What has this process been like for you? Do you feel like you have had to defend your character throughout this process because of what happened with you over the last year? Nah, I really — I really don’t feel like I had to defend my character really, you know. That’s just stuff that comes with making bad decisions like that. So if you are going to make that bad decision you got to be prepared for what comes with it. And explaining myself and explaining my character, that is what is gonna come with making a bad decision like that. But it’s been a great process for me, man. Like, it’s what I’ve been dreaming about since a kid so I never say like, it’s overwhelming or it’s too much like, it’s fun. It’s great. Like, this is what I asked for. So I’m happy to be getting it.
Was there a lot of pressure today at the pro day because of no combine? Yeah, I feel like it was a lot of pressure for everybody, just every player just because you know, usually, we will have combine before pro day. So we could go to combine and mess up on something, go back, right at the pro day and fix it. So just like with pro day being like, I mean, the pro day being like the one-shot for everything this year, I feel like it just added a lot of pressure for everybody.
Did any part of you want to come back for a full season? Are you worried missing time will impact your draft status? No, I’m not really worried about missing half the season affecting my draft status. As I said, you know, I got to talk to teams, got to tell them the situation and how everything played out. So I mean, really, it’s all up to the team at the end of the day, I should really say. It’s all up to that team and how they feel about the situation and everything.
Did your 2020 season give you the confidence to declare? Yeah, yeah, I think definitely. Like the way I played, the way I played when I came back for the season and just also like I was watching myself stack up against other edge guys like I was definitely confident like I can take the jump to next level.
How do you see yourself as an NFL player? A lot of teams definitely like me as a 4-3 defensive end. But also I was talking to a lot of teams, they definitely wanted to see me and how I moved in space at the pro day today, so they just want to see me take drops and, you know, do everything that other outside linebackers do just to evaluate my skill set even more.
Takes on Creed Humphrey’s day? I mean, if you look at Creed man, like you see guys talk crazy about like DK Metcalf for instance, because of how fast he can run and like how big he is. But like if you look at Creed, he could do like – Creed can do stuff like a skill guy. But like he is a 300-pound offensive lineman. He is a 300-pound center, but like he is probably more flexible than some skill guys. Like man, it’s just like, watching him is like watching like Frankenstein like it’s just a freak really. Like a freak in my face like every day for the last few years, like I’ve been watching a freak. Like he is the strongest dude in the weight room, he is the most flexible dude out of all the linemen and you know most of the skill guys … what else can he do? I mean like he’s been the leader of the offensive line since his freshman year, so like just watching him like as a man and as a player, like I admire him a lot just because of the way he carries himself and like the tools he possesses as a football player.
The best part of your game? Oh, I’ll probably say like, my competitiveness. Like, with me, I play with an edge. Like, I hate to lose, like one thing I’ve been telling teams in like my interviews is like, I love to win, but I hate to lose. So like, that’s like the biggest thing with me like, I hate losing. So you’ll be getting a competitive guy. And I also tell him that you’ll be getting a guy who plays angry every snap, who plays with an edge.
How would you describe the interviews so far? Pretty much I would probably say like, yeah, they’ve been going great, honestly. Like, I’m just talking to every team. I’m talking about the way I grew up, like small stuff. All the way to talking ball, talking about watching my film from college, you know, talking them through plays. Like, I would probably say like I’ve been doing a great job, just from everything, handling everything, communicating everything that the team wants to know. I feel like I’ll be doing a great job of taking care of all that.
Have teams asked tough questions? Yeah, a lot of teams ask tough questions. But at the same time, you got to understand like, they are taking a big investment in you. So of course they got to ask those tough questions if they are going to take this chance on you, you know, and take you with an early first round, second or third-round pick. You got to know everything.
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