D Bowe throws out some tough love

[LaChapelle]

Features
Q&A with DWAYNE BOWE - 9/16
Sep 16, 2009, 3:46:00 PM


OAKLAND CONFERENCE CALL

Q: How are things different on offense with Coach (Todd) Haley versus what Herm Edwards would have done or been doing?

DWAYNE BOWE: “Herm’s a defensive coach. He wasn’t even calling the plays the way Coach Haley is calling them. He is being more aggressive as the game’s going on. At first, we had to get acclimated to what they were doing – they had a few different schemes that we didn’t see. As the game went on, Coach Haley got more aggressive and most of the wide outs were making plays.”

Q: What do you remember of your first NFL game and trying to get into the offensive flow?

BOWE: “My first NFL game I got hit so hard I didn’t know where I was, first of all. After everything slowed down, after the older guys pulled me to the side on the sideline after my first series and told me just to play like I was in college. When they told me that, everything slowed down for me, and I’ve just been taking it one step at a time ever since.”

Q: How important was it to get that first catch under your belt and feel like you were in the flow?

BOWE: “I had jitters until I had my first catch. It took two quarters. Can you just imagine two quarters of shaking? If you’re a playmaker, you’re a playmaker. All the great receivers drop balls and mess up here or there, but how you come back is what makes you special. I just kept coming back making more plays and more plays.”

Q: You guys had no hesitation going at CB (Nnamdi) Asomugha last year. What is it that you see that makes you guys think you can go right at him?

BOWE: “Just the playmaking we have on offense. Like myself, we have a great quarterback and our offensive line is protecting him, and all he needs is time. I improved, I matured more in route-running and catching the ball. We’re going to go at him. (Coach Haley) told me to play with leverage and to play low and to watch his hands. Every game, he doesn’t show you the same thing every week. You could practice what he did this week, but when we play him Sunday he could have a whole different scheme, that’s what I learned about him. You never know what you’re going to get going against him. But as long as you know your role, you’ll be ok.”

Q: How excited were you with the arrival of Coach Todd Haley, especially after seeing what he did in Arizona last year with the Super Bowl run? Did you light up when you realized he was going to be in Kansas City?

BOWE: “Most definitely. Going back and looking at all the points that the Cardinals put up, it just brought tears to my eyes because I thought, now I can really be able to showcase my talent even more. And now having Matt Cassel, and picking up some free agents on the offensive line, the sky is the limit for the Chiefs.”

Q: Reports early in training camp were that he was on you pretty good trying to bring the best in you out. Is that true, and how is your relationship now?

BOWE: “We’re cool now. We’re on cool terms. Anytime a new guy comes in, just like when I came in, they hazed me. When Coach Haley came in, he figured he’d haze me, and he did, he did a good job. He brought me back down to reality because once you feel like you’re a star on one team, all your technique and the way you perform starts to go down unless your team is good. Right now our team is rebuilding, so he knows that’s the way he was going to come in here and go straight at me. Now everybody is looking at me as a leader, and I’m doing very well.”

Q: What style of leader was JaMarcus at LSU? He seems laid back here in Oakland. Is there something there that makes guys want to follow him?

BOWE: “Most definitely. His first two years at LSU he was kind of quiet, he was this old country boy. Once he got the hang of it, and got accustomed to it and started playing, he got more focused, he was a more vocal leader. He led by example, he called extra meetings, watching extra film at his house. Once he gets acclimated during the season, he does go into those modes. But sometimes he’s kind of a laid back guy. And I’ve talked to him about that, even over there at the Raiders. He doesn’t need to be screaming in guys’ faces but pulling them to the side and telling them what they did wrong, or afterwards, stay an extra hour to improve your game.

Q: What other signs have you seen in the last six or seven months that Coach Haley is shaking things up a little bit? It looks like he’s trying to put his stamp on things there.

BOWE: “He’s doing a great job bringing in guys that he knows can perform. He knows they win. I think that’s a good thing, rather than going off word of mouth and bringing in guys that you really don’t know can perform and releasing guys that can play. He’s doing a great job bringing guys in taking pressure off other guys. Today’s practice was awesome. He has WR Bobby Wade in, he is another wideout. Rotation was great, everyone was catching balls. He’s a mastermind when it comes to executing.”

Q: How hard was it to lose your offensive coordinator just a couple weeks before the season started?

BOWE: “It was tough, being with him for a year and getting acclimated to one playbook, and then getting a whole other playbook going into the first game was hard, but this is the NFL. What you put in is what you get out. I’ve been in my book ever since. I’m actually supposed to be in my book right now, but I’m talking to you guys.”

Q: Have you seen JaMarcus progress, and can he be a star in this league?

BOWE: “I know what he can do; it’s just when can he do it. I told him his time is running out. The NFL, they want to see now, they don’t want to see a year from now. You have to take it into consideration to take the show yourself. He’s just felt that he’s young, and he’s got a lot of older guys around him that are mentoring him, but I said, you’re the quarterback on that team, you’re going to be the franchise player. I told him he needs to take over every drill and every meeting and just see how it goes. If you do it and it doesn’t work out well, then stop, but if you do and you’re successful, then keep going. I’m just waiting to hear him on the headlines taking over in Oakland.”
Q: How big is it to win this game after Oakland has beaten you at home the past two years?

BOWE: “It’s not really about payback. It’s about going out and executing. It’s always exciting going against the Raiders, it’s one of our great rivalries. The whole town will be pumped up for this week, just to go out and put on for the fans. I know they’ve been successful the last couple of times, but I think we’ve got a little something special for them this week.”

[Tribal Warfare]

http://www.kcchiefs.com/news/2009/09...yne_bowe__916/

[big nasty kcnut]

I love d-bowe.

[Micjones]

I can't help, but be a little fired up after reading that.

[Kyle DeLexus]

"He’s a mastermind when it comes to executing" Liked that quote about Haley.

[Dante84]

Well, its confirmed.... we won't see the same stuff we saw in the third preseason game.

“It was tough, being with him for a year and getting acclimated to one playbook, and then getting a whole other playbook going into the first game was hard, but this is the NFL."

[chefsos]

Originally Posted by D. Bowe

“We’re cool now. We’re on cool terms. Anytime a new guy comes in, just like when I came in, they hazed me. When Coach Haley came in, he figured he’d haze me, and he did, he did a good job. He brought me back down to reality because once you feel like you’re a star on one team, all your technique and the way you perform starts to go down unless your team is good. Right now our team is rebuilding, so he knows that’s the way he was going to come in here and go straight at me. Now everybody is looking at me as a leader, and I’m doing very well.”

Been hoping to see a quote like this since July. Bowe gets it.