LB Lorenzo Carter -- August 5, 2019
Q: So, Pat Shurmur talked the other day about how you’re doing a better job developing and sticking to a pass rush plan. Can you talk about how you’ve gone about that mentally, trying to have a consistent plan every time you go out there?
A: Yes, I think Coach (Mike) Dawson does a great job just talking to us, talking a lot of football, and what it came down to is basically if you don’t have a plan, you won’t really be effective as a pass rusher. So, we just watch a lot of film, watch a lot of different guys and just see that they all pretty much have the same plan, have a set mindset when they come to the game that they’re going to do this, or do that. So, I figure why not emulate what works.
Q: How much of that is doing something early and then countering it later, and almost the mental side of it to make sure the offensive line doesn’t know it’s coming?
A: Like you said, it’s all about the first--the beginning of the rush. I was talking to my teammates today, and I was just telling them those first two steps are the most important. If you have a bad first two steps, then you can’t really rebound, but if your first two steps are great, then you put the offensive lineman at a disadvantage. So, that’s what we want to do every time.
Q: (inaudible) early in practice you would do one move, knowing the next time you face that same lineman you’re going to do something else to counter it?
A: Yes, somewhat like that. It’s like you said, you don’t want to put yourself in a box. So, I’ll do one move and know that if they give me something else, then I’ll counter it, but if they give me the same thing, I’ll keep doing the same move all day if it works.
Q: Do you approach this preseason different than you did last year when you hadn’t played at all in the NFL?
A: Definitely. Coming into year two, you know what they expect. Preseason for me last year was more of a let me get out here and try to get my feet wet, get ready for the season, get ready to play a different kind of football, but this year it’s just keep working the things I’ve been working, and try to get ready for Week One against Dallas.
Re: improvements in pass rush
A: I’d say I’ve refined my moves. Just being able to know when to throw the moves, when to just go straight speed, or when to counter. I think that was one of the key emphases for me this offseason.
Q: You obviously want to see what this defense can do on Thursday night. Are you anxious a little bit? Are your teammates anxious to show people the kind of pass rush you expect to have, whatever it is that you actually show them?
A: I’m excited. I’m excited for the guys in the locker room, for everybody really to go out there and show what we’re working with. I think we have a lot of guys, high-character guys that can help us win games, and that also have the skillset to help us win games. So, I’m excited to get out there and see what everybody can do when we go against somebody else.
Q: Are you guys aware that people don’t expect too much of a pass rush from you guys? Is it fair to say?
A: I guess it’s fair to say, but we expect it from ourselves. I don’t worry about what everybody else thinks. I hold myself to a standard, we hold ourselves to a high standard.
Q: And why do you think that you guys will develop a good pass rush?
A: Because I know the guys we have, the locker room we have, Coach Dawson, the coaches we have, they train us, we do the stuff every day. I mean, the guys that are doubting us don’t see the work that we put in, but we know.
Q: How many guys on the Jets do you know?
A: Probably too many (laughter).
Q: The question is then, is it hard to play against guys you know?
A: Oh, no way. For me and the guys I know, we love to compete. So, it’s not hard to compete against guys, especially when you know your customer, you know the guy you’re going against is going to compete. So, we try to one-up each other.
Q: What guys do you know really well?
A: (Jets TE) Chris Herndon, specifically. That’s my dog from high school, college, and now, so we finally get to line up against each other and play.
Q: Will you trade texts this week or talk to him at all before the game?
A: No, I’m not talking to him at all until after the game.
