PALMER GETTING NFL EDUCATION WITH CHARGERS
Canadian rookie receiver soaking up knowledge, habits of veteran mentors
It was Michael Jackson, apparently, who first coined the inspirational quote: “The greatest education in the world is watching the masters at work.”
Let's hope the late, troubled, superstar singer was referring to his Motown tutelage and later, to his solo career collaborating with producer Quincy Jones.
NFL rookie wide receiver Josh Palmer cited that quote in a phone interview on Thursday, following the Los Angeles Chargers' second of three practices before their home opener Sunday against the Dallas Cowboys (airing on CTV in most of Eastern Canada at 4:25 p.m. EDT).
Palmer, who turns 22 next Wednesday, was born in Toronto's west end (Etobicoke) and raised in the massive northwest suburb city of Brampton (population 600,000).
With his first regular-season NFL catch already in literal hand, Palmer said he isn't taking a single thing for granted in his first season as a pro — not least of which is that he finds himself the newbie in a wide receiver room that includes prolific four-time Pro Bowler Keenan Allen and fifth-year, big-bodied standout Mike Williams.
“They've been great. Keenan has been taking me under his wing a lot,” Palmer said. “It's funny, because I saw a quote the other day that goes something like, `The best form of education is watching masters at work.' I've watched Keenan every single day. I know I'm getting better just by being here, watching him.”
The Chargers selected Palmer midway through the third round of last spring's NFL draft. That the former University of Tennessee standout wasn't selected until then, 77th overall, was viewed by some as a bargain selection for the Chargers.
The buzz coming out of the Chargers' training camp this summer echoed such assessments, as new L.A. offensive co-ordinator Joe Lombardi reportedly lined up Palmer both in the slot and outside — as Palmer did with increasing effect last year with the Volunteers in Knoxville.
That he's a quick learner shouldn't come as a surprise. He made the 2020 SEC academic honour roll as a business management major, and his father, Keith Palmer, is a former University of Windsor Lancers football player who's currently the assistant deputy minister for the Ontario Ministry of the Solicitor General.
As we've all been told at some point, though, no matter how intelligent you might be, you won't go far in your chosen field without hard work and dedication. To that end, following every Chargers practice, you'll find Palmer among the group of dedicated players still out there, honing their skills.
“It's something I've been doing since college,” he said. “It's become a routine. Since I've got here, I've changed it up a little bit, to where I work on releases — release work (techniques to free oneself at the start of a pass route).
“Plus I catch extra balls from the quarterbacks, and from the jugs (machine) . ... Just trying to get better, every day.”
Asked what has blown him away the most about being in the NFL now for five months, Palmer hesitated and thought about it.
“I don't know. I wake up every morning grateful. This is exciting, and it's definitely better than the pre-season. As soon as our first real game week kicked off (last Sunday) it was exciting, to see the veterans get to work.
“I would say the hardest thing is the huddle, because we didn't huddle in college. But I get better at it every rep.”
Palmer's one and only catch in his regular-season debut came late in the second quarter at Washington, a grab in tight coverage on a deep out route to the left for a 17-yard gain.
“I'll remember it for the rest of my life,” Palmer said.
The thrower of that pass? Justin Herbert, the second-year phenom who put together arguably the best season ever by an NFL rookie quarterback. Herbert's humble and friendly demeanour in interviews belies a fiery tiger inside, Palmer said.
“Justin is a great guy to be around. He's an even better guy off the field. But he's one of the hardest competitors on the team. He competes with himself every day. When he comes out to work, his face changes. He looks different. He looks ready to work, ready to handle business, in practices and in games.
“Once you get to know him, he's not as quiet as he seems, or maybe what you see on camera. He's always accountable. As much as I'm out here (for extra work) he's out here, too. We just work hard together, and it's something we'll continue to do every day.”
As one of five Canadians on the team's active roster, Palmer said he immediately hit it off with backup cornerback Tevaughn Campbell, a fellow Toronto-area native.
“Yeah, we talked it up when I first came here. He was saying he was from Scarborough (Toronto's east end). So we were talking about everything in Canada.”
For his part, Campbell told Postmedia in an interview last week that Palmer impressed the heck out of him in spring and summer practices, when he often defended the rookie 1-on-1.
“He's got great potential,” Campbell said. “He's like your prototypical receiver. He's strong, he's big, he's fast, he runs strong, he can catch, and he's good after the catch. He's got a lot ahead of him, especially with his size.”
Palmer said he has only one individual goal for 2021, starting with the, uh, man in the mirror.
“To learn every day, get better every day — so that my teammates can rely on me. I feel if I can do those two things, everything else will take care of itself.”