*****The Nick Bolton Thread*****

[Dante84]

More to come!

Bolton played in all 13 games as a true freshman (22 tackles, one sack) after earning Dallas Morning News first-team all-state honors at Lone Star High School (130 tackles, 16 for loss, five interceptions). He went from promising youngster to SEC star in 2019, earning first-team all-conference honors after leading the league with 8.9 tackles per game (107 total, 7.5 for loss), intercepting two passes and breaking up eight others in 12 starts. He was named second-team Associated Press All-American, first-team All-SEC and a Butkus Award finalist in 2020, leading his defense with 95 tackles and 7.5 tackles for loss (including two sacks), while breaking up five passes in 10 starts. Bolton's father, Carlos, played football at Louisiana Tech. -- by Chad Reuter

Overview
When you think about strong, forceful inside linebackers, Bolton is the type of player you might be envisioning. He's going to fall below typical NFL starter standards from a size standpoint, but his rugged frame and forceful demeanor help make up for it. Play recognition and pursuit instincts help carry him to the football and he's a message-sending striker when he gets the runner squared up. He has functional short-area burst between the tackles but will struggle to run down the outside run if he's not close enough to the action. He will need to lean heavier on his instincts to help speed him up because of size and speed limitations. Bolton plays with good field recognition when dropping into zone and has a history of making plays on the football in coverage. He's a three-down linebacker who can make an immediate contribution on special teams and has the potential to become a future starter.
Strengths

• Very tough with a physical edge.
• Plays with demeanor teams look for in the middle.
• Field-savvy with instincts to diagnose misdirection.
• Identifies and communicates.
• Heavy hands with good pop to take on blocks.
• Pursues ball-carrier with patience and leverage.
• Fluid alterations to his pursuit angles.
• Excellent feel for attack timing downhill.
• Meets runners with violent collisions in the hole.
• Strikes like he's trying to send a message.
• Great awareness and ballhawking as spot dropper.
• Has enough man-cover talent to play on all three downs.
• Thrived on kick- and punt-cover teams early in his career.

Weaknesses

• Average lateral quickness traps him behind climbing blocks.
• Inconsistent to strike and separate from blockers.
• Needs to improve angles to elude box traffic.
• Might need to take a few more chances as a pro.
• Top-end speed appears below average.
• Loses ground when pursuit flows wide.
• Below-average lateral agility as open-field tackler.
• Will have to play quicker to deal with NFL slashers.

.@_nickbolton2 gets the call from One Arrowhead Drive �� pic.twitter.com/1XgaCeBy8R

— Kansas City Chiefs (@Chiefs) May 1, 2021

[Sassy Squatch]

Originally Posted by DJ's left nut

I mean it's a designed shot play. Kelce's whole job is to put the safety in conflict and that's exactly what happened. Nobody else is even running a route to speak of.

That's a simple high/low 2-man game and the throw is based on the safety.

The safety sunk on Kelce -- as soon as that happens, the ball HAS to come out. Complete or not, the odds of a pick are damn near zero.

Like I said in the GDT -- Mahomes wasn't running the offense. That play is a perfect example of it. That play design got him the look, we KNOW he saw the look...then he pulled it down and freelanced for really no reason at all.

He was bad Sunday -- no two ways about it. Nobody helped him out much, but it was obviously different than the Bucs Super Bowl. His team killed him that night and he was the only thing that was working.

On Sunday, he was as big a part of the problem as anyone.

He exacerbated it to an insurmountable degree. Looked like early 2024 Mahomes where he'd play gunshy for most of the game only to yeet an inexplicably bad ball that got picked.

[DJ's left nut]

Originally Posted by smithandrew051

A mental reset was needed. The players have a long offseason to think about it.

Hopefully they use it as motivation.

If I see Kelce come back with another gut though, I’ll be concerned.

Has to start with your leaders.

You wish there wouldn't have been that 2 week break.

I think they came up for air a bit after making it to the SB. And the fact that they've been running on grit and adrenaline finally hit them.

It was like 19 weeks worth of pressure all impacted them at once. As they were in-season, they seemed to be able to tune it out because there was always the next job and the next step.

I just wonder if that extra break didn't suddenly make that burden they've carried start to feel really really heavy.

Something has to explain going out there and looking as bad as they've looked at any time in the Mahomes era.

[smithandrew051]

Originally Posted by DJ's left nut

You wish there wouldn't have been that 2 week break.

I think they came up for air a bit after making it to the SB. And the fact that they've been running on grit and adrenaline finally hit them.

It was like 19 weeks worth of pressure all impacted them at once. As they were in-season, they seemed to be able to tune it out because there was always the next job and the next step.

I just wonder if that extra break didn't suddenly make that burden they've carried start to feel really really heavy.

Something has to explain going out there and looking as bad as they've looked at any time in the Mahomes era.

Yeah, you’d think some time off would help these older guys. But look at the results.

Offense starts to really show some life against the Steelers. They get time off. Then they look lost against Houston in the playoffs.

Offense again shows some life against Buffalo in a strong Mahomes performance. They get time off. Then they look lost against the Eagles.

[Wisconsin_Chief]

Originally Posted by DJ's left nut

You wish there wouldn't have been that 2 week break.

I think they came up for air a bit after making it to the SB. And the fact that they've been running on grit and adrenaline finally hit them.

It was like 19 weeks worth of pressure all impacted them at once. As they were in-season, they seemed to be able to tune it out because there was always the next job and the next step.

I just wonder if that extra break didn't suddenly make that burden they've carried start to feel really really heavy.

Something has to explain going out there and looking as bad as they've looked at any time in the Mahomes era.

I think you are absolutely spot freaking on. You could just see it Mahomes' eyes. He just cracked mentally, and who in the living hell could blame him? On top of being completely outmanned by a far superior roster, he had basically 7 years worth of pressure all hit him at once. The magnitude of what he was trying to accomplish finally clicked in. Once that happened, it was basically already over.

Same with CJ, you saw it a few times on the sideline. They just couldn't take it anymore, and the Eagles were playing completely loose with absolutely nothing to lose. The results speak for themselves.

[Chiefshrink]

Mahomes has never trusted his o-line all year long, and now on the biggest stage against a superior d-line, he's going to overthink it and second guess and not take the shots, and not clearly see the secondary in front of him and throw pics. What you saw from Pat Mahomes last night was the fact that he was human and he had very little confidence even before the game started, and it only worsened as the game went on.

[Chiefshrink]

Heck, I'll go on the record and say that Mahomes has never really trusted any O line in front of him since starting.

[BWillie]

Originally Posted by Chiefshrink

Heck, I'll go on the record and say that Mahomes has never really trusted any O line in front of him since starting.

This is why I fear he may not age well. He relies on his quick twitch escape abilities rather than elite pocket presence. Mahomes has the fastest times for the agility and quickness drills at the combine despite a slow 40 time.

[Hammock Parties]

Originally Posted by smithandrew051

Yeah, you’d think some time off would help these older guys. But look at the results.

Offense starts to really show some life against the Steelers. They get time off. Then they look lost against Houston in the playoffs.

Offense again shows some life against Buffalo in a strong Mahomes performance. They get time off. Then they look lost against the Eagles.

They were NOT lost against Houston. They scored on 5 of 7 drives. 4.3 YPC and 7.1 YPA.

Time off wasn't a factor.

[rocknrolla]

As long as Spags is here, Bolton will be here. So I Hope a long time.

[DJ's left nut]

Originally Posted by Hammock Parties

They were NOT lost against Houston. They scored on 5 of 7 drives. 4.3 YPC and 7.1 YPA.

Time off wasn't a factor.

Yeah -- I don't think the Chiefs offense was as good as you seemed to be trying to convince yourself of (presumably to talk yourself into Thuney at LT) but they never felt like they were just completely out of sorts.

They just seemed like they were trying to get by with a limited gameplan against a tough pass rush. And ultimately Houston gave them Kelce so they took it. They spammed an easy button.

This game was different. And I don't think it was specifically the time off -- I think it was the time with little to do where the gravity of the situation finally landed. They'd been able to ignore the weight of history all season because it was still largely hypothetical. And then for two weeks there it was, right in front of them.

And they can say all they want that "the job wasn't finished" but I think they put so much drive and focus into getting to the SB and the chance for the 3-peat that the time off before just allowed some of those pressures to sink in.

[MahomesMagic]

Spags got Veach to resign Anthony Hitchens so I’m sure he will be pushing for Bolton.


Just bad cap management to overpay an off ball linebacker not great in coverage.

[Gary Cooper]

Originally Posted by BWillie

This is why I fear he may not age well. He relies on his quick twitch escape abilities rather than elite pocket presence. Mahomes has the fastest times for the agility and quickness drills at the combine despite a slow 40 time.

Yes. Guys like Brady or Manning had no mobility but they would step up more in the pocket rather than get happy feet and look to run. Being more mobile can be a hindrance at times when you try to bail early on pockets.

[lcarus]

Originally Posted by htismaqe

Worthy was covered on the long TD. He caught that ball because he got that extra step right at the end of the play. It CAN be done, Pat just needs to let it rip.

I can't remember them trying it much the entire season other than a couple times. Like why not? You drafted the fastest guy in combine history and you have Patrick Mahomes. I thought the entire point was to stretch the field and threaten the defense vertically. I get that teams played 2 deep safeties a lot and our protection was ass almost every snap. Even still, I expected to see it more than we did.

[seamonster]

Originally Posted by RunKC

First off, great ****ing coverage from Quinyon Mitchell here.

But yes Mahomes should have taken the shot. If anything it would have forced Fangio to adjust

via Imgflip

LOL fangio's not adjusting. That's not what he does. And that's not man defense, that's zone-match. The defensive back matches with the receiver when he runs vertical and their nickle back handles underneath routes in zone and the safety is supposed to provide help over the top but he's too shallow trying to cover Kelce. This was a massive **** up by Mahomes and exemplifies why the Eagles defense isn't the end-all-be-all that people make it out to be. Those safeties and their linebackers can be had. Their rookies had it too easy too.

[comochiefsfan]

Originally Posted by htismaqe

The Eagles did it multiple times on the outside. And beat McDuffie, one of the best in the game, doing it. Sometimes you have to trust your WRs to go get the ball. Other teams do it, Mahomes just doesn't.

It's like Pat wants his guys to be college wide open or else he doesn't throw it.

Maybe playing with Tyreek and prime Kelce spoiled him a bit as they were often college wide open.

He needs to adjust his expectations a bit and realize that if Worthy is one on one and even with a corner he has got to let it rip and let him go make a play.