| The University of Miami (Fla.)
secondary has gotten a tremendous amount of notice this year, and rightfully so. CBs
Phillip Buchanon and Mike Rumph and S Ed Reed are three of the most intriguing defensive
backs available in the draft. Reed visited the media room at the Scouting Combine in
Indianapolis and fielded questions possibly longer than any other prospect the entire
weekend. Reed talked about a possible Hurricane reunion in Indianapolis, his plans as far
as picking an agent and his ability to still make a good Whopper. Q: How important to
you is the fact that Miami (Fla.) could have five guys get drafted in the first round?
A: It means a lot to us and to me personally, because I know that we are very good
athletes and very good players, and most of us deserve it. It probably won’t happen,
but if it does, we’d give thanks and praise to the Lord. But if it doesn’t, so
be it.
Q: Who would you say was the most influential on your career as it has gone in
Miami?
A: My dad. I would say my dad, because he’s been working the same job for 24
years. Working hard, providing for my family. Five kids, a wife. He’s been doing it
for a long time and still is doing it.
Q: What former teammate would you say had a lot of influence on you?
A: I would have to say my roommate Reggie Wayne, when he was my roommate anyway.
He’s with the Colts now. He has made me grow so much because we always talked about
what we wanted to do and what we could do. And he made sure I stayed focused this year.
Q: Did you talk to the Colts?
A: Not yet.
Q: Would that be an interesting team to go to?
A: Yes, it would be. Me, Edgerrin and Reggie on the same team? That’s a good
match.
Q: Do you think the city could handle that?
A: I don’t know about handling it. I don’t know if Indiana’s ready for
all three of us. But it sure would be fun.
Q: Can you believe the amount of yardage you have returned on the interceptions?
A: Yes, I can. I used to be an offensive guy. I played running back, quarterback,
receiver in high school. I did some punt-returning, so I’m used to getting in the
endzone and trying to make a play. It’s in my blood. I try to do something with the
ball when I get a chance.
Q: Are you an offensive guy on defense?
A: No, I’m a defensive guy on defense, but when I get the ball, I’m on
offense. It’s a changeover. They become the defense, and I become the offense. And
that was our mentality on defense this year: When we get the ball in our hands, we want to
score.
Q: How do you compare yourself to Oklahoma S Roy Williams?
A: I met Roy at the Home Depot Awards, and Roy’s a good guy and a good player from
what I’ve seen on tape and heard from a lot of people. I think we’re two
different safeties. He’s probably more of an Al Blades (former Hurricane safety) type
of guy, get down in there, drop down — probably more of a hitter. I’m more of a
free safety. I can hit, make plays. I think I’m more versatile than Roy.
Q: Why don’t you have an agent to represent you?
A: I don’t feel like I need an agent right now. A lot of guys I’ve seen in
the past had got agents and been $100,000 or $200,000 in debt before they even were
drafted. And even if they do get drafted, some of them get drafted in the seventh round.
I’m not guaranteed any money right now, so I don’t think I need an agent to be
representing me or doing anything for me right now.
Q: Have you taken loans out?
A: I do have a financial adviser and I am working on getting a credit line if I do need
anything. Because I’m not working now and I’m not in school, so I do need money.
So I’m working on that.
Q: How much longer can you go on without an agent?
A: After the Combine I’m going to narrow it down. I don’t know when I’ll
pick the agent, because they’re pressuring me. But you have to grab hold of it and
make sure you take control of it. And I’ve got pretty much control of it. Whenever I
feel comfortable with one, I will get one. Some teams told me, you’re doing all
right, you don’t need an agent right now. Because they can’t do anything for you
as far as getting you drafted, so I’m not in a rush.
Q: Whom in the NFL would you like to model your career after?
A: I always looked up to Ronnie Lott. I was a San Francisco fan all my life, and Ronnie
Lott. I play safety, he played safety and he was always a guy I looked up to. I played a
lot of games in my college career and even high school with injuries. And you know, he cut
his finger off one game; I believe it was his pinky, if I’m not mistaken.
Q: Talk about these Combine interviews. This is like the ultimate job interview,
isn’t it?
A: Actually, this is one of the easiest ones. I’ve had some jobs and worked in
some different places. They ask about your family, which you know about your family. All
you gotta do is go in there and tell the truth. You don’t have to lie for any reason
at all. So I just go in there and tell the truth. They ask about my family, me, being a
kid, how I grew up, my neighborhood, different leadership roles, stuff that you did to get
through trials and tribulations — stuff like that. It’s simple.
Q: Talk about the tests they give you.
A: I took some tests in Miami and I took some tests here. It’s simple things,
really. Some things you wouldn’t think it relates to football, and some things do.
They want to know what type of person you are. I feel like they pick … this day and
age in the NFL, I think they pick more on character. I don’t know if a lot of guys
realize that, but I do. I mean, you don’t want a guy who, off the field, is having
problems. He’s a good player, but off the field he’s bringing a lot of negative
attention to the team. A lot of teams don’t want that.
Q: What kind of player are you off the field?
A: I’m laid-back. I like to go out and have my fun, but at the same time, I’m
a homebody. I’m not a big, everyday partying type of guy. I like to have my fun, like
I said — I’m not a big bore, nothing like that. But everybody has their fun.
Everybody has their moments.
Q: How hard is it when you seek an agent to know whom to trust?
A: I think it’s real hard, because with the business aspect of it, it’s hard
to trust a lot of people. And it’s hard to trust people in general, but with agents,
for the things they do, they might be overpaid. They might be overpaid, you know, because
negotiating a contract, you can get a lawyer to do that. I had people tell me that before.
It’s what fits you as a person. Some people like people to cater to them. Some people
like people just to back off. Some people want somebody there to handle their business
because things they can’t do. It’s just what fits you as a person.
Q: Where were the other jobs you had that you talked about in the interviews
earlier?
A: I done worked at Burger King, IMTT, which is a plant right next to my hometown. I
done worked at Blockbuster in college, and I worked for a law firm. (You worked at
Blockbuster in Miami?). Yeah, my sophomore year. Right across the street from the school.
A lot of people walked in there and were like "Ed Reed?" and I was like,
"Yeah …" You don’t get a lot of money during the summer during school,
so I had to work. (Did you get to watch any movies?) Yeah. I still got some tapes.
Q: You’ve heard about the criticism that you’re too small to play in the
NFL at safety. Can you respond to that?
A: They have a lot of guys a lot smaller than me in the NFL right now. I think
I’ve proved to a lot of people that I can play on any level. I done played at
college, and two years straight I had a lot of tackles, I made a lot of interceptions, I
blocked punts on special teams. So I think I showed that I’m an all-around player at
my position.
Q: What grounds you?
A: I got hustle in me. Everything has not always been peaches and cream for me. I
always had to work hard. Things were not given to me; I always had to earn things.
That’s the type of person I am; I feel I gotta earn a spot in the NFL. It runs in my
blood. My daddy works hard, and all my brothers work hard at what they do. And right now,
this is what I do: I play football. And right now this is the best thing. I done got my
education. I done did that. I had to work hard to get that. I showed I can work hard in
the classroom, so I gotta show I can work hard in football.
Q: What did you do for Burger King?
A: Just making burgers. Sweeping, cleaning. I used to make a really good Whopper. I
still could make one. Hey, you put the mayonnaise on first, the lettuce, tomato, the
pickle — hey, I got it!
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