Ted Karras – June 11, 2020
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Thursday, June 11, 2020
C Ted Karras
(What do you feel your role is from a leadership standpoint playing that center position and what’s it like now? I know these are Zoom meetings, but what’s it like trying to develop chemistry for an offensive line with you guys usually the most tight-knit unit?) – “The center’s always had a leadership role. I take that very seriously and really enjoy the opportunity. The Zoom meetings, though, it’s basically just trying to speak the same language, everyone getting on the same page, making calls and kind of trying to see the game through one set of eyes; so it’s been very beneficial. We’re all getting on the same page, speaking the same terms and we’ve gotten a lot of good work in this spring already.”
(I wanted to ask you about what the team’s response has been to obviously the death of George Floyd and the unrest that has followed since. Has Head Coach Brian Flores had listening sessions? Have you had big group talks about it? What’s going on?) – “We have talked and I have been around some guys down here, and obviously there’s some good talk going on. I don’t really know what my role is going to be going forward, but I’m listening and learning and doing my best to empathize and understand and do what I can to be an advocate for progress and stand in solidarity with my teammates.”
(I know that you guys probably haven’t met – you and QB Ryan Fitzpatrick – but where do you see his value and how familiar are you with his game and what he may bring to your offense this year?) – “Well, I’ve been a fan for a long time. I love the way he plays. We definitely communicated a lot this spring. I’m really excited to start getting in-person, start getting some reps together; but I love the way he plays. He’s been a great leader and very welcoming to me so far, so I’m really excited to get to work with him and play some ball.”
(Back to the protest movement, you talked about striving for solidarity. Fifty-three people aren’t going to agree on anything, but to what extent do you think kneeling during the national anthem is a potentially divisive locker room issue going forward?) – “I can only speak for myself and I know there’s a lot of valid protests going on and there’s definitely some winds of change, and I’m going to do my best to keep learning and listening and try to fit in wherever I can. But I’m with my teammates; and whatever we decide, I’m going to go with what we’re doing in unison. I want to be unified and do whatever I can to be an advocate for progress.”
(What do you think makes you an ideal center because that’s a position that you only got accustomed to – I know you probably practiced with it for some time – but you only got playing experience last year. Why is center the right fit for you?) – “I’m (a) good leader, making calls, I’m a pretty decent size for a center. I like being in the mix. I like the fact that we’re kind of in there fighting in the A gaps. I’m just working hard every day. I learned center my rookie year in New England and then played it for four (seasons) and now get a chance to get another season under my belt. I’m very excited. I love anything on the o-line. Any opportunity and job in this league is precious and I’m very excited to continue to work with the guys and be the best player I can be so we can win as many ball games as we can.”
(I have a question about some of your teammates that were added along the offensive line this year. Five additions among the draft and free agency, including yourself, and several of those guys are 325, 330 or even bigger than that. How much does that sheer density alongside you help you do your job better?) – “I’m excited to get in with them. There’s some big dudes coming in, yeah. We’re going to have a pretty big o-line and that’s exciting, and everyone’s been working hard. I’m really excited just to get together whenever that may be, but I think it’s going to be a really good competitive camp. Everything is going to be competition and we’re going to have the five best guys out there Week 1 and start putting it together.”
(I’m just curious what you’ve been doing as one of the new guys to kind of establish yourself and stand out as one of the new guys and also as the veteran, and how difficult has that been virtually with the nature of what’s going on? How can you make a name for yourself virtually with the coaches and your teammates?) – “I think just being prepared every day, coming to work every day ready to work. I think that maybe sometimes – especially Zoom – I’m really not usually this serious all the time, like I come off pretty serious in meetings. Football time is serious time, and I think one thing that kind of stinks about this spring not being in the building is that now sometimes your teammates only see the serious side. You don’t get that hour in the locker room after to connect, but as guys are trickling down here, we’ve started to lift together a little bit, run together and just whoever can make it and it’s been nice to meet people and start developing a personal relationship because that’s one of my favorite parts of the game.”
(I understand you got a second Master’s degree this offseason. I saw somewhere else your goal is to go for six and I wanted to ask you about the challenge of doing that and when you get those, how does that rank in terms of accomplishments for you compared to what you do on the football field?) – “It’s definitely second to anything I do in my (football) career. It’s just a perk that I’ve taken advantage of. I encourage a lot of guys to do it as well. It can be any accredited school. You can go get your degree paid for by the NFL. It’s very important to me. I graduated from Indiana this May with an MBA and going to see what I do next. I don’t do anything ever during the season, so it’s always about February to June, but it’s really exciting. I don’t know what I’m going to do next. I’ve got a couple options. I’ve applied some places, but we’ll see.”
(I know there’s probably some tentative clarity on the training camp starting in late July. I wanted to ask about your thoughts on a shortened preseason, if they were to cut it down from four games to two. How does it affect players like yourself getting chemistry? How does it affect players at the end of the roster? How do you guys think a shortened preseason would pan out?) – “Every game is really important, but having two games instead of four to stand out as a guy – especially in any type of competition – definitely kind of raises the stakes; but our job is to play football and whenever we can get the opportunity, you’ve got to go out there and play your best and do your best. It’s definitely going to be more limited reps and definitely ramp the competition up because less reps for guys. That’s how you make the team, so it’s going to be an interesting training camp just like everything this year is very unique. We’re just going to have to adapt as players to perform our best.”
(You mentioned you’re down here, is that right?) – “I am.”
(Have you got a chance to work with any of your teammates?) – “Yeah, I’ve met a few guys. I’ve got a gym in my garage that a couple guys have come over and lifted at. (I am) lucky, too. I know a lot of guys on this team already, which has been great. A lot of guys are trickling down as it kind of ramps up toward the season and I think it’s going to be a really, really productive summer.”
(So you guys were working out in your gym? Is that what you’re doing?) – “I’ve had a few guys come over, yeah. Yeah.”
(Offensive linemen? Paint the picture for me. What do you guys do? Pushing trucks, too?) – “Oh, I haven’t pushed any trucks, no. (laughter) I’ve got a rack and a bench. Just when all the corona(virus) stuff happened, I kind of was left in the – I didn’t have anywhere to work out and so we kind of put together a weight room and got it going, brought it down here and yeah, it’s been good. Really good, and I just like to start relationships. Obviously we’ve been working together for nine weeks now, so we’re trying to just cram in and kind of still follow the rules as much you’re supposed to with the distancing stuff.”
