Atlanta Falcons: Exclusive Interview w/ Jessie Tuggle

The Atlanta Falcons enter a new era under new Head Coach Dan Quinn tonight against the Philadelphia Eagles in a nationally televised game.

It has been ages since the city of Atlanta has been this excited about their NFL franchise, and the team looks primed for a return to the postseason this year.

Earlier today, I had the opportunity to sit down and talk with former Atlanta Falcons linebacker Jessie Tuggle. We discussed his career with the Atlanta Falcons, what it is like to have two sons playing in the NFL (one of which is with the Falcons), as well as his impressions of new Falcons Head Coach Dan Quinn, and what the team must do in order to be successful this season.

ATL All Day: Jessie, thank you so much for joining me today. First of all, how are you and what are you currently doing?

Tuggle: You know, life is not bad right now. I just had my 50th birthday, and I have two sons that are playing in the NFL right now — which is unbelievable to me. I never thought that would happen. I watch both play and travel city to city; and then Grady is playing for the Falcons, so it’s exciting. Tonight we have Monday Night Football, so it doesn’t get any better than this.

ATL: I was actually going to ask you about both your sons playing in the NFL right now. How are your sons doing in the NFL right now? You must be a very proud father to see both Justin (Tuggle) and Grady (Jarrett) playing at the professional level right now.

Tuggle: I am really proud. It just doesn’t seem real to me right now because watching them as little kids — and they were great little kids — even as teenagers they had good character and could play. They’ve worked hard both on the field and off the field, in the weight room, with conditioning and running — they worked on all the little things. Then they got the chance to play at Division I schools: Justin at Kansas State and Grady had a great career at Clemson, so I was also happy they got grants to play there as well. And now it’s a like a bonus for me because they get to play in the league that I played in the NFL, and not only that but Grady gets to play for my favorite team — so what are the chances of that happening? I hope they have long careers, but more importantly, let’s take of the little things first. We have a Monday Night game tonight, so I’m hoping that he goes out and has the opportunity to make some good things happen.

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ATL: I think we will see good things from Grady, given his excellent preseason under new Head Coach Dan Quinn. What are your impressions of the Falcons new Head Coach thus far?

Tuggle: I like Dan Quinn a lot. I like the hire because you’re bringing in a defensive minded head coach. He proved himself in Seattle with what he can do with a defense. Now he comes into this Falcons situation with a defense that ranked last in the NFL last year, but he brings something intangible to this team. When I went to training camp, the tempo (of the defense) is loud, really fast, and quick. There’s no time for lollygagging, being slow, or feeling sorry for yourself. He has a positive and up-tempo attitude that gets his team ready to play on Sunday. Also what this brings to the team is confidence. You don’t have time to repeat things; you have to get it right the first time. If you’re practicing at that fast pace and up-tempo, that translates into Sundays. So tonight against the Philadelphia Eagles and their fast paced offense, they’ll be ready for that because they see it every day in practice. I’m really excited for this season.

“I think if the Falcons can stay healthy, and go out there with the confidence they’ve had in the preseason and in training camp, good things will happen for them.”

ATL: What are your keys for the Atlanta Falcons to be successful this season and to return to the postseason?

Tuggle: Number 1, player better on defense — which I think they will. I’ve played on teams that were in the bottom of the league on defense, and we came back the next year and played a lot better. Offensively, they need to play with a lot of confidence. The last couple of years there has been a lot of injuries — on the offensive line or to players like Roddy White and Julio Jones — which has put a lot of pressure on Matt Ryan. I think if the Falcons can stay healthy, and go out there with the confidence they’ve had in the preseason and in training camp, good things will happen for them. It’s also important for the Falcons to get off to an early start. Go out their and set the tempo early on both offense and defense, and have a mind-set of “One Team, One Goal”, which sets the tone for a good start. They are for real, and they’re ready to be.

ATL: I certainly hope you are right. Discuss your experience playing for a Division II school at Valdosta State?

Tuggle: I went to Valdosta State in 1983. I thought the campus was beautiful when I was 18 years old — and OH MY it is an awesome campus now. Thirty years later the place looks totally different. The competition level is still great down there. I’ve been asked a lot by players who played in the ACC and SEC what it was like to play football at the Division II level, and my answer to them is that it doesn’t matter where you play. Football is Football. We played at a high level in the Southern Conference, and I’m so proud that I’m a Division II product. But I had to work for everything. It made me a better person who never took anything for granted. It also instilled a confidence in me that I could play with anyone. Playing at Valdosta and in Division II was one of the best decisions I ever made, because looking back, I don’t how I would have turned out if I played anywhere else. Actually when I was a four year player down there, my teammates named me a unanimous Player of the Decade for the school in the 1980’s — which is pretty cool! I consider Valdosta my second home.

ATL: What was it like to play for Head Coach Dan Reeves?

Tuggle: It was awesome. I played for 5 different head coaches and Dan Reeves was the fifth different coach for the Falcons while I was there. He was totally different to me. He was different because of the amount of respect there was for him when he came to the team. Reeves brought an old-school mentality, which emphasized the importance taking care of little things and what it meant to be a winner. He was big on statistics, which was a topic of discussion on a daily basis. He also placed importance on punctuality, not being late for meetings, not wearing your hat inside of a building. Little things like that. Treat your friends and teammates like gentleman because these are the guys your going into battle with on Sunday. All this meant a lot to him. On Sundays when you’re playing, the guy next to you is family. You don’t want to let yourself down, and you don’t want to let him down. This mentality took us a long way. He came to the Atlanta Falcons when we were a losing franchise, and took us to the Super Bowl (XXXIII). That was also the year he had heart problems, but when he came back the guys were so fired up to see him. Getting to a Super Bowl isn’t easy, and it’s unfortunate we didn’t win it, but it’s still a great accomplishment. That’s also the year we drafted Keith Brooking, and he went on to have a long career, but he said that he thought that would be the only time he would get to a Super Bowl. He’s a first class guy. It’s not easy. I played 14 years and only made it to one Super Bowl.

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ATL: Well I will always remember as a child you playing in the Super Bowl against John Elway and how memorable it was to me as a young fan. What was it like to play with players like Deion Sanders on those Atlanta Falcons teams in the 90’s?

Tuggle: It was so exciting to play with Deion. In front of the cameras he was “Prime-Time”, but in the locker-room he was Deion Sanders. He was like a class clown actually. He loved telling jokes and was always funny to be around, but he was blessed with so much ability. I never played with a guy that was so fast on the football field. Another player that I got to play with who doesn’t get enough credit in my mind is Morten Andersen. Not many people know that he’s the leading scorer in the history of the NFL. He had already been in the league for 10 years before came to the Falcons from the Saints, so having a player of that caliber on the team for us was amazing. And he played another 5 years after I retired. He was a freak of nature. He has a brother who is a diplomat in another country, which is something else not many people know about him. Because you get so close with other players in the NFL, you get to see them in a whole different light. I’m actually going to the game tonight with Terance Mathis and Chuck Smith, my teammates from the Super Bowl team. We always talk about the Super Bowl and what could have happened and what should’ve happened. You build relationships with guys that last a lifetime.

ATL: What was your most memorable experience as a player in the NFL?

Tuggle: Well, at one point I held an NFL record for most points scored off of fumble recoveries. I thought to myself that even though it’s a small record, I have a record that is better than anyone in the entire history of the NFL. That was so cool, but I think that the most memorable time ever would have to be standing on the sideline in Miami at the Super Bowl. I couldn’t stop thinking about what I had to do to get this point. I had the sheriff standing beside me, jets flying overhead, and the hairs on the back of my neck were standing up. It gave me the opportunity to realize that dreams do come true. I’m a guy from Georgia that grew up on a dirt road and played Division II football at Valdosta State that never played in a televised football game before I played with the Falcons. My first time on an airplane was on the first team flight with the Atlanta Falcons, and never went to a professional before I played in one. You think about all that and then realize that I’m here: I’m playing in the Super Bowl, and the world is about to watch me play. It was so surreal and was a dream come true. Whether it was a win or loss, all our hard work got us to this point.

The next season at training camp, Dan Reeves was giving out the NFC Championship rings — you know NFC Champions, representing second place in the Super Bowl — and the first name he called out was my name. He said I want to give this ring to the guy who has played for twelve years and busted his butt, and the guy who played the biggest part in getting us to the Super Bowl last year, and he’s the guy I want to give the first ring to — and he gave the ring to me. That meant so much to me.

ATL: That’s incredible. Well we’re here at the Xfinity Store in Midtown, and you’ve been doing some work with Comcast to promote their Xfinity XI Sports App. How do you plan on using the app?

Tuggle: The app is wonderful for football fans like me. You turn on your TV, press one button, and BOOM, everything is at your fingertips. This is just in time for the NFL season. It gives you live fantasy stats, updated injury reports, in-game drive stats, win/loss probabilities. It lets me not have to worry about using my phone or tablet when I’m watching a game. I’m a big baseball fan too and it lets me get all the stats in time for the playoffs.

Next: Atlanta Falcons Host Eagles on MNF

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