Yeah.

He had to deal with, he had to deal with big people.

He had to chase guards on counter O out of 11 personnel, things that nickels never did prior to him.

And, um, and he understood it, and he did it so well.

Because he was so smart, I was able to coach him like a linebacker, and that's what you have to do at that position on first and second down.

'Cause there's so much run, play pass, misdirection pass, et cetera, you got to train that guy's eyes like a linebacker, and it's dramatically different than what happens on third down.

And so it was a moment in time and, and you felt the gravity of it, because that's how good that St. Louis unit was.

Right.

Yeah

Like, like with the guys and, and just appreciating the process, the journey, the relationships.

Um, as a leader, for me, listening was a major component of being successful from my perspective.

Uh, how about this? Uh, "We're still squirreling those nuts."

nuts."Sometimes you got a good idea and it's good to squirrel it away for later.

... reconciliation or some kind of reunion between him and Harry?

Well, you know, Savannah, it was gonna add to the tension.

Anyone who's read even a page of Prince Harry's autobiography knows that he hates pronouncements from royal officials about his life.

What the palace, though, would've been worried about, and by that I mean the king and h- his brother, Prince William, is a separate royal court here in the UK being set up.

Sound familiar? H- Harry's back.

The tensions are back.

It's raining.

I do know what you mean though.

Just wondering your gut feeling, A, when you heard that John wasn't going to be with Baltimore, B, when you heard he was going to be the coach of the New York Giants, and C, what you think this team might look like as we go into the season.

I think...

I think my answer to your first question is, when Andy Reid left Philadelphia, that was one of those sobering realities about the coaching profession for me.

I came into this league As a young assistant in the NFC, and the NFC business ran through Philadelphia.

Like the Super Bowl champion I was a part of, we won the NFC championship in the vet.

It was the last game played in the vet.

I was an assistant on that Buccaneers staff.

can you give us a little fill in the blanks first of all about how baby jack collinsworth was reacting down there and be a little bit of a cause you know tell the story of haiti and exactly what you do there

mean? Because you

knew.

Like, seriously.

When you're a young coach, man, you're taking a lot of things in, man, culturally.

We were unyielding in almost all circumstances, except when it came to Randy Moss, man.

Like, he was that special.

Like, that week we did things differently.

Best piece of advice Mike Tomlin's been given?

what now more can you share about why Pickens was no longer on Pittsburgh and has been blossoming in Dallas, Mike?

You know, I just think you draft young players that are talented.

You help them develop.

If they're developing in the right ways, if they fit your long-range plans, then you do second contract business with them.

It didn't happen for us.

with George, but it doesn't necessarily mean that he's not going to be a spectacular player.

I think he's already proven that to a degree with his first year in Dallas, but there's also been something that's stopped Dallas from making that long-term commitment to him as well.

What would you say to your team with the Rams coming into your house? Are you going into theirs with that?

What advice would you give Mike McDonald as the head coach of the defending Super Bowl champs with that following season?

You know, I, I think the number one thing is, is the journey.

I think sometimes when you've been to the destination, and particularly when you've been to the destination recently, uh, you wanna hurry up and cut to the chase and you absolutely can't.

And so, um, he's gotta take his team through the process again.

Um, a lot of them have been a component of it in the past.

Some of them will be new.

Um, but I think he's gotta do the best that he can to wipe the slate clean and make sure they appreciate the present and, and, and the journey that they're on right now.

Did, you know, what kind of interac- how did you handle your quarterback?

What advice would you give Mike Macdonald as the head coach of the defending Super Bowl champs with that following season?

You know, I, I think the number one thing is, is the journey.

I think sometimes when you've been to the destination, and particularly when you've been to the destination recently, uh, you wanna hurry up and cut to the chase, and you absolutely can't.

And so, um, he's gotta take his team through the process again.

Um, a lot of them have been a component of it in the past.

Some of them will be new.

Um, but I think he's gotta do the best that he can to wipe the slate clean and make sure they appreciate the present and, and, and the journey that they're on right now.

Did, you know, what kind of interac- how did you handle your quarterback?

I mean, what were your impressions of Malik, like in the huddle and how he was handling the whole time?

He was super calm.

I couldn't believe how calm he was in there, man.

His play calling was super clear.

He wasn't stressed out.

Like, you could tell he was very under control, had his wits about him, uh, and did a, did a great job.

There was no issues on that whatsoever, which is unbelievable.

You know, around the-

What, what, what's your opinion upon hearing that news?

You know, first, I just have so much respect for Harvs.

You know, our stories will forever be, you know, interwoven.

Um, this rivalry that we've been fortunate and honored enough to be a part of, um, I've just got so much respect for him and, and how he's gone about his business.

And uh, we've certainly had some legendary battles over the years.

You know, in terms of him being let go, unfortunately I just think it's a component, component of today's sport culture.

Um, and, and so, you know, there have been many examples of that, and, and so it's unfortunate, but I'm sure, um, that, that he is gonna move on, and if he chooses to, to coach again, I'm sure he will, and I'm sure he'll be very successful at doing so.

And so, I'm, I'm wondering if you think about those things, about your longevity as you go into this game on Monday night at all?

... calling the timeout when he was trying to maybe get you, but what was that recruiting process like?

It was kind of a bromance, you know what I mean? (laughing) You know, for me, man, I was just excited to get to know the guy, um, on a personal level.

And so, um, that's how I viewed it.

Man, we had some cool and interesting conversations about football, about life, um, about where he is, uh, in his career and what he was potentially looking for.

Um, you know, I- I- I slow roasted it, if you will, man.

(laughing) I didn't try to microwave it, um, because I didn't feel like that would be effective, uh, anyway.

And so, I just enjoyed getting to know him over the course of those conversations and I just felt like, um, if we did it and did it consistently, it lay- laid a nice foundation for our relationship when we started working together.

What are your, uh, expectations for him as a human? Did you lay all that out as a player, as a guy in the locker room? Do you have all those conversations? And why was Aaron the guy that you wanted for this particular team?