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View Full Version : Q&A with Ty Law - KCChiefs.com 07/25


BigRedChief
07-25-2006, 02:41 PM
: Can you talk about the process of signing with the Chiefs? What was it that got you here?
LAW: “It’s a combination of everything. I had a lot of teams interested, but I also had some personal interest myself. I just let my agent do what he does best and that’s look for the right situation and the right deal for me, but all along I was hoping that Herm (Edwards) would call and come through. When I came here last year (for a visit), I felt pretty good about it, but I didn’t come here under the best circumstances. I was on crutches. I had another opportunity to get back here and I’m very happy about it.”
Q: How much was head coach Herm Edwards a factor in your signing?
LAW: “Herm was a big factor. Last year I had the opportunity to play under him and although we had a disappointing season as a team, I had a great time playing for him. I wish we would have been a lot better from a team standpoint and I wish we won more games, but the fact that I got to come here and we get to redeem ourselves a little bit makes it all the better. I had a great feeling from the first time I came here and unfortunately it just didn’t happen last year. That’s the past, we are here now and we are going to move forward.”
Q: Do you plan on playing more than one season here?
LAW: “Definitely, I’m not giving it up yet, I’m not that old. Last year was a bit of a different circumstance coming off of my injury and it was more so a one-year deal from the beginning. I’m looking at it is that I am going to be here for the long-haul and this is supposedly my last contract. That’s what I’m looking forward to and hopefully I can finish out my career here.”
Q: What is it about Herm that makes playing for him so special?
LAW: “It’s a difference when you have a coach who played the game. There are a lot of knowledgeable coaches out there who know football, but Herm can give it to you from a player’s perspective and fortunately for me he played my position and he played it well. Just to have that experience, expertise and knowledge from him being a player it helps out a lot. He’s very down to earth and he’s a motivator. He can see through your eyes and I think that helps you out as a player.”
Q: How much healthier are you this year from last year?
LAW: “Well, I can walk around in flip-flops. I don’t need any help from a boot and things like that. I am 110% better than what I was last year in both my foot physically and mentally. I’m ready to go and I’m ready for it.”
Q: We have been hearing a lot from your critics in New York about how your interceptions came in meaningless games, what do you have to say to them?
LAW: “Of course you can’t please everybody and you are going to have your critics no matter where you go, but I think my track record speaks for itself. You don’t just get 10 interceptions by luck, it just doesn’t happen that way. In order to be in the right place at the right time you have to have a good anticipation of where the ball is going to be at. If I can take a tipped pass and help us get to the playoffs and win a championship then I’ll take it and I know the Kansas City Chiefs will, too.”
Q: Can you be the guy who takes the Chiefs to the next level?
LAW: “I don’t look at it like that. I can’t say that one person can be the savior for any football team. This is football and it’s a team sport. I’m just a piece of the puzzle and hopefully I can take them over the top. They were one game away from the playoffs last year and hopefully my presence can get that one game - 10-6 - that’s a pretty good football team and any other season that would be a playoff team. My presence here is to bring some experience, bring my expertise to football games and hopefully that can rub off and I just fit it. They have Pro Bowlers and established football players here as it is so I just want to get it to where I can fit in and help out Kansas City bring home a championship.”
Q: How do you rub your playoff and Super Bowl experience off on players who haven’t been there before?
LAW: “You try and lead by example. I’m not much of a talker or a rah-rah guy, but I try and lead by example in how I prepare and my work ethic doing the extra work, extra film study. If I have to take a young guy to the side and just give him a little piece of knowledge that I think might benefit him then I will do that. For the most part just watch what I do. This is how I got successful. If you can take a little piece from that and mix that with whatever you do well then that’s good. I work hard and I try and do the little things, if I can share that with some of the guys I think that is as beneficial as anything.”
Q: Did having CB Patrick Surtain here factor into your decision?
LAW: “It did. I am neighbors with Patrick in Miami. We live in the same development. You talk about it, but what are the chances of you going out there and being able to play alongside another Pro Bowler that is also your friend. S Sammy Knight is an experienced guy and we played in a Pro Bowl together and I’m really looking forward to that. I played with some veteran safeties and corners before and had a lot of success. Lawyer Milloy, Rodney Harrison, Otis Smith and who took us to championships. I’m fired up about it. I think we can get up in training camp and build a good foundation then we can play some good football together.”
Q: Talk about your off-season training with track coach Bob Kersee?
LAW: “I was always pretty strong as far as upper-body strength, I was naturally strong and in order to play cornerback I have to be able to run with those fast guys like Marvin Harrison, Chad Johnson and Randy Moss. I think it was to my advantage to go up there and work out on my speed and foot quickness and stuff like that. We do lift weights, he’s not going to cut that out of the program. I wasn’t able to be down there with him last year because my foot couldn’t take it and I had most of my success when I have worked out with him. It has been seven years going so any chance I have to work out with him throughout my career than I am going to go. He’s my personal trainer and I think that he brings the best out of me.”
Q: Can you talk about your desire to sign before you went to camp?
LAW: “That was something that I wanted to do, but it’s not always in your control. It has to be tied on both ends and it doesn’t always work out the way you want it to. I am very happy that I get an opportunity to go into training camp on time and early compared to last year. Some would say you had a great season last year and you saved your body, but it still takes some time to catch up with your teammates, to learn the system, to get a feel for who is around and things like that. I am happy that I get to go in on time and participate in training camp.”
Q: You said there was one team you were favoring and quietly rooting for during negotiations, was it the Chiefs or the Patriots?
LAW: “I guess I can say it now. I wanted to come here. I am happy about it. Herm and I have talked from time to time throughout the off-season and he said that he was going to do whatever he could to try and make that happen. He understood the position I was in and couldn’t make any promises, but he would make sure that he put his best foot forward to try and get me in Kansas City. Patience is a virtue and patience paid off this time. ”
Q: What is it like to sit there and wait while both sides work out a deal?
LAW: “It was somewhat frustrating because you went through a season last year and weren’t 100% healthy and still went to the Pro Bowl. I was there asking what are you guys thinking about. But that is your own ego talking and I mean that is the confidence you have inside yourself. It’s a process and just because you did this or that, there are other guys you have to deal with, too. There are salary caps and different entities that you have to deal with when making a deal. It’s not just about Ty Law playing for any different team. But after what I went though last year I was prepared to go he distance because I knew I would be playing football somewhere. That made me able to concentrate not on where I was going, but to get back into football shape. I’m sitting there just focused on getting my weight down and my foot back together in order to have an explosive season, not limping all around every game. That is something I am looking forward to doing, being healthy and leading the team to the championship. I will never end my career like I did last year if I can help it.”
Q: How close to your top level do you think you are right now?
LAW: “Very close. There is always room to improve and hopefully though this training camp and by the time the opening game comes I can be at the best level physically, mentally and emotionally as I can be.”
Q: What do you know about River Falls?
LAW: “Nothing. Nothing at all, it is the first time that I have ever been part of a team that gets on a plane and flies to training camp. I’ve been used to packing your bag in your car and moving in so this is going to be a different experience for me, but I’m looking forward to it.”
Q: Was Herm the reason the Chiefs were the top choice?
LAW: “He had a lot to do with it, but I also think about the atmosphere. Just being an opponent here playing in Arrowhead. The fans here are very passionate about their football and it was similar to what I experienced in New England. They had some great fans and that helps when you are going out there and you have that 12th man and homefield advantage. The stadium rocks around here and I thought it would be good to get some cheers instead of boos when you play in Kansas City. That was a motivating factor as well and I’m looking forward to playing in front of those fans.”
Q: You talked about Herm playing the game before, how is that different from playing with Bill Belichick?
LAW: “When you come from a players perspective it’s just something that you know and you’ve been there, you don’t second guess him. A guy like Coach Belichick, you won’t second guess him either because of his knowledge for the game, but I’ve been around some coaches that you wonder if they really know what it’s like when Marvin Harrison or Chad Johnson are running at you full speed. Do you really understand what I’m talking about? Sometimes that’s hard to fathom for coaches. They can say back peddle, do this or bread on this, but when you are out on that field it is a different ball game. Herm knows, you can’t tell him anything that he hasn’t experiences. I think from a knowledge standpoint that goes a long way.”
Q: When word got out that the Chiefs signed you, they got 50,000 hits on their web-site. Do you enjoy being the center of attention right now?
LAW: “I do enjoy that they are enthusiastic about it, but we still have a job to do. There are still games to play and there is still work to be done. I’m glad that I’m being accepted, but you always have your critics out there. I am very glad to be here, but the most important thing is do go out there and do what I do best and help win a championship. I’m trying to give them a reason to be happy about signing me. Right now I’m ecstatic and kind of speechless. Everything happened so fast and I really didn’t know if I was going to get something done and head down to training camp. I really thought it would probably be another two or three weeks from now before it actually happened.”
Q: Why did you think it was going to be that long?
LAW: “Because I’ve been around a while and I know the process. It isn’t as easy as saying you are going to go here or actually get your wish for where you want to go because it is a hard decision on both ends as an organization and a player. You can’t always get your wishes and sometimes you have to do what you have to do in this business.”
Q: Would you have preferred to sign here three weeks later and miss part of training camp?
LAW: “You ask me that in about a week, I’ll probably tell you yeah I could have waited a week. I’m just being honest with you.”
Q: Do you prefer how Herm runs training camp and how he rests his veterans some?
LAW: “Well, I didn’t go through training camp last year, I was there for a week and it was pretty much breaking camp. So I didn’t really get to experience training camp with him.”
Q: Herm will probably give you some extra reps then.
LAW: “He probably will, but that is something that I will need as well. You have guys out there who are five years older than me, so I don’t feel like the old grandpa now. With New York I was the old guy.”
Q: Herm likes giving veteran players rest, is that a factor in a veteran players mind?
LAW: “When you look at it from a free agent standpoint, you definitely have to take that into consideration. I’ve played for Bill Belichick and Bill Parcells and to coach Belichick’s credit, he has given the 36-year-olds time off here and there and sometimes would let them go once per day to save them because after you have been in 12-13 years you can do that. You can let some of the young guys run around and knock each other down and beat each other up. There is nothing wrong with that and they do that for a reason. That’s why I think that he is a championship level coach. Herm has been a player and he’s played for a long time. He knows when guys need a break because he was a player himself. I think everyone has their own philosophies for a reason, but they are all successful with it and that’s why.”
Q: Have you had an opportunity to talk with defensive coordinator Gunther Cunningham yet?
LAW: “Yeah, I had a chance to talk to Gunther. I already know that he is going to be fun to work with. He’s a character and he’s very passionate about defense so I’m looking forward to my first meeting with him as a team.”

StcChief
07-25-2006, 03:13 PM
Text from video press conf.