Q. What does it feel like to be drafted by the Eagles, and what was it like talking to them in the off-season?
KYRON JOHNSON: It's an exciting moment, and the process itself, it's a bittersweet moment because it's just like you're sitting back and you're anxious and you're nervous at the same time because you're waiting to get picked up. It's a blessing in disguise.
Q. You have a lot of experience, you've played on the edge, some people scouted you as an off-ball linebacker, a lot of special teams experience. Can you explain your game to the fans?
KYRON JOHNSON: Me, I'm willing to play wherever the coaches are willing to put me. They can put me in inside, D-end, outside. I'm just ready to play.
Q. Sort of along those lines, and congratulations, who are the people who you've been in touch with with the Eagles throughout this process?
KYRON JOHNSON: The inside linebacker coach and the team psychologist. We had like a little Zoom meeting together, and they was just telling me how they so fired up and pumped.
Q. Did you have a sense or were you hoping this is where you would end up?
KYRON JOHNSON: I did have a little bit of sense because my agent was telling me something about it, but then I was like, stuff can happen because you never know how the Draft will turn out.
Q. What is your setup for this weekend? Do you have family there with you?
KYRON JOHNSON: Yeah, my family, they are off shouting, partying, drinking, doing that type of stuff in the next room.
Q. I wanted to ask you, I read about a meeting you had with the Eagles at the Senior Bowl, apparently one of their coaches and players compared to you a player on the roster. Do you remember that, who the coach was, who the player was, and your other memories of that?
KYRON JOHNSON: It was a D.C. for the Jets, I forgot who he compared me to, it was some dude that played special teams for them, I think he's like 26 years old. I can't remember his name, but he did compare me to a dude that he said was like my size, my speed. He says, You're more athletic than him or you have speed that no other person has. I can't remember who he said, but he said somebody on the team. I'm trying to remember but I can't off the top of my head.
Q. In general what was the Senior Bowl experience like? Do you feel like you turned heads down there?
KYRON JOHNSON: It was an experience because when I first got invited, it was literally two days before I was going to go to the NFLPA Bowl, and then Jim Nagy called me talking about, hey, why don't you take all your stuff from the NFLPA and bring it over here to the Senior Bowl. I was like, oh, yeah, that's definitely a must.
Q. The fifth year, the extra year that you had because of COVID, how did that benefit you, and if you didn't have that year, do you think you would be in this spot right now?
KYRON JOHNSON: No, I mean, I don't really know how things would have played out because like you said, that fifth year was just another year for me to step up and actually put my foot down and actually show what I have, showcase what I have.
But I would say for the most part, I don't know how it would have went, but I'm pretty sure it wouldn't have went as well as it did last year.
Q. You mentioned the team psychologist that got in touch with you. What kinds of questions were being asked?
KYRON JOHNSON: He was just basically talking about my mental health, that's basically what it is, just asking me how I go about my day-to-day routine and how I'm facing these negative challenges and how do I cope with like adversity and stuff like that. It was just basically getting to know me as a player and seeing how I handle situations and how I react to things.
Q. Is that pretty common with the visits you had, or was that unique to Philadelphia?
KYRON JOHNSON: I would say that's pretty common with the team psychologist. It's common. When I went to Green Bay, it was the same thing.
Q. I know you were asked a little bit earlier about where you see yourself fitting in with the Eagles but they went out and got a guy, seems like similar size and speed as you and had a Haason Reddick. Is that the kind of guy you see yourself as, a rush linebacker, someone that can play the Sam or anywhere?
KYRON JOHNSON: I can play anywhere. I've actually compared myself to Reddick before because I've seen his style of play and how he goes from sideline-to-sideline, and other coaches have compared me to him as well. So it's just like, like I said, I can play anywhere, Sam, inside, outside, Mike linebacker. I've played it all before.
Q. I saw you played Jalen Hurts when he was at Oklahoma. What was that like going against him and what's it like having him now as a teammate?
KYRON JOHNSON: It was like going against anybody else, it was like going against Colin Murray and Baker Mayfield. They all got potential and it's an honor to sack these dudes.
DraftScripts by ASAP Sports ....
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports