First off, what have you been up to since playing?
I’ve been raising my kids, playing golf and working on my business. I’ve been busy. When I was playing I didn’t think at all about a plan B. I figured I’d figure it out after playing for eight or nine years. That’s how I looked at it.
Was the post-NFL transition tough – how did you navigate it?
It was weird. You have all of that freedom – that time and energy. It wasn’t easy – I needed to find ways to decompress and transition to civilian life. I struggled for the first six months or so – I was rehabbing after surgery then too. Your ego is so big as a player you think you’ll play forever and it’s a shock to your system when you stop.
All that stress – you have to do something with it. I hiked around North Park every day- that’s what I did to try and wear myself out and decompress. It was weird – I will say that. You miss your friends and that sense of purpose. But having four kids is huge – I wish I felt that more when I was playing. When you’re playing it’s more me-me. Now I have that sense of purpose with my kids more.
I also joined a country club and golf a lot – I’ve met some good friends there. That helps fill the void of competing and comradery too. And it doesn’t hurt as much as football!
I know you recently got involved in the marijuana dispensary business- how did that happen?
I didn’t use the product my first couple of years playing. I wish I did. Pouncey got me into it. It changed my life and career. I had less stress after using it. I used Toradol and that just made my body worse. It inhibited healing. I needed something to help take the edge off. It shuts down that fight or flight feeling. I ate and slept better because of it.
During the season I actually got stronger from using it too. I wasn’t getting stressed out and getting worn out. It’s a great tool in the toolbox for those who want to use it. I have coffee in the morning and cannabis at night. Once I found it it all clicked.
Were you guys allowed to use it then?
I don’t know if it’s legal in the NFL now. We knew the testing windows and timed it out. We gamed it. It was commonly used then. We’d all cheer whenever we got our test results back and the NFL wasn’t super aggressive testing for it.
I mean, when I played they’d line you up like cattle for Toradol shots. The cannabis was so much better. It’s just a shame that guys like Martavis Bryant and Josh Gordon got in trouble for it. I guess the rules were what they were.
How did you get started in the business?
Someone brought the idea to me. We got permits – that was hard to do. At the time the market was good but big companies came and gobbled up the stores. There was supposed to be a law that prevented them from owning so many stores but it wasn’t being enforced.
But now we have a permit for three stores. I just hope cannabis gets treated better as an industry and banks start opening up to it.
Stepping back and looking at your playing career, did you have any mentors on the Steelers that really helped you most?
Maurkice Pouncey and Ramon Foster – I looked up to them. I just watched how they carried themselves. Heath Miller and Troy Polamalu too – they were both quiet guys – they were similar to me so I related well to them. I found Heath’s trainer and he and I became best friends. He deserves a lot of credit for my career as well.
Pouncey was a leader in the whole building. Tomlin was the coach but Pouncey was The Guy. He ran that thing as a player. If you wanted better food in the cafeteria or benches at practice, he was the one that made it happen. I couldn’t have asked for a better player to play next to.
Was it tough making that switch from mentee to mentor as you became a veteran player?
It happens naturally. We all have different styles. I led by example. I wasn’t the guy to go up to you and tell you how to do things – everyone has their own way. But if you had a question I was happy to help you and show you how to do things.
What was biggest adjustment for you making it as an NFL player and how did you make it?
It was completely different than college. In college I was just bigger than most guys and could move them off the ball. But in the NFL it was very different – I needed to learn the techniques on how to better use my hands to pass block, use leverage more, things like that. You can’t expect to blow guys off the ball in the NFL like I did in college – you have to change those expectations.
You also have to learn how to lose ground slowly – you can’t hold your ground forever against good players. And you have to accept that you’ll get beat sometimes. Guys are so much faster and quicker. You have to learn how to handle that. Sometimes you’ll look back and see the guy you were blocking standing over your quarterback and that’s tough. It’s a different game than college.
You see a developing Steelers offensive line now learning how to gel. What did you guys do to gel on and off the field and who led that?
Pouncey – he had us all over his house once a week to just hang out and talk. During Covid I was at Al Villanueva’s house every day after practice. We’d eat and chat outside – we’d call them our porch talks.
It was a close group – we were a community and were real close. We were also fortunate that we played together a long time – we got a lot of reps together and really learned to care about each other. It was a lot though of Pouncey being Pouncey. He built that comradery – he led it. We’d talk about politics, racial issues, it didn’t matter. We were an open book and it brought us all together.
What memories stand out most to you from your time there?
Those Mike Munchak years. Just hugging each other after wins. Him in the locker room – no pants, just boxers – celebrating after a win versus the Bengals. It all happens so fast, there’s no one memory that stands out.
We all laughed a lot in the offensive line room. Mike Tomlin used to call us The Laughers – his office was down the hall from our meeting room and he’d hear us laughing all the time. We took things seriously but laughed a lot too which is important. Mike was just great in leading the room.
What made Mike Munchak so special as a coach for you?
He put the time in. There aren’t many secrets to being a great coach. He coached a long time and was a Hall of Fame player. He loved football and it showed – and it was contagious. He was a great man – solid, fair and honest. He’s the kind of guy you want to run through walls for. I wanted to mirror myself after him.
Lastly – what should people know about David DeCastro now that has nothing to do with football – what makes you tick outside of the game?
It’s funny – I had to figure that all out when I was done. You lose your identity for a while when you stop playing. Now, I need to get 10,000 steps a day or I get ornery. I’m a workout junkie. I got my fix with football now I needed to find something new for that release.
That’s why golf has been awesome for me. I get my steps in and it helps with the competitiveness. I’m also playing a bit of disc golf too – I got my starter set after I saw some people playing and tried to figure out what they were doing. I needed something new. I could only do so many walks in North Park every week before it got too boring!