Jay Ajayi – December 28, 2016
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Wednesday, December 28, 2016
Running Back Jay Ajayi
(You’ve had 270 touches now this season, 32 carries on Saturday. How’s the body holding up?) – “It’s feeling good. I was sore right after the game. Now, I got back into my routine of the week, so it’s starting to feel a little better.”
(I know you had a big workload at Boise State, but I assume it’s a little different in the NFL. What have you learned about that part the job description?) – “You have to be a professional. Here, it’s a lot different. At Boise, I had to go to class. (I) do a lot more different stuff here, either doing the work or getting my body right. So, I have more than enough time to do the things I need to do to make sure I stay on the field.”
(Do you take a lot of pride in being able to handle it?) – “I take pride in being able to withstand a lot of hits and being able to stick with the run game all throughout all four quarters.”
(You’ve been the type of back that gets stronger as the game goes on even since your days at Boise State. Who do you attribute that to and how are you able to bust your biggest runs towards the end of the game?) – “I think it’s a – first of all – credit to the o-line, them sticking with it all game long, us having that mindset that we want to be able to create big runs on the ground and sticking with it. For me, my mentality is running hard all throughout the game, not stopping and eventually wearing down the defense. We understand a lot of teams can’t really stick with us all four quarters. Eventually, they’ll wear down. You just have to stay diligent with it and continue to find ways to break through.”
(Congrats on the [AFC Offensive Player of the Week] award – third time you’ve done this. Do you pinch yourself now, or is it starting to sink in what you’ve been able to accomplish, now for the third time?) – “I don’t really think it’s settling in right now. Probably after the season when I get to sit back and see what I was able to accomplish, it’ll probably hit me more. Right now, we’re still in everything, so my mind is on New England and wanting to do it again and keep running hard and keep making plays for this team. I feel very grateful to be able to get the awards like that and understand that it’s not just me out there doing it. I’m getting a lot of help from my teammates. You don’t get these awards unless we win. That’s the most important thing: we’re winning the games, and we have the opportunity to reach our goal.”
(In Buffalo when their defense is on the field, they like to play a train noise. Did you hear that at all when you were playing? I thought it was weird. That’s your “Jay-Train” and they were playing it when you guys were on offense. I’m not sure if you noticed that.) – “It was actually funny. I heard it before our drive, and I thought it was kind of funny, because over here – in Miami – they always play the horn. I thought it was kind of cool. I didn’t know if they were doing it to send a message or if that’s just what they do up there, but it was interesting. I heard the horn a couple times while I was playing.”
(Did it hype you up at all or no?) – “It was kind of like a funny thing. I laughed to myself. It was just an interesting thing.”
(Did you have an idea early on, on Saturday, that you’d have that kind of game?) – “From the beginning of the game, I was very confident going in from the work that our o-line put in this past week, how they were feeling (and) my confidence level. From that first couple series, we knew we were going to be able to have a good day on the ground. It was about sticking with our game plan and getting what we needed to get done.”
(A 57-yard run in overtime – 55 yards or whatever it was. I think you had 55 yards against the Jets in the fourth quarter. What does that say about you, your offensive line, the whole offense?) – “I think it shows that our run game can be explosive. At the same time, we can do things where we can continue to pick up yards and be consistent. I think we’ve shown that we can do different things. If we stick with it – if we’re diligent with it, and we’re on our game – that we can really control the way the game goes.”
(Is there a feeling that the run game will always come through, “Give us enough carries, we’ll wear them down and break a big play,” or is it something different from that?) – “That’s my mentality. I don’t think it would be different for the o-line. I think we believe that we can run the ball on anyone. For sure, I believe that. When we get out there, we have to make sure that we’re on our keys and at the same time, creating lanes coming off the football and making it happen.”
(Were you disappointed that you weren’t first-team Pro Bowl or whatever it was? Was that a statement to the rest of the league that they missed you?) – “There’s not really anything I can do about it. You want to be one of those guys that’s considered the best at your position, obviously, and that’s what I’m striving to do. It’s just a little bit more added motivation to keep working and keep striving to be the best.”
(Do you consider yourself the best at your position) – “I consider myself one of the best. Yes, I do.”
(Do you expect the Patriots to key on you differently considering the first time you faced them, and what have you been able to do since that?) – “I think that they’ll respect what we’ve been able to do in the run game. They have a great defense up there. We understand that we’re going to get a great challenge out of them. We understand that we’re going to have to be on our keys, make sure that we are very disciplined out there and that we put ourselves in a great position to win.”
