Miles Killebrew Discusses Being Drafted by Detroit Lions
By Zac Snyder
Miles Killebrew spoke to the media shortly after being drafted by the Detroit Lions in the fourth round of the 2016 NFL Draft.
Soon after becoming the Detroit Lions’ fourth-round pick in the 2016 NFL Draft, safety Miles Killebrew met with the Detroit media in a spirited phone conference. Here is what he had to say.
On when he received the call that he was being drafted: “Oh, my goodness. I was at home, just about to head up to graduation and I got the call and I froze for a second, kind of like a deer in headlights when I saw the phone ringing. Man, Detroit Lions. I’m still kind of geeking out about it a little bit here in the car. We’re heading up to Cedar City to graduate today, so I’m on cloud nine right now, man. I’m on cloud nine.”
On how much he talked with the Lions in the pre-draft process: “You know what, I talked to the Lions at every step. I talked to the Lions at every step. But you know what, I had no idea that the Lions were going to take me because, I mean, the coaches were laughing about it because they gave me such a hard time at the Senior Bowl because they told me, ‘Oh no, we don’t necessarily like you. We don’t think we’re going to take you.’ So, they gave me a hard time and I was surprised because I’m talking to the coach today and he said, ‘Oh, we just wanted to see how you would react to it.’ Oh man, so I had no idea. I really had no idea, so I’m excited. I’m beside myself, I can’t wait.”
On if he is graduating from college today: “Yes.”
On what he will earn a degree in: “Engineering.”
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On his NFL Draft profile referring to him as a ‘Muscle Hammer’: “Yeah, I didn’t know what that meant. I guess like Thor or something, I don’t know what that means, but I’ll take it. I’ll take it.”
On if he takes pride in being a big hitter on the football field: “I’ll tell you, I would much rather be the hammer than the nail, and I love it. I love it. I mean, it’s football. It’s football and in its purest sense, football is a collision sport. As long as I’m doing it safely and legally, I enjoy it.”
On if he is still tired from his 132 tackles last season: “No, I’m not tired, man. I’m pumped. I can’t wait to get some more.”
On where this day ranks in his life: “Well, you know what, it’s up there, man. It’s up there. I was just talking about this with the coaches just barely right before I got phoned in here. We’re both in agreement, as great as today is, we’re looking forward to every day stepping forward, being even better because hey, I’m a part of the Detroit Lions. I get to go into work every day as a Detroit Lion. That is just going to keep getting better with time. I can’t wait.”
On if he had any nicknames bestowed upon him at Southern Utah: “It’s very simple. My last name’s Killebrew, and so guys just called me ‘Killa’ for short and it was simple. I think it was just because it was a shorter version of my name, but they just called me ‘Killa’ and that was my name in Utah. Nothing too creative, definitely not muscle hammer.”
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On what position he sees himself playing in the NFL: “Well, wherever Coach (Caldwell) needs me. I know that sounds so cliché, but it is up to the discrepancy of the coach. I mean, I don’t know necessarily where Coach is going to need me most, but I anticipate once I get there and we can work through some stuff he’s going to assign to where he’s going to need me most and I’ll play that. I have no reservations though.”
On how he reacted to being told he was not a fit for the Lions at the Senior Bowl: “Well, I was like, ‘OK.’ That was the first I had ever had a team tell me, ‘Yeah, we don’t want you at all.’ So, I was like, ‘OK,’ I didn’t know how to react. I just took it and said, ‘OK, well was there anything else you wanted to ask me? Was that it?’ And I think I took it well because the coach told me he liked the way I handled it. I was disappointed, I was disappointed, but hey, I’m not disappointed anymore.”
On what the Lions said when they called him: “They said, ‘How would you like to be a Detroit Lion?’ And then when I finally got on the line with the coaches they said they were just giving me a hard time and they looked forward to having me come into rookie mini-camp and Coach said, he told me he just wanted to see how I would react and so he’s looking forward to working with me and he was just giving me a hard time.”
On if the coach he spoke with was Lions Defensive Backs/Safeties Coach Alan Williams: “Yeah, yup, that’s right.”
On what he knows about Lions S Glover Quin: “Well, I don’t know much yet. I don’t know much yet, but I’m looking forward to learning everything, everything about the organization from the bottom up and so I can’t wait.”
Next: Full NFL Draft Coverage on Detroit Jock City
On if he is on his way to graduation right now: “Yes.”
On if he was in the car on his way to graduation when he got the call from the Lions: “No, I was at home about to get in the car. I’m on the way there right now.”
On if he is going to make it to graduation on time: “Oh yeah, I’ll make it. I’ll make it in time, barely.”
All quotes provided by the Detroit Lions.