Rookie Keondre Coburn received help learning Chiefs playbook from DT Tershawn Wharton
The last day of private workouts for Kansas City Chiefs rookies ended on Friday afternoon at Missouri Western State University. Veterans headed to training camp yesterday evening ready to prepare for the 2023 season, in which they intend to defend their Super Bowl title.
One of the many first-year Chiefs making his way through training camp is defensive tackle Keondre Coburn. The former Texas Longhorns standout told reporters after practice on Friday that he is picking up Steve Spagnuolo’s playbook and schemes with help from his teammate Tershawn Wharton, who he described as a leader for the defensive line unit.
“Turk [Tershawn Wharton] just helped me yesterday with a Quizlet,” Coburn explained regarding his study of Spagnuolo’s system. “He sent it to me. Thank you, sir, for everything that he did for that, he’s a real great leader right now for us, right now.”
Quizlet, a popular app among students, is an online resource that enables users to create virtual flashcards that can help difficult material sink in for intrepid learners.
Coburn continued his comments by making the high expectations that his coaches have for Kansas City’s defense clear, telling the media about the emphasis they place on building crucial cohesion between each of the defensive unit’s levels.
“[Defensive line coach] Joe [Cullen] wants [us] to know the whole defense; to be honest, Spagnuolo wants [us] to know the whole defense. I got called out yesterday in a meeting, and you know, it was a little shaky. But I have to know [those things] because I’m on defense. They expect me to know that, and I expect the [Defensive Backs] to know some of the things I do.”
Spagnuolo’s system has caught on unusually well for young players in the past, and with the help of Wharton’s online resources, Coburn could be the next Chiefs rookie to acclimate to life in the NFL quicker than some might expect.
