Early Disappointments from the 1st Week of NFL Training Camps

Disappointments exist throughout every NFL training camp, but they're not often discussed because coaching staffs want to maintain positive attitudes, at least in the public eye. 

It's all a matter of perspective, though. 

Overreaction to one play, especially a viral video, is foolhardy. Richard Sherman's career with the San Francisco 49ers won't be defined by this year's first training camp in pads, during which Marquise Goodwin burned the 30-year-old cornerback for a long touchdown reception. Those instances become teaching moments. 

"I respect Sherm because he doesn't care," 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan said, per Pro Football Talk's Mike Florio. "... He's out there working on his craft trying to get better and not caring what people say. That's why you get better from that rep. It's a good example to show young guys, to show everyone that that stuff doesn't matter. You getting better is what matters so you can do it on Sunday."

Disappointment is derived from those who don't learn from their mistakes. A player is either getting better or worse each day. How those performances balanced out over the course of the first week of training camps determined who earned the designation so far. 

Multiple former first-round picks continue to fall short of expectations. A few rookies are still trying to adjust to the pro game. One particular holdout may be the biggest disappointment of all.

Billy Price, Cincinnati Bengals

John Minchillo/Associated Press

Snapping the football is the game's most fundamental act, yet it's not a given in Cincinnati Bengals camp, as this year's 21st overall pick, Billy Price, has flubbed multiple exchanges. 

According to the Cincinnati Enquirer's Jim Owczarski and Paul Dehner Jr., Price went five consecutive days with a mishandled snap. 

"Unacceptable. One is too many," offensive line coach Frank Pollack said, per Rebecca Tobak of SB Nation's Cincy Jungle. "He understands that. I like his approach. That's why we drafted him." 

Two things must be kept in mind regarding Price as he prepares to take over as Cincinnati's starting center. First, he only played over the ball one season at Ohio State. Second, he came from a Buckeyes offense that rarely had the quarterback under center. 

Head coach Marvin Lewis discussed the situation with Dehner Jr.:

"I think the adjustment he's making having not had a thousand or whatever so many snaps this spring already that we had May and June, he's not had those, the opportunity to do that. He missed maybe half of those with not being able to participate against the defense. He had all the things when there wasn't a defense across from him."

Not everything is Price's fault since it takes two to tango. But a clean quarterback-center exchange is crucial and can't develop into an area of concern. 

David Njoku, Cleveland Browns

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When a player makes jokes at a teammate's expense—even if they're good-natured—a little bit of truth exists.

David Njoku has continued to struggle with drops during practice sessions. 

"The JUGS machine is inside," linebacker Christian Kirksey said when asked about the tight end, per the Chronicle-Telegram's Scott Petrak. 

Njoku brings an exciting combination of athleticism and long-term potential. But he's young—he just turned 22 years old last month—and still learning the nuances of his position after converting from wide receiver two years ago. 

Neither excuses the facts that Njoku is a 2017 first-round pick and the Browns expect big things of him in coordinator Todd Haley's offense. Clearly, the 6'4", 246-pound tight end is a mismatch nightmare and excels after the catch. His inconsistent hands can't be overlooked, though. 

"I have talked to him," head coach Hue Jackson told reporters. "He needs to know that I have confidence in him. I know the kind of player that he can be, but there is so much work that he has to do to be what I think he wants to be. In order to do that, every day you have got to be focused, determined and disciplined. He has to work at that every day..."

DeVante Parker, Miami Dolphins

Lynne Sladky/Associated Press

Miami Dolphins wide receiver DeVante Parker is a tease. Since the organization drafted him 14th overall in the 2015 draft, it has waited patiently for a breakout campaign. Parker has shown flashes yet never puts it all together. 

As 2018 gets underway, there's no reason to believe the upcoming season will be different. The sentiment coming from the Dolphins camp hasn't changed, though. 

"We're going to have some bad days in there, but we're just looking to keep stacking as many good ones in a row as possible," wide receivers coach Ben Johnson said of Parker's performance, per the Miami Herald's Adam H. Beasley. "He's trending in the right direction right now. We've got to keep developing him and get him going; but we're really, really excited about him."

Actions are louder than words. Right now, Albert Wilson, who signed with the Dolphins in March and previously lined up almost exclusively as a slot receiver with the Kansas City Chiefs, continues to get work as an outside target. 

"He's an outside guy," head coach Adam Gase said, per Antwan Staley of USA Today's Dolphins Wire.

Kenny Stills is the vertical threat. Veteran Danny Amendola will work out of the slot. Wilson is expected to play opposite Stills. Where does that leave Parker? At best, he's a fourth receiver and trending toward a full-blown first-round bust. 

Gareon Conley, Oakland Raiders

Eric Risberg/Associated Press

Injuries are unfortunate, but they're part of the game. And players can't help their teams if they spend the majority of their time in the trainer's room. 

The Oakland Raiders have big plans for 2017 first-round pick Gareon Conley. However, they can't build around the talented cornerback if he's not on the field. Conley missed all but two games last season with a shin injury. A pulled groin bothered the defensive back during minicamp. Now, he's dealing with a hip strain. 

"I don't know if concerned is the word. I think disappointed is the right one," head coach Jon Gruden said, per NBC Sports' Scott Bair. "He comes out to start training camp, and he's in superb shape. He makes a play and suffers a setback. Hopefully, he comes back sooner rather than later." 

The lingering injuries may develop into a bigger problem since his absence from practice last weekend "raised some eyebrows," according to The Athletic's Vic Tafur. 

However, a simple medical condition could explain Conley's rash of issues, according to Greg Papa, who served as the Raiders' radio voice for 21 seasons. 

"Gareon Conley suffers from vitamin D deficiency, which, I don't know, I think he's had it his entire life," Papa told Joe, Lo and Gibbs on 95.7 The Game. "It's just kind of a nutrition thing."

Jatavis Brown, Los Angeles Chargers

Gregory Bull/Associated Press

For every individual who performs well at training camp, there is another who doesn't. Kyzir White's emergence as a potential starter for the Los Angeles Chargers at outside linebacker will come at Jatavis Brown's expense.

"It's hard for me to talk about Kyzir because I get real excited," head coach Anthony Lynn said, per Ricky Henne of the Chargers' official site. "... I want to get him in some games and watch him play, but just watching him run around here and some of the things he did in the offseason, I get real excited talking about him."

White received first-team reps in recent days, according to NBC San Diego's Fernando Ramirez. 

Brown's athleticism and experience (12 starts in two seasons) don't mean much if he fails to outperform a fourth-round rookie. Hayes Pullard started more games than Brown last season too. 

"Nobody's job is safe," the 24-year-old linebacker said, per ESPN.com's Eric D. Williams. "... Those are two guys [White and second-rounder Uchenna Nwosu] that are very talented and could easily be starters." 

Furthermore, the Chargers coaching staff is going to give White every opportunity to succeed because the team had its eye on the collegiate safety for some time. 

"We had a hammer on him [in the draft]," Lynn said, per Henne. 

Josh Allen, Buffalo Bills

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Buffalo Bills quarterback Josh Allen is a work in progress. Everyone knows this, including Allen. 

"We're getting to where we want to get," the first-year quarterback said, per the Toronto Sun's John Kryk. "Still, it's going to take some time. And I'm not putting any pressure on myself right now."

Ideally, a team's first-round pick blows away the coaching staff and takes the starting job. That's not the case in Buffalo. In fact, Allen continues to work with the third-team offense, according to The Athletic's Matthew Fairburn. 

This year's seventh overall pick has his flaws, and they were well-known before his selection. Allen has all of the requisite physical tools to be a top-end NFL starter, yet he struggles with accuracy (56.2 percent at Wyoming). As a result, the 22-year-old signal-caller became a target of social media shaming after woefully missing a wide-open running back out of the backfield. It's one play among hundreds he'll make or miss. 

Confirmation bias aside—what's more disturbing is the Bills' quarterback competition seems to be a battle of attrition. No one, including the rookie, is playing well enough to stabilize the offense. AJ McCarron, who received the majority of reps with the first-team offense during the previous two days, found himself with the second unit Friday, according to WKBW Buffalo's Joe Buscaglia. 

Allen isn't the Bills' savior. Not yet. There's still a long way to go before he even gets an opportunity to prove he can be.

Josh Doctson, Washington Redskins

Nick Wass/Associated Press

One day, the Washington Redskins may experience a healthy Josh Doctson in their lineup. Today is not that day. 

Injuries wrecked the wide receiver's first two seasons, and his struggles continued into this year. Washington hopes Doctson will provide a breakout campaign this fall, yet he's already dealt with two maladies since training camp began. 

According to NBC Sport's Brian Mitchell, the wide receiver had swelling in his heel earlier this week and needed it drained. Doctson then injured one of his shoulders after colliding with cornerback Josh Norman, per Kimberley A. Martin of the Washington Post. 

Neither is a debilitating injury, but every nick adds up over time and takes away valuable reps. Before the latest problems, the 2016 first-round pick had been performing well. 

"Good, very good, very good," head coach Jay Gruden said, per Martin. "You know, he's done a lot of good things down the field. Quick game, everything."

A healthy Doctson—as seen during his final season at TCU—is a difference-maker. He's an explosive vertical threat who excels going up and snagging passes over defensive backs.

"He can definitely be one of the top receivers in this league with his leaping ability and his size [6'2", 202 lbs] and him being able to run down the field," teammate Jamison Crowder said, per the Associated Press' Stephen Whyno (via Fox19.com). "The main thing is just him staying healthy."

Joshua Garnett, San Francisco 49ers

Jeff Chiu/Associated Press

Joshua Garnett's status with the San Francisco 49ers is tenuous at best. 

First, he had to reshape his body to fit the physical profile Shanahan prefers among his offensive linemen. According to The Athletic's Matt Barrows, the 2016 first-round pick dropped approximately 20 pounds and now weighs 305. 

"I've definitely put myself in a better position to do what they ask me to do, what they pay me to do, what I've signed up—signed my initials on the contract—to do," Garnett said at the start of training camp. 

The competition remains fierce for the fifth and final starting spot up front, and Mike Person has received the bulk of the first-team reps as of late. 

"Obviously, I'd like to think that I'm here for a reason," Person said, per the San Francisco Chronicle's Eric Branch. "Once they called and wanted me to come work out, I said 'absolutely' because I'm one step ahead of a lot of guys just coming in."

Garnett fell behind when he injured his knee, which required an anti-inflammatory shot, according to NFL Network's Mike Garafolo, and Chris Biderman of USA Today's Niners Wire noted he hasn't practiced all week. Plus, the 49ers activated another guard candidate, Jonathan Cooper, on Tuesday, per Barrows. 

The 2015 Outland Trophy winner started camp as a potential starter. Now, he's battling to make the 53-man roster. 

Paxton Lynch, Denver Broncos

David Zalubowski/Associated Press

Does anyone else remember when Paxton Lynch was the future of the Denver Broncos franchise? Too many would probably like to forget. 

Case Keenum is the starting quarterback after signing a two-year, $36 million contract this offseason. 

Lynch has showed next to nothing in five career games. But general manager John Elway liked the 6'7" signal-caller enough to trade up for his services in the first round of the 2016 draft. 

The Broncos keep waiting for the light to go on, and it might never happen. Instead, the team's 2017 seventh-round pick, Chad Kelly, is pushing to become Keenum's backup. 

"Chad is different [than Lynch]," head coach Vance Joseph said Monday, per Jon Heath of USA Today's Broncos Wire. "He's a playmaker. If it's a dirty play, he makes it look clean. That's his strength. He's just a playmaker..." 

However, Lynch finally showed signs of life this week. He hasn't been awful, but a first-round quarterback is expected to show far more in his third season. 

"He made some plays," Joseph said, via the Denver Post's Kyle Fredrickson. "... He's getting better." 

Too little, too late might be an apt description. 

According to ESPN.com's Jeff Legwold, the Broncos "will almost certainly" check veteran quarterback options since neither Lynch nor Chad Kelly seems to be the answer if Keenum isn't available for any reason. 

Roquan Smith, Chicago Bears

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A holdout in today's slotted rookie-wage scale is shameful. It's even more so for the Chicago Bears organization since it doesn't seem willing to budge on its stance. 

Discord will grow the longer Smith remains unsigned. 

"Obviously, it's not advantageous to anybody that he's not here, and I'll just leave it at that," defensive coordinator Vic Fangio said, per the Chicago Tribune's Rich Campbell. "Talk to [general manager Ryan Pace] and his salary-cap guys about that."

The hang-up between the two sides seems arbitrary yet could have a real-life impact on Smith's financial earnings. Basically, the Bears remain unwilling to change contract language that would allow the franchise to void guaranteed money if Smith faces discipline from the league for the new helmet rule, according to Dan Graziano of ESPN.com. 

Generally speaking, teams use similar language in all negotiations, but the odds of one taking advantage of the situation are minimal. On-field suspensions tend not to be lumped into the same category as conduct-code or substance-abuse violations. However, Smith's representation won't concede. 

Smith, meanwhile, continues to miss valuable time on the field and in the classroom. At this juncture, one has to wonder if he'll be ready for the regular season as a vital part of the Bears defense. 

"I think he has the potential to be a good player—a really good player," Fangio said. "I would have loved to have him here the first day. But we'll adapt and adjust and get him ready."

Y'know, whenever he reports.