Chiefs defense went to school on Rex Ryan's scheme

Tom Pelissero | USA TODAY Sports

Bob Sutton remembers the first time he studied Rex Ryan's old Baltimore Ravens defense, before Ryan became Sutton's boss with the New York Jets in 2009.

"I didn't understand it," Sutton, now the Kansas City Chiefs' defensive coordinator, told USA TODAY Sports on Thursday. "But then I looked at it and I said, 'Dang, I like this.'"

Sutton – a longtime college assistant who joined the Jets in 2000 and worked with Ryan the past four years – freely admits he lifted a lot from Ryan's scheme in building a Chiefs defense that has fueled a 6-0 start with NFL highs in sacks (30) and takeaways (18).

And that's only part of what Sutton learned from Ryan, whose defensive philosophy revolves around creating packages to accentuate players' individual skill sets and attacking nonstop.

The Chiefs are still a 3-4 defense, as they were in 2012 under former coach Romeo Crennel. But instead of being static up front, they've turned into shape-shifters – adjusting to offensive looks, trying to change the scrimmage line on every snap and utilizing a variety of personnel packages.

"We can keep the dice rolling," end Tyson Jackson said. "We can come out in different situations and put a bunch of different players on the field to keep the offense guessing as well."

Offseason investments in cornerback Sean Smith (three years, $16.5 million), defensive lineman Mike DeVito (three years, $12.6 million) and two minimum salary benefit players, outside linebacker Akeem Jordan and safety Quintin Demps, have paid off.

But holdovers from a defense that ranked No. 20 last season have played key roles, too. Linebackers Justin Houston and Tamba Hali have 9½ and 6½ sacks, respectively. Jackson, nose tackle Dontari Poe, safety Eric Berry and linebacker Derrick Johnson all are playing a high level.

"No one's selfish," Jordan said. "We just play aggressive, full-speed, all the time."

Sutton, 62, attributes that in part to "a huge advantage" he had in the evaluation process: the Chiefs ran the same defense last season under Crennel as the Jets did in 2008 under another ex-Bill Belichick assistant, Eric Mangini, before Ryan installed the defense Sutton's running now.

In other words, Sutton knew what players were being asked to do during the 2-14 disaster of 2012 and thus had a much better idea of how they might fit into what he's doing now.

"They've bought into that, if you'll play hard, if you'll always be around the football, good things can happen to you, whether it's the ball getting tipped, the ball's on the ground, securing a tackle when a guy's getting out," Sutton said.

"The thing we continually try to show them is, no matter how much you think you can do something different in a game, you can only do it the way you practice. It's muscle memory. It's habit. It's just how you do business. If we get that, then we've got a fighting chance."

Growing up Gio

Ask Giovani Bernard's brother for something no one knows about the Cincinnati Bengals' rookie running back, and four things come to mind: he's double-jointed, he can snowboard, he listens to rave music and he kept feeding his sweet tooth before the NFL scouting combine.

"It was candy, cupcakes, Hi-C fruit punch – stuff you shouldn't even put in your system at that time," Yvenson Bernard said by phone. "During the combine process, I was so pissed at him – like, 'You can't eat that stuff!"

Giovani Bernard hears this kind of advice all the time. Yvenson was once an NFL prospect himself – a member of the vaunted 2008 running back class that included Jamaal Charles, Matt Forte, BenJarvus Green-Ellis, Chris Johnson, Felix Jones, Darren McFadden, Rashard Mendenhall, Ray Rice and Jonathan Stewart – before a balky knee derailed his chances.

Now 28 and retired after spending parts of four seasons in the Canadian Football League, Yvenson is coaching high school football, teaching special education and talking daily with Gio, 21, who always listens to his big brother – and is getting used to occasionally saying no.

"Especially during the combine, I didn't want to be messed with," Giovani Bernard said. "I was in my own little zone. If I wanted a Snickers bar, if I wanted my Skittles, I was going to have it."

It's all part of the growing-up process for Giovani Bernard, the laid-back son of a widowed south Florida dry cleaner who played only two seasons at North Carolina before turning pro and becoming the first running back drafted (37th overall).

On the field, Gio is showing his small (5-foot-9, 208 pounds), quick frame can be an asset in the Bengals' offense, with 438 yards and four touchdowns on 80 touches through six games.

"His style of play is so much like mine that it freaks me out," Yvenson said. "I'm looking at him running the ball and I'm like, 'Make a left, make a right, or use this move, and he does it. It's like, 'Oh, crap – that's kind of scary.' It's like I'm playing Madden and controlling it."

Off the field, Giovani is getting used to life as an adult and a local celebrity, though he spends much of his downtime 20 minutes away in Kentucky with his girlfriend, Chloe.

He recently bought a used BMV, allowing him to stop driving Chloe's mother's minivan, which provided his memorable arrival to training camp on the HBO series "Hard Knocks". And he's mostly cut out the sweets, though he'll occasionally house a bag of SunChips in one sitting.

"I can be smart. I'm not eating junk food all day," he said. "I know that's not the right path to staying in the game for a while. When you're just coming out of college, you're 21 – I'm going to have a sweet tooth here and there. I'm not going to die if I have a couple of Oreos."

Teddy's test

The second half of potential No. 1 pick Teddy Bridgewater's toughest two-game stretch this season comes Friday, when sixth-ranked Louisville plays host to Central Florida.

The true junior wasn't at his best in last Thursday's 24-10 win over Rutgers, completing 21 of 31 passes for 310 yards, two touchdowns and a rare interception, plus a red-zone fumble.

"There's some things he needs to clean up," said an area scout for an NFL team who has studied Bridgewater extensively and spoke on condition of anonymity for competitive reasons.

"He'll get into some points where it looks like he's trying to force a couple balls into coverage, throwing in the deep middle of the field with the safety high. Long ball accuracy and trajectory – he's got to clean that up a little bit.

"He's got plenty of arm strength. The release is good – it's not a great release, but he can adjust it and get it out quick if he needs to."

The scout said the fact Bridgewater wears a glove on his throwing hand "kind of freaks me out a little bit," since that can be indicative about a quarterback with small hands, and was quick to point out Louisville's schedule "hasn't exactly been murderer's row."

But the scout said he likes Bridgewater's even-keeled demeanor and feels he's answered every question so far – though it's too soon to speak definitively on his NFL prospects.

"It's funny how quickly people are trying to crown this guy (as a franchise quarterback). Let this thing play out," the scout said. "He's got ability. He's only a true junior. He's got a plan. He's going to graduate in three years. This kid's got things in line. You have confidence in that part of him. He knows what he wants to do. He knows how he wants to do it."

Another draft prospect to watch on Louisville's roster: junior DeVante Parker, who has decent speed for a big receiver (6-foot-3, 209 pounds) and impressive catch radius and leaping ability. He has 21 catches for 375 yards and six touchdowns this season.

Where's Tavon?

The talented St. Louis Rams climbed back to 3-3 with last weekend's blowout of the Houston Texans – and they may have revealed their pursuit of a revised offensive identity, too.

Though their personnel isn't really built to pound the ball on the ground, the Rams ran 25 times for 99 yards (4.0 average), mostly with rookie fifth-round draft pick Zac Stacy, and only used their top draft pick, receiver Tavon Austin, for three snaps.

Why is Austin's role seemingly shrinking? A personnel executive for another NFL team theorized: "Little receivers don't work with inaccurate quarterbacks."

Sam Bradford is a 58.4% career passer. He's been more efficient this season – 59.5% passing, 13 touchdowns, three interceptions, 90.7 rating – but never will be known for his accuracy.

Austin stands 5-foot-8 and 176 pounds. He leads the Rams with 24 catches but is averaging only 6.6 yards per reception, meaning he's mostly getting the ball near the line of scrimmage.

The bigger targets presented by Austin Pettis (6-3, 203), tight end Jared Cook (6-5, 254) and even Chris Givens (6-0, 203) are capable of creating more favorable matchups on the perimeter than Austin, who's best suited to the slot and is smallish even for that spot.

"You can get away with those guys if you have (Drew) Brees or (Tom) Brady," the executive said. "Of course, you can get away with a lot with those guys."

Quite the catch

New England Patriots receiver Kenbrell Thompkins might end up being the smartest skill-position signing in rookie free agency since the Houston Texans stole halfback Arian Foster for a $7,500 bonus in 2009.

Thompkins, 25, has 21 catches for 318 yards and four touchdowns, including last week's winner over the New Orleans Saints – quite a haul for a former juvenile delinquent who had stints at two jucos and a non-playing year at Oklahoma before finishing his college career at Cincinnati.

To put that production in perspective, Thompkins – who signed a three-year contract with the Patriots that included just $5,000 guaranteed – had four touchdowns total in two seasons with the Bearcats. His 3.5 catches per game with the Patriots is higher than his 3.25 average in Division I.

Even Foster didn't start this fast, spending half of his rookie season on the Texans' practice squad before getting promoted to the 53-man roster. He broke through in 2010 and cashed in after the 2011 season, signing a five-year, $43.5 million contract extension.

It's that ability to plug holes that makes other teams respect the Patriots as long as they have Bill Belichick and Tom Brady – even when they're as beat up as they are now, with top offensive weapons Rob Gronkowski and Danny Amendola limited to three games combined in the team's 5-1 start.

"They're a well-coached team, well-prepared," an executive in personnel for another NFL team said. "They're going to play to their strengths. They're going to hide their weaknesses. I think they're still going to be a formidable foe. I don't know where they're going to be in January, but I know they're going to be a tough out."

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