- Interview conducted by Dewey Hammond, Playmaker Correspondent
- Written by Louis Ceaser IV, Playmaker Intern
Tuesday, November 9, 2010: PlaymakerMobile.com talked with middle line backer and Saints’ defensive leader, Jonathan Vilma, to ask about his vacation plans for bye week, Saints defensive domination over the Panthers, and the upcoming game against Pete Carrol, Matt Hasselbeck, Marshwan Lynch and the Seattle Seahawks.
Playmaker: I know you’re excited for your bye week; I know you’re a Miami guy, so my first question is not about football but basketball. Everybody thought Lebron and the Heat would just roll over everybody this season and it’s your New Orleans Hornets that are sitting at (7-0), while the Heat are at (5-3), barely above .500. Are you surprised that Lebron didn’t come out with a better initial showing in his new hometown?
Vilma: You know what…I can’t say yes or no; just the fact that you have three really talented players on that young team. At the end of the day, the NBA is full of talent and full of competitors, so each night they’re going to have to go out and prove themselves. No one’s going to bow down to them or concede victory for them; they’re going to have to go out there and prove it. Being a professional athlete, you have to get your mind right every time you step on the field and the court---so that’s what the Heat are going to have to do.
Playmaker: I know that you’re so busy with your own team; given that you’re so busy watching film you normally don’t get a chance to watch a lot of other teams in the NFL. It is your bye week and your division rivals, the Atlanta Falcons, are playing Baltimore tomorrow night. It ATL loses that game you’ll be tied for first place. Is that a game that you’ll watch?
Vilma: I guess I would tune in. I didn’t even know they were playing tomorrow night but thanks for telling me. Yea, I’ll definitely tune-in to watch. I love watching my Miami guys, so I’ll watch Ed, Willis McGahee and Ray Lewis. I’m a football fan at heart, so I like watching big games.
Playmaker: You know when people think of “The U” they think of guys like you and the three you’ve just mentioned: Ed Reed, Willis McGahee and of course Ray Lewis but there’s another guy from “The U” that joined your team this year, rookie tight end, Jimmy Graham, that got his first NFL touchdown following Jeremy Shockey’s rib injury. What did you say to Jimmy after he got his first score?
Vilma: I congratulated him; he deserved it. He’s been working hard. It was a matter of time; you can’t hide talent. He’s a confident guy and he’s going to make more and more touchdowns.
Playmaker: And it was also a matter of time since your defense scored its first touchdown of the season; you had five of them last year. This past Sunday you guys scored your first touchdown on defense. Did you guys feel a little bit of relief?
Vilma: Well you know the turnovers are helping. We’re starting to get the turnovers in bunches; that’s what really felt good---the touchdown was icing on the cake. We just got to keep getting turnovers every game; we had two the last game, we just got to keep it going…
Playmaker: Now games like you said regarding the NBA are not won on paper, they’re not won on paper in the NFL or any professional sport. Statistics really don’t mean that much. They don’t matter in the playoffs; they’re not going to get you a ring but it would have to feel pretty good knowing that the New Orleans Saints have the number one pass defense in the NFL.
Vilma: Well, it does feel good but as you said statistics never really get you anywhere because you have to show up on Sundays. What it does do is let other teams and your team know that you are doing something right. If your number one in the League, your number one for a reason. We are number one for a reason; it didn’t happen by chance or luck. At the same time, we understand that each week they’re going to test that to see if we deserve to be number one and we have to be ready for it.
Playmaker: Now you’ve got the bye week coming up this week; what are your plans for the bye week? Anything cool?
Vilma: Nope. A lot of rest and a lot of relaxation. It’s been a long-long week since the start of the season and so I’ve got to get mentally and physically ready for the back-stretch.
Playmaker: So you’re going to be playing the Seattle Seahawks at home; Pete Caroll’s team. You know Pete Caroll is obviously coming from USC. I worked with a couple linebackers from USC over the past few years and they like to call themselves “LBU” for “Linebacker University.” I know you and I discussed this before and you’ve taken issue with it but is it going to feel extra good coming out of that Seattle game with a victory knowing Pete Caroll and USC are over there on the sideline?
Vilma: No…I won’t take it that far. I don’t really know the guy or his guys that dub themselves “Linebacker University” over at USC. I guess when I go up there, I’ll let ‘em know what a real linebacker is down here in Miami. But going against Seattle will be an important game for us to get a win in the NFC.
Playmaker: Well, once you get through Seattle, once you get through Dallas, you’ll get the chance to go up against Keith Rivers at Cincinnati, but sticking to Seattle what do you see in that offense? Do you see anything in that offense that threatens you? Statistically, they’ve struggled this season.
Vilma: No, I haven’t seen anything; haven’t watched them yet---couldn’t tell you.
Playmaker: Statistically when I look at their offense, from an avid fan’s point-of-view, I see Matt Hasselbeck and he scares me slightly more than his wife does on “The View," but he’s been in the League forever; he doesn’t seem like he has too many years left. One guy that is kind of interesting though is Marshawn Lynch. He had a really rough start in Buffalo both off the field and on the field, he’s suffered some injuries. Of course when Fred Jackson started to produce and they got C.J. Spiller they dumped him off to Seattle. You’ve had a great career in New York but you know what it’s like to sort of switch scenery and what that can do for your mindset. So a guy like Lynch who was a bit of an outcast in Buffalo, didn’t necessarily live up to the promise of a top 15 draft pick. Now he has that change of scenery; what does it do to your mindset as an NFL player?
Vilma: It allows you to basically start over and re-focus yourself; get your priorities in order. It can go one or two ways. You can be the same-old you or you can be angry and upset you got traded; or you can you use it as motivation. You tell yourself that this is my time to really go hard; I start fresh and come ready to work. Hopefully, Marshawn sees this as a fresh start and will lead to him playing good ball.
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