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<i>Q: What about this defense fits you?</i>

 

A: It keeps me in my comfort zone. I don’t shy away from contact at all, but I feel my skillset is playing with that tenacity … when the ball is in the air, I want the ball by any means. This defense allows me to play by instincts, to be me, to play fast and cause nightmares on the back end. Throughout the course of my career, I’ve done that. They said, “If this is what you wanted, this is what you’ll get.” I looked them in the eye and said, “Y’all’s expectations can’t be high enough on me. I hope to exceed the expectations.” This defense just fits perfect. I pride myself on, “No Balls Over My Head.” There are going to be some throws and catches made, but I want opponents to understand that the middle of the field is going to be a scary place – and not just from bone-jarring hits … turnovers change the game. I put that on me. I don’t care what [cornerbacks] Jalen [Ramsey], Prince [Amukamara] and Davon [House] are doing on the outside; I want to make sure no balls are going over my head. I feel like I’m the sheriff back there. I take this job with pride and I couldn’t be more excited about my role in this defense.

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<i>Q: A lot of new faces in this secondary – and a lot of talent … is this a better secondary overall than maybe people around the NFL realize?</i>

 

A: Without question. We have some good players back there, and I think we have some good players who can be elite players in their new roles. Cyp [safety <a class="" href='http://www.jaguars.com/team/roster/johnathan-cyprien/8fbc4092-b78d-4279-88ac-4cbf7075151d/' title="Johnathan Cyprien">Johnathan Cyprien</a>] is going to thrive in this role; I think he’s going to be a nightmare in the run game, guarding tight ends … House is going to step his game up and he already had a big year last year. <a class="" href='http://www.jaguars.com/team/roster/jalen-ramsey/f6a44f6b-50d4-4518-a3e1-79aeb652d924/' title="Jalen Ramsey">Jalen Ramsey</a> … it’s so hard to know what rookies will do, but this guy’s just got it. Some guys just have it and you look at him and he’s got it. He really feels like he’s the best – in a good way. He feels like he’s the best and he wants to be the best. That’s what I want out of my cornerback. I want my cornerback saying, “I don’t want you to even come near me; I got this.” That’s the aura he presents. Prince is a great player – if it hadn’t been for injuries, he’d probably have signed a big check somewhere. We have guys who have missed a lot of games because of injuries, but if we stay healthy I don’t feel like we’re second to anybody.