Yetur Gross-Matos Discusses His Virtual Offseason

The rookie has yet to meet his teammates in person

Second round draft pick Yetur Gross-Matos has been learning about the new defense through virtual meetings due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Because of the increasing number of cases in America and continued social distancing protocols, it is not safe for the team to meet in person yet. 

Despite the adverse circumstances, the newly drafted defensive end has been able to effectively learn more about the defense and his new teammates. He discussed this unique experience in an interview via the Panthers' website.

"(It) was meeting after meeting after meeting. I think what they did a lot was they gave us a lot of tools and a lot of information," Gross-Matos said. "I think it was really sharing a lot of what it takes to be a successful team and a successful player in the NFL."

Gross-Matos talked about the learning process along with the similarities and differences between what he learned at Penn State and what he's learning now.

"I think it's a different type of learning style," he said. "Obviously, it's me getting used to learning different terminology and kind of unlearning what you learned before. And I think they ask you to learn a lot more at this level."

Gross-Matos implied that the information he's learning would have been extremely useful back at Penn State, but it should make him a much better player now.

"(I'm) kind of thinking back like, 'Man if I had known this in college,' I feel like I would've been able to do so much more. So there's been a lot of learning going on."

He is also getting to learn more about his teammates and their tendencies, despite the fact that they are only communicating remotely.

"You see little peeks of people's personality come out," Gross-Matos said. "There are some people who talk and then other people who don't really talk a lot. So getting with those guys in person would be different and more helpful in making those relationships."

Gross-Matos will be looking forward to getting back on the field soon. The Panthers will report to Charlotte in under two weeks, where they will be preparing for the upcoming season.

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