KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Chiefs center Mitch Morse spent a month and a half with backup quarterback Aaron Murray during the offseason in Georgia.
Sept. 17, 2015; Kansas City, MO; Chiefs center Mitch Morse (61) prepares to snap the ball to quarterback Alex Smith (11) against the Denver Broncos at Arrowhead Stadium. (AP Photo/Ed Zurga)
It wasn’t a vacation, however, and the players trained together.
“We spent an hour, hour and a half a day, just going through little things,” said Morse, who also dedicated time looking at film from the past season. “He was kind of going through me, he was picking my brain and I was picking his.”
When the daily physical training and mental aspect were over, Morse and Murray then moved outdoors.
“We worked out in the morning, we kind of felt guilty sitting around all day,” Morse said. “It was kind of cool when we ended up going to the yard; we had these little dummies that we set up as offensive linemen.”
The second-year center said all of the workouts and time spent with Murray proved helpful.
And that is a good thing when considering Morse is set to take on a larger role on the offensive line as a communicator.
“You owe it to your teammates as a center,” Morse said. “You’re not a rookie anymore, you got to step up and make some difficult calls. And that also helps working with Alex (Smith), the extra meetings we had last year.”
The difference from Morse’s rookie season through eight days of organized team activities (OTAs) hasn’t gone unnoticed to the Chiefs starting quarterback.
“You have to be able to think on the fly up there – be fast, make good decisions, communicate clear – those are the things in your second year I see from Mitch,” Smith said. “He’s up there, he makes a decision, he’s loud, he’s clear.”
CHARLES, WILLIAMS MAKE APPEARANCE
Running back Jamaal Charles (knee) and wide receiver Mike Williams (hamstring) were observed Wednesday afternoon putting in rehabilitation work on the hill next to the team’s training facility while their teammates practiced.
The occasion marked Charles’ second public appearance of OTAs and Williams’ first.
Both players have been rehabbing inside the training facility since OTAs began.
NOT PRESENT
Running back Charcandrick West was not present on the field during the team’s workout. A team spokesman said West was sick.
Also not present on the practice field were outside linebacker Justin Houston (knee), outside linebacker Tamba Hali (knee) and safety Eric Berry, who has yet to sign his franchise tender.
———-
Herbie Teope is the lead Chiefs beat writer for The Topeka Capital-Journal and ChiefsDigest.com. Use the contact page to reach him or find him on Twitter: @HerbieTeope.
———-
