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Leonard Williams: "This Is Going To Be A Fun Change For Me" · Seahawks Press Pass

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: What's up, everybody? How you doing.
• 0:04
  Speaker 2: Pete said he's had his eye on you for a
• 0:06
  Speaker 2: long time, probably BSc can actually and you've been either
• 0:10
  Speaker 2: tracking Pete or maybe Peth and I on the defense
• 0:13
  Speaker 2: like this one.
• 0:14
  Speaker 3: I mean, I knew about Pete even before going to USC.
• 0:18
  Speaker 3: I obviously didn't get a chance to play it for
• 0:19
  Speaker 3: him at my time there, but uh, you know that's
• 0:22
  Speaker 3: somebody that you know, the whole you know, college organization
• 0:27
  Speaker 3: and everything like that at at USC respects and loves
• 0:30
  Speaker 3: him and talks about him. And you know, I actually
• 0:33
  Speaker 3: heard that he was looking at me for the last
• 0:36
  Speaker 3: and you know, however long and he was just saying
• 0:39
  Speaker 3: that he's excited that it, you know, finally happened. And
• 0:41
  Speaker 3: I'm excited as well.
• 0:43
  Speaker 1: When you found out about the trade.
• 0:46
  Speaker 3: I was excited, but there was clearly some some highs
• 0:49
  Speaker 3: and lows that day. There were some loads about. You know,
• 0:52
  Speaker 3: I was clearly on the Giants for five years now,
• 0:56
  Speaker 3: I think, and uh, you know, I built some relationships there.
• 1:00
  Speaker 3: I think saying goodbye to people you relationships is always
• 1:03
  Speaker 3: going to be hard, even if you're excited about your future,
• 1:06
  Speaker 3: you know what I mean. So I think throughout that day.
• 1:08
  Speaker 3: It's like I was on the phone with like like
• 1:11
  Speaker 3: people from Seattle, and I'm like getting like super excited,
• 1:14
  Speaker 3: and then I like talk to like some of my
• 1:15
  Speaker 3: teammates from the Giants, and I get like down low again,
• 1:18
  Speaker 3: just like saying goodbye. But I think, all in all,
• 1:21
  Speaker 3: I think this is going to be a fun change
• 1:24
  Speaker 3: for me, and I'm excited about it.
• 1:27
  Speaker 2: Do you have a sense that it could be coming
• 1:29
  Speaker 2: with sort of your name being thrown around impossible trade
• 1:31
  Speaker 2: discussions like that.
• 1:32
  Speaker 3: I mean, I definitely knew was a possibility, and I think,
• 1:37
  Speaker 3: you know, the way it was proposed to me through
• 1:39
  Speaker 3: my GM and and with my agents was a respectful way.
• 1:45
  Speaker 1: I think.
• 1:46
  Speaker 3: You know, I've been traded before and it was very
• 1:49
  Speaker 3: abruptly and I kind of had like no say or
• 1:52
  Speaker 3: anything like that, where in this situation, you know, my
• 1:56
  Speaker 3: GM kind of came to me and told me that
• 1:58
  Speaker 3: he wasn't shopping for shopping me around, and you know,
• 2:01
  Speaker 3: but you know, out of respect for me and where
• 2:04
  Speaker 3: I'm at in my career being a little older, he
• 2:06
  Speaker 3: was pretty much let me know that. You know, there
• 2:08
  Speaker 3: was a few teams, including Seattle, that were on the
• 2:13
  Speaker 3: winning side of the season and and gonna make a
• 2:16
  Speaker 3: push this year, and uh, you know he was just like,
• 2:19
  Speaker 3: I know you have a connection with a lot of
• 2:20
  Speaker 3: those guys over there, So he was pretty much like,
• 2:22
  Speaker 3: you know, let me know before four o'clock today, talk
• 2:24
  Speaker 3: with your agents and stuff like that. So the way
• 2:27
  Speaker 3: it happened felt a little more negotiate, negotiated, and uh,
• 2:31
  Speaker 3: I think it went well. Yeah that was Monday.
• 2:36
  Speaker 2: You think there'll be much a defensively skinatically, it will
• 2:39
  Speaker 2: be much of a time you need to transition to
• 2:40
  Speaker 2: what Seattle is going to ask you to do.
• 2:42
  Speaker 1: Or I mean, not too much.
• 2:45
  Speaker 3: You know, I've been playing D line for a long
• 2:46
  Speaker 3: time and uh, you know, there's not gonna be too
• 2:49
  Speaker 3: much of a difference here. You know, I'm willing to
• 2:52
  Speaker 3: play wherever they want me to play. I think I'm
• 2:53
  Speaker 3: a pretty versatile player. I could play in those three
• 2:57
  Speaker 3: technique wherever, preferably three technique. And you know, I'm excited.
• 3:02
  Speaker 3: The team seems fun and have a lot of good
• 3:05
  Speaker 3: energy in the meetings and on the field and stuff
• 3:07
  Speaker 3: like that. So you know, I'm just coming in open
• 3:10
  Speaker 3: eyed and taking it all in.
• 3:12
  Speaker 4: Connections.
• 3:13
  Speaker 2: Here, you played with Jamal, you played it really love
• 3:15
  Speaker 2: withach other guys, what if anything, if they told you.
• 3:17
  Speaker 1: About this place.
• 3:18
  Speaker 3: Yeah, I played with China as well in college. That
• 3:21
  Speaker 3: was a long time ago. But you know, even from
• 3:23
  Speaker 3: people who I haven't played with, I've heard nothing but
• 3:25
  Speaker 3: good things about Seattle, even before I came here, about
• 3:28
  Speaker 3: how Pete Carroll is and and you know, I've heard
• 3:31
  Speaker 3: about these basketball goals and stuff like that. So it's funny,
• 3:35
  Speaker 3: Like my first meeting today, I've seen it all happening,
• 3:39
  Speaker 3: you know, everything that people have told me about what's
• 3:41
  Speaker 3: happening right in front of me. And I thought it
• 3:43
  Speaker 3: was funny because, like, you know, instead of standing me
• 3:45
  Speaker 3: up and making me introduce myself to the team, he
• 3:48
  Speaker 3: made me like come up here and like compete with some.
• 3:50
  Speaker 1: Guys in the on the basketball room.
• 3:52
  Speaker 3: And I think that was you know, I love it
• 3:55
  Speaker 3: because it breeds competition in here, Like everything they seem
• 3:59
  Speaker 3: to do here is about competition, and I think like
• 4:02
  Speaker 3: that transitions onto the field, that it just creates a
• 4:05
  Speaker 3: competitive mindset in the team.
• 4:07
  Speaker 1: And I love that.
• 4:10
  Speaker 3: I did win, actually, and I got five shots in
• 4:13
  Speaker 3: thirty seconds.
• 4:14
  Speaker 1: Apparently that's a good score.
• 4:18
  Speaker 3: They start with.
• 4:20
  Speaker 1: Yeah, schema is one, but Almo is a team to
• 4:24
  Speaker 1: mess your past frush style with everybody else on the line.
• 4:29
  Speaker 3: H I mean, I think that as well as something
• 4:32
  Speaker 3: that's you know, it's gonna just happen naturally. You know
• 4:35
  Speaker 3: it's gonna happen in practice today, I believe it's already
• 4:38
  Speaker 3: happened and and just walked through. I think, uh, you know,
• 4:42
  Speaker 3: I can kind of already see on film of how
• 4:44
  Speaker 3: some of these guys play. You know, Jerry Reid has
• 4:47
  Speaker 3: been playing really good ball this year and he's actually
• 4:50
  Speaker 3: been a good help to me this uh today so far,
• 4:54
  Speaker 3: been walking me around and introducing me to people and
• 4:56
  Speaker 3: stuff like that. So I'm looking forward to playing with him.
• 4:58
  Speaker 3: And you know, I'm gonna change here and there if
• 5:01
  Speaker 3: I if I have to fit the scheme. But overall,
• 5:03
  Speaker 3: they told me to just be the player that they
• 5:06
  Speaker 3: they know I am, and that they said that's why
• 5:08
  Speaker 3: they brought me here.
• 5:09
  Speaker 4: So for those who don't look at your defensive linement
• 5:12
  Speaker 4: film back closely, what do you feel like you do well?
• 5:16
  Speaker 3: I think what I do well is I'm versatile, and
• 5:19
  Speaker 3: I can play the run and I can pass rush,
• 5:22
  Speaker 3: you know, so I bring a lot to the game,
• 5:25
  Speaker 3: and uh, I pretty much feel like wherever you put
• 5:27
  Speaker 3: me or need me to do, I can I can
• 5:29
  Speaker 3: do that. And uh, you know, I know sacks aren't everything,
• 5:32
  Speaker 3: and I you know, I think I'm good at pushing
• 5:34
  Speaker 3: the pocket. I think I'm good at getting pressures and
• 5:36
  Speaker 3: getting sacks as well, all types of things like that.
• 5:39
  Speaker 2: What's the origin of the big cat nickname?
• 5:42
  Speaker 3: It started at USC Actually, just growing up, I used
• 5:46
  Speaker 3: to wear my hair out a lot more and people
• 5:49
  Speaker 3: thought I looked like a lion, and uh, and then
• 5:52
  Speaker 3: people at USC started saying that I was like big,
• 5:55
  Speaker 3: but also like agile, like a big cat. And then
• 5:58
  Speaker 3: that's people start calmon big Cat Leonard.
• 6:02
  Speaker 4: When you went from the Jets to the Giants, that
• 6:04
  Speaker 4: was a mid season deal too. Does having that experience
• 6:07
  Speaker 4: of making a switch mid year kind of anything you
• 6:10
  Speaker 4: lean upon now? Is that when you're doing this again.
• 6:12
  Speaker 3: I mean, I think it definitely helps that I've done
• 6:14
  Speaker 3: it before, so it's like I know how to prepare
• 6:16
  Speaker 3: myself a little bit. This was a little bit further
• 6:18
  Speaker 3: of a transition, a lot further actually, I didn't have
• 6:22
  Speaker 3: to move it all when I got traded to the Giants.
• 6:26
  Speaker 3: But I'm excited. I mean, I think the change is
• 6:30
  Speaker 3: necessary sometimes, and I'm excited to be with the winning
• 6:33
  Speaker 3: team and I'm excited to show what I can help
• 6:37
  Speaker 3: them do.
• 6:38
  Speaker 4: You couldn't be a free agent at the end of
• 6:40
  Speaker 4: the year.
• 6:40
  Speaker 1: Is that on your mind?
• 6:41
  Speaker 4: Or you just come here and just kind of work
• 6:42
  Speaker 4: out there a couple.
• 6:43
  Speaker 3: Of months or I mean I feel like that was
• 6:44
  Speaker 3: already gonna happen in my other situation as well. You know,
• 6:48
  Speaker 3: free agency was coming up regardless, So it's not something
• 6:51
  Speaker 3: that's been on my mind. I try to be as
• 6:53
  Speaker 3: present as possible, you know. I just have to focus
• 6:56
  Speaker 3: on what I can do for the team this week
• 6:58
  Speaker 3: against Baltimore.
• 7:01
  Speaker 1: What do you like to do off the field.
• 7:02
  Speaker 4: It seems like you are into traveling and I saw
• 7:04
  Speaker 4: you're into spearfishing too.
• 7:06
  Speaker 1: Yeah.
• 7:07
  Speaker 3: Uh, I think I had a pretty late start the
• 7:08
  Speaker 3: football compared to most people. I didn't start playing football
• 7:11
  Speaker 3: till high school. Uh, And I think in a good
• 7:14
  Speaker 3: way that I I kind of appreciated that, cause it
• 7:17
  Speaker 3: kind of helped me figure out, uh, other interests in
• 7:19
  Speaker 3: my life besides football. And uh, you know, I love
• 7:22
  Speaker 3: to travel, I love to fish, I love to be outdoors.
• 7:27
  Speaker 3: My girlfriend grew up in Cooper Tina, So I'm familiar
• 7:30
  Speaker 3: with the Redwoods and stuff like that out here, and
• 7:31
  Speaker 3: I you know, I'm excited.
• 7:33
  Speaker 1: About that type of stuff. Count you mention, Uh, yeah,
• 7:39
  Speaker 1: I don't know a lot though. Over ten Yeah, over ten.
• 7:43
  Speaker 2: Okay, they Wlonard. You mentioned your tide to play for
• 7:46
  Speaker 2: a Woody team in those Glass made the playoffs last year,
• 7:49
  Speaker 2: but you know two team that's in first place right now.
• 7:52
  Speaker 2: Right in your career, you haven't had a lot of
• 7:54
  Speaker 2: opportunities to go a championship river. What's that like or
• 7:57
  Speaker 2: how long you've been aching for that opportunity?
• 7:59
  Speaker 3: The uh for a while, I mean, especially even more
• 8:03
  Speaker 3: later in my career. You know, it's something that when
• 8:06
  Speaker 3: I was younger, I'm like, you know, I'm willing to
• 8:08
  Speaker 3: stick it out with the team and and be there,
• 8:11
  Speaker 3: you know, through the hard times and and come out
• 8:14
  Speaker 3: on top and stuff like that. And it felt like
• 8:15
  Speaker 3: it was heading towards that direction with the Giants. You know,
• 8:17
  Speaker 3: we went to the playoffs last year, you know, but
• 8:20
  Speaker 3: this year been struggling and you know, getting later in
• 8:24
  Speaker 3: my career, that's definitely something that you know, I want
• 8:28
  Speaker 3: before I retires, is getting the ring and uh, you
• 8:30
  Speaker 3: know I'm willing to work for it.
• 8:33
  Speaker 4: Had you had you met he previously, Like how long
• 8:36
  Speaker 4: have you known him?
• 8:39
  Speaker 3: I've ran into him a few times, but never uh,
• 8:43
  Speaker 3: never too much like interactions with him, to be honest.
• 8:47
  Speaker 3: You know, we played against Seattle a few times in
• 8:49
  Speaker 3: my career, and you know I played good against Seattle
• 8:53
  Speaker 3: in my career so far. And you know he's always
• 8:56
  Speaker 3: come up to me after and before the game and
• 8:58
  Speaker 3: and tells me how much he respects me as a player,
• 9:00
  Speaker 3: and you know, always says fight on and stuff like that.
• 9:04
  Speaker 1: I bet you were.
• 9:05
  Speaker 2: Pretty tight with ed Orgeron and Pete obviously have a
• 9:07
  Speaker 2: really long relationship.
• 9:08
  Speaker 1: Is that where you still close with that at all?
• 9:10
  Speaker 1: Or yeah?
• 9:12
  Speaker 3: I mean he was a big reason why I went
• 9:13
  Speaker 3: to USC. You know, I came all the way from
• 9:15
  Speaker 3: Florida to USC, and I mean I strongly believe to
• 9:19
  Speaker 3: this day that ed Ol Geron was the reason why
• 9:21
  Speaker 3: you know, I love playing for him. He has a
• 9:23
  Speaker 3: great personality, great energy, and uh, Pete Carroll's very similar.
• 9:28
  Speaker 3: My girl's dad is also Ronnie Lot and I had
• 9:31
  Speaker 3: a conversation with him before I came here, and he
• 9:34
  Speaker 3: was excited about it, and uh, apparently he's known uh
• 9:38
  Speaker 3: Ronnie and my girl for a while as well.
• 9:41
  Speaker 1: What is her name, Haley Lott? Yeah, yeah, we else.
• 9:47
  Speaker 1: Thank you, thank you,