When the Chiefs selected linebacker Willie Gay in the second round of April's NFL Draft, beyond the optimism of landing a talent they deemed a potential playmaker, they envisioned he would fill a specific need.
A coverage linebacker.
Four weeks into his rookie season, he's addressing a very different one.
A run-stopper.
Gay made his first career start in Monday's win against the Patriots and played a career-high 25 snaps, a personnel move defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo made to counter what he anticipated from New England's offense: A lot of rushes. Indeed, the Patriots ran the ball 35 times.
"My role right now is just play against big personnel groupings, and wherever coach wants me other than that," Gay said. "With the Patriots game, it was the perfect scheme to be in the box (and) play the run a lot because they wanted to run the ball a lot. Each and every week, it might change a little bit, so we'll just see what happens going into the next week and the week after that."
As he works his way into the lineup more consistently _ his snaps have increased each week _ Gay has found a niche as a run defender, taking over the role essentially occupied by Reggie Ragland last year. Even as the Chiefs thought he would develop into a three-down linebacker, he popped on film for his ability to cover running backs and tight ends, a gap in last year's Chiefs defense.
That'll come.
With patience.
"Sometimes you just gotta wait your turn," Gay said. "I'm coming onto a team where it's loaded; it's stacked. Guys are already in positions that have been here awhile. You got people playing positions that have been here for six or seven years. I'm a rookie. I'm just waiting my turn.
"Hopefully one day I'll get the opportunity _ I know I will. But I'm just playing my role right now."
The role is gaining steam as the season progresses. Gay did not see the field during a defensive play in the season opener. He saw six in Week 2, then nine in Week 3, and then 25 last week.
It's natural growth from a rookie learning a new system _ and growth that typically would have come during a string of preseason games.
"For any rookie, the chin to the hairline mental reps are the most important thing," Spagnuolo said. "That just comes with going out there and playing. We missed that with not having preseason games and the same normal type of training camp. But he gets better every week _ that's the important thing."
Heck, it took a group of veteran NFL players some time to click in Spagnuolo's scheme last year.
So Gay is confident his full repertoire will eventually transform him into the three-down linebacker he was drafted to be.
"You can't pick it all up at once," Gay said. "If you can, you're superhuman or something. But I know I can't. Every week is something new. I'm learning the plays more. I'm learning my assignments more. I'm learning why I have to do this. I'm learning what they do on the offensive side to help me play faster. Just getting mentally smarter with the game. Just trying to build each and every week with that."
