Q&A with Tavares Gooden

Question: What's your assessment of your play in your first season as a full-time starter at inside linebacker?
Answer: I didn't really know what to expect and how it was going to play out. I was given an opportunity, and I'm just trying to take advantage of every moment. I've been trying to play well after Brendon [Ayanbadejo] went down [with a torn left quadriceps tendon on Oct. 4] and trying to get better in every aspect of the game. I'm working hard with my coaches and doing extra film study so that I can become the linebacker I want to be.

Q: When Bart Scott left after last season, you were quickly anointed as his successor. Was that a lot of pressure for you?
A: When Bart was here, he taught me a lot of stuff, so there wasn't really a lot of pressure. I just couldn't wait to get some game time. That's what you look for as a kid. You want to be the guy playing out there with the greats like Ray [Lewis] and playing against guys like Brett Favre and Adrian [Peterson]. That's what you want, just that opportunity to go out and play. It wasn't about pressure, but more about "Let me see how I do against a different team and different players.

Q: You've had a tumultuous history recently with injuries, including a groin injury late in your senior year at the University of Miami, a hip injury that forced you to sit out the Senior Bowl, a hernia that cut short your rookie season with the Ravens and a concussion that sidelined you against the New England Patriots on Oct. 4. Are you concerned about this recent spate of injuries?
A: You're going to get that kind of stuff like that playing this game. What I do is, I go full speed. If that means getting injured, that's what it is. I'm not going to slow down. I don't think about the injuries. If I'm unable to play, that's a different thing. But as far as me being afraid of injuries, no. I just play football full-speed, and my body will handle the rest. I know this offseason, we're going to come up with a plan. If I need to be heavier or if I need to be more agile or whatever it is to help prevent injuries, we're going to do that.

Q: With your speed, have you considered playing safety?
A: No, not really. Linebacker is fun. You get to match against guys. I've been blessed with speed, but I've never seen myself playing safety. We have great safeties like Ed [Reed] and [ Dawan] Landry, so I don't know how I would fit in anyway. I'm pretty sure if the coaching staff didn't think I would have prosperity at the position, they would have moved me.

Q: Who is the toughest running back to bring down?
A: Adrian [Peterson] is pretty fast and elusive as far as getting to him. Sometimes you couldn't get to him because his linemen were coming up, and he was moving side to side, but there aren't too many guys that I can't bring down. That goes back to coaching and technique and being as fast as I am, the ability to get to them.

Q: Did you have a childhood fear?
A: That I was going to lose my dad [Byron Gooden Sr.]. My mom [Sheila Gooden] passed away when I was so young, and I didn't know what I was going to do. He's been a real man to me and helped me grow up. I wasn't afraid of Freddy Krueger or any of those guys. It was just about losing my father.

Q: Your mother died while waiting for a heart transplant when you were 10. How did that tragedy shape you as a person?
A: I tried out for football when I was eight, and I got hit so hard that I quit after that. I said, "This is not for me." I came back the next year and tried out. One day, my father made me late, and the defensive coach said, "I'm going to run you guys until you puke." I was like, "Run my dad. I don't have a car to get here." So I quit again after that, and I didn't think I was going to play any more football. But I told my mom, "Watch, I'm going to play this year." She told me that I didn't have to play, but I promised her that I would play. She passed away before my first game, so she never saw me play football and ever since then, I've been keeping that promise to my mom. I've developed a passion for the game and just sticking with it.

Q: Do you still think about your mother a lot?
A: Of course. It's hard not to think about the person who brought you into the world. But you celebrate life. You don't cry about it. So I celebrate my mom's life every time I go out there and play football. I live for her.

Q: How did you get the nickname "The Business"?
A: I would play video games and just work out my boy on Madden and college hoops. I think was a sophomore in high school, and I would just keep saying, "I'm giving you the business!" So everyone started calling me "The Business."

Q: What's a better nickname: "Little Stump" or "The Business"?
A: "The Business" because I developed that myself. It's tough to live in your big brother's shadow [Byron Gooden Jr., who was known as "Stump"] your whole life. So when I got my opportunity to get my own name, I figured "The Business" would be it.

Click here to order Tavares Gooden’s proCane Rookie Card.



(baltimoresun.com)