Noah Igbinoghene – September 18, 2020
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Friday, September 18, 2020
CB Noah Igbinoghene
(You were needed on the boundary last week. Are you getting some work in the slot in practice?) – “No. Primarily I’m playing outside. Honestly, I’m playing whatever position they want me to play. I can’t really go into details with that.”
(Were you pleased with how things went in your debut on Sunday?) – “No. We lost,so I wasn’t really pleased. Yes, it was my first game so I was excited; but we didn’t come out with a ‘W’ and that is the main goal of every single game. I wasn’t happy of how it turned out though. But yes, I was excited to play.”
(What did you learn about the speed of the NFL from that Patriots game?) – “It was a lot – I feel like the amount of reps I got in practice really helped me slow the game down a little bit mentally. Of course it was just a little bit faster than college I would say. It wasn’t a big transition like I thought it was going to be. Maybe because the fans weren’t there. You never really know. It wasn’t moving as fast as I thought it was going to be, so it was a good day.”
(Generally whenever a rookie class comes in, those group of guys form a pretty tight friendship and bond over the first couple of years in the NFL. With you and S Brandon Jones specifically, you guys being those guys in the secondary, what kind of friendship have you formed, and what was it like being out there together on Sunday?) – “Brandon is my guy. I’ve been around him ever since this whole COVID thing has started and we all came to Miami and started training and stuff like that. He’s a great dude, a great teammate. I’m glad and blessed that he’s in the rookie class with me. I can’t wait to grow with him and see where we will be in a couple of years.”
(I don’t know if you’ve seen, but I saw this stat or nugget that you’re the youngest player to play in the league this past week. What did it mean to you when you saw that you are the youngest guy out there in the league?) – “It’s humbling. It’s crazy. It’s really crazy just to see how far I’ve come. I am the youngest. This is crazy. I can’t really explain it. I don’t really know. I’m blessed. Just blessed to be here at this young of an age, I’d say.”
(I was wondering what you’ve noticed about No. 14 Stefon Diggs on film?) – “He’s a very great player. Very great. He does a lot of things really well. His route-running, he’s fast, he’s strong, he comes in and out of his breaks well. He’s a very good route-runner. I can’t wait to play him this Sunday and see what we’re going to get. It’s going to be an exciting game.”
(RB Matt Breida told us – we know that WR Jakeem Grant wants to race him, but he said there’s others who want in on the action. We’ve been trying to figure out who wants in on the action. Knowing that your parents have a track background, you’re one of our leading suspects. Can you provide us an update?) – “Definitely. I’ll definitely join that race. I’ll happily join that race.”
(How do you go about prepping for WR Stefon Diggs, him and WR ‘Smokey’ John Brown? Both of them have different skillsets. Do you prep for one more than the other based on what the game plan is? How do you go about that?) – “Yes, it’s about the game plan; but I also do my extra work outside of it. Of course we have meetings throughout the day every single day and practice and stuff like that; but I really study every single guy. If that’s my matchup, I’m still studying every single receiver we have as a team that week. We have a lot of time meeting as a team, as a DB group. It’s more time than I had in college, so I really appreciate that time. Just outside of it as well, I should do more work extra.”
(Did any of the Patriots receivers say anything nice to you during that game, or try to talk to you during the game, and are you typically quiet when you’re out there?) – “I try to be quiet. I really just focus on my game, I don’t really say too much. I’m focused; but if somebody does say something to me, I’m going to say something back. Nobody said anything surprisingly. Maybe it’ll be different this game.”
(How does your personality kind gel with the cornerback group? CB Xavien Howard seems to me to be a little quieter, and CB Byron Jones can be a little talker. How do you kind of fit in that group?) – ‘I feel like I’m a quiet dude. I don’t really say too much, especially on the field – off the field as well. I want my game speak for itself. But like I said before, if somebody does start talking to me, of course I’m going to start talking back. I just try to focus on the game. I don’t really talk as much. I feel like I gel well. We all have different personalities.”
(I was wondering if CB Xavien Howard or CB Byron Jones said anything before or during the game that you found interesting or helpful?) – “I’d say just before the game, they were talking to me because it was my first game (and said), ‘just to be relaxed. Play confident like I’ve always did this whole training camp. Just be myself and have fun most importantly.’ I feel like some people, the fun comes out of the game because you feel so pressured at times. They just told me to relax and have fun. They know how much work I put in going into that game. That’s exactly how I played.”
