Tyrod Taylor has been here before.
The 31-year-old veteran finds himself again in a quarterback competition on HBO’s “Hard Knocks” against a fresh-faced first-round pick.
In 2018, Taylor was ultimately named the Browns’ Week 1 starter but suffered an injury two weeks later and was supplanted by overall No. 1 pick Baker Mayfield for the remainder of the season.
This time, it’s against a subdued Justin Herbert, who will have to speak if he hopes to claim a starting role in the NFL.
“You have to let him make his own personality,” Chargers head coach Anthony Lynn said in Tuesday’s episode.
Herbert was a polarizing prospect before the 2020 NFL Draft and has been criticized for his shy nature. He’s also spent most of his career in Oregon taking shotgun shots and clapping before games instead of calling out signals.
He’s now tasked with learning a diverse NFL-style offense, which includes taking snaps under center and calling complex counts on a specific cadence in the middle of a shortened coronavirus preseason.
“I can tell the difference if it’s a run or a pass depending on how you speak,” Lynn told Herbert. “Keep that in mind, okay?”
Last season, Taylor threw just six passes behind veteran Philip Rivers, who left for the Colts during free will. Taylor will be tasked with bringing Herbert up to speed and helping the 22-year-old raw talent gain confidence on the pitch.
“Just listen to the rhythmic beat of (Taylor’s number of shots),” said offensive tackle Bryan Bulaga. “This first“ Green 80 ”. If he just flies through that “Green 80 Green Hut”, there is no timing for linemen to land good jumps on the ball. And as a quarterback you want us to get off the ball.
Taylor entered the league as a 2011 sixth-round pick from Virginia Tech and spent four years in Baltimore as a replacement for Joe Flacco. He later proved to be an effective starter during his three-year stint with the Bills, racking up a total of 9,562 passing yards, 54 passing touchdowns and 20 interceptions, as well as 1,843 rushing yards. and 16 touchdowns in 46 career starts.
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