Robert Nkemdiche had to be slowed down during a walk-through session during Arizona Cardinals rookie mini-camp on Saturday. The rookie defensive tackle was fired up to be on the field, and head coach Bruce Arians had to make him tone things down for the sake of avoiding a fine from the NFL.
“He was killing people in walk-through,” Arians said, via Kent Somers of azcentral.com. “I had to slow him down. It’s a walk-through, and he bench-pressed a lineman already.”
The CBA has strict rules about what is and what is not allowed during these practices. And what Nkemdiche was doing is strictly forbidden. Physical contact of any kind is forbidden.
Arians isn’t going to take the blame, though, if he does get a fine from the league because of Nkemdiche’s actions.
“If I get fined, I’m taking it out of your check,” Arians told his boisterous defensive tackle.
On the field, Nkemdiche was a force to be reckoned with for Ole Miss during his three-year tenure. He’s explosive, agile and mean.
No doubt, that’s what Arians, general manager Steve Keim and the rest of the scouts were drooling over when he was still sitting on the board when the Cardinals selected him at No. 29 overall.
Still, there is much work for them to do in order to mold him into a consistent force. For as disruptive as he was, Nkemdiche only generated six sacks in three years and often took plays off.
And while it may seem counter-instructive for Arians to tell Nkemdiche to take plays off, they must follow the rules or face potential still punishment from the league.