Greetings from ... well, I'm somewhere out in the middle of the country, humming Willie Nelson's "On the Road Again" with a smile on my face.
Yeah, I missed this last year, when the COVID-19 pandemic cut off one-on-one access to players and coaches and rendered the annual training camp tour a pointless exercise. But while the vaccine and testing requirements and Kinexon tracers at each camp make it clear that things aren't all the way "back to normal," I was able to get back on the road this summer and visit a few NFL teams.
This is my favorite time of the NFL year -- a chance to sit and talk with players, coaches and front-office folk about their teams, the league and life in general. Training camp is relaxed, comfortable and informative, and I learn something everywhere I go.
So with four of this year's seven stops in the books, I thought I'd share some of what I've learned so far -- from coaching philosophies to scheme changes to those ever-important fantasy football nuggets that just might help you with your upcoming draft.