Ohio State cornerback Bradley Roby has emerged as one of the top defensive backs in the draft. He joined Friday’s edition of Pro Football Talk on NBCSN to discuss his game as he prepares to make the jump to the next level.
“I think my man to man is the best out of all of them,” Roby said when asked to identify what he does better than any other cornerback in the draft. “Just my press coverage, making plays, I think making plays might be one, too. I make a lot of plays, not even at corner, at special teams, too. I’ve blocked my share of punts, and I just make the plays wherever I’m on the field, so I think that’s what really separates me. I’m a playmaker, I’m a game changer, when I’m on the field, there’s going to be a difference made in that game, and that’s what I strive to do, that’s why I love to play football, and that’s something I think that I have over everybody else.”
Few football players are immune from critics, so Roby was asked to identify a criticism that he believes is unfair.
“That I don’t try hard,” Roby said. “Some people question my effort. This last year people were saying that I wasn’t trying hard and things like that, but you know I give everything I have for football. I love to play, it’s what I’ve always wanted to do as a kid. It’s my dream to play in the NFL, and the fact that people say, “Oh he doesn’t love to play football, doesn’t love the game,’ that’s one thing that really gets to me, because there’s nothing I’d rather be doing than playing football.”
Before he can play football in the NFL, Roby needs to be drafted. And he said he won’t be sweating if more and more names other than his are called out at Radio City Music Hall.
“I don’t think I’ll be nervous,” Roby said. “I mean I’m saying that now, there’s a whole month out. . . . I honestly think that God has a plan for me, and that it’s already written so there’s no need to be worried, there’s no need to be nervous because I’ll be where I need to be at the end of the day. I think that I’ll be put in a situation that I can flourish in. I know the effort that I’m going to put in. And I know that I’ll be in a situation that when I put my best foot forward I’ll succeed.
“So I’m not really worried about it, I can sit in the green room all day, that’s more TV time for me,” Roby said with a laugh. “So I’m not worried about it.”
Roby added that he hasn’t decided with certainty to attend the draft into person, but that he’s thinking about it carefully.
“Just being at Radio City and hearing my name called and walking on the stage, shaking the Commissioner’s hand. Not many people get the opportunity to do that, so that’s something I’ll definitely be considering.”
The Commissioner, of course, dispenses bear hugs not handshakes at the draft. But the first bear hug from Roby will be reserved for someone else.
“I will definitely be giving my mom the biggest hug ever,” Roby said. “She’s always been there for me, she raised me by herself, and she taught me how to work hard. I saw her work ethic in her job and it showed me how to work hard, and I just applied that to football, and just for her to be there with me at that time I’ll probably hug her to death. Just her being there and sharing that moment with her will be great.”
That moment is coming in less than five weeks for Roby and the rest of the players who’ll be selected in the first three rounds of the draft. As the day approaches, Roby seems to have the right attitude.