After parting ways with long-time left tackle Eric Fisher, the Kansas City Chiefs gave up a first-round pick and then-some to the Baltimore Ravens to obtain Orlando Brown Jr.’s services. Since then, the Chiefs’ blockbuster trade has generated tons of excitement, and rightfully so. Brown has played at a near-elite level so far in his young career but some pundits fear Brown might not transition well to being Patrick Mahomes’ blind-side blocker in Kansas City’s pass-first offense.
After spending the majority of his career playing on the right side of the offensive line in the Ravens’ run-heavy ground attack, Brown took to the podium following Tuesday’s practice to tell reporters he’s ready to prove he can be just as dominant on the left side with a club that prefers to keep the ball in the air.
“I look forward to being able to get rid of that stigma of ‘this guy can’t play left tackle in a pass-first offense,’” Brown admitted. “That’s what I look forward to blocking guys one-on-one, all of those different situations in those passing scenarios to take advantage of, and really just showcase my ability and my talent.”
Reports have come out of Chiefs Training Camp that Brown has had his struggles going against star defensive end Chris Jones and various other d-linemen. However, Brown put clarity on how such one-on-one drills should be perceived.
“I really use that drill as an opportunity to work on whatever I’m going to work on,” he explained. “I’m not necessarily approaching it to win, I’m approaching it to work on my technique that I’m set working on for that day; whether that be super aggressive with my feet, super aggressive with my hands, punching, stuff like that. [But] Chris is a freak man, his abilities and what he can do, I’m sure he’s going to have a great year. I’m just glad he’s on my team.”
Kansas City will be in Santa Clara. California on Saturday to kick off their preseason opener against the San Francisco 49ers. It will be fans’ first stance to get a glimpse of Brown in a real-game setting. Although he (and thirst of the first-team offense) might only play for a series or two, Brown has a few things in mind that he wants to display for everyone watching.
“My tone-setting, my mindset, my mentality, and my consistency,” Brown listed. “I don’t know how long I’ll be out there; however long it is, I’m going to give it my all. I just look forward to being able to showcase and express all those different abilities in my game.”
Right tackle Mike Remmers being out due to injury means Kansas City’s o-line will be made up of five brand new starters. Thus making Saturday’s scrimmage a major step forward for the five-man group to play as a unit. Brown also believes it’ll help them establish their own identity heading closer towards the regular season.
“The identity of the room is getting there [but] I don’t think we’re quite there yet,” he reflected. “We’re definitely gelling as a group, the five that have been up there for the past week or so. From an identity standpoint, we just want to be tough, consistent, and physical — and we want to fly to the ball.”
As Brown has said before, he wants to live up to his father’s legacy and play at an elite level for over a decade. As can be seen in camp, he’s not only passionate about living up to his goal, but also serious about proving he can be the guy to protect Patrick Mahomes blindside.
And he’ll take every exhibition rep he can to make it happen.
