How does going against this offense's speed in practice every day prepare you for the Chiefs' offensive speed that you will face in the first game?
"Yeah, our receiving corps definitely brings a ton of speed to the table with Brandin (Cooks), Kenny (Stills), Stevie (Mitchell Jr.), all those guys. But nothing can really replicate the speed of a real-life NFL football game. That's something that you only get being in the situation itself. We have experience playing them. We played them twice last year. Twice the year before, if you count the preseason game. But it's really just going to come down to being prepped and ready for that first game, as you can't really prepare for that real-life game speed, but we come as close as possible with the speed that our receivers bring."
How do you balance containing the speed the Chiefs have at wide receiver in WR Tyreek Hill as well as a tight end like TE Travis Kelce?
"It's definitely a mean one-two punch. That's what led them to be Super Bowl champions last season. Really, it just comes down to being aware of where those guys are on the field at all times. Making sure that you have an extra set of eyes on each of them and don't let either one of them just plain and simply wreck the game. Just keep (Pat) Mahomes in the pocket as much as possible, have an eye out for those two guys, and everyone stay keyed to the fundamentals and do their job and limit the damage."
What were your thoughts on the social justice video the player put together and what do you want to see going forward?
"First up on the video, I thought the video was awesome. I thought it was very powerful. It made a statement that you see across the whole league, us and the Ravens both mentioning the Justice in Policing Act, otherwise [known] as the George Floyd Bill. Really just showing that unity that across sports, that we're coming to try to bring attention to systemic injustice and police brutality. Not only just saying that we want to make change, but in the action items to start listing out that these are the changes that we want to see because it's a time now to start getting more specific and not be as vague, and start to list out the actual points and the ways that we can actually affect change and make those concrete statements. I love the way that the video came out. I give a lot of credit to our video department too for their hard work and putting it all together, and to the players for us all coming together and making a statement like that."
How does it feel to win the Spirit of the Bull award? Also, what did you learn from Chiefs S Tyrann Mathieu when you played together?
"The Spirit of the Bull award is probably one of the coolest awards that the Texans organization does. It's a big honor to be recognized for what I do on the field, but what I do in the community. It's a big deal to me to always want to give back, especially work with kids. I'm in the middle of trying to create my foundation and I plan to do a whole lot more in the future. But there's a ton of guys who have won the award before me, I think most recently D.J. Reader. It's just an honor to be associated with men like that and to have that award presented by the Texans organization. It's just a great feeling, honestly. It's encouraging for me to go out and continue to do the work that I'm doing to make more impacts on my community here and my community back home. On your next question, talking about playing with Tyrann. Tyrann was an awesome leader. I think he was a great guy to be a rookie behind in my first season because he just brought so much experience and versatility and leadership. I know he's doing that for them with the Kansas City Chiefs now, too. But him and K-Jack (Kareem Jackson) both taught me things that I'm now teaching to the next guys following behind me. I'm excited to see him again and play on the field against him. I think he's going by 'the landlord' now over there in Kansas City, so it's definitely exciting to play against guys that you know and watch them do their thing."
What did you learn from last season's playoff game against Kansas City and how did that help you focus on what you wanted to improve going into the season opener?
"I guess the biggest point home is not only do you have to start fast, but you have to finish strong, too. That's the biggest take home away from it. But just the mere fact that we're two very powerful teams. We both have the ability to score points quickly. We both have the ability to make big plays. It's just going to come down to being on those details and being strong and play a full 60 minutes. You can't play 24 minutes. You can't play 30 minutes. You can't play 45 minutes. It's been back and forth every time we've played them the last two years, ever since I've been here, and it's going to be that way again. We just have to have the grit and the strong mentality to be tough, smart, dependable and come out on top and play the full 60-minute game through and through. That's what it's going to come down to, especially it being the first game of the season. Tackling is going to be huge. No mental errors is going to be extremely huge on both sides. That's just what it's going to come down to."
What do you think about the progress you've seen from players like OLB Jacob Martin and DE Charles Omenihu?
"I've seen Charles Omenihu take real big strides this camp. Usually you see it in guys coming from their first year to their second year making that jump, and I've seen that in Charles. I'm excited about it. As far as Jacob, the guy has a motor that doesn't stop. I'd even say he's on his way to being one of those top tier pass rushers because every time he's in the game he makes an impact. You think back to the Buffalo Bills game last year when he had that fumble recovery and the plays he's made ever since he's come here from Seattle. I think that our pass rush has been bolstered, especially behind Coach (Anthony) Weaver. I'm excited about what that's going to be able to do for us as a defense to be able to make more plays."
What are your thoughts on S Eric Murray after training camp and how is the communication between you two?
"Very intelligent player, first and foremost. You just understand that just from talking to him. He understands ball. He's been in a variety of systems. He's played corner, safety, star, weakside linebacker. He's played all the positions on the back end. Very knowledgeable and he's a technician in his craft, too. As far as when you look at his fundamentals, his hand placement, his footwork. Very keen on the details and it's been a joy to play with him. I've had the most fun playing alongside him in the three years that I've played in the league so far and I'm excited for what that's going to be able to do for us during the season in our interchangeability and our ability to disguise and move around. Just to talk ball. We were just talking last night, texting at almost midnight just talking about the Kansas City Chiefs and how practice was, so we have that open line of communication between each other to where we talk all the time. It's been a great partnership."
What are some of the unique challenges when defending Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes and how can you counteract what he brings to the game?
"Definitely the formula that everyone's trying to find the answer to. Patrick Mahomes is a special quarterback. His ability to move around the pocket and his arm strength and arm talent. The biggest thing there is don't let him be able to get out of the pocket because when a guy like that, with the arm talent that he has and all the speed around him, those guys have more time to run down the field. It's tough on the front and on the back end to guard guys for that long. The big thing is keep continuous pressure on him, take away his biggest targets, in being (Travis) Kelce and Tyreek Hill. Just get pressure in his face. Don't let him just sit back there all day."
What do you and the team think about the historical significance of the season opener in such a unique year?
"This has been an offseason and it will be a season like no other that we may not even be able to see again, at least in my lifetime. Hopefully not. It's definitely a unique situation from just how the daily life in the building is, all the COVID protocols to make sure that we're staying all safe and healthy, to there being no or limited fans in the stadium, to there being no pumped in audio noise and all that. It's definitely the most unique experience and offseason I've ever had in any level of playing ball and I think it's going to be remembered because of that. Especially being able to play on the first game of the season on Thursday night in addition to all the social justice that's also happening at the same time, too. This has just been like a melting pot of a bunch of unique experiences that I think will be unforgettable."
What do you think about S A.J. Moore Jr.'s training camp and what do you expect to see from him this season?
"I expect a lot from him because I know he can handle it. He's a workhorse. He's one of our special teams leaders and I've seen him continue to grow ever since – we're the same class, so we came in on the defensive side of the ball too, being able to start making plays playing with the ones on defense. I've seen him grow a lot and he's excited about it. He's going to bring a lot of energy to the table. He's a guy that never gets tired and as long as he keeps making plays and starts doing it on Sundays, I can't be more excited to watch him go do his thing."
