Chiefs’ Justin March-Lillard took advantage of ‘fair shot’ to earn starting job

Justin March-Lillard has been in the NFL for a little over a year, but he already knows better than to assume anything in this league.

So March-Lillard waited until Monday — the day Chiefs coach Andy Reid made the announcement — before he allowed himself to truly embrace that he would start at linebacker in Sunday’s season opener against the San Diego Chargers. His family and friends at home in Danville, Ill., made sure of that, as his phone was quickly inundated with messages as the news circulated.

“I got texts from old coaches, old friends, high school teammates,” he said with a smile. “Just about everyone.”

It was a big moment for March-Lillard, and not just because earning the start validated his hard work in rehabilitating the torn meniscus that wiped out his rookie season a year ago. It was also a confirmation of his talent. He leapfrogged two players — Ramik Wilson and D.J. Alexander — that the Chiefs drafted the same year they signed him.

“I just feel like I had a good opportunity, you know?” said March-Lillard, 23. “They gave me a fair shot when it came to practice, getting reps in preseason games and everything like that.”

But it does help that March-Lillard, who racked up 72 tackles (six for loss), eight pass breakups, two sacks, and two forced fumbles as a senior at Akron, never considered himself an underdog. His faith gave him confidence and strength.

“I’ve always thought of myself as somebody who was drafted by God to be in this situation,” March-Lillard said. “I know I am undrafted, but I never really fed into it. I feel like I was supposed to be here and I’ve always felt like, given a chance to prove myself, all I (needed) was an opportunity.”

The door opened when Josh Mauga, the projected starter next to star Derrick Johnson at inside linebacker, injured his hip during training camp. Mauga would be placed on injured reserve, and his immediate replacement in practice was Wilson, a fourth-round pick a year ago who started two games.

But defensive coordinator Bob Sutton said March-Lillard created his opportunity through his play last year — general manager John Dorsey even called him the “surprise of camp” — and this year, as he continued to display his plus pass-coverage ability and knack for being around the ball.

“Things happen when he’s in there,” Sutton said. “Tipped balls, fumbles on the ground, he picks it up … you just say hey, he just might be one of those guys that has really, really good instincts. I think all of us were disappointed when he got hurt.”

After a few practices with Wilson in the lead role, the staff decided to insert March-Lillard following an impressive outing against Seattle in the preseason opener, and he never let go.

“He proved himself worthy of what’s happened,” said Sutton, who added that other players should learn from what March-Lillard has accomplished. “We talk all the time to the team about (how) you have to be really careful when you’re starting camp, and you’re sitting in one of those rooms, and you’re looking at the people around you, and you’re thinking well, this is where I’m at. You just don’t know what’s going to happen.

“Sometimes that’s a hard sell to guys. But it’s true. Every year I’ve been around, somebody’s been in that position and all of a sudden, bam, they’re playing.”

Now it’s up to March-Lillard to make good on the faith the Chiefs showed in him. Along with cornerback Marcus Peters, the 2015 defensive rookie of the year, March-Lillard is the youngest projected starter on a unit that has finished seventh in total defense the last two years. But he’ll have the 33-year-old Johnson — a 12-year pro — next to him.

“The thing that you notice right away is you have a real experienced guy and a guy that’s not very experienced, but I think they work well together,” Reid said. “I think as March goes, you’ll see improvement as he goes through the year. I don’t think what you’re going to see on Sunday is the finished product.”

March-Lillard understands he still has plenty to learn.

“He asks me and Josh Mauga questions galore — he’s a young man that’s very hungry and I’m excited to see what he does on Sunday,” Johnson said. “We know he can make plays … he’s got a positive mindset. He listens. He’s not like ‘Oh, D.J. keeps telling me this’ or ‘I keep messing up.’ He’s like OK, I’ll do this. He knows himself — he’s confident in what he does, and that’s what I love about him.”

Johnson said he and March-Lillard are both adept at shooting gaps, which is ideal for the weak-side inside linebacker position Johnson currently plays. March-Lillard also played there but moved to the “mike” position, which often calls on a bigger, stouter linebacker to take on blocks while the weak-side linebacker makes plays.

March-Lillard, 6 feet and 230 pounds, compensates for his lack of size with his quickness and instincts, traits that Sutton values.

“(Stopping) the running game inside is about instincts — you’ve got to know, not where the ball has started, but where the ball is ending up, and he kind of has that ability,” Sutton said. “I mean, you never just want to be blocked. You want to be a player. And guys that are players, sometimes they’re supposed to be here, but they’re right over here when the ball is there.”

March-Lillard seemed far more decisive in the Chiefs’ third preseason game, his second as a starter, as he decided to stop worrying so much and let his instincts take over.

“There were a couple times in the second game that I was hesitant to go do what I usually do,” March-Lillard said. “I didn’t want to make a mistake, so I was kind of like ‘Ah, I’ll play it safe.’ But there is no playing it safe in this league.

“You’ve got to go out there, compete, and make plays. When I see an opening, I’ve got to go get it, because that’s my job as a linebacker, to make plays.”

 

This story was originally published September 9, 2016 at 7:41 PM with the headline "Chiefs’ Justin March-Lillard took advantage of ‘fair shot’ to earn starting job."