[Music] yob Johnson is in De fullback for the Las Vegas Raiders then stutgart Kor in Johnson SP a college in Tennessee and belong VI International player pathway program in the clay cber with Tom Brady and Bill b in the New England Patriots in bostonie John and the football Community welcome Jacob thank you for uh for doing this it's uh it's an honor to to finally get a um an NFL player on the team on the on the afcb podcast that's the first we're in episode 95 I think now so that's a that's a a good thing to have on the first uh first 100 so thank you for doing this you got it no worries man always glad to be the first always uh always fun to to to talk to to someone who knows so much um first of all how are you I think you're in an LA now right uh I'm good I'm in Vegas so I'm I'm I'm in Vegas uh I got here like uh three three and a half weeks ago okay we're right now in in the beginning of the the offseason program here and got got about I think another five weeks or so to go until the summer break yeah you already went through through like the volunteer any mini camp and and stuff like that for the Raiders right so we had one mini camp already because if you're a team that has a new head coach you get two mini camps so we got one mini camp done the the second mini camp will be like um sometime in June I think and uh then after that we have the the summer break until training camp oh okay so you can still enjoy your your time a little bit um how how is you know you know the move been from uh going to New England to uh now Las Vegas that's been um um I think you signed March 17th yeah yeah I mean it's h it's been different uh I did my uh I did I did a kids camp in Germany I think it was on April April 6 and then uh some sometime around no April 10th I think April 10th was the camp in Germany uh straight after the camp I flew out here to Vegas to be here for for the first day of the offseason program and um been here ever since man it's definitely different the weather is a lot different right this it's a very very different uh City uh than uh than kind of Boston where I was at before but you know I'm excited to be here man the the new teammates and new coaching staff has been great so yeah just happy to be here yeah and I'm uh I showed you the helmet right before before we start people that are uh uh aware of this podcast that listen to this podcast no I'm a I'm a Raiders fan I'm part of uh Raider Nation did they already reach out to you yeah Raider Raider Raider nation has been has definitely made their impact felt all all across my social media I see a lot of a lot of uh black and silver now and you know that's and that's just awesome it's it's great to see how International the fan base is too right like I mean you're you're in Belgium you know there there's Raider Nation in in Germany in mexic in Canada you know all over the United States so um yeah it's definely exciting to be part of of such a historic franchise with such a huge fan base yeah it's it's like you went from one story franchise basically to another and New England and now he chose the right spots to be in international as well I think yeah as as a fan as a fan dude as a fan of of of football you know that I couldn't have asked for a better better situation yeah you talked about it a little bit in terms of having uh a new head coach in Las Vegas for you it's not really a new head coach uh Josh McDaniels you know you know him from New England he was the the the offensive coordinator there for a very long time um I can imagine that was the the biggest reason for you signing with the Raiders or or were there a couple other circumstan stances that were important to go in there oh man I mean my my agent handled most of that but obviously once once that uh once that connection was made you know it was uh it felt comfortable and it only felt natural for me to uh to come out here you know uh um really excited to go to work with with with Coach McDaniels this year and uh um yeah just excited to keep this thing going yeah um can you talk us a little bit about um him as a as a coach how he is because I think there's like a certain aura about him it might be negative it might be positive um you're already laughing I think you know what I'm talking about in certain degree yeah for me man listen I I I'll tell to you how what I experienced man um you know coach mcdel is just one of these people who who sees football on a whole on a whole different plane right like uh I obviously uh do my best to to to get my football IQ up there but you know he's just one of these people who who thinks about football uh you know like on a on a whole on a whole another level like he guys has down to a science so just just being around that man is it's a blessing for me because I I try to I'm still a student of the game you know I still try to learn as much as I can and and and try to pick up the the ways that that he sees sees the game being played and you know I'm I'm really excited to get the opportunity to be here and and and and learn some more this year yeah I think playing the position that you do I think was uh was an important part of of what they or what Josh McDaniel has done for a long time in New England um the fullback position um I've read somewhere uh you did an interview a couple weeks ago when you you moved to uh to the Raiders um that New England might change uh their stands on not really stands but they might not use uh a position uh on the roster for a fullback um you being a fullback um there's not many teams that have a roster spot for a fullback um how important for you is that position still because it's it's like it's changing uh I'm not changing saying it's going away but you know the position is changing I think a little bit I mean that's that's one thing that's one thing about about the NFL right things are always things are always changing right the the way positions are played is is changing which which positions uh might be in the spotlight is changing um so it's always a dynamic situation you know um um I'm I'm sure uh there there a lot of fullbacks around the league who who do great work and there's a lot of lot of coaches who believe in using a fullback and uh you know as long as long as that's a part of the game you know I I'll find a way to to be a part of that and and you know yeah try try to try to make the fullbacks that came before us that P way for us proud um but but as far obviously like nothing stays the same in football right it's always changing and that's why every year you have to go out there and and and and kind of prove your worth again and and fight for a spot and and uh fight for for the relevance of of yourself and your position you know so it's just a part of the game yeah yeah I think um especially it's it's not easy to be uh a fullback in the league because it's it's like a limited amount of players um we talked about it in terms of like International Players there's not a lot of international players in the league um so maybe we can you know start with um how he ended up playing football like how they that came about American football because we call it now football we we always talk about football um but you know it's American football in Europe how do you start playing uh in in stutgart I think it was in Germany that you started playing yeah yeah so uh I mean I was always uh I was kind of driven to sport because uh I would always get in trouble in schools so they always made sure to to Max me out with sport I did all kinds of things man I played football uh like soccer regular regular regular football right uh played u basketball swimming wrestling I did all kinds of stuff and all all these Sports never really seemed to uh you know power me out all the way um they also some of them didn't really have uniforms that would fit me for my age group so always you know didn't really feel like I felt like I fit in and then when I when I went to my first football practice you know I just came home I was tired I was just happy you know and and uh just kind of stuck with it from there just fell in love with the sport and uh always looked for opportunities you know once once I started getting good at it right like okay where where can I go where can I play uh I made it on the on the youth National Team roster one of my last years in in Germany and um got some American players that we had at our team and stard just kind of were like hey you you might have you might be good enough to play in the states and then from there on just started formulating a plan researching by myself on the internet how how can I get how can I get noticed how can I get a scholarship um ended up playing high school for six months in in Florida and got recruited by the University of Tennessee from there and uh that's how I got my start yeah about that I read somewhere you um kept an uh XL Spreadsheet like coaches and and and you know Scouts to to mail is that true is that yeah about you yeah I had a I had a had a whole word word document I kind of worked on it uh during the during the winter winter break before before I graduated and uh I just compiled all the the would go go through all the FBS so that's the big division one schools it's like a 124 of those I would go to each one of their homepage uh homepages search through the staff directory uh and kind of try to find email addresses for their their defensive coaches their head coaches their recruiting coordinators like whoever I can get into touch with put that in a big document uh then formulate it kind of like a a cover letter right like with my uh put my CV in there and my highlight tape and some of my numbers some YouTube videos of of me playing and of me lifting weights and probably sent out I think between 400 and like 600 personal ized uh customized emails with the person's name in it and everything and the school name and I I got like three responses right and they were all like hey can you find a way to play in the United States uh so we can evaluate you here and that's kind of what got the ball rolling on on me going to a high school in Florida yeah you got up you ended up in in uh in Jacksonville right played for yeah uh for the high school there yeah uh I'm I'm fortunate that my dad side of the family is from the United States so I have relatives in Jacksonville Florida and essentially after graduating in Germany I figured out that in Florida you're allowed to play high school football um up until the year up until the the school year that you turn 19 in right so I saw that I was still eligible to play high school football in Florida um I'd already taken a a SAT and a ACT test uh while in school in Germany had uh just researched it found a way to take it ordered some books on Amazon to study for it um kind of took it on my own time and then that helped me a lot getting into the high school right because when when I showed up there they were like hey um the coaches of course took me for like a little Saturday Tri out practice right they saw how big I was they saw I was moving they were like hey we'd love to have you but we don't know if we can get you into school and uh once I show them my my act and my SAT score and they were like hey these are like if if we get you in our school these are some of our best scores in the school right so then uh from there on out man they they took care of the paperwork they found somebody to translate my grades into American grades and um yeah played that played that fall in in uh with a reball Trojans reball Trojans in Jacksonville Florida it was a good time yeah I can imagine being a good time from from stutgart to uh to Jacksonville where you ever been to the United States before was it okay I've been I've been the Jacksonville like uh I think two three times before I was a kid growing up just visiting my my aunt there and stuff so there was already a relationship and I had had cousins there that uh were my same age that that uh actually went to the same high school then as me so I had some people looking out for me and uh yeah that definitely helped in my transition from from Europe to to America yeah that that would have been my next question for being homesick but if you had some people around that can you know kind of kind of people that you know that changes a little bit but the homesick would have that would have been the case anyway but you know yeah I mean it's all blow a little bit Yeah you you just it's just one of those things you know you you have to make a decision if uh if this is the the journey you want to go on you know it's it's not like I see my family a whole lot now you know like from from that perspective like if I'm lucky I see him maybe like once a year or so uh but besides that it's all all about like FaceTime and these type of things but just if you uh choose to go down that path if you commit to that path um if you really want to go go chase that dream chase that goal there's of course sacrifices that you have to make you know and then leaving behind your family and and your friends and people you grow up with uh you know it's just part of it you know at the same token it makes it easier later on when you then have to move from high school to college or from college to the pros or if you're in the pros and you move in between teams you know uh you've already learned how to how to yeah how to deal with that and you know you realize that like the people that you really have a close relationship with they'll be there you know I mean there's friends that I I might not see in in two three years you know but then uh when when we get back together it's uh just like uh no time has passed at all you know so it just kind of sorts out the people that are that are only you know that are not really there for you anyway you know yeah yeah yeah I can imagine and the same like it's still a very limited amount of time like it's it's you can have a 10year career and that's a very long career but like that's a very limited amount of time limit of time if you look at yeah if you look at your whole life yeah yeah and that's and that's another thing you gotta you got to keep in perspective you know you you you only get to do this once right you only get to do this during this these certain like between say age 19 to 30 or something like that right and then you still have your your whole rest of your life to uh uh to to relax and and drink beer with your buddies that you went to high school with if that's what you want to do you know but uh you know at some point you you got to you got to take the leap you know you gotta you gotta go down that route you gotta move to the country that you know you might know nobody in um but in in return there's a big reward Ward than that too you don't want to look back either and say like oh I'm I might exactly exactly right because uh because then all the all the friends in the world can't help you get past that feeling you know so that's that's definitely I encourage everyone to just you know just take the leap if it works out it does if if it doesn't then I'm sure you you learn a bunch of things along the way and uh you know your your people will still be there when when you get back yeah I heard it from from um someone who played like a Belgium player um who moved to the us as well and and and it's like you know they you grew up so incredibly fast way faster than guys that are your same age uh if you if you go to college in us not just from that experience but you know you have to really learn to be an adult suddenly way quicker than than anybody else so life experience and of itself is worth it so that's 100% agree in football you have a little bit of the the benefit that in in football you live in kind of a bubble right like we always have like these these support systems like when you're uh by being the pros in college I would say even more but uh you're kind of in that football bubble where like at least you know when it comes to uh taxes paperwork this that you you need a car rental car you'll always have people that can help you organize these things but yeah definitely is as as far as like maybe some of your friends that you know are just going to University back home or something they're still staying with their parents uh it definitely forced you grow up a little bit quicker yeah um you you then moved to college how did that was in in Tennessee right in in the Tennessee Volunteers I think they were called yeah Tennessee Tennessee volunte here's uh one of the one of the the historic uh big football programs uh in in the South soan the Southeastern Conference the SEC that's uh that's college football has broken up into all these divisions the SEC is probably the one where the best football is being played right uh you routinely like every year we'd play against Alabama Florida Georgia all these these these schools that you're familiar with uh probably the most famous person to come out of the University of Tennessee is probably pton Manning yeah absolutely football football fans should be familiar with him um and I mean it's a it was a it was a crazy experience you know uh every Saturday the the game home games are sold out 102 102 455 so uh 102,400 so uh that was definitely a a crazy experience and uh you know you you learned a lot got to play some football uh in total you know my time Tennesse didn't didn't work out as well for me as as it could have you know I didn't I didn't play as much I got I got Hur a bunch and uh when I was done with college I moved back to Germany and and played for theat scorpions again you know but uh in the long term things worked out for me when when the pathway program picked me up and and I got my chance to come over here yeah um because at the time you moved to Tennessee to play there um you you were still linebacker people you know we talk about you being a fullback before but you were a linebacker at that point I think you were a middle linebacker um how did that switch came about how what you know made you make that decision or probably coach made that decision yeah it was it was uh pretty much just like a a decision I think the the coaches made you know they they looked at the depth chart after my first year oh sorry so uh a after my first uh after my first year um you know I I got hurt you know and I was at the bottom of the dep chart when I came back you know and uh the coaches saw that we needed we needed some extra guys in the in the tight end room um maybe some they wanted to add some like extra toughness because they knew that they knew that I was I was tough you know they didn't know if I how Translate to the to that position so made a move to the tight end kind of took me some while took me like two three years to get the get the hang of it you know get get used to playing offense and stuff and uh but yeah that's how how I initially made the switch Yeah okay um you I read story somewhere you didn't get back to uh to um to Germany right away you had to buy plane tickets you had to work yeah there was really great article that had some really great UHS in there so like uh yeah you got to think man like when you're done with your last with your last season college football right you will go one or two routes either you go playing the NFL like the CFL or you look for a job and you start going the work and you start transitioning into into the real world you know so for me I was kind of caught in between because um I was in grad school so was taking grad school classes I graduated in three years so I thought okay maybe with this last year I can get a master's done or something so I was working on the Masters um but then in in in in the meanwhile like you got to still got to pay your rent you got to pay your bills so uh I was just working at like a a pizza place on campus Mellow Mushroom just as a waiter uh and then remember that name place like it's it's a it's a pizza spot out here in this in the states man uh but no so yeah and then uh essentially it was like I went back home for a vacation that was the first time I was back home in like maybe two and a half years or so and at the time my my long-term plan was I wanted to go to med school I want to study to be a be a surgeon or something and uh my my my family out there have a have a cousin who who's a doctor now and uh he essentially recommended for me to just come back to Germany and go to school there try again to med school in Germany um because all the time I'd spend in the United States would probably count as like waiting time towards finding a a place at University and it would obviously be way cheaper right uh going to med school here in the United States probably like $200,000 you know compared to Germany where I can go to school for free if you can get a spot at a university you know that's that's that's more the hard part yeah you gotta get that spot you know but uh so I was like yeah I'm I'll just take my chances and um finally at at the same time the the Stuart scorpions adult team um a bunch of the guys that I grew up playing with you know they're they're still playing for the for the Scorpions and uh they got kind of got win of the fact that I'm thinking about coming back to Germany and um so they uh had to they had to talk me into you know uh playing football in in Germany and and once they talked me into that then the the team got me some some plane tickets to for me and my girlfriend to fly to Germany and uh started playing for the Scorpions at summer but it was pretty much just kind of like having fun with it again right like I had just come from an experience where my senior year in college we lost every every game the SEC our head coach got fired right I finished the year I finished the year getting injured um you know so I was really kind of done with football to then getting a getting a second chance to to play with the the guys that I grew up playing with right play with my friends and and and just have fun representing my my city that I grew up in and uh yeah so I I jumped on that opportunity kind of worked as a waiter throughout that summer that was that was an interesting time too but uh just got to kind of fall in love with football again and got a second chance to play yeah I think at that point you're not really thinking about you know I'm GNA be a fullback in the NFL that oh you let that dream go a little bit yeah yeah yeah at that at that at that point man uh uh like I I thought I was going to be in in Germany you know I brought my my American girlfriend right she's American I brought her with me cuz we're going to live in Germany fulltime and uh yeah and then you know at after that season in the in the the German Football League um yeah I got I got a call from the the pathway program guys they invited me for a tryy out through the try out it was in London did did decently you know uh but still I didn't hear back from them for like another like two and a half months or so but then finally they called me and they're like hey we we want to have you on on this year's pathway program so um yeah that's that's how it came about yeah that that has to be an exciting call to to get like okay it was email email actually yeah yeah it was email actually like they they told me they told me yeah we'll email you guys at some point like in November they didn't send the email until like uh December 13th right so it was like two days before my birthday I was actually applying for like uh spots to become a EMT right because I was going to work as a EMT for a while maybe get better chances at getting a spotted University and um got the email they're like hey man we'll we'll invite you to train at at IMG in Florida this spring and um then I think January January 8th I think we flew flew to Florida and that was it yeah you at that point you're sitting on the plane what are you thinking like is this at that point do you know you're being allocated to the to the Patriots no that's not so so no so they you you don't know you don't even know which teams are are potential spots for guys to get allocated but you also don't know if you're going to be one of the people that gets allocated right because uh I mean that year I think it was six or seven of us were in the program and then four four guys get allocated right so uh okay is some guys are always going to obviously uh you know be be disappointed or whatnot but yeah for me it was just like you know uh just a second second chance and then just really taking everything that I learned from my first trip to United States right all the all the mistakes I made along the way and just kind of taking taking the lessons from those mistakes and uh and and giving it one more shot you know and uh definitely I think that was that was important for me that's why you know I can't really say that I have any regrets you know because at the end of the day everything happened the way that it had to happen right uh I had to make certain experiences I to make certain mistakes uh to learn these lessons and to then be prepared when my opportunity came yeah it's always more fun if the story is not smooth it adds like a little bit depth to just it wasn't might might have not been as much fun in the moment when you go through but then when you get to the other side man then it makes it that much better that's true yeah yeah that's true I can imagine like the the inter pathway or play pathway program um how important is that it obviously like launched your career like a second time like how is that is that like a sort of a broader Hood now because you had to train with these guys or is that yeah 100% I mean all all all the guys that I mean I'm I'm still in touch with all the guys that I was in the program with right but then even just the guys that that came before you the guys that come after you um you know we we definitely try to um try to always leave the program in a better place than than what we find it and you know we're all everybody that came through the program we're a reflection of the program right so the way that we carry carry ourselves when we get to these teams um the the things we can accomplish uh with those teams in in end effect they'll reflect back on the program and they will determine how much more opportunity is going to be given to other International Players right so that's definitely something that that we all take take very serious and and that was one of the big uh key key things that the that the program always always hit on and and and try to instill in in you as a player going through the program um that yeah we we're here to to build that bridge we're pathway right now but we we wanna we want to widen the path right we want to make the path bigger we want to make it a street we make it a highway um so to get to that point you know what we do matters and and how we carry yourself matters and part of being a yeah just part of being a international player in the league yeah do you get a lot of messages now from like young players uh from you know different countries trying to be like I want to be in that program as well did people contact you oh yeah 100% right and and uh kind of the my first two years I would say there there was not as much known about the program so people would obviously come to me to ask Etc but uh I think the NFL has done a much better job explaining what the program is how you can get recognized for the program where the try out is being held right or or how you can qualify how you can how you can catch the eye of the coaches so uh yeah I gotta say the questions actually decreased you know as the visibility of the overall program has increased right and then at the same token the guys are seeing hey if I go to the the the EF and and I ball out right I can get recognized because you see guys now from the elf make the way through through the program so um I think it's becoming more clearer to guys how how to get recognized and and and what they can do and um yeah that's a that's a good thing yeah I think it's mostly now uh advice that people might ask you like yeah yeah you might have an opportunity now for people that you know Belgian Dutch yeah um you know young players that are listening to this show you have any advice for them like what can I do yeah uh to 100% 100% I mean for me the main thing is always this right um if you decide to set a goal for yourself right if you if you have a a long-term goal you say you want to play college football you say you want to play in in the NFL right what whatever it is that your specific goal is U don't leave nothing up to chance right do your research figure out what the pathways are for you to to get to your goal right if you want to play college then you can either get recognized directly Europe which that's probably the the the smallest chance or you can uh see if you can go to a a prep school or a junior college if you can afford that or you can see if you can do a year at a high school you know or or if you have some relatives in in the states if you can afford that or you can do something like uh going to like all these colleges have summer camps you know what I mean for scouting purposes uh where they where they Scout younger players you can maybe line up a a couple colleges that are close to each other right see when their camps are do your research uh and then plan a trip around that right that's probably your your most cost- effective way of doing it right or you can I know there's uh companies now that that offer those kind of recruiting Services too uh grid iron imports uh PPI right um I personally don't have any experiences with that so I don't know how much money you would need to go that route right but I know that's essentially what they do they take you they bring you to those colleges they bring you to those camps they get you in front of these coaches um and then you know if you can't do that then how about win your Niche right be the best player on your team be the P player get get be one of the one of the best players in your country and see if you can get some recognition that way right uh reach out to these schools send your highlight tape to coaches like don't leave nothing up to chance right the worst thing you can do is to just sit around and dream your dream right uh if you want to accomplish it you have to dream your dream but turn that into action right action action action that's what it's all about if you want to if you have a certain part of your game that you're not happy with if you're a wide receiver and you feel like you're not fast enough um just sitting there and and and feeling bad for yourself right and and and wishing that you were faster is not going to accomplish anything versus if you go out and you do some speed work you pull some sleds you squat you get stronger you know that that's action that's doing positive action to address whatever it is that you want to do um and that's why I would I encourage every young player to do right the the sooner you can start the better the more you can do the better and uh yeah that then you'd be surprised where that takes you you know you might not even be able to Envision right now where you can end up if you start taking action and and and and make a plan of attack and then and then get after it yeah because I don't think you knew what was going to happen when you made that you know email list and everything you didn't know what was going to come over it either so yeah I just listen I just that's the same thing like I just I had this idea right just like a general idea of playing college football and I just just like did my research I made a plan right and I and I I executed on that plan right I just one thing didn't work I went on to the next right the I sent all those emails and I got three replies and they basically said hey well we can't help you right but you can't let that deter you you gota that's one door closes okay what else can I do right what's my next option what's my what's Next Step what else can I do reaching out to guys and uh I think now with the internet and with with with the total amount of of international guys that are at colleges already that are about to make the jump from colleges to the pros and that are in the pros um you know it'll get easier and easier for for each generation that that that comes after us of young players um but you still have to press right you still have to win it you still have to do things you have to go to these coaches you have to go to these training camps you have to uh attack you know and and and kind of put your dreams into action if you want to get there yeah this this I remember like an interview I did a couple years ago with a guy and he told me like a pro athlete will hear a thousand Nos and one yes and he will think about that one yes the entire time it's just the way you your your brains work I think Ian listen I mean that that that's that's another thing man I I was never like the the most like most teams I was on I was never the most impressive player right but I just kept working at it right whereas other guys might have you know what I mean been been happy with okay being the best player in in in this team in Germany right I was like I had my sight set on more and uh you know I I made a plan to attack that compared to just being content where I was at yeah it's a great segue to to what I was going to ask you next about the the program um is you ended up with the New England Patriots first of all is that's a call or that's someone telling you like has to be a great news because that's not just any team that's right on the middle of the that's like the New England Patriots especially at that point how did that um uh end up happening oh man I was I mean it was uh they they let you know that you're allocated but they don't know who uh who you're allocated to so um we were just back back in Germany waiting for the call and then got the call from the team had my family around it it was exciting time you know and uh you know you don't really know what to expect just like any other rookie when when you get that call but and once you get the team you just got to get to work you know yeah that's like okay I got to sit in like a dressing room with a guy like Tom Brady like okay let's just do this like I'm St got right now but things are changing a little bit yeah I mean it it takes it takes some time to get adapted to that you know and that's like the the mental side out would say of of sports and all that stuff is that you know you got to get past that you know this might that you uh looked up to when you was growing up and all these things but uh you know now you're here as part of a team you know what I'm saying you're on the same team as them and uh you're here there for a reason too and uh so that's one once you once that switch clicks then you can you know just really go to work do you you do you remember like the first time you you met Tom Brady the first time you met Bill bich like do you remember those times like is that something that brain or is it I don't know if I I don't know if remember the the first times I met them because that's I mean that's another thing it's like there's really no time for you to you know sit in that you know like uh I'm sure in in the moment that was probably a little bit of a moment for me you know but then you have so many of these moments and and and things move so fast that uh on top of that you you have bigger things to worry about right you got to learn the Playbook you got to uh find a way to get on the field you got to find a way to contribute to the team so uh all these other things just kind of become more and more irrelevant to you I think as time passes yeah I can imagine and the first um Camp you did you didn't make the team but you got on the practice squad I think right or or did I get that right yeah yeah so so as a as a as a pathway player the team can uh can put you on the on the exemption list right which uh is essentially like an extra practice squad slot for international players that they do the only negative from that is that at the time that meant that you could not be activated for the rest of the season right I think I think I think that's I think that has changed I want to say but uh but I'm not 100% sure um but yeah the the the big step for me was that instead of putting me on that exemption list spot the team decided to keep me on the regular practice squad which then uh when when my predecessor at fullback uh end up getting injured James James develin Pro Bowl fullback great guy uh when when when he went down uh I got an opportunity to play and uh that's what gave me my start yeah that's that's the the next ManUp uh mentality that um the NFL talks about all the time and I think and the the Patriots have have a a great way of putting that to to to use every every single year um like do Do's a guy like James delin who is like you said a pro Bower before um does he like keep you on your your wi under his wing a little bit or is that that like oh yeah 100% I I mean he taught taught me everything I I I knew up until that point about playing fullback um just working with him throughout training camp and stuff like he would he he would always almost be like a a player coach to to to me and uh the other young fullback at the time um and yeah I I I definitely uh appreciate him for for the time that he spent just kind of teaching us the position teaching us the Playbook and everything uh because you need that you know that that the transition to to the league can be tough so if you have like a a vet that kind of helps you it definitely it definitely helps um you you were part of that IPP U program going into that camp um the people ask questions about you being from Germany I can even imagine a lot of guys don't even know you're from Germany because you're called yeah yeah yeah so it's it's kind of a mix of both like once once guys find out that that you're like an international guy they definitely have questions and stuff and you know there uh a lot of surprise you know on some guys part because because they just don't expect it right uh I think it it hasn't been talked about a lot here in the United States like they just kind of are focused on the day-to-day business of the NFL um but I think now especially this year with a with a game in Germany a game in Mexico the games in London I think people are starting to wake up that that there's something happening and that the NFL is kind of expanding internationally um and then in return you know I'll I'll I tell all my teammates about the the the team that I'm a franchise owner of you know what I mean I'm I'm I'm I'm franchise owner of of a team in the elf I always joke with them it's like hey if you guys ever need a job you know hit me up we're always looking for players so um yeah it definitely has changed and I think people are starting to wake up to the fact that that there's something happening with football internationally yeah um your time in New England how do you look back on that there were uh some some really great moments you scored a touchdown obviously that was has to be one of the the the Great Moments for you um uh was against the Seahawks I think yeah in week two of of 2020 season um is that was you you received it was a receiving touchdown um you don't really usually you're not really you're mostly on passess uh you don't really get the ball a lot so how did that um how did that situation come about like was that something that was installed before or yeah it it just one of these things that like it was a play that was just kind of like in the in the game plan so you know of course as a player you're aware of it and then the situation when the situation came you know we were at the goal line um yeah I was kind of expecting that play call to come and then obviously cam cam threw me a great ball I caught it you know and then and that was a great moment but yeah just kind of in in general I mean it was obviously the the past three years was uh some cool moments person you know but at the end of day what what counts the NFL is wins you know wins the losses at the end of the year there's only one winner and you know until until you get until you're that one winner I think uh you know you you'll keep chasing it so um yeah yeah was a couple of interesting years I think in New England last uh like two or three years it was you know a lot of changes I think but um it has to be interesting to be part of that you know time slot of move mov from like I'm not saying the Dynasty is over but like you know things changed between 2019 and 201 what we are now in 2020 so um is that something I think it was I think I think it was a I think it was an interesting time in the NFL in general you know you gotta think man I had I played through the corona season like a lot of interesting stuff than than last year the first year kind of having fans back in the stadiums but but still having all kinds of like restrictions when it comes to practice and wearing masks like it was a it was definitely an interesting time man I'm I'm I'm definitely looking forward to having a having a a normal right normal full NFL season this year and uh to see that yeah The Full Experience finally of of the whole thing because in 2019 you you I think you only played four games and you were injured yeah so I think the most time that you played in League was in that whole Corona situation and think about it yeah um wearing masks wear trust me wearing masks on flights after away away games is definitely not the most fun it's not the most fun thing in the world especially if you've lost yeah can only make worse yeah um but you know at at one point now um you know one of the things that that I read about you being there um was Bill bich um calling you one of the top five players he's worked with uh in terms of uh you know year-to-year development you talked about working hard and always being like one of the guys that you know who wants to you know take a step forward um that has to be like one of the greatest quotes ever about you that you somewhere I is it's of course you know appreciate coach coach Coach B for for everything that he's done for me just giving me the opportunity and everything and uh you know that was of course a great compliment you know but then when you get a compliment like that that just kind of puts you in the responsibility of you know of of really making that account you know so that that's uh appreciate that of course you know but uh I gotta I gotta I gotta stay I gota stick to that now you know I gotta I gota make that work you can't lean back after that one yeah exactly you can't you can't can't put your feet can he's not the type of guy that yeah he's not the type of guy that will appreciate you you lead him back after a CO like how is is he as a as a as a person I don't know how much you know a guy like that personally as a head coach um but like in front of the scenes let me call it that way I think he has a different um personality if I can call it that way than he is behind the scenes I think he's a little bit more uh you know soft let me put it that way maybe behind the scenes or is it yeah no no no I think I think obviously uh you know as as as fans of football you know you you guys you guys only uh see see coaches in the press conferences and their interactions with the media but you know obviously to to like just like with with us as players there's always like a a different side to it um and then uh you know there are of course like things team internally like that that can't be shared with the media you know so that it's it's always always a little bit different interacting with a coach you know uh as your coach versus how the coach has to talk to you you guys um because there there's obviously a lot of a lot of things that go into that but yeah man I I have nothing but the the greatest respect and and appreciation for Coach B man and and for what he has done not only for me but uh for Sebastian Fulmer which is another German guy you know and uh so I think I think he he's definitely one of those guys that that doesn't care where the player is coming from um as long as you're you're doing your job so appreciate that your job that's somewhere on that big wall I think do your job um there was a great moment I think it's it was a YouTube Club as well of of you getting um an award ball or I don't know how to call it anyway other than that um from from Patriots owner Bob Craft um do you still have that um somewhere is that like 100% yeah yeah I I I keep everything I have jerseys balls gloves cleats I keep everything yeah you keep it to have it like in in in a box or is it really out somewhere you have like a room oh no I I I I have a small apartment man so I have everything in boxes right now but at some point when I when I decide to finally have a a bigger place or something like have something more permanent uh I definitely plan on putting all that stuff up have my kind of like Museum or something in the basement that's really cool there was like a picture of of uh I don't know who who it was like NFL player as well who like swabs J Jers for like I don't know living almost if you see his basement it's like full of like all really cool I'm not too big on the Jersey swaps because what you guys don't know is that we have to actually pay for those jerseys right every time heard SW a Jersey it's like it's like $300 so I'm I'm you know I'm I'm German I'm from South Germany we're known to be like kind of frugal stingy kind of people so I'm not too big of too too big of a fan of of the Jersey swaps but uh yeah everything else I I'll try to keep for sure yeah talking about sto guard um you are now part of uh the elf as well part owner co-owner of St guard surge um is that something they ask you to be part of or you decided to reach out to them oh it was it was just natural for me just uh trying to support the sport in my city uh and and because I look at the elf as just the the next step for football in in Europe is in in in Europe in general so uh when I saw that there was going to be a franchise in my city I of course like reached out to the guys and stuff and look for ways to get involved yeah how is that League now they had their first year uh in 2021 um dlf did um it's starting in June I think uh how are you involved in in like day-to-day things I won't I can't imagine you you you don't have time for that but like how are you involved in it yeah I mean thankfully as an owner you don't really have to do too much but pay bills right so so uh uh like day to yeah right in the day today my involvement is just how it just depends on whatever the team needs right if if the coaches reach out to me with something I helped them out if the the GM reaches out to me with something I I'll help out where I can and then of course uh me knowing and having a personal relationship with most of the players on the team right um of course helps because they can just you know speak to me about things that that that are going on in the team where I might be able to help out so um I just try to kind of keep a keep an overview stay stay above the stay above the stuff and and and help out where I can to to try to make this project successful yeah um this this league already have like a lot of you know media attention like it's getting better and better I think the way they um work at the sport like from a media standpoint is is pretty like professional I think it's a semipro league in in terms of the players but he getting like more and more recognition I think as well uh so so I I think I think it's probably fair to call it a semi pro league when it comes to the the salaries right now right because guys are not getting paid as much but for football in Europe yeah it's already a big step to have full rosters of guys getting paid right because for a long time the only guys that were getting paid were like the American Import players right but with the TV deals with all the stuff that the league is doing to promote itself right with all the content they're producing right they're finally giving football a fair shot but before you had all these kind of small local leagues every League doing their own thing nobody really knows where to watch the games how to get the Highlights what's going on um I think the the the elf has done a excellent job at just being like hey look here's a game pass you can watch it on TV like in Germany it's on it's on TV right you can watch the games uh you know what I mean all the teams have jerseys and Equipment that's up to up to a standard that uh I don't think was as high before in Europe and uh you know it gives fans a chance to really see what's going on share the content on social media the the Instagram highlights uh that that was a way that I actually you know uh kept an eye on some of the some of the guys that Anu around the league like cim Adali and and the guys down in Frank for the frankfur Galaxy um yeah I think they're doing an excellent job so you know I'm excited to see what what this year is going to look like for the league with Corona restrictions finally being gone and uh them being able to really fill up the stadiums and U yeah I think the sky is the limit for the league yeah I think you know Germany has been that like if you talk about like a hot spot for for American football that's that's always been like Germany has always been like in the Forefront um of of American football and Europe and especially now that's only going to get bigger with the international games going to uh to Germany as well for you obviously being a German player uh it has to be like really great to see the NFL moving to uh to Munich uh as well this year yeah 100% I mean this is uh definitely more than I could have ever you know expected uh no none of us all of us always had the the dream of you know making it to the NFL nobody ever thought that the NFL would come to us you know so I think it's a huge step um it'll lead to the sport being more tangible right I think it'll get more kids involved because uh you have to really see it and and and feel it to to kind of understand the excitement around the sport and uh so I'm I'm I'm really excited uh that that the NFL is bringing these games over and making such a huge commitment uh to Germany into those International markets yeah because it's it's like one of the biggest stadiums as well in the entire Europe so it's it's going to be like a big thing in in uh in Europe there's there's going to be talks about it anyway uh like the the international games now in London always felt like that was it flew a little bit under the raid or sometimes that the feelings I'm I'm interested no offense no offense no offense to the British you know but you know they need to stick to soccer all right you know I mean British are like even like everybody Europe that was involved in football in Europe knows that that German German German American football you know was some of the best football that's that's being played all around all around uh Europe and German fans are just you know very dedicated like like there was two there's a guy I signed some guy's forearm and he got my T he got my he got my signature tattooed right at at this kins camp that I was in Germany like German fans are very passionate you know yeah almost crazy and uh I think the NFL won't regret you know uh coming over and and and getting more guys involved in the sport yeah do you feel like the NFL can do a little bit more or or are there certain things where you go well maybe they can do this maybe they can do that to to even improve that International because we talk about Europe but I think it's International but like do you see things that they can improve yeah I think the main two things I see is like uh the more they can invest in like Youth Sports in Germany right getting kids involved in flag football and and and Youth football um that will pay off huge for them right because that's that's the future uh those the those the guys that are going to want to buy the jerseys right that that are want to come to the games and and and consume all that content that that's getting put out on social media uh so I think that would be the first step and then secondly uh I I think uh just as a whole football Community I think it would help us out if you know um like maybe flag football seven on seven football could become like an Olympic sport right because uh in Europe a lot of funding for for sports and youth sports is connected to the Olympic committees right uh one one reason why we as football players in Germany never could uh go to physical therapy or or train at at at certain uh um certain spots in Germany is because our sport didn't have an Olympic Committee right so I think I think uh the more the NFL can do to kind of further further that agenda think it will help make the sport more popular all around the world and uh give people an easy easy access point uh to join the sport yeah absolutely I think it's a it's a wonderful way to to to get every step forward and that's what we try to do here with the the afcb we call it afcb but it's American football community and and always put the emphasis on that part of of what we do like we have our website we have this podcast that we do that's like always what I always like emphasize on that part of like we need it's such a small sport so we need the full community to part of this whole yeah yeah that's what it's all about I mean that's that's that's what grew it in Germany right in Germany everything started taking off once the the the they call the football Bromance community over there right but it's the same thing as as the community you're trying to build here so I think the the more the more the community can do to just kind of come together find these spaces like like this like this podcast and and and those platforms to kind of unite and and and and show up as a group right for football I think the the bigger the reward will be yeah we had a um like a meet up in Gent with with fans from from like this whole Community you can see still people white like watching like a Sunday night football game um and you can still see people in like the sports bar like looking like who are these people people what's going on over there so we want we want to change that that people like okay those are the football guys like we we know guys are I got I got I gotta come I gotta come to gent sometime watch some football with you guys yeah yeah yeah you have my whatap now so anytime you you can have you can sleep here you don't even need a hotel all right all right perfect hey I'll take you up on that yeah yeah yeah very very well because I have to you know I thanked you before we started and and even when we started but I have to thank you again I'm not going to take up any more you know longer time that you do um but like uh it's great that you wanted to do this like always said like I want to interview uh players on the podcast never really thought about an NFL player but I did exactly what you did like aim big and and you know see where where where it lands because I even remember you scoring the touchdown on saying in in the the dynasty fantasy group that we have like I want to interview that guy people like what the hell we're sitting here so it's fun that we're we're able to do it and uh yeah so I have to thank you no going to take up uh no worri man apprec thanks for having me and uh shout out to the community in Belgium and hopefully I can get out there and come visit you guys sometime yeah yeah you're always always welcome and uh we'll see you okay yes sir peace peace