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Andrew Van Ginkel – August 24, 2020 Download PDF version

Monday, August 24, 2020

LB Andrew Van Ginkel

(I think one of the coaches – someone mentioned that you’ve gotten physically stronger since this time last year. Can you kind of fill me in on how much stronger? Did you add weight? Are you better at some particular exercise now?) – “I just spent most of this offseason with some strength coaches and really just worked on honing my craft and getting stronger in all areas. That’s something that I knew I needed to work on and focus on. I went into the offseason dedicated and determined to get stronger, so I think it’s just in all areas.”

(What does that added strength for a player at your position do for your game? What avenues can it really help you on the field, just to get stronger in?) – “Obviously I’m taking on big o-linemen and tight ends. They’ve got a lot of weight on me, so I have to be able to put up with that and hold them. Especially at the point of attack, I need to be able to set the edge and take on tackles and tight ends, or whatever the case may be.”

(From your rookie season to now, where do you feel like you’ve made the most gains – outside of strength – in terms of understanding improvement? Has play speed slowed down for you?) – “Yeah, for sure. I think just where I’m at with the playbook, I don’t have to think about that or go out and study before practice. I can more so work on my technique and not really have to focus on what I need to do and where I need to be. It’s more how can I get better? How can I beat tackles? Or just work on my technique. I think that’s been the biggest gain of mine in my second year right now.”

(Obviously you and LB Vince Biegel both went to Wisconsin. You both have a history of effective pass rushing. He had so many quarterback pressures and quarterback hits last year. With him unfortunately getting hurt, talk about him and what he did last year, that you would like to kind of emulate in some way?) – “I think it’s just his ability to do everything. He’s such a hard worker and he really works to perfect his craft. He’s always out there early and doing everything right in all phases – special teams, defense. Whenever he got his chance to shine, he did a great job of it. He was a good guy to be behind last year, just being able to learn from him and watching him go about his business was a big thing. He has the ability to affect the game in all phases. I think that’s something that I can take from him and develop into my game.”

(With both you and LB Vince Biegel coming from UW-Madison, I wanted to ask you what was the biggest thing you learned under Bobby April III?) – “There was a lot of things. Just his – I would say just how he came in and how he perfected his defense, and how he would always put us in the right spot to succeed. No matter what the call was, if they overload one side, he knew how to bring us to that side. Just the way they scheme things there. I think just his technique and his scheme, for sure.”

(There’s definitely a lot more competition at your position now, although LB Vince Biegel went down. LB Kyle Van Noy and a couple of the other new edge rushers are here. What are some of the things that you’re learning from some of the guys that have just joined the team? How are they kind of helping you come along here at the start of your second season?) – “I think it’s big, especially how they pass rush and get after the quarterback – the different moves that I’ve learned. Like you said, we’ve brought in a lot of experience with Kyle Van Noy, Shaq (Lawson) and a bunch of those edge guys. Being able to get after the quarterback, the different moves and how they like to play – its chess not checkers. So just being able to manipulate o-linemen and get them to think one thing and then do another.”

(We have heard from some of the DBs about the point system and trying to get turnovers and get your hands on the ball and that sort of thing. Are the linebackers involved in that and how often do you try to get your name on that list?) – “Our biggest thing is just getting batted balls up and being able to knock balls down. They’ve got their own little point system but ours is just taking pride in being able to get to the quarterback and then getting hands on balls to tip them up in the air, which leads to picks and ultimately fourth downs.”

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