Germaine Pratt | Renee All Dey

Hey, guys, welcome to Renee all day.

Joining me right now?

It Jermaine Pratt, Hi, Hey, what up?

What's up with you?

Just hanging out?

Getting to hang with you? Last time I had you on here, I had you and bj on together. But now I get to just this, just me and you here today.

Feeling good?

Yeah, feeling good?

You look cozy?

Yeah, gotta be you, gotta be you, gotta be. Okay, So you have been on this team for five years? Now? What is it about the Cincinnati Bengals in that locker room and those fans in this city that you love?

Is that match? You know? Just being around a group of guys that love football. I love to kind of work, love to compete. You know, it's our mats.

And what about your loyalty to this team?

I mean, I think Lloyd's is big. You know, anything that you deal with in life, you think about loyalcy, like being around somebody you truly understand them, on knowing them, growing up with him, and then playing like playing football, you want to be loyal to the person besides you. You're not knowing that you be able to count on him in any moment.

Go to war together?

Absolutely?

Yeah, whoever you want to have in your thoughts.

So yeah, yeah, absolutely totally talk to me about your relationship with Lou cause that was that a big part of a reason why you wanted to be here as well.

Oh yeah, you know, I would say I was his first pick. You know, in twenty nineteen, him and Zach they picked me. I was his first, like you want to say football, I was this new born. Yeah, you know, him being the first first year, he being and coordinated. Then yeah, he choosing me, you know it's huge. You know, better to talk a little better, understand why he call him the player and understanding his terminology, then you know, him just helping me develop as a player.

Yeah, yeah, certainly.

No, it's cool to be able to see those relationships all flourish, which of course brings me to your your guy b J. Hill, who shaved his hat when you re signed? What's the story behind this is what happened?

I mean he said he shaved he was shave my head if I signed back, which he shaved it somewhat, but he didn't really like shave it. Shave it. As a ball head, you gotta do steps, and he didn't take all the steps necessary to have a ball head?

What are the steps necessary? Walk me through it?

I mean you gotta, you gotta. He just did the little thing like you just basically this razor used the clippers to cut his hair, you know, down to a low and then still have a hairline with.

But he needed to get in with this guy.

Yeah, he needed to get like a real shave, like a.

Because we're gonna shave my head today. Just kidding doing that.

No, that would be using shaving cream and stuff like that. He gotta take the steps, you know, putting this razor bump stuff on your head and getting it out all up and shuff and shiny, which is the best haircut you can ever have a ball head.

But not everybody can pull it off.

I mean you gotta have a confidence to pull it off. Sure, having a ball head, that's like you a confident man.

Yeah, you know what.

I feel the same way about having short hair as a woman.

You got to just sometimes he's got to chop it off. Ye, chop it off and feel liberated, let it go.

So you weren't satisfied with what Bja did.

No, it didn't count.

No, I didn't count.

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So you're a hard guy to find some information on.

Like obviously, football wise, I can find all sorts of information on you, but you off the field not as easy to find information on. But one of the things that kept popping up was you guys being miked up of course during the games. Is it stressful to be wearing that mic pack during the game.

I don't think it's stressful. You know, you just play and then go out there and make plays and then people just see the real you in between the plays or something like that.

But I always see in these videos you guys are like, you're miked up. You're the fed.

I've got to give.

Everyone the got it.

You gotta get people's head up because they might say something like whoa, whoa, what are you saying? Everybody say something to you today, like you'd be like what So you got to just be one, you know with you the FBI to day.

Yeah, I've definitely.

I did a reality show once and you forget that you're wearing the mic.

Sometimes you start talking about some stuff you're like, oh no, who got to hear what?

Yeah, it can be very stressful. So have you ever said anything miked up that you really can?

Naht that out?

It's all right, okay for you and BJ your friendship of course, you guys were roommates in college together. You're here at the Bengals together. What is your guys perfect day together?

Perfect day?

It was a perfect day for you and BJ together?

Would you guys be doing?

I think a perfect day with me? And BJ? Is like, it's hard with him because he just he does a lot of different things than I will do. You know, I'm the guy that stay in the box. I don't get out of the so he'll go muddy. And I was like, I don't know if I want to go that do that? But and then I just go because last year we went it was.

What happened last year?

It was him. I don't I don't want to say what it was. It was him because we went to his land. Actually, you know, guys like he really from the country and stuff, so go to his land and then he got like a hundred acres of land and stuff. I'm like, what, man, he ain't got no honey. But I just so I'm going to go see that. But he got everything you can go shoot guns and stuff, which he he made me get guns. I'm like, bro, I don't mess with him. I don't wan to tut guns.

Wait, how does that work? Like the little sidecar thing?

Yeah, little car things with the big wheels and stuff. But his really time, yeah, like his really fast and stuff. So when we going around and stuff, you know, he driving, I'm just smiling because like the little kid been at that because I ain't didn't want before, you know, I ain't grow up like like with side by sides and stuff like that. So I'm going in. So he asked me to drive, so yeah, I'm a drive. So when I'm driving and I'm driving, I'm going around fast and

We can guess.

We can imagine.

Yeah, but but I met mess up is caught.

Did you have to get that thing? Fax?

I have to get it fixed? You know that's what he got rich friends for.

You know, man, nothing fair enough. What does he do that gets on your nerves?

Everything? It ain't nothing that he don't get on your nerves. You know, everybody in the room feel the same. Everybody in the locker room feel the same way.

What do you do that gets on his nerves?

I don't do nothing. I'm a good guy. You know, I'm this guy.

You seem pretty self aware.

I'm sure there's gotta be something that you know that if this is the thing I do or say, it's gonna drive him nuts.

This Bobby Bobby Jane, Bobby Jean. Yeah, what name they saying? Bobby?

It's a nice thing we like to get Bobby Bobby.

That's like a nineteen seventy named Bobby Jean.

Okay, so NC State wolf pack. Who's in your wolf pack? Who's going to be in your fox hole with you?

Oh? Say, the guys that came in with me the two thousand and fourteen recruiting class, I say it was a lot of us. We was all this like had that mindset of like loving the game, playing the game football. We all like came in with the mindset that we wanted to change something. You know, they came we was there was three and something I don't know. They lost a lot of games, so we just wanted to change what was there. So I would say it was like

Yeah, great answer.

I love that.

What are some of your hobbies?

What else are you doing aside from ripping it up over at BJ's hundred acres? What else do you do when you're not playing football?

I'll say album, I like red wine?

Love that? What you have a favorite wine?

Yeah? Nickel?

Nickel, I say, okay, love a good cabernet.

Yeah, And then I say I like Oski music, So about that. Then with my lady will be like, go to a little spot, listen to music and stuff like that.

What a romantic you are? Little cats and old school music?

Yeah? I like nineties. I like the little nineties, little baby making music.

That's why say us, I love that? What what's what's like a quick little playlist? If you don't forgive me the whole thing but put together like three songs. You and your girl are getting together, having the wine. What's the first thing you want to crack?

Mmmm? I say, Jojasy, come and talk to me. I mean no, not not, that's not coming top to me. But uh, I ain't mean to say that, but I'll say it, Josy. Okay, something with Josy. Then I listen to Keith Sweat, I get all my love oh yeah, and damn what else? I'll say something with Mary j love.

It, love it, a little key, sweat up in the room. Get some of that planing. Can we start like feeding that into the music.

You're not married yet? When's that happening? What's going down? You were engaged last time?

I think it had just kind of happened last time I spoke to where we at.

You got on the woman when the woman's right, Okay, I mean you got a planet. Yeah, I know, you know it just got a planet. Because it's the right moment. You like, go to the place. They don't like the place because it's construction behind it. It's the time of year, the flowers ain't right. It's all things that dies in or being like ready for a wedding because you know it's her day. You know, won't do whatever it takes to make her day happy, make her happy, you know, wine and down her it's hurt.

Yeah, you guys could just a lope.

Just be the two of you. Yeah, you got it. You just have one person to say, yeah they got married.

Yeah that's what we did. It was great.

I highly recommend it. Renee All Day is presented by Gillette Labs. The best of man can get keeps getting better. Look good game, good pregame meal.

What are you eating before game?

Uh? Premt meal. I barely eat, but like home games. Then my lady got to cook breakfast. It's mandatory because you know how it is spread. Look like it gotta be the pancakes or French sast. I mean not French sauce, but like some some yeah, French toast. Yeah, but I'd say that. Then ed's bacon, and then some grits I just like it, and then probably some sausage you put.

In your gruts, cheese, okay, and salt and pepper.

Got it.

People put sugar in their gruts?

Yeah, some people. Yeah, I don't do it, but that's people that like possible. It's possible.

Pre game tune that's not Keith Sweat. Maybe it is a little Mary Jay. What are you listening to right before you walk out?

Depends on my mood, you know. I don't like sometimes I don't like to be rowdy, like how everybody else. I don't think rowdy is yo get you like Pomp Boom? Yeah, being rowdy the whole day. I still listen to like R and B right through it out, like this mellow that this metal in my mind is putting myself at peace, because when you're playing, you want to be at peace.

It's smart. Yeah, you're right.

You got to kind of like harness that energy a little bit, save it for when you need it. Yeah, tap in after the game. What do you do immediately post game? What does that look like for you?

M depends on the thing. But we I try to eat Rue Chris. I like ru Chris a lot. We'll go too like the dinner and eat with my girl and my kids and whoever comes with us.

It's a little post game meal. So talk to me about the development of the rookies so far this season. Who have you been the most surprised by?

M hmm, I just focus on like the ones that I've been around most just like DJ. Yeah, and then you got Jay Black, Jordan Battle just seeing them like develop understanding the game, you know, just understanding our defense. They keep on growing each and every week. You know, Jay Black stepped in and being like the start of this. I think this would be the second game. You know, he's each of the week, he's getting better. Yeah, you know he's competing. Yeah, he tackling well, he does. He

Yeah, yeah, certainly, no doubt. I think a lot of people can see that in them. From this season. The thing that I keep seeing online is a lot of football players stepping into the booth recording some Christmas songs?

Would you do this?

Are you seeing this?

No? I would not seem I don't think so. I would.

But if you're listening to these R and B tunes, maybe you go a little vibe in there.

You can just let it loose.

Nah, I ain't got men, I ain't got man. Singing one of my things. I ain't got one of them things.

But is there somebody in the locker room you think could belt out a great Christmas tune?

Oh yeah, Jordan Battle, oh yeah? Or dj Ippen.

Okay, knock out some tunes. Guys, note it, we'll get we'll get it up and running. I love that. Do you have any New Year's resolutions?

Are your resolution?

Guy?

I'm no. I think east and never year. You got to improve yourself as an individual. Then you get as because I say like you improve as a person, you grow as a as a man. You know, each and every year a man get wiser.

Did you?

Being down Earth? You learn from women?

Yeah? Yeah yeah.

Growing up in the house we all women and stuff. You learn from them because they they are quick learners.

Yeah yeah, we we adjust. We are always listening, always paying attention. Very true. Okay, you've been on the team, uh for quite a while. Now, when are you going to go from playoff p to Uncle Pee? Is that going to be a thing?

Uncle plete? I think I'm already probably Uncle Pete to some people, you know, but I think I'll probably be somebody you know. They probably think I'm alridy old. If I don't shave my head and stiff walking around like like dang boy, because I ain't gotten here in the middle.

So i'd say, yeah, yeah, how does it feel you Are you feeling that like that age of being on the team for you know, the five years to having some of these newer guys come in.

Are you feeling that age gap between you guys?

Not somewhat because I ain't the oldest. Nobody's really it's really still young and I'm still young.

Oh yeah, of course. I mean, yeah, you're still young obviously.

But sometimes when I come in here, I'm like looking at someone's date of birth, I'm like, oh my god, they're so young.

Yeah, they're still young, but we still young. Like it's not like we ain't got nobody, you just got old it or might might say it's really old, but nobody's really that old, because.

You know, it's crazy because what's old, Like what's who's the oldest on the How old is.

I don't know how, thirty thirty.

Something, thirty two something like that, thirty.

Two, I don't know how. Oh yeah, yeah, it's what I'm saying. So I think, like it's not that too many people, oh because a lot of kids are staying in college. Yeah, and they come here like twenty four to twenty five. I'm not but twenty seven, so I ain't that.

Oh no, no, not at all. But sometimes that when I see like twenty one twenty.

Two, I'm like, yeah, you got the outliers a baby you know he was first guy?

Yeah, yeah, no doubt.

Okay, what do you want your legacy to be in football? What do you want to leave on the sport?

I'll say a legacy. I just leave this like I was a great teammate. It's a guy that that was dependable, you can count on, and this is that you can hit. So that a guy that loved football.

Yeah. What about after football? Who do you want to be after football?

What do you want to do? I stay at home, dad, great answer I was saying.

I'd say they stay at home somewhat stay at home. But you gotta figure out a balance between that, you know, because I see what my kids do. Because after that, I know what I really want to do because I be around my kids and they if they playing sports, I'm going to everything because I'm I'm not going to some job and just sit there. I'm like, oh, my kid got a game. I'm going to my kid game.

Yeah, but you know what that's like too. It's like to be that kid.

All you want to do is look up in the stands and see who's there watching for you, rooting for you, giving some advice.

How old are your kids?

Three and two?

Little babes are they? Well, I mean they're so little, but are they doing any kind of activities right now?

Yeah? Everything just running, jumping, jumping out anything anything they want to do.

Just put my daughter in gymnastics and she's like two and a half.

Yeah, it's a trip, that's.

What That's what I was planning on doing when we got back. Yeah, whatever this in and stuff. I was a player at the gymnastic because she got an older cousin that's doing it now and she made States with aau So wow, yeah, get.

Out there, yeah, get it awesome. Well, Jermaine, thank you for hanging out with me.

Best of luck the rest of the season.

And hey, Merry Christmas, happy holidays, Marry Christmas to you,