Roster Unknown: Maurice Leggett

Jun 20, 2008, 3:54:31 AM by Bob Gretz - FAQ

At this time of year, the rosters for NFL teams headed to training camp are at their maximum. This year that number is 80 players. Each team will have 53 players when the pre-season is completed. On every one of those 32 teams are players who arrived with little fanfare, but will end up making the final roster.

The Chiefs have a lot of unknowns on their camp roster. On Wednesday and today, we look at two players who may rise above their unfamiliar status to play in a red and gold uniform come September. Today, we look at a defensive player.

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Maurice Leggett’s goal is a simple one.

“I want to get two percent better every day,” said the Chiefs rookie cornerback. “That’s something that’s doable. It’s not overwhelming.

“String together a couple weeks of two percent a day and before you know it, you are 50 percent better.”

It’s a sensible way for a college free agent out of Division II football to approach his future in pro football.

For Leggett, that two percent improvement every day happened during the Chiefs off-season work. At the start of OTA workouts, Leggett was just another face. But every time he got on the field, he made plays. It didn’t take long for the 5-11, 188-pound Valdosta State University product to catch the attention of Chiefs head coach Herm Edwards.

By the end of OTAs, Leggett was the Chiefs No. 4 cornerback, behind veteran Pat Surtain and draft choices Brandon Flowers and Brandon Carr.

“He did exactly what he had to do,” said Edwards. “He made plays and he got better every day. He’s got some skills and he’s a pretty intelligent kid. That gives him a shot.”

While Leggett is unknown to most Chiefs fans, anyone with an interest in Northwest Missouri State football remembers him. In the Division II national championship game back in December, it was Leggett who blocked the Bearcats PAT kick that was returned by his teammate for a two-point defensive score.

Ultimately that set up Valdosta’s last-minute victory over Northwest, the second national championship team that Leggett was part of at the school.

“A few fans have put things together and said something,” Leggett said with a smile. “Most of them just know I’m from Valdosta.”

A native of McKeesport, Pennsylvania, Leggett moved to Jonesboro, Georgia to live with his mother when he was eight years old. He played his high school football at Mt. Zion Academy in Jonesboro, Georgia and did not draw much attention from big schools. A coach on his high school team had connections at Valdosta and that’s how he ended up playing for the Blazers, starting first as a linebacker, then moving safety and finally jumping in at cornerback.

He ended up playing in 45 games at Valdosta State, with 136 tackles (92 solo), nine tackles for loss, 2.0 sacks, nine interceptions and three blocked kicks, including that all-important PAT block against Northwest Missouri.

“Special teams are very important down there,” Leggett said of Valdosta. “I think we practiced the kicking game every day more than we did offense or defense. But it always paid off for us.”

And it will pay off in the coming days for Leggett and his NFL future. As the Chiefs ran through their special teams units during the OTAs, Leggett was on the first or second team of all four major units.

It’s all part of him making the transition from Division II football to the NFL, and he must do it at one of the toughest positions to play in the game.

That’s why he’s just trying to get two percent better every day.

“It doesn’t seem impossible when you approach it that way,” Leggett said.

The opinions offered in this column do not necessarily reflect those of the Kansas City Chiefs.

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A former beat reporter who covered the Pittsburgh Steelers during their glory years, Gretz covered the Chiefs for the Kansas City Star for nine years. He is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame's Board of Selectors. He has been the senior columnist for the Chiefs web site since its inception.