Linebacker Devon Kennard
November 15, 2017
Q: Is there anything worse for a player to hear than, ‘I don’t think you were giving full effort on that play’?
A: For me, no. I can’t speak for everyone, but for me personally, it doesn’t get much worse than that. Things happen in a football game, but effort’s something you can always control. So, I would personally never want to be called out for effort.
Q: If someone were to tell you that you missed a tackle and to break down why, that’s different, right?
A: Right, that’s something fixable. But, effort and the way that I play the game, I would never want anyone to question that.
Q: Was effort questioned during the team meeting today?
A: At some points, just guys could have given more effort. Yeah, definitely.
Q: If someone says that to you, you’re going to either fight them or take offense to it, right?
A: I mean, every man responds to that differently. So, I guess we’ll see how everyone responds, but it’s definitely something that I would respond to, if that was me.
Q: Is it up to players to tell a teammate that they are lacking effort, or is it up to the coaches?
A: First, you’ve got to look at yourself. So, I personally feel like if you’re not playing and doing what you need to do personally, don’t worry about the next man. So, that’s where it falls first. But then from there, we have leaders in the locker room and you do have to start at least holding the men in your position group accountable, like, ‘We’ve got to pick things up,’ and stuff and I think we’ll see an improvement.
Q: Was Head Coach Ben McAdoo harsher than usual during today’s team meeting?
A: It was just an opportunity for everybody to see what was going on, from both sides of the ball. We got to see some of the offensive plays and hear Coach McAdoo coach some guys up on the offensive side and the defensive side and I think it’s just a good way for everybody to be held accountable for what’s going on, on and off the field.
