Yeah, I think a lot of times rookies come in and they’re talented, they’re big, they’re fast, they can run and chase the ball, but a lot of times I would say they’re just kind of running around out there. As they gain more experience and more understanding of the total defense and where their teammates are and how things fit on different runs, they usually play with a little more patience, maybe a little more recognition in terms of play-action passes and misdirection plays like that.

Although, Jerod is very good and has been very good at those, but I think certainly you get better at them through time and understanding the different matchups: which guys really try to knock you off the ball, which guys really try to come and fit up with you and use their athleticism to mirror you, which guys are holders, which guys are cut blockers in addition to the actual ‘Xs’ and ‘Os’ of the scheme, but how the individual guys play. Same thing with tackling backs. We see a lot of different types of backs: which guys you can really load up on, which guys have a lot of wiggle, which guys are faster than you, not faster than you.

So, I think all those things play into it. It’s kind of a like a quarterback; the linebacker has to make multiple, multiple decisions on every play. Not only what his assignment is and what the play is, but all the way along the line, different angles, how to take on blocks, how to tackle, the leverage to play with, the angle to run to and so forth, the technique. So many different things happen in a split second during the course of the play, just like it is for a quarterback. The more of those things that you can do right, slow down, get the most important things, not get distracted by all the stuff that’s happening, but just really zero in on a target.

I think a good quarterback or a good linebacker, a good safety, even though you have a lot of bodies moving out there, it slows down for them and they can really see it. Then there are other guys that it’s a lot of guys moving and they don’t see anything. It’s like being at a busy intersection, just cars going everywhere. The guys that can really sort it out, they see the game at a slower pace and can really sort out and decipher all that movement, which is hard. But experience certainly helps that, yes.