Practice Report (4/22): Notes from the sideline
Day 2 of minicamp took place on Wednesday at the Quest Diagnostics Training Center. Despite rain in the morning, the field dried out enough to practice outside under overcast skies and temperatures in the 50s. Practice lasted just under two and a half hours.
Wide receivers focused on their releases, working on getting off from a stop position quickly and then staying low to change direction to get around the cornerback.
Running backs did an interesting drill where they put one hand in the ground and quickly ran in a circle moving their feet quickly before coming out of the crouch and exploding in a straight line. Maintaining balance in the transition seems to be the main challenge.
The edge group worked on extending one arm into the chest of a potential blocker to keep them off and control them. Getting vertical push in the front seven will be critical to this defense. Close by, the off-ball linebackers worked on flowing in the same direction and getting the correct angle and leverage to the football.
Safeties were tested on their range towards the sideline and middle of the field in a drill where they had to react quickly to a deep pass, attack the ball and come down with an interception while getting both feet in bounds.
Quarterbacks maneuvered in the pocket, working on their footwork to sidestep simulated rushers before throwing a pass.
A long portion of the middle of practice was dedicated to teaching both the offense and defense, with the groups working through their schemes on different fields at a slower tempo. Matt Nagy gave me flashbacks to former offensive line coach Pat Flaherty as he screamed 'FINISH!' to coax his players to complete each and every rep.
The safeties continue to flash. Tyler Nubin looks athletic and did a nice job filling against the run during the first team period. Jevon Holland was very active in the secondary, being in position on three different occasions to prevent a catch outright or put a big hit on a receiver after they made a catch. His reaction time was excellent.
Micah McFadden had a couple nice plays late in practice, being in perfect position to lay what would have been a big hit on Tyrone Tracy Jr. on a quick pass to the flat and filling a hole on an Eric Gray run.
Darius Alexander, Brian Burns and Abdul Carter all got into the backfield at different times for potential sacks.
The offense made some big plays during practice, the first coming in 7-on-7. On the play after a nice leaping interception by Jarrick Bernard-Converse in front of Xavier Gipson, Jameis Winston threw a perfect pass to connect with Ryan Miller down the right sideline for a touchdown. Miller has been very active the first two days of minicamp.
Jaxson Dart made some nice throws, including a pass over the middle to Isaiah Likely. Isaiah Hodgins made a touch catch over the middle on a pass from Jameis Winston. Gunner Olszewski made a short catch and turned it up-field for a big gain towards the end of practice.
The final day of minicamp practice is a bit shorter and earlier in the day (starting at 11 a.m.) with the draft taking place on Thursday night.
