December 31, 2025 • 52 mins
On the latest NFL Players: Second Acts podcast, Super Bowl champion Bryant McKinnie joins Peanut Tillman and Roman Harper. McKinnie shares how he didn’t even start playing football until high school, his unlikely journey through junior college to the University of Miami, and why he believes the 2001 Hurricanes are the greatest college team of all time. He reflects on being a top 10 Heisman finalist, battling elite pass rushers like Dwight Freeney, and the elation of winning Super Bowl XLVII with the Ravens. Beyond football, Bryant opens up about his thriving second act — from serving as COO of a language translation company, to his three Grammy nominations, producing, and performing on America’s Got Talent. He also discusses his work in mental health advocacy, helping former players transition, and creating spaces for honest conversations through his Cocktails & Conversations events. From tennis lessons with Venus Williams to bringing the “B-Mac experience” wherever he goes, this episode is full of laughs, insight, and inspiration from one of the NFL’s most unique personalities.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Our mentality as seniors about the fourth quarter is we
should be up by twenty one so we can give
you know, the second string, which was people like Sean
Taylor and Kellen Winslow and Frank Gore and O those
guys the opportunity to get in and get the reps,
you know what I mean. And we did that for
every game except two games.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
That's crazy fact that you just said we're putting our
two's in and you said Sean Taylor and Frank Gore,
Like that's.
Speaker 3 (00:23):
That's just how people That's how deep.
Speaker 2 (00:26):
Was I don't I don't think people actually understand that,
like that's.
Speaker 3 (00:30):
The twos and threes were future first round picks. Like,
what up, everybody.
Speaker 2 (00:42):
I'm Peanut Tillman and this is the NFL Player's Second
Act podcast and with me as always as my trustee
co host Roman.
Speaker 3 (00:51):
I like pineapples, Harbor. This is not pineapples, but thank
you for it. It is yellow.
Speaker 4 (00:56):
But I'm really looking forward to our to our next guest,
Number one. I played with him on the video game
back in the day with nca A two A. He's
on my favorite college football team of all time, so
uh and a great NFL player for.
Speaker 3 (01:10):
One of the greatest. So here we go, peanot go ahead.
Speaker 2 (01:12):
Seventh overall pick in the two thousand and two draft,
coming to you from the University of Miami Pro Bowl
left tackle for the Vikings Ravens Uh and the Dolphins
Super Bowl champion with the Ravens. He's a mental health
advocate for the NFL players and the c O of
(01:33):
Let's chat, Ladies and gentlemen, Please welcome to the prod
ron MCKINNI.
Speaker 1 (01:38):
Yeah, yay. You gotta clip for yourself sometimes too.
Speaker 2 (01:44):
That's hold on, let me hear that. Yeah, against ye.
Welcome to the pod.
Speaker 5 (01:54):
Bro.
Speaker 3 (01:55):
I'm glad we got you a nice share that actually fiss.
Speaker 2 (01:57):
So this is probably the first time we've ever had
to move the share because this is a large human
being and we had like a little little prop baby baby.
Speaker 5 (02:08):
My wardrobe or something, that little chair I was sitting there.
Speaker 3 (02:10):
Yeah, we like it.
Speaker 4 (02:12):
We literally I'm just saying you sprawled out, You're like,
you look like this chair fits you way more than
the chair we had previously. My first question to you,
this is completely off the top, and I just thought
about it when I just saw you sit down. What
side shoe you wear because I got pretty big size feet.
Speaker 5 (02:28):
Yeah, dookie.
Speaker 1 (02:32):
Shooting over eighteen eighteen, we need to find big sides.
To go to a website called oddball dot com eyeball
oddball o d d ball dot com and they had
all the sides to go up to like I think
at least like nineteen.
Speaker 2 (02:47):
So when you were younger. I know this because my
roommate in college, you didn't just go onto the like,
hey y'all got these in the twelve, y'all got these
in the fifteen.
Speaker 1 (02:55):
I'm gonna say by the time I turned about because
my side was my age. So when I was about
thirteen fourteen, is I wore thirteen or fourteen? So that's
when I had to start ordering shoes. There was a
place in Atlanta my mom used to order it from.
I can't remember the name, but she had the fine
place to start ordering shoes by the time I was
in high school.
Speaker 2 (03:12):
Yeah, my rumor used to be like, hey, y'all got
anything in the fifteen and y'all got anything just hard
like you didn't have to.
Speaker 3 (03:18):
Get to shoes.
Speaker 5 (03:19):
It's just like what.
Speaker 3 (03:22):
You got really, whatever shoot they have in.
Speaker 2 (03:26):
The store, that's whatever side you're like that's what you got.
Speaker 5 (03:28):
You gotta kind of figure out, Like I guess.
Speaker 3 (03:31):
Your shoe game was. Wow, was it to be that
big and just take.
Speaker 1 (03:35):
My mom like during like Christmas, my birthday, she would
like really like trying to load up on stuff. So
those were the two times a year where I got new,
like new things. I grew a lot. I mean I grew.
I mean clearly my shoe SiZ with my age. Yeah,
I was growing out, growing out, growing everything. So yeah,
but I mean I feel like she did a decent job.
And then when I finally got to the Lea, I
was finding places. I was like searching, so I was
(03:57):
trying to keep up with everybody. So I would you know,
I would you my resources and fine places?
Speaker 3 (04:01):
You know.
Speaker 4 (04:05):
This guy has legendary, so y ain't no trying this
guy's legendary legendary, big sexy. Yes, yes, I want to
know this. How many Hall of Famers are you in?
Speaker 3 (04:17):
Do you even know? Like Hall of Fames? Hall of Fames?
You said that wrong? How many Hall of Fames are
you in? Yes?
Speaker 1 (04:23):
I'm in two, two, well three right now? High school,
University of Miami and then college.
Speaker 4 (04:28):
When you've become a Hall of famer in anything. What
does that mean to you?
Speaker 1 (04:34):
Kind of means a lot because that wasn't what I
I played, just to like be good in my position,
not realizing that it would lead to that. So like
me playing was like I don't want to get yea
at in in the film room, you know, so like
just go ahead and do your job. So when in
college that consisted of like don't give up beside, you
don't get yeat that. Like, so my whole thing was
not getting yelled at embarrassed. So I'm out here like
(04:55):
trying to do my job from that standpoint, and it
just turned out that was actually doing really good. I
was doing probably better than I expected one because I
didn't start playing football until ninth grade because I was
you know, back then you had a size and a
highen age and all that matters.
Speaker 3 (05:09):
Like waiting stuff.
Speaker 1 (05:10):
Yeah, so me, if I'm like twelve, I probably supposed
to playing. People is three years older than me, So
I couldn't play until I got the high school, wh
didn't matter anymore. So and then in high school I
played defensive end, you know, I had to learn offensive line.
And when I got there, I went to JUCO and
learned offensive line there. So I was just playing to
just not be in trouble, Like I don't want to
hear nobody's mouths. Just go out here, do what you
(05:30):
tell me to do.
Speaker 2 (05:31):
And so you like a mean like a killer, like
because if you start that lag, like a blind side
would like.
Speaker 5 (05:41):
That's what I'm saying.
Speaker 1 (05:42):
I was always competitive though, so it's like if I
did something, I wanted to be good at it. Yeah,
even I played tennis now, and the first time I
started playing tennis, I was terrible. I went and got lessons,
didn't tell anybody, and the next year I came back
and they expected me to be yeah, and it was like, wait,
what happened. I'm like, ah, yeah, I was playing My tennis.
Lessons carried over so much that like my team knew.
So even when I went to the Super Bowl with
(06:03):
the Ravens, coach Harball made me bring my tennis equipment
and I had to play on Thursdays. I always played
on Thursdays. After I would eat dinner, I would go play,
take a tennis lesson and weighing on Friday. So he
made me do the same thing super Bowl. We had
to bring my racket and everything, and his assistant at
the time played tennis in high school and I had
to play him. He reported it made an announcement before
we played, and he had to come back to day
(06:23):
the next day and announced that I had to be
his assistant.
Speaker 5 (06:26):
Six thirty six to two. He under estimated me.
Speaker 1 (06:30):
I think because you know, people I feel like when
they just see me, I do walk like real authority
against things and all of a sudden. But it's like
once you get on the court or a feel you
can you turn into an athlete, you know. I think
people just trying to take that for granted mentally, and
then it's too late. While you were playing, it's too
late for you to come in mentally regroup because I'm
attacking you.
Speaker 5 (06:47):
I just never have a game plan, so it was
just too late.
Speaker 3 (06:49):
See you remind me like a Yoda.
Speaker 2 (06:50):
So when I look at everyone, look at everyone looks
at Yoda, and it's like, all this.
Speaker 3 (06:54):
Little old Jedi he got the king. But when he
found when.
Speaker 2 (06:59):
He had to fight or whoever he was doing flips
off the wall being count.
Speaker 3 (07:07):
Yeah, yeah, he had to fight Count, do coup.
Speaker 2 (07:10):
He's like, yeah, all that big b was a tennis game.
Speaker 1 (07:20):
Yeah, I play every Friday. I have ts have the
men's clinic, got playing somewhere. I play every Friday, yeah
for sure. And then I playing the men's clinic on
Wednesdays and sometimes Saurday mornings.
Speaker 3 (07:28):
So how hard? How fast is the ball going? You
ever tracked it?
Speaker 1 (07:31):
No, I haven't got a chance that I want to
because I haven't got a chance to do that. I
want to track like my serve and certain things.
Speaker 3 (07:35):
Yeah, what's your best part of your game?
Speaker 1 (07:39):
My tennis i Q has grown, So I'm gonna say that,
so knowing when I get pulled off the court to
hit higher cross court, they buy me more time to
get back into the court.
Speaker 3 (07:47):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (07:48):
And then so I'm gonna say my tennis i Q
but my forehand is is powerful. And then I've started
learning how to slice, and believe it or not, I
didn't like the net, but I'm now forcing myself to
go up to the net more. But I know when
to go to the net now. So it's a shortball,
you know, hit the short ball and continue to proceed
to the net.
Speaker 4 (08:03):
Hey see, see, bench Sheldon, that's your dad's trying to
get you to do more, trying.
Speaker 5 (08:08):
To get you to go to.
Speaker 4 (08:09):
The net more play more than eighty style tennis. Yeah,
it's what they're talking about.
Speaker 1 (08:13):
It can end the point quicker too, Yes, yeah, So
I don't want to be in too many long rallies
all the time. So I'm gonna try to do things
to get to the net and kind of end the point.
Speaker 4 (08:21):
People think like long rallies are normal, Like the pros
don't even have a lot of long rallies.
Speaker 5 (08:26):
You don't do it.
Speaker 1 (08:27):
Okay, Well, you know Venus is the person if you're
on YouTube. She gave me my first lesson. Yeah, so
that's how I got into tennis.
Speaker 3 (08:35):
But I will play tennis right now. She gave me
my fresh lesson.
Speaker 1 (08:38):
She's very patient. I feel like she should be a
coach when she eventually retires. I feel like she should
be a coach.
Speaker 3 (08:43):
Does she yell at you? He said, you don't want
to know.
Speaker 1 (08:45):
She's patient, very patient, and she had me out there
for a long time. But she's very patient. You can
tell she really loves what she does.
Speaker 3 (08:51):
All right, So let's stay on the theme of getting
yelled at.
Speaker 2 (08:54):
Okay, So, so your sophomore year, you're in high school,
you're playing football, right.
Speaker 3 (09:02):
Something happens.
Speaker 2 (09:03):
I'm sure it's hot, you tired, you sweat, and then
you get into it with your coach.
Speaker 3 (09:09):
Words are exchanged.
Speaker 2 (09:10):
I'm sure he probably yelled at you and you might
have maybe missile assignment or didn't do something right and
you end up not playing football for the rest of
that year. What was said with you and your coach.
Speaker 1 (09:21):
I don't even remember what was that probably blocked it out.
I don't remember what was said. I ended up going
into the band and taking trips with.
Speaker 2 (09:27):
Them because we feel that most of the time when
like we talked about fights and training camp, right, it
was like, oh, they just hot.
Speaker 1 (09:36):
They I don't know, I don't remember what it was.
I don't know if maybe I just practiced something, but
it was just something that was just like, h So you.
Speaker 3 (09:45):
Just decided, you know, I'm just gonna go do the same.
I'm just going.
Speaker 5 (09:49):
The band.
Speaker 1 (09:50):
I went on trips. They was going on trips and
stuff like while you were in school and so on.
I'm gonna join the band.
Speaker 3 (09:54):
So that's why you did it.
Speaker 5 (09:54):
But I also was in the music too.
Speaker 1 (09:56):
I was a message to so like at a young age,
buying my mom had got me like Cassie a piano,
So I was like trying to make beats on air
and then took piano lessons at a young age and
just did things. I was like into music, getting like
CDs or cassette tapes and trying to pick out what
song I felt it would be the next two singles,
like I was already trying to be an or not
realizing what I was doing at a young age, and
(10:17):
I was already and or as a person who kind
of puts together like the project for the artist and
like a pick who the single maybe or that pick
like the songs that will make it on the album,
or also like the collaborations they work with.
Speaker 2 (10:28):
I mean, now, did you know how to play the
bass when he was in the band, because I couldn't
pitch it very easy, like you.
Speaker 3 (10:33):
Just this all day?
Speaker 1 (10:34):
Its drum. Yeah, So it was just nothing like you know,
just the base of the beast that was easy.
Speaker 3 (10:40):
Were you by far the biggest band member?
Speaker 2 (10:43):
Definitely was the biggest customized jersey Jackie everything.
Speaker 5 (10:49):
He had to find some stuff to fit.
Speaker 4 (10:51):
Knowing that you couldn't play football until high school because
of the size.
Speaker 3 (10:55):
Restrictions and everything that you had growing up.
Speaker 4 (10:58):
How would you say that in impacted your football experience.
Speaker 1 (11:04):
I was learning everything for the first time for the
I mean I watched it on TV, but like technically
I was learning everything for the first time. In ninth grade,
I wrestled. My mom put me in wrestling first to
teach discipline, and then I moved on to basketball afterwards
to learn to work with others. That was her thought
process behind it. And then when I finally got the football,
it was just technique and IQ is what I really
(11:27):
had to learn, because like I knew the basis of it,
but now it's like technique wise, like how to I
went from being the defensive end to now playing offensive line.
So for me, it kind of worked on my favorite
because I knew what I would do as a defensive
end to offensive line and so now it's like, Okay,
now I have to kind of stop or you know,
I can already think like they think. So it kind
of helped me out a little bit. And then when
(11:48):
I got the Juco, the guy was a Juco All American,
and so it was like he made me better because
he was tearing me up the first couple week like
she because he was there was his second year is
my first, and I'm moving over. I'm only like two,
like two forty two forty five coming in. He outweighs
me by like twenty pounds. He's like two sixty. I
didn't really lift weights much like that until I got
(12:10):
to college, so I'm still developed. Seventeen when I first
got there, and turned eighteen till that September, so I'm
still developing. And then it just the light bulbs just
went off one day.
Speaker 2 (12:19):
You walk away from the team your sophomore year, and
he can come back the next year and go on
to it your senior year, get a scholarship, you go
to a juco.
Speaker 1 (12:27):
But this is how it happened. So I went to
a small school graduate probably like eighty nine ninety. Some
of the people there was somebody. There was a running
back named Lamara's third event who was really good. He
was behind me. He was a junior. Some Body who
are still on them to this day mailed in the
tape to the University of Iowa and was like, oh,
you gotta look at this kid. And they would all about
Lamar and they seen the tape, they said, who is that?
(12:48):
And they seen me staying there like six six or whatever,
Oh who is this? So then they came to see
him and then they're like, we also want to talk
to him as well. And it was after National Signing Day.
They said, we don't have any more scholarships, but we
have a community a communication with Lackawanna Junior College and Scranton,
which was only two and a half hours away from
me in South Jersey, and they said, we can send
you there and then you'll learn how to play left
(13:09):
tackle and then you'll come to Hioway. So I was like, okay,
just further my education, not really looking at it because
nobody really went to the pros during that period of
time from my area. Somebody did, like in eighty three,
but like it was like ninety seven or so, like
forever moved. I'm gonna just go just continue my education.
And I played football like I like playing football. I
(13:30):
just continue to play football. Didn't have high expectations. I
went and then once again, I don't like to get
yell at, So teach.
Speaker 5 (13:38):
Me what I got to.
Speaker 1 (13:40):
And I'm gonna just focus on that. So I went
there actually my first season and I became a jue
call American after that first year of learning how to
play left tackle. But I told you the guy went
against every day. He was a juke call American. So
it was like, I'm eventually learning how to block this
man every day in practice. It had no choice but
that making me better, you know what I mean. So
he played a big part on developing me in that position.
(14:04):
And then what was his name? His name was Nate Russ.
He ended up getting a scholarship to University of Maryland
for football and baseball, and I felt like he's stuck
over with baseball. So then after that season, Hayden Fry
was the head coach at University I where he retired.
So I had a letter intense. I couldn't talk to nobody.
Nobody could talk to me. But now he retired, everybody
could talk to me. Now I just became a ju
(14:25):
CA All American. So now all these schools can send
letters and now communicate. So now going to my second
year and I kind of finished again as a jue
car All American, and then Miami University. Miami just showed
up one day and I heard like guys talking like, oh,
is the guy from Miami here? A guy Fromimi, but
we don't know he's here to see like, we don't
know he's here because there's other There was a couple
of other guys on my team who went to like
West Virginia Ruckers, and there were good players too, so
(14:47):
we didn't know who he was here for. And then
they called me out of class. Semifouve hours for me.
Speaker 5 (14:51):
So r Keyho.
Speaker 1 (14:54):
Was a guy who came and he was full of energy.
And he's the one who came and talked to me
in the office and ended up taking a visit to
Miami and end up coming to Miami.
Speaker 4 (15:03):
Okay, So first of all, what's it like in scrant
and scran Pa, Because like, but I always.
Speaker 5 (15:09):
Heard like a TV show called The Office or something.
It's like what we all.
Speaker 4 (15:14):
Do about it from sleepy there and in the office.
Speaker 3 (15:19):
This is like what we know about scran Pa.
Speaker 1 (15:22):
It's a lot of hills, it gets cold. It's a
lot of hills like coal mines and things like that
up there.
Speaker 5 (15:30):
I don't know. It's just a small town.
Speaker 3 (15:32):
Yeah, okay, very small town, that's what they said. Yeah,
and tell me this.
Speaker 4 (15:37):
So when you go on your visit, because you've probably
only been the East Coast, that's what it sounds like.
Speaker 3 (15:43):
And then you go down to Miami.
Speaker 1 (15:44):
I came to Miami on the visit. Miami is a
totally different culture where you come from up North and
down here. It's like, first of all, the clubs are
open till five o'clock. I'm like, what, So it's like,
you know, northern things closing too.
Speaker 5 (15:57):
Down here.
Speaker 1 (15:57):
It's like you're taking you on a visit. They have
they want to keep you out to five. I'm like,
then you got to be up the next morning to
walk around camps at nine ams, not to have this
camp for the next day. I didn't even go out
the second night because I was so tired. So the
first night I did hang out with everybody till about
five or six, and then it's like had to be up,
walk across campus, go to dinners and everything. Secondary They're like,
(16:19):
come on, you ready to go out, and I know
they're happy because they got their PRODM to take me on.
And it's like, just keep it. I'm staying there, going
to bed. But I mean, I had a great experience here.
What's funny is I actually had a real good experience
of Arkansas. So it came down to Arkansas in Miami somehow.
But Houston UT was out there. Yeah, And I just
had a great experience there. And then also my officer
coordinated the JUCO he went there too, so I feel
(16:40):
like he was like saying little things to me too.
Speaker 5 (16:42):
But I had a good time Miami.
Speaker 1 (16:43):
I just remember like kind of getting under the weather
from like not sleeping too much and then like the
weather change and things like that.
Speaker 5 (16:51):
But I liked the overall.
Speaker 1 (16:53):
Like my mom started to realize it, like remind me,
like who I went here, and I'm like, oh, they
I want to Miami. So that played a part to
me my decision. And then coach Keijo wasn't let up.
And then my my whole family basically was like are
you crazy? Like you got Arkansas, Like you know what
I mean? Said everybody don't mean I'm crazy, and even
my head coach. And then I'm glad I made the
decision I made, of course, so I ain't up in Miami.
Speaker 3 (17:15):
I think you made the right choice. I've said it.
Speaker 2 (17:19):
DJ Williams has said it, Jonathan Willman said it, Greg
Olson has said it, Shannon Sharp has said it. The
two thousand and one Miami Hurricanes it's probably the greatest
college football team ever as symbol Yeah, what was practice?
Speaker 3 (17:39):
Like what was the locker room?
Speaker 5 (17:41):
Like?
Speaker 2 (17:41):
What was just I'm asking like eight questions in one,
but like what was what was practice?
Speaker 1 (17:46):
Like?
Speaker 3 (17:46):
Going against? It was first round picks on offense? Defense?
Did you realize how good you guys were? Oh, you
guys are just playing.
Speaker 5 (17:54):
I think that. I think I.
Speaker 1 (17:56):
Don't think we realized how good Like looking back, like,
oh we had all these guys on the team. No,
but I feel like everybody thought they were like the
best at their position. And I remember even coming up
to like my senior year, there was like a you
got like a full spread if you were like they
would do like by position, and like the number one
would get like a full spread, and then everybody's like
(18:16):
two through five would get like little boxes. And I
remember the DB's and O line they got the full spread,
and like the linebackers got like a little box.
Speaker 5 (18:23):
And that was like a joke.
Speaker 1 (18:24):
That was a joke, you know with everybody, like y'all
got the little box. But like everybody was so competitive
and felt like, you know, when we went out to
the practice every day that you were going against the best,
you know, each week, I mean every day of practice.
So when you got to a game, it should be
a little easier. I feel like we used the weather
to our advantage too, you know, staying hydrated and going
out here, and we practiced at like, you know, two pm.
(18:44):
We didn't have no indoor facility, you know that people
have now. The only time we came up the field,
it was a lightning storm and were come on the field.
Other than that, it is a rain and we're still
out there. We got to play in all these conditions anyway,
So I think that kind of built character and character
for us too. And I remember, like a lot of
times we said, you know, by the fourth quarter. Our
mentality as seniors was a boy the fourth quarter is
(19:07):
we should be up by twenty one so we can
give you know, the second string, which was people like
Sean Taylor and Kellen Winslow and Frank goreon know, those
guys the opportunity to get in and get some reps,
you know what I mean. And we did that for
every game except two games.
Speaker 2 (19:21):
That's crazy fact that you just said we're putting our
two's in and you said Sean Taylor and Frank Gore,
like that's that's just how That's how was I don't
I don't think people actually understand that, like that's the
twos and threes were future first round picks, like that's.
I remember watching that season. I also in college to
(19:43):
I didn't I didn't have that many first round picks
on my team.
Speaker 3 (19:48):
But you know, they was them behalftime eight.
Speaker 2 (19:53):
So you was, you was a team that got up
at like thirty forty points in the second quarter and
y'all put y'all twos in.
Speaker 3 (20:00):
Yeah, I was. I was sold in the game to
let them try to get a tackle.
Speaker 5 (20:04):
I was.
Speaker 2 (20:04):
I was still out there trying to get out the game,
just like damn, I ain't no telling what they did.
What do you think they would beat us? Oh my god,
they would have been bad.
Speaker 4 (20:15):
Pe know went to ul Lafayette, the University of Louisiana,
thank some respect, you know.
Speaker 3 (20:21):
I mean it has some bathers and Ike Taylor were
out there, but I don't think it was anybody else.
Speaker 4 (20:26):
So you know, yeah, y'all would have beat them by
damn fifty.
Speaker 3 (20:31):
We're going to take a short break and we'll be
back in a minute.
Speaker 4 (20:35):
I know you've heard of this stat but I'd like
to get this on tape because I want to hear
your mindset all right. Brian McKinney is the last offensive
lineman to have ever made the top ten in Heisman
voting twenty twenty two thousand and one is when this happened?
Speaker 3 (20:56):
How do you make? How do when you hear that?
Are you shocked?
Speaker 5 (20:59):
Are you?
Speaker 1 (21:01):
I definitely was surprised. Yeah, just can you imagine? Like
why was you or when.
Speaker 5 (21:07):
They told me?
Speaker 1 (21:08):
They told me after I was voting, because you know,
they only announced like the top five. So like our
media guy had told me, like I guess that Tuesday
was like, hey, you finished in the top saying I
was like what, Like I'm tellinghim what it was like then,
and I'm like, are you seriously? Like yes, people even
gave you first place vote and I was just like
that's crazy, Like I don't know. I just didn't expect
that at all, and I did. I was aware that
(21:31):
Orlando Pace was the person prior to me, so I
watched him a lot. Coach Kill just have me watch
him a lot on film, so I would try to
mimic the things that he see and he was kind
of like, you know, I would say, like somebody like
the rabbit, the person that you kind of Chase, and
he was that for me. So I was like, Okay,
in his career, he only give him one sack, so
I can only give up one or none, like you
(21:51):
know what I mean. So that was always my thing.
It's like, okay to be like him. You can either
give up the one at the most or just none
at all.
Speaker 4 (21:57):
So do you remember having to block somebody in colle
that was like, Okay, this guy is a little bit
of a problem.
Speaker 5 (22:03):
Yes, yes, yes, the wife framing.
Speaker 3 (22:07):
Really he was that what Syracuse right, Syracuse's spinning.
Speaker 5 (22:10):
Yes he was.
Speaker 1 (22:14):
I feel like he introduced the spin to the league
because you know, all of a sudden he got a
leading the right spinning now. But yeah, So the thing
was our junior year, maybe he was injured or something,
cause he played up there in Syracuse.
Speaker 5 (22:24):
I didn't go against him. I maybe he was injured.
I recalled.
Speaker 1 (22:27):
But my senior year it was like a big deal,
Like they posted like these articles. He had like a
like a sack like a Santa Claus sack, but you
could see throw and had all the hammels of the
teams that he sacked before and things like that.
Speaker 5 (22:40):
Just all week long. Clinton Ports was just in my
ear all week long, like he always be like scared.
Speaker 1 (22:45):
Like he just just whenever I had big games, he
always just bothered me or whatever. But we prepared well.
And then also who helped me get through that game
is Mario Christball. He was our assistant GA coach at
the time, his assistant line coach, and he he stayed
with me and we watched film, and I was like,
what is this guy doing? Like is dophensive line making
(23:06):
a mistake? Is he's just as good? Like you know,
it's a combination of the boat. I was really just
sitting here just trying to figure out what it is.
I would watch when he would like to spend. I
would see what he did when he spends. Sometime he
would grab cloth, so I knew, keep your distance, don't
let him get too close into your body, keep him
use your arms and keep him away from you, and
keep moving your feet. A lot of guys when he
would chop hands, it's like for some reason, guys would
(23:26):
stop their feet and then you know he's going to
continue to move and he'd get past you. So it
was like, regardless what happens to your hands, keep your
feet moving with this guy and I just had like
a good game plan against him and it worked, but
I couldn't wait to get fast.
Speaker 5 (23:40):
They wore me out that week.
Speaker 1 (23:42):
You were tire mentally and this is over found. I've
had Jerome McDougal come over the other side because he
had a really good get off. Now him get me
pass versus at the end of practice, just to like
emulate what he's seeing in Dawhight too.
Speaker 3 (23:57):
So I just did know you really were worried about
d wife's.
Speaker 5 (24:00):
Frady, Cuz it's all right.
Speaker 1 (24:01):
So my first year, my breakout game was against Florida
State Jamal Reynolds, who was a great pass rusher as well,
and I was able to, you know, hold him to
new sacks and I was just under the radar. That
was my first like season, nobody was bothering me. But
then it came to like my second year then like
he hasn't never given up a sack.
Speaker 5 (24:19):
It's like, oh gosh, why didn't say that, like I
was doing.
Speaker 3 (24:22):
For the target on your face.
Speaker 5 (24:24):
Yeah, so now it's like a big deal.
Speaker 1 (24:27):
I remember even playing Florida State the following year, my
senior year, and the defense eventually last name was Jackson.
He must have got a good jump on the ball
and it looked like he's gonna get close to the
door seat. I must have just pushed them like by
like the last minute they were losing the game, but
the silide rumpted like ah, and I'm looking like what's
going on, like like what are they cheering for? And
then they started playing yo, yeah, he's going to get you.
(24:49):
I'm like, oh, this is about me because like the
game's over for then, like y'all a loser. But oh
now it's like an individual thing like and that's why
I really had to wake up and that game say,
regardless of like what the score is, you still have
to make sure that you are on because they're trying
to win an individual battle at this point at about
the team now, he's trying to get an individual battle.
So that's what made me really like really like locking
for the rest of the season and just realized like, Okay,
(25:12):
this is bigger than just you know, win or lost
things like he's trying to like be the first one
to get a sack.
Speaker 2 (25:17):
So so being a man of your size and your frame,
do you have a welcome to the NFL moment?
Speaker 5 (25:24):
Yeah?
Speaker 1 (25:25):
And what was that? What was that moment I think
I was. I don't if we was on the road.
We were on the road, and I was it was
against Green Bay and I couldn't.
Speaker 5 (25:36):
Yeah, I was trying to.
Speaker 1 (25:38):
Use my periphew and I went to look and the
balls was snapping. Somebody rand me like flat over ready.
I wasn't ready, And I'm trying to think. I don't
feel like Gilbert Brown might have been a detact on
came somewhere like hit me, like somebody like ran me,
like I went flat backwards, like that was the first time, Like.
Speaker 3 (25:54):
He ain't never hit.
Speaker 1 (25:55):
I'm on the ground, like I barely fought so like
I want a ground, but I'm on my like a
reverse bandkke. Yeah, that was the moment, like this ain't
happening again.
Speaker 2 (26:06):
I think my high school prepared me for college. My
high school with Carvers col of Texas, good football program.
They prepared me for college. When I at the college college,
watching film and doing all, it was somewhat a little easy.
Do you think going to the University of Miami prepared
you for what the NFL was Like?
Speaker 1 (26:28):
I think it did in Minnesota it did to a
certain degree because you had guys that came back here.
Michael Barrow, Jesse Armstead, Edgrid James, Bubba Franks, all those guys,
they came back and they were training to work out
with us. So they would tell us about the physical part.
So you know about the physical part. You knew about
the hours, the amount of time that you would be there.
But the part that I missed that I had to
learn along the way was like far as taking care
(26:50):
of yourself as cold tub, like we did it in Miami,
but when people get in the cold tub, getting your
massages and getting stretched and all those type of things.
I had the learned, Like I think Randy somebody was like,
I'm getting massage. I'm like, y'all get the message. You're
like yeah, but you know when you're young, you're feel
like I don't need a message, but you do need
a massage. So being around and just watching people how
(27:11):
they are pros and Okay, this is what you do,
and they end up being like the last one to
start leaving the locker room because they're taking care of
their body. Because I remember being, you know, a rookie,
and I'm seeing Dave Dixon, he was a guard. He
might have been like thirty and I'm only twenty two
and I'm looking at him on Wednesday, like you still limp.
Speaker 5 (27:26):
People from what's.
Speaker 3 (27:31):
Wednesday?
Speaker 1 (27:34):
But I guess what, I got to be David. And
that first thing I thought about was, Oh, this is
how they felt.
Speaker 3 (27:43):
On a Wednesday. Like it's funny.
Speaker 4 (27:47):
How like you age out, you go from the young
boy in the locker room to the older dude.
Speaker 3 (27:51):
How it really does happen like that? Does it happens
real quick?
Speaker 5 (27:55):
I'm gonna take you.
Speaker 1 (27:55):
Another moment that made me realize I was older too,
is I was in Baltimore. I was in Baltimore and
it was a player. He was a rookie, and he
was like, yeah, I've been watching you since I was ten,
And I'm like, what ten, It's like or fifth grade.
I was in fifth grade and I'm like, dag, I
being for twelve years, so he probably was in fifth grade.
And it's like it's just you don't realize it until
(28:18):
somebody actually says it, and it's like sheesh, Yeah, I
start to feel a little.
Speaker 3 (28:21):
Oh.
Speaker 4 (28:21):
I want to talk to you about two thousand and nine.
That Vikings team was great. You guys had a ton
of Pro bowlers. You Adrian Peterson, I'm pretty sure led
the NFL in rushing that year.
Speaker 3 (28:35):
But tough loss in the NFC Championship game.
Speaker 4 (28:40):
Could you maybe talk to me about how great that
team was leading up to that game and then at
some point get.
Speaker 3 (28:47):
To the interception.
Speaker 4 (28:48):
Of course at the end of the game, what kind
of happened because it was a penalty for twelve minute
on the field like right before it was it was
a little bit of a mayhem right there at the end.
Speaker 5 (28:59):
For some reason that game.
Speaker 1 (29:00):
A lot of things went wrong first in that game,
and that didn't happen all season. That by far was
the best team that I played with as a Viking.
That was the best record I had. That was the
furtherest we ever made it. And a lot of that
is attribute to Brett Farv When he came in there.
Everybody kind of rose. They raised the level of their
(29:20):
game up and their play up because they didn't want
to let him down, and everybody on both sides of
the ball. And that's how you know, like certain people
have that ability to do that. As you can see,
Tom Brady can leave a team and go somewhere else
and people raise the same people's there. It's just now
you add one person that can raise the level up.
I feel like ray Lewis was able to do that
too his foumal year in Baltimore too, giving him, you know,
(29:41):
his farewells that that he wanted adding Brett that year.
Every I feel like nobody went to let him down
and then for him to come and actually be a
cool person, because I feel like the media kind of
painted him a certain way, like maybe a deven things
like that, so people weren't sure how to receive him
until he got in there. He showed his person out
(30:01):
and showed that he's a team player, and he just
made it fun. You know, like there was times where,
you know, coach children, I feel like we were playing
Detroit were trying to take him out of the game.
Brett would you know, Brett would change plays a lot
of times they were work I played in Detroit. Specifically,
(30:22):
they weren't working that day, and he wanted Tavares Jackson
to go in and tavarsay as well. If he's not
coming in, I can't if he's not coming out, I
can't go in, you know, you know, and then there's
a lot of people don't know. It was like an
argument on the sideline between them and Brett didn't come out,
and you know, we had his back and we just
going to do we have to do and we're able
to pull out of wind stiff. But a lot of
(30:42):
people played for him, and I feel like just that's
how it was, and that's how it's going to be
with certain teams, Like I feel like he was able
to bring everybody together and make it more family oriented,
where you had a coach who kind of was called
on a little division amongst the guys because people weren't
sure is somebody going up there reporting stuff to the coach.
(31:02):
And that's why it was like a little division because
people were feeling like things were being told or not
sure he's playing mind games with people. So when Brett came,
all that got canceled out and it was all about
playing for Bratt.
Speaker 4 (31:12):
Yeah, that's how you guys are awesome, Like immediately too that.
Speaker 1 (31:15):
Yeah, because once everybody kind of got the energy and
the vibe from him, and everybody wants to play, you know,
well in front of people. That's why I feel like,
even like for me when I went when I was
in New York's Miami, you had guys like Michael Irvan
and warn staff you don't want to look at scrub
in front of them, so you're gonna play up, you
know what I'm saying. I feel like that's what people
were doing when Brett came onto the team. So to
make it to the NC Championship, that was the furthest
(31:36):
I've ever made it in my career. I think that
was like year like eight for me, eight or nine.
We had like five turnovers in that game. We had
one of like the two or three yard line going
in Like it was so many turnovers in that one
game to only still lose by a field goal, you know,
and over time and overtime, well, over time was different
then too. It was like set of the death back
(31:56):
so we didn't even get the possessions like they got
close so to make a field go and they were
able to win. They changed it right after that season,
so they have that many mistakes and let you know,
to still be in it. Let you know, the team
was a really good team. It just caught a bad
break during that period of time. But in my mind,
I remember we're driving like you know, going this way,
(32:17):
and it's like, yeah, super.
Speaker 5 (32:19):
Bowls in Miami. I can't wait.
Speaker 1 (32:23):
The next thing I know, I'm like, wow, man, I'm
changing somebody.
Speaker 3 (32:29):
I got off defense.
Speaker 5 (32:35):
Every from there like oh gosh.
Speaker 1 (32:36):
And then when they got the ball, I was just
hoping that they didn't, you know, getting field goal range,
but then they hit it.
Speaker 5 (32:41):
It was like sheesh.
Speaker 1 (32:43):
That was a little depressed after that game because it
took too long for me to even get to that point.
But yeah, that was a tough loss.
Speaker 3 (32:50):
Yeah I'm sorry about that. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (32:51):
So this is this show was called the Info Player
Second Acts Podcast, and what we like to do is
try to dive into what the players are former players
doing now in their second act. So tell us and
our viewers and listeners, what you, sir, are doing in
your second my.
Speaker 1 (33:07):
Second act right now. I have a tech company called
that Chat, So I'm the COO.
Speaker 5 (33:12):
So let's chat.
Speaker 1 (33:12):
We do one hundred and four languages with one hundred
different dialects, and we do it based off your device setting.
Because we do websites, we can do in person presentation
like we've done Tony Hawk's podcasts. He had had somebody
who spoke Portuguese and we did it live and translated
back and forth so they could conduct the podcast and
it's in real time. So we even did the NFL
for three years, so you know, you might want to
get us back because I see all in Brazil and everywhere.
Speaker 5 (33:34):
So we did.
Speaker 1 (33:34):
When the NFL had game Pass, we had did the
subtitling for their games for like three years, and then
it changed over to like NFL Plus and then something else.
Now I don't know what is now. So comcasts. I
didn't accelerate a program for comcasts. Our company did, and
they kind of liked our product and they became a shareholder,
and they're like, we're live on like Exfinity, and then
we're looking to get like what other companies are on
(33:55):
the Comcast, like WWE. We learned about the deep fake
with WWE because we can do that in differentlanguages, Like
they want to go to different countries and have their
wrestler speaking their language, so we know how to do
the deep fake with the language and change the language
for them and everything. So Dad, PGA, Golf, like those
are different companies we're trying to work with. Now that's
under Comcast. We're on like over like six hundred different
(34:15):
car dealerships right now. Bojangles McDonald's, Bojangles, the CEO Bojangles
is actually from univers Miami, so that was I was
able to get us in the door with him. He
was the former CEO of McDonald's but he left and
went to become CEO Bojangles.
Speaker 5 (34:30):
And I would say the NFL.
Speaker 1 (34:32):
Being an NFL has its its perks, and you're able
to kind of get a network of people, so when
you retire, you're able to be able to do business
with some of these people who you probably wouldn't be
able to touch prior, you know what I'm saying. So that
tapped me out a lot too. It's just having that
network and then being able to reach out to people
and doing presentations for your product and they understand it
(34:53):
and they like it and they want to, you know,
bring you on board. So let's shut his own pretty well.
Speaker 6 (34:59):
I want also talk about what you're doing with other
NFL players about helping them with their transition from playing
and then getting into or finding there identity in their
second action.
Speaker 1 (35:10):
So oh, I got into the mental health so my
be major to have the major foundation, right, So we
specialized in healthy kids, healthy living, single parent homes, mental health,
and now I'm about to add on financial literacy. That's
because a lot of kids are being younger and parents
need to be educated with the NIL deals and just
different things like that. But right now I'm very focused
on the mental health part because when I retired, there
(35:30):
was too other guys who were tired around the same
time as me, and they were having breakdowns as far
as like you know, getting arrested and baker acting. I
had to go to a sac wark for one person,
and they felt more comfortable talking to me than their
their family. So in the midst of that, I had
to be kind of the person who kind of navigates,
you know, between the family, the player and even with
(35:50):
the league in the NFLPA, how can we get them help.
I knew they were sending guys away for like thirty days,
like somewhere in like Detroit and somewhere like Northern Florida,
like different places for thirty days for treatment, and I
was following up and making sure, and I was like,
I need to just add this to my my mission statement.
So I did, and then I started doing events called
cocktails and conversations, and I would have different people from actress.
(36:14):
I had Lisa Ray last year, I had Tommy Harris.
I've had Ray Rice, I've had Sean Tea, The Finished Trainer.
I've had therapists, whether it's life coaches, therapists, all the
different type of people all be speak on my panel
and we just have like a fireside chat where we
all just discuss things and open to the audience as
well to ask questions and just make those uncomfortable conversations
(36:35):
more comfortable. And people leave there feeling good about themselves.
But then they also realize they're not the only ones
who go through things. And then a lot of people
are able to share the stories of what they went
through how they were able to get through it, and
it inspires other people in the audience because I've had
friends after those, you know, reach out to me and say,
I'm so glad you had this because I was going
through this and the other and I'm looking at them
like I would have never knew, you know what I'm saying,
because you know, a lot of people know how to
(36:56):
dress up and put a smile on their face and
go out like nothing's wrong, but they're actually feeling alone
this side or a lot of people they're going through
something like hard time, like they're the only one that's
going through it or went through and when they hear
other stories, they're like, oh, I can't get through this,
you know.
Speaker 5 (37:08):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (37:09):
Well I always said that's the one thing I probably
miss about the locker room. I don't miss the tackles
or anything else, but it's like the feeling that you're
never alone, Like, no matter what you're going through, you
can usually bring it up and somebody's like, yeah, dog
me too.
Speaker 5 (37:24):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (37:25):
And how truly vulnerability equal strength inside of a locker room.
Speaker 5 (37:29):
It does.
Speaker 1 (37:30):
And another thing that I was a part of was
the NFL Players Choir. We had did some stuff. We
were not on American Talent.
Speaker 3 (37:38):
So I wrote that down in my notes. You were
on America.
Speaker 5 (37:41):
I want to get to that.
Speaker 1 (37:42):
Yes, right, so we did that. But then so that's
that's that's a group chat in itself. That's a group
chat in itself. But then with the Ravens, like a
lot of us that played on the Super Bowl team,
we're all in the group chat as well. Yes, and
has lost a teammate two years in a row. Now
you have are Jones who just passed here before that
(38:06):
with Jacobe Jones, who's all in our group chat, you know.
So it's like but we're all able to be there
for one another. I feel like the Ravens do a
great job of reaching out and making sure that you know,
we had a Zoom meeting for anybody who needs to
have anybody you know to talk to during those times
and things like that. I feel like they've done a
great job, you know, in both situations. And then University
of Miami we have a group chat as well where
we all all are in there and we're all discussing
(38:28):
whether it's the game or just what people have going on.
So we need one for the Vikings because we don't
have one for them. But those two, those three situations,
I'm am in group chats and I got the guys
really like it and appreciate it because they can go
in there and discuss things that they need to discuss.
Speaker 4 (38:42):
Would you say that's what helps keep you I think
with your mental health because you got a lot of
things going on.
Speaker 3 (38:48):
Yeah, you continue to stay busy.
Speaker 1 (38:49):
Working out helps me too. Working out is a big
part too. So the more I got into this is
like working out you just learned to gives off the
good endorphins and then your good health. The plays to
be part on how you feel mentally too. So I
just started educating myself on a lot of things to
make you feel good far as your mental and working
out is a big part of it. And I feel like,
(39:10):
you know, when you play a lot of guys or
constantly you have to work out, but we retire, that's
up totally up to.
Speaker 5 (39:15):
You now, just you know what I mean, And a
lot of guys kind of get away from I.
Speaker 1 (39:19):
Look, I had got a big, bigger at one point
because I was tired of waging in every Friday.
Speaker 5 (39:23):
I was like, I ain't know this no more.
Speaker 1 (39:26):
Until the time my shoe became a job, I said, ses,
so I had to start. I get back working out
and everything. But yeah, but having those people there and
having accountability with other people and having work out partnership
different things like that kind of helps you out a lot.
And actually, Ray Rice and I just went to Minnesota
last Monday and we spoke to the Vikings. They brought
myself and my team up the year before as well,
(39:48):
and we speak to the guys on mental health and
we talked about like what we would have done different
had we known what we knew now. We talked about
how to handle success family and outside pressure, We talked
about life after the game, just talk about a lot
of different things. So I just got a phone call
today because they hit me and they say, we want
to bring y'all back again next year, but this time
(40:09):
we also want you all to talk to the staff,
so that we're adding that part on now. So now
it's just the players the past two years, but nex
year's gonna be players have one meeting and then we
have a separate meeting and we discuss things with the staff,
and I have my therapist, doctor Tasha there with me
as well.
Speaker 4 (40:22):
That's be good because they can actually learn how to
maybe help the players out as well, because a lot
of times that's a big.
Speaker 1 (40:27):
And it's really about what the staff is really by
making the players feel comfortable and being able to trust you,
because that's that's the problem. A lot of players feel like, well,
if I go to them, they're going to use it
against me later. If you feel like that, you're not
going to trust I'm gon want to open up.
Speaker 3 (40:41):
Not at all, not at all? Can you? That's my
next question?
Speaker 2 (40:50):
So you got dominated? So check you got dominated for
three Grammys.
Speaker 5 (41:00):
That big project that I did, not for me.
Speaker 2 (41:04):
I'm saying you got nominated for three years, So you
got nominated for three Gramms. It's like, that's big, that's
not that's not a small cool, it's super cool.
Speaker 3 (41:13):
You got all these Hall of Fames.
Speaker 5 (41:14):
Tell you I'm competitive, so.
Speaker 1 (41:17):
Right, And then the music, because you know the time,
I feel like when it came to athletes and music,
like I just wasting the money the time that for
a while. Yeah right, I'm like, I actually I told
you the piano lessons.
Speaker 5 (41:28):
I was in the music. Yeah, I was a music person.
Speaker 1 (41:31):
So I'm like, so it's like, I really want to
kind of get in here and really like put out
a good project. I didn't know it was going to
get nominated for three Grammys, but I just want to
put together a good body work to show like I
do have an ear for this, like just absolutely trying
to just throw money behind somebody.
Speaker 5 (41:49):
I have a good ear for this.
Speaker 3 (41:50):
So is it?
Speaker 2 (41:52):
I'm I bring the certificates and stuff. So no, No,
that's dope?
Speaker 3 (41:56):
Is it?
Speaker 2 (41:56):
Do you sing? Do you find the talent? Do you
pick up the beat yourself? Do you do you mix it?
Speaker 3 (42:01):
Do you.
Speaker 1 (42:03):
Being a cosective producers? You you are the arrangers? So
you can arrange how to how the song is produced,
as far as like finding the producer, arranging the order,
like where the the whole and everything ll be in
the bridge and everything like that. Like you're just arranging,
So yeah, I'm not playing instruments. I'm just arranging everything
(42:25):
and how the album is like play like what song
go hereould what song should be number one? Like all
that's a part of arrangement.
Speaker 3 (42:32):
I just did THATSCN and terior designer for music.
Speaker 1 (42:35):
Basically, it's just organizing and moving stuff like that.
Speaker 3 (42:39):
That was a good one, and we'll be right back.
Speaker 4 (42:43):
All right now, now be this is something that little
maybe a little bit off topic, but it's I got
to give you your flowers because the one thing I've
heard about you, and I've never been able to hang
around you, is that the dudes got sauce. The dudes
got sauce, all right, So how in the world does
Brian McKinney able to go out in the nightclub and
(43:07):
have Serena Williams, Venus, Williams, Trina and about fifteen other
in about fifteen others and big B right there with
a great smile, with the same demeanion, and it's just
all love, and they tell.
Speaker 1 (43:27):
Me it's about making people feel comfortable. Right, So once
you bring out that barrier of okay, they're now comfortable
around you, they trust you, so now they can bring
their guard down and now they're going to actually enjoy themselves,
you know what I mean. But if they have to
keep looking at they don't trust the people that may
be with you or things like that, then it's kind
of like a little stand office. But once they you
get them an environment of they feel safe, then the
(43:48):
guards come down and you have a good time, and
now they want to experience that again.
Speaker 5 (43:51):
So I call it the b back experience. So that.
Speaker 2 (43:56):
To the flip side of the lip side of that.
When did you know you had that? Because you are
a large black high school?
Speaker 3 (44:05):
So did you was it was?
Speaker 5 (44:07):
It?
Speaker 3 (44:07):
Was it something that Okay, I'm a larger black man,
do I.
Speaker 5 (44:12):
Fight a slim in high school? So igh school?
Speaker 1 (44:17):
So my house was the house everybody went to because
like parents can get home to like six thirty, so
you know, you get out school like three, so everybody
come over to my house. I was raised the only child,
so I knew how to entertain everybody. Everybody come to
my house after school, like just be going by sixtteen.
So my house was kind of like the social party house.
Speaker 2 (44:35):
I just love the fact that when you talk, you
don't even get it out and you just started laughing,
having flashback.
Speaker 1 (44:42):
So just from high school and then just kind of
just carried over to like college, just being social and
just want everybody to have a good time. I couldn't
have a good time until I've seen everybody was having
a good time, and then like all right now I
got fun just aways like just kind of looking out
for people and just make sure we had a good time.
I always make sure we safe. So even in Minnesota,
they'll take you like the party buses. We'll go out
(45:02):
out of Hey, we wanna get a party bus. We're
gonna all ride together, and we're gonna ride back together,
you know what I mean. So just to make sure
nobody to drive, drinker, drive anything. And I was always
with that on transportation. I was even glad when Uber
came out, so you can start uber and but yeah,
so I always make sure everybody was kind of like.
Speaker 3 (45:16):
Good, yeah, yeah, I like that.
Speaker 4 (45:18):
I've heard from four different people about I did not
They didn't all tell me.
Speaker 3 (45:22):
It was called the Bmax experience. But it was all
the same.
Speaker 1 (45:26):
The rides, Oh yeah, the.
Speaker 4 (45:28):
Amount of people, the togetherness, no animosity of ROTTERI.
Speaker 5 (45:33):
Say, everybody got along.
Speaker 1 (45:35):
I don't know how he was able to just put
some good energy together and everybody's with the comic goal.
We're gonna go out have a good time.
Speaker 4 (45:40):
This dude had all of them, everybody together. Anyways, I
just want to give you a flowers. I appreciate it
because you did your thing.
Speaker 5 (45:48):
I appreciate it.
Speaker 2 (45:49):
Mount Rushmore, you get four picks Mount Rushmore of greatness.
You can pick four people who have helped you become
the person you are today.
Speaker 5 (45:59):
Sweet, not not so not definitely, just people in general.
Speaker 3 (46:01):
Just people in general.
Speaker 1 (46:02):
Oh, my grandma played a big part. I'm gonna say
my grandma because she liked me playing basketball more right,
So when I told her I'm going out for football,
she was like, Oh, you're not gonna like it. I'm
gonna stay with basketball. I like you playing basketball better
anyway than that. And that one thing is what push
me to keep going. Really, even when I went out
to play football and I have my days like I
(46:23):
really want to do this, I always heard her say, yeah,
you're not gonna like it. You're gonna big basketball like up,
get up. You know you're going back. So you have
you know, football something. You just have those moments where
you just really question, like is this what I want
to do?
Speaker 3 (46:34):
That's crazy?
Speaker 1 (46:34):
Every step of the way, that one thing I remember
and I held on to it so and I remind
her every time. So when I got to Juco, I
was like, Grandma, remember you said? All the way to
like Miami Draft Day. She was there with me on
Draft Day and I looked at her like, Grandma, remember
you said? And then down to when I want my
Super Bowl? She was she found me first out of
(46:56):
everybody in the family. She ran and found me first,
before my mom and dad, everybody found me. And I said, Grandma,
you remember you said? And then when it came down
to the College Football Hall of Fames even to I
just told her this week, I remember just turned ninety
in September.
Speaker 3 (47:09):
She's still.
Speaker 5 (47:11):
She.
Speaker 1 (47:12):
I talked to her yesterday and I said, yes, I'm
going to ring on this year. She said, I hope
you can come on TV because she don't like to
fly anymore. I said, we'll send a video or whatever,
and she was like okay, I said, but remember how
this all started, so just even up too yesterday, I
just had this whole conversation with her. So she's definitely
the top one up there that because she was the
(47:33):
why I kept going, you know, like I don't want
to make her right so her, I'm gonna say my
dad played a big part, but I'm saying my mom. Actually,
I feel like she kind of sacrificed more as like
she didn't get it, like because I didn't play, you know,
I played late. So like she would ask me every
week like are you starting again this week? I'm like, yeah,
(47:53):
you must be pretty good.
Speaker 3 (47:54):
Like every week she would ask me, not if you quit.
Speaker 1 (47:59):
Yet, but starting Yeah, I'm starting again, okay, And that
one time she like, you must be doing pretty good,
like yeah, So I don't think it registered her to
my senior year.
Speaker 5 (48:09):
Like something actually pretty good.
Speaker 3 (48:12):
She never asked.
Speaker 5 (48:13):
She to keep asking was I was starting week?
Speaker 1 (48:17):
Until like going into my senior year, and I feel
like it started becoming more like in the newspapers and
things like that more and she started being able to
see because she was, you know, in Jersey, so I
guess she didn't really know what was being said. Here,
but then you know, we start making like you know,
like the news more and she was like, oh okay,
so just her for not knowing anything. And then I
(48:37):
don't know who the fourth person would be. Oh, one
of my coaches coach at Junior college, coach Al McElroy.
He was my old line coach. He was one who
taught me how to play left tackle and by me
coming into to that juco Lakawana, he would take his
time and I would go home after school and I
(48:58):
would do my homework and he would me up a
seven o'clock and I would do my own personal weight
training with him, like.
Speaker 5 (49:03):
So everybody will like right after school.
Speaker 1 (49:05):
They would let me go home and he would pick
me up and I would go to his house and
we would lift weights, like really like learn how to
lift weights because I didn't have like a weight program
in high school. So it's like we're gonna go down
here in the old school bench and we're.
Speaker 3 (49:17):
Gonna get swollen.
Speaker 5 (49:18):
Yeah, yeah, and that's what that's what.
Speaker 3 (49:22):
Getting swollen.
Speaker 4 (49:23):
I just wanted to know the best feece of advice
that your old line and juco coach maybe taught you
that's really stuck with you.
Speaker 5 (49:31):
He had the same called movie your Feast, you can't
get beat.
Speaker 1 (49:33):
So regardless of what's going on with your hands, you know,
sometimes people slap your hands, and I don't know why
guys do it. When they get their hands slap, sometimes
like their feet stops. But like keep your feet moving,
your body presents still, you know, make up to you
can just replace your hands eventually. But some reason, guys
when they get their hands knocked down, it's like their
whole body just stops.
Speaker 5 (49:50):
I don't know, but me hearing.
Speaker 1 (49:53):
That and always remember and that's why I told you
with Dwight Freeney, like regardless of going keep your feet moving,
feet stay, stay in front of him, like you know
what I mean. So that was a big piece that
I kind of carried on with me. I had to
face the white going into our Super Bowl run. We
laughed at each other like it's like it's year twelve.
Speaker 3 (50:08):
Here we go again.
Speaker 5 (50:10):
Year twel can be the same year.
Speaker 1 (50:11):
So like year twelve for both of us, first round
of the playoffs, the coats where you're at Baltimore, and
it's just like we just looked at the journey like
laugh like.
Speaker 5 (50:18):
Here we go again.
Speaker 2 (50:20):
Is yeah, running backs receivers dbs. They get all the awards, right,
So now they have an NFL Protector of the Year
award like this question, what are your thoughts on that.
Speaker 1 (50:34):
I'm glad they have it because it kind of gives,
you know, the old line some shine because you know,
the only time you zooming the old line is they
jump off side, got a holding penalty.
Speaker 5 (50:42):
Like it was him.
Speaker 1 (50:44):
Dang, that's the only time you show us. So I'm
glad there's something out there. I'm glad they're getting great
and stuff now too. I feel like we didn't have
greater So when it came time for like Pro Bowls
and stuff, it was hard to pick old lineman because
it was like.
Speaker 3 (50:55):
You went off name.
Speaker 1 (50:56):
Yeah, some guys well miss half the sisons because you
had a good name. So it was like y'all worked hard.
It's like he's going to act to make it just
because his name and everybody's just used him making it.
So I'm glad they have those things now to kind
of give those guys a little more incentive. And it
just gives you something to kind of like rate you know,
the players how they're playing that season.
Speaker 5 (51:16):
So I appreciate it.
Speaker 2 (51:18):
And if you could design it because you look like
a creative. How would you just how would you design
the trophy?
Speaker 1 (51:23):
I want to make some big hands that are like
blocking or something like that, you know what I mean,
just like some past pro hands or something.
Speaker 3 (51:29):
Man, we appreciate you coming on the pot.
Speaker 5 (51:30):
Appreciate you ever having me.
Speaker 3 (51:31):
I appreciate it. Do you think we got the experience?
I want the real experience, the real experience.
Speaker 4 (51:42):
Okay, we're gonna get out of here on that way
because I don't want to hear anybody else.
Speaker 3 (51:47):
And I'm glad my wife doesn't watch this.
Speaker 4 (51:48):
All right, So wherever you pick up your podcast at
with this Apple podcast, iHeartRadio app make sure you give
us a follow, like subscribe, leave a couple of comments.
We always love to respond. We love putting Thomas to
work like that. And you can also check us out
on the NFL pages YouTube channel Peanut getting us out
of here.
Speaker 3 (52:06):
Man, I'm Peanut.
Speaker 2 (52:08):
That's my guy Roman and that's Brian and this is
the NFL Player's second X podcast.
Speaker 3 (52:14):
We out
Our mentality as seniors about the fourth quarter is we
should be up by twenty one so we can give
you know, the second string, which was people like Sean
Taylor and Kellen Winslow and Frank Gore and O those
guys the opportunity to get in and get the reps,
you know what I mean. And we did that for
every game except two games.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
That's crazy fact that you just said we're putting our
two's in and you said Sean Taylor and Frank Gore,
Like that's.
Speaker 3 (00:23):
That's just how people That's how deep.
Speaker 2 (00:26):
Was I don't I don't think people actually understand that,
like that's.
Speaker 3 (00:30):
The twos and threes were future first round picks. Like,
what up, everybody.
Speaker 2 (00:42):
I'm Peanut Tillman and this is the NFL Player's Second
Act podcast and with me as always as my trustee
co host Roman.
Speaker 3 (00:51):
I like pineapples, Harbor. This is not pineapples, but thank
you for it. It is yellow.
Speaker 4 (00:56):
But I'm really looking forward to our to our next guest,
Number one. I played with him on the video game
back in the day with nca A two A. He's
on my favorite college football team of all time, so
uh and a great NFL player for.
Speaker 3 (01:10):
One of the greatest. So here we go, peanot go ahead.
Speaker 2 (01:12):
Seventh overall pick in the two thousand and two draft,
coming to you from the University of Miami Pro Bowl
left tackle for the Vikings Ravens Uh and the Dolphins
Super Bowl champion with the Ravens. He's a mental health
advocate for the NFL players and the c O of
(01:33):
Let's chat, Ladies and gentlemen, Please welcome to the prod
ron MCKINNI.
Speaker 1 (01:38):
Yeah, yay. You gotta clip for yourself sometimes too.
Speaker 2 (01:44):
That's hold on, let me hear that. Yeah, against ye.
Welcome to the pod.
Speaker 5 (01:54):
Bro.
Speaker 3 (01:55):
I'm glad we got you a nice share that actually fiss.
Speaker 2 (01:57):
So this is probably the first time we've ever had
to move the share because this is a large human
being and we had like a little little prop baby baby.
Speaker 5 (02:08):
My wardrobe or something, that little chair I was sitting there.
Speaker 3 (02:10):
Yeah, we like it.
Speaker 4 (02:12):
We literally I'm just saying you sprawled out, You're like,
you look like this chair fits you way more than
the chair we had previously. My first question to you,
this is completely off the top, and I just thought
about it when I just saw you sit down. What
side shoe you wear because I got pretty big size feet.
Speaker 5 (02:28):
Yeah, dookie.
Speaker 1 (02:32):
Shooting over eighteen eighteen, we need to find big sides.
To go to a website called oddball dot com eyeball
oddball o d d ball dot com and they had
all the sides to go up to like I think
at least like nineteen.
Speaker 2 (02:47):
So when you were younger. I know this because my
roommate in college, you didn't just go onto the like,
hey y'all got these in the twelve, y'all got these
in the fifteen.
Speaker 1 (02:55):
I'm gonna say by the time I turned about because
my side was my age. So when I was about
thirteen fourteen, is I wore thirteen or fourteen? So that's
when I had to start ordering shoes. There was a
place in Atlanta my mom used to order it from.
I can't remember the name, but she had the fine
place to start ordering shoes by the time I was
in high school.
Speaker 2 (03:12):
Yeah, my rumor used to be like, hey, y'all got
anything in the fifteen and y'all got anything just hard
like you didn't have to.
Speaker 3 (03:18):
Get to shoes.
Speaker 5 (03:19):
It's just like what.
Speaker 3 (03:22):
You got really, whatever shoot they have in.
Speaker 2 (03:26):
The store, that's whatever side you're like that's what you got.
Speaker 5 (03:28):
You gotta kind of figure out, Like I guess.
Speaker 3 (03:31):
Your shoe game was. Wow, was it to be that
big and just take.
Speaker 1 (03:35):
My mom like during like Christmas, my birthday, she would
like really like trying to load up on stuff. So
those were the two times a year where I got new,
like new things. I grew a lot. I mean I grew.
I mean clearly my shoe SiZ with my age. Yeah,
I was growing out, growing out, growing everything. So yeah,
but I mean I feel like she did a decent job.
And then when I finally got to the Lea, I
was finding places. I was like searching, so I was
(03:57):
trying to keep up with everybody. So I would you know,
I would you my resources and fine places?
Speaker 3 (04:01):
You know.
Speaker 4 (04:05):
This guy has legendary, so y ain't no trying this
guy's legendary legendary, big sexy. Yes, yes, I want to
know this. How many Hall of Famers are you in?
Speaker 3 (04:17):
Do you even know? Like Hall of Fames? Hall of Fames?
You said that wrong? How many Hall of Fames are
you in? Yes?
Speaker 1 (04:23):
I'm in two, two, well three right now? High school,
University of Miami and then college.
Speaker 4 (04:28):
When you've become a Hall of famer in anything. What
does that mean to you?
Speaker 1 (04:34):
Kind of means a lot because that wasn't what I
I played, just to like be good in my position,
not realizing that it would lead to that. So like
me playing was like I don't want to get yea
at in in the film room, you know, so like
just go ahead and do your job. So when in
college that consisted of like don't give up beside, you
don't get yeat that. Like, so my whole thing was
not getting yelled at embarrassed. So I'm out here like
(04:55):
trying to do my job from that standpoint, and it
just turned out that was actually doing really good. I
was doing probably better than I expected one because I
didn't start playing football until ninth grade because I was
you know, back then you had a size and a
highen age and all that matters.
Speaker 3 (05:09):
Like waiting stuff.
Speaker 1 (05:10):
Yeah, so me, if I'm like twelve, I probably supposed
to playing. People is three years older than me, So
I couldn't play until I got the high school, wh
didn't matter anymore. So and then in high school I
played defensive end, you know, I had to learn offensive line.
And when I got there, I went to JUCO and
learned offensive line there. So I was just playing to
just not be in trouble, Like I don't want to
hear nobody's mouths. Just go out here, do what you
(05:30):
tell me to do.
Speaker 2 (05:31):
And so you like a mean like a killer, like
because if you start that lag, like a blind side
would like.
Speaker 5 (05:41):
That's what I'm saying.
Speaker 1 (05:42):
I was always competitive though, so it's like if I
did something, I wanted to be good at it. Yeah,
even I played tennis now, and the first time I
started playing tennis, I was terrible. I went and got lessons,
didn't tell anybody, and the next year I came back
and they expected me to be yeah, and it was like, wait,
what happened. I'm like, ah, yeah, I was playing My tennis.
Lessons carried over so much that like my team knew.
So even when I went to the Super Bowl with
(06:03):
the Ravens, coach Harball made me bring my tennis equipment
and I had to play on Thursdays. I always played
on Thursdays. After I would eat dinner, I would go play,
take a tennis lesson and weighing on Friday. So he
made me do the same thing super Bowl. We had
to bring my racket and everything, and his assistant at
the time played tennis in high school and I had
to play him. He reported it made an announcement before
we played, and he had to come back to day
(06:23):
the next day and announced that I had to be
his assistant.
Speaker 5 (06:26):
Six thirty six to two. He under estimated me.
Speaker 1 (06:30):
I think because you know, people I feel like when
they just see me, I do walk like real authority
against things and all of a sudden. But it's like
once you get on the court or a feel you
can you turn into an athlete, you know. I think
people just trying to take that for granted mentally, and
then it's too late. While you were playing, it's too
late for you to come in mentally regroup because I'm
attacking you.
Speaker 5 (06:47):
I just never have a game plan, so it was
just too late.
Speaker 3 (06:49):
See you remind me like a Yoda.
Speaker 2 (06:50):
So when I look at everyone, look at everyone looks
at Yoda, and it's like, all this.
Speaker 3 (06:54):
Little old Jedi he got the king. But when he
found when.
Speaker 2 (06:59):
He had to fight or whoever he was doing flips
off the wall being count.
Speaker 3 (07:07):
Yeah, yeah, he had to fight Count, do coup.
Speaker 2 (07:10):
He's like, yeah, all that big b was a tennis game.
Speaker 1 (07:20):
Yeah, I play every Friday. I have ts have the
men's clinic, got playing somewhere. I play every Friday, yeah
for sure. And then I playing the men's clinic on
Wednesdays and sometimes Saurday mornings.
Speaker 3 (07:28):
So how hard? How fast is the ball going? You
ever tracked it?
Speaker 1 (07:31):
No, I haven't got a chance that I want to
because I haven't got a chance to do that. I
want to track like my serve and certain things.
Speaker 3 (07:35):
Yeah, what's your best part of your game?
Speaker 1 (07:39):
My tennis i Q has grown, So I'm gonna say that,
so knowing when I get pulled off the court to
hit higher cross court, they buy me more time to
get back into the court.
Speaker 3 (07:47):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (07:48):
And then so I'm gonna say my tennis i Q
but my forehand is is powerful. And then I've started
learning how to slice, and believe it or not, I
didn't like the net, but I'm now forcing myself to
go up to the net more. But I know when
to go to the net now. So it's a shortball,
you know, hit the short ball and continue to proceed
to the net.
Speaker 4 (08:03):
Hey see, see, bench Sheldon, that's your dad's trying to
get you to do more, trying.
Speaker 5 (08:08):
To get you to go to.
Speaker 4 (08:09):
The net more play more than eighty style tennis. Yeah,
it's what they're talking about.
Speaker 1 (08:13):
It can end the point quicker too, Yes, yeah, So
I don't want to be in too many long rallies
all the time. So I'm gonna try to do things
to get to the net and kind of end the point.
Speaker 4 (08:21):
People think like long rallies are normal, Like the pros
don't even have a lot of long rallies.
Speaker 5 (08:26):
You don't do it.
Speaker 1 (08:27):
Okay, Well, you know Venus is the person if you're
on YouTube. She gave me my first lesson. Yeah, so
that's how I got into tennis.
Speaker 3 (08:35):
But I will play tennis right now. She gave me
my fresh lesson.
Speaker 1 (08:38):
She's very patient. I feel like she should be a
coach when she eventually retires. I feel like she should
be a coach.
Speaker 3 (08:43):
Does she yell at you? He said, you don't want
to know.
Speaker 1 (08:45):
She's patient, very patient, and she had me out there
for a long time. But she's very patient. You can
tell she really loves what she does.
Speaker 3 (08:51):
All right, So let's stay on the theme of getting
yelled at.
Speaker 2 (08:54):
Okay, So, so your sophomore year, you're in high school,
you're playing football, right.
Speaker 3 (09:02):
Something happens.
Speaker 2 (09:03):
I'm sure it's hot, you tired, you sweat, and then
you get into it with your coach.
Speaker 3 (09:09):
Words are exchanged.
Speaker 2 (09:10):
I'm sure he probably yelled at you and you might
have maybe missile assignment or didn't do something right and
you end up not playing football for the rest of
that year. What was said with you and your coach.
Speaker 1 (09:21):
I don't even remember what was that probably blocked it out.
I don't remember what was said. I ended up going
into the band and taking trips with.
Speaker 2 (09:27):
Them because we feel that most of the time when
like we talked about fights and training camp, right, it
was like, oh, they just hot.
Speaker 1 (09:36):
They I don't know, I don't remember what it was.
I don't know if maybe I just practiced something, but
it was just something that was just like, h So you.
Speaker 3 (09:45):
Just decided, you know, I'm just gonna go do the same.
I'm just going.
Speaker 5 (09:49):
The band.
Speaker 1 (09:50):
I went on trips. They was going on trips and
stuff like while you were in school and so on.
I'm gonna join the band.
Speaker 3 (09:54):
So that's why you did it.
Speaker 5 (09:54):
But I also was in the music too.
Speaker 1 (09:56):
I was a message to so like at a young age,
buying my mom had got me like Cassie a piano,
So I was like trying to make beats on air
and then took piano lessons at a young age and
just did things. I was like into music, getting like
CDs or cassette tapes and trying to pick out what
song I felt it would be the next two singles,
like I was already trying to be an or not
realizing what I was doing at a young age, and
(10:17):
I was already and or as a person who kind
of puts together like the project for the artist and
like a pick who the single maybe or that pick
like the songs that will make it on the album,
or also like the collaborations they work with.
Speaker 2 (10:28):
I mean, now, did you know how to play the
bass when he was in the band, because I couldn't
pitch it very easy, like you.
Speaker 3 (10:33):
Just this all day?
Speaker 1 (10:34):
Its drum. Yeah, So it was just nothing like you know,
just the base of the beast that was easy.
Speaker 3 (10:40):
Were you by far the biggest band member?
Speaker 2 (10:43):
Definitely was the biggest customized jersey Jackie everything.
Speaker 5 (10:49):
He had to find some stuff to fit.
Speaker 4 (10:51):
Knowing that you couldn't play football until high school because
of the size.
Speaker 3 (10:55):
Restrictions and everything that you had growing up.
Speaker 4 (10:58):
How would you say that in impacted your football experience.
Speaker 1 (11:04):
I was learning everything for the first time for the
I mean I watched it on TV, but like technically
I was learning everything for the first time. In ninth grade,
I wrestled. My mom put me in wrestling first to
teach discipline, and then I moved on to basketball afterwards
to learn to work with others. That was her thought
process behind it. And then when I finally got the football,
it was just technique and IQ is what I really
(11:27):
had to learn, because like I knew the basis of it,
but now it's like technique wise, like how to I
went from being the defensive end to now playing offensive line.
So for me, it kind of worked on my favorite
because I knew what I would do as a defensive
end to offensive line and so now it's like, Okay,
now I have to kind of stop or you know,
I can already think like they think. So it kind
of helped me out a little bit. And then when
(11:48):
I got the Juco, the guy was a Juco All American,
and so it was like he made me better because
he was tearing me up the first couple week like
she because he was there was his second year is
my first, and I'm moving over. I'm only like two,
like two forty two forty five coming in. He outweighs
me by like twenty pounds. He's like two sixty. I
didn't really lift weights much like that until I got
(12:10):
to college, so I'm still developed. Seventeen when I first
got there, and turned eighteen till that September, so I'm
still developing. And then it just the light bulbs just
went off one day.
Speaker 2 (12:19):
You walk away from the team your sophomore year, and
he can come back the next year and go on
to it your senior year, get a scholarship, you go
to a juco.
Speaker 1 (12:27):
But this is how it happened. So I went to
a small school graduate probably like eighty nine ninety. Some
of the people there was somebody. There was a running
back named Lamara's third event who was really good. He
was behind me. He was a junior. Some Body who
are still on them to this day mailed in the
tape to the University of Iowa and was like, oh,
you gotta look at this kid. And they would all about
Lamar and they seen the tape, they said, who is that?
(12:48):
And they seen me staying there like six six or whatever,
Oh who is this? So then they came to see
him and then they're like, we also want to talk
to him as well. And it was after National Signing Day.
They said, we don't have any more scholarships, but we
have a community a communication with Lackawanna Junior College and Scranton,
which was only two and a half hours away from
me in South Jersey, and they said, we can send
you there and then you'll learn how to play left
(13:09):
tackle and then you'll come to Hioway. So I was like, okay,
just further my education, not really looking at it because
nobody really went to the pros during that period of
time from my area. Somebody did, like in eighty three,
but like it was like ninety seven or so, like
forever moved. I'm gonna just go just continue my education.
And I played football like I like playing football. I
(13:30):
just continue to play football. Didn't have high expectations. I
went and then once again, I don't like to get
yell at, So teach.
Speaker 5 (13:38):
Me what I got to.
Speaker 1 (13:40):
And I'm gonna just focus on that. So I went
there actually my first season and I became a jue
call American after that first year of learning how to
play left tackle. But I told you the guy went
against every day. He was a juke call American. So
it was like, I'm eventually learning how to block this
man every day in practice. It had no choice but
that making me better, you know what I mean. So
he played a big part on developing me in that position.
(14:04):
And then what was his name? His name was Nate Russ.
He ended up getting a scholarship to University of Maryland
for football and baseball, and I felt like he's stuck
over with baseball. So then after that season, Hayden Fry
was the head coach at University I where he retired.
So I had a letter intense. I couldn't talk to nobody.
Nobody could talk to me. But now he retired, everybody
could talk to me. Now I just became a ju
(14:25):
CA All American. So now all these schools can send
letters and now communicate. So now going to my second
year and I kind of finished again as a jue
car All American, and then Miami University. Miami just showed
up one day and I heard like guys talking like, oh,
is the guy from Miami here? A guy Fromimi, but
we don't know he's here to see like, we don't
know he's here because there's other There was a couple
of other guys on my team who went to like
West Virginia Ruckers, and there were good players too, so
(14:47):
we didn't know who he was here for. And then
they called me out of class. Semifouve hours for me.
Speaker 5 (14:51):
So r Keyho.
Speaker 1 (14:54):
Was a guy who came and he was full of energy.
And he's the one who came and talked to me
in the office and ended up taking a visit to
Miami and end up coming to Miami.
Speaker 4 (15:03):
Okay, So first of all, what's it like in scrant
and scran Pa, Because like, but I always.
Speaker 5 (15:09):
Heard like a TV show called The Office or something.
It's like what we all.
Speaker 4 (15:14):
Do about it from sleepy there and in the office.
Speaker 3 (15:19):
This is like what we know about scran Pa.
Speaker 1 (15:22):
It's a lot of hills, it gets cold. It's a
lot of hills like coal mines and things like that
up there.
Speaker 5 (15:30):
I don't know. It's just a small town.
Speaker 3 (15:32):
Yeah, okay, very small town, that's what they said. Yeah,
and tell me this.
Speaker 4 (15:37):
So when you go on your visit, because you've probably
only been the East Coast, that's what it sounds like.
Speaker 3 (15:43):
And then you go down to Miami.
Speaker 1 (15:44):
I came to Miami on the visit. Miami is a
totally different culture where you come from up North and
down here. It's like, first of all, the clubs are
open till five o'clock. I'm like, what, So it's like,
you know, northern things closing too.
Speaker 5 (15:57):
Down here.
Speaker 1 (15:57):
It's like you're taking you on a visit. They have
they want to keep you out to five. I'm like,
then you got to be up the next morning to
walk around camps at nine ams, not to have this
camp for the next day. I didn't even go out
the second night because I was so tired. So the
first night I did hang out with everybody till about
five or six, and then it's like had to be up,
walk across campus, go to dinners and everything. Secondary They're like,
(16:19):
come on, you ready to go out, and I know
they're happy because they got their PRODM to take me on.
And it's like, just keep it. I'm staying there, going
to bed. But I mean, I had a great experience here.
What's funny is I actually had a real good experience
of Arkansas. So it came down to Arkansas in Miami somehow.
But Houston UT was out there. Yeah, And I just
had a great experience there. And then also my officer
coordinated the JUCO he went there too, so I feel
(16:40):
like he was like saying little things to me too.
Speaker 5 (16:42):
But I had a good time Miami.
Speaker 1 (16:43):
I just remember like kind of getting under the weather
from like not sleeping too much and then like the
weather change and things like that.
Speaker 5 (16:51):
But I liked the overall.
Speaker 1 (16:53):
Like my mom started to realize it, like remind me,
like who I went here, and I'm like, oh, they
I want to Miami. So that played a part to
me my decision. And then coach Keijo wasn't let up.
And then my my whole family basically was like are
you crazy? Like you got Arkansas, Like you know what
I mean? Said everybody don't mean I'm crazy, and even
my head coach. And then I'm glad I made the
decision I made, of course, so I ain't up in Miami.
Speaker 3 (17:15):
I think you made the right choice. I've said it.
Speaker 2 (17:19):
DJ Williams has said it, Jonathan Willman said it, Greg
Olson has said it, Shannon Sharp has said it. The
two thousand and one Miami Hurricanes it's probably the greatest
college football team ever as symbol Yeah, what was practice?
Speaker 3 (17:39):
Like what was the locker room?
Speaker 5 (17:41):
Like?
Speaker 2 (17:41):
What was just I'm asking like eight questions in one,
but like what was what was practice?
Speaker 1 (17:46):
Like?
Speaker 3 (17:46):
Going against? It was first round picks on offense? Defense?
Did you realize how good you guys were? Oh, you
guys are just playing.
Speaker 5 (17:54):
I think that. I think I.
Speaker 1 (17:56):
Don't think we realized how good Like looking back, like,
oh we had all these guys on the team. No,
but I feel like everybody thought they were like the
best at their position. And I remember even coming up
to like my senior year, there was like a you
got like a full spread if you were like they
would do like by position, and like the number one
would get like a full spread, and then everybody's like
(18:16):
two through five would get like little boxes. And I
remember the DB's and O line they got the full spread,
and like the linebackers got like a little box.
Speaker 5 (18:23):
And that was like a joke.
Speaker 1 (18:24):
That was a joke, you know with everybody, like y'all
got the little box. But like everybody was so competitive
and felt like, you know, when we went out to
the practice every day that you were going against the best,
you know, each week, I mean every day of practice.
So when you got to a game, it should be
a little easier. I feel like we used the weather
to our advantage too, you know, staying hydrated and going
out here, and we practiced at like, you know, two pm.
(18:44):
We didn't have no indoor facility, you know that people
have now. The only time we came up the field,
it was a lightning storm and were come on the field.
Other than that, it is a rain and we're still
out there. We got to play in all these conditions anyway,
So I think that kind of built character and character
for us too. And I remember, like a lot of
times we said, you know, by the fourth quarter. Our
mentality as seniors was a boy the fourth quarter is
(19:07):
we should be up by twenty one so we can
give you know, the second string, which was people like
Sean Taylor and Kellen Winslow and Frank goreon know, those
guys the opportunity to get in and get some reps,
you know what I mean. And we did that for
every game except two games.
Speaker 2 (19:21):
That's crazy fact that you just said we're putting our
two's in and you said Sean Taylor and Frank Gore,
like that's that's just how That's how was I don't
I don't think people actually understand that, like that's the
twos and threes were future first round picks, like that's.
I remember watching that season. I also in college to
(19:43):
I didn't I didn't have that many first round picks
on my team.
Speaker 3 (19:48):
But you know, they was them behalftime eight.
Speaker 2 (19:53):
So you was, you was a team that got up
at like thirty forty points in the second quarter and
y'all put y'all twos in.
Speaker 3 (20:00):
Yeah, I was. I was sold in the game to
let them try to get a tackle.
Speaker 5 (20:04):
I was.
Speaker 2 (20:04):
I was still out there trying to get out the game,
just like damn, I ain't no telling what they did.
What do you think they would beat us? Oh my god,
they would have been bad.
Speaker 4 (20:15):
Pe know went to ul Lafayette, the University of Louisiana,
thank some respect, you know.
Speaker 3 (20:21):
I mean it has some bathers and Ike Taylor were
out there, but I don't think it was anybody else.
Speaker 4 (20:26):
So you know, yeah, y'all would have beat them by
damn fifty.
Speaker 3 (20:31):
We're going to take a short break and we'll be
back in a minute.
Speaker 4 (20:35):
I know you've heard of this stat but I'd like
to get this on tape because I want to hear
your mindset all right. Brian McKinney is the last offensive
lineman to have ever made the top ten in Heisman
voting twenty twenty two thousand and one is when this happened?
Speaker 3 (20:56):
How do you make? How do when you hear that?
Are you shocked?
Speaker 5 (20:59):
Are you?
Speaker 1 (21:01):
I definitely was surprised. Yeah, just can you imagine? Like
why was you or when.
Speaker 5 (21:07):
They told me?
Speaker 1 (21:08):
They told me after I was voting, because you know,
they only announced like the top five. So like our
media guy had told me, like I guess that Tuesday
was like, hey, you finished in the top saying I
was like what, Like I'm tellinghim what it was like then,
and I'm like, are you seriously? Like yes, people even
gave you first place vote and I was just like
that's crazy, Like I don't know. I just didn't expect
that at all, and I did. I was aware that
(21:31):
Orlando Pace was the person prior to me, so I
watched him a lot. Coach Kill just have me watch
him a lot on film, so I would try to
mimic the things that he see and he was kind
of like, you know, I would say, like somebody like
the rabbit, the person that you kind of Chase, and
he was that for me. So I was like, Okay,
in his career, he only give him one sack, so
I can only give up one or none, like you
(21:51):
know what I mean. So that was always my thing.
It's like, okay to be like him. You can either
give up the one at the most or just none
at all.
Speaker 4 (21:57):
So do you remember having to block somebody in colle
that was like, Okay, this guy is a little bit
of a problem.
Speaker 5 (22:03):
Yes, yes, yes, the wife framing.
Speaker 3 (22:07):
Really he was that what Syracuse right, Syracuse's spinning.
Speaker 5 (22:10):
Yes he was.
Speaker 1 (22:14):
I feel like he introduced the spin to the league
because you know, all of a sudden he got a
leading the right spinning now. But yeah, So the thing
was our junior year, maybe he was injured or something,
cause he played up there in Syracuse.
Speaker 5 (22:24):
I didn't go against him. I maybe he was injured.
I recalled.
Speaker 1 (22:27):
But my senior year it was like a big deal,
Like they posted like these articles. He had like a
like a sack like a Santa Claus sack, but you
could see throw and had all the hammels of the
teams that he sacked before and things like that.
Speaker 5 (22:40):
Just all week long. Clinton Ports was just in my
ear all week long, like he always be like scared.
Speaker 1 (22:45):
Like he just just whenever I had big games, he
always just bothered me or whatever. But we prepared well.
And then also who helped me get through that game
is Mario Christball. He was our assistant GA coach at
the time, his assistant line coach, and he he stayed
with me and we watched film, and I was like,
what is this guy doing? Like is dophensive line making
(23:06):
a mistake? Is he's just as good? Like you know,
it's a combination of the boat. I was really just
sitting here just trying to figure out what it is.
I would watch when he would like to spend. I
would see what he did when he spends. Sometime he
would grab cloth, so I knew, keep your distance, don't
let him get too close into your body, keep him
use your arms and keep him away from you, and
keep moving your feet. A lot of guys when he
would chop hands, it's like for some reason, guys would
(23:26):
stop their feet and then you know he's going to
continue to move and he'd get past you. So it
was like, regardless what happens to your hands, keep your
feet moving with this guy and I just had like
a good game plan against him and it worked, but
I couldn't wait to get fast.
Speaker 5 (23:40):
They wore me out that week.
Speaker 1 (23:42):
You were tire mentally and this is over found. I've
had Jerome McDougal come over the other side because he
had a really good get off. Now him get me
pass versus at the end of practice, just to like
emulate what he's seeing in Dawhight too.
Speaker 3 (23:57):
So I just did know you really were worried about
d wife's.
Speaker 5 (24:00):
Frady, Cuz it's all right.
Speaker 1 (24:01):
So my first year, my breakout game was against Florida
State Jamal Reynolds, who was a great pass rusher as well,
and I was able to, you know, hold him to
new sacks and I was just under the radar. That
was my first like season, nobody was bothering me. But
then it came to like my second year then like
he hasn't never given up a sack.
Speaker 5 (24:19):
It's like, oh gosh, why didn't say that, like I
was doing.
Speaker 3 (24:22):
For the target on your face.
Speaker 5 (24:24):
Yeah, so now it's like a big deal.
Speaker 1 (24:27):
I remember even playing Florida State the following year, my
senior year, and the defense eventually last name was Jackson.
He must have got a good jump on the ball
and it looked like he's gonna get close to the
door seat. I must have just pushed them like by
like the last minute they were losing the game, but
the silide rumpted like ah, and I'm looking like what's
going on, like like what are they cheering for? And
then they started playing yo, yeah, he's going to get you.
(24:49):
I'm like, oh, this is about me because like the
game's over for then, like y'all a loser. But oh
now it's like an individual thing like and that's why
I really had to wake up and that game say,
regardless of like what the score is, you still have
to make sure that you are on because they're trying
to win an individual battle at this point at about
the team now, he's trying to get an individual battle.
So that's what made me really like really like locking
for the rest of the season and just realized like, Okay,
(25:12):
this is bigger than just you know, win or lost
things like he's trying to like be the first one
to get a sack.
Speaker 2 (25:17):
So so being a man of your size and your frame,
do you have a welcome to the NFL moment?
Speaker 5 (25:24):
Yeah?
Speaker 1 (25:25):
And what was that? What was that moment I think
I was. I don't if we was on the road.
We were on the road, and I was it was
against Green Bay and I couldn't.
Speaker 5 (25:36):
Yeah, I was trying to.
Speaker 1 (25:38):
Use my periphew and I went to look and the
balls was snapping. Somebody rand me like flat over ready.
I wasn't ready, And I'm trying to think. I don't
feel like Gilbert Brown might have been a detact on
came somewhere like hit me, like somebody like ran me,
like I went flat backwards, like that was the first time, Like.
Speaker 3 (25:54):
He ain't never hit.
Speaker 1 (25:55):
I'm on the ground, like I barely fought so like
I want a ground, but I'm on my like a
reverse bandkke. Yeah, that was the moment, like this ain't
happening again.
Speaker 2 (26:06):
I think my high school prepared me for college. My
high school with Carvers col of Texas, good football program.
They prepared me for college. When I at the college college,
watching film and doing all, it was somewhat a little easy.
Do you think going to the University of Miami prepared
you for what the NFL was Like?
Speaker 1 (26:28):
I think it did in Minnesota it did to a
certain degree because you had guys that came back here.
Michael Barrow, Jesse Armstead, Edgrid James, Bubba Franks, all those guys,
they came back and they were training to work out
with us. So they would tell us about the physical part.
So you know about the physical part. You knew about
the hours, the amount of time that you would be there.
But the part that I missed that I had to
learn along the way was like far as taking care
(26:50):
of yourself as cold tub, like we did it in Miami,
but when people get in the cold tub, getting your
massages and getting stretched and all those type of things.
I had the learned, Like I think Randy somebody was like,
I'm getting massage. I'm like, y'all get the message. You're
like yeah, but you know when you're young, you're feel
like I don't need a message, but you do need
a massage. So being around and just watching people how
(27:11):
they are pros and Okay, this is what you do,
and they end up being like the last one to
start leaving the locker room because they're taking care of
their body. Because I remember being, you know, a rookie,
and I'm seeing Dave Dixon, he was a guard. He
might have been like thirty and I'm only twenty two
and I'm looking at him on Wednesday, like you still limp.
Speaker 5 (27:26):
People from what's.
Speaker 3 (27:31):
Wednesday?
Speaker 1 (27:34):
But I guess what, I got to be David. And
that first thing I thought about was, Oh, this is
how they felt.
Speaker 3 (27:43):
On a Wednesday. Like it's funny.
Speaker 4 (27:47):
How like you age out, you go from the young
boy in the locker room to the older dude.
Speaker 3 (27:51):
How it really does happen like that? Does it happens
real quick?
Speaker 5 (27:55):
I'm gonna take you.
Speaker 1 (27:55):
Another moment that made me realize I was older too,
is I was in Baltimore. I was in Baltimore and
it was a player. He was a rookie, and he
was like, yeah, I've been watching you since I was ten,
And I'm like, what ten, It's like or fifth grade.
I was in fifth grade and I'm like, dag, I
being for twelve years, so he probably was in fifth grade.
And it's like it's just you don't realize it until
(28:18):
somebody actually says it, and it's like sheesh, Yeah, I
start to feel a little.
Speaker 3 (28:21):
Oh.
Speaker 4 (28:21):
I want to talk to you about two thousand and nine.
That Vikings team was great. You guys had a ton
of Pro bowlers. You Adrian Peterson, I'm pretty sure led
the NFL in rushing that year.
Speaker 3 (28:35):
But tough loss in the NFC Championship game.
Speaker 4 (28:40):
Could you maybe talk to me about how great that
team was leading up to that game and then at
some point get.
Speaker 3 (28:47):
To the interception.
Speaker 4 (28:48):
Of course at the end of the game, what kind
of happened because it was a penalty for twelve minute
on the field like right before it was it was
a little bit of a mayhem right there at the end.
Speaker 5 (28:59):
For some reason that game.
Speaker 1 (29:00):
A lot of things went wrong first in that game,
and that didn't happen all season. That by far was
the best team that I played with as a Viking.
That was the best record I had. That was the
furtherest we ever made it. And a lot of that
is attribute to Brett Farv When he came in there.
Everybody kind of rose. They raised the level of their
(29:20):
game up and their play up because they didn't want
to let him down, and everybody on both sides of
the ball. And that's how you know, like certain people
have that ability to do that. As you can see,
Tom Brady can leave a team and go somewhere else
and people raise the same people's there. It's just now
you add one person that can raise the level up.
I feel like ray Lewis was able to do that
too his foumal year in Baltimore too, giving him, you know,
(29:41):
his farewells that that he wanted adding Brett that year.
Every I feel like nobody went to let him down
and then for him to come and actually be a
cool person, because I feel like the media kind of
painted him a certain way, like maybe a deven things
like that, so people weren't sure how to receive him
until he got in there. He showed his person out
(30:01):
and showed that he's a team player, and he just
made it fun. You know, like there was times where,
you know, coach children, I feel like we were playing
Detroit were trying to take him out of the game.
Brett would you know, Brett would change plays a lot
of times they were work I played in Detroit. Specifically,
(30:22):
they weren't working that day, and he wanted Tavares Jackson
to go in and tavarsay as well. If he's not
coming in, I can't if he's not coming out, I
can't go in, you know, you know, and then there's
a lot of people don't know. It was like an
argument on the sideline between them and Brett didn't come out,
and you know, we had his back and we just
going to do we have to do and we're able
to pull out of wind stiff. But a lot of
(30:42):
people played for him, and I feel like just that's
how it was, and that's how it's going to be
with certain teams, Like I feel like he was able
to bring everybody together and make it more family oriented,
where you had a coach who kind of was called
on a little division amongst the guys because people weren't
sure is somebody going up there reporting stuff to the coach.
(31:02):
And that's why it was like a little division because
people were feeling like things were being told or not
sure he's playing mind games with people. So when Brett came,
all that got canceled out and it was all about
playing for Bratt.
Speaker 4 (31:12):
Yeah, that's how you guys are awesome, Like immediately too that.
Speaker 1 (31:15):
Yeah, because once everybody kind of got the energy and
the vibe from him, and everybody wants to play, you know,
well in front of people. That's why I feel like,
even like for me when I went when I was
in New York's Miami, you had guys like Michael Irvan
and warn staff you don't want to look at scrub
in front of them, so you're gonna play up, you
know what I'm saying. I feel like that's what people
were doing when Brett came onto the team. So to
make it to the NC Championship, that was the furthest
(31:36):
I've ever made it in my career. I think that
was like year like eight for me, eight or nine.
We had like five turnovers in that game. We had
one of like the two or three yard line going
in Like it was so many turnovers in that one
game to only still lose by a field goal, you know,
and over time and overtime, well, over time was different
then too. It was like set of the death back
(31:56):
so we didn't even get the possessions like they got
close so to make a field go and they were
able to win. They changed it right after that season,
so they have that many mistakes and let you know,
to still be in it. Let you know, the team
was a really good team. It just caught a bad
break during that period of time. But in my mind,
I remember we're driving like you know, going this way,
(32:17):
and it's like, yeah, super.
Speaker 5 (32:19):
Bowls in Miami. I can't wait.
Speaker 1 (32:23):
The next thing I know, I'm like, wow, man, I'm
changing somebody.
Speaker 3 (32:29):
I got off defense.
Speaker 5 (32:35):
Every from there like oh gosh.
Speaker 1 (32:36):
And then when they got the ball, I was just
hoping that they didn't, you know, getting field goal range,
but then they hit it.
Speaker 5 (32:41):
It was like sheesh.
Speaker 1 (32:43):
That was a little depressed after that game because it
took too long for me to even get to that point.
But yeah, that was a tough loss.
Speaker 3 (32:50):
Yeah I'm sorry about that. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (32:51):
So this is this show was called the Info Player
Second Acts Podcast, and what we like to do is
try to dive into what the players are former players
doing now in their second act. So tell us and
our viewers and listeners, what you, sir, are doing in
your second my.
Speaker 1 (33:07):
Second act right now. I have a tech company called
that Chat, So I'm the COO.
Speaker 5 (33:12):
So let's chat.
Speaker 1 (33:12):
We do one hundred and four languages with one hundred
different dialects, and we do it based off your device setting.
Because we do websites, we can do in person presentation
like we've done Tony Hawk's podcasts. He had had somebody
who spoke Portuguese and we did it live and translated
back and forth so they could conduct the podcast and
it's in real time. So we even did the NFL
for three years, so you know, you might want to
get us back because I see all in Brazil and everywhere.
Speaker 5 (33:34):
So we did.
Speaker 1 (33:34):
When the NFL had game Pass, we had did the
subtitling for their games for like three years, and then
it changed over to like NFL Plus and then something else.
Now I don't know what is now. So comcasts. I
didn't accelerate a program for comcasts. Our company did, and
they kind of liked our product and they became a shareholder,
and they're like, we're live on like Exfinity, and then
we're looking to get like what other companies are on
(33:55):
the Comcast, like WWE. We learned about the deep fake
with WWE because we can do that in differentlanguages, Like
they want to go to different countries and have their
wrestler speaking their language, so we know how to do
the deep fake with the language and change the language
for them and everything. So Dad, PGA, Golf, like those
are different companies we're trying to work with. Now that's
under Comcast. We're on like over like six hundred different
(34:15):
car dealerships right now. Bojangles McDonald's, Bojangles, the CEO Bojangles
is actually from univers Miami, so that was I was
able to get us in the door with him. He
was the former CEO of McDonald's but he left and
went to become CEO Bojangles.
Speaker 5 (34:30):
And I would say the NFL.
Speaker 1 (34:32):
Being an NFL has its its perks, and you're able
to kind of get a network of people, so when
you retire, you're able to be able to do business
with some of these people who you probably wouldn't be
able to touch prior, you know what I'm saying. So that
tapped me out a lot too. It's just having that
network and then being able to reach out to people
and doing presentations for your product and they understand it
(34:53):
and they like it and they want to, you know,
bring you on board. So let's shut his own pretty well.
Speaker 6 (34:59):
I want also talk about what you're doing with other
NFL players about helping them with their transition from playing
and then getting into or finding there identity in their
second action.
Speaker 1 (35:10):
So oh, I got into the mental health so my
be major to have the major foundation, right, So we
specialized in healthy kids, healthy living, single parent homes, mental health,
and now I'm about to add on financial literacy. That's
because a lot of kids are being younger and parents
need to be educated with the NIL deals and just
different things like that. But right now I'm very focused
on the mental health part because when I retired, there
(35:30):
was too other guys who were tired around the same
time as me, and they were having breakdowns as far
as like you know, getting arrested and baker acting. I
had to go to a sac wark for one person,
and they felt more comfortable talking to me than their
their family. So in the midst of that, I had
to be kind of the person who kind of navigates,
you know, between the family, the player and even with
(35:50):
the league in the NFLPA, how can we get them help.
I knew they were sending guys away for like thirty days,
like somewhere in like Detroit and somewhere like Northern Florida,
like different places for thirty days for treatment, and I
was following up and making sure, and I was like,
I need to just add this to my my mission statement.
So I did, and then I started doing events called
cocktails and conversations, and I would have different people from actress.
(36:14):
I had Lisa Ray last year, I had Tommy Harris.
I've had Ray Rice, I've had Sean Tea, The Finished Trainer.
I've had therapists, whether it's life coaches, therapists, all the
different type of people all be speak on my panel
and we just have like a fireside chat where we
all just discuss things and open to the audience as
well to ask questions and just make those uncomfortable conversations
(36:35):
more comfortable. And people leave there feeling good about themselves.
But then they also realize they're not the only ones
who go through things. And then a lot of people
are able to share the stories of what they went
through how they were able to get through it, and
it inspires other people in the audience because I've had
friends after those, you know, reach out to me and say,
I'm so glad you had this because I was going
through this and the other and I'm looking at them
like I would have never knew, you know what I'm saying,
because you know, a lot of people know how to
(36:56):
dress up and put a smile on their face and
go out like nothing's wrong, but they're actually feeling alone
this side or a lot of people they're going through
something like hard time, like they're the only one that's
going through it or went through and when they hear
other stories, they're like, oh, I can't get through this,
you know.
Speaker 5 (37:08):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (37:09):
Well I always said that's the one thing I probably
miss about the locker room. I don't miss the tackles
or anything else, but it's like the feeling that you're
never alone, Like, no matter what you're going through, you
can usually bring it up and somebody's like, yeah, dog
me too.
Speaker 5 (37:24):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (37:25):
And how truly vulnerability equal strength inside of a locker room.
Speaker 5 (37:29):
It does.
Speaker 1 (37:30):
And another thing that I was a part of was
the NFL Players Choir. We had did some stuff. We
were not on American Talent.
Speaker 3 (37:38):
So I wrote that down in my notes. You were
on America.
Speaker 5 (37:41):
I want to get to that.
Speaker 1 (37:42):
Yes, right, so we did that. But then so that's
that's that's a group chat in itself. That's a group
chat in itself. But then with the Ravens, like a
lot of us that played on the Super Bowl team,
we're all in the group chat as well. Yes, and
has lost a teammate two years in a row. Now
you have are Jones who just passed here before that
(38:06):
with Jacobe Jones, who's all in our group chat, you know.
So it's like but we're all able to be there
for one another. I feel like the Ravens do a
great job of reaching out and making sure that you know,
we had a Zoom meeting for anybody who needs to
have anybody you know to talk to during those times
and things like that. I feel like they've done a
great job, you know, in both situations. And then University
of Miami we have a group chat as well where
we all all are in there and we're all discussing
(38:28):
whether it's the game or just what people have going on.
So we need one for the Vikings because we don't
have one for them. But those two, those three situations,
I'm am in group chats and I got the guys
really like it and appreciate it because they can go
in there and discuss things that they need to discuss.
Speaker 4 (38:42):
Would you say that's what helps keep you I think
with your mental health because you got a lot of
things going on.
Speaker 3 (38:48):
Yeah, you continue to stay busy.
Speaker 1 (38:49):
Working out helps me too. Working out is a big
part too. So the more I got into this is
like working out you just learned to gives off the
good endorphins and then your good health. The plays to
be part on how you feel mentally too. So I
just started educating myself on a lot of things to
make you feel good far as your mental and working
out is a big part of it. And I feel like,
(39:10):
you know, when you play a lot of guys or
constantly you have to work out, but we retire, that's
up totally up to.
Speaker 5 (39:15):
You now, just you know what I mean, And a
lot of guys kind of get away from I.
Speaker 1 (39:19):
Look, I had got a big, bigger at one point
because I was tired of waging in every Friday.
Speaker 5 (39:23):
I was like, I ain't know this no more.
Speaker 1 (39:26):
Until the time my shoe became a job, I said, ses,
so I had to start. I get back working out
and everything. But yeah, but having those people there and
having accountability with other people and having work out partnership
different things like that kind of helps you out a lot.
And actually, Ray Rice and I just went to Minnesota
last Monday and we spoke to the Vikings. They brought
myself and my team up the year before as well,
(39:48):
and we speak to the guys on mental health and
we talked about like what we would have done different
had we known what we knew now. We talked about
how to handle success family and outside pressure, We talked
about life after the game, just talk about a lot
of different things. So I just got a phone call
today because they hit me and they say, we want
to bring y'all back again next year, but this time
(40:09):
we also want you all to talk to the staff,
so that we're adding that part on now. So now
it's just the players the past two years, but nex
year's gonna be players have one meeting and then we
have a separate meeting and we discuss things with the staff,
and I have my therapist, doctor Tasha there with me
as well.
Speaker 4 (40:22):
That's be good because they can actually learn how to
maybe help the players out as well, because a lot
of times that's a big.
Speaker 1 (40:27):
And it's really about what the staff is really by
making the players feel comfortable and being able to trust you,
because that's that's the problem. A lot of players feel like, well,
if I go to them, they're going to use it
against me later. If you feel like that, you're not
going to trust I'm gon want to open up.
Speaker 3 (40:41):
Not at all, not at all? Can you? That's my
next question?
Speaker 2 (40:50):
So you got dominated? So check you got dominated for
three Grammys.
Speaker 5 (41:00):
That big project that I did, not for me.
Speaker 2 (41:04):
I'm saying you got nominated for three years, So you
got nominated for three Gramms. It's like, that's big, that's
not that's not a small cool, it's super cool.
Speaker 3 (41:13):
You got all these Hall of Fames.
Speaker 5 (41:14):
Tell you I'm competitive, so.
Speaker 1 (41:17):
Right, And then the music, because you know the time,
I feel like when it came to athletes and music,
like I just wasting the money the time that for
a while. Yeah right, I'm like, I actually I told
you the piano lessons.
Speaker 5 (41:28):
I was in the music. Yeah, I was a music person.
Speaker 1 (41:31):
So I'm like, so it's like, I really want to
kind of get in here and really like put out
a good project. I didn't know it was going to
get nominated for three Grammys, but I just want to
put together a good body work to show like I
do have an ear for this, like just absolutely trying
to just throw money behind somebody.
Speaker 5 (41:49):
I have a good ear for this.
Speaker 3 (41:50):
So is it?
Speaker 2 (41:52):
I'm I bring the certificates and stuff. So no, No,
that's dope?
Speaker 3 (41:56):
Is it?
Speaker 2 (41:56):
Do you sing? Do you find the talent? Do you
pick up the beat yourself? Do you do you mix it?
Speaker 3 (42:01):
Do you.
Speaker 1 (42:03):
Being a cosective producers? You you are the arrangers? So
you can arrange how to how the song is produced,
as far as like finding the producer, arranging the order,
like where the the whole and everything ll be in
the bridge and everything like that. Like you're just arranging,
So yeah, I'm not playing instruments. I'm just arranging everything
(42:25):
and how the album is like play like what song
go hereould what song should be number one? Like all
that's a part of arrangement.
Speaker 3 (42:32):
I just did THATSCN and terior designer for music.
Speaker 1 (42:35):
Basically, it's just organizing and moving stuff like that.
Speaker 3 (42:39):
That was a good one, and we'll be right back.
Speaker 4 (42:43):
All right now, now be this is something that little
maybe a little bit off topic, but it's I got
to give you your flowers because the one thing I've
heard about you, and I've never been able to hang
around you, is that the dudes got sauce. The dudes
got sauce, all right, So how in the world does
Brian McKinney able to go out in the nightclub and
(43:07):
have Serena Williams, Venus, Williams, Trina and about fifteen other
in about fifteen others and big B right there with
a great smile, with the same demeanion, and it's just
all love, and they tell.
Speaker 1 (43:27):
Me it's about making people feel comfortable. Right, So once
you bring out that barrier of okay, they're now comfortable
around you, they trust you, so now they can bring
their guard down and now they're going to actually enjoy themselves,
you know what I mean. But if they have to
keep looking at they don't trust the people that may
be with you or things like that, then it's kind
of like a little stand office. But once they you
get them an environment of they feel safe, then the
(43:48):
guards come down and you have a good time, and
now they want to experience that again.
Speaker 5 (43:51):
So I call it the b back experience. So that.
Speaker 2 (43:56):
To the flip side of the lip side of that.
When did you know you had that? Because you are
a large black high school?
Speaker 3 (44:05):
So did you was it was?
Speaker 5 (44:07):
It?
Speaker 3 (44:07):
Was it something that Okay, I'm a larger black man,
do I.
Speaker 5 (44:12):
Fight a slim in high school? So igh school?
Speaker 1 (44:17):
So my house was the house everybody went to because
like parents can get home to like six thirty, so
you know, you get out school like three, so everybody
come over to my house. I was raised the only child,
so I knew how to entertain everybody. Everybody come to
my house after school, like just be going by sixtteen.
So my house was kind of like the social party house.
Speaker 2 (44:35):
I just love the fact that when you talk, you
don't even get it out and you just started laughing,
having flashback.
Speaker 1 (44:42):
So just from high school and then just kind of
just carried over to like college, just being social and
just want everybody to have a good time. I couldn't
have a good time until I've seen everybody was having
a good time, and then like all right now I
got fun just aways like just kind of looking out
for people and just make sure we had a good time.
I always make sure we safe. So even in Minnesota,
they'll take you like the party buses. We'll go out
(45:02):
out of Hey, we wanna get a party bus. We're
gonna all ride together, and we're gonna ride back together,
you know what I mean. So just to make sure
nobody to drive, drinker, drive anything. And I was always
with that on transportation. I was even glad when Uber
came out, so you can start uber and but yeah,
so I always make sure everybody was kind of like.
Speaker 3 (45:16):
Good, yeah, yeah, I like that.
Speaker 4 (45:18):
I've heard from four different people about I did not
They didn't all tell me.
Speaker 3 (45:22):
It was called the Bmax experience. But it was all
the same.
Speaker 1 (45:26):
The rides, Oh yeah, the.
Speaker 4 (45:28):
Amount of people, the togetherness, no animosity of ROTTERI.
Speaker 5 (45:33):
Say, everybody got along.
Speaker 1 (45:35):
I don't know how he was able to just put
some good energy together and everybody's with the comic goal.
We're gonna go out have a good time.
Speaker 4 (45:40):
This dude had all of them, everybody together. Anyways, I
just want to give you a flowers. I appreciate it
because you did your thing.
Speaker 5 (45:48):
I appreciate it.
Speaker 2 (45:49):
Mount Rushmore, you get four picks Mount Rushmore of greatness.
You can pick four people who have helped you become
the person you are today.
Speaker 5 (45:59):
Sweet, not not so not definitely, just people in general.
Speaker 3 (46:01):
Just people in general.
Speaker 1 (46:02):
Oh, my grandma played a big part. I'm gonna say
my grandma because she liked me playing basketball more right,
So when I told her I'm going out for football,
she was like, Oh, you're not gonna like it. I'm
gonna stay with basketball. I like you playing basketball better
anyway than that. And that one thing is what push
me to keep going. Really, even when I went out
to play football and I have my days like I
(46:23):
really want to do this, I always heard her say, yeah,
you're not gonna like it. You're gonna big basketball like up,
get up. You know you're going back. So you have
you know, football something. You just have those moments where
you just really question, like is this what I want
to do?
Speaker 3 (46:34):
That's crazy?
Speaker 1 (46:34):
Every step of the way, that one thing I remember
and I held on to it so and I remind
her every time. So when I got to Juco, I
was like, Grandma, remember you said? All the way to
like Miami Draft Day. She was there with me on
Draft Day and I looked at her like, Grandma, remember
you said? And then down to when I want my
Super Bowl? She was she found me first out of
(46:56):
everybody in the family. She ran and found me first,
before my mom and dad, everybody found me. And I said, Grandma,
you remember you said? And then when it came down
to the College Football Hall of Fames even to I
just told her this week, I remember just turned ninety
in September.
Speaker 3 (47:09):
She's still.
Speaker 5 (47:11):
She.
Speaker 1 (47:12):
I talked to her yesterday and I said, yes, I'm
going to ring on this year. She said, I hope
you can come on TV because she don't like to
fly anymore. I said, we'll send a video or whatever,
and she was like okay, I said, but remember how
this all started, so just even up too yesterday, I
just had this whole conversation with her. So she's definitely
the top one up there that because she was the
(47:33):
why I kept going, you know, like I don't want
to make her right so her, I'm gonna say my
dad played a big part, but I'm saying my mom. Actually,
I feel like she kind of sacrificed more as like
she didn't get it, like because I didn't play, you know,
I played late. So like she would ask me every
week like are you starting again this week? I'm like, yeah,
(47:53):
you must be pretty good.
Speaker 3 (47:54):
Like every week she would ask me, not if you quit.
Speaker 1 (47:59):
Yet, but starting Yeah, I'm starting again, okay, And that
one time she like, you must be doing pretty good,
like yeah, So I don't think it registered her to
my senior year.
Speaker 5 (48:09):
Like something actually pretty good.
Speaker 3 (48:12):
She never asked.
Speaker 5 (48:13):
She to keep asking was I was starting week?
Speaker 1 (48:17):
Until like going into my senior year, and I feel
like it started becoming more like in the newspapers and
things like that more and she started being able to
see because she was, you know, in Jersey, so I
guess she didn't really know what was being said. Here,
but then you know, we start making like you know,
like the news more and she was like, oh okay,
so just her for not knowing anything. And then I
(48:37):
don't know who the fourth person would be. Oh, one
of my coaches coach at Junior college, coach Al McElroy.
He was my old line coach. He was one who
taught me how to play left tackle and by me
coming into to that juco Lakawana, he would take his
time and I would go home after school and I
(48:58):
would do my homework and he would me up a
seven o'clock and I would do my own personal weight
training with him, like.
Speaker 5 (49:03):
So everybody will like right after school.
Speaker 1 (49:05):
They would let me go home and he would pick
me up and I would go to his house and
we would lift weights, like really like learn how to
lift weights because I didn't have like a weight program
in high school. So it's like we're gonna go down
here in the old school bench and we're.
Speaker 3 (49:17):
Gonna get swollen.
Speaker 5 (49:18):
Yeah, yeah, and that's what that's what.
Speaker 3 (49:22):
Getting swollen.
Speaker 4 (49:23):
I just wanted to know the best feece of advice
that your old line and juco coach maybe taught you
that's really stuck with you.
Speaker 5 (49:31):
He had the same called movie your Feast, you can't
get beat.
Speaker 1 (49:33):
So regardless of what's going on with your hands, you know,
sometimes people slap your hands, and I don't know why
guys do it. When they get their hands slap, sometimes
like their feet stops. But like keep your feet moving,
your body presents still, you know, make up to you
can just replace your hands eventually. But some reason, guys
when they get their hands knocked down, it's like their
whole body just stops.
Speaker 5 (49:50):
I don't know, but me hearing.
Speaker 1 (49:53):
That and always remember and that's why I told you
with Dwight Freeney, like regardless of going keep your feet moving,
feet stay, stay in front of him, like you know
what I mean. So that was a big piece that
I kind of carried on with me. I had to
face the white going into our Super Bowl run. We
laughed at each other like it's like it's year twelve.
Speaker 3 (50:08):
Here we go again.
Speaker 5 (50:10):
Year twel can be the same year.
Speaker 1 (50:11):
So like year twelve for both of us, first round
of the playoffs, the coats where you're at Baltimore, and
it's just like we just looked at the journey like
laugh like.
Speaker 5 (50:18):
Here we go again.
Speaker 2 (50:20):
Is yeah, running backs receivers dbs. They get all the awards, right,
So now they have an NFL Protector of the Year
award like this question, what are your thoughts on that.
Speaker 1 (50:34):
I'm glad they have it because it kind of gives,
you know, the old line some shine because you know,
the only time you zooming the old line is they
jump off side, got a holding penalty.
Speaker 5 (50:42):
Like it was him.
Speaker 1 (50:44):
Dang, that's the only time you show us. So I'm
glad there's something out there. I'm glad they're getting great
and stuff now too. I feel like we didn't have
greater So when it came time for like Pro Bowls
and stuff, it was hard to pick old lineman because
it was like.
Speaker 3 (50:55):
You went off name.
Speaker 1 (50:56):
Yeah, some guys well miss half the sisons because you
had a good name. So it was like y'all worked hard.
It's like he's going to act to make it just
because his name and everybody's just used him making it.
So I'm glad they have those things now to kind
of give those guys a little more incentive. And it
just gives you something to kind of like rate you know,
the players how they're playing that season.
Speaker 5 (51:16):
So I appreciate it.
Speaker 2 (51:18):
And if you could design it because you look like
a creative. How would you just how would you design
the trophy?
Speaker 1 (51:23):
I want to make some big hands that are like
blocking or something like that, you know what I mean,
just like some past pro hands or something.
Speaker 3 (51:29):
Man, we appreciate you coming on the pot.
Speaker 5 (51:30):
Appreciate you ever having me.
Speaker 3 (51:31):
I appreciate it. Do you think we got the experience?
I want the real experience, the real experience.
Speaker 4 (51:42):
Okay, we're gonna get out of here on that way
because I don't want to hear anybody else.
Speaker 3 (51:47):
And I'm glad my wife doesn't watch this.
Speaker 4 (51:48):
All right, So wherever you pick up your podcast at
with this Apple podcast, iHeartRadio app make sure you give
us a follow, like subscribe, leave a couple of comments.
We always love to respond. We love putting Thomas to
work like that. And you can also check us out
on the NFL pages YouTube channel Peanut getting us out
of here.
Speaker 3 (52:06):
Man, I'm Peanut.
Speaker 2 (52:08):
That's my guy Roman and that's Brian and this is
the NFL Player's second X podcast.
Speaker 3 (52:14):
We out
Hosts And Creators
Charles “Peanut” Tillman
Roman Harper
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