Green Light with Chris Long - Dan Campbell LOVES Detroit, Penei Sewell's Athleticism & Detroit Lions 2025 Outlook

Episode Date: August 26, 2025

Detroit Lions = GRIT! Dan Campbell and Penei Sewell join Chris Long at Detroit Lions training camp. MCDC gives one word to describe Lions fans - resilience. He praises Jared Goff and Jameson Williams, talks Penei Sewell and the OL's growth following some offseason changes, and learns about one of the grittiest football players of all time. Penei talks to Chris about pass blocking, toughest edge rushers in the NFL, and his ability when the ball is in his hands. (00:00) Intro (02:03) Dan Campbell on Training Camp, Lions Fans & Replacing Coordinators (24:03) Penei Sewell on the Lions OL, Playing His Brothers & Getting the Ball on Offense Have some interesting takes, some codebreaks or just want to talk to the Green Light Crew? We want to hear from you. Call into the Green Light Hotline and give us your hottest takes, your biggest gripes and general thoughts. Day and night, this hotline is open. Green Light Hotline: ‪[phone]‬ Also, check out our paddling partners at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Appomattox River Company ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠to get your canoes, kayaks and paddleboards so you're set to hit the river this summer. Green Light's ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠YouTube Channel⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, where you can catch all the latest GL action: Green Light with Chris Long: Subscribe and enjoy weekly content including podcasts, documentaries, live chats, celebrity interviews and more including hot news items, trending discussions from the NFL, MLB, NHL, NBA, NCAA are just a small part of what we will be sharing with you. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What is one word that embodies Lions fans? Resiliency, man. Yeah. They're resilient. And they don't give in. There is nothing he can't do. I've said this before. If we just made him a tight-in, I think he'd be a Hall of Fame tight-in.

Speaking of fluid, man, I've seen you with the ball in your hands. Pretty damn impressive. I appreciate it. It's fun to watch. You're not stepping out of bounds. No, I told coach, it's the only time I get the ball. I'm going to keep it as long as. I know you guys want me to throw it away, but I'm going to try to make some.

Here's one. Let me know what you think about that. Oh my God. Welcome to the Greenlight podcast presented by BetMGM. If you haven't signed up for BetMGM yet, use bonus code Greenlight. You will get up to a $1,500 first bet offer on your first wager with BetMGM. Here's how it works. Download the BetMGM app and sign up using Bonus Code Greenlight.

Deposit at least $10 and place your first wager on any game. If that bet loses, you will receive a lot. receive up to $1,500 in bonus mess. Just make sure you use bonus code greenlight when you sign up. Welcome to the Greenlight podcast. We've got a grid episode for you. Dan Campbell Penae Soule at the Detroit Lions training camp. Chris has a great time with both fellas.

Incredible insight to the Lions, their 2025 outlook. Boy, do they look like a good team. These guys can play. And they're on a mission if you're falling short than playoffs last year. Hey coach, Dan Campbell. How you doing, coach? I'm doing good. Live on the show this time.

I know. I know. In person. I was set offline. I said, I lied to our listeners, said I was going to try to arm wrestling. And I saw you in person. I think I'll take the day off. Well, I saw you in person, so I think I will too.

So let's just make, well, we'll have a pack. That's a truce. Yeah, brother. Do you, you got to love this. I mean, this time of year. You seem like a training camp guy. Like, you get lost in the grind a little bit, I'm sure. Yeah, I love.

up training camp, you know, this is really where, as you know, you develop your team. You know, you've got a core foundation. You know the guys you're going to rely on for the most part, but you just need to know they still got it, right? They still know what it takes. And then some of these pups you're going to have to rely on or new free agents, getting them up to speed, and then collectively us working from the ground back up. And so I love that part of it. As a former player, when you're out there on the grass, sometimes I'll catch myself missing it when I'm real close to it. Yeah.

What period of practice makes Dan Campbell say, man, I wish I put that helmet on again. Well, look, I, the nine on seven is, I always love nine on seven because there is no, you know, there's no boots, there's no play pass. There's no, everybody knows it's run, right? It's nine on seven. That's what I did when I played. So I appreciated it. You know, not everybody loved that, but I loved it.

So I do miss that sometimes, but I also know something would fall off. Something would fall right off. Yeah, it'd be laying out there on the grass. But nine on seven, simple. Simple. Yeah, it's man on man. It's man on man. You find out who can win.

Especially when it's early in the morning. Yeah, that's right. Yeah. That's exactly right. Yeah. What do you get out of these joint practices? I heard you talk about the respect that you have for Domeco. I know it's mutual with these two programs.

What do you get out of it and when do you and Dimeco and Nick possibly get together and say, hey, this is what we want out of our looks. This is what we want out of our practices. This is how we're going to sculpt this thing so we get the most out of it, you know, mutually. Yeah, well, we, you know, this was something that, man, early February, maybe a week after the Super Bowl, somewhere in there where, you know, I made a call to him

because I wanted him to come out if they were willing to do it. And I know to get out of that Texas heat, you know, they would probably be open to it. You know, I just, I wanted an opponent that I knew was going to test us. and force us to get better. I mean, you have no choice, man. That unit over there, the way they're coached, the way they run, the way they hit, the way they practice, they're disciplined.

I mean, the whole thing, D'Amico's unbelievable. So I knew this would be good for it. It's a different scheme, you know, on both sides of the ball that we're not accustomed to all the time. But really, the nuts and bolts of it, we kind of wrap up in May, to be honest with you. You know, I'll send him a script. He sends me a script. Like, hey, here's what we normally do.

Here's what I do. let's kind of collectively come together and say what we like, what we don't. And so it was easy. It really was easy. I mean, for the most part, we practice very similar. And the periods that we did out here are things that we both believe in. Yeah. Your team's got an edge.

You know that. Everybody knows it. I think they got an edge, too. Yes. That's what makes this fun to watch. You as a coach, you've always had an edge, I'm sure, as a player. But programmatically, did you pick up something from every stop as a player, or is a lot of it, Sean Payton?

Because Sean, I know you guys have a special relationship. And I just always, when we played New Orleans, they had that edge about them. And it's an unmistakable kind of a Sean Peyton, fuck you, let's line up and do it. You know, look at him over on the sidelines, that's his persona. Do you get that edge from Sean or is it a little bit from everybody? Well, certainly I would think most of who I am is from Sean because I did. I mean, I played for him for seven years. I coached under him for five years.

And so so much of what I've taken is from him. But I also played under Bill Parcells. And a lot of what Sean Payton had become was Coach Parcells. On top of some of the John Gruden, right, the schematics, the way you play, the way you attack on offense, the way you play defense. And so, you know, I think those certainly have shaped who I am or the way I think, the way I believe. But also, I've been, look, I've had some rough years too. I've had rough years as a player. I've had rough years as a coach.

And you also know what not to do. And I think that is beneficial as well, man. You know pretty quick what it is that'll lose a team or things that don't work or things that you know you can do better. I think that helps too. Absolutely. Yeah. I can speak from experience seeing the basement in the penthouse myself.

You know what I'm saying? Yes, you know. So, yeah, that's valuable. And it's probably a privilege. to be at this stage where you've earned the right to replace coordinators. You guys have two challenges there, but great coaches. I've heard you talk about John and Kelvin. How does that process go?

I know you're never thinking when you're in it. You want to be, you know, where your feet are, but you're not, you're probably thinking ahead to, like, is it a year out? Like, hey, I might have to replace Ben. Is it, hey, John's my guy. Let me start talking to him about what it's going to be like. Or do you kind of reserve that till the process starts? Well, I know, I would say this has always kind of been in my head for a while. I thought, honestly, I thought after 21 our first year, there was a chance I was going to lose AG.

Yeah. So I was already, it was already there defensively. And then after 2022, I thought I was going to lose Ben. Yeah. So it happened pretty quick, like, all right, man, what is my contingency plan if this goes down? And defensively, there again, it was, Kelvin Shepard always just felt right. to me. And so, you know, I talked to Aegee. I said, let's put more on his plate every year. We promoted him to inside linebackers after his first year. He learned under Dom Capers, unbelievable coach.

Legend. Panthers fan growing up. There you go. Yeah, you know. So, and then just gave him more responsibility. You know, he was, he was with that, the D-line for a significant amount of time with the backers, our rush plans, third down, things of that nature, understands coverage. And so we just put more and more on his plate. Offensively, man, I had, I had a few guys that I was really high on that I think are pretty good, man. And John Morton was here with us in 22, and we're really kind of from the same background offensively. You know, Sean Peyton, we coached together. That always helps when you've been with somebody, you know them. He went back with Sean at Denver, but he was always on my radar. I knew if this came up, he could easily come back and would slide

right into that spot. He knew our guys. He understands what I want to do, how I want to do it. He's a grinder. That's right here. Yeah, he's a grinder. He does, but it's, it's, it's, uh, it's not very long. It's not very long, man. He's, uh, I'd be shocked if he gets more than four hours of sleep a night. I don't know.

It's impressive. Yeah, he's, he's a grinder. Yeah, they say he's a film junkie. He is. He just eats it up, man. He's, he's got a million ideas. Yeah. And with Kelvin being a younger guy, you had a chance to coach him in Miami.

Yeah. Briefly, uh, when, when you, when you were the interim there. Did you see a coach in him when you coached him? Absolutely. Yeah? Absolutely. I didn't know what he was going to do. He was in the middle of playing.

Right. I mean, he's still in his prime. But I knew one day if that guy wanted to coach, he'd be a great coach. Yeah. Because he was the way he communicated on defense, the way he, man, he made the calls. He knew what the coordinator was thinking. Man, he was a leader. He was balls of the wall, go get it, finisher on every play.

Like, he, every guy. in that locker room respected the hell out of him and he knew football man he knew football super sharp and so to me it's just a matter if he wants to do it or not because if he does he's going to be great at it i heard a a cool story where kelvin came to you and said hey i want to be in your chair one day and he asked you should i cut my hair which is a ridiculous thing that we even have to talk about but what did you say to him yeah well i i didn't even hesitate i said fuck no yeah you'd be look great. I said, no. You know, and I get the, to me, like, you don't need to play that game in the NFL, man. If you can coach and you know what you're doing and the way you speak, the way you talk,

your knowledge, the way you get along with people, they'll see through. Your hair doesn't matter. It doesn't matter. No, no. And honestly, like, I think you hit on something with when you said, hey, what was one of the first things you saw on him, like communication, social intelligence. That's right. Isn't that what being a coach and leaders about? That's, that's one, 100% what it's about. I mean, that is the job. That is the job. If you can't communicate and you don't know how to get your point across to the players to pull the most out of them, to the owner, to the GM, to the other coaches, you've got an issue. Yeah. Your ability to communicate with guys, I'm sure it's rooted at least in part in being a player and having been in those situations, but I watched

you maybe your first year, maybe hard knocks or something. And you were telling the guys like, hey, I'm going to kick your ass tomorrow. I just wanted you to know it's going to be a it's going to be a long day. But it's because of this. This is why I'm doing it. You know, like if you give us the why, we're going to respond. Yeah. And I think, I think you nailed it. And I do. It's, you know, don't you want to just know why? I mean, whether you like it or not, if you give me the why, I'll tell you who's the best about that. Jared golf. Like, it didn't matter what it is, but it could be a play. Why do we want to do this, this situation? And it's, and he'll, you give him the why? And he's totally got it.

Oh, yeah. Oh, I got it. Yeah. Makes total sense. But if you don't, it's like, I don't understand. I just need to know why. Yeah. That's a player thing, too, I think.

I think it is too. And so whatever we do and the coaches know that, I mean, we always give them the why. Because I do think it's important. You can always respect the why. Exactly. And the why might be like, hey, I don't want you yelled at. I'm the D-Line coach. I need you fitting up here.

Just be in your fucking gap. You know what I'm saying? Right. We used to wear our D-line coaches out with the why, why, why? And the good coaches have answers. They don't hide behind just because. That's right. As a player, and I haven't been able to coach, but like, you go through so much bullshit,

365 for the little moments. Yes. That's why you play. That's why you coach. Yes. And I wonder for you what your favorite part of a post-game experience is after a win. Man, it's probably that. Just being in that locker room with those guys for that short moment,

because especially as a coach, it doesn't last long. No. My wife could tell you that. As soon as you're on the bus. That's right. It doesn't last long. Like you only get, and sometimes like when we're on the road, speaking of that, the bus, the plane, like I may just say, you know what, I'm not going to turn this tape on until I get home or whatever. I just want to enjoy this, this ride in this chair. Soak it up. This wind, just for this short hour, whatever, two hours this is because it doesn't last long.

But that's the special part to see like, you. you guys, man, excited. You know, they made the plan come to life. They made the plays. And it's just the best. It's the best. That's why I love watching y'all's post games because you really live it that way, like a player, you know what I mean?

And I can remember when I played Jeff Fisher and Dave McGuinness, they used to have a cold beer in the bag. Oh, that's great. Things have changed now. They have. So talking about some of the great players you have, Penae Sewell, I think he's as transformative a guy out front as there is in a league, because of what he can do in the run game schematically.

Is there one thing over a couple years with him that you're like, damn, only he can do that. We asked him to do this and only this guy can do it. Well, I would answer only he can do everything. Yeah. That's probably would be my answer. There is no limitation on him. Like there's things, you know,

whether it's the screen game, it's the run game, as you talk about the one-on-ones, turn the whole protection, just let him go one-on-one, jumbo, make him a jumbo tight in, let him throw, hand him a reverse. There is nothing he can't do. I've said this before. If we just made him a tight in, I think he'd be a Hall of Fame tied in. It's crazy. I mean, he is a freakish athlete, just nimble, nimble athletic can do it all. And it's one of those things. It's no different than you do with, like we do with our personal, man, we got St. Brown, you got Jamo, you got Gibbs, you got, but like he's, he's very much a part of that.

Like he allows us to do so much schematically. That's really, you know, he's part of this secret sauce, man. We can do a lot. We can do the G. We can do the wide zone scheme. We can do gap. We can do the pin and pull. We can do crack tosses.

I mean, and that's really because of him. And you usually get a front row seat of seeing him speed bump a DB. Oh, my gosh. You're not going to maneuver out of his way. What was that? Was that a bug on the windshield? With JMO, you guys seem to have a special relationship. because of what he's been through and you've had his back at every turn in the road.

I know there were some hiccups in the beginning and injuries. It probably felt like opening a late Christmas present, seeing him, you know, take that end around against New Orleans. Where was the first time where you stood there and you were like, holy shit, he has arrived? Oh, man. Well, honestly, I would probably say, you know, I would probably say late 23. You know, when we started to make our run, got into the playoffs. You know, he made some plays at San Francisco, really in that kind of stretch.

But then I was like, okay, man, he's figuring it out now. He's starting to figure it out. He's buying into everything. You know, the armor is dropped. He's all in. And he has grown so much. Like, no player has developed more as a player and just as a teammate. like J-Mo has in his really, I guess, going on four years.

And I'm proud of the kid, man, you know, and I love what he's made of. And he doesn't hide it. He is who he is. But, man, he is all in. He's all in with his team. And he loves the guys next to him. And his sucker plays hard, man. He'll mix it up in the run game.

He's explosive on the perimeter. And I just, I love where he's where he's at right now. Yeah. We get Jack Campbell a little bit. That's a big, big SOB. Yeah. They listen at 6-5 or something. Yeah, he's big man.

When you guys draft him, are you like, man, it's a bit of a throwback build for a backer, like, you know, is a little, like, what was the calculus with Jack Campbell? Well, it was, honestly, it was as simple as, all right, you're up. Who is one of the best players still on this board for us? And it was Jack Campbell. Like, and we loved him. We loved him from the time we met him at the Combine.

Highly intelligent, man, football. Like, he knows it, you know, he can solve problems. run, hit, Keen Diagnose. And so it was, just as a starting point, look, man, this guy's going to be able to play first, second down. And then we'll see what he can do in third down truly. And he's really grown in his coverage. But there'll be things, too.

We keep him in the hole, let him, you know, he'll be our whole player on some stuff and bang away there. We'll send him on some pressures. But he has improved in his coverage. And really, he doesn't come off the field for us right now. He just does too much for us. He's a valuable player. Is there a position that Brian Branch can't play?

No. No. No, he can't. That dude is like Swiss Army knife. You throw that around, but that's him. He is. And I mean, his versatility, there is nothing he can't do. And I'm not so sure he can play receiver if we really asked him to, to be honest with him.

But no, he can play the nickel, play safety. He can go outside. He just said, go play the corner for the rest of this game. We'll just play man. You got him. And he can do it. Who's a rookie that excites you the most? I know Ratlidge has caught your eye and Tesla's caught my eye.

I mean, that dude plays hard. He does. He plays hard. hard, real good athlete, long. He's got the ability to go up. You know, he's made some plays in training camp here. I know it's early, but it's hard to say who the most is. I'm probably the most intrigued right now with Ratledge, knowing where our old line is. Yeah. You know, losing, losing Zeitler and certainly losing Ragnow. That was a big one. And so we had to replenish. And, and it's, there's going to be a lot put on this kid. And so he's the one right now. I've got

my eyes on. I got them on all of them, but I am. This kid. This kid. I'm intrigued and we're going to need him to really step up. I'm curious if you've heard the term Honolulu flu. I don't know if I've heard that. So last year we started tracking your opponents the week after they play y'all. Okay. And they were struggling. And so your fans caught wind of this and they called it the Honolulu flu.

Y'all give people the flu. You take some pride in the possibility that people are hurting a little bit after they play y'all. Well, I don't, you know, listen, I don't know any of the I don't want to jump on that one. Listen, we play a certain style of ball. We play to win, and then we're on in the next game. So to each of their own. And he's being humble about it.

I think it hurts after you played the Lions. I got to feel like the time you played Houston last year, when golf very uncharacteristically, been a hell of a QB for you all. Throws five picks, everything goes wrong, and you find a way to win. Yeah. Is there a little party where you get a little sick pleasure and getting on the bus saying, guys, this is how good we can be. Yeah, yes, because first of all, our defense played lights out.

Lights out, yeah. They really, they're the ones who kept us in that game, gave us the ability to come back and win it. But I also say this, once it's done, you know you're going to have to clean it up, but you're also like, man, we had to have a win like this. Like, you have to go through a season and have one or two of those because there's a good chance you get in the playoffs.

You're going to have to do the same thing. You know, everything's going to be stacked against you. things aren't going right you got to find a way to get out of yeah and find a way to win so actually you know now that it was over it was like man that that's probably exactly what we needed in the moment flying a little close to the sun but that it is for sure yeah all right so i got some fun ones for you this is my grab bag of research items well this is one i was going to ask you man you're a big metallica fan are you an unforgiven or unforgiven too guy Unforgiven.

I'm an unforgiven two guy. Really? But they're both great. They're both great. Man, these guys, they just evolved through time. They're like these, you know, these, the rolling stones. They just continue to reinvent themselves. Yeah.

They're unbelievable. My buddy was in Blacksburg when they went there. Oh, yeah. And I hate that because, you know, being a Virginia guy, they used to kick our ass and play on her sandmen. But, okay, so the other rumor here is in 2002, Dan Campbell and John will enjoy three pints of telentee gelato nightly down to one pint in two thousand twenty three nightly now i have it on good authority that there's some truth in this rumor so where

are we at now big fella there's not a word i can say my proofs back so where are we at with the telenti oh man what if it's not telenti what if it's something else yeah i don't know well man i i i did I trimmed way down, but I would say it's come back up over the last probably six, seven months. Yeah. It's probably three-ish. It's probably close to three. What's your flavor?

I'm a vanilla guy, man. Straight up vanilla or vanilla caramel swirl, you know? That's pretty good. Yeah, that's a good one. All right. So for you, who's the grittiest football player of all time? When you think about the great, you know, that's a word that's synonymous with your Lions team, who's the grittiest football player of all time?

and then I have somebody for your consideration. Man, of all time? Yeah. Any team? Yeah. Any error? Any... That's a very subjective question.

The grittiest. Man, that's tough. Can I give you two? Sure. One, because I played tight in. I loved it Mark Mavaro. Yeah. And he'd be one.

Ronnie Lott would be the other. Cut a finger off. Yeah. Here's one. Let me know what you think about that. Oh. Oh. Oh.

my god could you read that for the people if you read that shitty hand right 20 plus concussions 20 plus concussions 20 what is it 20 times he broke his nose yeah broken nose 20 20 times right broken ribs broken jaw broken what is this one broken all his oh my god all his fingers broke all his teeth you need a jim auto poster oh my in this facility this is crazy 200 plus stitches. All right. Numerous knees, shoulder, elbow injuries led to 74 operations.

Okay, this is, yeah, he's a badass. Oh, yeah, dude. It's Jim, Otto. Oh, my God. I was way off. All right. Last one.

What is one word that embodies lions fans? Because it feels like, hey, you're from, like, down south. There's a lot of cultural differences. You probably never spent a lot of time up here other than when you played. Yeah. But why do y'all connect so much? Resiliency, man. Yeah.

They're resilient. They are resilient people. And, man, they don't give in. They don't give in, and they just keep going back. You know, nothing's easy up here. Yeah. That's awesome. It's a perfect fit.

It's a perfect fit. Really enjoy watching your team. Man, I appreciate you, man. A huge fan of yours. Always have been. And you did it right. And it's always, always. My pleasure to speak to you.

Much respect, brother. Hey, back at you, man. That's what I was saying. Appreciate it. Thanks, brother. Yep. Arm wrestling. All right, I'm here with one of the premier tackles in today's NFL.

He makes the whole thing go here, in my opinion. Penae Soule. Welcome to show. Thank you for having me. Yeah, man. How's camp? It's been good. A bunch of new faces.

Yeah. So just trying to build that relationship with each and every one of them and trying to get them under our wing and get them on the program. How long does it take to get on the same page, especially when you're replacing the center? Is it a couple weeks in the camp, are you still working the kinks out? No, I think we're at a good place. Really?

Especially with Glasgow, he's been here for three years now. So he came back. So I think him being at center, just we never skipped the beat. Yeah. That's a lot because we lost a guy like Frank. Who handles the protections mostly? Graham. Graham does.

So he feels pretty good just sliding in and doing that. Oh, yeah, he's a student of the game. So he's one of the best. What do you like about Rattledge? hear Dan talk about him and you know he's popped a little bit like what do you like about his game that makes him pro ready yeah I think he came into the league uh relatively polished already in terms of past pro and uh run game I think just the thing for him is now is that mental aspect of it uh in terms of play calls and uh for him to just slow that part down so he can go out there and go back

to at the end of day I just tell him it's just football yeah like the more the more times you complicated in your in your mind you're just going to make it that much faster was there any part of the jump that was big for you i mean you played so good right off the bat but was there anything you noticed right off the bat about the difference in the pro game the rushes you see yeah i mean everyone was very technical with their hands yeah and they're very accurate so once you once you i think you got to see it first it's something that at the end of the day coaches try to coach about it but if you can't really see it and get those reps it's hard to like really replicate that and try to, I guess, block it and counter the moves on it.

So I think we have a great group of D-Lyman that gives him those looks, and he's been able to grow. Yeah, you all got a great group up front, and then you're practicing against Houston right now, and that was some damn good on good out there. We were watching what's going against the front like that? How does that help? And then also with joint practices, I remember I always used to, like,

get bored seeing the same tackle set every day. Yeah. You're seeing the same guy every day. Is it nice to see a change up? No, yeah, it's honestly perfect because you get so used to, just in my case, Hutch and Davenport, that when you go against another guy, it changes a little bit. Yeah.

Their speed off the ball is different. Their moves are different. Their body types and movements are different. So being able to see those reps and go against De Niel and Will today was really good for me. Oh, the studs. Man, really good players. Dude, De Nile looks like he's like a G.I. Joe, bro. Yeah, one of our guards.

guard said it's the first time he saw him and it's like he's he's he's got veins on veins it's crazy crazy yeah I told him already I was like yeah he's he's I've been playing against him since Minnesota so yeah no absolutely who are some of the rushers in the league that you've had battles with that you really respect then he was one of them just because uh yeah just like I said since Minnesota we've been going at it yeah and uh he's very technical with his hands and his rush max crosbie's another one he's just one of those slippery guys and always going Like there's not a rep that he takes off. What makes him slippery?

Is it the hips? Is it just his ability kind of? I think one, it's just like how fluid he moves in his just overall body movement. Yeah. And then yeah, just like you said, those hips, he's able to like flip those hips at crazy speed. So, and it's just like it's all tied in together. It's not like he's stiff. And it's like his hands are one.

And then his hips like turn later, they're all together. Speaking of fluid, man, I've seen you with the ball in your hands. Pretty damn impressive. I appreciate it. It's fun to watch. When somebody gives you the call, said, hey, you're going to catch the ball by the pylon this play. Do you get nervous about being out?

Like, you know, they say it's the toughest catch in football. Yeah. Do you get nervous in the huddle? Yeah, there's like that, there's probably like that two to three seconds where I hear the play call. Oh, shit. And my heart rate just spikes right there. And then once we're out in the formation,

everything just quiet sounds down. So I just try to, at the end of the day, I just tell myself it's football. So I think you caught the ball in, like, the right sideline last year, and you were doing it, You were like making moves, like for real. So, yeah, that one was against Chicago.

Chicago. I was supposed to throw it. But you're not stepping out of bounds. No, I told coach, I was like, yeah, this is the only time I get the ball. I'm going to keep it as long as soon. I know you guys want me to throw it away, but I'm going to try to make some.

Yeah, that's cool, man. What do you get more pleasure out of dumping a D-Limon and pass protection getting them on the ground or speed bump in a D-B? D-Liaming. Really? Yeah. Yeah.

I mean, I feel like D-B. B's like they're just smaller. So I mean, you just gotta, if he's gotta be athletic enough to slow down your feet and get hands on at the end of day, but a D-Lyman, they're same strength, same everything. So I feel like if you're able to get them on the ground, it's more of an achievement. And then you can do the slip and slide on them.

No, I don't like to do all that. You don't like doing that? It's a little disrespectful. It's just like next play. That shit makes me feel so emasculated, bro. Nah, I feel like it's just unneeded. So, yeah. I mean, you already got them on the ground.

Yeah. Just go get the next one. He's a good dude right here. I like this dude. What about John Morton, man? Like, what's the biggest similarity and what's the biggest difference between him and Ben? To be honest, I think they're just two different,

two different guys. I mean, I guess the similarity is like their, and their mindset about coming each and every day and getting better. Yeah, but the scheme is a scheme. Yeah, there's a lot of the bones that you've gotten used to. Honestly, our identities are identities.

If you're broke, don't fix it. Yeah, exactly. Yeah, yeah. Do y'all have a fine system in the O-Line room? A lot of O-Line rooms have fine systems. No, we don't. No. Really?

Yeah, honestly, we just, there's no need. They got their, they got to bring snacks. They got to fill the fridge, but that's about that. You treat the rookies pretty good. Oh, we try to. What's the toughest building to go play at and be, you know, have your operation stay clean, like, you know, silent count and everything, communication. I guess this is as simple as what's the loudest place you play?

Because, I mean, you played at Oregon, and that's a loud-ass place. I mean, I like Minnesota. Yeah. Yeah, Minnesota, they get really loud. Yeah. They got the skull clap going on. I got the drums. And honestly, I feel like I get hyped off of it.

So it's always fun going there. Yeah. Do you kind of play the game with the jump? Are you off like a tick early? You know, like my boy Lane. Oh, I mean, yeah, whatever advantage I can get. Those guys are like, hell yeah. But nowadays, the D.N.

It's been like four or five, four. So it's just like I'm backpelling already. Yeah. I got to get any advantage. So, yeah, keying into that cadence, I'm in there. Has your technique changed? Sorry, we've been pausing all week. Yeah.

Crazy. I do. I'm worse. Whoa. Whoa. Has your technique changed? Since you got in, like, your punch, did you have to change, like, the way you set or punch at any point in your career?

Have you kind of just built off of what you do? Oh, yeah. Honestly, it's not, like, changing. It's almost like adding independent hands and then, like, looping the hands. at the same time keeping my hands tight until he throws something. So it's just like adding all those into my, I guess, arsenal is what I've been doing instead of like changing anything. Yeah.

Because I feel like if I'm, I don't want to be a robot out there. Yeah. You know, I don't want to throw him the same thing each and every time. Even my feet, sometimes I'll change my angles and then use my athletic to my advantage. Does Hank, I mean, I play with Hank Fraley. How does he help being a former player? Like, does it help to have a guy that can actually say, I know what that feels like, but you got to try this technique?

Or, you know, what are the, what are the, the draws of having Hank Freyley in the room? Oh, it's good. Yeah. At times, I would kind of get, um, a little fancy with my, I guess, technique. Yeah. And he just keeps it real with me. He's like, I think you'd be better off just doing the basics on this one, on this specific rep. So, yeah, he's been good.

He watches every little details in terms of my hips. and my outside foot and my hand. So, yeah, it's been a real great help. So we got one thing in common, football family. You know, my brother played in the league and got a chance to play against him. He actually, in joint practices one time, he actually cracked my rib. So that was kind of fucked up. Yeah, that's, yeah.

But I beat him across his face and he whipped his arm around. Oh, big S-O-B. Yeah. Crack my rib. When you play against Noah, you know, eventually, which sounds like it might happen, And what's that going to be like, you know, or, you know, is it going to be any tension around it or is it going to be just like, hey, it's love. We can hang out before the game, chit-chat, and then go play.

Yeah. I mean, I kind of had a taste of it last year or two years ago, actually, with my older brother. It was like a gap scheme and I had to come. It was just me and him. Yeah. Like, I didn't have anyone down to take care of first. I just went straight to him. And at first, I didn't know how to fit it. I didn't know if he was going to rock, like put his head down and really go in or try to make me miss. So yeah, he put his chin down and just rocked. And I was like, okay, now I see what it is. From there on, it's all, it's just about business.

At the end of the day, he's got a job to do for his team. I got mine. So I think right then and there, I knew that we just, we just got to do our job. It's gonna be a lot of tickets. You gotta buy Chicago week. That game will be a lot of split jerseys. Hell yeah, the split jerseys.

Yeah, as long as they're not, yeah, picking aside, So this is what's so interesting to me is like you moved at 12 years old to Utah from American Samoa. Is that right? It was 12. What was your football background, if any, at that point? Honestly, I had a lot. My dad was a head coach for a high school team there. Yeah. And since I could remember anything. Yeah. Yeah. My memory's back at home. It's really just all about football. I was able to be around practice with his varsity players. Yeah. See them run through drill, see them hit. And I was just really amazed. And it was just following everything that they did and the physical game aspect of the game.

And that was really it, just the physical part of it. The mental part just came later. Well, I looked up your hometown. Pago Pago Pago Pago? That's like the nearest hometown? Yeah. Okay. So how many people you think in that town?

Like a couple thousand? Yeah, very small. So everybody knows everybody. It said notable people from Pago Pago. There were like eight NFL players, bro. Yeah. What is it about that area? What is it about y'all dudes that make you fit to be out here at such a high clip when it's not like, I don't think about high school football there.

But obviously there's a football, there's football taking roots there. And y'all are like some of the best players in the league. What is it that you guys have in common? Is it a cultural thing? Is it a talent thing? I think it just starts off with like our build. Yeah, we're all just naturally big. It goes back to my memories back at home.

And I said this in another interview, the physical aspect of the game. If you compare high schools from there to here, I think it's night and day. Really? Yeah. To be honest, it's all about who can hit the hardest and who's willing to put their head down and just hit. Yeah. So at play after play. Yeah.

So I think over time, that kind of builds the players. Even myself, I remember I played at 10 years old. And the little league just started there. And it was like 13, 14-year-olds. Yeah. And they were just huge. I remember I was playing a linebacker, and a 14-year-old running back just came and just put his head down and ran me over. Yeah.

And right then in there, I was like, yeah, this is different. And I think, but it built me to who I am today. And I think just those two things and how we were built and the physical aspect. Also the coolest teammates. Yeah, I mean, I guess we're all similar in terms of like personality. Cool as hell, man. Honestly, dude. Did y'all have Kava there?

Oh, it's everywhere. We used to have Kava Hour. Yeah, I mean, it's making this way. Who man, Huma Nahu, used to come and CJ I'll use those guys. Yeah. He's coming with the Gatorade, the bucket. We'd be in camp. Have you introduced Kava Hour here?

So I have a couple of Polynesians, really Tongans that are in the locker room, man. His name is Natanemuti. Yeah. And yeah, he brings the bucket. That's a good little vibe, man. Every Friday in the season. So what's your big goal for this year? Is there personal improvement?

Obviously, there's team goals. What do you have your sights set on? We can start a personal. Personal is just to be consistently great, you know, just each and every down with the same production. And just trying to put my team in a position to win at the end of the day. And then as a team, we just got to get there. Yeah. We got to get there.

And then once we get there, is take care of business. Oh, yeah. Well, man, stay healthy. Have a great year. Thank you. It's been a lot of fun watching you. Appreciate you having me here. Play the right way, dude.

Thank you. Play like a D. Lyman. I try to, you know. I love that.