Kansas City, Mo. ? If Dwayne Bowe wanted to make a good first impression, he failed miserably. Kansas City’s first-round draft pick began his professional career by showing up 30 minutes late for his first practice. Stretching exercises and coach Herm Edwards’ welcoming remarks were all done by the time the wide receiver from LSU hurried onto the field for the opening session of a three-day rookie minicamp.

Then the 6-foot-3 Bowe, who described himself on draft day as “intimidating,” proceeded to drop several passes.

“Today I felt kind of in-between, going against new guys, new quarterback,” he said, “Not knowing the timing. But it’s all football. You’ve got to go out there and compete.”

His tardiness was not lost on a new boss who puts a big premium on punctuality.

“I don’t know. I think he had a shoe problem,” Edwards said. “That’s what those big guys have. You know, when they get those big contracts they don’t know what shoes to wear, I guess.”