Having returned safe, sound and sunburned from my annual summer tour of NFL training camps, I am bound by tradition and the expectations of my employer to tell you a little bit about what I learned. So here goes:
-- I learned there are a lot of different beer offerings (and a lot of places to buy beer) at Minnesota's Target Field. I learned this because the Twins were hosting the Tigers last Tuesday and the park is three blocks from my hotel. Target Field became the 47th different Major League ballpark in which I've seen a game, and no, that is not a typo.
-- I learned that Fong's Pizza is the place to go in downtown Des Moines, Iowa, if you want a kung pao chicken pizza, which you absolutely should. I learned this because the drive from Minneapolis to St. Joseph, Missouri, is six hours long so I broke it up by staying in Des Moines -- a little more than halfway there. Iowa is now the 41st different U.S. state I have visited.
-- I learned that Bowling Green, Kentucky, is home to the National Corvette Museum, though I did not stop there. I was too eager to finish off the last long drive of my trip on Saturday night -- 4½ hours from Westfield, Indiana, to Nashville, Tennessee. Maybe next time.
I also learned a thing or two about the seven different teams I visited, because this is the best time of year for an NFL reporter to get out on the road, ask questions and get a feel for how the season is shaping up for teams. Most people are pretty relaxed this time of year. There aren't a ton of injuries yet. No one's lost a game yet. It's a time when you can get people to chat, in a relaxed setting, about their plans and expectations.
So here's a stop-by-stop look at the football stuff I learned over the past couple of weeks on the road.
Jump to a team:
Bears | Packers | Vikings
Chiefs | Bengals | Colts | Titans
Chicago Bears
Location: Lake Forest, Illinois
Date I visited: Saturday, July 30
The good news: Chicago's coaches and decision-makers to whom I spoke are fired up about second-year quarterback Justin Fields. No, Ryan Poles isn't the general manager who drafted him and Matt Eberflus wasn't the coach when he was drafted No. 11 overall, but the new regime is saying all good things about Fields, the way he works, his intelligence, his presence (on the field and in the huddle) and his raw talent. The Bears believe they have the right young quarterback to build around.
The questions in Chicago are more about the group around Fields. The offensive line was taking some hits while I was there. Tackle Teven Jenkins, a second-round pick last year, had been out of practice with an undisclosed injury (he has since returned). Center Lucas Patrick had just injured his right hand. Veteran tackle Riley Reiff had just signed and was working his way into the rotation. The day before I was there, the Bears had four rookies on the first-team offensive line in front of Fields.
The wide receiver pecking order behind Darnell Mooney is (as will be something of a theme in this notebook) something the team needs to figure out. A few people I talked to were saying positive things about free-agent addition Byron Pringle, for what that's worth before camp practices had really kicked into gear.
One of the first things Poles said he wanted to do when he got the job was overhaul the way the organization scouts and pursues players, and he believes his first draft class shows it's working. It's not out of the question, for example, that fifth-round rookie Braxton Jones could be the team's starting left tackle when the season opens. On defense, while the Bears are excited about the two defensive backs they drafted in the second round (Kyler Gordon and Jaquan Brisker), they're also fired up about fifth-round pass-rusher Dominique Robinson, and what he can offer right away.
It's a young group around Fields, but if Poles actually hits on a bunch of his first draft picks, this is a group the Bears feel can grow around Fields.
Fantasy nuggets
Watch me regret saying this when he's, like, leading the league in rushing in Week 8: I would be careful about drafting David Montgomery and relying on him as one of your starting running backs.
Montgomery is a really good player, but it says something that the team hasn't yet made a move to give him a contract extension heading into his fourth season. And all of the "feel-good" stories about him playing special teams in camp are a bit of an alarm bell to me. If he's the starting running back and the long-term answer at the position, would Chicago really playing him on special teams in camp?
My sense is the Bears want to see Montgomery in the new offense before committing to him, and hey, maybe he clicks. But Khalil Herbert and even rookie sixth-round pick Trestan Ebner could be threats to any potential lead role for Montgomery.
A couple of people at Bears camp told me to watch out for third-year tight end Cole Kmet. Someone besides Mooney is going to have to catch the ball out there, and they seem happy with the improvements Kmet has shown this offseason.
Green Bay Packers
Location: Green Bay, Wisconsin
Date I visited: Monday, Aug. 1
I asked coach Matt LaFleur about the process of replacing star wideout Davante Adams, and this is what he told me:
"He didn't have many limitations, right? It's rare that you find a guy that's as versatile as he is, that can, whether he's playing in the slot or playing outside, his route tree is basically unlimited. So I think that's going to be the challenge, how do you build up all these guys' route trees to get to that level where, used in combination, can we get it to a level of like what Davante could do."
Quarterback Aaron Rodgers has been talking up Allen Lazard as the new No. 1 receiver, and it wouldn't be the first time Rodgers helped a guy lower on the depth chart move into a top wideout role. LaFleur has always called Lazard "the enforcer" on the field because of his physicality and his ability and willingness to block. The Packers think he's ready for more.
"I think absolutely. I mean, ready or not, here we come with him," LaFleur said. "But I've got a ton of confidence in him. He's been playing at a really high level for us, he wears a lot of hats. He is the enforcer, but now we've got another guy that can block in Sammy Watkins, who's one of the better blockers in the league. And then those young guys are getting after it too. We feel good about the group. It's just going to be collectively how they grow and build that rapport with Aaron."
For the record, one of the young guys -- second-round rookie Christian Watson -- has been out of camp with a right knee injury. The Packers hope to have him back on the field within another week, and fourth-round rookie Romeo Doubs has drawn praise from the coaches as well as from Rodgers himself. The Packers like their group of receivers, but the main question they might need a portion of the regular season to figure out is who becomes Rodgers' Mr. Reliable on third down and in the red zone, where he and Adams had such an outstanding connection.
The Packers do believe their defense is absolutely loaded, especially on the back end with Jaire Alexander returning from injury to a cornerback group that includes Eric Stokes and Rasul Douglas. Stokes and Alexander are two of the seven first-round picks on the Packers' defense, including the two Georgia guys they picked in April, linebacker Quay Walker and defensive lineman Devonte Wyatt, as well as defensive linemen Rashan Gary and Kenny Clark and safety Darnell Savage.
One significant concern for Green Bay: The offensive line, where tackles David Bakhtiari and Elgton Jenkins are working their way back from injuries. The team is hopeful to have both back by the start of the season, but in the meantime the Packers will have to patch it together in practice and preseason games.
Fantasy nuggets
As the wide receiver situation sorts itself out, look for a lot of work for both running backs -- Aaron Jones and AJ Dillon -- including in the passing game.
I had a chance to speak with Dillon, who told me he believed he earned the coaching staff's trust last season once he proved he could be an asset in the passing game, as both a blocker and a receiver. That was the chief focus of his offseason.
This could be a situation in which both carry significant fantasy value, especially early in the season while Rodgers is figuring out whom he can trust at wide receiver.
Minnesota Vikings
Location: Eagan, Minnesota
Dates I visited: Tuesday, Aug. 2, and Wednesday, Aug. 3
Yes, quarterback Kirk Cousins knows new Vikings coach Kevin O'Connell from the time they overlapped in Washington. It's still a new voice in Cousins' ear calling plays, though, which is really what he's used to.
"Systemwise, it's been only maybe three. But playcaller -- the voice in my helmet, the person leading the room, it's been I think seven in seven years," Cousins told me. "It's hard for me to keep it straight. I think I've had eight in my career and seven in seven years. I've been with some good ones, and the system hasn't changed dramatically. But having a different voice in your helmet, a different person leading the room, you wish that wasn't the case. You wish you had one guy your whole career."
O'Connell was Cousins' quarterbacks coach in Cousins' final year in Washington in 2017. And of course, O'Connell was an assistant to Rams coach Sean McVay, who was with Cousins in Washington prior to that. Cousins knows the basics of the new system, but it has naturally evolved over the past four years as the league has tried to adjust to it. There is a lot for him to learn this camp.
"It's about retraining your brain and your footwork and your mind to how we want things done right now," Cousins said. "So I'm in the process of doing that, and there are some growing pains with that, where you don't feel like you're an 11-year veteran because you're trying to relearn everything. But it's been a part of the process of a lot of change."
All of that said, the vibe around Cousins and the Vikings is good. O'Connell and new general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah have lightened the mood and players seem refreshed, physically as well as mentally. New defensive tackle Harrison Phillips, who came over from Buffalo, said O'Connell does a good job investing the players in the reasons for his decisions about how practices are run.
"I really respect the way that he's super data-driven in terms of player health and safety," Phillips said. "I think that that's an overlooked competitive advantage in the NFL. Sometimes, you can get in these coaching trees and families that say, 'I want to be the toughest team in the NFL. I don't care how sore people say they are or what the injury rates are or all this stuff.'
"This guy understands that, he's put in a great team that understands all of that, and he really means it."
While Cousins talks about how much work is going into handling the coaching change and the new offensive system, his teammates believe they've seen a big difference in their quarterback as he heads into Year 5 in Minnesota.
"I think this culture just creates opportunity for guys to just be themselves," wide receiver Adam Thielen told me. "And to really trust that they can be themselves and go have fun and play football, a game we've all been playing since we were little kids. That's probably the biggest thing I've seen, for Kirk to just be able to be himself."
Fantasy nuggets
You should know what the Vikings offer in fantasy. Draft wideout Justin Jefferson early. Thielen will still give you reliable production. If you take running back Dalvin Cook in the first round, you know you need to make sure and get his backup, Alexander Mattison, at some point later to cover you if Cook gets hurt.
K.J. Osborn, the No. 3 wide receiver, should be on radars in case of injury to Jefferson or Thielen. Coaches and players were talking up tight end Irv Smith Jr. when I was there, but he's out with a thumb injury. And I was surprised how much talk there was about fullback C.J. Ham and his role expanding. If you're in an 18-team league and every other running back is taken, maybe a bench spot for a guy like Ham?
I find it hard to believe the Vikings will throw it to Osborn much when they can throw it to Jefferson, or hand it to Ham when they can hand it to Cook instead.
Kansas City Chiefs
Location: St. Joseph, Missouri
Date I visited: Thursday, Aug. 4
With Tyreek Hill now in Miami, I was thinking about last year's Chiefs and how they struggled a bit on offense through the first two months and quarterback Patrick Mahomes spent a lot of time talking about how defenses were playing safeties over the top to limit Hill and he had to start taking the shorter stuff that was available to him. They got it figured out eventually, and with Hill gone I asked Mahomes whether he thought that experience could help him in a post-Hill universe.
"I think it's going to help just the offense in general, being able to use the short game just as much as we utilize the deep ones like we were throwing today," Mahomes told me. "I think it helped me grow as a quarterback, where if that first big shot that we designed wasn't there and I had to get the ball out of my hands and move the chains. So I think you saw that at the end of last year. I was being more positive, still having the big play, but at the same time taking what was there and moving the chains."
Mahomes has been such a rocket ship since he became the Chiefs' starter, it's tough sometimes to remember he's a 26-year-old who still does work on getting better. His coach agrees that last year's experience can be beneficial.
"I think it's great for him as a professional in his career going forward," Andy Reid told me. "He has the attitude where he wants to rip your heart out. So when teams are giving you that opportunity to do that, he's going to take advantage of it, as Tyreek was. So it's great that he's able to now go back and see and study all the shell coverage that he got and how to gang up on that. It'll be great for his package and his learning."
Mahomes said his focus this offseason has been on accuracy, making sure the ball is "in the right spot every single time," and he believes that's going to be vital as the offense evolves into one where it's not as obvious to the defense where the threats are.
"I think it opens it up to where everybody's going to have a chance to make plays in this offense this year," Mahomes said. "Having Tyreek and [Travis] Kelce, you would kind of see those matchups and you would go through the read, but at the same time you'd know, 'Hey, I'm probably going to this guy with this matchup.'
"And so this year, having JuJu [Smith-Schuster] and having Marquez [Valdes-Scantling] and Mecole [Hardman] and Skyy [Moore] and all these guys, you're not going to know where it's coming from. I'm just going to get through my reads the way it's called and then get it to the right guy, and not necessarily just look for a matchup on a given play."
Mahomes lit up when I asked him who looks good on defense, talking about rookie cornerbacks Trent McDuffie and Joshua Williams as players he thinks can have an impact right away. He said they've been a big part of defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo's ability to change up coverages against him in practice and show him the different kinds of looks he's going to have to match up against without the game-changing option Hill has always been for him.
Fantasy nuggets
The receivers all have specific roles, from what I can tell. The Chiefs see Smith-Schuster as a player who can help out over the middle along with Kelce, in a role in which Byron Pringle had some success. They see Valdes-Scantling as a deep speed threat, though Mahomes suggested we could see him work in shorter-range stuff as well, where he can use his size to his advantage in matchups. From talking to Mahomes, though, Hardman has a chance to make a big jump in production.
"I think Mecole is going to have even a bigger role in this offense," Mahomes said. "He's made a lot of big plays happen in the limited amount of snaps that he's gotten, so I think as we kind of expand him, I think he'll have a chance to make some big plays for us."
Mahomes is also high on second-year tight end Jody Fortson, who was starting to look like a playmaker early in 2021 before an injury ended his season. Mahomes thinks Fortson looks great again and could have an opportunity for a role in the offense.
As for the running backs, the guys who can catch the ball and help protect Mahomes are going to be the ones who get the most opportunity. The Chiefs like Ronald Jones as a pass-catching threat, but they haven't given up on 2020 first-round pick Clyde Edwards-Helaire, who Reid told me was showing a lot this camp. "His whole thing was just staying healthy, and he's been doing that and doing it well," Reid said.
Maybe this is the season Edwards-Helaire finally pops?
Cincinnati Bengals
Location: Cincinnati, Ohio
Date I visited: Friday, Aug. 5
You want to know about Joe Burrow, who's still not practicing because he had his appendix taken out at the start of camp. Hey, so do I. The Bengals aren't saying when they expect Burrow to be able to practice again, though. Right now, it's about getting his strength back. He has been out on the practice field in a golf cart for the past week, and he's hanging out in the locker room with his teammates, so no one's too worried at this point. (Burrow began a light throwing routine on Monday).
"He just led a meeting on cadence 20 minutes ago," Bengals coach Zac Taylor told me Friday morning. "So he's still heavily involved. Really it's just about getting him through this initial stage, and then his communication with us about how he feels will be key. Fortunately, we've got what, 36 days before our first game. So we have some breathing room there."
I would not expect to see Burrow in a preseason game, but the Bengals don't care about that either. The only preseason action he saw last season, coming off ACL surgery, was a single three-and-out series he insisted on because he wanted to get the feel of playing in a real game before the season started. Could something like that happen again? Sure. But remember, his last game was just six months ago. This time last year, it had been about nine months since he'd seen the field because of the injury.
In the meantime, it's backup Brandon Allen throwing to Burrow's impressive array of pass-catchers. Second-year wideout Ja'Marr Chase and third-year wideout Tee Higgins are getting their prep work in without any problem.
"A lot of studying," Chase said about his own offseason work. "Just looking at coverages, seeing what teams want to do against you, looking for that edge for when we see them again. All about preparation."
The Bengals had to improve their offensive line this offseason, and they went after it hard in free agency. Now, they have to get all five starters on the field together so they can get some reps as a unit. Guard Alex Cappa, whom they signed away from Tampa Bay, is working his way back from core muscle surgery. Right tackle La'el Collins, whom they signed after the Cowboys cut him, is out with a back injury, but the team hopes he's no more than a week or two away from practicing. Center Ted Karras, whom the Bengals signed away from the Patriots, well, he's a big hit so far.
"He's been phenomenal," Taylor said. "Every team he's played for, he's been that favorite guy to have around and I can see why."
The defense is without star safety Jessie Bates, who was franchise-tagged in March and has yet to sign the tender or report to camp. The Bengals believe he'll show up at some point, but in the meantime rookie first-rounder Dax Hill is getting all of the reps at first-team free safety. The Bengals insist the Hill pick was not a hedge against the uncertainty of Bates' short-term future.
"He was the best player available," Bengals player personnel director Duke Tobin told me. "Sometimes that fits a little bit more of an immediate need than it does at other times. But no, we're counting on Jessie."
The work Hill is getting while Bates is out can only help him if he is the eventual replacement there. Ideally for Cincinnati, Bates will come back in time for the season and the versatile Hill will help out as a nickel corner or in some other role.
Overall, the Bengals are having a businesslike camp, led by a very clear message Taylor has tried to send about last season's incredible run to the Super Bowl.
"That's behind us," Taylor said. "We've got new faces this year. We have to start over. If we think we're just going to coast into the playoffs because we went to the Super Bowl last year, then we'll be in a lot of trouble. Fortunately, we don't have that team. We don't have those guys. Not once do they talk about last year. This feels like the same training camp we've had the last three years in terms of all the problems we've got to iron out and all that. This doesn't feel different because of what happened last year. ... You know, the guys are as hungry as ever."
Fantasy nuggets
A player about whom Taylor is excited is tight end Hayden Hurst, a 2018 first-round pick of the Ravens who's on his third team. Hurst was brought in to replace free agent departure C.J. Uzomah, and Taylor believes he has more inside of him than he was able to show in Baltimore or Atlanta.
"He's been a great matchup for us in the pass game," Taylor said of Hurst. "That's something we feel like we can lean on this year. Drew Sample is a great all-around 'Y' tight end for us. He's exactly what we were hoping for when we picked him four years ago. Serves a huge role for us. Hayden also brings a different element to the party where he's got a little more speed and can be a really, really good pass target for us."
You're saying to yourself, "Sure, but there's only one ball to go around, right?" And yeah, with Chase, Higgins and Tyler Boyd forming what looks like the league's top wide receiver trio and running back Joe Mixon needing to be fed as well, there might not be a ton of opportunity for Hurst to produce in fantasy. Uzomah, however, managed to catch 49 passes and five touchdowns last season, which isn't nothing, and Hurst has more speed and is more dynamic than Uzomah. Tight end is tough, so don't sneeze at a late-round flier on Hurst if you need one.
Indianapolis Colts
Location: Westfield, Indiana
Date I visited: Saturday, Aug. 6
No, Colts GM Chris Ballard does not enjoy changing quarterbacks every year. But since Andrew Luck shocked the organization by retiring in August of 2019, that's the way it's been. Jacoby Brissett as a fill-in for a year in '19. Philip Rivers for a year in 2020 before he retired. Carson Wentz last year, who was supposed to be rejuvenated under Frank Reich and was definitely not. And now Matt Ryan, acquired from the Falcons after Atlanta's failed pursuit of Deshaun Watson.
"You just keep firing away until you get it right," Ballard told me after the team's Saturday walk-through. "And look, I give the coaching staff a lot of credit because they've kept us relevant. And I thought we had a really good team last year. It wasn't perfect, but it was a good team. At the end of the year, we just melted."
Last year's Colts looked like a steamroller with two weeks left in the season, but inexplicable losses to the Raiders in Week 17 and the Jaguars in Week 18 knocked them out of the playoffs. At that point, they were done with Wentz and traded him to Washington without knowing whom they were going to get to replace him. Which ... isn't the ideal way to go, but Ballard says they weren't panicking.
"We were being patient," he said. "We knew there were guys on the market. I think rushing into a guy, we didn't feel like that was the right thing to do. So just be patient, it'll play out. We got a little lucky, of course, but sometimes you need a little luck."
What the Colts are saying about Ryan sounds a lot like what they were saying about Rivers two years ago -- the professionalism, the veteran leadership, the seriousness of purpose. Ballard said he'd known Ryan only from having competed against him and from all the positive things Bears GM Ryan Poles, who was Ryan's college teammate and worked with Ballard in Kansas City, always had to say about him.
So what makes Ryan so great for the Colts and where they are right now?
"Urgency. Attention to detail," Ballard said. "There's no detail that he leaves out, ever, in anything we're doing. And a guy that's been in the league as long as he has and has been as close to touching the prize as you can get without getting it, you can definitely feel the sense of urgency from him, and he definitely makes sure everybody else feels it."
Ballard said Ryan has "a little more whip in him than you think," meaning he has no issue with getting on teammates and pushing them hard when he thinks things need to be corrected. But that comes along with a lot of good feelings he's engendering in the building.
"The good thing about guys like that is, they just enjoy it," Ballard said. "That was the one thing about Rivers -- that year was so much fun just watching the joy he had. And Matt's the same way, and it's with every aspect of football. It's the meetings, it's preparation, every aspect of it, they love."
The Colts hope the offense can be more balanced this year with Ryan in command. As last year went along, the coaching staff struggled to get Wentz to eschew the downfield hero throws in favor of simpler, more available stuff. That's a big reason they leaned so hard on running back Jonathan Taylor last year -- to minimize the risks Wentz was inclined to take in the passing game. With Ryan, they believe they can utilize play-action more effectively, get the ball in the hands of Nyheim Hines in helpful ways and just be more unpredictable for defenses in general.
The biggest competition in camp is probably at left tackle, where veteran Matt Pryor appears to have a lead on third-round rookie Bernhard Raimann for the time being. It's not out of the question Raimann wins the job by the end of camp, but it'll depend on what the Colts see from him in terms of learning and development in the meantime.
On defense, they're thrilled with the addition of veteran Stephon Gilmore, who has wrecked a couple of practices for Ryan and the offense. Yannick Ngakoue, a favorite of new defensive coordinator Gus Bradley, comes over to augment the pass rush, which the team feels will be improved in part because 2021 first-rounder Kwity Paye is entering his second season. And while the Colts haven't had star linebacker Shaquille (formerly Darius) Leonard, who's coming off June back surgery, they have at least some hope that he'll be recovered in time for Week 1.
Overall, the Colts look like a good team that just needs some reliability and consistency at quarterback in order to make sure it doesn't "melt" again in the homestretch. Ryan is their latest attempt at finding that.
Fantasy nuggets
Michael Pittman Jr. is the Colts' No. 1 wide receiver, there is no question about that. He caught 88 passes for 1,082 yards and six touchdowns last year and should be Ryan's top target in 2022. The Colts believe the addition of franchise icon Reggie Wayne as wide receivers coach this year has made a difference for Pittman going into his third season in the league.
"The route running is getting better," Ballard said. "Usually he'd just rely on his size and strength to win everything. But where Reggie has really helped him is as a route runner."
Behind Pittman are Parris Campbell, rookie Alec Pierce and Ashton Dulin, all of whom the team believes can be productive wide receivers. But the pecking order after Pittman has yet to sort itself out.
And yeah, Taylor is going to be the No. 1 pick in every fantasy draft, and he should be. But I'm telling you, the Colts want to get Hines back to what he was pre-2021. Hines caught 63 passes in 2020 and only 40 last year. The Colts believe there's a role for him in their offense that more closely resembles the 2020 version. He's one of those late-round PPR picks who helps you on bye weeks or can be your No. 2 RB if you're stacked elsewhere.
Tennessee Titans
Location: Nashville, Tennessee
Date I visited: Sunday, Aug. 7
Full disclosure: I spent almost all of my time at Titans camp working on an interview with Derrick Henry for a TV feature that will run on Sunday NFL Countdown sometime early in the season. So I didn't get to spend as much time on in-depth conversations with key decision-makers as I did at the other camps. I did get a chance to talk to a couple of people in the building behind the scenes, and got some background info on the team from those conversations. So here are a couple of bullet points. Sorry, Titans fans, for giving you short shrift, but I think you'll really like the Henry feature!
The coaching staff thinks quarterback Ryan Tannehill is having a much better camp than he did last year. What's that mean? Attention to detail, determination to correct mistakes (his and others') and just overall command of the huddle and the offense. When your top receivers are A.J. Brown and Julio Jones, as they were last camp, it might be a little tougher to bark orders and issue corrections than it is with his current group. Tannehill also has spoken publicly about how the season-ending loss to Cincinnati ate at him, and the coaches feel like they see a little more determination as a result.
Robert Woods is likely the top wide receiver in the pecking order, and he's participating fully in camp and looks to be on track for Week 1 coming off the ACL injury that ended his 2021 season prematurely with the Rams. The Titans hope rookie Treylon Burks can play a big role right away, and they've been pleased with his training camp after a bit of a rocky spring. Burks showed up to camp in great shape, and people around the team say he has shown a big jump since they reconvened in late July. Holdover Nick Westbrook-Ikhine is a player the coaching staff sees as reliable and likely to be a factor in the passing game as well. Austin Hooper is a sleeper to watch at tight end.
Receiver needs to be figured out, but so does the offensive line, where there's competition for the starting jobs at left guard and right tackle. Not a lot of clarity on those competitions at this point.
No, I do not foresee any adjustments to Henry's workload. Henry missed time with a foot injury last year, but one person I talked to said it was more of a freak-occurrence injury (i.e., he got his foot stepped on) than an overuse one. Fire up Henry at the top of your fantasy drafts without concern.