TITANS vs BEARS
Sunday, Nov. 8, 2020
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(on how he was able to get engrained with the team so quickly)
I'm pretty familiar with some of the guys already, especially on the defensive side. Kenny (Vaccaro), Kevin (Byard), Malcolm Butler, Amani Hooker, we train together in the offseason in California, so I already had a little bit of chemistry with those guys. But like I said, it's a family over here. These guys love to play football and that's why I'm here, I love to play football. It just means a lot to us and you can see it when we are out there on the field as a team.
(on how he was able to pick the defense up and have great communication)
It was definitely a challenge just because I wasn't in practice. I was under COVID protocol because of the trade, so I was sitting in the hotel for most of the day just doing Zoom meetings with the team and then I got into the playbook. The challenge for me was to be prepared to come in and play on Sunday. I felt like I handled it the right way. Going out there with my teammates they helped me communicate as a team, but that's what we are here for, that's what we are supposed to do as teammates out there. You want to communicate with the person next to you. Like Coach (Vrabel) said in our team meeting yesterday, 'Don't act like it's just one person that came in, act like everybody just came in. That's how we need to communicate to make sure everybody is on the same page.'
(on how he's approaching the new opportunity with the Titans)
Just come in ready to play. It's a business here and you have to be professional. You have to come here and be prepared and ready. It was a tough week for me, but I got it done with the help of my teammates out there on the field. It made everything a lot better.
(on how much of a whirlwind this week has been and how great it was to cap it off with a win)
Everyone gets challenged with something, it's just a matter of how you're going to attack it and how you're going to approach it. You have to go with a positive mindset and use it as motivation. I think that's exactly what I did, and use it as a challenge and just step up to the plate for it. I think I came out with a great outcome at the end of the day.
(on preparing for a game while being stuck in a hotel room all week)
When I was in the hotel, me and this chair became best friends and that's where I've been sitting at literally for the past week. I just put my head in the playbook. I knew I had a short week of getting this down and not letting it be a distraction. I used that as motivation to know that I have to get it down to go out there and play and have my teammates trust me when I'm out there.
(on if teammates had to help decode plays for him on the field)
It all came down to communicating on the field and that's what we're out there for, especially as a defense. You have to communicate with the person to your left and the person to your right. I think that's what made things so much smoother and so much easier for all of us out there. Even for me.
(on how motivated he is for this fresh start and what he thinks so far about this Titans team)
When I heard about the trade, I absolutely loved it. I knew it was going to be a great opportunity for me. It was already a great defense and adding me to it made it even better. These guys love to play football here at the Titans and that's one thing I definitely respect about it. Just to come in here and have the opportunity to play with these guys is definitely a blessing.
(on how much he wanted to be an 'energy guy' for the team today)
Showing that enthusiasm on the field is what brings everyone around you together. That's where I think the guys were like, 'All right, it's time to go. We can trust this guy and we are going to play together.' Just keeping that energy and that juice out there on the field making plays. That's what it's about, just out there having fun.
(on what his feelings were after scoring a touchdown to cap a whirlwind week)
Scoring that touchdown is what you expect. Those are expectations you have to live up to. I know my ability and what I can do. Just to come here and put that to use and contribute to the team's success is what it's really about.
