49ers
49ers OT Colton McKivitz said during his second year in the NFL that he thought he made the team, but HC Kyle Shanahan told him that he was on the outside looking in.
“Kyle was like, ‘Hey you know why you’re here, right?” he recalled, via NBC Sports. “And I was like, ‘Yeah.’ And then he says, ‘You didn’t make the team. But I thought he said, ‘You made the team.’ So I let out a big gasp and said, ‘Oh, thank God!” Then, he said, ‘No, you didn’t hear me right. You got cut.’ And I just wanted to get out of there as fast as possible.”
McKivitz adapted to the mental aspect of the team’s training camp and said that he worked on making himself more physically prepared.
“I made myself take my shirt off during workouts,” McKivitz said. “It’s like, if you don’t like what you’re seeing, do something about it. Put it all out there. That’s just a lot of mental growth. I’ve learned to love myself.”
- 49ers HC Kyle Shanahan said they did not have the luxury of keeping two kickers because of other roster issues. (Matt Maiocco)
- Per Maiocco, DT Kevin Givens will be out a while with a pec injury, while RB Isaac Guerendo will miss a few weeks with a shoulder injury.
Cardinals
Cardinals OT Paris Johnson started from the bottom as a high school offensive lineman at former Bengals Pro Bowler Willie Anderson‘s camp in Atlanta, Georgia.
Anderson recently hosted Eagles RT Lane Johnson on his podcast, where they both spoke about things coming together in their second seasons. They both believe that Johnson is now in a similar spot, on the verge of becoming a star.
“I would’ve been the worst-ranked offensive lineman in the world that first day in Atlanta,” Johnson said, via the team website. “To continually work to get to this (level) … I’ve always had a standard at being great at what I do. What I strive for is to be able to match what I believe everybody wants to see when they say this person is an elite offensive lineman. I felt like I had always had success at football, and when I switched to O-line, there was a big hole with something new. I was taking in absolutely everything he was giving me.”
“I feel I know what it is like to be at the top in my game and how I rank in terms of the rest of the country, going back to high school and college,” Johnson added. “It’s been put on film, the guys before me have done it and done it consistently. They show what it takes to be in the conversation to be the best overall lineman each year. I feel I know the standard I have for myself and what it feels like, and I know what it looks like. When I do it and I feel it consistently for myself and I come off the field feeling that way, the world will feel the same way about it.”
Cardinals OL coach Justin Frye is in his first season with the team, joining Arizona from Ohio State, where he coached Johnson during his final season in Columbus. Frye weighed in on Johnson’s transition to being a pro, as did HC Jonathan Gannon and QB Kyler Murray.
“It’s the old saying, ‘If you’re good, you tell people about yourself, if you’re great, other people tell you about it,’” Frye said of Johnson. “The elite players, when you watch the tape, the good is the good, and then there are the flashes of ‘Man, not a lot of people do that.’ He is working daily to get to that level. When you press play and watch the tape, it’s noticeable.”
“I’m not going to make power statements and throw things out there, but I think he has a really high ceiling,” Gannon commented on Johnson. “I’m looking forward to seeing him work toward that every day, because it’s Mars. Hopefully that wasn’t a power statement.”
“I love having Paris on my blind side,” Murray said. “He doesn’t get the notoriety that he will, not necessarily deserve, yet but I think he’ll get there. I think he can definitely be the best tackle in the league. He’s got the traits. That just comes with growth, confidence, and going out and doing it. I think people will soon realize what he is capable of.”
Rams
Rame RB Blake Corum commented on things he is going to do differently entering his second season in the league.
“Year 1, I was trying to be as perfect in everything that I did. I didn’t want to make any mistakes. And that slowed me down a bit in terms of my capabilities,” Corum said. “Now I’m just out there letting it loose. I’m playing at a lower weight, I feel faster, I feel more agile, I feel great. Between that and the game slowing down, that’s the biggest difference.”
Seahawks
Seahawks fifth-round WR Tory Horton has been consistently making plays in training camp, being referred to by CB Riq Woolen as “Jerry Rice“. Seattle second-round S Nick Emmanwori has also referred to him as the steal of the draft. It now appears that he is a lock to make the 53-man roster.
“I’m seeing the same thing you guys are,” HC Mike Macdonald said over the weekend when asked about Horton, via the team’s official website. “A wise man, Steve Smith Sr., once said, ‘Rookies need to make a play a day to make a name for themselves.’ He’s doing that. He’s making multiple plays every day. So, it is great for the Seahawks, great for him, and great competition in the receiver room. We are two weeks in, but let’s keep it rolling.”
“I stay away from the media,” Horton told reporters. “I’ve just been focusing on myself. Me hearing that (about being the steal of the draft), it’s a little bit of motivation for me. At the end of the day, God had his plan for me and I’m happy I ended up in Seattle. There were a lot of teams who knocked me because of the injury and it’s a hard pill to swallow. I’m blessed I’m here now, and I just want to make the best of my opportunity. So me hearing, ‘The steal of the draft,’ now I just want to go out there and capitalize on it. Let those people know that I’m back and I’m full go. I’m ready.”
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