For new Chiefs CB Peters, trick is learning how and when to let go

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Finally, the shield came down, and the real Marcus Peters stepped out, chest puffed; Marcus Peters, the proud, Marcus Peters, the defiant. For a few minutes, the cameras had gotten a nice, long, safe look at someone else. Marcus the Calm, Marcus the Practiced, Marcus the Polite, Marcus the Contrite, Marcus the Rehearsed.

Not this. This was real. One question, one assertion, and out he came.

Reporter: Any receivers you're scared of facing?

With that, the Kansas City Chiefs' first-round draft pick tilted his head and narrowed his eyes. Slightly. As in, you kidding?

Real Marcus spoke.

"Not at all," Peters said, dismissively. "I'm here to be good, to learn to be great. Just like they are."

The great cornerbacks -- from Deion Sanders to Aeneas Williams -- come in different sizes and temperaments, but they all share one underlying trait: They're the cockiest of the walk. They are convinced that no man is above them, that no runner can elude them, that no receiver would freaking dare to defy them.

The Island tests you. Some cower. Some go crazy. Some are already there.

"Not at all," said Peters, widely considered a top 15-level talent before getting his backside kicked off the University of Washington's program last November, the last straw following a series of run-ins with coaches old and new. "I made some mistakes that caused my character to be questioned. And for me to get an opportunity to start fresh and new in Kansas City is a blessing."

Andy Reid isn't asking a highly strung kid to go change his stripes. The Chiefs' coach is just asking him not to shove them in everybody's face when things go wrong. And they will. Nature of the beast.

"That's real big," Peters said of Reid's (qualified) trust. "Because everything that comes along with my character is going to be with me forever, but I can change some of my ways (that) I go upon handling some things. And that's real big with me, too."

The Oakland, California, native recorded 11 picks and 27 pass break-ups in 35 contests over three seasons with the Huskies, the last (2014) cut short after nine games. But the rap sheet is long, winding and occasionally unpleasant. Last September, Peters reportedly head-butted an opponent from Eastern Washington, then was shown throwing a tantrum on the Washington sideline. A few months later he was gone, and stories started to emerge that the defensive back had attempted to throttle a member of new coach Chris Petersen's coaching staff, stories that have since been denied by all parties.

"(There's) always going to be new things that you can learn," Peters said. "With me, it was just a misunderstanding at the time, and I learned to deal with certain situations differently."

Regardless of what did (or didn't) happen, Peters admits that he didn't react well to change in Seattle. That doesn't portend especially well for an existence in the NFL, where job security is notoriously fickle. The Chiefs pride themselves in being as stable as an NFL franchise can get in today's climate, but even that standard has its limits.

"For sure," Peters said. "Just like I said, having (the) experiences that I did at U-Dub, it caused me to learn from it, you know. And for me to walk into an NFL locker room, I'm going to attach to some veterans and just learn how to be a pro and learn how to conduct myself and be a man."

Because there are different consequences now. On Planet Goodell, when you throw your helmet or act up, they hit you where it hurts: The checking account.

Or as his father, Michael, told him after he was kicked out of the Huskies' program: You live and learn from your situations, son.

And you better believe veteran NFL opponents already have the book on the young hothead, just waiting to see which buttons they can push -- and how often. Allowing players who are their own worst enemy to take themselves out of a contest is one of the oldest darn tricks in the book. And it still works. Until you prove that it doesn't.

"Oh, definitely," Peters admitted. "Yeah, definitely. It's part of the game now. I've put (my temper) out there to be seen to the world.

"So, like I say, there are veterans out there that are going to use that, so ... and we (will) just ... take it as it comes."

The Real Marcus walks into Arrowhead with a target on his back. The Real Marcus has to learn one of the hardest young-man lessons of all: How to take something -- something stupid, something that bothers you, something that eats at you, something that demands retribution -- and then just let it go.

"Just 'next-play' mentality," said Peters, who will participate in the Chiefs' rookie minicamp May 16-18, but will be absent until mandatory minicamp a month later because Washington is still in its spring quarter. "(Take a) 'next-play' mentality and move on. Like I said, you learn from your experiences.

"With me, I feel I'll deal with situations a lot different than (the) Eastern Washington (game) when it occurs. We know the outcome of (that), so we make adjustments and change the outcome."

As for the coach-choking ...

"They're just rumors," he said. "They weren't true at all. All the coaching staff came out and spoke about it. So we place it to be that. And all I can do is control Marcus Peters."

If history is any guide, that might be easier said than done.

You can follow Sean Keeler on Twitter at @SeanKeeler or email him at seanmkeeler@gmail.com.