WEBVTT - 1-on-1 with Phidarian Mathis | Episode 14

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to the Command Center Podcast. I'm Julie Donaldson. The

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<v Speaker 1>NFL Draft turned dreams into reality for the Commander's twenty

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<v Speaker 1>twenty two draft class. Upon their arrival to Ashburn, notable

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<v Speaker 1>Washington alumni sat down with the rookies to discuss life

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<v Speaker 1>on and off the field. Second round draft pick Federian

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<v Speaker 1>Mathis posted nine sacks and fifty three total tackles this

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<v Speaker 1>past season at Alabama. Matthis says he's looking forward to

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<v Speaker 1>joining his big brothers from the Crimson Tide into Ron

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<v Speaker 1>Payne and Jonathan Allen. Matthis joined former Washington linebacker Rocky

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<v Speaker 1>McIntosh to talk about the draft, his motivations, and what

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<v Speaker 1>heap brings to this Washington team. Rocky McIntosh here, I'm

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<v Speaker 1>with Fidarian Mathis. We're gonna talk a little football man,

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<v Speaker 1>try to get to know you. Let's get it. Let's

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<v Speaker 1>get it all right. All right, you got a nickname

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<v Speaker 1>Mans because I'm from the South Nate they called Rocky.

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<v Speaker 1>Everybody called me big Field. Big Field. Who gave you that?

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<v Speaker 1>My grandmother game in line, so you know it's crazy though.

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<v Speaker 1>My dad name feel, my grandfather name Field. So as

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<v Speaker 1>a young game running around, I was just a little field. Yeah. Uh,

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<v Speaker 1>and then I just became big field. So that's how

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<v Speaker 1>I got the name field, I feel, I feel. So

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<v Speaker 1>how was it like getting that call? Man? Man, it

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<v Speaker 1>was crazy. Uh. I really couldn't. I couldn't get my

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<v Speaker 1>words out of and know what to say. All I

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<v Speaker 1>could say it was you know, yes, sir, yes, sir.

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<v Speaker 1>So I mean it was it was very very like

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<v Speaker 1>I don't know, I can't describe it. Man, it was.

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<v Speaker 1>I feel like it was already life changing because I

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<v Speaker 1>waited so long for it. Oh man, was it a dream?

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<v Speaker 1>Since being little? Did you play Little League? Girl? Thinking

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<v Speaker 1>about this most definitely? Uh. I really never thought, you know,

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<v Speaker 1>how far football could take me until I got to

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<v Speaker 1>high school and I found out about what college can do.

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<v Speaker 1>So when once I say once I got in college,

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<v Speaker 1>that's when they hit me yep. And that's when I

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<v Speaker 1>started taking it more serious. In this drive, I can

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<v Speaker 1>see like we had a lot of different guys. We

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<v Speaker 1>got wide receivers that were basketball players. We got some

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<v Speaker 1>of your old linement over there, you know, showing verbs

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<v Speaker 1>and splits and all the other good stuff. Man, what

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<v Speaker 1>are the things that you'd like to do sports wise?

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<v Speaker 1>And those sports wise, No, I'm really just a football guy. Man.

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<v Speaker 1>I played basketball, cardio, but I ain't like I ain't this.

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<v Speaker 1>Football has always been my thing. You know. I tried

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<v Speaker 1>a lot of sports, baseball and basketball and a little

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<v Speaker 1>bit a track, but you know, football was always the

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<v Speaker 1>one that stood out to me. So that's what I

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<v Speaker 1>stuck with. All Right, you're d linement for life. Where

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<v Speaker 1>you're playing D line. I always been a D line

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<v Speaker 1>been on the other side. You didn't want to took

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<v Speaker 1>that being man, Nah, I'm so big. I was so

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<v Speaker 1>big so game days like you gotta find some inspiration

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<v Speaker 1>out there, right besides Nick setting the tone beside some

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<v Speaker 1>of those older guys setting the tone until you or

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<v Speaker 1>older guy, what are you going out there and playing for?

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<v Speaker 1>My daughter? I got a one year two year old

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<v Speaker 1>daughter now, she's just turned two years old in February.

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<v Speaker 1>So you know that's my why I see the reason

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<v Speaker 1>why I do this. She's a reason why I go hard. Yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>and you know, also just a love for football. You know,

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<v Speaker 1>I love football, so h I really don't need a

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<v Speaker 1>motivation because I love the game. But yeah, you know,

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<v Speaker 1>she's she's the one I do it for. Also, O man,

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<v Speaker 1>that gets me intense. Family plays a real big, strong

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<v Speaker 1>part of who I am and my character and what

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<v Speaker 1>you know. I tried to you know, come here and

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<v Speaker 1>bring and really stay in touch with the community that way.

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<v Speaker 1>Also before I had kids, that was my uh, that

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<v Speaker 1>was my wife, just going out there and helping the

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<v Speaker 1>community being where I'm from, where I'm from the South,

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<v Speaker 1>and you get seeing little kids look at it to

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<v Speaker 1>me and things like that. Do you have, um some

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<v Speaker 1>charitable things that you want to get out there and

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<v Speaker 1>start doing? Oh yeah, most definitely. You know, throughout my

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<v Speaker 1>freshman year in college, I already started, you know, get

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<v Speaker 1>even back. Sure, I started, um you know book back drives, yeah, way,

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<v Speaker 1>school supplies before the school you'll start. So now I

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<v Speaker 1>just want to you know that I'm on a bigger level.

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<v Speaker 1>I just want to expand that, you know, and just

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<v Speaker 1>be able to get more back now, you know. So

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<v Speaker 1>that's that's one of my goals though. All right, all right,

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<v Speaker 1>let's talk a little bit of football. Man. So when

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<v Speaker 1>when I was playing, you know, I would see everybody

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<v Speaker 1>getting the signals from the sideline, Say you see the

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<v Speaker 1>d lineman, they're getting that signals that come in and

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<v Speaker 1>one of the signals are a little shimmy right here.

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<v Speaker 1>That mean games? What kind of games? If coach says

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<v Speaker 1>go out there and running, you know, a particular game,

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<v Speaker 1>it's up to you, guys, make that call. What game

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<v Speaker 1>are you calling? I mean it depends on what I'm

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<v Speaker 1>lined up and yeah, from the d tackle order, you

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<v Speaker 1>know what I want to be the end. But but yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>it depends on you know what what what what are

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<v Speaker 1>you're running? You know? My favorite game is you know,

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<v Speaker 1>one of the tim games. Yeah, well you know I'm

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<v Speaker 1>probably picking the center and the other tackle coming around. Yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>that's one of the biggest games I'd like to run.

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<v Speaker 1>That's cool, man, because I watched a little bit of

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<v Speaker 1>your tape and I what I see throughout your career

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<v Speaker 1>is just the use of hands. Like I'm surprised you

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<v Speaker 1>probably a good boxer too, because the way you use

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<v Speaker 1>your hands, man, it is awesome. I mean you can

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<v Speaker 1>go from inside the outside, swipe, fake, swipe up and

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<v Speaker 1>under whatever it is. I feel like you have the

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<v Speaker 1>ability to make those moves and not only make those

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<v Speaker 1>moves and progression to the quarterback where get there and

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<v Speaker 1>causing damage also by swiping at the ball, getting the

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<v Speaker 1>ball out. Really, you definitely a verse it out in

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<v Speaker 1>that area, man, for sure. You know that. I think

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<v Speaker 1>that's just piggyback off of them just being an Alabama player. Sure,

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<v Speaker 1>you know day one that's what we that's what we

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<v Speaker 1>started at. You started working to run and hand use

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<v Speaker 1>it at Alabama. So you know that's day one stuff

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<v Speaker 1>for me. And that's something that I grew on, you know,

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<v Speaker 1>over the five years I was at Alabama. So, Man,

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<v Speaker 1>the more I look at your story, I see it

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<v Speaker 1>kind of resembles mine because I was around drop pick here,

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<v Speaker 1>um higher up. I was the guy who they wanted.

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<v Speaker 1>You're the guy who they wanted. And you know it

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<v Speaker 1>was kind of surprise to you, right because you thought

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<v Speaker 1>your agent that you guys are gonna go later, but bam,

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<v Speaker 1>who you are the second pick? Yeah, you know what

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<v Speaker 1>I mean, you know, I really it just was expectations

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<v Speaker 1>for me. She was sitting up the expection expectations for me.

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<v Speaker 1>You know, she wanted me to prepare for the worst.

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<v Speaker 1>So you know, she kind of always knew that I

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<v Speaker 1>go second h you know, somewhere between there, but she

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<v Speaker 1>she wanted to put it in my head, you know,

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<v Speaker 1>just to make sure that you know, I expected at worst.

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<v Speaker 1>So yeah, but throughout the process, man, you know, throughout

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<v Speaker 1>the process, all you hear is, you know, I feel

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<v Speaker 1>like I was slept on. You know that they talked

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<v Speaker 1>about me being a seven D tackle. Uh, you know,

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<v Speaker 1>I was a third fourth rounder. So that's what I believe.

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<v Speaker 1>You know, That's why I told everybody that I felt

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<v Speaker 1>like I was slept on. So you know, but I'm

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<v Speaker 1>here now, So good man, I see Sears repent the

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<v Speaker 1>CEO as a Cathain. Um, you're last year Alabama or

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<v Speaker 1>maybe before then? What did that mean to you and

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<v Speaker 1>what can you bring to this group of guys? Because

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<v Speaker 1>there was a funny thing that I saw. I saw

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<v Speaker 1>that it was kind of buzzing on the internet that

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<v Speaker 1>Ryan Tannehill said that you know, he's not a he

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<v Speaker 1>doesn't have time to mentor some of these young guys. Yeah,

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<v Speaker 1>I feel like at that point, or being a veteran,

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<v Speaker 1>it's your job to go help others so you can

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<v Speaker 1>be more collectively grow and be great as a team.

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<v Speaker 1>So how do you feel like you bring that experience

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<v Speaker 1>for what you learned in Alabama here? You know, in

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<v Speaker 1>my situation, the guy that played Alabama. They already here

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<v Speaker 1>playing and Jonathan Allen, so you know they've been my

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<v Speaker 1>big brothers already. So you know, with me bringing in

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<v Speaker 1>leadership is I don't think I have to do it

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<v Speaker 1>just yet because I'm gonna be looking up to those

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<v Speaker 1>guys as big brothers and hopefully them leading me. So

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<v Speaker 1>but you know, with me being a leader at Alabama,

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<v Speaker 1>you know that just you know, just you know, separate

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<v Speaker 1>me from a lot of guys and you know, and

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<v Speaker 1>add more value to my background that I say. So,

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<v Speaker 1>but you know, I don't think, you know, I got

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<v Speaker 1>to just be a big leader. My role is to

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<v Speaker 1>come in here. I don't know I figure out for

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<v Speaker 1>you before when I came here as a whole bunch

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<v Speaker 1>of great guys, a bunch of you guys who were

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<v Speaker 1>dipping right in Florida, just plucking them, plucking them. But

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<v Speaker 1>now it's all Bama man here at the commander, So

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<v Speaker 1>I hear you. Everybody a little Bama around here. So

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<v Speaker 1>you know, sam'ma Brainer, Bama energy here, Brainer, Bama fly here.

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<v Speaker 1>You know, just I'm gonna feed right in with the guys.

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<v Speaker 1>So all right, man, well I appreciate your time. Thanks

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<v Speaker 1>for talking to a free r for all your commander's

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<v Speaker 1>news and analysis. Be sure to tune into Command Center

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<v Speaker 1>weeknights at five ten pm on NBC Sports Washington. And

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<v Speaker 1>while you're at it, follow at Commanders on all social

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<v Speaker 1>media platforms for the latest on the team. Hail to

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<v Speaker 1>the Commanders.