Derrick Nnadi not afraid to put in work at Chiefs camp

Coaches often outnumber players surrounding the blocking sled when the defensive linemen start banging away and working on the finer points of hand placement, hip level and rip-through in the unforgiving sun during the early days of Chiefs training camp.

Until the veterans arrive, the defensive tackle unit is relegated to an army of two. Third-round draft pick Derrick Nnadi and undrafted free agent Dee Liner have gotten all the up-close-and personal attention they could ask for from defensive line coach Britt Reid.

“My teammate Allen Bailey, he told me really just come every day to practice with a purpose because it’s going to be a grind,” Nnadi said. “As a rookie, even as a draft pick, they brought me in for a reason so I want to prove myself for both myself and for them that they got the right person.”

A 6-foot-1, 310-pound nose tackle out of Florida State, Nnadi has seemingly embraced the individual coaching thus far. The 22-year-old enters camp having, at least on paper, as legitimate a chance as any other rookie of earning substantial playing time this fall. If Nnadi, who grew up in Virginia Beach, Va., isn’t on the field regularly, it likely won’t be for a lack of work ethic. He didn’t have to look far growing up to find a role model who worked tirelessly.

Last year’s starting nose tackle, Bennie Logan, signed with Tennessee this offseason and Chiefs free-agent addition Xavier Williams, a Kansas City native, has started just two games in three seasons with the Cardinals. The starting defensive tackle job is potentially one of the must-watch position battles of camp.

Nnadi pointed to his father, Fred, as the person who taught him the value of hard work and the idea that you get out of each endeavor what you put into it.

“My father is probably the most hard-working person I’ve met in my life,” Nnadi said.

A Nigerian immigrant who came to the United States in the 1960s, Fred supported a family that included seven children — Nnadi is the youngest of the group. Nnadi relayed an anecdote that had been shared with him that encapsulated his father’s work ethic. His father, mother and one of his older siblings survived for an entire year in the U.S. having just $2,000.

Fred can be both proud and less than effusive when doling out praise, according to Nnadi, but he continues to set the tone for his youngest son on a near-daily basis.

“He’s a stubborn man, so if I’m doing something good he’s like, ‘OK. Good job. Keep going. It’s a good job, but I want you to do better,’” Nnadi said. “I appreciate that, though. Coming into this level right here, my dad — every day I talk to him. He really tries to give me the right mindset, saying, ‘OK, you’re here. Now what?’”

Nnadi receives regular reminders that he’s got to prove himself every day with the same goal in mind that Fred used to push when Nnadi was a child.

“He used to say to me you want to be the best of the best of the best of the best of the best,” Nnadi said before adding with a laugh, “You’ve got to say it five times!”

This story was originally published July 25, 2018 at 6:00 AM.