Arrowhead Pride
The Chiefs had their eye on him early in the process
Love is hard. Sometimes it’s unrequited. Sometimes it ends too soon. Sometimes it lasts too long. And each version carries its own brand of heartbreak.
Sometimes, coming out of a situation like this, it feels like your heart’s been run through a wood chipper. You’re not looking for passion in your next fling — you just want someone dependable, somebody who makes the long nights pass a little easier.
This week’s potential camp crush epitomizes that brand of safe love. Pittsburgh linebacker Brandon George is the sort of player you take home to meet your parents, but part of you still wishes he were a little more of a bad boy.
Football and love aren’t perfect bedfellows — and what’s underwhelming in one scenario might be the player of your dreams in the next. Keep this in mind: if George only turns into a special-teams contributor, that’s already a win by undrafted standards.
George played high school football at Berks Catholic in Reading, Pennsylvania, where he lined up at both middle linebacker and running back. As a member of the class of 2019, the 6-foot-4, 240-pound George was a four-star recruit and the No. 19 outside linebacker in the country.
Oddly, George’s recruiting process didn’t reflect his ranking. Despite being a top-five player in Pennsylvania, his offers came from schools like James Madison, Albany, Army, and Bucknell — before he ultimately signed with Pittsburgh.
Part of that may be due to the fact that George isn’t an exceptional athlete. He relies on play recognition and his ability to diagnose what’s coming before it happens. His game is more brains than burst.
They say nice guys finish last. At least that’s what they tell themselves. But if they looked more like James Dean and less like Shrek, things might be different.
While George’s game isn’t full ogre status, it does have its warts. Watching his tape is like watching a 10-year veteran who was once a Pro Bowler but has lost a step.
A team captain, George is smart and consistent. He understands his assignment and knows where to position himself. The issue is that his body doesn’t always have the gas to match his mind. His success depends on staying one step ahead of the offense and triggering downhill before anyone else does.
He’s the kind of guy coaches love to have in the film room — he’ll catch things other players miss, even if he can’t always execute it on the field.
That said, the numbers he posted at his pro day back in March far exceeded what you see on tape: a 4.63 40-yard dash and a 42-inch vertical.
So maybe this ugly duckling has gone through his She’s All That transformation — and he’s athletic enough to make it in the NFL after all.
One thing you can’t teach — and that has helped many linebackers carve out NFL careers...
