The Kansas City Chiefs expect a big leap from linebacker Willie Gay this season – Salina Journal
ST. JOSEPH, Mo. — After selling the play-action handoff, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes whipped his head around and darted a pass over the middle of the field. On the hashmark, receiver Mecole Hardman stood waiting, his arms outstretched for the football.
It never got there.
Linebacker Willie Gay stepped in front of the route and curled the ball into his chest, an interception that derived from a read. From knowing where to be. And knowing when to be there.
“Knowing exactly where to drop,” Gay said. “Just doing my job to a whole other level this year. Last year, maybe being one step short of it. But this year, being right on point of everything.
“I’m gonna be honest — I didn’t know the playbook as well in camp last year. Now, I’m good.”
The Chiefs plucked Gay in the second round of the 2020 NFL Draft, and among a skill-set that stood out for a variety of reasons, his ability to play fast shot him up their board.
It didn’t show up on the field in his rookie season — or at least not as consistently as Gay would have preferred. His concentration, he would explain in reflection, rested elsewhere.
On thinking.
Not on playing.
“When you’re trying to play a position, but at the same time you’re thinking about what to do, you can’t move as fast,” Gay said Wednesday as the Chiefs closed out their stay in St. Joseph. “You can’t go hit the gap as fast. You can’t make a break on the ball as fast because you gotta make sure you’re doing everything exactly right. That comes with not knowing it well because you’re thinking before you’re even acting.”
Gay, like all 2020 rookies, played without the benefit of in-person offseason programs like OTAs and minicamps. The finer details of Steve Spagnuolo’s defense come easiest when he sees them unfold in person. A lost offseason and preseason demanded he instead learn on the fly. He played only 267 defensive snaps, just 25% of the team’s plays, before a knee injury in the playoffs.
A year later, even after the return of OTAs, Gay multiplied his education. He stayed in Kansas City the majority of the offseason and worked — as much on the playbook as his physical tools.
“I think he’s more comfortable in the scheme, so he can play faster,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said. “So you get to see his athletic ability out here and making plays. That’s important. He’s just got to stay on top of it. He’s young. It’s a complicated defense, and if you stay on top of it, you’re going to be good.”
How significant of a jump has he made?
Well, early in training camp, as fellow linebackers Anthony Hitchens and Ben Niemann missed time with minor injuries, Gay received the green dot — the playcaller for the day in a practice.
The assignments come natural to him now. It shows, too.
On Friday, Gay is scheduled to play in his first preseason game since the knee injury, from which he’s fully recovered. Before a training camp collision placed him in the concussion protocol for a week — he’s since returned and says he’s good — he stood out among the best defensive players on the field.
Most importantly for a defense in search of better coverage, Gay’s best moments came in pass defense. He’s broken up plays, even intercepted a couple of passes.
“Last year, trying to learn a playbook, man, it takes a toll on you,” Gay said. “You’re like, man, I don’t think I’m ready. This year, I feel like I’m ready. I’m more than ready. I’m going to make a lot of plays this year.”