CB Leodis McKelvin
Monday, March 11, 2013
Q: Your thoughts right off the bat?
A: I feel good. It feels good to be back. Feels good to be back to the organization that chose me five years ago to come here and play the game that I love. I feel great about it. Buffalo has been here for me. I will be here for them.
Q: Did you have a lot of other offers or was this always your first choice to come back?
A: This was the only offer I was really looking into. They did a good job of coming after me and did a good job of doing it before the deadline of whenever the teams could talk to me. Buffalo was always the place I wanted to be. Like I said, I have my nephews and my brother up here. They are in school and he is working. It was like a no-brainer for me to come back.
Q: How do you view your opportunity to be a starter this season?
A: I am a competitor. I am going to go out there compete. Any job is open. You just have to go out there and compete. May the best competitor win.
Q: The contract they gave you says that the Bills view you as a starting caliber player. Do you view it that way?
A: Most definitely. I see myself being able to go out there and compete for the starting spot. Contracts say what they say, but I am just going out there competing, doing what I have to do to compete and make this team be better.
Q: Do you see this as kind of a clean slate with the defensive regime in here—the whole coaching regime for that matter?
A: It is a new start; new beginning. Got a new coaching staff coming through. This is my third coaching staff coming through here and a new chance to show my talent. Go out there and be able to compete. Show I can do what I can do. Make sure we change things around right here.
Q: Talk about the journey through the first five years of your career.
A: You all know it the best—my first five years have been up-and-down. I have showed flashes of me being a good corner and showed flashes of me being there in position. Folks coming in make plays over my back. I have never been a guy that was out of place or been a person that has never been burnt or anything like that. I have been getting beat by spectacular plays. As far as the return game, I have always been a great returner. Never have I thought me being a great returner was in doubt. Just that one scenario in that Monday Night Football game. The only thing they had a doubt about me was just holding onto the ball. As far as me producing in that area, it was a no-brainer. As far as me as a corner and me being comfortable with myself, I know I can be a starting corner in this league. Like I said, it is a new start. All of that is going to be left in the past. I'm trying to just get better, be better as a player, get ready for this season coming up and get ready for this group.
Q: Did your steady play over the five game stretch you started kind of help your confidence or did you not need that?
A: I was eager to go out there. I was just waiting to get my chance. I knew coming into the season it was going to be very competitive and I was going to try to get my chance to get out on the field. I was just ready to get myself out on the field. Whenever my name was called I was ready. That is how I feel right now. I am ready. I am ready to go out there and show them I can be a starting corner in this league and just ready to play ball.
Q: What kind of interactions have you had with the new coaching staff?
A: They are a great group of guys. They are very fiery. They are excited. I am excited. We are ready just to get this thing moving.
Q: What have they told you that they want to see from you?
A: Just be me as a player. Go out there and just play ball. Just get ready and just have fun.
Q: What do you think of the defense in general? Do you feel like this defense can show that it is better than it showed last year?
A: Yeah. We just have to go out there and play as a whole. Play as a team. Go out there, stop the run and defend the pass. It is pretty much plain and simple. That is what we have to do. It is easier to say it than it is to do it. We just have to go out there and play as a whole. This is our defense. Make sure we have our schemes right. Just go out there, play ball and have fun.
