Walt Aikens – June 12, 2018
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Tuesday, June 12, 2018
S Walt Aikens
National Association of Police Athletic/Activities League (National PAL) CEO Jeff Hood:
“Good afternoon. (I’m) Jeff Hood. I’m CEO of National PAL. I’m not sure if you guys are aware, PAL has a long standing history of engaging kids, cops and communities around this country. PAL started originally in 1914, over 100 years ago in New York City. Basically it’s kind of come full circle with a lot of what’s going on around the country right now between our young people and law enforcement. That’s originally why we were birthed and why we were started: to be able to engage young people, get them off the street and involved and engaged in positive enrichment opportunities in communities such as what we’re doing right now. The gentleman behind me, Walt Aikens, (is) someone that I’ve known since he was a little, little fella. His dad and I are also friends and I used to be over the Charlotte, North Carolina PAL. It’s great to see a young person such as this be able to work hard, put a lot of work into his craft and to be not just a great football player and athlete. I’ve said this in another setting actually, Walt was just as good in basketball. I thought that was the direction he was going to go and (he) wound up taking off with football. I couldn’t be more proud of him not just from the athletic side, but the type of person that he is. He’s so willing to give back. He actually texted me this week wanting to see about doing some things in Charlotte with young people while he’s off on a little break before he gets back going with the Dolphins. That’s the type of a person he is and that’s what PAL is about. We’re so excited to be able to have him being named one of our spokespersons, to be a good representation piece of who and what we are and what we aspire our young people to be. With that, I just want to again thank Walt for coming onboard and be willing to talk positively about who and what we are both here in Florida but also around the country.”
Walt Aikens:
“Like (Jeff Hood) said, I grew up a PAL kid in Charlotte, North Carolina. I started off playing football for PAL and ultimately finished up as late as I could in the system we had in North Carolina. Right now, Jeff had called me a few months back over the break and asked me if I wanted to become a part of the PAL system again. I felt like it was the best way to give back, me going back to these local communities and showing these kids that no matter where you are or where you’re from, you can always make it and there’s a positive way out of every situation. I just love the fact that I’m able to give back. Jeff put me in a positon where I can impact these kids’ lives and really be a positive influence in their life and that’s my ultimate goal.”
(What’s your best memory of PAL growing up?) – “Just being out there with the kids. You build true friendships. You build real relationships and you go out there and play football. Then, there’s no stretch. You just go out there and play and everything is real fun. That whole team environment, that’s what builds on and helps you get through your everyday life, not only on the field, but off the field. I still have relationships with kids I grew up with. They hit me up every now and then (and say), ‘Remember when we played PAL ball?’ This and that. So, it’s not just one, specific memory, it’s just the whole camaraderie of being in a group at that young age.”
(Tell us about your basketball skills.) – “I was a hooper now. I was a hooper. (laughter) I thought I was going to … I really thought I was going to play basketball up until around 11th, 12th grade and it was still a tough decision after that, because I ended up playing basketball at Liberty (University) and ran track there, too. But early on, I was straight basketball and football was something I could do and then I just fell in love with the game and I realized where I wanted to be in life and what I wanted to do, so I had to go with football.”
(What was it about the game that helped you make that decision?) – “Being angry a lot. (laughter) I’m never really an angry person, but on the football field, it’s where you can release all of your senses, all of your emotions. You can go and hit people, you can go and run as fast as you can. Basketball is more of a finesse-type game, low contact. And you know how people flop in basketball. There isn’t any of that in football. You’ve got to be real when it comes to that gridiron.”
(Did you ever meet an NFL player when you were in PAL and what is the reaction you see in kids’ faces when they see you out there?) – “I was just talking about this the other day. I feel bad for myself. I feel like these kids are so lucky, because now you see a football – like for me – you see a football play (and say), ‘Oh, it’s just another football player.’ But they still have the joy of, ‘This is my first time meeting such and such. This is my first time seeing an actual football player,’ and I get jealous sometimes just looking at them and how excited they are. I wish I could have that feeling all over again.”
(We haven’t had a chance to chat with you since you decided to re-sign here. What was you thinking and how did that all come together?) – “This is home. Any other team was just a second option at that point. Me and my agent sat down, made some decisions and this was the best place for me.”
(Do you hope that your role will continue to grow here?) – “Yes, definitely. Definitely. That was a big part of my staying too, just talking with (Head Coach Adam) Gase and (Defensive Backs) Coach ‘O’ – Tony Oden – and just trying to find a home. I’m willing to do whatever, going out there day in and day out, just grinding and everything will fall into place.”
(Do you speak to kids? Do you give like a talk when you’re involved in these things?) – “Yes.”
(What is your message to them as far as relating to law enforcement?) – “The whole aspect of PAL is to keep kids – at-risk kids or just kids in general – out of trouble. So, the police aspect is taking these kids from off the streets or off of doing bad things in the neighborhood or community and bringing them into one place where they can have a constructive atmosphere, whether it’s football, boxing. They have classrooms and everything. We do tutors, after school programs, everything like that just to keep kids in a good environment and out of trouble’s way.”
(Do they every ask you tough questions given some of the issues that have popped up between police and youth?) – “Who is, ‘they?’”
(Do the kids ask tough questions?) – “No. They’re kids. And if they do know about it, I’m pretty open with my situation. I would just tell them we all make mistakes. I made a mistake my first ever time getting in trouble and it was my last. (I) didn’t make it a habit. Even me, I was in a nice, two-parent home and I made mistakes. I was young. I was a kid; but that didn’t describe my life. I didn’t let that define who I was as a person. So, when that happened, I just kept it moving. My pops told me when I initially got in trouble, he said, ‘What’s done is done.’ We’ve got to learn from it and move on. And I feel like that was the most impactful thing that you could say to me, because he wasn’t mad, he wasn’t yelling. He said, ‘I’m not mad or nothing. I’m more upset,’ and that really hit home like if you’re mad you can get over it, but if you’re upset, I felt like I let him down. I let my parents down. I just kept it moving. Like I said, I was hurt by it. I ultimately made the best out of my situation and I tell these kids that they can do the same in whatever situation they come from.”
(Do you think that your interactions with police officers at a very early, young age impacted your viewpoint of police?) – “Up until more recently, I’ve had a pretty good viewpoint of police. I’ve never been in any situation where it was just wrongfully an outburst, or something that was drastically crazy. My viewpoint was always good. Back in Charlotte, we have a nice group of police officers that a lot of them were my friends’ parents, so we grew up in that environment where I know his dad is a cop, but at the end of the day, that’s my friend’s pops. So, we always had a good relationship. When I said up until recently, I still don’t have a bad viewpoint; but we’ve seen what’s been going on in the media with police and people going on, beatings and all that stuff right now. It affects me. It affects me because I have police friends. Even a few years ago, with the Brent Vinson situation in Charlotte, North Carolina, he’s a police officer that shot an unarmed man supposedly; but he went to my college. I know he’s a good dude and I know that he was doing what he needed to do in the line of duty; but it was kind of hard having mixed emotions coming from patrons and then coming from the police officers. It’s kind of hard when you have friends or family involved in that; but my viewpoint is still the same until otherwise. There are a lot of things you have to watch out for nowadays, especially being a young, black male in today’s society. It’s kind of tough; but at the same time, I just try to keep my nose clean, do what I need to do and get out of the way.”
(Back to football for a second, what do you think of the new kickoff rule and how does that change what you do?) – “New kickoff rules are pretty decent. We’ll see how it plays out more in preseason; but as far as right now, it’s made to protect players and make it a safer play, because there’s a lot that goes on in a five, six second play. People are running down with a long head start. Now they’re shortening that up, trying to make the blocks easier or safer. We’ll just have to see how that works out in preseason.”
(I asked Head Coach Adam Gase about how he considers you, whether a special teams player or a special teams DB. What do you consider yourself? Do you think you’re like a Matthew Slater type or are you special teams DB as a football player?) – “I feel like if you put me out there on the field, I can play wherever. I don’t try to limit myself with a title, especially as a special teams player, because I’m a DB before anything. My ultimate goal is to get out on the field and ball out and show them what I’ve really got. It’s been a long journey these past four, going on five (years) now. I’m just trying to do whatever I can to help this team win.”
(Prior to re-signing here when you sat down and talked to either Defensive Coordinator Matt Burke or Head Coach Adam Gase or Executive Vice President of Football Operations Mike Tannenbaum or whoever about a defensive role potentially, where did they tell you they saw you having a chance to compete – safety, corner? What sort of role?) – “Safety, but be alert for anytime we need corners. I’m at a good way where I feel like I can move as a safety or a corner. The main thing is just knowing everything and being ready when the time comes.”
(How much do they cross-train you? Do you play both in practice?) – “I’m just playing safety right now, but I know both. I know everything.”
(We mentioned Matthew Slater, who’s kind of the guy when you mention special teams players, he’s the guy. How much of a goal is it for you to get to that point where it’s not just Matthew Slater, it’s Matthew Slater and Walt Aikens?) – “I try to make my presence be known whenever we play a tough opponent like the Patriots and you’ve got great special teams guys like Slater and Danny (Amendola). When Danny was there, we had to look out for them, but I wanted them to feel me and look out for me, too. Just hearing those guys come up and talk to me after the game or before the game knowing we’re going to battle it out, that’s a big confidence, big momentum booster for me.”
(Why do you think this year is going to be different for this team?) – “Really, we have a whole new team; but I feel like we’re buying into the system right now. We’re gelling. We’re bonding together. Just with the pieces we’ve brought in this year and the guys we’ve already had, I feel like it’s about that time we start making some noise.”
(What has your impressions been on S Minkah Fitzpatrick so far through minicamp and OTAs?) – “Minkah is a nice safety. Young dude, high energy, big motor. He’s coming along good in these offseason programs and we hope to see a lot out of him.”
(A minute ago you mentioned you wanted to show the coaches what you’ve really got. How big of a gap do you think there is between what you’ve shown and what you can give this team?) – “It’s a lot. There’s a lot I haven’t shown you yet just with the limited snaps I did get. I’ve gained more confidence in myself. I feel like I kind of fell off confidence-wise the past couple years, but I’m coming back in refocused, refreshed, full of confidence, full of energy and just ready to ball out.”
(What made you lose confidence?) – “I would say just not being on the field as much as I would want to and just being labeled as a special teams player for so long. I kind of got down on myself; but I know I can ball. I know I can go out there and play. (It is) just about getting on the field now. When the opportunity comes, show out.”
(A business of football question: you know now that WR Jarvis Landry is gone, you and T Ja’Wuan James are the only players from your draft class on the team. Does that surprise you when you think about it or is it kind of “I’ve been in the league. I know that’s how it goes” type deal?) – “Me and Ja’Wuan were actually talking about that yesterday. A few years ago, anybody that left was a shocker to me like, ‘Gosh, we’re really letting these people go.’ But now, I’ve seen it so much, it’s just the league thing. It happens. So, it’s not really a big deal. We’re holding on, me and Ja’Wuan. (laughter) But it’s not really a big deal. Seeing people come and go, it’s part of the league. NFL stands for Not For Long, so you have to make the most of your opportunities now.”
(You mentioned WR Danny Amendola. CB Bobby McCain had said a couple weeks ago that was his second most hated player in the league prior to now. Did you have similar affection for Danny prior to this?) – “Something like that; but it wasn’t as personal as Bobby and Danny. (laughter) Me and Amendola had some words every few punts or a KOR might get him. We actually ran into each other, it was like three years back. I think it was in New England. He tried to block me and I made my presence be known. I like to joke with him about that one. But no, he’s a good dude. He’s a nice asset to this team – a hard worker, goes out. You’re going to get the same person every day. Ultimately, he’s going to make this defense better being that he came from a system that can score and (a) high-powered offense. He’s here now. We’re going to see what he’s got.”
