Cut week in the NFL is a stressful period for almost every player who isn't a superstar. But even with that added pressure, Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Andy Studebaker insists that his fellow teammates haven't been trying to overcompensate.
"This is just that time of year," Studebaker said. "I don't think our pace has changed that much over the last two days as far as guys working harder because camp is about to be over."
This news might come as a surprise to some but perhaps it's just a case of the players trying to show the coaching staff that they're confident in their abilities to contribute. Still, with the NFL requiring rosters to be cut down from 75 to 53 players by Friday, Studebaker acknowledges that it's nearly impossible not to think about the reality of the business.
"...it's in the back of guys' minds, this is the reality of the situation that we're in," Studebaker said. "We have a lot of great guys. Sadly there are going to be some cuts, and it's just that time of year. Guys are playing hard, and we'll see what happens."
Luckily for Studebaker, his roster spot is essentially locked up as he's currently pegged to be Tamba Hali's replacement with the star pass-rusher suspended by the NFL for the season opener. With that in mind, it's still speaks a lot to Studebaker's character that he can relate to these players whose futures are remain very much up in the air.