Two cornerstone players made an appearance on the practice field for Wednesday’s positional drills and team period. Inside linebacker Devin White and outside linebacker Shaq Barrett attended the second week of OTA practices out of their own volition as the defensive shifts under the direction of co-coordinators Larry Foote and Kacy Rodgers. The club’s previous defensive coordinator, Todd Bowles, is now the head coach. After self-evaluation, both players wanted to get a jump start on the field to maximize growth in 2022 and optimize their respective position groups. Players do not have to attend offseason practices until mandatory mini-camp from June 7-9, but White and Barrett are committed to taking their individual games to the next level.
White expressed, “I feel like it is great for me to be here because we are putting in new defenses and I don’t want to just learn it on Zoom. I want to actually come in and learn it full-speed and get the feel of it down. Be able to go fast, obviously I have to hold it down for Lavonte [David]. I know he is doing his thing, what he has to do, so one of us has to be here to run the show and I took it upon myself to keep getting better.”
With the absence of distinguished veteran Lavonte David, who has been playing at an elite level for 10 seasons, White has the opportunity to ascend and work through additional reps to foster the same David-esque level of consistency. He has prioritized diet and strict training to elevate not only the physical aspect of the game but his mental fortitude. White referenced Luke Kuechly, the former Panthers Mike linebacker who played at a premier level due to his football intelligence. In 2022, White is looking to emulate the same cerebral mindset.
For Barrett, attending OTAs was motivated by simulation. He described, “I just want to get better, and I have stuff that I need to work on, and I think the only way to work on it is in practice, simulating actually going against a tackle and going against…
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