COURTESY OF JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS MEDIA RELATIONS DEPARTMENT
(On the difficulty that the defensive secondary faces with the recent changes the roster has seen) “It’s definitely not easy, just because of how we missed out on OTAs. Usually the OTA time is where all the new people get acquainted with the defense, and guys mesh and gel. That’s just not the case this year. This year, we are working, making the best of what we have. We have got some good players out there, some great new faces, and I am excited for them. I feel like, we are working hard now. I know we are working hard now. We are putting in the work and just have to ball.”
(On his initial thoughts on C.J. Henderson) “I like C.J. [Henderson] a lot. I actually saw him do a couple of breaks today. You can tell the way somebody moves and how they come out of their breaks, whether they have something or not. C.J. [Henderson], yeah he definitely has some amazing talent.”
(On expanding on C.J. Henderson’s mechanics) “He breaks fast. Out of his breaks, he’s boom, boom, like a little cat or something.’ He’s nice.”
(On the decision he faced with his family to remain playing this year as opposed to opting-out of the season) “I definitely thought about it because I do have two younger daughters. I felt like this year is a big year for me. I did not want to sit the season out. With [the pandemic], I did think about it and consider it, but I think the best thing for my family is for me to play this year.”
(On the leadership responsibilities he has in his position unit) “Yeah, I am the old fart in the room. I am the oldest person on the team now, I think. I am just going to embrace it. I am going to lead them the right way, tell them right from wrong, almost like a big brother in there. We have a lot of young talent, and I am excited for these guys. They get to show the NFL what they can do and it’s a great opportunity for them, and I am happy for them. We are going to do it all together.”
(On whether any rookie has separated themselves) “Not at the moment, but I am pretty sure they are coming. We have a great group of young, solid rookies with C.J. [Henderson], and [Daniel] Thomas, and Josiah [Scott] too. Josiah [Scott] is very smart as well. I am excited for these kids. I am excited for them. It’s time to ball. Can’t talk about it, we got to be about it.”
(On CJ Henderson’s speed and if anyone has raced him yet) “No, no we don’t really race him like that. Maybe if somebody puts some money on it, they might race.”
(On Tre Herndon) “Over the years that I’ve been here with Tre, he’s shown a lot of grit and he works very hard. Probably one of the hardest workers on this team. Just to see him come from his rookie year just doing special team stuff then, his second year when the whole Jalen [Ramsey] thing came on, he kind of got thrown in the fire, but he accepted it. He was ready, played well and I’m excited for him. He’s definitely going to play a long time in this league.”
(On how much being familiar with the schemes helps him) “It helps so much. I’ve been doing it the last two years so now I get a third year to do it again. I know the checks; I know the defense so I can play even faster this year and I’m excited and ready to go.”
(On if he felt things speeding up as he got familiar with the defense these past two years) “Yes, of course. It was my second year on defense I had a bit of an understanding. Now I have an even better understanding.”
(On whether he’s talked to Yannick Ngakoue recently and if he has an idea of if he’ll be back in the locker room after changing his agents) “You probably know more than I would. You just said he changed his agents and I didn’t even know that. I don’t know, I haven’t talked to him [Yannick]. Maybe you guys should message him on Twitter and ask him what’s up.”
(On if he’d play college football with the circumstances with COVID-19) “Would I play? Me back in college probably would’ve played because I love football that much, me sitting around not doing much is just going to be like, ‘What am I going to do with myself? Should I get a job?’ I want to play football. A lot of those kids go to school for football. I do understand the whole health aspect just because [COVID-19] does affect different people in different ways and it could impact someone’s life seriously. It’s so up and down, but for them to cancel the season? I didn’t think they would cancel the season but hey, safety first and football will always be here, but we have to take care of ourselves first.”
