Quincy Enunwa

let's get straight into it. Backstage, Joe, what's up? Man? It's going on? Fellas. Okay, we had an unbelievable weekend, didn't we. Yes, we did. We played golf this weekend to cut to an invitational. Yes, none of us made the cut. We only made it the saturday. We got that green ribbon, that participation award. All right. So we're driving back, um from from a little golf off trip and it's about a four hour drive. We're not gonna say where we were. We don't want to lose them anymore. Uh,

beach folks that we are. We lost the Myrtle Beach folks. We want to keep. We don't want to keep the streets the coast. So driving back and four hour drive, so we about two hours in, it's like, hey, let's stop, stop, grab something. What's anybody wants? So you know you're on the road, and you know how these when you're on a road trip, got a few options. You got a few options, right, They all pretty much the same. So go through a drive through, go through a drive through, going,

go through line, go through the line. So we order welcome to such and such. Man help you. Yes, I'm driving os there, geez there, and they all rattled off one by one what they want. So I say, hey, I would like this combo? What else? What else? Joe says, hey, I'll take a sound interrupting. Then after Joe says that gerald interrupting or is the exact same thing as a comb made it easy. We should have known it was gonna go a straight because the second you gotta sell.

But what else? Yeah? I would I would like what else? And also what else? What kind of sort? That's how it went. So, thank you. Here's my Here is my amount. I knew it was struggle when you pulled around four total. That was my total. Drive up. I had a girl tend the five easy easy cash transaction easy cash. Right now, I'm gonna write this out because I had to rethink it when I did the transaction. Let's back in. Let's back into that maths at ten and the five okay,

one on one canceled out? Four cannot go in to five? Old school. I got to yeah, I have to see. This is where we already are separating in which we're going. This is how math is introduced. It is continue with the story, all right, because I'm doing this math or the four zero came not make that that canceled out to zero nine? Bang, make that zero attend ten minus one is nine nine cents. Now I knew this. I

knew this, but I'm doing it the second day. This happened yesterday, second day in case maybe I misjudged her calculating skills, because let me tell you, she used a calculator on her phone. So she comes back after I handed the money, she comes back and says, you got ninety one cents. But to be fair, first she turned her back on us once you hand her the money, and like we were just staring at it, like it was like a showdown. Because I looked at him, said,

I hope she would give you my change? Why change important to me? I'm a change guy. I like to have to change, and then I take it home, put in my change, and then every six months I cash it and I put into dollars. Listen, I'm a change counter. I pick up change off the But what what was the change that she gave you? Was that she gave She gave me three cents? Three? So we just after I said, uh, can I get a change? She goes, and now we're back into this math already sidetrack Sally,

stop it. She goes, you're gonna give me a ninety one cent? I said it, excuse me, I gave you? And did you actually owe me? How much change do you owe me? Then she brings out the calculator. No, she gives me three cents, And I said, because when she gave it to me, I was like, are they giving up? So? Are they giving our big coins? Does this? I know this is a podcast, but not only did she give us three cents wrong, she finger rolled it right in just Steve's hands to like with the attitude

like here's your three cents. And so I called it and I was like, hold on, and so I told her not aggressively. I said, in my mind, I'm gonna all right, don't be rude, don't be rude, don't be rude. I said, uh, how much change were you supposed to give me? She goes, huh. First of all, if you hung you can hear. That's how my mama told me. Huh. I said, how much change are you supposed to get me? I gave you fifteen? How much was it? She could

not do it? So then she brings out so she turns her back, but she didn't turn her back quick enough as she was busting out her iPhone with a pink case to do the calculation. And so she was like, well, how dog. She used her calculator and still got her wrong. She did not know how much change to give me, No no clue. So then she gives me. She finger rolls me to change. Luckily. Luck luckily, I'm such a profound athlete. I called all of it. It's like slight flags.

So I catch it right, and then I'm like, can I get two straws please? So she gives me the straws as if like here child be gone gives me she gives me the change, we get the food. I drive you hot. He was fired up just right, So then I drive off. I get on and I no, no, Joe didn't, I said, hold on, damn it. She got me. She forgot joe sandwich. She didn't even give us the right food, broke it. So here's what I did. I took two French fries to take my supplement, and Joe

ate my lunch because he didn't have a meal. I was no longer mad. He was mad. You know why I was mad? Do you know why I was mad? In likeness? Because all of that nonsense that she did. It was on her. It wasn't my fault. She couldn't count. It wasn't my fault. It was it wasn't my fault. She you need her iPhone to count up what I did on a piece of paper, and then she gets

mad at me and stess me my sandwich. But guess what, my friends, I cleaned up my car when I got home, and guess what I found my receipt with the store number. Because guess who's gonna get a free meal? Guess who's gonna get it free? I am? I am. Come make sure you had an extra chicken sandwich on that for me. I'm getting the whole damn meal. I'm emailing look at you. I'm gonna email such and such dot com because one, I need employees that can count or at least read

the cash register. I mean he's right there, for it does all. I've worked in fast food. Now, this is this is not Steve's trying to be all high in my this. I'm I want to t integral part of your story. Yes, I worked to Taco Bell. You have you have papers, you have calculators, and you got that big old register that has all the menus. It really is. And then maybe she was color blind. Possibly that could be, but no shade to the color blind listeners. Correct whatever. Yep.

So I'm gonna get me a free I'm gonna get the whole meal free. Do you fire the place up? No? I just want my free mel I just want my sandwich that I paid for that she didn't get me. Who we got our guest today, Quincy a none Wa drafted out of Nebraska. He spent his five years with the New York Jets and really an all around stand up guy advocate for mental health. Quincy Anne One Quincy coming up. You're gonna take part and get iced up smarty. Go ahead with the first one. All right, here we go.

So we go with an easy one. Uh. Favorite cartoon growing up? Oh? Man, favorite cartoon. There's so many Uh, I never I never saw that show. It's so many five man. I mean, look, I probably aided myself, man, um, you know, but the last one I just saw that I remembered because it was on I think my messages like Powder Family, and that brought me back. But then if I go way back, you know what I mean? It was like it was like a Black Family Nickelodeon

was on Nickelodeon. It was something like that. Man, all right, so here's here's a good one too. Have you ever sent a text message to the wrong person? Uh? Multiple times? Man? I got anxiety just thinking about man multiple times. And the worst part is now. And whenever you do it, anytime you send a text, youre always like real cautious, like you gotta make sure, okay, that's the right sender, making sure you're not sending to the wrong person again. I've sent a text to my wife who Aim is

Ace in my phone? Angie Ace two? You know him? Adam? Oh? Which is right underneath. Yeah, and there was a husband and wife. I was gonna say, I've done it in reverse. It was a husband and wife like, hey, I'm on the way home. Yeah, I got the food. And Adam goes in the text Man, that school Steve, but I don't really want to know what you and an you got played stomach sense to your feet done? Bro? I was like no, oh, but at first I was kind of hot. Yeah that wife didn't reply. I'm like that

you were married. Boom. You know, I mean they need like, they need to recall, they need a recall, right, dinner back back, you know, I set it up. You know you, I mean, of course you don't know this, like, but light skin, you know how we do it. Bro. Nope, it was Adam so embarrassing. And then a couple of weeks it happened to be about a month later, me and Adam got together. We had a business thing and he brought it up. Uh so no lunch. All right, here we go, last one and then we're gonna jump

right into your story. Who you are. If you can make a rule for a day and everyone had to follow, what would it be? Oh? Man, if I could make a rule for a day and everyone had to follow it. Be real on social media, man, he real on social media. Keep that same energy later on. Let's cut right into it.

Let's let's hear your story. But I want to get this out of the way just immediately, because I know I'm in journalism now and i'm journalists, I'm a media guy, but I have always struggled with I'm gonna call you Quincy, but we want to know. We want you to pronunciate M and also explain your full name, your govern name, because everybody knows you as Quincy. Some people butcher it, but really, just what's the what is the meaning behind the name and all that stuff? All right? I got you,

all right? So my actual government name is on the chest, Quincy and new right. So I just had my first name on the chest, okay, and it's O n O C h I E. And it's an evil named Nigerian. My parents are from Nigeria. Um and uh it means the replacement. It's like Junior, the real so the real meaning of his replacement. But it's just Blake me like Junior. My dad named me after my grandpa, so he died a year before I was born. And so they named

me that. My parents were both from Nigeria. My dad came, um, maybe like eight to ten years before I was born, and my mom actually came like a month a month before I was born. So that's probably not even safe at all, right, Um, and they're both from Nigeria. UM brought me up in the culture all of that, and I was wearing it. Got c keis. I was wearing all of that when I was going up. They came over here, and I'm I'm trying to dump it down

for myself. I won't that journey, Yeah, the transportation, the journey of how they got here if if you even know, um, you know how they got here, whether they come from they both of My dad flew and he came here first and went to school. And when my mom flew with me, watching was pregnant. She actually so she was so pregnant, her stomach was so big for bully is so big that he had a doctor, a doctor write a note, Um, I said that he was holding twins

when actually she was just like eight months pregnant. Wow. Yeah, so you know whatever it takes, right, yeah, yeah, So that uh so she came and had me. UM and then she went and got her nurse and degree, and my dad he got it bigest degree and he started working at Walmart. Um and he was like a store manager for a really long time. From Walmart. He dropped Walmart and became an entrepreneur. Now he owns like two stories to like mailing stories in uh Southern can American

dream right there. Honestly, they did whatever they could to get me over here, and they they've been working hard ever since. How many other siblings are you the oldest youngest? Yeah, so it's me and then my two younger sisters. Um one is twenty six. The other one now I think she is. That's when you know, you know, you gotta think about people got that, got that brother? You know sometimes that's the slips of mind a little bit. I think that really. And so you're growing up, you saying

you're wearing Dashiki's you're from from? I can take it you're wearing who you are, your culture mm hmm exactly. Yeah, growing up you know in in southern Californi, where there's a ton of there's a ton of cultures there. However, there isn't a lot of brothers walking around. So I'm I'm assuming pretty interesting at first because outside of your home it was normal. Yeah, but then you're inside of

your home is normal. Outside of your home, you probably got some looks and and and I'm assuming yeah yeah. So so you know, we weren't wins every day, but you know, they was still still part of us. You know, we reward um done Evans and stuff like that. But overall, i'd say, you know, Especi back then, you know, you had the jokes and everything, African booty Scratcher, all those different duffs that people would tell, Yeah, you know what I mean. So you know you've got those jokes. That's

really um for me, you know. And then on top of that, you know, people didn't really take the time to really pronounce my name correctly. That was actually part of the reason why I went up my middle name, because you know, it felt as though people try to just kind of wash away in my culture and I and I just kind of fell into that, right like by going by Quincy and then just accepting that that's my name. Um, but uh, yeah, it was, it was.

It was definitely like it was an interesting, um, interesting childhood, interesting growth pattern you know, to be uh Nigerian amongst a bunch of people from different cultures, but mainly just you know black culture making culture like that's really good dominie um and where I was growing up, So I think in order to kind of assimilate, right, Um, for me, it was like, well, let me go by my Englishman name inside your house and I've got some friends who

are who are Nigerian inside your house. What's the what's maybe the pressure of what's the experience of having Nigerian parents while you're in the US, what's take us on that journey? Yeah, well the biggest one is education. You know, it's it's a big pushon on education, trying to make sure that you know, they brought us here essentially, um, so they want us to take advantage of every every benefit that we can get being in this country. UM. So you know, growing up, we we you know, we

have to get the good grades. You know, we have to make sure that if we were doing sports, that we were also still excelling in school. You know. So I think you know, any every parent is like that. But you know, if I'm just speaking on my experience on that, you know, they really pushed that we have to take a break and the morning anything. We gotta pay some bills? You got checks. I love cut to It and I love it even more when you download us and subscribe, and you can follow us on social

media too, Smithie where where at? That's at? Cut to It on Instagram? What about Twitter? At? Cut to It? Facebook? Cut to It featuring Steve Smith sent your what about online? And you can follow us at cut to It podcast dot com where you can buy merch and you can subscribe to us wherever you listen to podcast. I got all my answers questions. Um, yeah, I got all my questions answered. That's what I'm here for, a brother, cut

to a podcast dot com. So growing up in Los Angeles, how did those two worlds Nigerian in Los Angeles in the nineties, How did that shape and impact your view on the world because you had two different views and as adult you will probably you can say it was an advantage, but as a child probably saw it as

a disadvantage. Yeah, yeah, it was. It was interesting. So actually we were maybe like forty five two or an hour Marino Valleys is where I grew up, so it's about uh maybe an hour east uh down a sixty three way. But it's it's it's essentially, you know, a lot of people came from lady to go living me about so it was, it was. It was definitely an interesting, you know upbringing. You know, just at least you see

so many different things. Um, but I think party. What's what's funny is that, you know, my parents kind of shielded me from a lot of things. They took me in in the private school. You know, so for a good amount of my pilor, I was in a private school, you know, so there was a lot of things that I didn't see until I tried to go in the Polst school and man, my life got flipped up. So in what way do you do? Tail do? You can't just leave us there? I know, I don't know. It's

you know, I mean, private school is a different lightstyle. Man, it's it's um, there's no really way to explain it. You know. So when you go to public school, you know, you get you get a real taste, you know. I think what helped me a lot was just the fact that I was playing um kitty ball, you know, football, so I gotta I got you know, I got to see you know, different ways people, you know, kind of

acting it stuff. But you know, when I got to high school, that's when I really started to see you know, uh up close to like game culture and all types of other things that I you know, you see on TV. But it wasn't until I was acting the school and seeing stuff. I was like, bro, where am I at? Do you think you would shield it in a way in private school? Oh? Yeah, definitely, definitely. You know, you know, you people talked about it, but nobody was really about it.

Was that shield? Do you believe was that shield enough for you at that moment? So when you got to public school you had to you had enough wherewithal to be able to separate yourself or at least be hesitant and not jump all in immediately. Yeah. I think so, you know, I think when I see other people's stories, you know, there's a difference. So I can't say that this is just the blueprint. But I think for myself

it was helpful. You know, I kind of I kind of already had a lot of discipline and part of the money came mainly for my parents, but also you know, from being at school. I think that that helped me as well. I don't know if I do anything to my keys. But you know, I'm just speaking on my own experience. So you're saying you wouldn't do it for your kids, meaning you wouldn't I wouldn't put it in

private school. Uh, other than the money I heard that heard that money, you know, retired retired flare to mine go to private school, you got look at that. So this is my thing. My my private school wasn't like a big private school, or I could have gone there and they went to college and play ball there, like, there was no chance of me being looked at. So everybody's private school experience is different. The woman I was at was not going to help me get to where

I'm at now. So that's actually why I went to public schools because you know, everybody knew I had the talent, but I wasn't in the ginningywhere being in a school. So I say, if it's a private school that can you know you can go to and still make it, um, then I might put them in me. But the route that I took, I wouldn't see that my kids. So you're talking just from a sports related understanding. Um, the journey of trying to give your child if they pursue

a professional or collegiate career. This helps them based on your your own experience exactly. Man, So you're in high school, you know, you're you're at public school. Now you're in the real life. M h. When did you believe in in playing in high school that you felt I can possibly go to college and and participate in football at that level Division one. Yeah. Uh, when I first got there, it was a struggle. You know, Like I said before that the school that I was at, you know, I

knew the thing that I was talented. You know, I got to a level where everybody was talented, really talented. So the first couple of years, you know, I saw the flashes, so you know, they put me out there, they saw me scored some touchdowns and knew I could play, but you know, it was it was inconsistent. You know.

It was until my senior year where I put it off together and that's when I started to get the offers and uh, you know, people started to really see that, you know, I can make it to cause and that's when I really started to believe it. You're probably being looked at it you play football, not soccer. Mm hmm. Okay, so this is funny. So I played soccer, um, and then really I probably wouldn't continue to play soccer. And then uh, when I was coming up, one of my

good friends he uh introduced me to Madden. So I went over to a child and started playing Madden. And I didn't know what I was doing right until I remember, I think I scored a touchdown luckily, and uh, I didn't know what to do next, so I asked him what it was. He had me punt the ball and say kick a field goal. I was exactly so you didn't look you didn't even know the rules of football when you're playing mad. No, I didn't know what I was doing. Well, you know he didn't know because he

slipped that in. This is what he was in, and I let slide. I know football. I went over to my friend's house to play, because let's play the there. Man, I'm not jarring. J'all play no games in the house. Exactly. Do those games are for those American kids who are lazy? Go get a book, read a book, Am I correct? Yeah? No, we we took it to the library like every week. Oh yeah, I got not Lewis I know more people say, oh show it was It was funny I mean, you know, they try to they try to put us to uh

to do that. But in terms of the video game, Yeah, so I went over there and that honestly, that's been my motivation from at the beginning. Man. Every time, every time I think back about how I started from football, I just supposed remember that story and I got any pop Winner. I was playing pop Winner and from there, you know, that's where I just kind of took off. But I was playing soccer for a pretty long time. First,

what position did you play? Oh? I can't even tell you, man, because I started playing football and fourth or fifth grade, so um, maybe forward. I played goalie for a little bit. I played goalie for a real for a minute. I was really all over the field. Honestly. They just kind of threw me out there and I was like, all right, go line. So they treat you like athletes exactly. Just they just go out there, out run little Johnny because you're Marino Valley, so you know you're going you know

what you're going up against. Yeah, Alex, right, that's that's the Marino Valley kind of It's pretty diverse. At the time that you were growing up playing soccer, playing soccer in Marino Valley. Now maybe diverse, but that soccer because I I've experienced it here in Charlotte, Charlotte's Crazy Soccer youth soccer Academy, but it ain't a lot of brothers

on the sidelines. And then the games being honest, you know, and we'd about we had we had the everybody moved from l A because you know, in the nineties that's when you know, black A Mexicans were fighting. We had what was it l A, right, so everybody's going to get out of l A. So when I was coming up, everybody was moving out of l A, was moving towards an Empire, Reno Valley, riverside, all those places. So really it was it was actually a lot of black people

about coming up playing soccer, though Mexicans. It was mexic playing soccer. Na, it was soccer. That was probably the first time when they said hey, bro, we're gonna call you Q or quincy started. It actually started. It started around there. Yeah, what was the recruiting process for you specifically, because we've had a few guys on here who's talked about their collegiate recruiting process, it's been different for everyone else.

We've had Malcolm Jenkins on He's talked about he got to Ohio State because his folks were visiting some family members at Ohio and signed him and his brother up Um for a football camp just to give them something to do in the summer. M hm. So I'm I'm wondering. And and from there that's how you got a scholarship to the Ohio State. Now you gotta offer to Nebraska. I was that process from from Marino Marino Valley, l A, right forty five minutes out of l A to the

Midwest Nebraska. I had to be interesting. Culture shock, right, Yeah. It was huge. Culture side, coachure side, the weather, shock, everything. Man, I mean it was it was a different light. I mean I that I was gonna do ferent plenty. She answered, you. When I first when I first heard in break, I realdn't even know where it was at, you know, so um when I got there, you know it was it was the first time I was there was for a game.

So that's what really drew me in. You know. It's like you don't see that type of stuff right, Like it's it's all in. Everybody loves football. They're like literally the whole state so I think, you know, it was just it was just cool to see when I was out there that you know, it was so much love football team, so much love for the games. Sold out every game they had like a three hundred games sellout. You know, they just love ball there. What ultimately sold

you on picking Nebraska wasn't that game? Yeah, no, the game. But honestly, you know, I didn't have a lot of offers. I had like three or four, UM, and so Nebraska was like one of the biggest ones. And I knew, you know, if I went to the Braska, out of all the other options I had, at least they were like a winning team. Um. You know they that year, the year before that maybe it did a big twelve championship.

And actually the first year I was there made the big championship too, So I knew I would get more exposure going there. Any well, were some of those other schools if you don't mind Washington States the state was another one. UM I got recruited by, like Idaho State, UM, like small, small, smaller schools um over on the west side, West Coast, UM. And then uh, for track, I gotta looked at my Miami. I actually, what if I could I like to track a lot more? Honestly I did.

I was a high jumper and we did for about one triple jump um, but I just didn't, you know, I didn't. I didn't have all the tools, so it didn't work out for me as well, what do you what do you mean to have all the tools? I think if I could have had a little bit um more like in depth coaching, maybe Salman House doing it, like because I was sick tonight high jumpers, so I felt like I could get seven, you know, but my

form just wasn't the best. About a month after I got to Utah University of Utah, I was ready to come home. I was homesick. The only thing that did not the only thing that really the saving grace was we were so danged poor. My mom couldn't afford uh. She was like, look, Steven, you can't. We don't have any money because my aunt, my grandmother, the people that scrounged up money to actually give me a one way ticket to Utah. So I didn't, but I wanted to leave.

So with me throwing myself out there, I can't imagine. Did you get homesick? Did you feel like it was a mistake going out there. Yeah, no, I definitely was homesick.

Um in terms of the steak, you know, I just kind of tried to tell myself, you know, this is this is what I gotta do, you know, I think, um it was it was the the theme that was pushed for us, you know, with the education, was that I knew that this is you know, this was the step I need, whether it be for football or education order for me too, you know, come back with I

wanted to come back with something in my head. You know, I wanted to come back with with some type of accomplishment, right, so you know, being there, um, I had my head focused on you know, what I needed to do, um and what I felt I wanted to do, uh and get out of it. So there was no like I want to come home. It was like, man, I gotta do this, you know, I need to get this done.

In the recruiting process, what was the message your folks, your parents, we're sending you off with basically what I you know, basically what I was kind of just already thinking,

you know, just you know, work hard. Um. They had of trouble m h, you know, and and do do do what these people that are now basically your caretakers basically tell you what to do, you know, because at the end of the day, you know, they're basically passing me off to them, you know, and that fast actually not to kind of be off too much, but that's what's kind of crazy about this whole college uh, you know,

recruiting stuff. Man, they take you away from your home, you know, knowing that a lot of guys, you know they're coming from upbringing is that are way completely different, and then they don't even really take care of you as much as they should when you get out there. You know, they sell you all these dreams and you get out there and it's a completely different life. It's

got to be a transition. You you're especially for you you're a deep rooted family guy, but you have one family and now you've got to transition almost to a completely new family. Yeah, yeah, exactly. It's it's it's it's it's it's an interesting transition. But luckily, you know, I actually had one of the guys that came there. Um, I knew him in high school, so you know, we kind of we hung out a lot. You know. That was my guy. He's actually one of my grooms on

our weddings, you know. So it was helpful have some men a piece from home, you know what. I was out there and one of my best friends, uh named Johnny Lundy we met on our recruiting trip to Utah, friends to this day. So you know, uh as funny as too is hearing you talk about and I heard in your voice and you were very you were dancing

around it. But basically, you have these people, and there's all fasters of coaches now men and women in collegiate sports that are coming in and basically auditioning and and telling your folks. Right. Luckily, I had a great recruiter who's kind of like a father figured to me named Fred Graves wide receivers coach San Diego Utah Buffalo Bill San Diego Chargers, even for a little bit of time in Carolina Panthers, and he recruited me. And he came in and told my grandmother that he was gonna take

care of me. He's gonna look out for me just like his his own son. He did that. But I'm imagining that there's a lot of other people that's not the case. That may not be the case, and they tell you man you know, we're gonna take care of you like he's one of our own. And sometimes that doesn't happen. Who was the coach that recruit you? And what what kind of did they say? Because I I kind of felt a little bit in there. You were like, man,

this this this game they're running. Man, you go to college and you are handing off the most valuable thing you have and these coaches are like, let me check it off the box, got quincy. Bang, we got this wide receiver. Let's go to the next guy and we'll tell him what that We'll we'll tell him whatever we need to tell him to get our guy so we can keep our contracts. You know. Uh, I'm a football story and so on ne brasket. At that time, y'all was wearing them Boo boo Adida a white receiver? Is

it wharing those Adidas? Now is five? But when you was playing, they was not. Just for them to get a wide receiver is a victory and of itself. As much as they run the ball receiver split in well, it's just they switched it up. Man. So we're gonna go into a part that I love. Let's talk ball. You know, we're gonna talk about ball, and so I just gotta start off, man is because kind of telling tell the fans your fans fans are podcast your six round pick um two thousand fourteen right out of Nebraska

right now. You know, without saying the date and all that stuff, you were released from the New York Jets and you sustained some injuries. Um, take us through right now that. Mhm. What it has the process been for you in football? That sounds like most guys I assumed, but I'll say it's outside of your wife, uh and your your family. Football really for NFL guy knows that's that's your first love. Mm hmm. Now you're losing that first love. What has that grieving process been like for you?

And and walk us through that if if you don't mind, or if you if you can, because I just went through it about three or four years ago. And then we moved and I literally had to pack up stuff

that I kind of stored away in my basement. So we moved and downside and I say downside me, and we went from my family and six to now we're on a family four and I got a sophomore, so we're in three years basically be me my wife and our and our our youngest Steve Smith Jr. And I was packing up and deciding what do I want to keep,

what I want to get rid of. And there's a moment I started tearing up in my basement as I'm packing because I'm packing up I had my old shoulder pads, only I wore the same shoulder pass my whole career. Uh my Carolina Pathers shoulder pads. Where the shoulder pass I wanderneath my jersey in Baltimore. So when I was released, the only thing I told him is, uh, send me

send my shoulder pass. And that was it. And I was packing up my stuff and I got teary eyed because I was like, man, I'll never be able to play ball again. And as I was putting it in there, I'm like, oh, these are my first pair of clicks that I wore, you know my classes I got out from the Pro Bowl, or these are the this is a jersey I had, or a photo of of Peyton, my oldest son, who's twenty two now gonna be twenty three and November. But there's a picture of him when

he was eight or nine years old. He's standing with donovatement. Now I'm just trying to figure out, how does that process been for you so far? And it hasn't been a long time, but how's that uh coming along for you? And take a through that journey if you don't mind. The most difficult part is just been injured for you know,

now going on two years. You know, I've been one of the hardest things, especially you know it being a neck injury, so you know, I have to take that much that much more serious, um, you know, And so the hardest thing for me last year I could say was you know, it being my second time being injured. Um, what was coming into the facility neck injury? So the first year I had next surgery. The first injury you know I had that was major. I had next surgery,

So I missed the whole year. What was that entail that next surgery? M Uh yeah, So I had her neated disc. So what they had to do is they had to go in, take the disc out, put a bone in the metal plate, some screws, um and I had to wait nine months for it to heal up. So that was that was the prognosis. As they started to lay out the game plan of how to approach this injury. They said that, you know, I had a good, you know, a good chance to come back out play.

You know, I might have small uh changing my range emotions, but overall I should be able to go play. So you know, that was encouraging that first year, you know, to go out there and know that you know, once I got this, I could still go out and play. And so then I did too. But then two outs a nineteen um, you know, I go back out and I hit somebody and find out that I got another hunde of this and this one is the one below. So that's where, you know, things started to become like

dangn uh oh upper cervical. So in my next the process of being injured, you know, in the NFL, know you you you work your whole life to get here, you know, and and so for injury to be the reason why, you know, you're not able to see the field, it can be kind of you know, dis hurt me depressing in those type of ways, especially when you you know, we once a captain, a leader. You know, you almost

feel as though you're letting the team down. You know, these guys look up to you, guys look to you, to go out there and perform, to make these big plays, to score touchdowns, all those things, you know, and so sometimes it can be hard to face your teammates knowing that injured the game, even though at the end of the day, it's really not even your fault. You know, you're you're not the one that went out there and purposely hurt yourself. You're just playing as hard as you can.

You know, the chips fell fell where they fell, you know, it was it was a hard time for me. Um, you know, just kind of going through abs, like you said, the grieving process of knowing that you know, um, this this second injury, you know, could could make things a lot a lot more difficult for me. I think it's about that time. Just take a little breather. Good, let's getting down to do it. Hey, Gerard, why did you

get that T shirt? Mean this thing? Oh? Yes, I got it from cut to a podcast dot com where we have exclusive merchandise. Shout out to our guys at seven or four shot. But yeah, you can go on, buy you a T shirt, subscribe to us wherever you listen to podcasts. Sitting in your locker. After you get this diagnosis and the symbolism of sitting in your locker being alone. What was that inner inner dialogue with you and your heart of this game that you potentially no

longer can play. No, I think in the beginning it was probably a little bit of the nile, you know, like, nah, you know I can still do this, but you know, we actually sold this past year. We UM. What they told me after I got hurt for the first game was that, you know, we would um sit back, um and see how hills to top playing any football and we assessed. UM, so I wanted a whole year, you know, knowing UM that there's probably nothing I can physically do

to help it get better. And the only way it will literally get better with UM basically by you know, the grace of God, right, like some miracle happening where the this shrinks and um it's no longer hearnated and I can go back on the football field. UM. So knowing that you know that that that's a little bit frustrating, almost kind of don't want to UM do anything because you know there's really nothing that can help UM. So

fast forward, UM to the end of the season. We went to go get an m R. I and it showed no change. This is this is tough, you know life. Um, you know it's not my second neck injury. Um, and after a whole year, nothing has changed. I'm staying at getting any better. Um. So you know it's thankfully you know that that their doctors was still telling me there's a chance. But you know, I'm m um, I know, deep down you know that I'm happy with what I've accomplished.

And you know, if if it doesn't happen, it doesn't happen. But I'm gonna. I'm gonna, you know, do what I can to get back out there if I can. How did you approach playing the NFL? Was it a job or was it a child's game? Mm hmm, so I said this, it was. It was a child game up until I saw somebody get cut. Right. So the first time I saw somebody get cut, I realized this is a job and I need to take it as a job.

So every day I came to work and I told everybody, you know, anybody I met, I said I gotta go to work, they'd be like what, I'm like, yeah, this is my job, man, this is no longer just this isn't just a game. This is a business. And if I don't, if I don't look at it this way, you know, I could be the next one out of here. So every day was a work, you know, every day I came to Every day I came to work, it was I was coming to go play football. M you

treated like a career. What were the highs of playing ball? Sans right, going out there scoring touchdowns in front of the stands. I think that that's partly the eyes of it, you know, being able to kind of put it all together and and so the world. What's the capable of doing, you know, making those big plays, you know, hearing the audience, you know, the crowd getting loud, you know, especially when they hear the ball in their Remember one of my

one of my favorite plays was against New England. Um U two thousands, seventeen sixteen. Uh scored a touchdown in the back corner um and the ball was in the air as I was running. So all you hear is just the crowd. I look up the balls in the air, I catch it, come down, the crowd gets even louder. You know. It's just it's just it's a feeling that

you can't really, you know, put anywhere else. What was your professional goals when you first started Once you gotta finally got a taste of being a wide receiver in the NFL. Professional goals, I mean I had I had a lot, man, you know, and I'd say, you know, the biggest one was just being known as a professional. Honestly, you know, it's it's a simple one. It's a small one. But I knew, you know, there were so many things outside of my control, you know, going to the Pro Bowl, Uh,

going to the Super Bowl. You know, I think those are my goals, but I knew that you know there there that's it's a team game, right, So there's gonna be so many different things that are a factive at So I knew that the biggest one I wanted no matter what was it. I came to work and people knew that I was gonna be hard workers. I was gonna come in every day and you knew that Quincy was gonna have his hard add on and he was going to be the guy that you could look to

to be working the hardest on the field. At times, I felt very awkward kind of struggle with with being comfortable on my own skin. How comfortable were you in your own skin as an NFL football player. Uh, I say I was comfortable, but I say that, you know, it was kind of like, uh, there wasn't too complete

self awareness there, right. I think that we get, especially now in the age of social media, when you get on social when you become a professional football player, you almost feel like you have to live up to the facade. You know, you have to be perfect better be like, uh, all these guys on social media is showing and flyting and all that sorther things. And I said, a lot of guys kind of fall into the track, you know.

And so the minute that I kind of like it was brought back down, like this isn't what I need. You know, being on social media kind of helped me kind of see that, you know, all these things on social media, it's so much streak, you know what I mean, Like you you just see the people trying to live up to something, you know, or live up to the character that they feel like they have to be um. And so that's kind of why I took the break, was because I didn't want to be set into that.

I didn't really care to see it anymore, and you know, I wanted to just live a life where I felt like I need to live up to anybody else's expectations, you know, because life is already hard enough, you know. To what led to you taking a social media break? Um, being hurt? You know, I think, Uh, I just was like, you know, I don't I don't care to post about football or see football. You know. Being heard kind of just like made like take a step back, you know,

being hurt a second time. I mean, so, you know, but it was it was a healthy break, man, it felt good. What would older Quincy tell younger Quincy entering into his first NFL training camp? So the older Quincy is like, look, let me tell you what's gonna happen. This is how always going down? Knowing everything you know right now, I would tell myself two stretch flexibility yoga in some way, do that as much as you can do so much flexibility, have be them one of the

most flexible. And also really work on cardio. Those are the two things that throughout my career. Um, I wish I would have done more of just really working on my car and really working on my flexibility. That's it. Yeah, I mean, listen, I felt like I'm disappointed, kind of hell like like, you're going to your first training camp, Quincy, what are you going stretch that? Listen that that would have shook so much money advice. I didn't need to listen.

I didn't need to. I wasn't I wasn't spending crazy. There was certain things that I just already knew. That was one thing I wish I wouldn't do that. Brother doesn't need to stretch. Hey, I'm just you know, Hey, I'm about to get married. You gotta in the advice pop. Hey, hey, some people need that though, I know, but I was like, man, manque he got some over here dropping knowledge. Stretch. He gave you that. He gave you the seeballs hit ball. Yeah all right, So we were gonna we're gonna wrap

this up. But man, we're gonna do one of our things called the Dep. Three. Uh. Dep Three is we're gonna ask you. I'm reading this, Hey, that's pretty good. Like Dep. Three is gonna be three introspective things that we just want to dive deep in with you. Uh, Quincy, once you knew you could make football into a career, who did you play for and what was your wife? I played for my family. I definitely play for my family, and so they were they were my wife too, you know,

like being able to just help him out. You know, they did so much to be to come to this country, you know, to to sacrifice so much, you know, um, to risk so much to leave their family, you know, to to create a family here. Um. You know, I just wanted to be able to do what I can to kind of repay them. Well, how could you tell your wife the impact she's had on your life as a football player, you know, just in case you want to let her listen when we drunk. Honestly, man, I

tell her all the time. Man's she's she's been a used pieces of of my piece right like you know, she's she's helped me be at peace, you know when things have been so stressful and you know, to come home, you know, to a wife has been so supportive. Um has been you know the most amazing part of my my my career. You know, to have somebody that you can to just be at home to de stress, you know, talk about the things that go on. You guys can

just come together in a harmony. Um. You know that's that's that's a beautiful thing that you know, how most guys get to experience. What do you still want out of your professional career and how are you going to keep your mental game strong? I want a super Bowl, man,

I want a super Bowl out of is. Yeah. I think you know, when you when you make it past the average, you know, three years, you know, I think I think, you know, one of the big goals outside of your own individual goals, is a big one super Bowl, you know, And I think in order for me to get there, you know, mentally, you know, it's just about staying focus on that goal, you know, creating systems in

order for me to reach that goal, you know. And I feel like, you know, I've had a lot of great mentors, you know, and and so you know, the next time I hit that field, I know that, you know, I definitely be prepared. What was your while while you were playing? And then also what's your why? Now? Probably the first eight or nine years uh my NFL career, I played for myself, and then I started to realize,

um that this was gonna. I was running out esteem and it was really something that was extremely hard to keep up. And so I had some things personally happened in my life and over time will reveal them more and more um and start to realize that the selfishness and just um that inner dialogue within myself was not positive. And I started to need to refocus and really see and so I kind of took that time to really say, Okay, God, I played enough for myself. I need to start playing

for you. And when I say playing for God meaning allowing him to really direct my steps and direct my steps and understanding why am I here was the purpose and so realizing that even now being done playing, and then my last couple of years I played understanding and trained with a scientific and a holistic approach of myself and how I can get the best out of myself, how I can get the best out of manipulating my mind into believing that no one like me and no

one believed in me. And then I started to realize as I started kind of relying on God to direct my steps is I found myself in the middle of working out, asking God to help me get through this workout at thirty four years old, and started to realize

I needed people around me to help me. I needed people in my life that would speak life into me um, not just teach me how to save a whole bunch of money, teach me how to acquire materialistic things, acquire things that will bring value, to increase my status on social media and all that stuff. But really, um, to try to live a legacy, to try to have something that my wife, my family, my my boys, and my

daughter would be proud of. Um. Also that when they hear me speak, that they don't cringe of of the things that I say and how I articulate them, because a lot of times I've in the past I've cussed is really a shortcut my mind. My father in law said that he believes that people that cuss only are masking for the lack of words that they have, and it's always stood out. Now he's also a man who taught me how to tie tie. Okay, so he is my wife's father, but however I call him that as

well because he has shown me some things. And so what I mean by that is, by the age of eleven or twelve, my oldest son, Payton knows how to tie tie, my son Boston knows how to tie tie, and Deuce, who's six years old, who wears dad's ties. Right, So giving them something more than money, giving them something, teaching them how to truly fish and and because we can learn how to cook, but do we know how to fish and cook? And so one of the coolest

things My why is MODI son. We were texting a the other day and he's starting that he's on his own, he's starting to cook. And he said something to me that warm my heart and I know it's from the Lord, which is he said, uh, I said, I see you, and he said, I said, you know you keep this up. You know you're gonna be cooking. And his text said

just trying to be like you dad. And I said, well, you know you come over on the you know still good, so the weather still good, So come on over and I'll teach you how to, you know, work on the grill. His reply was even deeper, which was I would love him nothing more. And I didn't even reply. I just stared at it. And I've still been staring at I've been staring at the text for two days now. That's

my why. You are a unique person. You are well worth it, you are competent, and most of all, your lovable. I'm Steve Smith Singer, I'm Gerard little John And this is cut to it, cut to it with Steve Smith Singer. That Is Me is a production of Cut to It LLC, Balto Creative Media, The Black Effect and I Heart Radio. For more podcast from I Heart Radio, visit the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you listen to

your favorite shows from Cut to It. Executive producer Steve Smith, Singer, co host Gerard little John, talent in booking manager Joe Fusci, Social media team Wesley Robinson and John Show from Balto Creative Media. Cut to It is produced by Brian Balka Chevitch and Heared of Carter, with production assistance by Alex labrec production manager Sarah Pollock. Theme music by Alex Johnson, Lyrics and vocals by Anthony Hamilton. You ain't heard about it, then we're about to let you know. It's all