Latest / Seahawks Press Pass / Grey Zabel: "This Is A Life-Long Dream"

Transcript

Grey Zabel: "This Is A Life-Long Dream" · Seahawks Press Pass

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Okay, welcome to a great disable day. This is awesome
• 0:04
  Speaker 1: being able to celebrate Gray But I just want to
• 0:06
  Speaker 1: first of all, thank everybody that weekend possible, whether it's
• 0:12
  Speaker 1: all the scouts, the coaches, all the training staff, the
• 0:18
  Speaker 1: medical group, you know, Dave pr social media, Stu and
• 0:28
  Speaker 1: his group, e K. E K and his group for
• 0:31
  Speaker 1: putting this coming weekend on which we're having you know,
• 0:34
  Speaker 1: seventy two people uh players involved in this, uh in
• 0:38
  Speaker 1: this mini camp and uh you know, drafted players, rookie
• 0:43
  Speaker 1: free agents and then tryout players. But just very very
• 0:48
  Speaker 1: appreciative of everybody's efforts and uh everything that went into
• 0:53
  Speaker 1: the whole draft and uh yeah, you know, uh Ted
• 1:00
  Speaker 1: Thompson would say, welcome to Green Bay, God rest of soul.
• 1:02
  Speaker 1: Ted Thompson was the gentleman that drafted uh Steve Hutchinson,
• 1:06
  Speaker 1: and uh I was blessed enough to work for him
• 1:09
  Speaker 1: here the year we drafted hutch and then in in
• 1:11
  Speaker 1: Green Bay for a number of years. But it's a
• 1:13
  Speaker 1: beautiful day here in in uh in Seattle, and he
• 1:17
  Speaker 1: would call it a Chamber of Commerce day here, so uh,
• 1:20
  Speaker 1: pretty awesome beautiful day here, and uh we're here to
• 1:23
  Speaker 1: celebrate Gray, Zabel so on behalf of uh Jody Allen, Bert, Uh,
• 1:31
  Speaker 1: Mike and his staff.
• 1:34
  Speaker 2: Yeah.
• 1:34
  Speaker 1: Uh, I know your folks are working or are watching
• 1:37
  Speaker 1: right Mark and Tanya or Tanna, sorry Tanna, And I
• 1:42
  Speaker 1: just wanna let your parents know that you're in great
• 1:44
  Speaker 1: hands with the people in this building and we're gonna
• 1:48
  Speaker 1: do whatever we can help you be a successful poyer
• 1:50
  Speaker 1: and uh to help us be a world championship team.
• 1:53
  Speaker 1: So uh with that, congratulations man, welcome.
• 2:04
  Speaker 3: Great.
• 2:04
  Speaker 4: What has the last week been like for you from
• 2:07
  Speaker 4: draft to now?
• 2:09
  Speaker 2: Uh? Quick?
• 2:11
  Speaker 3: Surreal, whirlwind of emotions, super fun, Uh, anything you could
• 2:16
  Speaker 3: possibly think of. I mean, it's a lifelong dream to
• 2:19
  Speaker 3: be able to say you got drafted, let alone be
• 2:21
  Speaker 3: drafted to the Seattle Seahawks.
• 2:23
  Speaker 2: So what a surreal experience this past week.
• 2:26
  Speaker 1: Has been in?
• 2:28
  Speaker 5: Or when did it sink in?
• 2:30
  Speaker 2: Still hasn't sunk in yet.
• 2:31
  Speaker 3: I gotta wake up and pinch myself every single morning
• 2:34
  Speaker 3: that I get a play for the Seattle Seahawks and
• 2:38
  Speaker 3: it probably never will sink in.
• 2:41
  Speaker 5: I've had conversations with Hutch since I was Yeah, yeah,
• 2:49
  Speaker 5: Hutch has been awesome throughout this kind of experience.
• 2:53
  Speaker 3: I mean, uh, he interviewed me down at the Senior Bowl.
• 2:55
  Speaker 3: He interviewed me at the Combine. He's been a real
• 2:59
  Speaker 3: mentor this past week and being able to ask him
• 3:02
  Speaker 3: kind of all the questions that a rookie or new
• 3:04
  Speaker 3: guy has has been unbelievable and super grateful for him.
• 3:09
  Speaker 6: Right, Quarterbacks receivers get a lot of publicity. Are you
• 3:13
  Speaker 6: a little surprised by how excited a fan base is
• 3:16
  Speaker 6: offensive line here?
• 3:17
  Speaker 2: Yeah, a little bit.
• 3:19
  Speaker 3: Yeah, like you said, those guys are normally getting all
• 3:21
  Speaker 3: the publicity, but super cool that the twelves is kind
• 3:25
  Speaker 3: of bought into me and kind of had my back
• 3:28
  Speaker 3: through this, and it's been awesome and super excited for
• 3:31
  Speaker 3: this fall.
• 3:31
  Speaker 4: When you were doing late training in the morning and
• 3:34
  Speaker 4: Captain's practices all those years. At what point did this
• 3:37
  Speaker 4: become a possibility to realistic possibility.
• 3:41
  Speaker 3: Probably Thursday night when I got that call from a
• 3:44
  Speaker 3: Washington area code. That's that's when it became kind of
• 3:47
  Speaker 3: real and surreal moment that this was going to be
• 3:50
  Speaker 3: a possibility.
• 3:52
  Speaker 6: What's something that Jalen Sundell taught you in college in
• 3:55
  Speaker 6: your time together.
• 3:57
  Speaker 3: Yeah, I think Jalen's mass serve his craft. I mean
• 4:01
  Speaker 3: I was fortunate enough to room with him. He was
• 4:04
  Speaker 3: kind of a big brother to me throughout college, and
• 4:07
  Speaker 3: what an awesome deal that I was able to join
• 4:10
  Speaker 3: him here at the Seahawks. So he's taught me a
• 4:12
  Speaker 3: lot of lifelong lessons and super excited to hopefully learn
• 4:16
  Speaker 3: some more from him here. What were some of the
• 4:18
  Speaker 3: lifelongs How to clean up after yourself, probably how to
• 4:24
  Speaker 3: do laundry. Yeah, he's one of my good buddies for sure.
• 4:29
  Speaker 5: What did you learn about yourself through this process?
• 4:35
  Speaker 3: Just continue to bet on yourself, outwork everybody and kind
• 4:39
  Speaker 3: of have that chip on the shoulder mentality throughout the
• 4:41
  Speaker 3: entire process. Just hard work and dedication to a craft
• 4:47
  Speaker 3: can take you a long ways.
• 4:49
  Speaker 6: You see a lot of clips of people screaming and
• 4:52
  Speaker 6: yelling on sidelines, But what is what does leadership look
• 4:55
  Speaker 6: like in an offensive line room?
• 4:58
  Speaker 3: I would say what equity is number one? Like, you
• 5:01
  Speaker 3: never want to ask somebody to do something you aren't
• 5:04
  Speaker 3: willing to do or have done. So I think in
• 5:06
  Speaker 3: the offensive line room, sweat equity plays a huge role
• 5:09
  Speaker 3: in leadership and understanding. You gotta put in the work,
• 5:12
  Speaker 3: put in the time to be able to lead and
• 5:15
  Speaker 3: then understanding that you're blocking for somebody else, you're protecting
• 5:19
  Speaker 3: somebody else, And the highest level you can do that
• 5:22
  Speaker 3: at is making sure nobody touches the other guy. So
• 5:25
  Speaker 3: I think in the offensive line room, it's a unique,
• 5:29
  Speaker 3: unique kind of trait to have being a leader there.
• 5:33
  Speaker 2: But there's there's some great ones out there, for sure.
• 5:36
  Speaker 7: John, you obviously drafted the football player first and foremost.
• 5:38
  Speaker 4: But how big of a factor was it to add
• 5:41
  Speaker 4: the kind of personality that Gray has to that offensive
• 5:43
  Speaker 4: line room?
• 5:45
  Speaker 2: Yeah, great question.
• 5:47
  Speaker 1: I think really the I think they really stood out
• 5:50
  Speaker 1: about Gray personally, besides with Kirk and Trent and you know,
• 5:56
  Speaker 1: the guys who went into the school and you know
• 5:58
  Speaker 1: what we're saying about him was just being their first
• 6:00
  Speaker 1: hand at the at the Senior Bowl and watching.
• 6:03
  Speaker 2: Him steal reps from people. We were standing there like,
• 6:05
  Speaker 2: well this guy. Funny story.
• 6:07
  Speaker 1: At Hutch and Trent right when we got down there
• 6:09
  Speaker 1: were like you know this gentlemen's this guy's really struggling
• 6:13
  Speaker 1: with his They were talking about different player, like this
• 6:15
  Speaker 1: guy's really struggling with his confidence. I thought they were
• 6:17
  Speaker 1: talking about Gray, and I'm watching the practice. I'm like,
• 6:19
  Speaker 1: this guy's not struggling with confidence at all. I'm like,
• 6:21
  Speaker 1: you guys are crazy. But he was literally like he
• 6:26
  Speaker 1: couldn't wait, and he was taking reps at center and
• 6:27
  Speaker 1: left guard, right guard. He was like taking reps from people.
• 6:29
  Speaker 1: And you stand right there and yeah, I think just
• 6:34
  Speaker 1: seeing that competitor in the in the the want to
• 6:36
  Speaker 1: and the the the uh yeah, it's just like I'm
• 6:41
  Speaker 1: here to, like you said, Chip on his shoulder and
• 6:44
  Speaker 1: let it ready to let it rip.
• 6:45
  Speaker 2: He was. He was into it.
• 6:46
  Speaker 1: He's competing his tail off, and it was really impressive
• 6:49
  Speaker 1: to see first hand when you're right there.
• 6:51
  Speaker 7: John, I know you guys heard a lot about the
• 6:53
  Speaker 7: unress of lynd of the off season, but now you're
• 6:54
  Speaker 7: kind of threw the draft and the free agency process.
• 6:56
  Speaker 7: How do you feel about the whole group as a
• 6:57
  Speaker 7: whole kind of now that you're gonna get on the field.
• 7:00
  Speaker 2: Yeah, we like it.
• 7:01
  Speaker 1: We like it a lot. It's gonna be highly highly competitive.
• 7:04
  Speaker 1: You know, we had a group of of of four guys,
• 7:10
  Speaker 1: thank god God Willing Gray was at the top of it,
• 7:13
  Speaker 1: and uh, it fell that way. But when we came
• 7:16
  Speaker 1: out of the when we came out of the combine,
• 7:18
  Speaker 1: we felt, you know, fairly confident that we'd be able
• 7:21
  Speaker 1: to get one of those four guys, and it things
• 7:26
  Speaker 1: just fell that way.
• 7:27
  Speaker 5: John, What was the game or the year or how
• 7:31
  Speaker 5: did how did Greg get on your rails? When did
• 7:33
  Speaker 5: you really start watching?
• 7:35
  Speaker 1: Uh with with Kirk and and Trent, you know, coming
• 7:38
  Speaker 1: back from the school and you know they have a
• 7:40
  Speaker 1: they have a they have a great reputation there. I
• 7:43
  Speaker 1: think that, like Trent was telling me this morning, the
• 7:46
  Speaker 1: last five years, I think they're the number of snaps
• 7:50
  Speaker 1: is like the North Dakota States like twenty fifth or
• 7:53
  Speaker 1: twenty sixth of all the schools you know in the
• 7:56
  Speaker 1: National Football League. And uh so it's just a these
• 8:00
  Speaker 1: guys come out of there like very well coached, they're
• 8:02
  Speaker 1: highly competitive, they're smart, and there's a lot of want
• 8:06
  Speaker 1: to there and that's that's. Uh those are great traits
• 8:09
  Speaker 1: you can of your coach.
• 8:10
  Speaker 5: Gray.
• 8:10
  Speaker 6: You mentioned that when you're locked in on the field
• 8:12
  Speaker 6: you like to talk a little bit to your opponents.
• 8:14
  Speaker 2: Is that true a little bit?
• 8:19
  Speaker 3: I mean offensive line, you can't score, you can't catch
• 8:22
  Speaker 3: a pass, you can't do any of that. So when
• 8:25
  Speaker 3: you block a guy extremely well, sometimes you gotta let
• 8:27
  Speaker 3: them know. And I think that's the fun and joy
• 8:29
  Speaker 3: of playing offensive line. But at the same time, you
• 8:33
  Speaker 3: gotta stay humble in your ability.
• 8:35
  Speaker 2: Great.
• 8:35
  Speaker 7: What do you think tomorrow will be like for you
• 8:36
  Speaker 7: when you do get on the field.
• 8:37
  Speaker 2: For the first time. It's it's gonna be surreal.
• 8:43
  Speaker 3: To to wear the logo on your chest has been
• 8:47
  Speaker 3: kind of a dream.
• 8:49
  Speaker 2: Super excited.
• 8:50
  Speaker 3: Anytime you get it, ti the cleats up and hit
• 8:51
  Speaker 3: the grass, you gotta be grateful. It's a get to
• 8:54
  Speaker 3: mentality and not have to mentality. So I get to
• 8:57
  Speaker 3: go practice tomorrow and show up to one of the
• 9:00
  Speaker 3: best jobs you could possibly have.
• 9:02
  Speaker 4: I think you're the first from Griggs High School in
• 9:05
  Speaker 4: Peerier to be in the NFL or drafted in the NFL.
• 9:08
  Speaker 4: As you said, what's.
• 9:09
  Speaker 2: That mean to you?
• 9:10
  Speaker 4: What have you heard back from them and back there
• 9:12
  Speaker 4: they're excitement about this.
• 9:14
  Speaker 3: Yeah, just the community sport has been unbelievable. Uh, Pier
• 9:17
  Speaker 3: is a is a sports town, a sports community. Super
• 9:21
  Speaker 3: grateful for the support that they've given me throughout this process.
• 9:25
  Speaker 3: I mean, we had a little draft party that Friday
• 9:27
  Speaker 3: night and there's probably seven seven hundred or so people
• 9:31
  Speaker 3: there showing up.
• 9:32
  Speaker 2: So being able to.
• 9:33
  Speaker 3: Do this for the community for the kids there, It
• 9:37
  Speaker 3: is a is a cool experience.
• 9:39
  Speaker 2: Peopleish life left and peer there. M there might be
• 9:42
  Speaker 2: a few, but not a lot. Are you willing to
• 9:45
  Speaker 2: switch to Rainier? Just kind of depends I haven't tried it.
• 9:48
  Speaker 3: Yeah, I know that's a huge brand up here in
• 9:51
  Speaker 3: the Pacific Northwest. So hopefully if we have good OTAs,
• 9:55
  Speaker 3: we can maybe try a few.
• 9:56
  Speaker 7: Have have you got the mes? I say, have you
• 10:02
  Speaker 7: got to meet or know any of the other draft
• 10:03
  Speaker 7: picks you had, any Jaylor Milrowe or anybody like that?
• 10:06
  Speaker 3: Yep, So Jalen and Elijah uh I played with him
• 10:09
  Speaker 3: down at the Senior Bowl. Two unbelievably talented human beings
• 10:14
  Speaker 3: and super competitive well and super excited continue to play
• 10:17
  Speaker 3: with them.
• 10:18
  Speaker 6: Great.
• 10:18
  Speaker 4: I'm sure you're excited to block for any of the
• 10:21
  Speaker 4: quarterbacks on this stuff, But is it kind of exciting
• 10:23
  Speaker 4: to be drafted with another quarterback to.
• 10:25
  Speaker 1: Kind of go through this rookie camp and kind of
• 10:26
  Speaker 1: develop alongside Jalen?
• 10:28
  Speaker 3: Absolutely, to learn the offense with him. If I have
• 10:32
  Speaker 3: any questions or kind of concerns with anything, to have
• 10:36
  Speaker 3: a guy to be able to bounce it off of
• 10:38
  Speaker 3: and understand the offense. Like I said, is going to
• 10:42
  Speaker 3: be super important, and it's gonna be it's gonna be
• 10:44
  Speaker 3: super impactful for our careers moving forward.
• 10:47
  Speaker 2: How do you decide on seventy six?
• 10:51
  Speaker 3: Well, they that was kind of the equipment staff's idea,
• 10:53
  Speaker 3: and I had to ask much if it was okay
• 10:55
  Speaker 3: to wear it, and he was. He was all for
• 10:58
  Speaker 3: it and super excited for it. So, I mean, it's
• 11:00
  Speaker 3: no better number aware in Seattle history.
• 11:02
  Speaker 4: So what was it?
• 11:05
  Speaker 1: Brother?
• 11:05
  Speaker 2: It's pretty cool? It was a ship.
• 11:08
  Speaker 5: What was it like being in the building on Saturday
• 11:10
  Speaker 5: giving the call to Mason? He was really pumped about it.
• 11:13
  Speaker 4: So how was it from? Uh?
• 11:16
  Speaker 3: My heart was beating through my chest, Like, can hardly
• 11:19
  Speaker 3: remember what I said?
• 11:20
  Speaker 2: Uh, what a cool experience.
• 11:22
  Speaker 3: And I mean, I have to thank uh mister Schneider
• 11:25
  Speaker 3: here for letting me do that. But when I'm standing
• 11:28
  Speaker 3: in the back of the kind of the draft room
• 11:30
  Speaker 3: with coach McDaniel and and he.
• 11:32
  Speaker 2: Calls me up to make a draft call it, Uh,
• 11:35
  Speaker 2: I was a little nervous. Let's say that he thought
• 11:37
  Speaker 2: it was a prank call.
• 11:38
  Speaker 5: Did you know that.
• 11:40
  Speaker 3: How the weekend went with prank calls and stuff. I
• 11:42
  Speaker 3: probably would have thought the same exact thing, but yeah,
• 11:47
  Speaker 3: it was. It was a cool deal.
• 11:49
  Speaker 6: Is there a part of your game that you think
• 11:50
  Speaker 6: maybe people don't know about. Maybe it's underestimated that you're
• 11:53
  Speaker 6: you're something you worked.
• 11:54
  Speaker 2: On your product.
• 11:58
  Speaker 5: Man.
• 11:59
  Speaker 2: Probably probably just mentality.
• 12:01
  Speaker 3: Uh, that's the thing I kind of hang my hat
• 12:02
  Speaker 3: on is is protecting the quarterback and moving the line
• 12:05
  Speaker 3: of scrimmage. And you can't really measure that with a
• 12:09
  Speaker 3: number of some sort. It's all kind of a mindset.
• 12:12
  Speaker 3: So I would say that's the one thing that you
• 12:15
  Speaker 3: probably can't measure about my game.
• 12:19
  Speaker 4: Anything else?
• 12:20
  Speaker 6: Have you met Robbie Eats yet?
• 12:23
  Speaker 2: I haven't, but he's got a hell of a mustache.
• 12:26
  Speaker 6: Question you Ray wrestled Robbie are gonna have to have
• 12:29
  Speaker 6: a mustache context?
• 12:32
  Speaker 4: All right, thank you,