Jerome Baker – September 26, 2022
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Monday, September 26, 2022
LB Jerome Baker
(I was looking back at snap counts for the defense. I figured this was the most a lot of you guys have ever played in the NFL game in terms of snaps. And this wasn’t. You’ve actually played more. Can you compare Sunday’s game in terms of the heat and the toll it took on you guys? Can you compare that personally to any other games that you played?) – “I’ve had some rough games before. I think that was last year in New England. I was dying in New England years ago. I think it was last year or two years ago … It comes with it. It happens. But at the end of the day ,it’s kind of one of those things that we got to get off the field on defense. You can’t really blame anybody or say anything. So it is what it is. It’s part of the game. We’re professionals and you’ve got to just focus on next week.”
(Is there anything that sticks out with the first couple of red zone trips compared to the ones at the end of the game? The first two seemed like you guys ran some blitzes, maybe a guy was left a little open or not as covered as closely. What stuck out to you about those final two red zone stops?) – “I think it’s just really a communication thing. The more we communicate, the better we can play. A lot of times we’re in a scramble and just trying to figure it out, but if we communicate better and lock in a little bit better, we’ll figure it out. If we don’t communicate in the red zone – in the field, it might be a 10-yard gain but in the red zone, it’s a touchdown. That’s really the biggest difference. So we got to communicate a little better and it’ll work out for us.”
(Honestly, getting out of bed this morning, was it that much harder? How do you feel right now? Is your body telling you that you were in a draining game yesterday?) – “I mean, it’s one of those things that we’re professionals. You’re going to feel sore, you’re going to feel tired. But at the end of the day, we all love this game. We all know what we signed up for. So just getting up and getting to work, it’s a little easier when you’re winning. I wouldn’t say it was bad. I wouldn’t say it was the worst I’ve ever felt. Of course, I was tired. But I know what it takes to get back to normal. So it’s a part of the game and I’m down for the challenge.”
(S Jevon Holland played nearly 100 snaps total between a few on special teams and the defense. What are your thoughts on him, his stamina, and that dawg in him?) – “I mean, that’s the main thing – the guy’s a dawg, man. He doesn’t really care about anything. He throws his body in there. He will run 100 yards on one play. Whatever it is that our defense needs, he’ll do it. He really came into this year and he’s definitely been a leader for our team, our defense. So it’s just really, that’s the work he puts in. Now we just expect from him every game now. I’m definitely happy for him.”
(How do you assess the day on defense where you give up a lot of yards, but you hold them to 19 points?) – “As a defensive player, of course, we’re not happy about that. If we get off the field more, we have less snaps and it’s just a trickledown effect. If we just lock in and do a little better, it’d be easier on a lot of us. So am I happy with the performance we had? It’s whatever. At the end the day, we won. So that’s all that matters. We definitely got to just play better Thursday. It’s going to be a good challenge for us.”
(What’s your approach to kind of this week on a short week getting ready for Cincinnati?) – “Everything just speeds up. The recovery, you got to lock in on your recovery. You got to come in. There’s really no off days. You got to just come in, watch film and get it done. It’s one of those things where it is Thursday night, so you’re going to be the only one playing. So when it actually comes down to it, you’re going to have the energy. You’re going be fine. It just really is a mentality of you can’t feel sorry for yourself. You can’t say you’re sore or you’re tired. You got to go in there, perform and get it done. Those next few days, you will have a little time to rest. I’m sure all of us would be fine. We’re ready to go. It’s still early in the season, too. It’s not like it’s Week 13 or 14. It’s still early, so we’ll be fine.”
(Are you excited to be going back to Ohio?) – “Oh, yeah, definitely. I’m definitely really excited to play against Joe (Burrow). That’s my boy right there. So definitely, it’s going to be a fun one. And, of course, we’re going to talk a little stuff. But it’s all love and I’m definitely excited to play against him.”
(What’s going to go into that recovery aspect over these three days before you travel?) – “For me, it’s a lot of sleep. I sleep quite a bit. It’s really the ice tank for me. I tried to get into cryo, but I don’t know if I’m ready for that one yet. (laughter) So the cold tank is where I will stay at.”
(I was just curious, you being with QB Tua Tagovailoa for three years, we hear a lot like Tua is Tua. What does that mean and how have you seen him really grown into himself and his third season?) – “Yeah, I think Tua get a lot of – let’s just say stuff from the media and other people. But if you’ve been in this building and you’ve seen Tua work, the guy puts in a lot of work. He truly wants to get better every day. You can see over these first few years, you can see the flashes of this guy’s going to be special. I’m just happy this year he really just showed it to the world. It’s kind of one of the things, we all kind of knew it was there and just now everybody else is seeing it. I’m definitely happy for him. He’s a great guy, a great player, a great teammate. You just can’t help but to be happy for him.”
(What stands out to you about QB Joe Burrow?) – “What stands out? The guy is a competitor. That was the main thing. He had some guys in front of them or whatever but he didn’t care. He just came in and worked. Een going back to high school, when he played in the state championship game, the guy just found a way to just make plays and win games. So it’s going to definitely be a fun one Thursday. I know last year he had a great year, so I’m just happy for him. But I’m also excited just to play against him.”
(Did you expect QB Joe Burrow to get to where he is?) – “Oh, yeah. I mean, just his whole personality, the way he goes about his business, it’s kind of hard not to see that. So early on, you can just see that he wants to win and he will do whatever to win. He plays with swagger. When you just play with him, you can just feel that we’re good. He’s going to get us there. It’s just a credit to him and credit to him, how he was brought up and everything he’s been through. So just all credit to him.”
(We’ve heard stories with him at Ohio State being extremely competitive with basketball. Do you have a story like just something, even if it’s not football related, but some of you remember about QB Joe Burrow?) – “We used to have these mat drills and you had basically one-on-one pull the tire or whatever. The guy was going so hard. Like quarterbacks don’t really do that type of stuff too often. But man, Joe, he was going after it. He just wanted to win. Just to see that drive, that passion he had, it’s hard not to be happy for him and it really rubs off on everybody else. He just always had that passion and he just wants to win and Thursday, I’m trying to stop that. (laughter)”
