Each week, we bring you a Q&A with a Ravens player to help you get to know him better. Today's guest is linebacker Jarret Johnson, 29, an eight-year veteran, who talks about his love for fishing and hunting and the effects of the Gulf Coast oil spill on his Florida home.
Question: What did you do with your time off during the bye week?
Answer: I was building a house down in Florida so I went to check it out. We turned it into a little mini vacation and had a good time.
Q: What do you think of the NFL's proposal to increase the schedule to 18 games?
A: I'm not totally against it. But I'm only for it if they alter the preseason and the offseason. If they leave it the same, there is no way we can have an 18-game season. If they do end up doing it, they need to drastically alter the offseason and preseason.
Q: Does it feel at all like a contradiction that the league says it's so concerned about head injuries and helmet-to-helmet hits, but at the same time, they want to add two more regular season games and increase the potential for more violent collisions?
A: I think so. But I think it's a contradiction to talk about head-to-head collisions on receivers and quarterbacks, and they don't really give a [damn] about the rest of us. It's kind of like when a fullback and linebacker are smashing head to head, everyone says "Yeah, they're good."
Q: So by the time this Q&A runs, we'll know the outcome of the mid-term elections. How much do NFL players talk about, or follow, politics?
A: We talk about it, but not that much. It's like talking about religion or anything else. It can start some pretty heated conversations. We have so many different personalities and cultures and people from different parts of the country. It's fun, but politics and religion are two things that can get pretty heated so we don't talk about it that much.
Q: If financial concerns didn't factor into your decision, what's one job other than playing in the NFL that you'd love to do?
A: Fishing guide. It's what I love to do. It's something I am passionate about. It would be really cool to do it every day. It's like getting to do [football] every day. To live out my two dreams [playing in the NFL and working as a fishing guide] would be the ultimate. Anything saltwater would be my preference.
Q: What's one false perception people have about NFL players that you'd like to correct?
A: There are a ton of them. That we're all millionaires. That we're all [jerks]. That practice is only two hours a day. That's a good one. I don't think people understand that we're up here all day, pretty much every day. They think it's like high school practice where you go in at 3 p.m. and you're done by 5 p.m. It's meetings, walk-throughs, film study, homework, tests you have to take before every game. There is so much that goes into it.
Q:You're from Florida originally, and you played football at the University of Alabama. The South has been the subject of a lot of books and movies over the years. What's an example, in your opinion, of a book or a movie that accurately depicted the region, and an example of one that absolutely whiffed?
A: There are a lot of them that are not very well done. But as far as good ones, My favorite book is " A Land Remembered" [by Patrick D. Smith]. It's about Florida during the pre- and post-Civil War period. It's about one particular family, and it's based loosely off of a real family. It's about these cattle farmers, or Florida crackers, and they work their way up and end up owning all of South Beach and about 80,000 acres in the state. It's a pretty good book. As far as bad ones? I'll go with the movie "American Outlaws," with Colin Farrell. It was just terrible.
Q: So you majored in public relations at the University of Alabama. How would you advise a player like Randy Moss, who said [before being waived by the Vikings] that he was done speaking to the media for the rest of the season, and that he would conduct his own interviews from now on?
A: Well, you've got to know who you are. And he's obviously a figure that's either portrayed really well, or really, really bad. So anytime he's going to give you even the slightest reason to be attacked, it's going to be full bore. But it's funny, a couple years ago when he first came to New England, he was like the golden child. Everyone loved him. It's obvious that he can still be that guy.
Q: From your perspective, what's one thing the media should do differently in the way it deals with NFL players?
A: I just don't like it when they attack guys personally. I understand [the media] has a job to do, and you're working through a million cliches. And that's tough, because you've still got to write a story based off people saying the same thing over and over. I just don't like it when they attack guys. I don't have a problem with the print media, really. It's the talk radio and the analysts on TV that I can't stand. They don't know what they're talking about. They're trying to break down plays and read coverages. They don't know what the coverage is. They don't know what the plays are. They don't know who was supposed to do what 90 percent of the time.
Q: You were named one of the most underrated players in the NFL last year [by the Sporting News]. In your opinion, besides yourself, who on the Ravens is underrated and deserves more recognition for what they do?
A: I'm always going to say Kelly Gregg. Kelly by far. Although I will say that as a blocker, Le'Ron McClain is really underrated. He obviously gets a lot of pub running the ball, but he's a [very good] fullback. But back to Kelly, I don't think people realize just how good he is as a nose tackle. He's always taking two blockers and he's always doing stuff you never see.
Q: You're known for being pretty honest in assessing your own play. If you don't play well, you're pretty upfront about it. Where do you think the line is between humility and self-confidence? A lot of players don't want to own up to it if they don't play well, because they feel as if it's important to not waiver, at least publicly, in their belief that they're as good as anyone at their job.
A: There is a balance, I think. You can't do this job and not be confident in your ability. You can't step on the field and not be like 'aw shucks. Whatever. You've got to be a man. At the same time, you can't be so confident that you're not willing to accept it when you're not playing well. I think as long as you're extremely confident in what you do, but you're also willing to go "I need to get better. I need to do this to improve as a player" that's the key. I think a lot of guys, they think they're so good, they're satisfied and they're not willing to get better. Other guys, they're down in the dumps and think "Oh, I can never do this." It's a fine line.
Q: As far as I can tell, you don't have a Twitter account or a Facebook page, unlike some of your teammates who update their status regularly. What's you take on the social networking craze?
A: I had a Facebook page for a while, but it was really to just keep up with friends in high school. I never did any updates or anything like that. It's all right if it's your thing, I guess. I don't really care what you're doing right now. If you're on your back porch drinking beer, well, that's great. I don't know why the whole world has to know.
Q: What's the last movie you saw in a theater?
A: Man, I shouldn't even tell you. It was "Sex and the City 2" with my wife [Anna]. It was by far the worst movie I've ever seen in my life. By far. Just awful.
Q: We've written a lot about your dad [who died in a boating accident when Johnson was 8 years old] but your mom, Aida, was obviously a big influence on your life. What life lessons did she pass on to you growing up?
A: My mom is an extremely hard worker and extremely humble. She always wants to make sure everyone is OK before her. As far as life lessons, her faith is really strong and she's always on me about being in the Word and going to church. She's on me all the time about my spiritual side. She's going to be happy no matter what I accomplish as a person or in life.
Q: You're one Raven who is known for his love of hunting. What's your favorite animal to hunt?
A: I would say ducks. It's a challenge, but it's also fun and relaxing. You can talk to people you're with. Deer hunting is fun too, but you've got to be real quiet and sit real still. Duck hunting you can talk, have a good time, relax and then bang 'em up.
Q: You became a dad recently. What's that been like?
A: Yeah, a little girl, Molly Caroline. It's changed my life. It's just unbelievable.
Q: What has it taught you about life?
A: Nothing revolves around you anymore, that's for sure. It's just really cool. It's cool just to have somebody you love that much.
Q: You own property and a boat in Niceville, Fla., which is on the Gulf Coast. What was the recent oil spill like for you when it happened?
A: At first, I was like 'Great. I just bought an oil slick.' But I guess they cleaned it up. Supposedly, anyway. We won't know the effects of it for years. It didn't get in the bay, so I guess it's not going to bother me that much. Hardly any oil got in where my house is. But I'm still concerned about the off-shore stuff. That's a livelihood for those people. It's sort of like asking what if a couple million barrels of oil were dumped in the Chesapeake Bay? There are people who thrive off the Bay, they live on it, they enjoy their fun on it. If that is taken away from you, it's the same thing?
Q: What's the name of your boat?
A: Well, it's a 22 Pathfinder, but I haven't named it yet, which is bad luck. I really have to find a name. My brother and I are about to get a big boat and when we do, we're going to name it the Hotspur. My great-grandfather, he was a Danish immigrant, and his first boat that he bought was called the Hotspur. My granddad fished off it for years.
kevin.vanvalkenburg@baltsun.com
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