Dein erstes Forum » Chiefs linebacker Anthony Hitchens talked about his

position as the WILL linebacker and the 4-3 over." />Skip to main contentclockmenumore-arrownoyesHorizontal - WhiteArrowhead PrideArrowhead Pride | Kansas City Chiefs Schedule Khalen Saunders Kansas City Chiefs Jerseys , News, Roster and StatsLog In or Sign UpLog InSign UpSeriesLatest NewsFanpostsFanshotsCommunityAboutStubHubMoreAll 322 blogs on Horizontal - WhiteSeries Stagner ThingsLottery Tickets ’19Summer of SpagsDixon’s MailbagLatest News Fanposts Most recentMost activeFanshots Community Community GuidelinesContactAbout StubHub ✕Anthony Hitchens provided clues about Steve Spagnuolo’s Chiefs defense on TuesdayNew,33commentsChiefs linebacker Anthony Hitchens talked about his position as the WILL linebacker and the 4-3 over.CDTShareTweetShareShareAnthony Hitchens provided clues about Steve Spagnuolo’s Chiefs defense on TuesdayDenny Medley-USA TODAY SportsA couple of Kansas City Chiefs players stepped up to the podium Tuesday to speak with the local media. One of them was linebacker Anthony Hitchens, and he provided us some things we knew, some things we assumed and some new tidbits of information about the 2019 Chiefs defense and Steve Spagnuolo.Right off the bat, Hitchens was asked about the difficulties of learning Spagnuolo’s defense.Coming off of a year that was plagued with hesitation and generally slow play from the linebackers, this might be music to some Chiefs fans’ ears. Whereas Bob Sutton looked to have the linebackers wait for the play to develop before reacting, Spagnuolo is going to ask his defenders to target particular gaps on any given play. If they read run, the linebackers can trigger and fill to a specific gap, rather than a range of them.Reducing the mental side and asking the linebackers to play with a lot more freedom should allow Hitchens to play significantly faster than he did last year. This naturally led to questions about his fit and his comfort level in the defense.For those that have followed the Summer of Spags series Kansas City Chiefs Jerseys 2019 , this only reinforces what Matt Lane and I have seen from previous Spagnuolo years. Matt described the 4-3 Under and the 4-3 Over alignments in his first piece, and Hitchens comments line up with his work.Another piece of the defense we have mentioned in the past couple of months is how Spagnuolo likes to utilize his linebackers in the base 4-3 defenses. Hitchens described playing the WILL linebacker in the base — which makes sense based on his skill set and what Spagnuolo (not necessarily traditional 4-3 Under/Over rulesets) asks of his WILL linebacker. This leaves a likely scenario of Reggie Ragland at the MIKE linebacker and Damien Wilson at the SAM linebacker.Speaking of Wilson, Hitchens also elaborated on the time they spent together in Dallas.The chemistry between the traditional play-caller in Hitchens — who will have the green dot and stay on the field in the nickel — and Wilson is something that hasn’t been discussed much this offseason. The communication at all levels of the defense last year was poor, and it showed. Being able to add a player that can walk in and be on the same page with the guy who should be lining up the fronts is more important than many realize.Hitchens’ evaluation of Wilson is another aspect of this defense that we’ve heard time and time again this offseason — he doesn’t quit. While there have been many opinions shared about the effort level and mentality of the defense last year, the overall point most reach is that the defense was too soft. Wilson appears to be another addition in a long line of guys brought in this offseason who have a high motor and effort to get to the ball, alongside Tyrann Mathieu, Frank Clark and Juan Thornhill. The effort level and the edge that these players could bring to the field this fall might still be underestimated.Going through a third scheme change in as many years can make some players turtle up and struggle to adapt, but Hitchens claims he’s an open book for Spagnuolo.With the all-star assistant coaching staff brought in by Spagnuolo, players should take notice. It’s still good to hear that Hitchens is willing to adapt his game and change how he’ll play for Matt House and Spagnuolo to be the best player that he can be in 2019.Hitchens also seems to have a great respect for the way Spagnuolo has conducted himself since he’s been in the building.We’ve heard all throughout OTAs that Spagnuolo is stopping drills and getting one-on-one time with players to correct behaviors and teach the proper technique. Hearing that he’s going that extra mile off the field is even better. We know that Spagnuolo is an aggressive coach that holds players accountable, but it’s not just yelling and screaming to get the job done. as a group” olyn further reinforces the confusion and complexity of what he was asked in Sutton’s defense last year.Not only is the defense simple enough for Hitchens to absorb and apply at his position Khalen Saunders Jersey Cheap , he also claimed that he was attempting to learn every position so he could better understand where to direct traffic on the field. An overall, unified understanding of the defense shouldn’t feel like such a major ask, and yet here we are.Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY SportsThere’s a lot riding on the play of Anthony Hitchens this season. The Chiefs are going to ask him to be a three-down linebacker in Spagnuolo’s system, so his performance on the field must improve from 2019 if this defense as a whole is going to grow.From the little he said at his presser, it sounds like the staff is preparing him to make that leap. Excellent coaching, a scheme that isn’t unnecessarily complex and the ability to play fast could very well make this Hitchens’ best season yet. CLEVELAND (AP) — The Browns‘ draft class of 2016 is rapidly shrinking.As he continues to revamp Cleveland’s roster, general manager John Dorsey got rid of three former draft picks on Monday by trading defensive end Emmanuel Ogbah to the Kansas City Chiefs and releasing safety Derrick Kindred and wide receiver Ricardo Louis.Ogbah did not report for the start of the Browns’ offseason program Monday, a sign that a trade was being discussed. The 25-year-old was picked with the No. 32 pick three years ago by Cleveland.He had 12½ sacks in 40 games but became expendable when the Browns acquired edge rusher Olivier Vernon from New York in the deal for Odell Beckham Jr.On the day they introduced Beckham at a packed news conference, the Browns also re-signed wide receiver Rashard Higgins (restricted free agent) defensive back Juston Burris (free agent), defensive tackle Trevon Coley (exclusive rights free agent) and Jermaine Whitehead (exclusive rights free agent).Kindred and Louis were both selected in 2016 by Cleveland’s previous front office Khalen Saunders Jersey Womens , which drafted 14 players that year. Only three remain.Dorsey has spent the past year and more fixing a roster that produced just one win over two seasons. But the Browns went 7-8-1 last season and expectations are soaring following the team’s acquisition of Beckham and other offseason moves.A fourth-round pick, Kindred had been expected to start after the Browns traded Jabrill Peppers to the Giants as part of the Beckham deal. Needing a safety, Dorsey went out and got Murray, whom he picked while he was the Chiefs GM in 2016. Murray became expendable when the Chiefs signed free agent safety Tyrann Mathieu.Murray started nine games and appeared in 15 last season, making 43 tackles and an interception.The Browns were pleased with Higgins’ development last season and feel he gives them depth at a key position. He had 39 catches for 572 yards and four touchdowns in 2018.Coley has been a solid contributor over the past two seasons, starting 29 games.Burris appeared in four games for Cleveland last season after being signed off the New York Jets’ practice squad. Whitehead played on special teams in his seven games with Cleveland in 2018.