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Alex Smith, Demarcus Robinson and the Chiefs' Offense Shines Wednesday

Despite cold weather and some wind, the ball was flying through air Wednesday afternoon

"You guys got us today."

That was part of the friendly banter between secondary and cornerbacks coach Al Harris and quarterback Alex Smith Wednesday following the Kansas City Chiefs' second OTA practice of the year.

The temperature was in the 60s and the wind was blowing at a significant clip, but that seemed to do nothing to dissuade the ball from flying through the air and into the waiting arms of the offensive players on a consistent basis.

Kansas City Chiefs players and coaches work during day two of OTA's on Wednesday.

Overall, it was a great day for the offense, and specifically for Smith, who fired completions all over the field and enough dimes down the field that had players talking on both sides of the ball.

There's no doubt the competition went up a couple of notches Wednesday afternoon.

In addition to the impressive catches from Chris Conley, Jeremy Maclin, Gavin Escobar and Tony Stevens, who individually drew praise from coach Andy Reid after a great route and contested catch, the day on the outside really belonged to second-year receiver Demarcus Robinson.

The best throw-and-catch of the day came on a pass from Smith to Robinson on a vertical route down the right sideline, which travelled at least 40 yards through the air and hit Robinson in stride for the touchdown.

But that wasn't Robinson or Smith's only standout plays—they were both consistent.

On multiple occasions, Robinson showed a slithery athleticism across the middle of the field to get open and would finish it off by effortlessly snagging the ball out of the air.

To put it other words, Robinson made it look easy on Wednesday, and after practice, Robinson knew he turned some heads.

"I had a great day today," Robinson smiled after practice. "It was just going out there and trying to compete. I'm trying to prove whatever I can to get on the field. It's always about competing and showing the coaches what you can do.

"I mean, whether it's on the field or off the field, it's just knowing what you've got to do. I think today was a good way to get started."

Last year, Robinson, who was selected by the Chiefs in the fourth round (No. 126 overall) of the draft out of the University of Florida, spent his offseason training for the NFL Combine, his pro day, and all of the other pre-draft work that players have to worry about.

This year, Robinson was able to focus on getting ready for the season, which meant diving into the playbook. He said his focus coming into OTAs and the offseason program was to let the coaches know that he knew this offense and his responsibilities well enough to be counted upon this season.

"Just letting them know that I'm well acquainted with the playbook—the plays, the audibles and everything we're going to call," Robinson explained. "It was just getting into the playbook more to let them know that I know what I'm doing."

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One way Robinson could earn that trust was getting the quarterback on board, which he says he was able to do by spending some time with Smith this offseason.

"He's a great guy—love Alex, man," Robinson said. "He's a great dude. He's smart, so I just learned a lot from him over the offseason. [That work] was a tremendous part of me being able to do what I was able to do today."

As a rookie last year, Robinson was a standout gunner on special teams—playing more than 270 snaps for special teams coordinator Dave Toub's units, which he says gives him plenty of confidence heading into his second year.

"That's something I'd never done in my life," Robinson said of being a gunner. "It gave me a lot of confidence—knowing you can do some stuff you've never done before and you're doing it against some of the best athletes."

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Robinson showed out as one of the best athletes on the field on Wednesday, and he couldn't help but let those trying to cover him know who was winning the day.

"It's just having fun, man," Robinson laughed. "Just going out there and competing with your brothers and if you're winning, shoot, you've got to let them know you're winning."


Other plays and performances of note from Wednesday:

Rookie safety Jordan Sterns had a couple of nice interceptions—one came in 1-on-1 drills on a deep pass intended for Robinson and another on a deflected pass in the team period.

Phillip Gaines and Terrance Mitchell both had a couple of nice pass breakups in 7-on-7 drills. Mitchell also had an interception on a pass that deflected off the hands of receiver Tyreek Hill in team period.

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(Conley's contested catch early in Wednesday's practice)

One of the Chiefs' newest players, linebacker Reshard Cliett, who was claimed off waivers from the Titans last Tuesday, had a nice interception off Tyler Bray in team period. He jumped up and snagged the ball out of the air on a pass across the middle.

Perhaps the most entertaining part of that play from Cliett came after the interception, when running backs coach Eric Bieniemy yelled at rookie running back Kareem Hunt to "score," which means running to the end zone. There's rarely a dull moment with Bieniemy.

Seantavius Jones, who stands at 6 feet 3 and 200 pounds, is hard to miss on the field with his sheer size, but it's his ability to catch the football and use that body that's stood out over the last couple of days of practice. Jones, whose nickname is "stretch," had another impressive day and earned that nickname with his ability to extend and catch a pass on 1-on-1 drills near the sideline.

Late in practice, Smith delivered a beautiful pass down the seam to tight end Gavin Escobar, who has made a few plays the last couple of days at practice. It was kind of the icing on the cake for the offense's day.

Smith was on point and the offense can expect a motivated secondary Thursday afternoon, when the Chiefs take the field for the final OTA practice of the week.

Reid is scheduled to speak with the media following practice, which should end around 1:00 p.m. 

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