Isaiah Ford – December 6, 2021
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Monday, December 6, 2021
WR Isaiah Ford
(I wanted to ask if you could break down your touchdown catch from yesterday. It seemed like QB Tua Tagovailoa bought some time on the bootleg and found you on the side. What happened from your perspective?) – “It was weird because I hadn’t repped that play all week. It’s something that we put in the gameplan and it was for Jaylen (Waddle) but he was cramping and everything. They trusted me to go in there, know what to do and we went out there and executed. The Giants actually covered it pretty well. Tua did an extremely good job of buying some time and deceiving the defense with his eyes a little bit and it gave me enough time to go back right at the front pylon. He threw a great ball and I was able to make the catch.”
(You said you didn’t rep that play personally, physically. Is that one of those cases where during the week you have to stay locked in and mentally rep it?) – “Yeah, for sure. Throughout the week, we have a ton of things that we put into the gameplan. A lot of times, you may not get to rep something. It might just have to be just a visual intake of taking that in, digesting it and understanding what you would do if you were in that situation. You never know. Sunday was a good case of that. You never know when your number is going to be called. You have to be ready to perform and execute.”
(Head Coach Brian Flores said yesterday that on the bye week, he hopes that you guys go home and put your feet up a little bit. LB Elandon Roberts said he watches football when he has some downtime. CB Xavien Howard said the same thing but also some family time. When you get a chance to go home, is it Netflix? Do you hop on the sticks? Watch some football? What’s your leisure activity of choice?) – “I play video games a lot. I’ll probably play a game a little bit, catch up on some sleep. But I love watching football and being around the game of football so any time football is on, I’ll always be glued to the TV.”
(Do you game with any guys on the team?) – “Me and Preston (Williams), we play Call of Duty a good amount. We haven’t been playing as much as we did last year but I’m sure we’ll catch up on some hours of playing that game this week.”
(I was looking at the stat sheet and I noticed that you and WR Mack Hollins have a total of six touchdowns this season even though you obviously are not among the team leaders in offensive snaps. I was wondering what are your thoughts on Mack in observing him in terms of how he approaches when he gets offensive snaps and maybe even how he positions his body or creates separation? What are your thoughts on Mack?) – “I think Mack is the ultimate pro in terms of the way he takes care of himself, the way he takes care of his body, the way he practices, the way he studies, his practice habits and everything about him. He’s very routine and detailed. I think that we see that on the field because that’s second nature to him. We’ve seen him make those plays whether it be in practice or in camp or whatever the case is, so when he’s in the game and he’s making touchdowns and things like that, it’s not really a surprise to anybody.”
(I wanted to ask you what was it like having WR DeVante Parker back out there with you guys yesterday? He had some big catches on the sideline and we saw him bodying up some defenders and toe-tapping a couple times. What was it like just having his presence back out there?) – “It was really good. DeVante is our guy. When he’s going, everybody is feeding off of him, everybody is feeding his energy and it drives everyone else to play better as well. He’s a special player. He has extremely good body control, ball skills and everything like that. Just watching him make those plays, we’ve all seen him make those plays. We expect him to make those plays so it was good for him to be out there.”
(On the other side, you guys are still waiting on WR Will Fuller to come back. What have you seen out of him in the facility throughout this whole rehab process?) – “He’s been working hard. He’s been in the training room just trying to get back. That’s really all he can do right now is take his time and when he’s ready, he’ll join us.”
(I wanted to ask you about how offensive linemen have told me that they do Pilates on their day off on Tuesday. Have you ever done the Pilates and if so, what does the session do for you when you do it at the facility?) – “Kenny Stills was actually a guy that took me under his wing when I got into the league and he introduced me to Pilates. I was always having lower back problems or hip aching and things like that. I think it works on all those small muscle groupings in your body whether that be around your hips, around your knees, quads, hamstrings, all those little things and making sure everything is functioning properly and in line. I think that’s a big thing, especially when you play a contact sport like this one, to make sure that everything is in line, in order and functioning properly. That’s the biggest thing that Pilates has helped me with this year.”
(So you do the sessions on Tuesday?) – “Yeah. So I did this offseason, the last few offseasons and then every Tuesday I do the sessions as well here.”
(I’m assuming there is just one reformer in the room because I guess it’s like a solo appointment thing? Why don’t they put more than one reformer in the room?) – “I think it’s better. It’s more intimate when it’s just a one-on-one session. When there’s a class, she kind of has to focus on multiple people at time and as a general thing, my workouts may be a little more specific than say (Michael) Deiter’s are. I think that’s always a special thing when I can be one-on-one and be intimate and have a really detailed session.”
(I’m assuming it’s an hour session right?) – “Yes.”
(Your career has obviously taken a pretty circuitous route to this point and now that you’re contributing to this winning streak in big ways with touchdowns and some big plays, I just wanted to know if you have a different level of appreciation for or what it means to you to be contributing to this team now after the path you took to get here?) – “I never take any moment for granted just because of the route that my career has been on – the ups and downs, the ebbs and flows and all of those things. I continue to try to control the things that I can control, put one foot in front of the other and continue to try to perfect my craft and get better every day. When those opportunities come and I’m able to take advantage of them, it’s rewarding. Ultimately, to help this team win games and get going in the right direction is nice.”
(I was looking up the stats and couldn’t help but notice you have 11 targets this year yet you have two touchdowns. You played 14 snaps yesterday and yet you produced a touchdown there. If you could just describe how you’re able to maximize the playing time you get. What does it take to make the most out of the opportunities that you do get?) – “I think the biggest thing is being mentally prepared. There are times where you may not go in for an entire quarter or an entire half. You can be very easily discouraged by the way a game goes, by the way the gameplan is going or a myriad of different things. I think just having the mental strength to stay locked in and to stay ready for when your time is called because you never know when your time is going to be called. It may not be called that game or it may be one play later. My job on this team is to be ready when my number is called and to go out there and ultimately produce. I just try to do that and stay ready.”
(You’ve had so many twists and turns in your career, was there ever a time that you were discouraged?) – “Yeah, I think coming into the league as a 21-year-old kid, with this being the first real piece of adversity that I’ve ever had to go through. There were a lot of times where I was discouraged or depressed a little bit. A lot of unknown or uncertainty that I had to deal with. But it has helped me mature and become a better person because of the things that I’ve had to endure and overcome and just continue to control the things that I can has ultimately put me in a better headspace.”
(Was there one person or one thing that helped you get over that hump?) – “I think it was a collective. I have a really good group of mentors – Kenny Stills, Albert Wilson, Allen Hurns. Brice Butler is another guy. All guys that have been in similar situations and they overcame them. Talking to those guys, venting to those guys as well as my family has ultimately helped me always reset and relock back in when I need to.”
