07-29-2018, 03:09 PM
It wasn’t too long ago that Xavier Rhodes was an understudy of veteran corners Terence Newman and Captain Munnerlyn. Oh how time flies in the NFL.Now Rhodes is a two-time Pro Bowl corner with a $70 million contract who ranked 55th on the NFL’s top 100 list.
Now the Minnesota Vikings’ star is an elder statesman (though nowhere close to Newman’s OG status), which means he is carrying on the tradition of teaching the younger defensive backs.
“They ask me questions. When they make mistakes, they ask me what they can and cannot do, how can they fix that,” Rhodes said. “And I tell them what they can and cannot do. Keep their eyes on the receiver not the quarterback, look at the concepts. With the receiver concepts, the routes they are running, they will tell you the route your man might run. Trying to get the feel of the game basically.”
At the top of the list of Rhodes’ new pupils is Mike Hughes, the Vikings’ first-round pick from the University of Central Florida. Hughes did not see the field much in college, playing only one full season. Plus he is trying to adapt to playing nickel for the first time.
“Today, he was looking awesome coming out of his breaks,” Rhodes said. “Getting low, transitioning his weight, keeping his eyes on his man. I mean he looked awesome today. Like he didn’t look like a rookie today.”
http://www.1500espn.com/vikings-2/2018/0...es-advice/
Now the Minnesota Vikings’ star is an elder statesman (though nowhere close to Newman’s OG status), which means he is carrying on the tradition of teaching the younger defensive backs.
“They ask me questions. When they make mistakes, they ask me what they can and cannot do, how can they fix that,” Rhodes said. “And I tell them what they can and cannot do. Keep their eyes on the receiver not the quarterback, look at the concepts. With the receiver concepts, the routes they are running, they will tell you the route your man might run. Trying to get the feel of the game basically.”
At the top of the list of Rhodes’ new pupils is Mike Hughes, the Vikings’ first-round pick from the University of Central Florida. Hughes did not see the field much in college, playing only one full season. Plus he is trying to adapt to playing nickel for the first time.
“Today, he was looking awesome coming out of his breaks,” Rhodes said. “Getting low, transitioning his weight, keeping his eyes on his man. I mean he looked awesome today. Like he didn’t look like a rookie today.”
http://www.1500espn.com/vikings-2/2018/0...es-advice/
