Probably the most unappreciated group of people on a football team is the position coaches. Okay, that isn’t precisely accurate. The quarterbacks coach and offensive line coach get plenty of love for what they do. However, not enough people talk about other areas like tight end, linebacker, cornerback, and wide receiver. Too often, the head coach or coordinators get credit for the work those men put in, fair or otherwise. Yet from what we’re seeing at Chicago Bears training camp, it might be time to change that. Nobody proves it more than Antwaan Randle El.
The assistant head coach and wide receivers coach was the only name Ben Johnson brought over from Detroit. It is becoming clear why, in recent weeks, the Bears’ receivers have been showing rapid progress. We finally got evidence to back it up. Before what many describe as the most physical practice in recent team history, Randle El had his players go through some unique and frankly devious drills.
One had them run a sharp in-route where a coach pushed a bag in front of them while another tossed two water bottles at them. The idea was to cloud their vision, simulating a contested catch. In another drill, they would make a catch, have one coach hit them with a bag, another poke at them with a pole, aiming to force a fumble, and a third throw another bag at their feet, trying to trip them up.
Antwaan Randle El continues to show he played the game.
Little drills like this can often tell you whether a coach played extensively in the NFL or not. You can see without a doubt that Antwaan Randle El played nine years in the league and won a Super Bowl. Running routes and making catches in practice aren’t enough. He must prepare his players for the reality of actual games. There is nothing clean about it. Almost every catch they make will involve some kind of interference, be it tight coverage or congested areas. You probably shouldn’t be on the field if you can’t handle such environments. Receivers must be able to think and react quickly. That is what those drills accomplish. Kudos to Randle El for understanding their value.
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