Quicker than advertised?
Last week, when Bucs defensive coaches spoke, there was one quote from Bucs outside linebackers coach Larry Foote that stuck out for Joe.
Foote was raving about fourth-round pick, outside linebacker David Walker from Central Arkansas. (Joe thinks there may be some ordinance that it’s encouraged, if not required, to mention Walker’s college until the guy gets a sack in a real NFL game.) As Foote praised Walker, he slipped the following in.
> “You don’t really know how quick he \[is\] until rookie minicamp,” Foote said. “You can see it.”
This brings a smile to Joe’s face. Speed kills. And it reminded Joe of a story of Chris Godwin.
Godwin, when he entered the NFL in the third round of the 2017 draft, wasn’t known as a burner. But if you watched Penn State games (specifically the 2017 Rose Bowl against USC), Godwin was able to get open despite facing quick defensive backs such as Adoree’ Jackson.
After Godwin’s rookie season, Dirk Koetter remarked that he was surprised at Godwin’s speed. It didn’t show up on 40 times necessarily, but it snuck up on Koetter watching Penn State tape.
And, Koetter said, he brought that sneaky speed to the Bucs with him.
If Walker actually does play faster than his combine speed, that’s just good scouting. As Tez Johnson said last week when asked about his ho-hum combine times, “The game is not about a 40.”