Derek Barnett

Philadelphia Eagles First-Round Draft Pick DE Derek Barnett Press Conference
4.28.17

When we talked to you last night, you had a pretty humble attitude about coming in here [to the Eagles], working and proving yourself first. Where did you learn that? Was that instilled in you at a young age?
“Yes, sir, it was. My mom raised me, so she taught me. She always told me, ‘Stay humble and put your head down and just work.’ She’s worked a lot. I’ve seen her work up to three jobs when I was younger, so I think I get that attitude from her.”

Did you meet Eagles defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz prior to the draft? Did he work you out? What kind of communication did you have with him?
“I came in for a 30 visit, and I had a great meeting with him. Actually, the Eagles were my last visit, so I was here not too long ago; probably like a week-and-a-half. It’s kind of ironic that I ended up in this city.”

What was your experience like in meeting Schwartz? Did he talk anything about how you potentially could be used?
“Yes, sir. The meeting went well. It was more about him getting a good feel for me and me getting to know him more. He also [thought] I could fit their system very well. He sees me playing that Wide-Nine and coming off the edge. He thinks I have a good get-off, so he thinks I fit the system well, and I think I fit it well, too.”

You played against some pretty good offensive tackles in the SEC, and most of your sacks came against SEC teams. How good of a training ground was that conference for you as a pass rusher?
“I think it was very good. I played against a lot of great tackles: Laremy Tunsil, Brandon Scherff, Cam Robinson. I played against a lot of great tackles week in and week out. You win on Saturdays and then Sunday you celebrate, but Monday you’ve got to get back to work. I feel like it’s going to be the same way in the NFL.”

A lot of rookies play right from opening day. Some don’t play maybe until their second year. Are you somebody who’s going to be really impatient to get on the field and contribute or kind of sit back and wait your turn and learn the game? What’s your mindset as far as playing right away?
“I’m not going to sit back and wait my turn, but I’m going to come in and learn my role first and get around these vets and learn what I have to do first to get on the field. Me being a first-round pick doesn’t mean anything. It doesn’t guarantee me a spot. I still have to come in and work and gain respect first.”

Derek, you wrote the letter in The Players’ Tribune to the GMs. Why did you feel the need to do that? Was that your idea to do that?
“It was. I just thought it was a great way to express my feelings, and my mom thought it would be a good idea to get that letter out, as well. I thought it hit the media at the right time.”

Where did you pick up the skills that you’ve honed on your pass rushing? Was it a body of work over the years? How did you get that? Last night Eagles Vice President of Player Personnel Joe Douglas was talking about your finish, for example.
“Just great coaches starting in middle school, high school and [University of Tennessee Defensive Coordinator] Coach [Bob] Shoop in college. I’ve been around some great coaches. I worked with [Tennessee Defensive Line Coach] Chuck Smith, and really I created — all my coaches just molded me into the ball player I am today.”

I think you weighed in at 259 at the Combine. Where do you want to be to start your NFL career, and how much of that do you want to get? How quickly do you want to put on weight?
“Yeah, wherever Coach [Doug Pederson] tells me I need to be at, I’ll make sure I’m at that weight.”

Do you think you’d be as effective putting on some more pounds? Do you think you’d lose any speed or anything like that?
“I don’t think so.”

When you were saying earlier your mom worked up to three jobs at a time and everything, what kind of jobs were they, and then who helped raise you then while she was doing all that, or did she, or did you raise yourself? How did that all come about?
“My mom, she worked at UPS. She works in the factory, so she’s on her feet a lot moving boxes, and also waiting tables, and then yeah, she raised me. Even though she worked a lot, she was still always there and made sure I had everything I needed.”

When people bring up the sack record, Reggie White at Tennessee, Joe compares you to Ravens OLB Terrell Suggs, does that bring any added pressure to you?
“No, sir, I don’t feel any pressure. I take it as a compliment, and Terrell Suggs, he was a great ball player, going to be a Hall of Famer, and Reggie White, probably one of the greatest defensive linemen to play the game. For me to be compared to those two is really a blessing.”

As far as your true freshman year, getting 10 sacks, what made you get on the field so early, and how have you developed since then?
“Coming in freshman year, I was just playing. I really just came in and told myself I was going to play hard every down, and then from my freshman to junior year the game slowed down for me, and I just got better as a ball player mentally.”

You’re the first Eagle draftee I can remember who was drafted in the city and woke up this morning here. What has this day been like for you? What have you done, and what impressions have you gained?
“Today I woke up, came over to the stadium, toured the stadium, then came to the facility, met the coaches, and this day has been fun for me. I’ve enjoyed myself. I can’t wait until we start rookie camp and get around ball some more.”

We heard so much about what Joe Douglas and Eagles Executive Vice President of Football Operations Howie Roseman said about you. They really praised you last night, but you say you have a lot to learn. What’s one area of your game that you really want to improve on the most?
“My eye discipline. Sometimes I like to put my eyes in the backfield too fast before defeating my block, so I think I need to continue to work on my eye discipline.”

How do you do that?
“Focusing on my work, making sure I’m beating my block, so if I’m going against a tight end, making sure I’m beating him first before I put my eyes in the backfield.”

Did any Eagles reach out to you, especially on the defensive line like a Brandon Graham or Fletcher Cox or anybody like that?
“Yes, sir, Fletcher Cox reached out to me. He told me how he likes his steaks cooked. So that was a warm welcome to the team.”

Was that last night after you got drafted?
“Yes, sir, it was on Twitter, but there were a few other guys that reached out to me, [Eagles QB] Carson Wentz did, and everybody has been showing me love, and I really appreciate it.”

I was curious since you broke his record, have you had the opportunity to meet [Reggie White’s wife] Sara White or any of her children? And what is Reggie’s legacy like on campus? Are there a lot of memories of him still around?
“I have not met Sara White but I’ve talked to her on the phone a few times. She lives in Nashville, so when I get the chance, I will go over there and meet with them. But Reggie White in Knoxville, he’s a legend. He’s all over the place in the state of Tennessee.”

Joe Douglas used the phrase “tough as nails.” We’ve heard other coaches talk about you in terms of a switch going off when you get on the field in terms of that toughness. What is it? What motivates you to play that type of way with an edge?
“I just love football. I love everything, what the game brings. I love the contact. I love playing with 10 other guys on defense. I just love everything about it.”

Obviously Reggie White was somebody that you watched, but just growing up through the years, were there any particular defensive ends that you watched as you’ve come along your path?
“Yeah, recently I like watching [Seahawks DE] Michael Bennett play. I like his demeanor. He uses his hands very well. When I was younger, [NY Giants DE] Michael Strahan, [was] one of the best to do it. I look up to a lot of those guys.”

How did you come about to talk to Sara White on the phone and what were those conversations like?
“She gave me a phone call about a week after the bowl game, after I broke the record, and she was just congratulating me on everything I’ve accomplished. Even though I broke the record, I told her Reggie is still Reggie. I don’t think I’m better than Reggie. I told her thanks a lot, and I really appreciate it.”

What did that mean to you that she reached out like that?
“It meant a lot. She went out of her way. She didn’t have to call me, but I’m glad she did.”

As a kid growing up in Nashville, when and how did football become important to you, and at what point did you think this would become your career?
“The first time I picked it up. I started playing football in fifth grade, and I always used to play backyard football when I was younger, but officially started playing in fifth grade, and when I picked it up the first day of practice, I had a blast, and I knew I was going to go a long way with it.”

What position?
“I played guard, actually. Guard and defensive end.”

They’re not moving you to guard, are they?
“I don’t think so.” (Laughter)

This has obviously been a whirlwind for you and just being in Philly yesterday around everything. At what point do you kind of change gears and just start that process of learning the game and learning the defense and kind of putting all this behind you?
“When I leave here today I’m going to have my iPad, so as soon as I leave I’ll be able to start learning, start learning the defense.”

I just looked up your birthday and realized you were born during the season that Reggie won the Super Bowl with the Packers. When did you go back and watch him? He was well into his career by the time you even came around. Did you watch film of him, tape of him at Tennessee, anything like that?
“Yes, sir, I watched tape of him at Tennessee because I was trying to put the hump move in my game. But as a pass rusher, I feel like everybody has their own moves, and I think that move is for him. It’s probably not for me.”

At the Combine, Howie Roseman said that you had the flu and your numbers weren’t as good as maybe what you were anticipating. Can you explain what happened there, and then also, I think a lot of players kind of have an idea of how they’re going to perform at the Combine before they even get there. What were you anticipating before you got there and what happened when you got there with the flu?
“Yeah, I caught the flu a few days before we ran, and I knew I probably wasn’t going to test my best, but I knew it was an important job interview and I knew I had to go out there and grind it out. I told myself just go out there and do my best and control what I can control, and I did so.”

Was there any thought of not working out and waiting maybe until your pro day because you had the flu?
“No, I didn’t put much thought into it because I knew how important that interview was.”

As a follow-up to that, you said the other day that you’re a football player, not a track star, and you’re obviously playing football. In what ways do you compensate for the lack of athleticism compared to some other defensive ends?
“I think my get-off is pretty good, and I can bend well. But I think mentally that’s where I separate a little bit. Preparing for a game, and a lot of people don’t see that, but you have to prepare for a game so you can go in and dominate.”