Transcript: Offensive Lineman Nick Gates

Offensive Lineman Nick Gates

Q: What do you have now?

A: To come off the PUP list, it's 21 days until they have to make a decision about what they want to do with me.

Q: What do you feel like? You think you can be ready in 21 days?

A: I'm going to have to, it's all I've got. But no, I feel good. It's nice to be back out there on the field, it's nice to run around with the guys. It was a good time. It was a good feeling to be back out there. I didn't think I was going to be back out there this fast.

Q: What were your emotions today?

A: I was just excited to be back out there. I just wanted to go out there and just play football again. Not have to think, not have to worry about making calls – just go out there and play football. It was fun, it was fun to be back out there with the guys. That comradery, you don't get that when you're just by yourself doing indy or off to the side. It was good to be back in there with the guys.

Q: When (Head Coach Brian Daboll) Dabs had you break down the walkthrough, what was your emotion there for that?

A: It was cool, it was cool. I've broken it down before.

Q: Yeah, but not after what you went through, right?

A: I broke it down a couple of months ago, but it was good. It was a break down, I don't know.

Q: What did you say? Anything particular? Anything funny?

A: I just said I'm excited to get back out there with you guys and let's keep the ball rolling.

Q: How much were you able to do?

A: They gave me four plays of team which is about half our team reps, and then I did all of indy, and I did everything else everybody else did. I'm full-go for the most part. If we had pads on today, I was going to be in pads – but we didn't.

Q: How do you feel like you can most help this team moving forward?

A: I don't know, I don't want to jump that far ahead. I've just got to take it day by day and get myself back up to where I was before I got hurt. I'm just thinking of the next day ahead.

Q: Can you describe what the journey has been like since you got hurt? Maybe how lonely that gets when you're hanging out in the trainers room and everybody else is doing stuff?

A: It definitely gets a little lonely. All the guys in the locker room have my back. They tried to include me as much as they could, but it was a roller coaster of emotions, I'm not going to lie. At one point after I had my last surgery, which was No. 7, they had to take the rod out because I had an infection in my bone and put another rod in. I thought I wasn't going to be able to play this year, at least not until midway, so at least open my date up to that mid-Week 9.

Q: So, you had seven all together?

A: Yeah, so the original one they put a rod in, two screws down my tibia. Then I got compartment syndrome. I'll show you, there's a big scar. Got compartment syndrome, so they sliced your leg open and let the swelling kind of – fasciotomy it's called – just let the swelling do its thing and slowly close you up, that took four and then I had to get a skin graft which was No. 6. Then they had to take my rod out and put another rod in which was No. 7.

Q: What was the last one?

A: The rod, I had an infection in my tibia.

Q: When?

A: Six months ago, six and a half months ago from right around now.

Q: Were there any ever moments when you're going through all that stuff where you're wondering whether it's worth doing all that?

A: Oh no, definitely. Those thoughts – I feel like any injury you have, it doesn't matter if it's this or something else – those thoughts are just natural. I talked to (Director of Wellness and Clinical Services, Player Engagement) Dr. Lani (Lawrence), our sports psychologist a little bit and she was like, 'Yeah, that's normal. That's part of an injury and part of the process of healing and moving forward.'

Q: What kept you going?

A: I just wanted to play football again to be honest with you. Just being out there is fun. I don't know how else to explain it, but I was watching the last game up in the box the last couple of weeks we were playing and I'm like, 'I just want to be back out there again with the guys and just have fun.' What other job lets you hit people and basically do whatever you want? (Laughs) It's a fun time.

Q: Were you willing to race (Quarterback) Daniel (Jones) today considering he was handicapped?

A: Yeah, I think I might get him since he's a little handicapped (laughs). I think we're on an even playing field with this.

Q: Is that weird? Trusting your body again in that situation and being full go?

A: Kind of. My rehab I did the last three months I've been doing complete indy with me and the trainers and the strength coaches. I've been trying to beat my leg up and trying to throw it into the ground as hard as I could and just trying to get the most realistic look I can with it. Now, it's easy. To be honest with you, I thought it was going to be a lot more gassed and a lot harder right now. I feel like I pushed myself the last three months to get me where I'm at.

Q: Does the leg feel bionic now? Like you can't damage it anymore?

A: Oh yeah, you can't mess it up anymore unless you run a truck over this thing.

A: A lot of hardware in there, right?

A: Oh yeah. It's literally the whole length of my tibia from the top to the bottom.

Q: Would you have been close to ready to the start of the season if you hadn't had the infection?

A: I believe so. If I didn't have to have that rod re-put in there, I think I would have been mid training camp if not the beginning. I can't look at it like that, things come, and things go, and you've got to take them head on and I feel like I did that.

Q: How big of a step was this today just to be in uniform?

A: It was huge to get that damn red jersey off. That thing, I felt like a quarterback, and I wasn't.

Q: How much do you look forward to actually being in a game again? How much is that drawing you?

A: It's still a little bit of a ways ahead. I haven't really thought about that. I'm just trying to make the team, basically. I'm putting my best foot forward the next three weeks and give them any reason not to be able to cut me.