Chase Edmonds – June 1, 2022
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Wednesday, June 1, 2022
RB Chase Edmonds
(How’d it feel to get back out there for the first day today?) – “It felt good. Obviously I’ve got to get used to this heat. But just to be out here with the team, be out here with the guys grinding hard, we’re trying to build something special here. Coach (Mike) McDaniel always talks about we want to build something special and it’s going to be a lot of hard work. Having guys bought into the system, having guys bought into the work, taking care of each other, I’m just excited to be out here with the guys now.”
(What makes you confident that this running game will be efficient and effective this season?) – “I’ve played against it for the last four years. It’s something special with how they disguise everything, the window dressing to make everything look the same. It really confuses the defense and holds the defense to be disciplined and have gap integrity. I think that’s something I’m good at, specializing my zone scheme. I’m excited to get into the zone and work my feet, work the rhythm. It’s a different scheme than what I’m used to. I was predominately inside zone, so working my feet, getting used to the outside zone track, getting used to the outside zone feel, how certain lanes feel. Just working to build something special.”
(Before the contact really starts, is it more mental for you in these particular practices?) – “I’ve always felt that OTAs should be only about a mental emphasis. I feel like with the NFL going to 17 games, it’s a pounding enough. I feel like guys got to come out here, get the playbook down so when we have those six weeks off, it can stay fresh in our minds. Then when we come back for camp, you don’t really miss a step.”
(You had a couple of big runs. Do you count those big runs or does it not count because there is no contact?) – “No, it doesn’t count with no pads. (laughter) That’s my opinion. You separate the men from the boys once the pads get on. I think it’s important for us to get the scheme down, get the plays down, and most importantly take care of each other. In the past season, you’ll lose guys in May and there’s no reason for that. So just coming out here, making sure we take care of each other and getting good solid work.”
(When you go back and watch film, how do you assess it?) – “You assess it by your track, you assess it by the lanes that are there, we’re still playing football. I feel like from my personal standpoint as a running back, it’s not real until you get the pads on. You don’t get to feel the lanes, you don’t get to feel the scheme and the tempo really. The tempo changes so much from pads to no pads.”
(Who chirps the most on defense?) – “Raekwon (Davis) and ‘C-Wilk’ (Christian Wilkins). I was just talking to the guys. We’ve got some dawgs on defense. That’s the first thing I took notice about just being out here is really the physicality and we have a really solid defense.”
(Do you get the sentiment that they are pretty far ahead in terms of knowing the system and where they are?) – “We’ve got a lot of new guys on offense. Everybody is coming from different places. We’re all still trying to get the scheme down, get the plays down. Football is very universal in the sense that a lot of the plays are the same, but the language is just different. It’s really just about changing my language that I’ve been used to in Arizona, what Tyreek (Hill) has been used to in Kansas City, and coming here and establishing that in our mindset. The defense, they’ve got all of their starters back I think, so they already have continuity, are pretty used to everything and they are flowing well.”
(What has this running back room been like? It feels like it goes at least four deep?) – “I like it. We’ve already been hanging around a lot. Good fellowship, always staying with each other. It’s funny because Sony (Michel) was actually my Combine roommate. Like I said, God works in mysterious ways. Five years ago, we were roommates, he doesn’t know who I am, I don’t know who he is, and to come here and be teammates and stuff like that, we are already building on that relationship.”
(What was your off-season training program like?) – “For me, I’m all about my body especially because I missed five games with a high-ankle last year. I was dealing with turf toe that I dealt with in January. I just wanted to focus on my rehab, especially in the offseason. I feel like in the NFL, if you don’t start off fresh, you’re never going to get fresh. For me, it was about building on my health so I could come out here and go full-go and not really have to worry about any limitations.”
(Did you have a perception of QB Tua Tagovailoa before you got here? And do you have one now that you’ve been here?) – “No. I never had a perception of Tua. He’s a great guy obviously. Just coming in here and gelling with him, getting ready to work and building something strong, I think it’s important to take a stride every single day. There are going to be good days, there are going to be bad days, but I think that it’s all about building that stride every single day and taking a step forward.”
(This system is very running back friendly. Do you like it so far?) – “Yeah, I like it. The running back here does a lot. It’s primarily why I came here. I believe in (Coach Mike) McDaniel, especially of the backfield because I feel like I can utilize my special abilities coming out the backfield, my route-running and mismatches on ‘backers.”
(What’s going to be the biggest difference for you running the football in this scheme than what you’ve been used to?) – “Outside zone. For me, in college, I was predominantly inside zone. High school, inside zone. The NFL with Arizona, inside zone. But here (it’s) outside zone. Just getting used to the wider tracks and the cuts are going to be at different angles and the lanes are going to be at different angles. The flow of the ‘backers are different because in inside zone, it’s more slow to fast, where I can pitter-patter my steps. Outside zone here, it’s kind of like you’re riding a wave. Once you hit that wave, you’ve got to hit it and go. I’m getting used to that. I’m getting my feet under me. I’m taking pride in that journey, that challenge, of fine-tuning it.”
(Has the transition been easy for you coming from a Kliff Kingsbury offense and now a Mike McDaniel offense?) – “I would actually say it’s probably going to be harder because Kliff was spread and no-huddle. The scheme is always going to be simpler because it’s more about tempo and speed. We would just have one word and then a play. Here, it’s true NFL pro language. That’s what I was doing my rookie year when we had Mike McCoy as my OC. So just getting used to the language, hearing an entire play call, understanding what part of the play call is talking to me, what part of the play call is talking to the wide receiver, variations and stuff like that. Again, I’m excited for that challenge.”
(Why does outside zone appeal to you so much?) – “I think for me, it’s how they run this offense and how they window dress. I was just saying they make a lot of things look the same. But yet there are small kinks and differences that really open lanes up for us. It really holds a defense to be disciplined and always in their gaps. If the miss a gap, that’s when a lane opens up wide open for me. That’s something that I’m looking forward to and experiencing that.”
