EnglishBengal Posted June 5, 2016 Report Share Posted June 5, 2016 http://www.bengals.com/news/article-1/Cool-hand-nicknamed-Luke/18d9da45-74f3-469f-acf2-02f1a7abb9c5 Cool hand nicknamed 'Luke' Posted Jun 2, 2016 Geoff HobsonEditorBengals.comFollow Me Blog A A The one thing Nick Vigil hasn’t done since he arrived in the third round is talk. He’s flashed, dashed, and re-hashed while seducing the coaches, but he’s been a little light on the conversation. So when Vontaze Burfict, the brains of the outfit and the man Vigil backs up at WILL backer, asked Vigil if he could call him, “Luke,” in honor of Luke Kuechly, what was he supposed to say? Nick Vigil (right) eyes a play in practice. The one thing Bengals rookie linebacker Nick Vigil hasn’t done since he arrived in the third round is talk. He’s flashed, dashed, and re-hashed while seducing the coaches, but he’s been a little light on the conversation. So when Vontaze Burfict, the brains of the outfit and the man Vigil backs up at WILL backer, asked Vigil if he could call him, “Luke,” in honor of Panthers Pro Bowl middle linebacker Luke Kuechly, what was he supposed to say? “Whatever,” is basically what happened. “It’s just kind of a little joke he calls me. He never calls me by Nick. Just Luke,” Vigil says. “One day he just said, ‘Is it all right if I call you Luke?’ I said, ‘Ohhh, whatever,’ and he just started calling me that and that’s how it’s been.” What it’s been is not Nick-Vigil is-the-next-Luke Kuechly. It’s been more like Nick-Vigil-plays-with-the-same-style-as-Luke-Kuechly. Burfict, a texting friend of Kuechly, sees similar smarts in Vigil. “He’s got the same kind of mannerisms,” says Karlos Dansby, who’s been looking like the Karlos Dansby that plays over the tight end these days. “His ability to move around and just show flashes, that’s a good sign coming in as a rookie to be compared to a guy like that.” The Bengals finished their sixth of nine spring practices on Thursday and counting the rookie minicamp that’s now nine times they’ve seen him practice and the coaches are still raving about Vigil, the third-round pick out of Utah State. There are a few things in town that come as advertised in the spring, but so far Vigil is right there with Taste of Cincinnati and the May Festival. “I think he’s going to be a fantastic player in this league,” says special teams coordinator Darrin Simmons. “He’s got great movement skills. He can really run and on top of that he’s smart. I can see it in the meetings.” Smart enough that linebackers coach Jim Haslett hasn’t put many minuses next to his name. “He makes very few mistakes. Very few,” Haslett says. “If he does make one, he doesn’t make it the second time. He’s exactly what we saw on film. We liked him because he was smart and has good speed.” Like Burfict, Vigil has the same kind of M.O. coming out of college. Smart. Instinctive. But while Vigil played all over the place in Logan in a similar 4-3 defense, the Bengals are making sure he learns the WILL spot. He can play the middle and did in rookie minicamp and he’s also playing in various packages. But it looks like they want to get him acclimated to the outside. Because there’s smart and then there’s Tez smart. “He’s an extremely smart player. He’s always in the right spot,” Vigil says of Burfict. “He knows what the offense is trying to do. He’s one of the smartest players I’ve ever been around. People say I’m a smart player, but I’m not there yet. I’m still trying to learn the defense. I’m out there thinking a little bit.” Even though the scheme is similar to what he knew in college, Vigil has needed time to study the vocabulary since the terminology presents a brand new language. “Everything is called differently,” Vigil says. “It just doesn’t register in your mind as quickly. So you’re out there thinking about it a little bit. I feel like I’m picking it up OK. I’m learning it pretty fast.” Vontaze Burfict nicknamed Nick Vigil "Luke," since his mannerisms mirror Luke Kuechly. In preparing for a regular season the Bengals know they won’t have Burfict in the first three games, they apparently are going to make sure they have the WILL covered with Vigil or Vincent Rey and guys like Marquis Flowers andJayson DiManche making a run at the roster. P.J. Dawson is flexing his muscles behind Dansby. Dansby, who is in his first spring in Cincinnati after playing virtually every position during his dozen seasons in the league, seems comfortable back over the tight end at SAM, where he played for so many years during his first stop in Arizona. “I played on top of the tight end last year a lot,” Dansby says of his 16 games in Cleveland. “I did it in college. Being over the tight end is very natural for me. It’s like riding a bike. You never forget.” That’s where the Bengals need to get Vigil, but it’s apparently been a pleasure so far. Haslett says there are a couple of different kinds of speed he’ll have to get used to. There’ll be preseason and then the speed quickens in the first four regular-season games. Then it kicks up a notch in the last eight games. “The playoffs are hyper speed. The game is over and you’re like, ‘What happened?’ Haslett says. “That’s what he’s got to get accustomed to. Crowd noise. Communication. All the things you take for granted when you’re practicing. Once he gets that under his belt he’ll be fine.” So far, there have been no surprises. Not even the nickname “Luke,” really. The coaches invoked Kuechly’s name shortly after they drafted Vigil. And Haslett doesn’t expect any surprises. “He doesn’t scare you to throw him in there,” Haslett says. “I think the preseason will be big for him to see if he’s ready to play right away. I don’t think the game is too big for him. I think once he gets in the game, will he make a mistake here or there? Yeah. But I don’t think he’ll make another one.” Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
|High School Harry| Posted June 5, 2016 Report Share Posted June 5, 2016 What we have heah... is a failure to communicate. Get yo' damn haid in the damn playbook, boy. Ya heah, now? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Le Tigre Posted June 5, 2016 Report Share Posted June 5, 2016 That is one skinny dude for a LB. Dawson looks twice his size. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EnglishBengal Posted June 6, 2016 Author Report Share Posted June 6, 2016 10 hours ago, Le Tigre said: That is one skinny dude for a LB. Dawson looks twice his size. Just get him over to a Willie Anderson Fatburger joint, he'll fill out pretty quick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimKrumrieFan Posted June 6, 2016 Report Share Posted June 6, 2016 18 hours ago, Le Tigre said: That is one skinny dude for a LB. Dawson looks twice his size. That's good cuz Dawson is too big. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EnglishBengal Posted June 6, 2016 Author Report Share Posted June 6, 2016 As per Bengals.com.... P J Dawson 6-0 240 lbs Nick Vigil 6-2 239 lbs How can Dawson look twice his size? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
big_dish Posted June 6, 2016 Report Share Posted June 6, 2016 21 hours ago, Le Tigre said: That is one skinny dude for a LB. Dawson looks twice his size. I think he is something like only 10 pounds less than Keuchly and at the same height. Hes not a small dude at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
|High School Harry| Posted June 6, 2016 Report Share Posted June 6, 2016 1 hour ago, EnglishBengal said: As per Bengals.com.... P J Dawson 6-0 240 lbs Nick Vigil 6-2 239 lbs How can Dawson look twice his size? Because according to Mark Twain there are three kinds of lies: Lies Damn Lies and Bengals.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Le Tigre Posted June 7, 2016 Report Share Posted June 7, 2016 5 hours ago, EnglishBengal said: As per Bengals.com.... P J Dawson 6-0 240 lbs Nick Vigil 6-2 239 lbs How can Dawson look twice his size? OK...take a good, long, look at the photo. I mean, seriously... Good God...look at Haslett compared to him! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jason Posted June 7, 2016 Report Share Posted June 7, 2016 11 hours ago, High School Harry said: Because according to Mark Twain there are three kinds of lies: Lies Damn Lies and Bengals.com Roster Listings Fixt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happyrid Posted June 7, 2016 Report Share Posted June 7, 2016 It's just a weird angle. In other pictures he looks like your typical 240 pound LB. http://media.gettyimages.com/photos/linebacker-nick-vigil-of-utah-state-in-action-during-the-2016-nfl-picture-id514653786 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Le Tigre Posted June 7, 2016 Report Share Posted June 7, 2016 Little LB Bigger LB All in the optics Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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