Kansas City Chiefs rookie WR Jonathan Baldwin was drafted on a Thursday night and a few hours later, on Friday morning, word came out that the NFL lockout was lifted. So that allowed Baldwin to get a copy of the playbook which has allowed him to get a jumpstart on learning the Chiefs offense.
I spoke with Chiefs QB Matt Cassel last week and he told me that, while Baldwin still has stuff to learn, he knows the playbook "pretty well" considering the circumstances of this unique offseason.
"I'm excited that Jonathan is with us and I'm excited that he's out there and able to get started and learn the offense," Cassel said. "Obviously, he has some physical ability.
"It's hard to say how everything will turn out this first year because it will take some time to learn this offense but I think he's a kid that in the short time I've had to get to know him, he knows the offense pretty well for not being around much and his physical abilities speaks for itself."
I would imagine Todd Haley will expect all of these rookes -- at least those who have a playbook -- to have a decent understanding of the offense. Haley doesn't come across as the type of guy that will make many excuses for these rookies so the fact that Baldwin is getting a jump on the playbook is a good sign moving forward.
We'll see how much he can contribute in year one but he wouldn't even have the opportunity to contribute if he didn't have some understanding of the playbook.