WEBVTT - Gervon Dexter Sr. shares takeaways from training camp | Bears, etc. Podcast 0:00:00.680 --> 0:00:06.120 Cut over that DJ Moore episode Touchdown Touchdown Pair. I 0:00:06.160 --> 0:00:08.119 am Jeff, Joniack Wlitz. 0:00:07.880 --> 0:00:09.280 Is on dot go. 0:00:12.000 --> 0:00:13.399 What was like playing for Coche? 0:00:13.400 --> 0:00:15.840 Good done. I don't want to answer any questions like 0:00:15.880 --> 0:00:30.360 that pressure coming is a big trouble. Doti Gos Mottest Sweat. 0:00:25.960 --> 0:00:28.520 Bears, et Cetera, brought to you by Miller Lte with 0:00:28.560 --> 0:00:31.440 the voices of the Bears Jeff Joniac and Tom Thayer. 0:00:32.320 --> 0:00:34.160 Things are going well a training camp for the Bears, 0:00:34.159 --> 0:00:37.240 and it really ramps up as we approached the phase 0:00:37.520 --> 0:00:40.520 of full padded practices that'll be coming up later this week. 0:00:40.560 --> 0:00:43.720 Jeff Joniac, Tom Fayer, and Welcome into episode seventy nine 0:00:43.840 --> 0:00:45.720 of the Bears et Cetera podcast, brought to you by 0:00:45.800 --> 0:00:48.480 Another Light. We got the Super Bowl winning Bears guard 0:00:48.520 --> 0:00:51.280 Tom Thayer our special guest this week. Second your defensive 0:00:51.280 --> 0:00:52.560 tackle Jabond Dexter. 0:00:52.760 --> 0:00:53.000 Tom. 0:00:53.080 --> 0:00:54.960 How you feeling, buddy, How you feeling. 0:00:55.560 --> 0:00:59.160 I'm feeling good and anticipation of Pad's getting on. I 0:00:59.160 --> 0:01:02.720 think you can tell little bit more about certain positions. However, 0:01:03.320 --> 0:01:06.039 I'm kind of okay with the nopad part of it, 0:01:06.160 --> 0:01:08.600 even though I'm reluctant to say it because I think 0:01:08.640 --> 0:01:13.240 the mental part of it for Caleb Williams, for Shane Waldron, 0:01:13.840 --> 0:01:17.479 for all the specialty positions on this football team, it 0:01:17.520 --> 0:01:20.440 has such an important role in the overall success of it. 0:01:21.520 --> 0:01:23.960 When you have a chance to go through meetings and 0:01:24.040 --> 0:01:28.200 be repetitive about the information that you're installing on the field, 0:01:28.680 --> 0:01:31.280 it's going to be super beneficial in the long run. 0:01:31.400 --> 0:01:33.240 I was almost going to have to ask you if 0:01:33.240 --> 0:01:35.640 you have a fever or something that you made that part. 0:01:35.680 --> 0:01:37.600 I mean, am I talking to the same time theayer 0:01:37.680 --> 0:01:38.080 right now? 0:01:39.000 --> 0:01:39.280 Yeah? 0:01:39.800 --> 0:01:40.160 I am. 0:01:40.200 --> 0:01:42.720 But you know again, hey, listen, I wish it was 0:01:42.800 --> 0:01:45.040 full pads all the time. You know, we talk about 0:01:45.040 --> 0:01:48.680 there could be three full padded practices before the first 0:01:48.800 --> 0:01:51.200 game at the Hall of Fame game, and I would 0:01:51.240 --> 0:01:53.760 have three padded practices in a day and a half 0:01:53.760 --> 0:01:57.560 of camp. So but I'm looking at the reality of 0:01:57.720 --> 0:02:00.680 modern day football and the role in the importance that 0:02:00.720 --> 0:02:04.520 Caleb Williams is going to play in hopefully a decade 0:02:04.560 --> 0:02:06.200 of success for the Bears. 0:02:06.400 --> 0:02:09.480 Observations about Caleb are going to come fast and furious 0:02:09.520 --> 0:02:12.600 every single practice for the rest of his career. Obviously, 0:02:12.680 --> 0:02:15.320 it's the marquee position in all of sports, and he's 0:02:15.320 --> 0:02:18.600 the number one overall pick and high expectations observations from 0:02:18.639 --> 0:02:20.960 my point of view. Time a couple of things. One, 0:02:21.800 --> 0:02:24.560 you often tend to look at body language as a 0:02:24.600 --> 0:02:27.840 reporter or an observer, and reporters make a living off 0:02:27.880 --> 0:02:30.560 of this, and sometimes reading body language can give you 0:02:31.120 --> 0:02:34.440 a total misread. Don't read into it too much. But 0:02:34.480 --> 0:02:37.240 what I see is an intensity about him as the 0:02:37.280 --> 0:02:41.080 play's call coming in from Shane Waldron, the music's playing, 0:02:41.120 --> 0:02:44.079 it's pumping at a very high volume at practice during 0:02:44.520 --> 0:02:47.160 team drills. It lowers throughout the rest of practice, but 0:02:48.080 --> 0:02:50.519 it's a testament to what he's going to face on 0:02:50.680 --> 0:02:53.600 the road in the coming weeks of his rookie season. 0:02:54.000 --> 0:02:56.960 But he really wants that play in there. He goes 0:02:57.000 --> 0:03:00.359 to players afterwards. I saw a conversation with Key now 0:03:00.400 --> 0:03:03.800 in a conversation with Cole Komen. These are positives for 0:03:03.919 --> 0:03:06.720 me to see how engaged he is in the moment 0:03:06.880 --> 0:03:08.600 that as you always like to say, that instant of 0:03:08.639 --> 0:03:10.800 time where you can make corrections and get on the 0:03:10.800 --> 0:03:11.840 same page. 0:03:11.800 --> 0:03:14.959 That communication will never stop. If we're talking about Caleb 0:03:14.960 --> 0:03:17.880 Williams ten years from now in breaking in a new 0:03:17.919 --> 0:03:20.440 receiver that maybe they brought a board in the draft. 0:03:20.760 --> 0:03:24.520 That conversation is going to continue right now. The role 0:03:24.600 --> 0:03:28.520 of the conversation plays an uber important role in the 0:03:28.560 --> 0:03:33.000 success and the development of timing, of the understanding of coverages, 0:03:33.320 --> 0:03:37.160 the accuracy factor, what you saw out of the coverages 0:03:37.240 --> 0:03:39.800 that were being offered to you on certain down and 0:03:39.920 --> 0:03:43.560 distances in parts of the field right hash left, hash 0:03:43.640 --> 0:03:46.920 middle of the field. So those conversations will never stop. 0:03:46.960 --> 0:03:49.480 A player came up to me the other day and said, 0:03:50.280 --> 0:03:53.680 let me tell you something. He's got a very catchable ball. 0:03:53.840 --> 0:03:56.760 It doesn't matter if it's a short pass, an intermediate pass, 0:03:56.920 --> 0:03:59.800 or a fifty yard pass down the field, a very tight, 0:04:00.160 --> 0:04:04.000 viral catchable ball. The importance of that tom for a 0:04:04.040 --> 0:04:06.080 receiver is what it's just. 0:04:06.040 --> 0:04:08.280 The confidence of the ball is going to be delivered 0:04:08.280 --> 0:04:11.320 at a velocity that's very catchable, no matter if you're 0:04:11.360 --> 0:04:14.600 ten yards away or thirty five yards away. And I 0:04:14.600 --> 0:04:17.520 think sometimes over the course of history, now that we've 0:04:17.560 --> 0:04:22.160 been around football for almost thirty years, we've seen quarterbacks 0:04:22.160 --> 0:04:24.479 that come in here and yeah, their arm is described 0:04:24.480 --> 0:04:27.760 as a cannon, but the cannon has to have control 0:04:28.000 --> 0:04:30.719 if you're throwing a cannon pass that's about an eight 0:04:30.800 --> 0:04:33.600 yard outlet pass to a running back and it splits 0:04:33.640 --> 0:04:36.680 his hands even though they have those gloves that have 0:04:37.200 --> 0:04:39.920 just a lot of grip built into them. It's different 0:04:39.960 --> 0:04:42.320 than the pass that's got to be a floater of 0:04:42.360 --> 0:04:45.320 fifteen to eighteen to twenty yards away. So yeah, I 0:04:45.320 --> 0:04:49.800 think the quarterback's recognition of his arm talents is as 0:04:49.880 --> 0:04:53.240 important as it is knowing what the play is and 0:04:53.279 --> 0:04:54.360 where the ball is going to go. 0:04:54.520 --> 0:04:56.360 And as an extension to that, yeah, you don't want 0:04:56.360 --> 0:04:59.039 the ball eating up receivers, especially in that short game, 0:04:59.080 --> 0:05:01.360 because a lot of passes are going to be completed 0:05:01.400 --> 0:05:03.160 from the line of scrimmage or behind the line of 0:05:03.200 --> 0:05:05.000 scrimmage to ten yards, and those are going to be 0:05:05.000 --> 0:05:07.240 catching run plays, Those plays over the middle where you 0:05:07.279 --> 0:05:08.920 got to thread the needle and you got a defender 0:05:09.000 --> 0:05:11.040 on your back. You got to make those nice and easy, 0:05:11.240 --> 0:05:14.120 and those fades in the end zone the back shoulder throws. 0:05:14.680 --> 0:05:17.880 But as an extension of that, and you tell me 0:05:17.920 --> 0:05:20.640 if I'm wrong, I gotta trust my eyes. Yes, there 0:05:20.640 --> 0:05:23.480 have been some incompletions, of course, but the ball is 0:05:23.520 --> 0:05:24.520 not on the ground a lot. 0:05:24.720 --> 0:05:29.760 Yeah, it's true. I think you Caleb understands the target. 0:05:29.880 --> 0:05:32.400 Maybe sometimes he's going to hold onto the ball a 0:05:32.440 --> 0:05:34.719 half a second to three quarters of a second a 0:05:34.720 --> 0:05:37.640 little bit too long that will probably be sped up 0:05:37.720 --> 0:05:40.800 the more he gets to understand the offense. But the 0:05:40.880 --> 0:05:43.440 key ingredient there is what you said, and I'm glad 0:05:43.480 --> 0:05:46.839 you did say it, because not being on the ground 0:05:47.000 --> 0:05:50.680 tip balls are disaster. So if you have a ball 0:05:50.760 --> 0:05:53.359 that's not on the ground, it's into the hands of 0:05:53.400 --> 0:05:56.240 the receiver, then that's what we need to see out 0:05:56.279 --> 0:05:59.960 of a quarterback. You talk about a velocity of a 0:06:00.160 --> 0:06:02.920 of a quarterback, and if you're starting to get those 0:06:03.000 --> 0:06:05.920 balls that go through the hands of the receivers the way, 0:06:06.040 --> 0:06:08.560 the first thing that defensive back is living on is 0:06:08.640 --> 0:06:12.120 tip balls, and so you need to see the accuracy 0:06:12.240 --> 0:06:13.440 complement the offense. 0:06:14.000 --> 0:06:15.839 Tastes like middle Time. Go to middle of Night dot 0:06:15.839 --> 0:06:18.520 com slash bears pod to find delivery options near you. 0:06:18.640 --> 0:06:22.760 Celebrate responsibly. Middle Brewing Company, Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Ninety six calories 0:06:22.760 --> 0:06:25.200 and three point two carbs per twelve ounces. Met with 0:06:25.200 --> 0:06:28.000 the folks from Miller a couple of days ago. Always 0:06:28.000 --> 0:06:32.560 a fun bunch. They had the middle of late on ice, Tommy, 0:06:33.120 --> 0:06:35.760 first thing in the morning, enjoying practice. You were tempted. 0:06:35.800 --> 0:06:40.599 I know you listen anytime there's an ice cold beverage, 0:06:40.720 --> 0:06:44.400 whether it's something that's offered to you out of practice 0:06:44.480 --> 0:06:47.680 or inside the viewing suite, there's nothing like a cold 0:06:47.680 --> 0:06:51.279 beverage at training camp. And I remember back in training 0:06:51.320 --> 0:06:53.800 camp in our days, they used to have these fifty 0:06:53.839 --> 0:06:58.400 gallon drums that were filled in ice and a thirst 0:06:58.680 --> 0:07:01.760 quenching product. And when you had the time to go 0:07:01.800 --> 0:07:05.000 over there, grab one, open it up, you drank the 0:07:05.040 --> 0:07:08.239 whole can or whatever you were offered because you only 0:07:08.320 --> 0:07:11.520 had maybe two or three plays in order to get 0:07:11.520 --> 0:07:14.160 your drink and get back in line to get your 0:07:14.200 --> 0:07:14.800 next rep. 0:07:14.880 --> 0:07:19.920 So now you're not suggesting that there were beers in there, No, never. 0:07:19.600 --> 0:07:23.440 You know, you had me think they had a different 0:07:23.520 --> 0:07:27.120 you know, whether ye water or whatever product that they 0:07:27.200 --> 0:07:31.480 have on the field. They had these intermittently placed big 0:07:31.640 --> 0:07:34.520 tubs in that It was so good man, when you 0:07:34.600 --> 0:07:37.680 had your chance to go and grab something to drink, 0:07:37.720 --> 0:07:41.600 and those exhausting times at Platteville super rewarding. 0:07:42.240 --> 0:07:45.640 Let's talk about the offensive line relative to Caleb Williams 0:07:45.720 --> 0:07:47.680 and his ability to get rid of the ball in 0:07:47.720 --> 0:07:50.560 a timely manner, read it or dump it, or just 0:07:51.000 --> 0:07:54.400 find the completion, because that over the last couple of 0:07:54.480 --> 0:07:57.600 years has been an issue for the Bears offense. So 0:07:57.920 --> 0:08:01.440 it was the longest period of time holding the football 0:08:01.520 --> 0:08:04.640 for justin fields in the NFL, better than three point 0:08:04.680 --> 0:08:10.880 one seconds on average. So what will that do conversely 0:08:10.920 --> 0:08:12.800 for the offensive line when he gets rid of it 0:08:13.080 --> 0:08:14.720 in a quicker fashion. 0:08:15.640 --> 0:08:18.600 Okay, first of all, if they're an opponent stadium that 0:08:18.720 --> 0:08:21.680 has a lowed atmosphere, the offensive guard is going to 0:08:21.680 --> 0:08:23.640 be the indicator to the center that the ball is 0:08:23.680 --> 0:08:25.840 going to be snapped. As soon as they give that 0:08:25.920 --> 0:08:29.040 indicator to the center, that's when the timeframe really starts. 0:08:29.400 --> 0:08:32.760 You get the center quarterback exchange, and then if that 0:08:33.240 --> 0:08:35.720 quarterback can get the ball out of his hands in 0:08:35.760 --> 0:08:38.679 the right amount of time according to the protection that 0:08:38.720 --> 0:08:42.800 the offensive line heard inside the huddle, then rather than 0:08:42.880 --> 0:08:45.880 holding and sustaining your block for a second and a half, 0:08:46.240 --> 0:08:49.200 now you're sustaining your protection for three quarters of a 0:08:49.240 --> 0:08:52.400 second to a second, and then a lot more battles 0:08:52.440 --> 0:08:55.840 can be won. Now the offensive line has to break 0:08:55.880 --> 0:08:58.880 the huddle with the understanding of the time of the 0:08:58.960 --> 0:09:02.600 protection call in the huddle, you have a three step drop, 0:09:02.679 --> 0:09:04.320 it's going to be a little bit quicker than a 0:09:04.360 --> 0:09:07.120 five step drop. If you have a play action pass, 0:09:07.200 --> 0:09:08.840 that means that you're going to go out and try 0:09:08.840 --> 0:09:11.559 to sell the run more than you are going to 0:09:11.600 --> 0:09:14.880 be a pass protector. So there's differences in every protection. 0:09:15.400 --> 0:09:18.000 But with the immediacy of the ball out of the 0:09:18.080 --> 0:09:22.880 quarterback's hands, it really is so beneficial to an offensive. 0:09:22.440 --> 0:09:24.880 Line, all right. Among the quarterbacks you played for, obviously 0:09:24.920 --> 0:09:28.840 Jim McMahon and Mike tom Zach and Steve Fuller, there 0:09:28.880 --> 0:09:30.960 were many others over the course of your time with 0:09:31.000 --> 0:09:33.640 the Bears. How were they in terms of getting rid 0:09:33.679 --> 0:09:35.320 of the football as a group? 0:09:36.000 --> 0:09:40.120 McMahon was in instantaneously because he understood the coverage that 0:09:40.160 --> 0:09:42.959 he was facing from his experience in college, and he 0:09:43.040 --> 0:09:44.720 knew where the ball was going to go as soon 0:09:44.760 --> 0:09:47.720 as it was snap by Jay. But then you also 0:09:47.800 --> 0:09:50.040 had guys like Mike Tomzak that got rid of the 0:09:50.040 --> 0:09:52.760 ball quickly in terms of what he determined to be 0:09:52.880 --> 0:09:56.440 his read and where it would go. Steve Fuller was 0:09:56.679 --> 0:09:59.600 not the athlete that you know tom Zak and McMahon 0:09:59.640 --> 0:10:01.920 were at time, so he had a little bit more 0:10:01.960 --> 0:10:05.240 time getting back to his stance, and then he was 0:10:05.400 --> 0:10:08.880 more of a slow, methodical thrower. And then you had 0:10:08.960 --> 0:10:11.960 Jim Harball come in. It was kind of an athlete 0:10:12.000 --> 0:10:15.160 playing the quarterback position and then had a lot of 0:10:15.200 --> 0:10:18.160 time to be able to try to learn the system perfectly, 0:10:18.600 --> 0:10:23.120 to incorporate his athleticism in his delivery, and sometimes he 0:10:23.360 --> 0:10:26.160 was he held out of the ball a little bit longer, 0:10:26.200 --> 0:10:30.160 but that's the speed of his game picked up as 0:10:30.320 --> 0:10:33.400 time went on throughout his career with the Bears. In 0:10:33.440 --> 0:10:36.960 his career in the NFL, Doug Fluti Doug Flutie was 0:10:37.080 --> 0:10:40.880 he was an inexperienced quarterback playing with a really experienced team. 0:10:40.920 --> 0:10:43.520 I think it was a little unfair to kind of 0:10:43.559 --> 0:10:47.400 make a determination on him because everything was his size 0:10:47.520 --> 0:10:50.640 was talked about more than his delivery, so you had 0:10:50.720 --> 0:10:54.400 to provide protection for him and create a stalemate on 0:10:54.440 --> 0:10:57.920 the line of scrimmage. So he separated. And remember the 0:10:58.000 --> 0:11:01.840 drops back then were three five seven step drops. So 0:11:01.960 --> 0:11:05.040 that's the significant difference when you're talking about those three 0:11:05.160 --> 0:11:08.200 types of drops, and we are so successful at running 0:11:08.240 --> 0:11:11.319 the ball. We ran a lot more play action than 0:11:11.440 --> 0:11:16.040 other did. Other teams did in the NFL, but Doug Flutie, 0:11:16.360 --> 0:11:18.839 we really didn't have a long enough period of time 0:11:19.400 --> 0:11:21.680 to figure out. And I was thinking about Doug today 0:11:21.760 --> 0:11:25.000 because he had a great career in the long term 0:11:25.040 --> 0:11:28.160 when you're talking about the Canadian League, the USFL and 0:11:28.240 --> 0:11:29.280 the NFL. 0:11:29.000 --> 0:11:30.880 And still doing commercials with Frank Thomas. 0:11:31.840 --> 0:11:32.680 Hey, he looks great. 0:11:32.720 --> 0:11:34.200 He's got good flow. 0:11:34.240 --> 0:11:34.600 Sixty. 0:11:34.960 --> 0:11:36.679 Yeah, he's got a really good flow. 0:11:37.679 --> 0:11:42.560 Peter tom Willis, Peter tom Willis had a really slow 0:11:42.840 --> 0:11:46.480 cadence And I remember asking Peter tom Willis because he 0:11:46.559 --> 0:11:49.520 was a Southern drawl type of player, so he would 0:11:49.559 --> 0:11:55.920 go blue fourteen blue fourteen, sit hood in where the 0:11:55.960 --> 0:12:00.400 other guys would go blue fourteen blue fourteen. So their 0:12:00.440 --> 0:12:04.240 hard count was a lot more deceptive to the defensive 0:12:04.280 --> 0:12:07.360 line than Peter tom Willis. And I remember asking him 0:12:07.559 --> 0:12:11.080 if he could speed up his cadence because it's too 0:12:11.240 --> 0:12:14.200 slow the cadence and there's not a lot of deception 0:12:14.320 --> 0:12:17.760 there for the defensive line. But you know, Peter tom 0:12:17.800 --> 0:12:20.559 Willis was a good quarterback, a lot of college experience, 0:12:21.000 --> 0:12:24.920 but he wasn't as a scapable as some of the 0:12:24.960 --> 0:12:26.760 other quarterbacks that we played with. 0:12:26.960 --> 0:12:29.800 Yeah, that covers it. Though you didn't have that many 0:12:30.000 --> 0:12:30.960 during your time. 0:12:31.160 --> 0:12:34.440 Right, we are super fortunate to have McMahon for a 0:12:34.440 --> 0:12:36.760 period of time. Tom Zach had some. I think he 0:12:36.840 --> 0:12:38.960 started out ten and zero as a starter in his 0:12:39.080 --> 0:12:42.600 career for the Bears with Steve Fuller here and then 0:12:42.720 --> 0:12:45.880 Harball and Fluty and such. You know, that's what we 0:12:46.200 --> 0:12:46.560 What did. 0:12:46.480 --> 0:12:48.559 You learn from Greg Landry during your time? 0:12:50.080 --> 0:12:53.160 I learned more. Greg Landry was my first quarterback in 0:12:53.200 --> 0:12:57.280 the USFL, so I up late. I was a teammate 0:12:57.360 --> 0:13:00.360 with Greg and he was one of the toughest guys 0:13:00.360 --> 0:13:02.680 I've ever met in my life. One time he got 0:13:02.720 --> 0:13:04.640 hit under the chin and he bit off half of 0:13:04.679 --> 0:13:07.080 his tongue and he never missed a play oh go, 0:13:07.920 --> 0:13:12.640 and then he but as a player, he tried to 0:13:12.640 --> 0:13:15.480 be a mentor as much as he did a teammate. 0:13:15.720 --> 0:13:19.280 And that's what I really respected about him. He didn't. 0:13:19.440 --> 0:13:21.800 He used to tell me, don't fall into a trap 0:13:21.840 --> 0:13:24.480 of some of the guys here in the USFL, because 0:13:24.480 --> 0:13:27.240 they're ending your career right when you're beginning your career. 0:13:27.480 --> 0:13:29.640 And he was a super tough guy that had complete 0:13:29.640 --> 0:13:33.360 control of the huddle. As a football coach, he had 0:13:33.520 --> 0:13:37.520 command of the offense, but sometimes we were fighting in 0:13:37.559 --> 0:13:41.360 an uphill battle because we didn't have the eighty five 0:13:41.480 --> 0:13:45.320 Bears there. We had some movable parts that weren't the 0:13:45.360 --> 0:13:47.320 same as the guys we had at one time. 0:13:47.400 --> 0:13:50.640 Yeah, nineteen eighty four as a Bears player, also as 0:13:50.679 --> 0:13:53.920 a quarterback receiver in tight ends coach from eighty six 0:13:54.000 --> 0:13:55.920 to eighty eight. He went over to u of I 0:13:56.120 --> 0:13:59.160 in the nineties, and of course coming into the NFL 0:13:59.200 --> 0:14:01.280 with the Detroit Lione is the number eleven pick in 0:14:01.280 --> 0:14:03.480 the draft and Greg Landerne he. 0:14:03.440 --> 0:14:06.160 Was the most sacked quarterback in the NFL with Detroit, 0:14:06.160 --> 0:14:09.679 and he just had some years that were absolutely brutal. 0:14:10.280 --> 0:14:13.439 But in the long run, I think that's why I 0:14:13.480 --> 0:14:16.439 respect this toughness so much, because I saw him as 0:14:16.440 --> 0:14:18.920 a Detroit Lion. I played again. I played with him 0:14:19.160 --> 0:14:22.320 as a member of the Chicago Blitz, and I respected 0:14:22.400 --> 0:14:24.480 him as a coach of the Chicago. 0:14:24.160 --> 0:14:26.440 Bears, Comeback Player of the Year in seventy six and 0:14:26.560 --> 0:14:29.200 All Pro first Team in nineteen seventy one with the 0:14:29.200 --> 0:14:32.680 Lions in his third NFL season, And he's a New 0:14:32.720 --> 0:14:35.200 Hampshire guy living out on the East Coast. All right, 0:14:35.280 --> 0:14:38.400 let's switch gears Tommy and move into our conversation with 0:14:38.480 --> 0:14:42.280 Javon Dexter. I love this. I love this because you 0:14:42.320 --> 0:14:45.960 can see the big difference, and we've seen it annually 0:14:46.320 --> 0:14:50.000 from rookies are quite not sure of what they're dealing 0:14:50.080 --> 0:14:52.440 with over the course of the season, maybe a bit 0:14:52.520 --> 0:14:55.520 reserve unless they have a really outgoing personality and then 0:14:55.600 --> 0:14:59.840 this monumental glacial change in their demeanor. And that would 0:14:59.880 --> 0:15:03.680 be the man that Matt eber Flows calls Dino Dexter. 0:15:04.440 --> 0:15:07.480 Gervon Dexter Senior. Our conversation with tom and I we've 0:15:07.520 --> 0:15:10.520 been talking about you since the middle of last season 0:15:10.600 --> 0:15:13.360 on and very excited, and I was trying to flip 0:15:13.400 --> 0:15:17.360 a coin whose body changed the most. You were, Dominique Robinson, 0:15:17.360 --> 0:15:19.480 because you guys both are massive right now. You guys 0:15:19.560 --> 0:15:21.320 look good, you guys, you guys showing off in the 0:15:21.320 --> 0:15:22.000 mirror a little bit. 0:15:22.280 --> 0:15:26.280 That's a that's a tough one. Just because Domb before 0:15:26.360 --> 0:15:28.800 he changed his body, he still looked pretty now, I know, 0:15:28.840 --> 0:15:31.480 so I'll probably give it to myself just because Domb 0:15:31.600 --> 0:15:32.479 was already. 0:15:32.200 --> 0:15:35.480 Yeah, yeah, I mean, it's been a massive, massive, investment 0:15:35.520 --> 0:15:39.040 of time and uh, you feel a totally different player, 0:15:39.080 --> 0:15:39.320 don't you. 0:15:39.720 --> 0:15:39.880 Yeah? 0:15:39.960 --> 0:15:43.240 Yeah, what's the benefits that you experience. 0:15:42.720 --> 0:15:46.960 Already being able to be out there longer and being 0:15:47.000 --> 0:15:50.000 able to rush while I'm tired of being able to 0:15:51.840 --> 0:15:55.080 move a little better, get out the stack a little better, 0:15:55.120 --> 0:15:57.640 a little faster, a little further, and so all of 0:15:57.680 --> 0:15:59.520 those things is feeling great. 0:16:00.200 --> 0:16:02.160 You know, Javon, you just walked off the podium and 0:16:02.200 --> 0:16:04.600 you said you're blessed with great height, and you are. 0:16:04.920 --> 0:16:07.240 And for me as an ex offensive lineman, one thing 0:16:07.280 --> 0:16:10.800 that intimidated me was height by a defensive lineman because 0:16:10.840 --> 0:16:14.240 that brings length. When you have your pass rush and 0:16:14.320 --> 0:16:17.000 you're going through all your techniques and all your arsenal, 0:16:17.560 --> 0:16:20.000 is there an emphasis on using your length to make 0:16:20.000 --> 0:16:22.040 sure that you can try to make contact to the 0:16:22.080 --> 0:16:26.400 offensive lineman before are their hands can make contact to you? 0:16:26.640 --> 0:16:27.040 For sure? 0:16:27.080 --> 0:16:29.960 I think for for bigger defensive tackles and defensive lineman, 0:16:30.000 --> 0:16:33.200 that's our weapon. Our length is our weapon, just because 0:16:33.240 --> 0:16:37.800 when you create that separation off to get off, it's 0:16:37.800 --> 0:16:41.080 hard for office of lineman to recover from from the length. 0:16:41.160 --> 0:16:43.760 And I think that's when you use that to your ability. 0:16:44.360 --> 0:16:45.320 It works well. 0:16:45.880 --> 0:16:48.080 When you have the length that you're blessed with. I 0:16:48.400 --> 0:16:51.160 look at the vision that you're using. You recently had 0:16:51.200 --> 0:16:54.680 a deflected pass in practice. Caleb had to catch it 0:16:54.760 --> 0:16:56.760 himself and he had to run it because you can't 0:16:56.800 --> 0:17:00.600 throw two forward passes. How do you combine and everything 0:17:00.640 --> 0:17:03.200 with knowing the move you're gonna use out of your stance, 0:17:03.360 --> 0:17:06.280 reading what the play is, pass or run, and then 0:17:06.440 --> 0:17:10.160 using your vision in order to read the quarterback? How 0:17:10.200 --> 0:17:14.399 are you? How are you able to incorporate all those 0:17:14.760 --> 0:17:16.440 within an instance of time? 0:17:17.040 --> 0:17:20.240 Yeah, I just try to. I try to get those reps. 0:17:20.440 --> 0:17:23.080 I try to get those mental reps or even an individual, 0:17:23.160 --> 0:17:25.280 I try to get those reps to to where when 0:17:25.280 --> 0:17:28.000 it's time it's a second nature to me. And I 0:17:29.240 --> 0:17:31.600 think I've I've done a better job this year at 0:17:31.760 --> 0:17:34.919 at like you said, doing all of those same things 0:17:34.960 --> 0:17:38.600 at once, and I think so far I've seen myself 0:17:38.640 --> 0:17:41.960 well one play, like like we talked about, where I 0:17:42.000 --> 0:17:44.399 took the past that that was a bigger step for 0:17:44.480 --> 0:17:47.240 me because normally last year I would kind of sit 0:17:47.320 --> 0:17:49.800 there and just use my extension. Well, now I'm getting 0:17:49.800 --> 0:17:54.480 my hands up. Now it creates tip passes create turnovers 0:17:54.520 --> 0:17:55.560 and that's what we want. 0:17:55.960 --> 0:17:58.480 You got eighty one inch wingspan, so might as well 0:17:58.480 --> 0:18:01.240 put the thing that impressed me, and I think it 0:18:01.600 --> 0:18:05.800 goes off and underrated is the effort after the play 0:18:06.480 --> 0:18:08.880 or to continue to play if it gets passed a line, 0:18:08.880 --> 0:18:12.280 you chase down. You you did it last year, You're 0:18:12.320 --> 0:18:14.640 doing it at practice, and that that's a wow when 0:18:14.640 --> 0:18:17.320 you see a guy your size chasing down. And I 0:18:17.359 --> 0:18:23.040 believe coach Flues told you something about backside play wins championships, right, 0:18:23.119 --> 0:18:25.560 that was a quote he gave. But how important is it? 0:18:25.600 --> 0:18:29.880 Because to your point, fatigue may you know, guys may 0:18:29.920 --> 0:18:33.760 not run you know as uh uh as often you 0:18:33.800 --> 0:18:35.679 know after the play and in fourth quarter you can 0:18:35.720 --> 0:18:37.719 make a play downfield to be just as important as 0:18:37.720 --> 0:18:39.760 a sack, right, And how important isn't it? And you've 0:18:39.760 --> 0:18:40.560 always been that way? 0:18:40.640 --> 0:18:40.760 Right? 0:18:41.359 --> 0:18:44.000 So I would be lying if I said I've always 0:18:44.040 --> 0:18:46.320 been that way. But being drafted by the Bears and 0:18:46.400 --> 0:18:50.639 watching old film and that's the DNA here. So coming 0:18:50.680 --> 0:18:53.919 here and watching the film and seeing how these guys 0:18:54.119 --> 0:18:57.119 fly around get to the ball, and not just the secondary, 0:18:57.160 --> 0:18:59.800 but we the whole the whole unit is doing it 0:18:59.800 --> 0:19:02.360 in like coach flu state, that's who we are, that's 0:19:02.400 --> 0:19:04.800 our resume, and that's how we want to be on film, 0:19:05.119 --> 0:19:05.680 you know, Jivon. 0:19:05.920 --> 0:19:08.040 After you get off your senior year of football, it's 0:19:08.040 --> 0:19:10.960 an exhausting period of time when you go through the combines, 0:19:10.960 --> 0:19:13.200 you're getting ready for the draft. You go through the draft, 0:19:13.240 --> 0:19:16.240 and then you go through your rookie introduction. But your 0:19:16.280 --> 0:19:19.760 freshman year in college you played every game, But your 0:19:19.800 --> 0:19:23.159 sophomore year in college you were super productive in your numbers. 0:19:23.200 --> 0:19:25.840 You had more tackles for loss, you had more sacks, 0:19:26.160 --> 0:19:28.840 you had more production out of your position. Do you 0:19:28.920 --> 0:19:32.480 kind of see that in yourself from your freshman the 0:19:32.600 --> 0:19:35.879 sophomore year for a lack of a better term, professionally 0:19:36.280 --> 0:19:37.440 as you did in college. 0:19:37.520 --> 0:19:41.040 Yeah, it's the exact same. When you come into something new, 0:19:41.119 --> 0:19:44.439 you kind of float by. You're trying to understand the scheme, 0:19:44.560 --> 0:19:48.240 you're trying to understand your teammates, You're trying to understand 0:19:48.240 --> 0:19:50.159 a lot of different things, and as well as just 0:19:50.200 --> 0:19:52.679 being young, so you don't want to make a mistake 0:19:52.720 --> 0:19:55.280 when you were out there, and so when you play 0:19:55.359 --> 0:19:57.520 like that, you tend to be a little timid and 0:19:57.880 --> 0:20:00.520 trusting yourself. Well, when you go into that next year, 0:20:00.560 --> 0:20:02.679 you know what to expect. You know your teammates, you 0:20:02.720 --> 0:20:05.280 know your coaches, you know the system. So now it 0:20:05.320 --> 0:20:06.720