Q. I know you were a standout special teams player in college, too. What do you like about special teams? Seems like you have a lot of enthusiasm for it.
AJ MOORE: I just feel like I get to use my best attributes. I get to run fast and hit people, and that's what I like to do, just playing fast and physical. Special teams fits that perfect. It doesn't get no better than special teams.
Q. I know you grew up on a chicken farm. I'm wondering what's the hardest part about helping your dad with the chickens when you do that?
AJ MOORE: Hardest part about the chickens would have to be cleaning the chicken trays because it gets kind of nasty and putting out chicken feed just because there's so much feed to put out for so many chickens. We have over 150,000, so it's a bunch of feed to be put out.
Q. What's it mean to you that people are now talking about you on defense and the plays and the energy you bring to the field? And do you feel like maybe people are just sort of seeing your talent now or do you feel like you're doing some things to grow as a player to get to this point where people are talking about you now as an important defensive player?
AJ MOORE: It means a lot. I've been -- this is going on my third year now, and of course I made my role on special teams first, but I've just been trying to continue to get better and better at safety, and that's what I've done, and just continued to work hard and learn and to just grow to get better. That's just been my main focus. I've learned a lot over the years, and I've been able to make a couple plays for the team, and that's what I'm here for. That's what I want to do.
Q. As we talked about before, it was a really tough experience for your town, your hometown in Mississippi. How are people doing there now? How is your family doing after all that, and what are some of the efforts that you and your brother and Cornell are trying to do to still help rebuild there?
AJ MOORE: I just want to say Bassfield, we stick together there, man, no matter what happens. Of course with the two tornados, it was horrific. It was just horrible; know what I'm saying? We stayed together, and my parents are doing better, my mom, Cornell's dad is doing better. The town stuck together. We're rebuilding, and we have Jacket pride there, man, and that's what we're all about.
Q. Have you thought about kind of where you might be if you had been an undrafted rookie entering the week this year versus when you did?
AJ MOORE: I'm not sure if I --
Q. Kind of with the non-traditional off-season and lack of an off-season program, how you think that might have affected things for you as an undrafted guy.
AJ MOORE: You're talking about if I was coming in and --
Q. Yeah, if you had to deal with what these undrafted guys are doing.
AJ MOORE: Oh, man, it's such a tough deal for the rookies that had to come in this year. I definitely tip my hat off to those guys coming out. You've just got to work hard as you can and just try to stand out on tape, man, with every opportunity that's given to you. But for me, I just would have had to just give everything I got and just take full advantage of every opportunity. But definitely tip my hats off to those guys, man, that are dealing with that this year.
Q. You played 20 defensive snaps last year. What did you learn from the limited amount of defensive playing time that you got, and how do you take that forward this year just with some of the experience when you watch the tape of yourself from last year?
AJ MOORE: With getting limited snaps, I've been able to -- when I'm on the sideline, I'm just able to learn, know what I'm saying, and I can still get a feel for the game just looking, but I've been able to grow in the playbook and continue to watch the speed of the game, and so now when I'm in there I can execute at a high level.
Q. AJ, it seems like Bill O'Brien and several of your teammates have just talked about your personality and your energy level on the team. I think O'Brien said you were just so much fun, you had so much energy, just such a great personality. How much of that is just as a result of being in the league for three years here with the Texans and how much of that is just how you approach the game? Is that something that's just sort of come out with your experience in the league?
AJ MOORE: I would put it all on just who I am. My twin brother and I, in high school, Ole Miss, we're just all about just bringing positive energy to the team, just being great team players, and just having juice, know what I'm saying? You want to give the defense or special teams juice, offense, whatever we can do to help. It was just all about having great energy and positive energy.
DraftScripts by ASAP Sports
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports