Redskins Nose Tackle Terrance Knighton comments from Day 2 Redskins Training Camp by Redskins PR

July 31, 2015

Bon Secours Washington Redskins Training Center – Richmond, Va.

Nose Tackle Terrance Knighton

Terrance Knighton  Courtesy NFL.com

On what difference a quarterback can make on an entire team:

“When you’re quarterback is very confident, it rubs off on the whole team. Previously playing with Peyton Manning, just by him stepping in the locker room, the résumé that he has, his preparation, his leadership, he just requires everybody around him to be great. It rubs off in the locker room. That’s something I talked to Robert [Griffin III] about — having a presence, not just being one of the guys. The team goes as far as the quarterback goes. You could have a great defense, you could have a great O-line, good receivers, but if the quarterback’s not out there leading the charge, you won’t be successful. It’s a lot of pressure but he wouldn’t be our starting quarterback if he couldn’t do that.”

On the depth of the defensive line:

“We’re very deep. I think what makes us unique is that everyone brings something different to the group. Myself, I’m a run stopper. I take up a lot of room in the middle. You’ve got [Jason] Hatcher, who is like a savvy veteran, him and Kedric [Golston]. You’ve got [Stephen] Paea who’s very explosive, moves side to side very quickly. You’ve got [Chris] Baker who can give you a little bit of everything. You’ve got Ricky Jean [Francois], who’s just athletic in every phase of the game. When different guys are out there, you’re going to get different things. We’ll have a wave of guys during the game and during practice, and it gives the O-line trouble because they never get the same thing over and over.”

On changing things up defensively and the problems it will give other teams:

“It’s going to be very difficult because, like you said, those guys are penetrating and being disruptive. You’ve got fast linebackers behind us, you’ve got two safeties that come downhill and tackle running backs just like linebackers. You got someone like myself just taking on blocks, shedding blocks, being disruptive in my own type of way. There’s a lot of versatility. When I describe our defense, I say it’s organized chaos. Everyone’s in the right place but it’s just like maniacs – all 11 maniacs – running to the ball. That’s the mentality that we’re going to have and that’s what we’re out there practicing – everyone getting to the ball and everybody being disruptive.”

On Chris Baker:

“Chris is a very confident guy. I’ve obviously known him since we were children. I came out of high school, I had like two offers, he had like 100 offers. I end up getting drafted. He didn’t get drafted. Our careers kind of flip flopped, but we found a way to get back together and I’m just proud to see him out there working. I was proud to see how he played last year, to finally get into a rhythm and finally get on the field a lot. I knew what he was capable of obviously, coming out. He was undrafted because of whatever red flags he had. He’s definitely a guy who has the ability to be a top player in this league.”

On the offensive line:

“I see a group that is very together. Trent [Williams] and Kory [Lichtensteiger] are going to lead that group. Right now, I think they are building to all be on the same page. Obviously, with the new coach, they probably have the hardest practice out of any group. They are the first group out there and that’s what you expect from the O-line. You expect them to be the hard-nosed group, the blue-collar group. I think all O-lineman are dirt-bags, but they take pride in that, actually. We have a good group. They have a good group. As long as we are handling our business in the trenches, it will make everybody’s job easier.”

On playing wide receiver in high school:

“Yeah, I was a wide receiver in high school. You said that like you were surprised. I played wide receiver, a little tight end. I was actually All-State at wide receiver. Chris [Baker] always tried to mimic me but Chris has always been that size. I just got this big like in college. Chris has actually been that size since like fifth grade, so he has always been O-lineman, D-lineman for his whole life. Chris, he’s just happy about life. He is high off life. Like I said, I am very proud of him and we are just going to have a lot of fun this year, especially with two personalities like me and Chris.”  

On the skills he learned playing multiple positions and sports in high school:
"I think playing basketball, playing different positions in high school definitely helped with my foot speed and my hand quickness. If you look at all the big guys that have played my position – [Vince] Wilfork, Casey Hampton, Jamal Williams, you know, big guys in the middle, Shaun Rogers – those type of guys are special because of their foot speed and their hand speed, and that's something that I’ve watched and I've watched over and over and over. I watched old film, new film on guys. One thing I always notice about is they're always in the right place, their feet and their hands are accurate and [Chris Baker enters room] somebody's here to ruin this…" 

From defensive lineman Chris Baker: “What’s it like to play with ‘Swaggy?’”

"I don't know yet, we'll see."

Baker: “How does it feel to be here with your best friend?”

"It's great. I just feel like everything happens for a reason. He obviously got married, you know he turned them in really quick – I'm still holding on. I was the best man and I was on the visits, so it's only right."

Baker: “Do you really have Bridgestone Tires on your car?"

"Yeah, they're free [laughter]."

On naming the defensive line “Capital Punishment”:

“Well, we have a very silly group chat — the D-line room. I told the group I was going on SportsNation. I was like, ‘Give me a name, somebody give me a name. Something to get people riled up about, get the fans into it.’ One of the guys texts ‘Capital Punishment.’ I can’t really tell you who really did it, but right now, we’ll just say [Jason] Hatcher came up with it. He can’t get any credit for it yet. But for right now, we’re just going to give the credit to Hatch."