New Cincinnati Bengals secondary/safeties coach Jordan Kovacs has a lot of experience, whether it’s as a player or a coach.
He played as a safety, so he’s able to put himself in the shoes of the players he’s coaching, and he knows what it looks like when someone in the secondary stands out from everyone else.
Here’s what Kovacs had to say about Bengals safety Dax Hill to Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com:
“He’s obviously got the skill set. He’s a great player. And it’s funny because I watched a lot of Dax in college. He’s just one of those guys that he’s got the skill to be a very, very good player. These guys are young and you can’t coach experience. There’s no greater coach than experience and getting some reps. Both those guys got a lot of reps. They got a lot of experience and that’s going to be huge for them and I expect them to take big steps forward.
“He made some damn good plays. He made some really flashy plays. And I’m sure that he also told you there’s some plays that he’d like back and that’s just life in the NFL as a safety and especially a young safety. The sky, in my opinion, is the limit for him … I’m personally really, really excited to work with him. He can run. He’s willing, he’s tough and he’s a smart kid. There’s a lot of that you want and a lot that you can work with. And it’s our job just to put them in the right spots.”
Kovacs believes that Hill has what it takes to get to the next level, even though he does have some lapses in his defense as a still young player.
In his second year, Hill had 110 tackles – six of which went for a loss – 11 passes defended and two interceptions, so he has already shown that he can compete at a high level, but Kovacs is going to try to get him to the point where he is an elite defender.
