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DT ALBERT HAYNESWORTH
(on if he is looking forward to coming back to Tennessee and playing against the Titans)
Yeah, I'm excited about every game that we play in.
(on if Tampa Bay is a better fit for him than New England was)
Yeah, here we play the style of defense that I grew up in the league playing at Tennessee so it's defiantly a great fit for me.
(on if there is a special feeling coming back and playing against his old team)
There always is coming back to where I grew up at as far as in the NFL and college and stuff. There are a lot of familiar faces over there so hopefully I have some fun.
(on if there is any extra motivation playing against a previous team)
No not really. I have no ill will or anything against Tennessee, I just hope it is a good game. If we were talking about the Redskins then it would be a lot different. I feel like I left Tennessee on a good note and really enjoyed everybody there. I have no ill feelings or anything about anybody there.
(on if he has any regrets leaving the Titans for any reason)
The only thing I wish, like I told them here, I wish I had come here first, but of course if it had worked out in Tennessee I would have liked to stay. I would definitely pick Tennessee over Washington but I felt like they didn't really make an effort to try to get me or even pursue me. I didn't even get an offer. That hurt a little bit, but since I did leave, I wish I had come to Tampa Bay because I feel like this is a good place for me.
(on if he thinks the Titans didn't make him an offer because they thought they couldn't afford him)
That could have been the case. My agent Chad (Speck) always said, and even Wash (Jim Washburn) said that they never pay defensive lineman. It's never about us guys or whatever so I guess that might have been it and also (Mike) Reinfeldt is very slow moving and we didn't hear anything from him.
(on why he hasn't had the success elsewhere that he had here)
The two prior teams that I went to the scheme was a lot different. Even though you can say, 'oh, you are still playing football,' but you all know me best. When I'm getting off the ball and disrupting and creating havoc but with Washington and the Patriots it wasn't really about that. I struggled to try to learn a different way to play and it takes a lot of time to be good at it and completely learn a different way how to play.
(on his thoughts about Chris Cooley questioning whether Haynesworth enjoys playing football)
Well you guys know that I love playing football there. That was my outlet. I love playing football here. The Patriots, it was hard. I liked being at the complex and the facility but at Washington it really wasn't about football. It's not that I didn't love football but I didn't really care a whole lot about being there because of the way things were in that complex and around town. I don't think Chris (Cooley) was trying to bash me or anything because I have great conversations with Chris and I still consider him a friend of mine. I think he was just seeing kind of the way that I was acting towards him when I was there and the mood that they almost forced on you. It was crazy. Now that we are back to just playing football and having fun, getting off the ball and creating problems in the backfield, man I enjoy it.
(on if he feels that he needs to have a good finish to the season in order to secure a future in the NFL)
No, as long as I get to play like the way I play then I could be somewhat successful in what we do. I'm not really worried about that, the big thing for me was just the scheme. When you don't want me to get off or to hold up blockers or sit on the line, that's extremely hard for me to make plays and be productive when you don't have someone like Jim Washburn telling you to get your ass off the ball. It was hard those last couple of years, but now I feel like…
(on the best part of being on the Tennessee Titans)
We just had fun. We practiced hard and played hard. I had my defensive line coach (Jim) Washburn that I loved, saw as a father and great mentor even though he cussed all of the time. He taught us how to play hard and how to get after it.
(on if he still keeps up with people in Nashville or with the Titans)
I see some of the guys in the offseason mostly but not as far as being there a whole lot.
(on if there was any fear that he wouldn't be claimed when he was waived by New England)
I figured I would probably get a job, but my biggest worry was that I might go to another team where they want me to do something different that I have never really done. It was great when I came here and the first thing the coaches told me was that we want you to play three and we want you get off the ball, wreck shop. That was definitely a big relief.
(on if he learned the lesson that the money may be good in free agency but you have to look at the fit as a football player)
Yeah, most definitely because me being at Tennessee for seven years and then going into free agency I'm almost thinking that all of the other teams are kind of alike and if they want to bring somebody in of a high caliber that they are going to play to their strengths but that doesn't necessarily mean it. A lot of times it's a business and not every team, but some teams are going to just bring you in to help sell tickets. Guys have to definitely be careful for that and before you go and think there is going to be greener grass on the other side, really look back where you played all of your ball at see if maybe you can work something out with them.
(on if he wishes he could have finished his career with the Titans)
Yeah, of course because my children are there, they are growing up, they are getting big, and they have their own personalities and stuff, so yeah it would have been awesome. I read in a paper I think after I signed with Washington that (Mike) Reinfeldt said that he offered not as much as Washington but 20 percent less, and I told my agent that if he had offered 20 percent less, then I would still be wearing that blue. That never happened but everything happens for a reason. Now I'm here and I'm extremely happy. I love the coaches and the facility here and the players. We have a young team that is very, not inexperienced, but they haven't played a lot of football in the pros but they have a lot of talent. I'm excited for that, to be able to spill some of my knowledge about how it goes here and how it is on the other side of the grass.
(on what was the best offer the Titans made before he signed with the Redskins)
I never got a contract offer my franchise year, the last year. The last offer I got was that July and it was five years for $32 million.
(on how he thinks he is playing and his thoughts on the last six games)
I'm trying to get back to normal after sitting on the line and stuff, so I'm trying to get back to normal. My first game here we got killed by the Texans but I played OK. I can definitely play a lot better. You know me, I love to hit (Matt) Schaub. I did alright, not too bad. Every week I am just hoping to improve.
(on if he remembers the play that Matt Schaub was injured on and if he caused the injury)
Yeah, it was on the goal line. He actually screamed like normal.
(on if he sees Chris Johnson as the same running back as he used to be)
I see that it looks like they changed their scheme just a little bit from what it used to be in practice. He is still the same runner, everybody is down on him and everything like that, but I also see a lot of teams really focusing on him and you see a lot of people gang tackling him. You hardly ever see one guy really getting a shot on him. He is still the same great running back that he was the year I was there and the years after, right now he is just having a down year, but hopefully after this game he can get back on track.
(on how many tickets he has to buy for friends and family and what he expects from the Titans fans at the game)
Actually I haven't had to buy any tickets yet and hopefully I can get my two little ones to come, Alanie and Avery to come to the game. But other than that I don't really know. Hopefully they don't boo me too much because I always had a great time in Tennessee and I always loved the fans and stuff. Hopefully they don't boo me too much but I know that I am on another team and I'm not their guy anymore.
