I'll be shocked if this guy doesnt end up one of the best players in the NFL
UT:
Kendall Reyes learned something last November.
He had extended his arms and chopped his legs, driving Broncos guard Manny Ramirez backward before shoving him aside. He then charged quarterback Peyton Manning, and the future Hall of Famer knew better, spinning to the ground to soften the impact.
This was the 10th game of the Chargers defensive end's career.
This was, in the thin Denver air, his second fourth-quarter sack of the night.
It's when Reyes knew.
"I can do it," he said last month. "It's on me to be consistent and continue to push myself to do it all the time."
Reyes, a former a second-round draft pick, showed last year he can play at this level. With often the greatest strides an NFL player makes coming between his first and second season, the Chargers look for the 23-year-old to build on his rookie debut, an expectation that suits Reyes fine.
He has never been one to be satisfied on the football field.
That's what got him this far.
Today, Reyes is a stout athlete, listed at 6-foot-4 and 300 pounds. In 2012, he had 28 tackles and 5.5 sacks. Before the draft, his 36 reps on the 225-pound bench press were tied for second-most among the NFL Combine's defensive linemen. In high school, he was a three-sport athlete, placing fourth in New Hampshire's state championship as a senior in the javelin and shot put while, along with football, lettering in basketball.
Before the accolades, there was the bench.
One of Reyes' earliest athletic memories is riding the pine as a fifth grader in Pop Warner. He played on the line, not because of his size or skills, he says, but because that's where some coaches stick the kids without a position they're able to play.
"There was an eight-play (participation) minimum," Reyes said. "I was (sometimes) getting like six; I wasn't even getting the minimum. I just loved the game so much because there's no other game like it. You truly like something that much, you're going to figure it out, one day or another. After that, I started getting into games. I kept developing my way through."
Keep developing.
That is the idea here.
The Chargers gave Reyes more responsibility over the course of his rookie year. During the Week 11 breakout in Denver, he played a season-high 42 snaps. It was the start of a trend, as his average workload jumped from 25 reps the first nine games to 46 the final seven.
The trend should carry into 2013.
San Diego is asking a lot of its young starting defensive ends, Reyes on the left and Corey Liuget on the right. They are some of the lone survivors to a radical 12-month overhaul in defensive line coach Don Johnson's position room.
There is no more Luis Castillo or Jacques Cesaire. No more Antonio Garay, Vaughn Martin or Aubrayo Franklin.
The team is fully expected to add veteran experience to the group, possibly before players report to training camp on July 24. Still, Reyes and Liuget figure to share a heavy workload in 2013.
Johnson hopes the two ends can share something else.
Liuget, a 2011 first-round pick, was the epitome of a sophomore leaper last season, improving dramatically to become arguably the defensive line's best player. That improvement came after a quiet rookie season, in part because of youth, the lockout and a week-long contractual holdout in training camp.
Reyes was more advanced as a first-year player than Liuget. In his second season, Reyes' goal is to become more consistent than last year, someone his teammates can turn to and trust.
If he makes a Liuget-like leap, the result could be scary.
"Not for me," said Johnson, who's waiting to see Reyes in pads before evaluating his improvement. "I'd be pretty doggone happy. ... That would be our ultimate hope."
UT:
Kendall Reyes learned something last November.
He had extended his arms and chopped his legs, driving Broncos guard Manny Ramirez backward before shoving him aside. He then charged quarterback Peyton Manning, and the future Hall of Famer knew better, spinning to the ground to soften the impact.
This was the 10th game of the Chargers defensive end's career.
This was, in the thin Denver air, his second fourth-quarter sack of the night.
It's when Reyes knew.
"I can do it," he said last month. "It's on me to be consistent and continue to push myself to do it all the time."
Reyes, a former a second-round draft pick, showed last year he can play at this level. With often the greatest strides an NFL player makes coming between his first and second season, the Chargers look for the 23-year-old to build on his rookie debut, an expectation that suits Reyes fine.
He has never been one to be satisfied on the football field.
That's what got him this far.
Today, Reyes is a stout athlete, listed at 6-foot-4 and 300 pounds. In 2012, he had 28 tackles and 5.5 sacks. Before the draft, his 36 reps on the 225-pound bench press were tied for second-most among the NFL Combine's defensive linemen. In high school, he was a three-sport athlete, placing fourth in New Hampshire's state championship as a senior in the javelin and shot put while, along with football, lettering in basketball.
Before the accolades, there was the bench.
One of Reyes' earliest athletic memories is riding the pine as a fifth grader in Pop Warner. He played on the line, not because of his size or skills, he says, but because that's where some coaches stick the kids without a position they're able to play.
"There was an eight-play (participation) minimum," Reyes said. "I was (sometimes) getting like six; I wasn't even getting the minimum. I just loved the game so much because there's no other game like it. You truly like something that much, you're going to figure it out, one day or another. After that, I started getting into games. I kept developing my way through."
Keep developing.
That is the idea here.
The Chargers gave Reyes more responsibility over the course of his rookie year. During the Week 11 breakout in Denver, he played a season-high 42 snaps. It was the start of a trend, as his average workload jumped from 25 reps the first nine games to 46 the final seven.
The trend should carry into 2013.
San Diego is asking a lot of its young starting defensive ends, Reyes on the left and Corey Liuget on the right. They are some of the lone survivors to a radical 12-month overhaul in defensive line coach Don Johnson's position room.
There is no more Luis Castillo or Jacques Cesaire. No more Antonio Garay, Vaughn Martin or Aubrayo Franklin.
The team is fully expected to add veteran experience to the group, possibly before players report to training camp on July 24. Still, Reyes and Liuget figure to share a heavy workload in 2013.
Johnson hopes the two ends can share something else.
Liuget, a 2011 first-round pick, was the epitome of a sophomore leaper last season, improving dramatically to become arguably the defensive line's best player. That improvement came after a quiet rookie season, in part because of youth, the lockout and a week-long contractual holdout in training camp.
Reyes was more advanced as a first-year player than Liuget. In his second season, Reyes' goal is to become more consistent than last year, someone his teammates can turn to and trust.
If he makes a Liuget-like leap, the result could be scary.
"Not for me," said Johnson, who's waiting to see Reyes in pads before evaluating his improvement. "I'd be pretty doggone happy. ... That would be our ultimate hope."
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