TE David Njoku (6.7.23)

How does it feel to be back with the whole team?

“Feels amazing. Feels amazing. The energy is immaculate out here. So, yeah, we just putting in that work, being together, having a great time doing it.”

 

Does Deshaun look more comfortable from your perspective?

“He’s slinging that. To answer your question? He looks great. I thought were going to have, like, a little conversation, but he looks really good. He’s been very accurate the past two days. Very impressive. Obviously, he has his feet too, and he can run. So, yeah, we’re excited.”

 

Demeanor-wise, what’s the biggest difference you see in him? 

“Locked in. The energy is there. So far–I think every single ball he’s thrown was precise, on the money. So excites me as well as the rest of the team, the offense. We’re all excited.”

 

How much of a difference does it make that you know Deshaun is going to be the guy from week one? 

“Yeah, for sure. Obviously, we’re building the chemistry now and having it roll over to week one. So that’s very uplifting for us, knowing hat we’re going to have the whole year.”

 

 

What’s the next step for you in the evolution of your career? 

“Next step is just to get 1% better every day. That’s pretty much been the steps throughout my career, which is find one thing and then just get better at, and see how we all progress.”

 

Sorry if you’ve been asked this already, but you guys have kind of put together a lot of new players with different skill sets and kind of filled the holes that people were looking for you. What does that mean when you’re watching the development of this team? 

“It excites me. It truly does. Just having all the right pieces, putting it all together, it’s very exciting. It’s best for the place excitement.”

 

What are you expecting from it? 

“Sky’s the limit. We have an opportunity to do something that never has ever been done here. You know what I mean? So we try to take it just one day at a time, focus on what we can control. Just handle it like that.”

 

Then as a player, do you appreciate that kind of effort to look at the things that you need to get? 

“Of course. I’m going on year seven. I still feel like I’m 21, honestly. But, yeah, just seeing everything come together, seeing how things was in the past and seeing how they’re progressing now, it’s not your day. So we’re very excited.

 

How much does that raise everybody’s hand seeing Deshaun practice at a high level? 

“It lifts everybody up. Even on the defense, they see that. I know, obviously, we’re not going against each other here, but they see the accuracy in him, the precise, everything is calculated with him and it makes them even go harder. You know what I mean?  So I feel like as long as he’s going up, everybody’s going to go up.”

 

 

Would his play in the endzone been routine for you guys last year? 

“I would hope so, yeah.”

 

At the end of last season, we mentioned Darren Watson like that you believe you and you could be as due on the same level as my homes. And Kelsey, do you still feel that statement? 

“You know, it’s funny, I feel like my words got misconstrued there. But I mean, let me say this–Patrick (Mahomes) and Travis (Kelce) might be my guy, I’ve known Trav a while and as well as Patrick, they are elite. So I would hope that most, if not all tight ends and quarterbacks aspire to be up to that stature because they are just for years now, consistency, rolling. You know what I mean? So they are amazing. And, yeah, we try to be the best we can be, especially together.”

 

Anything that you take away from Kelce?

“Of course, man, the routes are superb. His football IQ is second to none. Go ahead. The next question then is how far.”

 

How far are you and Watson from being elite? 

“I mean, the only time would tell. Obviously, this is all fun and games, but the real magic happens when the bullets are flying everywhere, everyone feels uncomfortable and then that’s when we see how we really are.”