Green Bay --- Jarrett Boykin is proving so far that a 40 time can be overrated. In addition to Monday's story on the Packers wide receiver, here are some more comments by Antonio Freeman, who like Boykin, wasn't that fast coming out of Virginia Tech.
On his relationship with Boykin...
“We don’t text. We don’t call each other. I don’t text him ‘good luck,’ it’s not one of those relationships. But it’s just a relationship where we both went to the same school. During my visit there last year, for the Vikings game, I had a chance to visit with him, hang out with him for 20 minutes. I gave him (expletive) about breaking my records at Virginia Tech. And now coming to Green Bay to try to make a name for himself. I give him a hard time about coming to Virginia Tech and breaking my receiving records.”
On Boykin's start...
“He got off to a shaky start against the Ravens but he and Aaron just seemed to be on the wrong page. A little far to the right, a little far to the left. But he got going on that bubble screen he was able to catch and he showed his ability. I knew at that moment, once he got that catch and run against the Ravens, that you could expect more. I called my son and said, ‘Hey, pick up Jarrett Boykin on your fantasy team.’ I watched this guy at Virginia Tech. He’s one of those stories now. He’s a guy who didn’t get drafted, got cut by Jacksonville, the Packers picked him up and now he’s got an opportunity. That’s all you can ask for in this game.”
On how he got open...
“I studied film. I wasn’t slow by any means, I just wasn’t a 4.3 guy. If you ever run back film, you’ll never see guys run me down from behind once I got in front of them. Whether I went by them or not, that’s a different story. But once I got a step on somebody, I didn’t get caught. I wasn’t slow. I studied the game. Brett Favre helped me study the game. Robert Brooks helped me study the game. I would watch Robert Brooks in games — in 1995, his breakout season, it looked so easy for him. And he wasn’t a burner. But I just learned to watch film. The more I watched film, the easier the game came to me. The tough part was getting hit when you really could get hit helmet to helmet. But the game was easy for me. I knew where the linebackers were going to be. I knew where the cornerbacks were going to be. And if you know the essentials of the game, then you just have to be where the quarterback wants you to be.”
On if Boykin is fast enough...
"I think he is fast enough. Jerry Rice was questioned about his speed. But he was one of the greatest. Sterling Sharpe, everybody knows his story in Green Bay. He wasn’t super fast but he was effective. He knew where people were supposed to be.
“Boykin’s going to study. Edgar Bennett’s going to continue to feed that knowledge into his head. He’ll become a better and better player. And the system goes. Robert Brooks passed it to me. I passed it to Donald Driver. Driver passed it to Jennings. Jordy Nelson and James Jones, they’re going to pass down that knowledge to him to help him grow and become that more complete receiver. This is a sharing society. We help one another."
On Boykin in Green Bay's offense...
"Teams are going to start guarding Jordy Nelson a little more. They’re going to pay attention to James Jones when he’s coming back. Eddie Lacy is banging it in there. There’s going to be so many other distractions, once this offense really comes back, then you can slide Boykin into the slot or different positions and then get the match-ups you want with Boykin against the opposing team. He can be that X-factor, kind of like Randall Cobb was until Cobb gets back. I’m not comparing those two, but he can kind of fill that role until Cobb gets back.”
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