There’s a new attitude with the Kansas City Chiefs defense, and linebackers Willie Gay and Nick Bolton are two big reasons for it.
The Chiefs are counting on their two young linebackers to take the next step in their careers and become leaders and they’ve done that. Though it’s only preseason, the Chiefs starting defense hasn’t yielded a point when it’s been on the field. That could be because of a renewed purpose on that side of the ball.
“Attitude defense,” Bolton said. “I want to have an attitude. I want to know we’re all going to play together. We’re young so we’re not going to be perfect every single play. But we can make it up with running around and having fun, speed to the ball, getting 11 hats to the ball, creating turnovers and having fun and having juice.
“That’s our creed going into the season. We’re going to live by that. We’re going to run around and have fun and have an attitude defense this year, that’s for sure.”
As middle linebacker, Bolton is responsible for getting the calls from defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo and getting everyone lined up before the snap. That’s no easy task in today’s pass-happy NFL.
“I feel like it’s been a great camp for me,” Bolton said. “Stepping into a leadership role, calling plays on defense, trying to get more comfortable with what Coach Spags likes to call in certain situations because I didn’t have that last year.
“Also, we’ve got a lot of vets and earning their respect. I’m in my second year, and the older vets know I’m going to put them in the best position possible and go out there to compete and have fun. So it’s been beneficial for me.”
The same can be said for Gay. The third-year outside linebacker, who has spoken openly about his mental health struggles in the past, said he is now in a “good place mentally.”
“I became closer to God,” Gay said. “I was baptized when I was younger but knowing where my foundation is and knowing where my problems were. Like I said, when I handled that situation — it’s still not perfect, of course, but when I handled that and told him I just want to live right and everything else kind of fell into place and is still falling into place.”
Gay said no matter what happens on the football field, he has learned to bring a positive attitude every day.
“We can lose a game, I can get hurt,” Gay said. “But at the end of the day it’s all about what’s on my mind or what’s in my heart. And that’s what transitions over into big games, big plays being made. And that’s because I didn’t fall down when something bad happened. I always stayed strong and carried on.”
Gay and Bolton also have been impressed with the rookies since the offseason program. Gay said the likes of Trent McDuffie, George Karlaftis, Joshua Williams, Bryan Cook and Leo Chenal have helped the team immensely.
“There’s been constant growth each week and every day,” Gay said. “You see the young guys just add on. They know the defense well. We didn’t have to slow it down for them. And to see that those guys are adding to the back end, defensive ends and linebackers, they added on a great piece to this whole defense.
“When they added on to this team, it makes me feel like we’re going to be special this year. And it hypes me up to go even harder because I know we can be a special group.”
And Gay now sees himself as a role model to not only the young players but the veterans as well — a tribute to how far he’s come in a relatively short amount of time.
“I do take the leadership role,” Gay said. “And I try to just lead and do my part and make sure that whenever they see me, they see me doing the right things on the field and off.”
BELL HAS SURGERY
Chiefs tight end Blake Bell underwent surgery for a hip flexor injury and will be out indefinitely, Chiefs coach Andy Reid said Tuesday. It’s possible Bell could begin the season on injured reserve, but Reid said the team was still looking at all options.
“We’ll see on that,” Reid said. “We’re kind of throwing some things around right now.”
RB GORE PLACED ON IR
Chiefs running back Derrick Gore was placed on injured reserve Tuesday with a broken thumb as the team trimmed the roster down to 80 before Thursday’s preseason finale against the Packers. Gore played in 11 games last season and rushed for 256 yards and scored two touchdowns in a backup role.
The Chiefs also placed offensive tackle Lucas Niang on the Physically Unable to Perform list. Niang has been out since suffering a knee injury in Week 17 against the Bengals last season. It’s possible Niang could return yet this year, but he will have to sit out the first four games.
