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On Thursday, after taking that day to reflect and reset, Gill-Howard saw some first-team work with Tyler Lacy limited and Mekhi Wingo exiting early. His twitchiness, strong hands and aggression popped.
Gill-Howard got through with that as-advertised quickness and motor to get to quarterback Luke Altmyer for a likely sack. He later helped clear Ahmed Hassanein’s path for the assist, had another pressure and remained disruptive by creating quick chances.
He was back in a heavier rotation with Lacy’s return, though Wingo’s continued absence left the door open on Friday. Going with the second-team, Gill-Howard pushed the interior offensive line into the pocket on third-and-5 during the scrimmage-like practice, helping force an overthrow from Altmyer for tight end Jackson Meeks.
Kacy Rodgers, the team’s defensive line coach, is helping Gill-Howard hone his craft through what he called his “rambunctious” moments where he’s playing too fast. The rookie said Rodgers is working to pair that twitchy spark and always-firing motor with the technique needed at this level, and at his size.
“I’ll try to react as quick as I can. As soon as I see what the guard is doing, once I know what he’s doing, then I kind of get to where I need to go,” Gill-Howard explained. “If there’s a play where I know I can make it just because of my athleticism, I’m going to do that. And sometimes the technique gets thrown out the window. But if I make the play, then that is what it is.
The 6-foot, 280-pound rookie said the veteran guys in the room like Alim McNeill and Levi Onwuzurike have taken him under their wing. They are working on keeping him grounded and from trying to change who he is as a person or player overnight after a bad day.
“Like, I have the attributes. They say I just got to go out there and make the plays,” Gill-Howard said. “And I’ve been doing that. Just, whenever I’m feeling down, I go back and watch my old Texas Tech tape or NIU tape, just to see that player again.
“And once that happens, it all starts to click again.”