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On Thursday afternoon, the only people who knew Andre Brown were his friends, his family, his teammates and the smart fantasy football owners who figured out who would be taking Ahmad Bradshaw’s carries for the New York Giants. But Thursday night, every NFL fan learned who he was. Brown, who was cut six times before he finally got his shot in the NFL, carried the ball 20 times for 113 yards and a pair of touchdowns as the Giants drubbed Cam Newton and the Carolina Panthers. Andre Brown joined 790 The Ticket in Miami with The Dan LeBatard Show to discuss his breakout game, his role going forward, his journey to get to this point, the low point in that journey, the Giants’ freakish defensive line and how life will change for him now.
How did it feel to have a breakout game on Thursday night against Carolina?:
“It felt great. You can’t put it into words right now. But it’s still a work in progress. … I had a pretty good feel for it when I went into the game. I did a lot of preparation, really studied their defense and really put my head in the film. … I knew we had a great gameplan going into the game and everything else just came with it.”
Are you giving that job back to Ahmad Bradshaw?:
“I’m just going to continue playing my role and whatever happens, happens.”
You were waived by six teams before finally getting this chance. What was the low point in your journey?:
“I think the low point would probably be me getting injured coming out of college my rookie year. I ruptured my Achilles; that set me back. You really can’t think that you can come back from an Achilles in six to eight months, but it took me almost like a year and a half to get back feeling like myself. I had a couple low points, getting cut, then getting cut a second time, a third time, a fourth time.”
Which one of those was the worst?:
“I think the Giants when they cut me the first time. They were the team that drafted me and that kind of hit home, but I’d really say it was a very humbling experience. But, to keep getting picked up by somebody else, a different team, it goes to say you have talent, but you just have to focus on it. Some of that stuff is overlooked and you can have all the talent in the world, but if you’re not putting in hard work … you can be right out of it.”
Cam Newton struggled against you guys. Do you think your guys’ defensive line is as ridiculously athletic as Newton?:
“You’ve got freaks over there. You’ve got Osi, you’ve got Justin, you’ve got JPP. Those guys, there not a normal defensive line. I see it all the time in practice and I say that all the time.”
Who’s the biggest freak among those guys?:
“It is, with how big he is and how fast he is and how long he is, he’s a freak, man. But, Osi, his first jump off the ball is insane. And then Justin, he just anchors down and is just very fundamental. … We’re stacked over there.”
How much did your life change in the day after the game?:
“Doing SportsCenter this morning, just being on NFL Network and doing the Fan Cam. I just think, as far as the media-wise, I’ve never seen anything like it — the tabloids and everybody calling me. I have so many text messages and missed phone calls. My mailbox is full. I had 132 voice messages. It’s crazy. I just still remain humble about it. … My journey has been so crazy.”
Did you walk around town and pick up every newspaper you could find?:
“I haven’t done it yet, but I’m heading to the city after this interview.”
Before the game, if I had said, the best case scenario for you is “blank,” how would you have answered?:
“I was going to get 200 yards and three touchdowns. Seriously, I felt like I was going to get 100 yards. The two touchdowns was just a little cherry on the top.
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