Antrel Rolle has changed since meeting, Perry Fewell says

INDIANAPOLIS — Giants defensive coordinator Perry Fewell called Antrel Rolle into his office for a meeting at some point during the regular season — Fewell estimated it to be in November, though neither could remember exactly when.

The reason for the impromptu meeting was simple: Fewell didn’t like what he was seeing in the safety-turned-nickel cornerback. He knew Rolle was upset about his position change; Rolle had made public that he believed the nickel back position wasn’t the best way to use his talents.

So Fewell thought Rolle needed a reminder that the team is bigger than he is. And he struck a cord by mentioning Deon Grant, Rolle’s best friend on the team, and putting the team’s goal in perspective.

“He said, ‘’Trel, you have to think about it this way: You and Deon are tight, right?’” Rolle told The Star-Ledger, recalling the conversation between he and Fewell.

“I said, ‘Yeah.’

“He said, ‘Y’all are like brothers, right?’

“I said, ‘Yeah.’

“He said, ‘How many more opportunities do you think he’s going to get to actually reach a Super Bowl or win a Super Bowl?’

“And when I thought about that, it actually brought tears to my eyes and from that point on I never saw the game about me. I never saw the game about anything having to deal with me. I saw the game about my teammates, I saw the game most of all about Coach Coughlin, and I saw the game most of all about Deon Grant.”

Fewell said he’s seen a change in Rolle since that meeting, which became another step in Rolle’s steady evolution from disgruntled newcomer to Tom Coughlin enthusiast over the course of a year.

“I just wanted him to think about when we’re going out and we’re playing, there are some guys that probably won’t get a chance to play anymore after this year,” Fewell said. “And it could be your best buddy. It could be the guy you sit next to in the meeting.

“We got to think about team before we think about anything else. As a leader — that’s what he is on our football team — he has to lead and not just for himself, but for others. So I just wanted him to think about that as the leader of our defense so he could really take in the total perspective.”


(nj.com)