Life must be difficult as an NFL rookie, especially one on the offensive side of the ball. Not only do you have to learn to adjust to the speed of the NFL game, you also have to memorize a encyclopedia-sized playbook in just a few months. After memorizing the playbook, you then have to learn how to put those plays in action. For Denver Broncos rookie wide receiver Cody Latimer, the mental aspect of the game was too much for him to handle in his first season.
It is hard enough trying to learn a NFL playbook and it must be even more intimidating being part of a Peyton Manning-led offense. Working with the future Hall of Famer may be a blessing for a receiver’s career but it is also one of the most challenging things they have to do.
The Broncos used a second round pick on the receiver out of Indiana University but he did little to prove worthy of the pick in his first year. At times he did not even play a single snap on offense and that is definitely not what they expected. When you draft a player in the first three rounds you expect him to at the very least make an impact in his rookie season. Some players take longer than others to adjust to the multiple aspects of the game, but Latimer appears ready to make that adjustment.
Cody Latimer told Troy E. Renck of The Denver Post, “It took me too long to actually catch on. I was in the playbook, but I could have done even more. When I actually got it, it was too late. It was just way different (than college). I would know the play, then Peyton (Manning) would change it. Then I’d get to thinking too much and play slower.”
They say that the best football players do not spend much time thinking on the field, they simply read the situation and react. When a player is too focused on what he has to do that play then he cant adjust what he’s doing to what is actually happening on the field. In a Peyton Manning offense, things are fluid and play calls are changed on the fly. If you do not have the mental aspect of the game down 100% then you do not deserve to be on the field.
Latimer credited his experience at Manning’s passing camp at Duke University with helping him catch up with the offense. He said, “I got a lot of repetitions because there weren’t many guys there, and it kind of gave us a little head start on routes and different play calls in the new offense. I am faster than I was, shiftier”.
The young wide receiver is in an excellent position as he enters his sophomore season. He has the potential to win the starting job and play alongside Pro Bowl players like Emmanuel Sanders and Demaryius Thomas. He will also be working with a future Hall of Famer at quarterback and another Pro Bowler at running back. If he is able to find his role in this dynamic offense then we can expect Latimer to have a breakout year, however in order to do that he must match his impressive physical tools with the mental aspect of the game.
Next: Denver Broncos Seven-Round 2015 NFL Mock Draft
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