BRYAN KEHL
2008 Fourth Round Draft Selection
Friday, May 09, 2008
Q: How did the first day go?
A: First day in the books. It was
good. I enjoyed it. It went really well.
Q: Talk about the work you did
today, obviously a lot of work on specials, right?
A: Yeah, we did. We started off
practice with the special teams and the middle of practice we stopped
and did special teams work. It is kind of different transferring from
NCAA to the pro level. Special teams are really a big part of both
games but because the roster is so much smaller everybody has to take
part. So I'm excited to be a part of that
Q: Coach Coughlin said he made
the point to you guys that free agents played a lot of special teams
slots last year. So obviously you have to show that you can do that.
A: Yeah, I expect to be probably
on all phases of the special teams come Week One. So I have to get
ready to go.
Q: You and Jonathan (Goff) seem
to have a lot in common.
A: Yeah, we were just sitting and
talking about that - engineering degree. Yeah, very similar - met him
at the Shrine Game. He is a solid guy. It is great to be playing
with him.
Q: Construction site out back.
A: I think he is a little further
on in the degree than I am. So he probably understands that more than
I would.
Q: What was it like as you guys
approached the draft? Did you have any sense that you would be
selected by the Giants?
A: Just a little bit. At the
Combine we had formal interviews. And so there were six teams that I
had one of those with. Giants were one of them. So I thought that
maybe it would be one of those six teams. It is so great - the
interview that I had with the Giants. And I was excited to come here
- the Super Bowl champs. I can never complain about that. I didn't
really expect it but I thought I would be possible.
Q: Your family has a pretty
rich tradition playing at BYU. Tell me about your two years off from
football.
A: LBS Mission - it is not
mandatory. It is optional. And it was something that I always wanted
to do. I have four older brothers and they all did it. My father did
it. So it was something I wanted to do from a young age. You go when
you are 19. You get called anywhere in the world. I got called to
Canada and was there for two years. You are away from you family.
You get four phone calls home in those two years. All of the other
communication is just letters. Your whole purpose is just to serve
the people of that area. So it was a great experience for me.
Q: When you have to take the
two years off, did you ever think, "Okay, I'm going to lose some
interest from different teams." Or do you every think you are going
to lose your football ability during those years off?
A: Honestly, that is the risk you
take. Some guys --- coming from BYU we had about 70 guys who went on
and did that mission. And there are some guys you will see before and
then they leave, they come back. You see after the come back that
they have definitely lost an edge. But there are some guys who will
leave, they will come back and they will just pick up right where they
left off. And I was blessed and privileged to be able to leave and
keep in pretty good shape and came back and picked up right where I
left off.
Q: What is your mindset going
into this season with the Giants? They have lost a couple of
linebackers. So how do you see yourself fitting into this team?
A: I'm just one of those types of
players who will do whatever is asked of me. So I think it is a great
situation because you can come in and compete. But when it comes down
to it, I'm just going to do everything that is asked of me. If that
is play, I'll play. If it is special teams, I'll do whatever they ask
me.
Q: How do you see yourself,
strong side, weak side, where do you think you strength lies?
A: It is just wherever they ask me
to play. In college I played the 3-4. So it is quite a bit
different. I'm starting to adjust to this 4-3 stacked alignment. And
so right now I'm at SAM. It feels great. And so, I don't know.
Q: What do you think is going
to be the biggest adjustments for you going from 3-4 to 4-3?
A: I would say just the angle. In
the 3-4 I was always locked out. You are coming at a different angle
and so now I'm kind of stacked with the d-line in front of me as
opposed to the side of me. But that is probably the biggest
difference right there.
Q: Giants trading up to draft
you.
A: Yeah, I approached that. It
definitely was. It was something that I took notice of. And you have
to recognize and with that comes a high responsibility that is, if you
will, a higher investment. I think they expect to get more out of me
and I expect to give more.
Andre' Woodson
2008 Sixth Round Draft Selection
Friday, May 09, 2008
How has the first day been?
So far today it has been pretty
good. Obviously the speed of the game just changes a lot and there is
a lot more talent so right now I think all of us are just trying to
pick up this playbook. There is a lot of different verbal use so I
think once we get that down we will be pretty good. For just the
first day of practice I think it went pretty well.
How tough is it to comprehend
the playbook in a short amount of time?
It is pretty tough because the
coaches obviously are throwing a lot at us right now and just trying
to see how we respond to it and how well we pick this up. I think for
the most part everybody is doing a great job, but obviously there is a
lot more to go.
You don't often see two Kentucky
quarterbacks on the same roster?
Ha ha, no you don't, you really
don't. I am just glad to be up here with Jared and to have this
opportunity to get coached by this coaching staff. Obviously it is a
dream come true.
Have you spoken to him at all?
I haven't spoken to him since I
have been drafted. I know that they will probably be up here sooner
or later and I will get a chance to see him again. The last time I
saw him was about a half a year ago. He was down in the athletic
department to see us.
What is it like coming to a team
where their starting quarterback is the defending Super Bowl MVP?
Yeah you don't really know how to
respond, but obviously you still got drafted and you have the
opportunity to live your dream. Obviously I have a chance to get
coached by a great coach in Coach Palmer and I am just learning a few
things behind him and maybe later down the road I will get an
opportunity to get somewhere or you never know what might happen.
How do you get their attention?
Well I just think you really have
to do a great job of learning the offense, showing that you can become
a very well-developed quarterback later down the road and obviously
just continue to really do a good job in practice and showing them
that you can learn and learn at a fast pace, which obviously in the
NFL you really have to be very good at. I think that just shows them
a lot and obviously maybe later down the road it could eventually get
you into a situation where you can get put on the field.
What was your reaction to
getting drafted by the Super Bowl champions?
I was thrilled. Obviously the
draft didn't go how I had planned it to go, but just to finally hear
my name called I think it was wonderful and I am just glad to be in
this situation.
Did you expect to go higher?
Yeah I was told the entire draft
that I was going to go a lot higher than I did and obviously that
didn't work out like planned, but things happen for a reason. There
is some reason why I am here and I am just glad to have another chance
to get out on the field and continue to play football.
Why do you think you fell so
far?
I really don't know. I think a lot
of people still to this day don't really know why I dropped as much as
I did, but like I said, things happen and I am still blessed to be in
this situation.
What round were you expecting to
go in?
The second round. Everyone was
telling me that.
Did you know the Giants were
interested at all?
Obviously not. I had talked to
Coach Palmer, he was at my pro day, but that was the only time that I
really had contact with them. Not once were the Giants in my mind
the entire time. I knew they had Eli and I was just hoping for a team
to pick me up. It came to that sixth round and they said I was the
best player on the board and I was just glad that they took the
opportunity to get me.
Do you think it is odd that you
would be so highly rated, throw 40 touchdown passes, and then fall so
far in the draft?
Yeah you definitely don't think
when you have a career like that you are going to be dropped as much
as I did, but for some reason I did drop and I just have to do a great
job being very positive and bouncing-back and when I finally do get
the opportunity be well-prepared for it and showcase what I have.
Do you still feel like you can
play in this league?
Oh definitely, yes sir.