 Yeah, Lee, how was it to receive the news that you were getting traded to Atlanta? You know after you all went to the championship game last year in Buffalo and so forth Yeah, okay Yeah, okay, you know I meant it was awesome It's a blessing to have a job in this league in general and I know that's a cliche answer, but but it's the truth man I love my time in Buffalo. I've been there twice. It's a big part of minding my family's life My kids get to enjoy Buffalo when they were babies now they get to enjoy Buffalo again as they were older But but I'm a southern boy and we got our family southern so we did our California stint we've done our New York stint and You know my children are much more worldly than I was at their age to say the least which has been awesome But we're ready to we're ready to get home You know this is the end of my career here and and to be three hours from our front door and Three hours from our family and in an area that's a little more familiar for I'm gonna have two kids in middle school So so they're excited They they've been giving me the daddy. How much longer are you gonna play football talk for the last couple years here? So when I told them we get to get in the car and drive three hours down the road for a for a team that that their dad believes in and And with I say the Arthur's right like, you know Mr. Mr. Blank the big boss man and then Arthur Smith You know at this point my career I would have I would have shut it down and Sort of coaching at the local high school before I would have joined another team I didn't believe in and that's just the truth I feel super blessed to be in that situation I'm definitely not a superstar or a premier player, but I but I have played long enough and been blessed enough to To not have to you know, accept the trade to a place. I didn't want to be let's put it that way So I'm fired up everybody I've called from the Patrick DeMarcos to the brew servants to you know my dinner with Matt Ryan last week They just raved about the organization they raved about the owner from the top down and I've been around Arthur Smith for a long time And I know the kind of man he is the husband. He is the father he is and and I'm fired up Yes, sir We went to the SC championship game last year and that was awesome And those guys are still my pal my teammates and Buffalo are acting like I died for crying out loud No, I got traded so You know, those guys will be fine up there without me They'll be just fine especially with that quarterback they have and the leadership they have so I'll miss those guys But I'm fired up to come to Atlanta Thank you. Hi, Lee. It's very nice to meet you. I Wanted to pop off of what you were just kind of saying about believing Believing in this team and specifically about believing in Arthur Smith I know you talked about him being a good family man Just a good man in general But what is it about him that makes you believe in him and what he's gonna be doing here? Well number number one For me personally, you know, Matt Ryan has a big part of this too The last thing you want to do is a veteran player is Go join a rebuild or a team with a young quarterback that you got a nurse and and and and deal with his growing pains so So the fact that Matt Ryan's there is huge for me as well, but you know, you you you look at Arthur and When I first came he's been in Tennessee pretty much my whole career So we've kind of brushed shoulders and chatted and talked and you know I've tried to get with him in free agency over the years. It just never really worked out But it's one of those deals where I've called around I've done my homework with with a lot of players he's coached from positionally to coordinator and And and obviously he's never been a head coach before but neither was Bill Belichick until he became a head coach So I know that that every player I've called says listen, man, this dude's gonna hold you accountable He's he's not about the BS, but but he's a real dude and he gets it He remembers the days of when he was a position coach and what that was like He's gonna remember when he was a coordinator He's gonna put good men around him and he's about grit and grind which from what I've understood is that's that's Arthur Blanks Big thing to like we're gonna work here, but we're also gonna love each other and have a good time while we're doing it So my big thing with art is you know is it when you hope there's a very fine line in this business of Being tough and demanding work, but still but still the players loving you right like You know Bill Belichick's won a lot of championships But it's not the brightest building to walk into like one thing I know is Bill kind of always says This ain't for everybody and trust me as a veteran player. I wouldn't have accepted that trait, right? All right, so I like to go into work and grind and work my butt off But but be with a bunch of good dudes who want to have fun winning together, you know, so At the end of the day, I know that when all these players go to Twitter when Arthur got that head job Just congratulating him and and loving on him You know for a coach that works guys as hard as he does and a coach that has a standard as high as he Has and the coach that demands the most out of players to still have his players love him and jump on the table when it gets a Head job somewhere else is special. There's just not that many and listen I have the utmost respect for Bill Belichick. Don't get me wrong like that that dude is Special special special hell he drafted me But but I'm at the point in my career to where to where I got to go home in a good mood to my beautiful family And yeah, we're gonna work and yeah, we're gonna be held accountable But at the end of the day winnings fun football is supposed to be fun And we got a man leading the charge that that wants to to get the culture back the way it's supposed to be and And and take advantage of the time Matt Ryan has left whether it's five years six years seven years However long it is and try to bring a championship to Atlanta, but at the same time Have a little have a little fun while we're doing it So so it is everybody like I said everybody raved about the Arthur's it's about the Arthur's for me And the location is a home run for my family. Don't get me wrong That's probably one of the biggest things but but just the fact that all those guys went to Twitter all the guys Love me and Ryan Fitzpatrick called me immediately when I got traded as like that's the best we're gonna love art You know, he's he's one of a kind et cetera et cetera So so just brushing shoulders with him over the years and then the way all these guys rave about him But it's not a country club. I wasn't interested in that either. It's hard to win when it's a country club We're gonna work but but we're gonna we're gonna be led by a good dude who you know Yeah, likes to likes to have fun when it was not football time. So that's that's the deal Nice and one more question for me not about football But I wanted to ask about your involvement with the punt foundation and how how did you get involved with them to begin with? And what what was that time and experience like and What did you get out of that? You know, I was I was a young player In Buffalo my first stand and our punter Brian Mormon who played forever was the one that started the punk foundation And we were just in our locker one day and he said hey man Our lockers are right beside each other and he said hey man Once you come to the hospital with me this week and I kind of said, you know what for but yeah, I mean I'll come What's it for his kids with pediatric cancer and of course? I had three children me and my pretty bride Alicia by the time I was a rookie So I was like, yeah, man. Are you kidding me? I'm all in just tell me when to be there I'll be there on Tuesday on our off day And then that kind of became a every Tuesday deal And and I tried to stay involved as much as I could when I was in Oakland And then obviously me coming back the punt foundation was was kind of the cherry on top for me going back to Buffalo for my second stand and Listen, my big thing has always been kids and the military I couldn't imagine watching my kids suffer and I sure wouldn't be living in this great country if it wasn't for guys It took bullets in their dang chests So anybody on those two fronts they have my support and my love period in the story And that's the way it'll always be as long as God blesses me and I'm on planet earth so just watching these kids suffer man and And watching their families have to it's the kids the kids get showered like superstars They get to meet Justin Bieber and Josh Allen and Matt Ryan and you know, they get little carnivals coming in And it's it's the parents that it wasn't their children die that there's just no way to describe it and and there's nothing worse So if if God blessing me and give me a little small platform Here can can bring a smile to these kids faces then I'm all in and it was just intoxicating for me It was something that I can never get away from Because it's truly what laughs all about and and you know God sure didn't give me this big ugly body to not be able to use it To to brighten people's lives, especially people suffering watching their babies being sick All right, Michael Rothstein from ESPN Hey, how you doing? I Want to go back to the trade for a second Did you anticipate that you were gonna get moved somewhere or did any of this kind of take you by surprise? They were detailing you. Hey if we can't move you are gonna release you like what was that machination like? Yeah, obviously, you know, I have a I have a utmost respect for Brandon being and what he's done up in Buffalo I consider Brandon a friend, you know me and Sean McDermott have a great relationship and And you know me and Brian Dable the offensive coordinator have a great relationship So, you know as a veteran player with with a teenage son running around you have more in common with the coaches Sometimes and you do your 22 year old teammate out here running the streets Now I'm always teammate first and every coach I have better know that but but sometimes I build relationships with the coaches It just is what it is with the management or you know, it's all a brotherhood inside these buildings Even though, you know, these guys can fire me at any point It's it's still we're all in this thing together if you want to have a successful organization and me and Brandon were close And I just kind of said man like, you know Our offense has moved to to the four wide world and you know, Stefan digs and Cole Beasley are a lot better at football than Lee Smith So I understand that with the COVID cap and everything kind of coming down the horn here. I had a bonus do I don't know if it's this week or last week, but I just kind of said, you know, if you're gonna move me, you know There's there's not many teams. I'm willing to you know, accept, you know And those that and not many was was a real low number. So So, um, you know, he obviously reached out to Arthur and Terry and it just all kind of the good Lord put his hands on it And it wasn't about the money to me at this point. Don't get me wrong I have zero interest in playing football for free, but but it wasn't about the money It was about the situation for my family, especially with it with a great organization full of great men that that love football and want to win but also Want want want to have a good time doing it So so when Brandon moved me was I surprised? No, because we had kind of had very respectful Honest conversations over the last couple months and I was considered retiring too. So So it was one of those deals where like, you know If the stars align and the good Lord wants me to keep playing football and I can do it somewhere I believe in then I still love ball. I still love competing and I you know, I think I can still play a little bit. So So that was my deal was I surprised? No, did I know for sure it was gonna be the Atlanta Falcons? No, but uh, but Brandon Let's just put it this way, Brandon that uh, there was only a few GM's he could call to make something happen And I kind of follow on that a little bit You've mentioned your family a few times and you've mentioned being three hours away from home a few times Some players once their kids get older Leave everybody at home and just kind of do the season thing there and then go right back home Is your whole family gonna come with you because you're so close or are you all maybe gonna separate in season because it's not Buffalo to Tennessee type situation, you know that that was kind of up in the air for me My family's always been with me So they've always done school in Buffalo or Oakland and then they do school in Tennessee in the spring And that's just the way we've done it. That's always been their normal I always wanted Tennessee to be the most homey and the most normal for them So when I do walk away from this game one day, you know, I always kind of figured they'd run me out of it Looks like I'm gonna be blessed enough to walk away on my own terms now, but um But we so I kind of mentioned that to my wife and she gave me the you've lost one day of mind look we're coming so And and I agreed with her. I'm not I would not be the best version of myself without them I would not be the best teammate. I'd not be the best leader. I would not be the best anything Um without my family and it sounded good on paper to try to You know, let my kids finally start their their full-time life in Tennessee but uh, but we've decided to move as a family because uh, you know as my wife my wife's been my best friend for Um, and she knows better than anybody that I probably wouldn't be the best version of myself without them so we're all fired up to come to Atlanta and uh, I don't know how many more times we'll be moving after this season Let's just put it that way But uh, I'm fired up to be a falcon this year and then help Arthur and Matt and all the guys get get it back going Appreciate it. Thanks, Lee Paul Newberry Hey, Lee, how you doing? Um Hey, uh, just a couple things for me one just kind of how do you envision your role? Uh with this team you mentioned, you know getting a chance to play with matt ryan So what do you sort of envision? How they'll use you here this season and um also You mentioned you didn't work interested in going to a rebuilding team But that sort of appears to be what the falcons are right now. They have obviously some some great veterans, but uh, you know After some losing seasons appear to be kind of turning the roster over a little bit. Can you speak to that as well? Uh, yeah, absolutely. I guess You know, I guess The rebuilding thing for me starts at the quarterback Uh, I've been doing this long enough to know that without a quarterback It's it's going to be it's going to be a long year so So I guess my thing is, you know, if I can walk into a locker room with with uh Matt ryan and julio jones, it don't really matter who else you put around them to do things right Well, you can probably screw on offense so um So obviously it's not a two-man show. We all got to be in this thing together and uh But but rebuilding around elite potential, you know, hall of fame talent that have decades of experiences In this league that have experience playing the super bowls, you know, that's a little different of a rebuild so to speak And uh, and I think, you know, arthur understands that obviously he's got to Get this thing going back in the right direction and the covet salary cap is a nightmare and and uh And arthur has to have this team build his way and and that's awesome. But um But I don't I just I don't look at it as a As a no hope rebuild That's just not the way I look at it not with the talent on this roster and the success They've had with so many of the same guys that are still on this roster Uh, you know, the the elite starters they have in certain positions. So so that's my deal, you know, um But but at the same time I believe in arthur smith. I respect him You know, I look up to him and what he's accomplished in this business Uh, so so I'm I'm more than willing to uh to come down and and just give everything I have to To my young teammates, especially matt and arthur And then as far as my role is concerned, you know, this is my tenth season and and I have what 50 or 60 catches in my whole career So something tells me my my role will probably be the same thing. It's always been Uh, you know, I'll put my hand in the dirt right beside the tackle and getting a phone booth fight That's kind of my deal. So, uh, you know, if they want to You know, there's a couple times that the bills lined me up out of receiver this year And I got I got pretty candid when I came off the field. I ain't real excited about being out there where the athletic guys hang out So, um, you know, I'll do whatever the arthur asked me to do I'll do whatever the coordinator asked me to do and whatever matt needs me to do I'm a big believer in the quarterback led team So so listen, whatever these guys need me to do to help this football team win and help get this thing going back You know down the tracks like they want I'm all in but something tells me I'm gonna have my hand in the dirt and uh and playing the Y like I have for the last decade in this business and uh and quite honestly that's that's the way I like it I'd much rather be wrestling in a phone booth with somebody my size than you know having little 200 pound submarine missiles diving in my kneecaps all damn day long. So, uh, I'm I'm all about what I've done forever I just want to grab my lunch pill and come to work and and whoever has the ball in their hands I want to make sure my guy's not the one that puts them on the ground. So that's that's kind of my deal Allison Kind of with all that said your experience for you know, the titans, especially they've only got a couple years of experience How do you think you can kind of bring your leadership and kind of help mentor some of the the younger guys on this team? Well, you know, this is a young man's game The nfl is is not for long for a reason, right? And and that's why I just feel so blessed and so humbled So I have a lot of experience with younger guys because this is young man's league There's you know, four or 500 rookies in the league every year out of 2,000 of us and that's never going to change So I love pouring into young players, you know, I do it's it's something that brings me joy. It's something that you know Uh, I take extreme pride in and I'm not trying to be their dad or trying to tell them how to do things They've grown men, you know, uh, but at the same time I do have the experience I have been doing this a long time and I there are certain little things that just You know, Justin Peel is a little bit of the exception You know, he played for a long long time in this league at tight end But but it always resonates more and clicks more when it's coming from a teammate And if anybody understands that Justin will so So I'm super excited. I guess it's just the perfect storm man I haven't a tight end coach that played forever You know, I've had a lot of great tight end coaches throughout my career. So I've been super blessed But um, but being in a room with a coach that played at a high level for a long time And and me and him with the with the wealth of knowledge and experience that we've we've already we've already screwed it all up So why in the hell screwed up yourself instead of just asking me? Hey, man. How do I how do I not screw this up? So, um, so I would I'm more I can't wait to help these guys I want them to go have 11 year football careers just like I have And uh and be able to take care of their families and provide a life that that's really really special So and listen, I'm not like I said, I'm not trying to take any balls out of their hands I can promise you I'm trying to do all the dirty work so they can go catch all the damn balls and be on the newspaper clippings So hopefully I can be somebody that's a resource for them and and helps them and uh And if they get one little piece of knowledge for me, that'd be great I mean the first year I signed back in buffalo. We had two rookie tight ends. So, you know, I got to kind of Love on them and these guys here in Atlanta are a little bit older So it's not quite the same as is dealing with puppies like I was dealing with in in uh, buffalo But but having your guys if there's something little I can give them or something that they can learn from me Then that's freaking awesome because I had a lot of great vets when I was younger And I can't stand veterans that try not to let the young guys grow because that's not what life's about and that's not what this league should be about and uh And hell nobody wants to do what I nobody wants to go in there and fight like I do anyway to tie it anymore So, um, so I get I'll go do all the dirty work for them They can go get all the glory and fame and and do all the the stuff that they hopefully like to do And and then when we're in there together, it's time to to grind and you know They can they can come grind with me and then when it's when it's third down I'll go over there and grab some pom-poms and cheer for them You also mentioned too that you had dinner with matt ryan already So can you talk about kind of how that went down and what you know what that was like? What's the spread look like and it was that your first time getting to really sit down with him Yeah, you know me and my wife who are so close We just drove up and we got to we got to buck head in less than three hours from our front door in oxville And um And it was after the trade it kind of went through and been approved So just had a little dinner, you know, I just kind of wanted to it's covet It's who knows what the off season is going to look like, you know It's just one of those deals were like, you know And obviously he he had a lot of great things to say about the office side of the ball and everything they've had going on You know, obviously they didn't win enough games. That's why there's new hires and you know You know, it's a production-based business So so losing costs a lot of people their jobs and that sucks because you love these guys And you build brotherhoods unlike any other business in the world So, you know, nobody nobody wants to watch the buddies get fired or released or anything like that So so just kind of asking him what he needed from me You know, he you know, he he shows up in a fancy-ass cashmere sweater and you know, gold Rolex So he's a little different breed than me to say the least but um But he's a super awesome guy. I've never been around him But just getting to hang out with him man and see how excited he was just about life I mean, I looked over at my wife a couple times and we both just laughed because he's Fired up about life man, and that's cool to me. Just being around a good dude But doing this time to talk ball his whole energy just changes. It's like, all right. Now we're talking about work And that's that's the Arthur Smith deal is like Listen when it's football time, it's football time boys. And that's our damn job. Excuse my language So let's grind and let's win football games. So it just all worked. I was fired up about it I've known how much success he's had. I mean, I can I can go to the internet and look up how many times He's thrown touchdown passes like the player. He is was was already there But getting to meet the person was awesome And it was kind of the kind of the cherry on top of this whole deal for me He was was getting spent a little time with him and just asking him what he needed from you, man Like what do you want from me? um I've been the veteran leader for a long time It's it's going to be sure nice to to let him go deal with all of it Just what do you what do you need for me to to help this help this thing go?