Turner and Trapilo on rookie minicamp, goals for rookie season

Turner should get some playing time as a rookie this season.

Ariana Pensy - Correspondent - 6 hours ago

CHICAGO - Rookie minicamp provided Chicago’s rookies their first introduction to the NFL.

It also provided the rookies, such as defensive lineman Shemar Turner, a first chance to get familiar with the coaches and how they see Turner in the defense.

“I love the coaches up here. I love their energy. I love the way they go about things. The vibe is always good here. I love everything they got going,” Turner said. “Whatever they want me at, (I’m going to) play it and I’m going to be successful and I’m going to see … I just love playing d-line. Wherever they line me up at, I’m going to go and we (going to) get paid.”

Turner’s numbers were not necessarily eye-popping in 2024. In his final season of college, he recorded 36 total tackles and two sacks in 12 games. The previous season in 2023 was his breakout season as he had 11 tackles for loss and six sacks. That year is perhaps a better representation of his capabilities than 2024.

Nonetheless, he recognizes he has a lot to improve to become an elite player in the NFL and is targeting a weight of between 290 and 295 pounds.

“I’m not where I want to be, at an elite level. But, I’m getting there,” Turner said. “Hand placement, feet, making sure I’m keeping my feet in the ground so I can get all my power, utilize everything, coming out my hips. Just getting back to the basics that (were) overlooked.”

On the other side of the line, offensive lineman Ozzy Trapilo is also making goals for this season. For rookie minicamp, the goal was simply to demonstrate the kind of player he is.

Overall, his goal is to get on the field as soon as he can at whatever position Chicago wants him to play.

“My main goal (was) to just go out there and, who I am as a player, just put it out there (and) let the coaches make decisions of where, when, how I fit with whatever it is. That’s their job. My job is to demonstrate who I am as a player, put all my skills out there. So, I’d say that’s the main goal for now … “Being able to do the movements, go through the first couple steps full speed, stuff like that. You’re able to get a lot from that and then also the meeting rooms. Just football IQ, learning, processing and then regurgitating,” Trapilo said. “My goal here is to play football, to get on the field as soon as I can. So, I’m going to do whatever I can to get that done. But, at the same time, I know I have a lot to work on as a player. I’m a rookie. I’m not going to show up and be the best. My goal is to become the best player I can, but I know I’m not just going to do it without work. So, it takes a lot of work. It takes a lot of time. So, my job is not to be results-driven. It’s to be process-driven.”

Part of what Chicago elected to use one of their three second-round picks on Trapilo was because of his versatility. During his collegiate career, he played both left and right tackle. Even though he spent the last two years of college at right tackle, Trapilo constantly practiced playing on the left.

This should help him be prepared for the upcoming season.

“After practice, even though I was a right tackle the last two years in college, working left, making sure that it’s still smooth, still feels good, especially after the season,” Trapilo said. “I was working more left than right just because catching up for lost time. So, it felt good.”