The Kansas City Chiefs’ much improved offensive line starred rookies Creed Humphrey and Trey Smith last season. The latter of the two dropped to the sixth round of the 2021 NFL draft due to health concerns, but he quickly alleviated those concerns to become a core player on the team.
Smith earned PFWA All-Rookie Team honors for his exceptional performance last season, starting all 17 games on the revamped offensive line. The 6-6, 330-pound right guard seemed unfazed at the opportunity to start every week on a championship contending team. Part of that success seemed to come with working to perfect his craft by attending events such as the annual OL Masterminds Summit.
The former Tennessee Volunteers star again attended this year’s summit with a focus on improving some key areas of his game.
“Yeah, I would say my biggest focuses were eyes, hands,” Smith told reporters on Wednesday. “And then, pretty much just body positioning and body control.”
Smith was already spotted learning from Hall of Fame OT Willie Roaf, but he also revealed that he had another mentor while he was at this year’s event.
“One guy that I was leaning on a lot was Steve Hutchinson,” said Smith. “He’s a great jump setter and that’s something that I try to take to my game and apply it. I knew him a little bit before the draft process a little bit just talking to him. Just watching him in action, watching him take reps, what he thinks about his mental processing before the play. I thought it was pretty helpful to take to my game and apply it cause he’s one of the best to ever do it.”
Hutchinson was a seven-time Pro Bowl guard, spending 11 seasons in the NFL. He was enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame back in 2020. Smith is only 23 years old, with plenty of potential for growth in his game. Fans should come to expect it as he continues to learn from all-time great players.
