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Speaker 1: Leave What stood out to you about the Steelers or

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Speaker 1: maybe made the Steelers a better fit this time around,

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Speaker 1: as opposed to when you came out of Alabama and

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Speaker 1: you were talking to teams after the draft. Yeah, I

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Speaker 1: think for me, I think Buffalo UM had more opportunity

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Speaker 1: for me to go there and start UM, and it

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Speaker 1: just seemed like the right fit at the right time. UM.

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Speaker 1: And so I mean I was thankful to play for

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Speaker 1: Buffalo for four years UM and met a great chaplain.

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Speaker 1: I think that's why I went there. I think the

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Speaker 1: Lord intended me to go there, Uh, to meet him. Um.

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Speaker 1: He kind of changed my life around UM. And now

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Speaker 1: four years later, you know, still as opportunities here again.

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Speaker 1: My mom grew up, it's her favorite team, and uh,

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Speaker 1: we've always liked to steal this and I loved the defense.

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Speaker 1: You know, I've been watching them ever since I came out. UM,

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Speaker 1: just how they played together and how they play so well.

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Speaker 1: And so I feel like this is a great fit

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Speaker 1: for me. What stood out to you or maybe got

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Speaker 1: your attention when you were preparing to play the Steelers

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Speaker 1: the last couple of times you've done that, Man, it's

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Speaker 1: it's a hard team. It's hard to to play. I mean,

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Speaker 1: you got great receivers, um, they got a great defense,

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Speaker 1: and then you got the legend Ben He was here

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Speaker 1: for a while and I just met him a couple

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Speaker 1: of weeks ago. Um. Wonderful guy. Um. But this is

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Speaker 1: and there, and they're led by Will known amazing coach too.

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Speaker 1: So it's it was an easy decision for me to

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Speaker 1: come here and and try to be part of this organization.

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Speaker 1: Have you kind of been able to wrap your head

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Speaker 1: around all that's going on besides the Steelers siding you,

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Speaker 1: It's been a pretty active free agency period here in

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Speaker 1: the early going. Steeve's changed a lot already. Yeah, I've

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Speaker 1: I've kind of seen it, you know, And I've been

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Speaker 1: so busy with I just had a football camp last week.

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Speaker 1: I started my foundation a couple weeks before that, just

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Speaker 1: about a house in Arizona. So it's been a jam

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Speaker 1: packed offseason. And so now signing with still isn't seeing

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Speaker 1: everyone they're bringing in is. Things are just moving so

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Speaker 1: fast right now. But like I said, I'm excited to

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Speaker 1: be here in Pittsburgh. One of the guys that's jumping

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Speaker 1: on board with you is Mitch Robinsky. What kind of quarterback.

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Speaker 1: Are they get man? You know mentioned in a too

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Speaker 1: much you know bond Josh Allen Um. But when he did,

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Speaker 1: you know, it's one of those guys we just knew

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Speaker 1: we could trust Um. And he came to work, Uh

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Speaker 1: prepared each and every week on and off the field.

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Speaker 1: Just one of the best tutes. Um to help the

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Speaker 1: builds organization UM and pushed other guys, you know what

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Speaker 1: I mean. I think a lot of people I just

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Speaker 1: saw him as a backup quarterback, but he was also

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Speaker 1: a leader right there with Josh, and he helped our

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Speaker 1: team get to where we got to last year in

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Speaker 1: more ways than one. So I guess one of those

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Speaker 1: ways from what I've read at least, Uh he took

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Speaker 1: that Scout team stuff pretty seriously and giving you guys

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Speaker 1: a look a little some combats after your win over

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Speaker 1: kidsas City that he did a pretty Patrick mahomes Imprussia. No,

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Speaker 1: it's just first of all, a great athlete, and two

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Speaker 1: he took Scott team serious each and every week. It

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Speaker 1: was it was hard to get interceptions on him in practice,

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Speaker 1: UM because he's just he's gonna throw it to the

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Speaker 1: right person, but he's gonna make it fit in you

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Speaker 1: know what I mean. And he does a great job,

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Speaker 1: so pay attention to details so well. And so just

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Speaker 1: to have a guy like that that I saw I

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Speaker 1: got signed here right before I did, you know, I

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Speaker 1: was pretty excited to see him come up here. You

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Speaker 1: started a lot of games in Buffalo opposite one of

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Speaker 1: the best in the business in Trus White. How did

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Speaker 1: that impact your development and how has that affected you

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Speaker 1: becoming the kind of player that you are now? Man tevious.

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Speaker 1: When I first got there, I think, I'm We're about

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Speaker 1: the same age. But I've always seen him as an

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Speaker 1: older brother. You know, he entered the traffic year before me.

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Speaker 1: And just the way he works, um, each and every day,

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Speaker 1: it's amazing. Um. The just the professional that he is,

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Speaker 1: and he's always one of the last people to leave

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Speaker 1: the field. He always wants to be better. Hayeskin caught

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Speaker 1: on in practice in a game like I'm like, yo, bro,

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Speaker 1: like you play corner, just relax, you know, And he's

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Speaker 1: he cares so much about football. UM, Like he's fighting

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Speaker 1: each and every play for everything. And so just to

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Speaker 1: see the way that he worked, UM pushed me to

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Speaker 1: work that same way. UM. But then he just kind

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Speaker 1: of mentored me and just how he sees things and

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Speaker 1: how the defense is and how to watch film, um,

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Speaker 1: which I already knew, but he just took it to

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Speaker 1: an I love for me. So just having a guy

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Speaker 1: like that in the locker room for me made me

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Speaker 1: that much better of a player. Um. And I can

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Speaker 1: never think him enough for that. And You've probably been

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Speaker 1: down this road a few times, but I gotta ask

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Speaker 1: your your backstory is fascinating. Uh. Jim Nage from the

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Speaker 1: Senior Bowl just posted it on social media after you

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Speaker 1: signed with the Steelers. Did he have this right? No offers?

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Speaker 1: In high school you were playing intermural flag football and Alabama.

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Speaker 1: Then you walk on and then you make the team,

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Speaker 1: and then you win a national championship with Making Fitzpatrick,

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Speaker 1: and then you don't get drafted in the first seven

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Speaker 1: rounds of the draft, and then you become a starter

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Speaker 1: for one of the best teams in the NFL. And

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Speaker 1: now you're a free agent prize for the Pittsburgh Steels.

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Speaker 1: I mean that, If that's a script, I'm not sure

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Speaker 1: it's believable. How did you get from there to here? Listen,

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Speaker 1: if you want to direct the movie, you can direct

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Speaker 1: the movie. But it's just just a lot of hard work. Honestly, Um,

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Speaker 1: I think self belief. Um. And then I just love

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Speaker 1: the NFL, honestly. I I've been playing since I was five,

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Speaker 1: and I just couldn't let it go. And my dad

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Speaker 1: told me, when football is over, it's over, so you

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Speaker 1: might as well keep playing until until you know, like

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Speaker 1: you can't play anymore. And so I decided to walk on.

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Speaker 1: And I bust my butt each and every day for

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Speaker 1: Nick Saban and Crimson Tide, and we've gotten here to

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Speaker 1: just share hard work if you stay pretty close to

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Speaker 1: making since the Yeah, that's my guy. That's my guy.

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Speaker 1: We've done Bible studies, We've talked every now and then.

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Speaker 1: He actually called me the other day. I was trying

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Speaker 1: to get me to come here, and he didn't know

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Speaker 1: that I had already decided to come here. He was

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Speaker 1: just calling me like yo, like what are you thinking?

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Speaker 1: Like what's going on? And I said, man, you didn't

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Speaker 1: heard the news, like I'm coming, And I was like

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Speaker 1: and then I remember that he wears thirty nine and

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Speaker 1: I've been wearing thirty nine since college. He copied me

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Speaker 1: because it looks so good in it, So I tol him.

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Speaker 1: You could keep it from now