IN JUNE OF 2018, a gaggle of the NFL's most talented defensive players gathered at Big Cedar Lodge, a luxurious resort in Missouri's Ozarks. Von Miller led the group. Bradley Chubb and Bud Dupree were there, as well as legendary sack masters such as Bruce Smith and Warren Sapp. The men ate big steaks and drank. They raced go-karts. They went bowfishing in the middle of the night, firing arrows into the black waters of Table Rock Lake.
They also dissected pass-rushing techniques as if they were science textbooks. Stutter steps and cuts, arm-locks and power -- they discussed it all.