(via NFL Communications)
(on the journey this season) “It means everything. From being cut to going through my trials and tribulations throughout the season and now to be a world champion – I’m blessed. I’m blessed to be a part of this organization. My teammates for welcoming me, helping me become a better person and a better man, so I appreciate these guys.”
(on his mentality tonight) “Tom preached all week that they’re [Chiefs] are first in the league in yards after carries and yards after catch too. They’re run defense wasn’t that good so I take pride in that - knowing those guys don’t want to tackle and sometimes you make a guy miss, but at the same time punch them in the mouth and at the end of the game they’re not going to want to tackle and that’s exactly what happened.
(on the key to running through the defense) “It wasn’t just me. The line, the coaches took the time out and we really went over their defense and their guys. Some guys tackle low, some guys are hit and miss, and you just have to study film to understand who you’re playing against and understand your opponent.”
(on going from Jacksonville to the Super Bowl) “I don’t have to say too much. You all know, we all know. I’m just blessed so I’m going to leave it there.”
(on Tom’s preparation and keeping everyone focused) “It felt great, just knowing his resume and understanding why he wins. All week he made us believe we were going to win. He texted us at 11 o’clock at night saying we will win this game. We believed in him and we believed in the play calling, what the coaches were calling, and we just ran with it.”
(on his playoff performances) “It felt good. I appreciate coach B, coach T-Mac, coach B-A for keeping me fresh. I’m 200-less carries than what I had, and I’m just blessed. I just thank my teammates and this organization for having me and bringing me in.”
(on expecting to win) “We know their offense is good, their defense is good, but you have to bring the fight to guys. That’s what we did as a whole – not just the offense, but the defense, the special teams. Without their hitting or making plays, I don’t know what more to say. We came out, we fought our tails off and we came out with the W.”
(on having a guy like Tom Brady in the locker room) “To have a guy like that next to me in the backfield, he has a resume he understands the game, he practically has played against every defense you could throw at him. We understood the first time they beat us we weren’t really ready for it, but the second time he was on point. He was telling us what to expect, he was telling us that they’re not very good at tackling. They were 31st in tackling yards after catch, yard after run and we just believed in his game plan and ran with it.”
(on Tom’s belief in the offense) “He has a certain for those plays, who he knows. He’s battled against me; he’s battled against AB too. He just knows what we bring to the game and how we can help him in the long run. That’s what we did, he kept faith in us throughout the whole season. I’m just blessed to be next to this man. He is the goat – he is the greatest player to ever play, and I can tell my kids I played with that man, and I’m just blessed.”
(on the process that brought him to Tampa) “It’s crazy. It’s a great story that I can tell my kids about keeping faith, staying focused, a whole bunch of things. It was a tough year for me. As a competitor you want to be out there, you want to compete. You want to play as hard as you can and help the team. In some games I didn’t get a chance to help anyone, but in the long run playoff Lenny came alive and I’m just blessed. I thank God each and every day that the Bucs gave me a second opportunity to play football and the game that I love and I’m just thankful.”
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