A general rule to remember during offseason workouts: The more physical the player, the less you can learn about them when they're wearing shorts.
And with the advertised physicality of rookie OT Trevor Penning still waiting to be truly unveiled, the big man out of Northern Iowa is as excited as anyone to have full pad practices fast approaching.
"Really as an O-lineman, D-lineman you can’t do a whole lot without pads. You can obviously work on technique and stuff but it’s not the same kind of scenario as you’re going to be in when you’re playing in games," Penning said on SportsTalk with Bobby Hebert, Kristian Garic and Mike Detillier this week.
"So once the pads come on, that’s when the real fun starts.”
Listen to the full interview with Penning in the player above. Can't see the embed? Click here.
Rookies reported to camp earlier this week, with veterans set to join them on July 26. Training camp practices begin the next day, with the first padded practice scheduled for Aug. 1.
But even if the work is a bit limited without pads, the time spent without them is valuable for a rookie that comes into the NFL on the raw end of prospects after a college career in the FCS ranks. Penning has pointed to footwork as a major element he's worked on thus far, and that's been the case throughout rookie minicamp, OTAs and mandatory minicamp.
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"That’s probably the No. 1 thing I’ve been working on is just pass-pro," Penning said. "That’s kind of what we focused on during the team periods we had in the OTAs. They were all pass plays. I got a ton of work during that and having two great coaches in coach [Doug] Marrone and coach [Zach] Strief. You really can’t learn from two better guys than them."
The veterans in the OL room have also been a valuable resource Penning said. That includes star RT Ryan Ramczyk, along with James Hurst, the veteran tackle who represents Penning's chief competition for the starting spot at LT.
"That’s what you do to get better, you gotta chip their mind," Penning said. "It’s been great to have him. It’ll be definitely a fun little training camp for us."
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MORE FROM TREVOR PENNING
ON PLAYING WITH PHYSICALITY/MEAN STREAK
“That’s just how football’s gotta be played and it’s definitely enjoyable. Obviously here I’m not going to want to get those personal fouls and stuff like that. I don’t want to do anything to hurt the team like that. But football is a physical game meant for physical people. That’s all I got to say about that.”
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ON ADJUSTING TO NEW ORLEANS
“The people down here it’s just like everybody’s so friendly. There’s so many good people down here. Just being around all the coaches and staff members and teammates. Being around all these guys, it’s a really cool experience to be in the same building as some of these guys that you looked up to when you were a kid. It’s really crazy to think that you’re teammates with them, it’s just cool.”