Mike Rucker Talks Hire of Dave Canales
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00 >> Dave said, EJ's coming back.
00:02 >> I think that's big.
00:03 Obviously, I'm biased.
00:07 I love the defensive side of the ball.
00:09 And guys were running around and producing it.
00:14 I think his first year here, you would think that it only gets better.
00:19 So I think that him being here is gonna be big, right?
00:21 So that's one side of the ball that you don't necessarily have to tear back down.
00:25 Or you'll still focus and try to get better.
00:27 But that's one side that you can continue to build on.
00:31 >> Mike, as a player, if you could recall, how big are these first,
00:35 they say in life, first impression, you can't make second.
00:37 But for players, what's kind of the window of them figuring out, I trust this guy,
00:42 I believe this in this guy, I think he can help us.
00:44 >> Well, I think the words are definitely something that you take in,
00:48 especially on a first impression, right?
00:50 We just meet one time and
00:51 you come away with some type of thought of that person or that situation.
00:55 So that's great, but as players and even coaches,
00:59 as a player, I can tell them something on that first impression.
01:02 Ultimately, it's time that is going to dictate that buy in.
01:07 And do I trust you as a coach?
01:09 As a coach, do you trust me?
01:11 Can I put you as a player in a position, and
01:13 I know that you're gonna do what you're asked to do.
01:15 So that goes both ways.
01:17 >> When Dan steps up and talks about making this a place that people
01:22 are afraid to come, how do you do that?
01:27 >> Ultimately, like right now, everybody's got their job.
01:31 And I'll talk from a player's perspective.
01:34 As a player, I have to say, okay, what am I bringing to the table?
01:38 Am I doing the best?
01:40 And am I qualified to do what I'm doing?
01:42 And so when you're looking at building this team, as a player,
01:46 I gotta say, I want them, when they're evaluating, I want them to say,
01:50 hey, this is a guy that we need to keep.
01:52 This is a guy that we can build a foundation on, no different than 2001,
01:56 right?
01:58 Everybody's not gonna be here, never is, whether it's good or bad.
02:02 So when you're starting to evaluate what do you have now,
02:05 what are we looking at in free agency, and what do we have coming up in the combine?
02:08 So I believe that that's where it's gonna start, and it's gonna,
02:13 tough decisions, right?
02:14 Everybody's gotta look inside and say, hey, how can we be better?
02:18 And who's willing to be here to be better?
02:20 >> How quickly did you see that pivot from 01, 03?
02:24 >> To be honest with you, I saw it really quick.
02:25 I just remember vividly, and
02:27 this is one thing that will stay with me the rest of my life.
02:30 Coach Fox said I want smart, and I want tough.
02:34 It's real simple, right?
02:35 We don't need to make things complicated.
02:37 Smart, I mean, hey, make smart plays, right?
02:39 Am I doing a bonehead thing that is costing our team a penalty?
02:44 Am I not securing the ball, right?
02:48 Those things are smart.
02:49 And then tough, you can't teach toughness, right?
02:52 Either I'm gonna be physical or I'm not, and it's real simple.
02:56 And so that's something that was part of my DNA that I bought into right away.
03:01 I was like, I might not be the most athletic or the most talented, but
03:05 I know I can be smart cuz I can control that, and I know I can be tough, and
03:08 I can control that.
03:09 And so if you start with those two things, now the sky's the limit.
03:13 >> How much has that been missing?
03:15 How much has that been missing the last six years?
03:17 >> I think that without being in the film room and seeing exactly,
03:22 because here's the thing, you could see the outcome of a play, but
03:26 coach might have said, hey, you need to be here, and I was here.
03:30 But then it might have looked like it was my fault, but
03:33 it might have been somebody else's, right?
03:34 So it's kinda hard to say who was in the right or wrong position,
03:37 cuz I've been there before, where, hey, I had to take it, right?
03:40 And I'm not gonna throw anybody under the bus.
03:43 So it's kinda hard to say who's tough and who was smart and who wasn't.
03:47 I just know that coach talked about today, about things I took away,
03:51 was like, hey, that ball.
03:52 So that center touches that ball, right, he's the first one,
03:55 we're taking care of that ball.
03:57 And he gave you the stat about the wins and losses, and
04:00 especially this past weekend.
04:02 So that's something to me, I haven't played in umpteen years, but
04:05 I took that away, right?
04:07 And again, we're talking about making things simple, not complicated.
04:10 Take care of that thing right there, right?
04:12 Smart and tough, tackle, take care of the ball, and
04:15 obviously you'll start to win games right up there.
04:17 >> On a different note, a few days when your buddies might,
04:21 Julius Peppers might be going in the Hall of Fame.
04:23 And I just wondered, tell me about what type of player he was and
04:29 that's even.
04:31 >> You know what, a lot of people will talk about his play and
04:37 physically being bigger and just a phenom.
04:40 The one thing that stands out to me, which again,
04:42 going back to why we're here right now and building a team.
04:45 You need leadership, right?
04:46 You'll need someone that's vocal, right?
04:49 You'll need someone that can just flat out just do what they've been asked to do.
04:54 Pat, he was that leader that when he spoke you would hear him, but
04:57 he wasn't one that had to do the rah, rah, rah.
05:00 His play was speaking for his ability to be a leader, and you need that.
05:05 And that's something I've always appreciated about Pat,
05:08 because he could have been bigger than life.
05:10 He's from North Carolina, went to school in North Carolina.
05:13 He gets drafted by his state and his team.
05:16 A lot of people would have took that a lot of different directions, but so humble.
05:20 He did a lot of his work outside of the cameras in the background.
05:24 I talk about what he's done in the community.
05:27 A lot of stuff you don't know what he's done in the community because he doesn't
05:29 plastered out there.
05:30 That's the kind of guy that he is.
05:33 And being able to locker next to him for six years was a blessing.
05:38 Love our conversation.
05:39 One of the more funnier guys, believe it or not.
05:43 You probably wouldn't think that because of him being so quiet, but
05:47 just a good, caring guy.
05:48 And I'm so excited.
05:50 I really am, because I'm excited because he's so quiet, but
05:53 I'm excited to hear him speak, because you will listen.
05:56 So when someone isn't out there always talking, so
05:59 when they do speak, you tend to listen a lot more.
06:02 And so I just can't wait till he gets that knock and gets that call and
06:06 be able to celebrate him.
06:07 >> And tell me about the physical part.
06:09 I mean, he was mammoth.
06:10 I mean, he was fast and he had all the quality.
06:12 What was he like?
06:13 >> I played with Kevin Green, different body style.
06:17 Played with Reggie White, totally different body style.
06:20 I think you put those two together and you get Julius Peppers, right?
06:24 That strength, that athletic ability to be able to fly and nimble.
06:28 And he was deceptive.
06:30 When you look at him, you're like, man, this guy might be 270, 275.
06:35 There's times where he was like 290, 295, and he's running like a deer.
06:40 And you just don't see that.
06:41 And at the time, you don't really recognize it.
06:44 But now being out of the game so long, and
06:46 there's really no one that's come after him.
06:49 And people try to compare people to him.
06:52 So that's when you know when someone's great and
06:54 they don't come around all the time, is when people start comparing you
06:58 to a guy like that that can run like a wide receiver.
07:01 But the size of a defensive tackle.
07:04 >> It's just shaming.
07:05 >> Multiple times in the speech.
07:07 What are your conversations with him now and what makes him the best job?
07:12 >> I think our conversations, I mean, we see eye to eye just because we play
07:17 the same type of game, physical, right?
07:19 Again, we're physical type players.
07:21 And so that's what I see.
07:23 And that's what makes me excited about his decision making and
07:27 being able to put his fingerprint on this organization and on this team in 2024.
07:31 Is because this game is a physical game.
07:34 And you can't get around that.
07:36 And so to be able to get guys that are wanting to be here and
07:40 they're gonna be physical and to be part of this turnaround.
07:43 We talked about this the other day.
07:44 You don't need three to five years to turn something around.
07:47 You get the right people that are dedicated to the work and
07:51 are willing to play for their teammates, regardless of the wins and losses.
07:55 You're gonna win your fair share of games.
07:56 So I'm excited about Dan.
07:58 I'm excited about Dave.
07:59 I love the energy that Dave brought today.
08:02 I love the combination.
08:03 They know each other.
08:04 So that's a box that's checked already.
08:07 And for them to start baking and start cooking and
08:09 getting the recipe and the ingredients.
08:11 I'm really excited.
08:13 I really am.
08:14 >> Mike, a lot of defensive players have said.