Five with J-5: Darnell Dockett

JV - You embark on your 6th season with the Cardinals and you're one of the guys that's been here the longest. As a leader are you vocal, by example only, or both, and do you embrace it?

DD - At times(vocal) but there's too much of that on a lot of football teams, a lot of talking and no backing up, so I figure the best way to do it is by the way you play. Don't take no trash out on the field and play all out, hopefully the younger guys who are maybe struggling that day can take some of that energy and lead like that. I do embrace it but I'm not into all that rah rah ray ray, I just go play man. At the end of the day you can do all that other stuff but you still got to go put your hand down for four quarters and play, that's the way I look at it.

JV - You've always answered to the critics by saying you don't really care what they think because most of them have never played the game so what do they know. But having said all of that, isn't it human nature to want to prove people wrong when they say negative things about you, no matter who they are?

DD - Yeah that's human nature, sometimes a lot of guys feed off that to get better, but you know man, you got to take things like that and take them in stride. You take the negative with the good and the good with the bad. Look back two years ago, we didn't even win over five games. Then Whiz got here, we started winning and things like that and now we appreciate things, and are thankful for things and now we can just grow off them. But as far as listening to people and trying to go out and prove them wrong, you don't have to do that, you just go out there and play the game.

JV - Coach Whisenhunt mentioned to us early in camp that you had a conversation with Rod Graves this summer but he didn't elaborate on it. Could you talk about that and did it have anything to do with you coming to camp and putting all the contract stuff behind you for now?

DD - Nah, I just think we had a great conversation and there was a lot of positive to come out of it and that's that. You know I have a lot of respect for Rod and I think he has a lot of respect for me. We're both on the same page and we're just trying to win game's right now and that's our main focus.

JV - How did your special relationship with Larry Fitzgerald evolve?

DD - Me and Fitz came in together, he came in and I just always looked up to him for the way he played, he's not a vocal leader, he just puts it on the field and that's the way I am. We always challenge each other personally, just go out and make plays and try and be one of the best classes (04 draft) Arizona has ever had; Me, Karlos(Dansby), Antonio(Smith) of course he's gone, but we just keep striving man. He's a good person, he's a hard worker, and anytime you got that on the field, and you got that as a person, you take something from that and you try and take your game to the next level too. I love Fitz, I love Fitz like a brother, a lot of people don't understand him sometimes, but I do. He's just a kid that want's to play the game and want's the ball and I wish him well in his whole career and everything he does and I'm pretty sure he does the same thing for me.

JV - This defense made some big plays at crucial times last year, but it also gave up some big plays at crucial times as well. What does this defense need to do to be better and eliminate the mistakes?

DD - Be consistent and do all the little things. It's not so much about doing the big things, it's about doing the little things. It's just focusing and doing your job, staying disciplined. Don't try and do anything that's not drawn up on the board, you know, do the things that you're supposed to do and the plays will come to you. Everybody on this team want's to make a play, especially on defense. Everybody wants to make that big play, that big hit, that big sack, the big pick, everybody want's to do that but at the same time we have to hold our teammates accountable, we have to do this together. If we do things like that, that's how we'll stay consistent.