Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
This is always a fun one because Travis Johnson joins me.
Now on where are they now? Travis, It's great to
see you. We've only got about thirty minutes for this
edition because talking with you, we could probably go about
six days. So we're gonna get just a little snippet.
But first things first, where are you these days? And
(00:20):
what are you doing? Man? I'm still in Missouri City
with my family, hanging out doing ambassador stuff and legs
and stuff for the Texans. Man. I'm just being dad. Really.
My wife drags me around in our van all the time.
It takes me from place to place with our children.
(00:42):
We just got back from Louisiana late last night for
a softball tournament late Charles, So it's it's it's constantly
a full day, man. But I'm excited, man, and I'm
just I'm happy to still be around. Man. Every day
you find out another one of your teammates in pass.
So it's just wonderful just to be seen men. And
it's always good to see you. You've made the joke
(01:02):
before because you have a few kids. I have a
few kids, and you joke that we've been fruitful and
we've multiplied. But you've got four children? Is that five?
You got five? I've got five one of the age
ranges boys, girls, And what's the oldest, what's the youngest?
How's that work? Three girls, two boys? Okay, sixteen, fifteen, fourteen, twelve,
(01:23):
and ten. They are awesome, man, they are really are awesome.
I can't complain, brother, I have wonderful kids. My two
oldest are National Honor Society kids. They are top ten
percent of their class. So I'm so excited about that.
My three youngest are all phenomenal students, phenomenal athletes. My son,
(01:47):
he's still adding that a grossper yet he's about five
nine hundred and seventy pounds. You know, he wants to
play tidy and I'm like, you don't want to play
tighty ins. What do you wanted to play? I mean
old line d line man, to be honest with you know,
I just think longevity, and you know you cantrol your
own destiny, man, playing those dishes you play tight in
and you messed around. I have a terrible quarterback man.
(02:09):
Never get the ball to be the best day tied
in the world has never seen when it was all
said and done, because your quarterback could never get you
the ball? How much coaching are you doing? But in football? Well,
you know, I'm just uh, I don't. I don't really
coach anymore. Uh But I mean I coached him every day.
(02:32):
It's being a parent, you know. And that's the biggest
thing for me is you know, with Travis and when
he was younger, I coached him a lot, you know,
and um, I kind of I kind of watched as
he as he started to kind of tune me out,
you know, in my ears, I mean in his ears right,
and going one and out the other. So I kind
(02:52):
of changed up the strategy with the with the next
two and was like, you know what if I just
talk to them when home or I'll record their stuff
and then we'll watch it together and we'll get I'll
give them feedback, it'd be a lot different than me
yelling at them in the moment. Yeah, and it is.
It has worked wonderfully because the two the two babies
(03:15):
have you know, they've blossom, they've they've they've they've they've
understand it. They took the feedback, they took the criticism,
and you know, they continue to try to get better
all the time. And I love it. Man, I love
every minute of it because I'm watching it happen from
being a guy to step back and say, you know what,
(03:36):
I can't do this anymore. I don't I don't want
you to stop listening to them, and I gotta figure
out another way. So that was pretty cool. You know.
It's really interesting you talk about that because we've done
a few of these now, and it's a common refrain,
whether it's children of former NFL players or just children
of your own children, and they don't listen as much
(03:56):
to their parents as they do to their actual coaches.
They kind of tune out. So it's cool that you
have found a way to connect with them and get
them to listen to you, because oh yeah, man to say,
you know, for some reason they don't. They feel like
we don't know anything, you know, Like no, I wasn't.
I wasn't the one percent of the one percent, right,
Like I had to tell Travis is due. I'm not
(04:18):
gonna lie to you, you know what I'm saying. I'm
not gonna tell you you're doing something that you're not doing,
you know what I mean, because I'll be like a
son uh in your stands. You you know, you were
a little crooked. Here. Your knee was out this way.
No it wasn't, No, it wasn't. I'm like, dude, I'm
watching it. What are you talking about? I see it
right here, look at this. And then he's like, but
(04:39):
the rest of them is like, okay, okay, okay, I
fixed it fixed. You know what I'm saying. For him,
it'd be no, no, you're wrong, you're wrong. How did
you do it? Like? I'm like, all right, dude, and like,
you got it. You take it, go with you. I
like that we are able to get a little that
we were able to change it up a little bit,
and now all of kind of see it, you know,
(05:01):
even the two oldest. And I gotta tell them. I'm like, dude,
I don't take y'all to the gym to punish you.
I don't work like I worked in my secretary. You
know what I'm saying. I feel like the more you work,
the better they get. Everybody's like, oh, you gotta give
them a break. No, they play sports. Oh, they play
different sports all year around. They go to practice one day,
(05:21):
they might work out the next day. Everybody why, I'm like, well,
I got three girls. The more they're working, the more
likely boys ain't coming around up right. Yeah, it's you
your multi approach. That's great. So for me, we don't work, man,
you know, it's just you know, I working because I
(05:43):
know the more they work, the better they get. They
don't realize I'm also just keeping them out of trouble man,
you know, I mean as long as they know this
is how you live life. You get up, you're gonna
work out, you work, you work for you work for
your for your goals. And then they see it differently.
Now that's brilliant. That's brilliant. I like it. You just
said the one percent of the one percent. So let's rewind.
You grew up in southern California, you go to Florida State.
(06:06):
Tell me about draft day when you get picked in
the first round by the Houston Texans back in two
thousand and five. What was that like? Man, it's you know,
it's kind of funny, Drew, because you know I've told
us start a few times. I've heard it. Yeah, but
I want to Draft day. I'm on the West Coast
and I'm training. I trained out there the entire draft
process to go home. You know, my agent was from
(06:28):
around the corner Garry was Shard. He lived in west Lake.
I lived in Oak Park, So I'm staying on my parents.
I got a condover. I'm staying in my parents' house
that day, and because I'm like, all right, we're gonna
get up, we'll have a party. But I'm still my
body still wakes up on Florida time like clockwork. Yeah.
So you know the draft at the time, you know,
(06:50):
it didn't start until well, I want to say that
eleven o'clock, ten o'clock West Coast time maybe, and which
is you know, which is one o'clock Florida times. I'm
up early and I'm dressed. I'm like, man, when are
we gonna get started? The longest morning of your life?
(07:10):
Oh yeah? And you remember back then Drew, each pick
was like twenty minutes, twenty five And for those that
are not familiar, the draft was on Saturday and Sunday
didn't start Thursday night yet. It Saturday, Sunday, long long days,
long day. So it was I remember the draft started
at ten o'clock. I got picked at like two o'clock
(07:34):
maybe three, yeah, maybe three or even there probably three,
mind you not, guys. I was pick sixteen and it
was like hours, a real hours, like four or five
hours in the draft. It went by already. I get
on the phone Carol. Donald Nelson got on the phone
after you know, Dom I was out of Donald talked
to Charlie and like, hey, would you like to be
(07:55):
uh Jackson? So yeah, I would love to be. But
you know, it's an honor. We are the one percent
of one percent. Nobody gets to do this. There's thirty
thousand of us to ever played. There's twenty thousand of
us living. It's even less than that has played over
four years. So you can't say no, you know. And
that's one of the things where you know, it just
was such a blessing because you know, the Texas have
(08:16):
changed my life. That's why that's why i'm you know,
everybody everybody always laughs. They're like, man, why are you
always defending you know the texts. I'm like, dude, they
changed my life. You know, when don't you defend somebody
who's always been good to you? You know what I'm saying,
When do you defend somebody who money still pays your bills?
Where do you defend somebody who gave you a home
when you didn't have a home, when you defend somebody
(08:38):
who always been righteous with you. You know. I laughed
because we went to the concert the other night for
the rodeo, I got the only picture of a former
player with me and Bob inside of his suite man
and that kind of Yeah. Man, it made me smile.
I literally was like smiling ear to You're like, Todo, Look,
(08:59):
traffic is still up. You know what I'm saying. And
I loved it, Like I was just like, holy, I'm
still up. Yeah. So draft it was long. You remember
how long it was? Yea? And what was that like
when you got to you came to Houston, like the
next day, didn't she flew? I ca't using so this, Hey,
so this is crazy. I get drafted. I guess, like
(09:21):
I said, it was two three. I can't remember exactly
what time it was, but Carol died on Nelson, who
used to be our travel lady. She still is, yeah,
she still is. So Carol caused me. It was like, hey,
there's a six o'clock flight or seven o'clock flight. Is
it possible you can get on that flight and and
get here. That was probably the one thing I should
(09:42):
have said no too, because I should have came early
in the morning instead of late at night because I
didn't get the party with my family. My whole family
is at the house. Finally they the party started after
I got drafted. You know, I wouldn't have got the
journal draft. I only had my mother, my father, my brother,
and sisters around me. And then we were supposed to
(10:04):
have like a family getting together starting about five six o'clock.
Why do you get to see any of them that day?
They all partied on my dollar drink all my liquor up,
and I didn't get I didn't get to do any
of that. Fairness, though you have celebrated quite a bit
since you know, I'm a bit you know what, being
the son of Immigran, I'm a big family guy. Yea.
(10:26):
We have a big, huge family, and I love like
I love being around my family. When I went back
for the Super Bowl this fast year, I had tickets
of the game. Didn't go to the game because I
wanted to watch you with my cousins and Panamanians. Yes,
folks that don't know so for for me, like family
is everything, you know, and we we've always been, you know.
(10:47):
The first time we were apart was when I went
off to college. And it was like, man, we haven't
seen Travis in a while, you know. So, but I
fly up here that night, so I get so a
matter of fact, I go to NFL Network. I sit
down with rich Eisen, I sit down with those guys
because that was right down the road from me. On
the way to the airport, I go to Sala Manicata,
(11:09):
sit at NFL Network. I leave NFL Network, I go
get on the plane, me and my brother. My big
brother comes with me, and so we land here. Used
to like eat eleven fifteen at night, and I'm sitting
there like I'm thinking, like, okay, we're gonna a press
conference now. And the reason why I said no because
they were like, oh no, it's tomorrow morning. Tomorrow morning.
(11:30):
We'd never read Howdy used it? You know. I'm like,
I could have left at three in the morning or anything,
not knowing what I know now, because I'm like, you
could have put me off southwest and I would have
been more than appy, you know. But it was like
first class. It was dope, man, you know, it was
real dope. I remember getting here and they had me
(11:50):
up at a hotel way out by Bush at the time.
They had me up there that night and me and
my brother was in the hotel rooms like hey man,
this is this is different, this is a change, and uh,
you know, did the press conference the next day. I
met Dom for the second time. I met Dom, met Dom,
(12:10):
talked to Charlie, talked to Bobby Greer, all of those
guys here, and it was just it was such a
surreal moment, man, Like yeah, it's like I can't I
can't even describe the feeling of going that high and
all your goals, all your dreams, the first part of
them coming true, you know what I mean. Like it
(12:31):
was I remember having on my wall like this is
where I'm gonna go. Like at the time, there's only
thirty one teams when I first got into when I
first got to count, and just as my first little
minor goal, I put myself right about fifteen. I was like, yeah,
I'll go right here, just because I didn't want to
be I didn't want to be arrogans that I'm going
number one. I wrote down and I walked past it
(12:52):
every day for four and a half years in school
and then to go pick sixteen like it bought tears
tomids because I'm like, I got like I spoke this
into existence. You know what I'm saying, Like I willed
myself and manifest like manifestly put work into to get
all the things that I wanted in life, and I can't.
(13:12):
I don't regret a minute of it, Drew, I really don't.
You know every I didn't I had offish with a
hundred stacks. I had offish with ten Pro bowls. I'm
not going to all the fame, but everybody I played
with they speak highly of me. They talk about what
type of teammate I was. Yeah, you know, and that's
I'm glad you bring that up, because you know, I've
I've done this podcast now for about a year, and
(13:34):
I've talked with guys who were, you know, here in
two thousand and two. I've talked with guys who are
a little bit further down the line that got drafted,
and you sort of are a connector to guys from
the beginning and guys who were drafted just five six
years ago. I mean, you've got a wide range of
You've collected a wide range of friends. I guess you
could say, um in all this well, I mean I'm
(13:57):
very accessible, Drew, you know what I mean? And I'm I'm, I'm,
I'm open book. You know, I don't. I don't a
lot like I did a lot of none of the
young guys like I still talk, you know, every blue
moon just to to four, you know what I mean,
like just because I you know, I just as when
when Cayle and Hannah asked me to be an ambassador,
(14:18):
I took it seriously, you know what I mean. It
wasn't for me just going and and meeting with companies
and all other stuff. It meant to me as being
an ambassador of the brand. You know what I'm saying.
As far as let the kids, let the young guys
know what the standard is, Let the young guys know
what it is to be a Houston Texans. Let the
(14:38):
young guys know, you know, because around here, you know,
it was always about family. You know, it was always
you know, it was always about how you go to work,
how you go about your work, you know, And I
just want to let let them see that, you know,
and let them know like this, if it's anything you
need to talk about, man, I'm here. Man, I want
because I know, you know, for me, for we have
(15:00):
any older guys. When I got in the league, we
were the old guys. You know what I'm saying, Like
all the older guys were on the team still, you know,
or not in the league like he just was. That's
just how it was. And I want to be I
feel like the Texas can be the Pittsburgh Steelers when
we are as old as the Pittsburgh Steelers. You know
what I'm saying. Tase guys like myself, taste guys like Andre,
(15:21):
taste guys like Earl Mixell, taste guys like all the
guys before, like during that the earlier days, to embrace
the young guys and say this is how we did
things here. Yeah, we might not have won a lot
of ball games, but we had a certain standard. This
is how this type of teammate we are, this type
of work we go about because you know, one thing
(15:42):
is the media to say one thing about me as
a player, and because of statistics and all other stuff,
but nobody, everybody I played would always say, man, he
worked hard, he did everything he was asked to do,
and he was just he was just a dog in between.
He was a sideline, the sideline, no seatbelt type of guy.
And you knew you could always he had the best
ability in the world. He was dependable. Yeah, dependable, you
(16:03):
know what I mean. And you knew, you knew you're
gonna be there rainer sign hurt or not hurt. He
was gonna be the same dude all the time. And
that's what they know about me now. So that's one
of the reasons why I can relate and talk to
guys over such a long span, over the entire twenty
years of this organization. Yeah. I mean when I think
about you, I always think, you know, you're tight with
(16:25):
Andre Johnson. You're tight with Chester Pitts. Two guys who
kind of played on the same teams but very very
different personalities, very different different ways going about things. But
you're you're close with both those guys. Not to mention,
I would say hundreds of others. Yes, that played with
for the Texans. You played from oh five through oh
(16:45):
eight here in Houston. You got traded to San Diego,
you know nine, But think about that oh five one
of the franchise's worst seasons. But you're a part of
the rebuild and you're part of you know, the teams
in O seven eight that that had five hundred records
for the first time in franchise. History. You saw quite
a bit, and you saw a coaching change for the
(17:06):
first time in franchise history. You know, you were very
very much at the turning point I think of when
things changed for the Texans. Oh, yeah, no, no question.
I think that was That was the only disappointment. I
remember talking uh Burman when I got traded. Yeah, was,
And he asked, well, what do you what do your
biggest regret. I'm like, well, of course I didn't go
(17:28):
to the Pro Bowls. I didn't get to play three
technique the whole time. But I said, my biggest disappointment
is that I would that I'm not gonna be around
here when we truly become winners. You know, uh coobies
always say, man, my job is to make the team
a winner. When we should go eight and eight, he
was like, we're not losers, We're not all the way winners,
but we're in the winner's bracket. You know what I mean?
(17:50):
That's what do you say? And I can see it
because I knew how young we were, I knew how
hungry we were. I knew this team would be a
ten win, a twelve win, a fourteen win team because
of what we were doing and because of the pieces
we were putting together and because of how young we were. Yeah,
I would that was the thing are most regretted about
(18:12):
not being here was I didn't get the experience the
first playoff game, when I didn't get the experienced you know,
all of those wins on to where when people mentioned
the Texans, they were like, I'm scared of these dudes
over here. I'm scared of these guys off of Kirby.
I know that much. And you know, it was it
was different. San Diego was phenomenal, though. Man. You know,
(18:32):
if I don't get hurt, I would say the San
Diego another five years and yeah, I loved it. I
loved every minute of it. I made great friends. I mean,
right now, one of my old teammates is a d
lie coach for the Texans. Yeah, I wanted to ask
you about him. Tell me about Jacques Caesar. You guys
play together a little bit that there in San Diego.
But but this guy's impressive. Man. I don't know much
(18:53):
about him, but I was very impressed with what I
saw at his press conference, what he said about you two,
and what Lovey Smith said abou him about a week ago.
When we're with him in the combat. He's he can
do some stuff, Kenny. So we laughed because so you know,
the Chargers traded for me to start over job. They
were like, hey, we need to come here and start,
you know, because all of the D line was hurt. Uh,
(19:15):
all of D line was hurt when I got there.
And I remember the day they traded for me. Norv
Turner called me, uh, doctor Johnson for for like a week,
two week. So finally, Ig north Man, why do you
keep calling me doctor Johnson? All he because all the
training camp, the whole D line was hurt until I
traded for you, and they all were on the field
that day, and so you must have had that. And
(19:39):
so I actually started the first game there against Oakland,
and because Jock was hurt, you know as well. But
we just became such good friends, man, because you know,
I took so much of what we did with the Texans.
I took the San Diego. Uh. When I got to
San Diego, none of the guys in that locker room,
(20:00):
the guys in that in that defensive line room liked
each other. They were kind of you know, they're staying
the meeting to be quiet all day long. We were young.
I wouldn't say brash group here in Houston, but we
loved each other. We hung out every Thursday, and so
I bought that energy out there to San Diego. And
the first one like I sat next to the the job
(20:22):
and the first one that vibe with me was just like, dude,
why why are you like? You know, they questioned it
at first, they thought it was fake, and I'm like, no, dude,
I want us all to be successful. I don't have
to be a starter. I don't care that. And I
told Coach, said Coach, I don't gotta be a starter, Jock,
to start, you can started. I don't care, you know
what I'm saying. And I'm gonna st when I get
in there, I'm gonna play. I'm gonna do my job,
(20:43):
and I'm gonna ball, you know what I mean. And
Jock just looked at it like this, dude is real,
you know what I'm saying. And then then we started
hanging out, you know, we started. I started taking my
kids over his house. It just started being you know,
because I tell him, I'm like, dude, you can't win
games if you don't like each other. Now, if you
love each other, and you and you can, and you
(21:04):
and you and you love spending time with each other.
You do anything for that guy on the field, You'll
be You'll be there, and no matter what you you
just want to see him successful as much as he
wants to see you successful. And that's how our relationship
has been ever since. Even when even when I got hurt,
moren't there anymore. Joctor's still there. And guess what, we
still talk. We still hung out, you know, Uh, And
(21:26):
it's all it was from. I can't even tell you
how much I love this dude and how much like
I watched him grind. You know, when he was the USD.
I remember going down to San Diego and he's a
he's an a portable building, his coach as an assistant coach. Uh,
he's he's busting his behind in a portable building, making
(21:52):
pennies on the dollar and giving them all of work
they need. I remember, I remember he left for a year.
I went to go to coach high school ball with
his brother. Came back to USD to give him more work.
And I never forget this conversation. And he probably wanted
to tell you. This conversation me in him had this
(22:13):
is like his last year, probably the year before the
year before he went to to Buffalo and we're sitting
there talking. He's like, Man, I don't know if I
could do this see more trial. I'm like, Wow, what's up?
He said, Man, I'm I'm giving him my all. You know,
at the time, it was like, I'm giving him my all.
I know, I got so much to give to this game,
but nobody wants to hear it. I'm just giving it
(22:35):
to the USD kids, you know what I'm saying. Yeah.
And I remember talking to him on the phone, like
we could we face side. We don't like literally, me
and Jock have never called each other with a regular
ringtone and be like, hey, what you're doing. It's always facetide.
And I picked up the phone with my eyes crossed.
He picks up with his eyes crossed and uh, And
(22:55):
I told him. I said, man, guy, I got a
play for you, bro. I said, Man, you got too
much knowledge, you got too much enthusiasm. We got too
much that everybody in this league wants. And you know
one of our other teammates, uh. Jock gets an interview
with UH. I think with Brian Flora is one of
our old teammates. Was actually roommates with Brian Flores at
(23:16):
Boston College, and so Florida's interviews him for you know,
when he first gets his job, and I guess, you know,
just you know how the league is. Man, they find
out that he had that he had a job interview,
and then all of a sudden, Buffalo calls. I'm like,
look at that, dub. You didn't get that job, but
now you got another job. Now you out of the bungalow.
You know what I'm saying. Now, now you now you're
(23:38):
on the bigger, better things. And looked three years later
talking to Jock the first like the first night you
got of here, we went to dinner, Well do you
get sushi? And I'm like, dude, you know because so
now I'm interviewing Jock again, because you know we talked
all the time, right, but now I'm interviewing him like
like a coach, like talking me through, talking me through,
(23:59):
your talking me through your yo everything you talk about
what okay, tell me you you give me a coaching stuff. Well, hey, okay,
with that in mind, you've already kind of detailed his knowledge.
He's hard working, he's persevered because he was say he
was at USD. He wasn't at San Diego State. That's
a d US. It's a smaller private school produced Jim Harball.
But anyways, what are some of his traits Caesarre's traits
(24:24):
that that are so attractive? Because dang it. Levy Smith
said he interviewed well with him, and I was like,
he seems like the type of guy that's gonna interview
well with anyone. What are some of those traits that
that really set him apart that are gonna make him
a great coachy thing and have made him a great coach. Well,
you know, I always joke I tell him I myself, man,
he went the I T tech uh to go to
school because you know, I don't even know. I can't
(24:44):
even tell you where school. Jock went to one of
the directional schools. But UH stick tuitiveness. Man, Like Jock
is an undrafted free agent, Yeah that ten years in
the NFL. Jock is a guy who uh will embrace
you and love you and coach you hard. You know,
Jock is a guy who UH doesn't mind asking Hey,
(25:08):
I need help when uh when both of us will
trying to get into coaching. We were on the phone
for hours a day and I got like putting together
all little handbooks and talking about, Hey, what do you
think about this? Jocket is a guy who is gonna
you know, and it's so interesting because, uh, when I
(25:28):
was talking to him, he gave me a new word,
that gave me a new like that I've never I've
never heard before in my life. I say, man, dur individual, man,
what do you what do you do with your guys?
And he goes, I don't call it individual. I said,
you don't call it individual period, what do you call
it skill development? I'm like, I'm like, holy, Like my
(25:49):
mind was blown because I'm like, explain that to him.
He was like, man, we're developing skills man, to make
you the best defensive lignment you can bet and make
you the most money you can get, to make you,
to make you that we want you and other teams
wants you. You know, like he just when he broke
it down to me, and it was just so much,
(26:11):
so much passionate, so much thought to call it skill development.
Something has been called individual period from the beginning of time.
Like it was mind blowing that he would even put
that much time and effort into it. And I know,
like his guys like he's just he wants all these
guys because he knows what it's like to be successful
(26:31):
in his league. But he wants all these guys to
be have that same feeling of playing ten years, have
that same feeling of getting multiple contracts, have that same
feeling of winning games. He was on some of the
best charter teams ever. Yeah, you know what I'm saying.
It played a lot. So the thing that Jock had man,
and it's just loved. He loves the game, He loves
(26:53):
his friends, he loves the guys that that plays under him.
And you can't get a coach with more passion and
more knowledge. He's the smartest coach that I've ever been
around for D line play ever. And this is a
guy who played the game like like it's part. His
knowledge of the game is on a whole other platform.
(27:14):
He's an old nother stratosphere right now. And I promise
you'd be a defensive court there within the next five years.
He'll be a head coach with the next ten And
that's where I believe. That's that's how And I'm not
saying that because he's my brother, because he's my brother,
because he's my boy, I'm saying that because sitting down
with him, there's a different job right now two twenty two,
and the same in the jocket two thousand and eleven,
talking two thousand and twelve. And I hadn't noticed all
(27:37):
the way. I noticed some of it, but I hadn't
noticed until sitting actually sitting down with him at dinner.
It blew my mother loving mine. All right, Well, Travis,
we gotta take a break here because we're running out
of time. But I want to do this again with
you because we haven't. We've only scratched the surface on
stuff to talk about. You up for that some of
the time. I'm always up for it, man. You know
I'm always gaging Drew. Man. I love talking to you.
(27:59):
I could talk all day and I just man, I
really appreciate you having me. I really appreciate the Texans
having me. Yeah, and it's just hey, man, I'm always here.
Y'all know how to get ahold of the trap, Jake.
Let's do it again in a month or so. Sound good, Yes, sir,
Travis Johnson. We always love talking with you. This has
been Awhere are they now?