Kyle Turley

Jimmy Chitwood

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Aug 10, 2005
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good article. Turley has never been one to hold back sharing his opinions when he was asked. your link didn;t work for me though, so try this one, or read some of the excerpts below...

Michael Silver: So how much do you weigh?

Kyle Turley: About 270. And trust me, that's plenty. People are fixated on my weight, but the last time I checked, football is a game, and the guy who has the best technique almost always wins. I don't care how big you are -- it's about leverage and body control. If you get lower than your opponent, you're almost always gonna win that battle. I mean, I've watched 380-pounders get thrown on their head by much smaller dudes. I saw big Kevin Gogan get lifted off the ground and tossed on his ass by John Randle. If it was just about weight, the Chiefs could've walked into any bar and signed some 300-pound f--- to play left tackle.

Silver: What about steroids? Or HGH?

Turley: I've been offered steroids my entire career, and I've never taken them, though I was tempted in college. At San Diego State we were so close to Mexico, guys used to go down to TJ [Tijuana] for lunch and stop at the pharmacy and pick up their stuff. Then they'd grab some lobster and go into the restaurant bathroom and shoot each other in the ass. I thought about doing it too, and I finally decided it would be unfair to myself if I did. When I made it to the NFL, I didn't want anybody to be able to say I had an unfair advantage. I wanted to be able to look at myself in the mirror and know that I had done it all on my own and take pride in that. And I still feel that way today, about all that stuff.

Silver: Do you think a lot of NFL players are using?

Turley: On every level, on every team, you're always going to have a couple of cheaters. It's like when you were in school -- a few people always cheated on the tests. But I don't think a lot of players do that stuff. For one thing, there's so much to be done now with diet and lifting and all the legal supplements you can buy at GNC. And though steroids might help you in the weight room, I really don't think it makes any difference come game day. At that point it's all about heart and desire and technique and intelligence.

Silver: I know you're not a big Gene Upshaw fan. What did you think of Bryant Gumbel's comments about Upshaw being Paul Tagliabue's dog?

Turley: Bryant Gumbel is a f------ moron. He's just trying to create controversy to raise his own profile, like he did when he made those ridiculous statements about the Winter Olympics. But it is true that tons of players have that same opinion of Upshaw. The majority of players are guys who are underpaid, who go to camp with split contracts and have to sign their lives away when they join a team and don't have any protection when it comes to severe disabilities. That's the majority -- but the union takes care of the fortunate ones.

I don't like the NFLPA because they turned their back on me when I was disabled and fighting for my benefits. But I have come to terms with the fact that it is a business. I'm learning through my years to get over things I can't change. I tried. I was in the union for three years, but then I realized it was useless. They have their agenda, the same way that teams do, and what it boils down to is that it's not about the players the way the union and the teams would have you believe. It's about the almighty dollar. The NFL is a multibillion-dollar industry, and everybody wants a piece of the pie.

Silver: That's the same word you used recently when we were talking about your new coach.

Turley: Herm Edwards is awesome. He played the game. He understands where we're coming from as players, and he treats us like men, which is a rarity in the NFL. Most coaches, especially coaches who come into a new place, rule with an iron fist. That s--- doesn't work, especially with a veteran team. With Herm there's no nonsense, no overworking and no underworking. It's right where it needs to be. You don't dread going to practice. You know he's gonna take care of you, and his assistants are cool, too. We don't have a------ drill-sergeant coaches.

All of that pays off later in the season. Come December, the teams that are overworked, if you're on the bubble, those guys are the ones who are gonna have the U-Haul packed up and ready to go. I know; I've been on those teams. And the guys with big egos, if they're coached by a guy they don't respect, they don't play as hard. They say, "Why should I?"

I know everybody in our locker room will go to war for Herm Edwards. If we win, it'll be great. And if we lose, there's gonna be a bitter feeling in the locker room that we didn't win for him. You just wait for a coach like this your whole career. All the older guys in the locker room, we sit around and go, "Where was this guy when we were younger? We wouldn't have all these aches. We'd be fresh." If I'd had him in St. Louis, I wouldn't be where I am right now, coming back from a two-year absence, that's for damn sure. This is probably going to be my last year, but the only way I'll come back and play next year is if my body feels good and Herm Edwards is my coach.
 

cslewis1

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Joined
Aug 8, 2006
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328
Location
Virginia
awesome! Love this guy. Doesn't he have an American flag tattoo also? Does Shockey too?
 
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