Creed Humphrey Film Review: He's Ready To Succeed
Rookie center Creed Humphrey has dominated the preseason to date, especially vs. the Cardinals. Let's discuss why Creed is poised to succeed at the NFL level, even without starting a game yet
With the new offensive line the Chiefs built this offseason, there’s been much coverage around these players. Trey Smith has received the most buzz because of his powerful destroying nature. Orlando Brown got a ton of buzz in OTAs for his mammoth size and build. Joe Thuney was the headliner inside with his new contract and being from New England, and we were all excited to see what Lucas Niang would look like when he got back.
The one guy that hardly got any buzz was rookie center, Creed Humphrey. Part of that is because he’s a quiet guy who does his job, but there wasn’t much discussion on him. But through two preseason games, he’s easily been the best offensive player on the Chiefs. Let’s discuss why he’s been so dominant this preseason and why he’s already a seasoned pro, even without starting a game.
Creed’s Improved Anchor
Going through the last draft process, my biggest problem with Creed Humphrey was that he wasn’t tremendous vs. power. He wasn’t bad against it, but it was his biggest detriment on tape. At the Senior Bowl, Creed struggled with power in the one-on-one drills, getting walked back into the pocket consistently.
However, since Creed’s been drafted, he’s been superb vs. power. Creed performed well in the one-on-one drills at training camp vs. Jarran Reed, a primary bull rusher. Creed was doing great with his leverage, extending his base a bit more and dropping his hips to “forklift” some of that power. He also looks stronger to this point, potentially adding a few pounds for the NFL.
That extra strength has shown up in the preseason, and Creed’s been superb vs. bull rushers so far. His lower body flexibility enables him to win the leverage battle, but with improved functional strength, Creed’s not a target for power as much. That was the biggest weakness in his game, and it appears to have been fixed. If Creed is going to be good vs. power in the NFL, his ceiling gets dramatically higher for what he could be in the league.
Using Length To Finish
One thing about Creed’s tape is he doesn’t necessarily have highlight-worthy blocks. In a certain sense, he’s a boring watch, at least compared to counterpart Trey Smith. Because he doesn’t have those insane blocks on tape, that can lead to some belief that Creed doesn’t have finishing ability in his blocks and is more of a finesse center. But Creed has some nastiness to his game and can finish some blocks.
Sure, he’s not going to pancake a lot of guys. He’s not the most explosive center out there, and his functional strength/length aren’t great for that. But finishing isn’t just pancaking your defender. It’s about getting them out of the play entirely and adding extra displacement from their gap. Creed has that capability.
His wrestling background taught him about leverage, which shows up on film. With his run blocking, Creed’s able to bend and strike low, getting into his defender's chest/stomach area. Once he gets his hands low and his knees bent, he’s able to extend himself to lift the defender’s momentum forward, and he’s terrific and keeping his feet moving. His hands are constantly resetting for new leverage and to get underneath a defender.
Sure, Creed won’t pancake someone 20 yards downfield. But he can create extra room with his leverage and athleticism and how well he uses his hands. I would argue that’s almost as valuable as a pancaking center because it’s hard to slip Creed’s blocks with how well he is with his flexibility and hands.
Flattening Your Angle/Patience
This offseason, I’ve been trying to consume content about Counter schemes, particularly G-H or G-T Counter. One thing that’s been said a lot is how important the center is in the play. Creed arguably has the most challenging block in this scheme because he has to back-block a nose tackle or 3-tech and make sure they don’t get penetration. This play gets blown up for negative yards if that DT gets quick penetration in the backfield because this run play is slower developing.
With Creed at center, that largely won’t be an issue. Instead of going flat on his back-block, Creed stays patient out of his stance. He doesn’t want to put his weight on his toes because that would lock his hips and allow quick penetration into the backfield. By being patient out of his stance, he’s able to let the defensive tackle get upfield a bit, then have a better angle to wash him up the arc. This defensive tackle has no chance of making a play on the running back because Creed shielded his gap and wouldn’t let him get upfield.
Patience In Screen Game
In the Patrick Mahomes era, one area of the offense that has fallen off is the screen game. Part of it is frequency. Kansas City is much more willing to give Mahomes the full reign of the passing offense they did for Alex Smith (obviously), so Reid doesn’t need to dial up manufactured yards with screens. But when Kansas City does run screens, they haven’t been great, especially in 2020. The interior offensive line struggled to hit their marks and giving any lane for the RB to hit.
Possibly the most critical player in the screen game is the center, who’s first to kick out and wash away the first downhill defender. It requires discipline with their eyes and patience. There’s a perception that screens are just for athletic centers, which isn’t the whole story. Yes, having a center who can kick out and block dudes 20-25 yards downfield is awesome, but you also have to be patient out of the stance.
Creed is great at that. Creed keeps his hips compact out of his stance on the first clip, waiting for his defender to strike. When his defender gets the downhill trigger, Creed’s stance allows him to explode to make great contact and washes him out of the play thoroughly. He had complete control of this play and understood the leverage of the defender and how to drive him out of the hole.
With Creed and Joe Thuney in this room now, Kansas City could have an elite screen game again. Having that again allows Reid to tool with his motions way more and build a lot more into his playbook for beating man coverage. So far, Creed’s been superb in the screen game, just as he was in college. Our running backs are going to enjoy the wide-open lanes they get now.
Rotational/Grip Strength
Creed’s not the strongest center out there, but his grip and rotational strengths are terrific. His hips are insanely strong, and he’s able to rotate his body weight well. This helps him when he has to adjust his blocks. His flexibility and ability to bend are great, and his grip strength to lock is excellent too. It’s hard to “pull” Creed because he stays attached so well and can rotate his strength/weight to keep leverage. That gives him an extra advantage over defensive tackles because they can’t stack and launch him back.
Conclusion
It’s rare to see a rookie as polished as Creed Humphrey. Even in the preseason, a rookie will mess up something immediately or showcase something that needs worked on or improved. But through watching two games of Humphrey, his tape is nearly flawless. There are a few missed things in there, but every player has that. I have yet to see him screw anything up at all or affect a play in any way.
Let me remind you; this guy is a rookie. But he plays like a veteran. His technique is nearly flawless, he’s great with his eyes and picking up protections, and that athleticism is popping. His strength has improved in the league. Creed’s not splashy or perfect, but he has yet to be a problem for this team in any way.
Creed is completely ready to go. I have total trust in him already. Yes, it’s against backups and not All-Pro defensive linemen. I get it. But what’s important to me is Creed’s process and how he’s reading/playing. So far, it’s been perfect, and his athleticism is popping more in Kansas City. We’ll see what Creed’s ceiling is, but I already am confident saying he’s in the Top-15 centers in the league and could end up way higher by the end of the season.
I always wanted a center next to Mahomes for the majority of his prime, and it appears we have one with Creed Humphrey. He’s that dude. This was a great draft pick by this organization, and I was completely wrong about Creed. Keep proving me wrong, man.