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Wondering if Derion Kendrick can get it done in the slot
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Wondering if Derion Kendrick can get it done in the slot


Feb 22, 2019, 11:10 AM

I am really, really high on Derion Kendrick...and I'm wondering if he can be the guy to replace Renfrow at the 5-receiver (slot) position.

He's a different kind of guy than Renfrow. If you're looking for a 1-for-1-type replacement, the guy you probably want is TJ Chase...Chase isn't identical either - I think he's a bit faster than Renfrow, actually, though he doesn't seem to have that sort of bat-like evasion radar (who does?) - but Chase has shown the same sort of suddenness into and out of his breaks, that feel for coverage and ability to separate at will from his man in tight areas, and of course the naturally sticky hands. He's another classic 5-man in the Baham/Grisham/Humphries/Renfrow mold, whatever.

But Kendrick is a different sort of guy, a guy who can do immense amounts of damage with the ball in his hands. He can take the top off the defense with his jets and make those spectacular, aerobatic catches, and he's an elite athlete who probably could have dominated at RB or corner in addition to wide receiver. He's another of those guys who is a threat to house it every time he gets the ball in his hands.

If he can also do the job of a traditional Clemson slot - which means, always be open on third down, be a willing and effective blocker when the ball isn't coming to him (a massive plus for Renfrow, who probably had more blocks than anybody not on the OL), and be an artist with his footwork and a master of tight areas - I think Kendrick can win the job, and add an entirely different dimension (and yet another thing to freak out opposing DC's) to the Clemson offense. What are you supposed to do when the slot guy can house it on you when you've got outside WR's like Higgins and Ross marauding around?

(There is a word for that. That word is "unfair.")

The other thing to consider is that Clemson is probably going to be in a boatload of 10p personnel packages this year because of our TE situation, especially if Garrett Williams decides to leave the program. With Braden Galloway possibly suspended for 2019 and Milan Richard and Cannon Smith graduating, that could leave JC Chalk as the only veteran TE on the roster. Again, that means double slots - which likely means TJ Chase plus another inside WR on the field - and again, if you're going that way, it's going to be immensely hard to keep Kendrick off the field; I think he's just too durn good, too durn explosive, and will attract too many footballs to deny him, even in our very deep WR setup.

Whatever, one of the more intriguing developments this Spring, to my mind, is going to be what the coaches do with Kendrick. I think he's about to get a whole lot more involved, and is about to emerge as one of Clemson's primary weapons, whatever, and it'll be interesting to see how they get the ball in his hands.

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Re: Wondering if Derion Kendrick can get it done in the slot


Feb 22, 2019, 11:11 AM

I GUESS YES WOULD BE TO SIMPLE OF AN ANSWER.

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Neither Chase nor Kendrick is keeping Rodgers off the field


Feb 22, 2019, 11:20 AM

He is by far our best 2-man. Kendrick might fight Chase for snaps, but Rodgers has his spot locked up.

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Snowflake Basher........Out


Re: Neither Chase nor Kendrick is keeping Rodgers off the field


Feb 22, 2019, 11:31 AM

Just a embarrassment of riches, the fact he kinda seemed to forget about Amari Rodgers just shows the freak amount of talent that we have at the WR spots. This also doesn’t count Frank or Ngata tho I don’t think those guys are slot WRs, still worth mentioning bc I def think those guys will see the field as freshman due to their talent. I think we will run more 4 WR sets with lack of TE and if that’s the case I def think Kendrick will see the field a good bit and become a great asset to the offense. Man I’m so excited to see this team next year I can’t wait for next season Haha tho I will enjoy the championship in the offseason!!! Go Tigers!!

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Chase and Rogers aren't at the same wideout spot


Feb 22, 2019, 11:34 AM [ in reply to Neither Chase nor Kendrick is keeping Rodgers off the field ]

I think the question was as to whether Kendrick moves from behind Rodgers to battle Chase for Hunter/Thomspon's old spot or whether Kendrick stays put and continues to some type of rotation with Rodgers

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Yes, I know. Here is what I'm referring to...


Feb 22, 2019, 11:44 AM

quozzel said:

Again, that means double slots - which likely means TJ Chase plus another inside WR on the field - and again, if you're going that way, it's going to be immensely hard to keep Kendrick off the field; I think he's just too durn good, too durn explosive, and will attract too many footballs to deny him, even in our very deep WR setup.



This statement by quozzel is odd, because he states that a 4 WR set likely includes Chase and Kendrick, which would leave Rodgers, our starting WR at the 2-man, off of the field. I think the correct prediction would be to say Rodgers AND Kendrick. I don't think Chase is beating out either guy, and I don't think Kendrick is beating out Rodgers.

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Snowflake Basher........Out


Re: Wondering if Derion Kendrick can get it done in the slot


Feb 22, 2019, 11:21 AM

Defenses will send 5 every time and sometimes 6 hoping to get to TL before he can get the ball off or at the least lay into him enough that it affects his accuracy. The WR stable has more talent than most NFL teams. Etienne will feast because of the WR threat!

I like Rodgers in the slot, great hands, low center of gravity, can cut on a dime and can take short passes to the house.

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Re: Wondering if Derion Kendrick can get it done in the slot


Feb 22, 2019, 11:41 AM

I really hope we have options better than Kendrick. His hands are not great in my estimation.
I'm afraid he would drop more balls than a box of paper jockstraps.

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Go away Coot


Feb 22, 2019, 11:45 AM

And no, your Coots do not have any WRs better than Kendrick.

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Snowflake Basher........Out


Re: Go away Coot


Feb 22, 2019, 11:48 AM

YOu must be high. Go back and watch the Duke game.

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Re: Go away Coot


Feb 22, 2019, 11:49 AM

He drops one ball all year and all of the sudden he is unreliable? Go away with that crap. You are forgetting the ridiculous catch he made in the Duke game.

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Snowflake Basher........Out


Re: Go away Coot


Feb 24, 2019, 7:01 AM [ in reply to Re: Go away Coot ]

Higgins Ross Rodgers and Kendrick will be incredible on the field at the same time. Think Rodgers will take over Renfrow's role. Great routes, great speed, great hands, cuts on a dime without losing speed, and has tremendous burst. Man this is gonna be good. Maybe the best skill players ever at Clemson at the same time when you add in Etienne.

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Re: Go away Coot


Feb 25, 2019, 2:39 PM [ in reply to Re: Go away Coot ]

He was a true frosh.

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Re: Wondering if Derion Kendrick can get it done in the slot


Feb 23, 2019, 11:04 AM [ in reply to Re: Wondering if Derion Kendrick can get it done in the slot ]

This post is really embarrassing for you weak-diesel.


Message was edited by: BloodbeOrange®


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Deak-weasel... Corrected for accuracy.***


Feb 23, 2019, 9:53 PM



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Re: Wondering if Derion Kendrick can get it done in the slot


Feb 24, 2019, 7:26 AM [ in reply to Re: Wondering if Derion Kendrick can get it done in the slot ]

Yeah, most coots think that way.

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Re: Wondering if Derion Kendrick can get it done in the slot


Feb 22, 2019, 11:47 AM

I think Ross plays a LOT of 2-man to get he and Higgins on the field at the same time. I agree that Amari has the 5-man job locked up, but if this year is like the past several, the twos will play a lot, and I think they will be Overton (with Ngata nipping at his heels)at the 9-man, Kendrick at the 5-man (with Chase as the #3), and Powell (with Ladson nipping at his heals) at the 2-man to start the season. I look for Ngata and Ladsen to make their way to # twos by mid year. I think there will be lots of snaps to go around for all 9 of them with lots of big leads early.

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Lots of stuff wrong in this...


Feb 22, 2019, 11:53 AM

Amari Rodgers is the starter at the 2-man. This is typically your jet-sweep and screen guy.

Renfrow was the 5-man.

Ross likely plays a hybrid spot where they do some 2, 5, and 9 to get him on the field.

Higgins, Overton, and Ladson are your pure 9-man guys.

Rodgers, Kendrick, and Powell are your 2's.

Chase and Spector are our only 5's.

Ross and Ngata are hybrids and able to play all 3 spots.

I think we will see a lot of fluidity between the WR spots this year to confuse defenses and put as much of our immense talent at WR on the field as possible.

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Snowflake Basher........Out


Re: Lots of stuff wrong in this...


Feb 22, 2019, 12:46 PM

gtriple® said:

Amari Rodgers is the starter at the 2-man. This is typically your jet-sweep and screen guy.

Renfrow was the 5-man.

Ross likely plays a hybrid spot where they do some 2, 5, and 9 to get him on the field.

Higgins, Overton, and Ladson are your pure 9-man guys.

Rodgers, Kendrick, and Powell are your 2's.

Chase and Spector are our only 5's.

Ross and Ngata are hybrids and able to play all 3 spots.

I think we will see a lot of fluidity between the WR spots this year to confuse defenses and put as much of our immense talent at WR on the field as possible.



That's what I'm saying. 10p is a 4-WR set and I think we'll see a lot of that because we're incredibly loaded at WR and very short on numbers at TE. That usually means double slots.

I also didn't forget about Rogers at the 2, but I think Rogers' main competition is going to come from guys like Ross, Higgins, Ngata, Ladsen, etc...there's no law that says you can't have two huge fast dudes on the outside. Sammy Watkins moved from the 9 to the 2 after Nuk Hopkins left, and Martavis Bryant took over at the 9. Generally the 2-man is a little smaller and more elusive but that's not written in stone either, especially if a big guy is athletic enough to play the 2 and do damage with the ball in his hands.

I personally think Kendrick moves inside to the 5 (slot) position - at least for 2019 - because it's a way of getting the ball in his hands and getting him on the field. Now in a "double slot" set with two inside guys, you could see him and, say, TJ Chase on the field at the same time.

Of course, our coaches seemed to like putting Ross in one of those inside slots last year too because you could overload a side that way by putting he and Higgins on the same side. Which guy does the safety take? Whichever one the safety doesn't take has a 1-on-1, and that's bad, bad, bad if the other team's CB doesn't match up. Both Notre Dame and Alabama experienced that problem, a lot. But having Kendrick on the field only amplifies the problem because then you can overload any which way...and every receiver on the field then has the ability to take the top off the defense. That's a nightmare matchup for anybody, especially since with Lawrence at QB you can draw your passing plays on longer paper.

As people have pointed out, there's a lot of toys in the box, but I think even in this crew Kendrick is probably the next one to carve out his niche and really establish himself.

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I will be justifiably irked if we don't see


Feb 22, 2019, 12:49 PM

a 4 WR set with Higgins, Ross, Ladson, and Ngata at least once this season. Just to see what the defense would do.

I do agree that we are going to see a lot of Kendrick this year. Especially as his route-running improves. However, taking Rodgers off the field is not likely to happen. He probably has the fastest 40 time out of any of our WRs. That is at 220+lbs.

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Snowflake Basher........Out


When we go 4-wides with Higgins and Ross on the same side


Feb 23, 2019, 11:41 AM [ in reply to Re: Lots of stuff wrong in this... ]

like we did so much in the 2 playoff games, we torched the defense. I don't remember that formation from the regular season so much. It will be interesting to see how much we use it in '19 and how defenses adjust to it. Short of putting 4 defenders on that side of the field I don't know how to actually stop it. The more that side is defended the more open things are to the other side or for the running game. Should be fun this year!

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Re: Lots of stuff wrong in this...


Feb 24, 2019, 8:59 AM [ in reply to Re: Lots of stuff wrong in this... ]

I think the part confusing people with your analysis is you keep saying Kendrick chase as the slots in 4 wr sets. So who is on the bench higgins Ross or Rogers? Obviously all play but we are talking more of who are the starting 4 in a 4 wr set. It isn’t chase, it’s Kendrick Rogers Ross higgins.

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Re: Wondering if Derion Kendrick can get it done in the slot


Feb 22, 2019, 11:49 AM

I like Kendrick on KOR's and running the Jet Sweep. He's okay as a receiver, but not my favorite, and nowhere near a Renfrow catching the ball. I do NOT like him in the 'wildcat', or whatever we call that play. Everyone on the planet knows it is a run play when he does that. Just take that play out of the playbook for now. I could almost see him as a RB in the Option, but I'd have to see it actually happen before saying that's a good/bad idea. He works best in space IMO, so he is valuable in lots of situations.

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Re: Wondering if Derion Kendrick can get it done in the slot


Feb 22, 2019, 12:19 PM

Clearly, Lay and Allen has an opportunity to make inroads early. Do we see any position changes coming?

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truth is, he dropped some balls when plays were there


Feb 22, 2019, 12:25 PM

Those are facts. It does not make me a coot.

The attributes you list are accurate.

He'll have to show he can be consistent to get a chance to replace 3rd and Renfrow.

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Re: Wondering if Derion Kendrick can get it done in the slot


Feb 22, 2019, 12:42 PM

I don't know who we'll put in the slot or at TE, but I've been curious about Cole Renfrow, who at 5'10"/235 lbs is listed as a TE. That's fairly short and light in the traditional TE sense, but I wonder what skills he has. If he has any speed and if he can run decent routes and if he has good hands..... if,if,if..... it's possible we could go 10 personnel or 20 personnel and use him as a hybrid TE/slot receiver. There's not much difference between that look and the old split end look and there's not much difference between a split end and a slot receiver. We might even use him as a flanker/wingback in place of a slot receiver.

I'm guessing that as he grew up alongside Hunter, some of the same football sense and possibly talent has probably developed and since we haven't heard squat about him, I'm curious what he can do.

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I've been hoping he can make that move and start inside for us


Feb 23, 2019, 11:33 AM

next year. I think he's more in the mold of a Rondale Moore - a potentially elite playmaker in the slot rather than a reliable target you look to to move the chains. He's a guy that can turn a 5 yard slant or drag into an 80 yard TD - the kind of guy you are always terrified to have isolated on one of your LBs.

I think playing inside requires a bit more nuanced route running though and a good understanding of coverages and the game in general so we will have to see how he handles that - assuming the staff does attempt to move him.

It does make a lot of sense though. That's definitely the most likely place for him to get more snaps and become more involved in the offense.

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I am not sure about him either at this point. It seems he


Feb 23, 2019, 11:34 AM

does not have the hands of some of the other receivers right now. He may have the most wiggle of any of them, just needs to haul it in so he gets the chance to run.

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Re: Wondering if Derion Kendrick can get it done in the slot


Feb 23, 2019, 1:13 PM

I'm looking at this from a different angle. If TL has the time to f throw, he can find the open man. My worry is that DC's are going to be coming after TL to limit the time he has to find the open reciever. All the better from the perspective if they can get to him and get him out of the game.

My view is to play the best blocking TE or even an OL to protect our most valuable player. Our abundance of playmakers includes Etienne who is being touted as a Heisman hopeful. I expect to see only a few 4 WR sets, and most of them later in the game when the DBs have been run ragged by our rotation of fresh WRs. Balance, balance, balance is the way I see our OC's calling our games.

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Re: Wondering if Derion Kendrick can get it done in the slot


Feb 23, 2019, 1:26 PM

He will be like a lit stick of dynamite ready to blow up on any play .

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TJ Chase has a ways to go to get real PT


Feb 23, 2019, 4:30 PM

I hope I’m wrong and he has a great spring.

As for Kendrick, he’s the most talented slot guy to play the position. No exceptions. He’s faster than Jaron Brown, Ray Ray, or Hunter Renfrow. He’s as physical as Artavis Scott. And he has the mental approach to be a real SOB to opposing DBs. The only thing I question are his hands. He had some drops last season, which is fine. Reminds me of Deon Cain’s transition from QB to WR.

I’ll stop short of saying he could he the best slot guy we’ve had but I’m excited about he potential. With Tee and Justyn receiving most of the attention from opposing defenses, guys like Kendrick and Amari will be poised to have a big year. No safety or LB can cover those two. And the third CB for most teams isn’t going to cut it either.

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Re: Wondering if Derion Kendrick can get it done in the slot


Feb 24, 2019, 8:53 AM

I think it’s going to be a bit messy but he mainly plays “behind” rogers at 2 but more as a 1a and 1b. With Rogers starting PR and Kendrick starting KR they both will get plenty of touches in games. To me the more interesting question is Higgins/Ross because while I anticipate both getting tons of snaps at 9, I think both also start and one of THEM is who starts in Renfrows spot, not Kendrick. And in 4 wr sets which we will see a lot it will be a lot of higgins Ross Kendrick Rogers. So guys will be lining up at multiple spots. Then depth is Overton chase Powell and the freshman (did I miss anyone?).

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Re: Wondering if Derion Kendrick can get it done in the slot


Feb 24, 2019, 10:02 AM

Lots of great, in depth analysis here. Very educational.
In my knowledge-diminished opinion it is going to come down to the O Line and the time\protection that TL is afforded.

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Re: Wondering if Derion Kendrick can get it done in the slot


Feb 24, 2019, 12:44 PM

If there is one thing that our coaching staff has demonstrated during the past year, it is that the best players, the ones who score touchdowns and make first downs, will play.

Kendrick seems to be a great athlete and a great football player. If he demonstrates that he can score touchdowns from the two and five positions, he will play and he will play often. He needs to demonstrate that he can reliably create space and get open on third down and five and catch the ball in traffic. That gives him the third down slot role.

I think that Kendrick can be explosive. Having Higgins, Ross, Rogers, and Kendrick on the field with a great QB is going to be an exciting proposition.

Instead of thinking of how many touches, how many targets, our receivers need to be thinking about how many first downs and touchdowns. Because that is who is going to play.

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Re: Wondering if Derion Kendrick can get it done in the slot


Feb 25, 2019, 8:47 AM



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Screw Calford.


Re: Wondering if Derion Kendrick can get it done in the slot***


Feb 25, 2019, 10:03 AM



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Field: Rodgers/CP, Slot: Kendrick/Chase, Boundary: Tee, Ross***


Feb 25, 2019, 8:53 AM



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Best Is The Standard


Re: Field: Rodgers/CP, Slot: Kendrick/Chase, Boundary: Tee, Ross***


Feb 25, 2019, 10:06 AM

jtiger1® said:



I am simply looking for a guy you know will catch the ball when he is targeted.
I saw the pass TL hit him in the numbers with in the Duke game.
He dropped it like country radio dropped the Dixie Chicks.

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Hard to replace Renfrow's...


Feb 25, 2019, 10:39 AM

...football IQ.

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question for Q and all


Feb 25, 2019, 2:26 PM

TJ Chase has paid some dues behind Renfrow and seems to have some underappreciated skill sets ...

Can you speak to these skill sets incl. blocking as they are not as evident as other WRs on team? I have seen Chase play big on special teams and spot duty.

What are we missing in comparison to superstars Ross and Higgins? And the talented Rodgers and up and coming Kendrick’s? What skill sets do Scott and Dabo see in Chase? And can Chase step it up in 2019 as reliable rotation receiver?

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