First off, can you let me know what you’ve been up to since your football days?
I’m a police officer here in Tracy, California. I’ve been a cop here for two years. Before that I was in the San Diego police department for six years.
A number of people in my family were in law enforcement so I’ve always been around it, and I got a Criminal Justice Degree in college. I started at a crappy time with everyone hating the police now, but I love the job.
How was that transition to the police force from football for you?
The comradery is just like football. Your squad mates are like your teammates and you have to gameplan for certain situations. Like if someone is in a house, how do you set up the perimeter. And if one person messes up, it effects the entire team.
I know your career started in St. Louis when you were drafted by them in 2014, but how did you end up in Pittsburgh the following season?
I thought I did well in St. Louis – I guess I just didn’t fit their scheme. When Pittsburgh called after I was cut, it was the first time I ever heard from them. I went out and did a workout there and it went well. I guess I put up some good tape in St. Louis and the Steelers needed an offensive lineman.
Did anyone help you most when you first got to Pittsburgh to show you the ropes?
Pretty much the entire offensive line. Ramon Foster was awesome. When I was applying to the San Diego Police Department we needed personal recommendations and I put Ramon as one of mine. They spoke to him as part of their background check on me.
Ramon also offered to pay for my wife’s ticket – my girlfriend then – to come see me when I broke my leg. Pouncey and Villanueva were both awesome too. Villanueva and I were fighting for a spot then and he still helped me. And BJ Finney and I hung out a lot too.
What was the biggest adjustment for you?
The playbook. I still have nightmares about it. There were so many snap counts, options and kill plays to learn. People think football players are stupid- especially offensive linemen. But you have to be able to learn and know your stuff or you will be exposed.
Tomlin – if you slack or get something wrong he would call you out in front of the team too. It didn’t matter if you were Ben Roethlisberger or me. The other linemen helped me to understand what to expect and be ready for there.
What was different about Pittsburgh?
We did a lot more hitting in Pittsburgh. I went from not hitting much in camp to a team like Pittsburgh. I wasn’t expecting that as much. The offensive line warned me a bit so that helped, but the amount was still a surprise. We may have hit like that two times in full pads in St. Louis. It’s good for your body to hit less but you need to get hit in the mouth sometimes to be ready. Your body needs to be used to the hitting.
Any fun memories that stand out most over your time there?
We lived in the Hyatt – I roomed with Kelvin Palmer and we hung out together. When I broke my leg I just remember hobbling up those steps we had. We would go to the mall and bonded together there.
In practice, I’d go up against Dupree and Chickillo – we would go at it. I always wanted to go against the better players. We put up some good fights but were always good off the field.
How did the injury occur?
I was blocking with the tight end on the goal line in a preseason game – there was I think four seconds left in the game. It was partly my fault – my body weight shifted and my shoulder was sideways when the fullback dove into the line – I’m not sure if he had the ball or not. But he hit me and I broke my leg.
What did the team say to you afterwards?
The training staff was awesome and me and Kelvin trained and rehabbed together after that. Ramon and Pouncey came in and helped too. I was the low man on the totem pole, so it was really cool to see them come in and help me.
Looking back, coming in from a smaller school like Portland State, what was the thing that surprised you most about the NFL?
Everything! I was shellshocked coming into the NFL. I knew I had that a-hole in me – offensive linemen aren’t supposed to take anything from anybody. But we were pampered in the NFL compared to Portland State. The food … and the bags of clothing. I still have bags of stuff from the NFL.
Did it spoil you at all at first?
I tried to take nothing for granted and I don’t think I did. But I didn’t perform as well as I could have in St. Louis. I mean, I thought I played good though – I went against Aaron Donald everyday so that didn’t help! But the transition from college to the NFL was night and day.
What advice would you give smaller-school guys trying to get to the NFL level after your experiences?
Do the stuff when people aren’t looking at you the same way you’d do it when people are watching you. That’s how you develop the right habits and mindset.
A lot of guys are getting picked up from smaller schools now. People still notice you – they’ll find you, whether it’s in the draft or as a free agent. And I’m seeing a lot more offensive linemen from smaller schools getting drafted too. We’re on the map more now.
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