.

752
00:36:50,640 –> 00:36:53,000
Speaker 1: These guys are like that. Patrick Mahomes is like that.

753
00:36:53,040 –> 00:36:55,680
Speaker 1: You would never expect that from a guy who is

754
00:36:55,719 –> 00:36:58,280
Speaker 1: off to the greatest start for any quarterback in NFL history,

755
00:36:58,400 –> 00:37:00,520
Speaker 1: and it can go out there and make video game

756
00:37:00,600 –> 00:37:02,960
Speaker 1: throws like it’s no big deal at all. But he’s

757
00:37:03,000 –> 00:37:05,600
Speaker 1: the ultimate guy that’s never satisfied with his own performance.

758
00:37:05,640 –> 00:37:07,520
Speaker 1: And that’s why the Chiefs have been so good. They

759
00:37:07,560 –> 00:37:09,560
Speaker 1: have an entire team of guys that are like that,

760
00:37:09,560 –> 00:37:11,719
Speaker 1: that are uber talented but always want to get better.

761
00:37:11,760 –> 00:37:14,000
Speaker 1: And that’s the beautiful thing with this team. And there’s

762
00:37:14,000 –> 00:37:17,319
Speaker 1: so much young talent infused from the draft now on

763
00:37:17,360 –> 00:37:19,520
Speaker 1: this squad as well that this season is going to

764
00:37:19,600 –> 00:37:22,399
Speaker 1: be a lot of fun. And I think from week one,

765
00:37:22,600 –> 00:37:24,040
Speaker 1: I think his team is going to be really good.

766
00:37:24,320 –> 00:37:26,080
Speaker 1: But when you see them at the end of the

767
00:37:26,080 –> 00:37:28,520
Speaker 1: season and going into January. It’s gonna be a team

768
00:37:28,520 –> 00:37:30,359
Speaker 1: that’s going to be a force to be reckoned with. Yeah,

769
00:37:30,360 –> 00:37:33,080
Speaker 1: we’re gonna have this episode probably the same week in

770
00:37:33,160 –> 00:37:36,279
Speaker 1: twenty twenty three, twenty four, and twenty five. I have

771
00:37:36,280 –> 00:37:38,560
Speaker 1: a feeling we’ll be talking about this twenty twenty two

772
00:37:38,640 –> 00:37:40,680
Speaker 1: class in that regard. You sleep like a baby, you

773
00:37:40,760 –> 00:37:44,120
Speaker 1: sleep so soundly. Every night I’ll wake up and stir

774
00:37:44,160 –> 00:37:46,680
Speaker 1: at the ceiling fan because we’re all I’m concerned about

775
00:37:46,719 –> 00:37:49,520
Speaker 1: some certain things, but I’ll tell you there’s one thing

776
00:37:49,560 –> 00:38:02,480
Speaker 1: I’m not concerned about is who will lead touchdown s