Chiefs Bryan Cook will take the Chiefs Safeties Higher

Chiefs Bryan Cook will take the Chiefs Safeties Higher

Brian Cook in the Chiefs secondary is going to take it up a notch he’s going to lead the impact this season we’re going to tell you why right here I’m locked on Chiefs from the land of the free and the home of the Chiefs this is the lockon Chiefs [Music] podcast welcome back everybody friends and neighbors Chiefs King around the world nice to see you it is a Friday we are talking Chiefs safeties we’re going to break it all down for you I’m Ryan Tracy the founder of Rogue analytics and performance Consulting NFL 33.com is where you can find my League wide stuff as well as rgr football and this is Chris Clark the man who runs Chief’s corner and get all the information quarterbacks cap business side all over there make sure you check them both out and get subbed as you should here as we are on the lock on podcast Network that means you’re Team every single day like sub and hit the Bell here on YouTube and join us on Spotify Apple podcast or anywhere you can get a free show you’ll get us five days a week plus some s especially during training camp we have a lot coming there and you can get that much more if you want to be a loco and be one of our every dayers make sure you get in there on the text line at 816 357 8781 for breaking news and everything else now we got to move shift over to the safeties move into what is a unique group we talked about slot Corners early in this process and what we’re doing if you haven’t been on it go back and listen to all the the position specific shows because we’re highlighting the players that are going to make the most change the most impact at a position group every single year that requires depth we’re going to talk about that later in the show in this position group it also means that you’re best player at the position Justin Reed is in a contract year what impact does that have but we have to start and what I feel is the guy that is going to make the biggest lift and that’s because he got hurt last season a season that he was progressing very nicely in as a starter for the F first time opposite Justin Reed Brian Cook is back and by all accounts in otaa looks 100% and ready to go for Camp that’s crucial is the Chiefs have to rely on what is a corner group that is making some adjustments with the departure of lerus sne and a linebacker group that has lost some athleticism with Willie Gay’s departure as well the safety group is the tweeners they have to cover more ground they have to understand what they’re doing year three for Brian Cook even though last season was was shortened I think is going to be really really crucial he has The Knack and he has the experience now as long as he’s 100% ready to go and he can trust that knee which I I’m very impressed sounds like he already does he should be the guy that can make the plays opposite Justin Reed yeah and when you go back and you look and you look at what he was able to do year one versus year two and where he’s going to be year three and what he is going to be doing year three I think that that’s really going to be the thing that’s going to be a lot of fun to watch uh you know I do wonder and I do have questions you know can he continue to excel uh and it was actually an an injury not an knee injury I believe um but the thing that when you look at Cook and you look going into the season and one thing that I will say about training camp is I do think he’s close to 100% I would still expect the Chiefs to be a little bit uh patient with him and maybe have him you know not go full bow uh every single day in training camp I think that they’re probably to work him in maybe you know the first week he only works two or three days and he has some you know days where he’s still getting back to himself uh I think that that’s fully something that they should be looking at if if they’re not 100% sure that he is all the way back uh take your time on this don’t force him to be working on on something that’s uh you know he knows the defense this would be a good time to get guys like J Jadon Hicks even more reps uh so that could be something that they could be looking at as well I’m really excited to see what cook does you saw what he was able to do last year uh that big turn he had against the Dolphins uh in England was a lot of fun to watch uh and he is a guy that is going to be making plays and I I do think he’s gonna have even better season than he was having last year before he got hurt I do as well and it it goes another step towards what spags likes to do and I think what op spags up and that is having the versatility at the safety group we saw Shamar con were able to step in and take up some of that slack and be a guy that could play multiple positions but it’s not quite the same uh in terms of of strengths and weaknesses as it is for Brian Cook so having Brian and Justin Reed at the back end interchangeable in my opinion at this point whether coming down into the box or playing High I I do think that helps spags be able to be more creative in other ways not just uh the nickel Blitz that we know he loves to send but being able to move guys around he’s done some very interesting things in the secondary with the safety group over the years especially the type that can play replacement games and really really throw off quarterbacks particularly young quarterbacks and they’re going to see a few of those this year but they’re also going to see guys that they expect to see in the playoffs over and over and over so the question for me is going to be if you have to try and deceive experienced quarterbacks like Lamar Jackson how can you do that you have to have experienced players in the back as well and it comes down to the safeties being the the limiting factor for the opposing quarterback right off the start so if you have Reed and you have cook in position where they need to be and able to force certain looks they’re going to be able to to contain what guys like Lamar Jackson Joe burrow are going to be able to attack them with yeah and it’s gonna be a lot of fun to see what cook and reer going to be able to cook up this year I guess is I I’ll go that direction uh but it’s it’s still going to be fun I mean you look at what those two and you’re right I think that they are interchangeable to an extent um you know Rita is a little bit more Siz and is more of a strong safety but cook can play that role if he has to and that becomes an even bigger thing when you start looking at uh as we’ll talk about when we start looking at the depth a little bit later but that becomes an even bigger thing when you start looking at bringing in a third safety uh and we’ve already talked about chamar Conor being a slot Corner we expect that that’s probably going to be his role so I’m not talking about Conor I’m talking about a guy like Hicks Hicks is going to change what they’re going to do with cook and Reed probably as well uh you know and if you have three of those guys that you can basically rotate in and they can play all the different positions that you want your safety to be able to play it’s huge for your defense because then just because you have one guy someplace doesn’t necessarily mean he’s going to be in the same role that you would expect him to be in and that’s the big thing so you know you talk about you know replacement level and you talk about uh you know being able to Interchange if you can get all three of those guys Hicks and cook and read all on the same page and all being able to do the same roles you have a defense that’s going to be very confusing for opposing quarterbacks because they’re going to be looking at the defense going okay they have three safeties in this guy’s going to be doing what uh because it may look like you’re going to be in a robber position but maybe he’s going to be doing something completely different than being in a robber position it’s just it’s a lot of fun to see all the athleticism and all the different things that they can do and all the games that they can do with their safeties and it’s something that spags absolutely loves to do so I expect a lot of it and Confused quarter qub backs equals sacked quarterbacks so that’s what I’m here for but it takes two yeah absolutely it does take two at a very minimum and it just happens that the best player at this position is also in a contract year what is Justin Reed trying to do to take the next step forward that’s right after this here on the lockdown podcast Network passion drive and impatience the formula for winning championships is also what keeps your rid or die live eBay Motors has everything you need to maintain your vehicle and level it up to Peak Performance superchargers roof racks exhaust kits LED headlights and much much more whether you’re into speed power or style eBay Motors has you covered with over 122 million parts for your number one ride or die you’ll always find exactly what you’re looking for and with eBay guaranteed fit your part is guaranteed to fit your ride every time or your money back because with eay motors your burning rubber not cash with all the parts you need at the prices you want it’s easy to make your car the MVP and bring home huge wins keep your ride or die alive at ebaymotors.com eligible items only exclusions apply eBay guaranteed fit only available to us customers lockdown sportsday feed it’s not the talking heads from ESPN and CBS it’s local experts on their teams telling you everything you knew 247 lockdown sports today the feed here on YouTube and on Amazon Fire TV Fire is what I’m looking for and just Reed’s been making the rounds uh this summer uh been over in Germany representing the team um France the whole nine yards like World traveler I mean maybe he’s not on tour like Travis but he’s in a lot of the same places let’s put it that way and I think that the the Chiefs in spags in particular like to have a a safety kind of in charge in representing the defense it is spags does come from defensive backs and so it does feel like there’s a leader at every level in Chris Jones then Nick Bolton and Justin Reed certainly is the leader at the safe level now inheriting that role from Tyron Matthew and taking it um to back-to-back championships what can he do now he’s in a contract year he’s got a partner in crime as we discussed with Brian Cook coming back from an injury but looks to be almost back to health likely going to miss a guy that he played a lot of snaps with last season in chamari Connor as Connor moves to more of a nickel role but then he’s got the the guy that’s coming down with him in Jaden Hicks lot of expectations on him we’ll talk about in the next segment here um because he does have a lot that I think meshes with Justin re but that’s the center point for me is you have cook doing one thing you have Reed that’ll I’m sorry hick that’ll eventually do everything and Reed just has to direct it all he can be the expansion of Steve spagnolo on the field this season and get everything aligned again to cause that quarterback confusion I I think that has the potential to be not only the most pbu or interception uh season for Justin read in his career but also the most impactful tackles for loss taking away the the opposing tight end I think there’s a lot of aspects that this is going to be the Pinnacle of what we see from Justin Reed yeah and let’s not forget he’s going to be missing somebody else that he played a lot of snaps with than Mike Edwards uh so that’s another guy that Reed got a lot of of snaps with and got comfort with and he’s not got he’s probably not gonna have Connor for most of it because we’ve already talked about the nickel position as you pointed out but now you’re losing like Edwards as well so Reed steps into a position where he you know he’s been there all along he’s been there best safety that they’ve had for the past three seasons and well this will be his third season sorry for the past two seasons heading into his third and you’re absolutely right he is going to be the uh quarterback of of the DBS I guess you would say uh and it it goes beyond just the safeties it’s also making sure the corners are lined up properly the corners are knowing their assignment and and knowing everything is going on from that’s in front of you I mean the safety is supposed to be the last line of defense and that’s a huge thing uh and a huge responsibility for anybody that’s out there so I do think that he’s stepping into a role that he is very comfortable with and he’s going to be a guy that is going to be a lot of fun to watch this year and it’s going to be curious to see what he’s able to do and how they’re how they’re going to use him because as you mentioned with a guy like Jaden Hicks Hicks can step in and do a lot of the same stuff that that Reed does which gives Reed the ability to do lots of different things that uh he has done for Kansas City over the past couple of Seasons so one of the things that spags has always loved is rotating those three safeties and and moving them all around and doing different things with them so I’m really curious to see how that plays out and Reed’s going to be the guy that’s in the middle of it in charge of making sure everybody’s doing their assignment and where they’re supposed to be so uh you know I think the thing that impresses me about Reed and this is a little different because it’s not really about his play style but it’s about what he learned I think his first year if you go back and watch his first year he talked a lot of crap uh I believe it was against the Bengal uh before the going up against the Bengals but he learned about it going into year two and he just kept his mouth shut and he let his play speak for it and that’s all you got to do and that sets a message for the rest of the defense and sets a message for the rest of the DBS and they’re watching him because he is their leader and they’re going to have to do it again they’re going to see them in the first quarter of the Season as as well as the Ravens a lot to come from that and I think that that exposure early and having a guy like Reed who a has learn that lesson but B has to make sure that he is playing at his his best in a contract year against the most elite competition least obviously everybody shifts a little bit when the season begins nobody’s exactly what we thought they would be preseason but knowing that those are on the schedule I I think we will see him raise his level that then will raise the entire room the room is definitely an interesting one because we’ve talked a lot a lot about the contributors that we see from here yeah and the bigger question and we haven’t even talked about this when it comes to Reed is what is his role going to be outside of just the safety position and talking well I mean it’s it’s true he’s basically your backup field goal kicker and you hope he never has to do that but I do think that it’s also possible he is going to be a core guy on kickoff return on kickoff coverage because they may be having him be the kickoff guy this year and I know we’re talking about safeties but that’s part of his role and that’s part of what his value is to this team is he gives them the ability to not have to have Harrison bucker out there 25% uh for those plays that you know a kicker is involved in tackling the guy that’s returning the ball and that’s a good point you know I hadn’t rolled that into the safety evaluation but here here’s where that could be detrimental yes you’re trying to save Harrison buckers so he doesn’t have to have the collisions and try to make tackles but now you’re putting more and more collisions on Justin Reed so yes he may end up taking the kickoff duties and if that’s the best thing for the team then then so be it but it is something to keep an eye on about what that does to Justin Reed in retrospect that’s another what six seven plays a game that could be significant impacts just like you know big open field tackles or things where he is one-on-one with a collision so uh definitely something that he can contribute and and raise his value but also something to watch uh maybe they they swap him in maybe he doesn’t play quite as many snaps on defense depending on the opponent in order to do that they have to have depth and we’ve talked about the three main players here what do the rookie and the depth bring that’s coming up next year in the lockdown podcast Network this show is sponsored by better help and whether you’re talking about uh you know your daily life or uh you know the the outfit that you’re wearing today um comparing yourself to others is part of what we do for me in particular when somebody has a podcast idea or a segment idea that is just home hitting it makes me wonder why didn’t I think of that and so you have to come back to and you have to en enjoy the joyous parts of it and you also have to deal with the parts where you wish you had done done something different it’s all caught up in 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the goal of getting the best players on the field is what Steve spol is focused on we do the same thing with our 247 coverage at lockdown sports today give you the best of the most important pieces right now and you can get it whenever you’re interested late night early morning whatever you’re looking for it lockon sports today here on YouTube and on Amazon Fire TV depth of the safety position used to be a little bit deeper as you said Mike Edwards departed Shamari Connor taking on a different role it has thinned the group of what I felt was a really robust safety group over the last couple of years and so now we have the rookie uh Jordan Jaden Hicks sorry not Jordan apologies uh that we are already putting a lot of emphasis on again because we’ve seen what’s happened uh to him echoed through what’s happened to other defensive backs in the past when Steve SP gives you a lot of attention early that means that there’s a confidence that you’re going to hit some playing time so we see him in in probably the third role I think we both agree with that then we have Trey Dean and you have Dion Bush the hero from the practice squad elevation last year a guy that’s played on this team and made plays this is a pretty good safety group to have in your stable it may not be that big when it comes down to cut down they though where do you see it falling you know it’s going to be intriguing to see what they’re going to do with this group because uh I would expect that you’re going to keep four uh maybe maybe somehow you keep five if if you list or if you play Connor at safety at all in the preseason maybe that’s something where he becomes a five but I think he’s going to be kept at a corner and and that’s really the big question when we start looking at it uh is chamar Connor going to be a guy that’s going to be the full-time nickel probably is if something happens at safety is he going to be somebody that they’re going to bring back to safety at times uh if you know cook or Reed were to get banged up a little bit I think that that’s possible uh so it would not Shock me to see Connor go be moved and you move somebody else into the Nickelback position and because you have guys that can step in and play outside in uh in uh Watson and in Williams so I think that maybe that’s a situation where you get a guy like Nai and he goes to nickel and Connor goes back to safety um I do think that they’re going to play Hicks a ton but I do think that it’s going to be intriguing to see what they do with everybody else because tryan is a guy I’m not going to say he can’t make this roster it’s possible I think they are going to keep four real safeties can he beat out Deon B Dion Bush that’s the big question bush is a core special teams guy that’s that Tobe loves so try would have to be a guy that can take that position from him and that’s going to be something that’s going to be hard and don’t forget you’re right he was a hero last year uh he got an interception in the playoffs so uh something to watch there yeah definitely have to keep an eye on it because Dion bush has hit that magic number of 30 years old so that’s always a delineation point it’s a great point to makes life tough you know because when you look at it I I love what the Chiefs have done with the way they brought in these guys because bush is at the top of a short list here of bush Connor Haden Hicks those four guys are not listed as corner or safety they are much like Ron Parker was back in the day listed as DB so they can do a little bit of everything and I I’m really intrigued by that option um Deon being the the Elder Statesman here okay I could see him having a practice squad roll that then gets elevated again we’ll just see uh Trey is somebody that’s new to this roster he did kind of start ota’s hot um but until I see a little bit more of him I’m not sure there and the one other thing that’s that’s on the official listing right now um that is throwing me off a little bit is they have nazy Johnson listed as a safety which does not ring any bells that I remember so um as good as I like that listing you can’t always treat it as though it’s it’s 100% accurate well he he’s been listed that way since he came out and he’s been here three years so I don’t know what they’re really doing with that the one question I have for you is in your mind is there a possibility that they only go that they have so many CBS and because they look at Connor as a guy that can play both uh is it possible that they keep seven CBS that we would consider CBS and only three safeties I think there is an outside chance particularly in this situation if you only have three safeties listed on on the roster and the top three that we’ve talked about in Jaden Hicks joining Reed and cook if you have an injury there and Shamar Conor’s already starting at the the nickel he’s already on the field so you don’t really have the replacement body if that’s what you’re looking for but she do have try Dean back there and obviously we’ve talked about DM Bush the question really comes down to me is can Dean make the roster and if so you probably go with four and just leave it at Six Corners at this point knowing that you have a little bit of Versatility all the way around fair enough I just think it’s interesting if they need a roster position because you’re you’re also looking at who’s your 46 or 47 uh that you’re going to activate on game day you’re only going to be able to have somebody those guys active so that’s another thing that plays into all of this is if you’re not going to be able to have that fourth guy active anyway is it really going to matter whether or not uh he’s available but the other you know the other side of that and and we kind of talked about this with Reed is if Reed’s on kickoffs and he’s doing the kickoffs that becomes a bigger issue so you know do you really want to only have possibly three safeties when you have your starting one of your starting safeties is your guy that’s kicking the ball off I’m really curious to see how that all plays into everything that they do this year because to me if you’re up two scores instead of maybe pinning them back maybe you just have bucker go out there and kick it out of the end zone like just make it easy and not have to worry about it maybe we’ll see how comfortable they are with that uh I don’t know we could I I think we’ll see some varability in the preseason we might even see that in the early season as well although this schedule is not set up to be an experimental area in the first quarter of the year but we’re going to find out I’d like to know what you guys think do they keep for safeties is there enough Talent at the safety spot knowing Shari Conor is listed as a nickel corner at this point and is in the starting role at as of now does that make you nervous leave us your comments here on YouTube over on the Spotify reviews and the Apple music reviews we would appreciate it we are going to get away for the weekend hope that you enjoy yours as well and get right back to it next week as we continue to prepare for the opening of Chiefs training camp and a repeat run at Three I’m pretty excited about that and I like the uh consistencies later following next week we’re going to have our 53 man projections so don’t miss that make sure you like sub and hit the Bell here so you don’t miss as any of it we appreciate you spending your time with us enjoy your weekend we’ll be back with you next week and we’ll talk to you then

Kansas City Chiefs safety Bryan Cook heads into his third season with the team and will take an even bigger step forward in 2024. After an injury last year robbed him of the end of the season and the playoffs, Cook and Reid will form a formidable duo this season.

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