AFC Notes: Malik Willis, Jaguars, Texans, Titans

Jaguars

Jaguars TE Josh Pederson recalled getting a text from his dad, Jaguars HC Doug Pederson explaining that the team was looking to sign him.

“Right at the end of the season, he had texted me and said, I think we’re gonna sign you. That’s all he said. I texted back and I said, ‘Who is we? Do you have a mouse in your pocket?’ You know, I was messing with him. I was like, ‘Who is we?’” Pederson said, via John Shipley of Sports Illustrated.

Pederson said that his dad explained that he had a really good season and the front office was on board with bringing him in for training camp.

“He said me and the Jaguars. And I, of course, I flipped out. I called him right away. And I didn’t believe it at all. And then he said, yeah, you know, we thought you had a good season. And he talked to the GM and the owner with the Jags and they were all on board.”

Pederson wanted to make sure he wasn’t given a handout since his dad was in a position of power but was reminded by his agent that he’s competed at this level before at multiple stops and deserves this opportunity.

“That’s the thing you know, I’m hoping to fly under the radar, but we’ll see how it goes,” Pederson said. “And I asked my dad if I could change the D in our last name to T just to kind of throw people off. But no man, I’m excited. And you know, it’s definitely that’s kind of, you know, my agent kind of had to talk me off a cliff. You know, I didn’t want it to be thought as a handout, but he had reminded me that I’ve been on three credible teams, with three credible head coaches, and now with my production in the USFL you know, I belong here. And you know, it just, it took another outside guy to explain that to me, and I really believe it and I’m so excited to be here.” 

Texans

Texans HC DeMeco Ryans said they cannot judge if their defensive secondary has improved this early in their offseason program. 

“You know, we’ll see,” Ryans said, via TexansWire. “I mean right now, being in shorts and helmets, how much can you truly judge? I think when we actually get in pads, we actually play games — that’s when we see the real football players stand up and show out. That’s what we’re looking for. Now on paper, it doesn’t really matter how you look on paper. It’s about can you be the best team on Sunday versus whoever you’re going against. That’s all that truly matters. And of course, we hope that our secondary is a strength of our team.”

Ryans also wants their defensive line and linebackers to be a key strength of their team. 

“We hope our defensive line is also a strength of the team, our linebackers — everybody just gels together and plays as one. And that’s what it’s about. You know, we’ll have strengths, weaknesses, but we’re only as strong as our weakest unit,” said Ryans. 

Titans

Titans QB Malik Willis responded to questions about a negative narrative surrounding him following a less-than-stellar performance in his rookie season.

“It’s a results-based business,” Willis said, via Jim Wyatt of Titans Online. “It doesn’t matter what I think, it doesn’t matter what you think, it just is. I am just focusing on what I can control. I come up here every day and try to work hard and get better at what I do and that’s all that matters. A lot of people took bad (from last season), but what you can do with three games, sporadic during your rookie season, trying to learn, everybody says you’re going to project this, project that. Just executing each play and getting in and staying on schedule. Doing everything to make sure we’re in the right plays and understanding what comes with that.”