Jets vs. Patriots; Interview with Dustin Keller

Steve Serby of the New York Post sat down with New York Jets tight end Dustin Keller for the following interview:

Q: When did you start calling your mother before every game?

A: Definitely since I’ve had a cell phone … senior year of high school?  Every single game I’ve ever played in — whether it be football, basketball,  running track, anything — I always call my mom and pray with her for every  single game.

Q: Describe what that conversation will be like.

A: It’s generally pretty short, ’cause when she goes through her prayers,  they can be pretty lengthy. Whether it be in my hotel room, whether it be on the  bus, whether it be in the locker room, she goes through the prayer and she kinda  puts her own little spiel together on the prayer, and then the Prayer of Jabez  also. She freestyles everything off the top of her head but the Prayer of Jabez  she memorizes.

Q: You also pray for your teammates, family and friends at before  the game, at halftime and at the end of the game.

A: And I even pray for my dog Achilles. … He’s not even my dog, he’s my  son (smile).

Q: Describe your mother.

A: The sweetest woman in the world. … You couldn’t pay her to say  something negative about somebody. She will do anything for her [five] sons,  anything in the world. I’ve never heard anybody say anything bad about her —  obviously they wouldn’t because there’s five brothers and they might get whupped  if they did that. She’s the Keller version of Mother Teresa; she’s just the  sweetest woman ever.

Q: When you found out your father had died of a drug overdose, what  was your reaction?

A: Anger. … I was really mad, I was really upset. It was around seventh  grade, and he had never seen me in any real competitive sport, whether that be  middle school basketball or football or anything. And just to think that …  he’s never going to see me play in person, obviously. … He’s watching me from  above, but just for him not to actually be there, that hurt for a long, long  time. And still bothers me from time to time just to know that I’ve made it this  far, and he hasn’t gotten the chance to be there in person to watch any of this,  and that really does kill me, but also I use it as motivation. I know he’s  looking down on me. That’s part of the prayer too, just for him to stick with  me, and be there, and help me push through anything that comes my way.

Q: Were you aware that he had a drug problem?

A: I was not. … We’d only see him maybe once a month, two months, three  months … very rarely we really even saw him, but anytime we did, still we  welcomed with open arms, that’s still your dad, and you love him, you’re so  grateful to spend that time with him, but hadn’t seen him for quite some time  and then we got this information so … It’s a hard thing to deal with,  especially when you’re a middle school kid. I know I was getting picked up in  the car, and all my family’s in the car. … I was wondering why everybody was  in the car at the same time. And I’m sitting there making jokes getting in the  car, and then they informed me. … It was like, I went from an ultimate high,  just leaving basketball practice and stuff, to an ultimate low. … It was the  hardest thing in the world to deal with … just didn’t know how to go on but  … then you just think about he’s the one that really got me started in sports,  so what would he want me to do? Just give every single thing I got. Everything I do, I do for my family, and him included. That’s why I’m just so fortunate and  so blessed, to be in a position I am, that I can take care of my family if I  have to.

Q: Who was it that told you?

A: My mother told me.

Q: Do you remember her exact words?

A: I get in the car, and then I’m making a joke, and nobody laughs and so  … “Why is everybody being so quiet, what’s wrong?” Then she’s like, “Dustin  … your father, he passed away.” And it’s just like: “What? What do you mean,  what are you talking about?” “He’s gone.” Everybody’s in tears and … he’s not  gonna be at Thanksgiving anymore, not gonna be at Christmas, you’re not gonna  see him again, not in this life, you’re not gonna see him again. Obviously one  day we’ll be together again but … it’s a really tough thing,

Q: Your parents split up when you were young.

A: Everybody loved him, still people always talk about him. I think a lot of  my brothers and I get our mannerisms and sense of humor from him.

Q: He was black, your mom’s white. … What was that like for you as  a child?

A: Obviously white people, when they see you, they automatically like look  at you — “OK, you’re black.” And black people they see you, it’s kinda like,  “Well, you’re mixed.” Some kids I know have a problem dealing with that and  don’t really know which group to fit into. With me, it’s always like, I can do  anything. I’m on both sides. “Are you black?” “No.” “Are you white?” “No.” “What  are you.” “I’m the best of both worlds.” That’s always the approach I always  took with it, and I always told my brothers that, and they always took that same  approach. It doesn’t matter to me. People ask me that, I always tell ’em, “Have  you ever seen the movie ‘Blade’?” “No.” “He’s half-vampire, half-human, but he  has all their strengths and their weaknesses.” I’m like, “That’s just like me.”  (smile)

Q: Are you ever in a bad mood?

A: I get in a bad mood from time to time, but I get myself out of it I think  faster than most everybody does, ’cause I just don’t let too many things bother  me. I just look at it all like, “There’s a lot of people there in a lot worse  situations. There’s no reason to let this affect you that much.”

Q: Describe your mentality on the field.

A: I just get away from everything. I don’t let anything on the outside  affect what’s going on on the field. I’m clear-minded. … It’s like a whole  different world. Nothing else matters except for what’s going on on the football  field. I’m not thinking about anything else, I’m thinking about my job at hand,  and whatever I have to do to help my team the most. … If you ever see me on  the field and you see I’m really [ticked] off or really upset about something,  it’s not because I’m mad I’m not getting the ball, I’m mad because we’re not  performing the way that we should be. We should never be stopped. We should  never have a three-and-out. We should always keep on moving the ball, and if  we’re not, I’m gonna be mad, and if we’re not and I know I can make a  difference, I’m gonna be extra mad.

Q: Are you and Mark Sanchez alike?

A: Yeah, we like similar things, especially in the city like going to  Broadway shows, that type of thing. We’re in New York, so we like to get  involved with the New York culture, whether that’s restaurants, Broadway shows,  or just anything. I moved to the city this past year just ’cause I feel like  we’re the New York Jets, I want to actually experience and live in New York  city, so I make the commute [to Florham Park] every day, but it’s not bad. The  positives definitely outweigh the negatives. The only bad thing about it is the  drive, I have to make a little bit further drive than anybody else, but I live  in New York city and … I’m really actually the only guy on the team that can  say that so …

Q: Broadway Dustin?

A: Broadway D (smile). It’s almost like a little vacation away. Obviously  still do all my studying and everything I have to do, but I truly get a break  away from football so I think this season, for that reason, has moved faster  than any one before.

Q: Are you recognized around town?

A: Fairly often, but it’s not something like … that’s the only bad thing  about going somewhere with Sanchez — he gets recognized, and it can be annoying  with him. Some guys see me on the street, it’s like, “Hey Dustin, how’s it  going? Good luck this week.” I go, “I appreciate it.” But with Sanchez it’s  like, “Oh Mark, Mark, can you sign this? Hey Mark, can I take this picture,  Mark, my cousin’s on the phone, can you talk to him?” And it’s like, “I gotta  go, I’m leaving you.” With him it’s annoying, my fans are just the greatest on  earth. When fans recognize him, it’s like “OK, I’ll meet up with you later.”

Q: How good will you be in three years? How high is up for you?

A: That house has no ceiling. I think the sky’s the limit.

Q: Every tight end has his own style. … What would you say is  yours?

A: I like to keep people always guessing what I’m gonna do. They’ve got me a  lot more involved in the run game than my first year, first two years. So I can  come off the ball, a guy doesn’t know if I’m gonna run a route, if I’m gonna  block, and I use that to my disadvantage. I might come off the ball like I’m  about to take off on a route, then I’m just gonna try to hit a guy right  underneath his chin and just surprise him, and that really upsets people, really  upsets defensive players. So I think that’s something that’s benefited me more  this year than ever before.

Q: You still want to be Dallas Clark?

A: No, no, I never wanted to be Dallas Clark. I like a lot of things he  does, the route-running stuff, the connection he and Peyton Manning have … but  definitely didn’t want to be him. Be my own man, and hopefully, somebody one day  says they want to play like Dustin Keller.

Q: Tell me something about you that nobody knows about you.

A: I think a lot of people know but I hate to lose. I take a lot of pride in  winning at anything and everything I try to do. … if I’m playing H-O-R-S-E, if  I’m playing ping pong — if you beat me in a game, you can know, in my spare  time, I’m gonna practice my [butt] off on whatever that is, so I can whup your  butt the next time I play.

Q: Why do you think you’re that way?

A: I feel like if somebody beats me in something, it’s something they can  hold over my head, for one, and that really bothers me, really bothers me.

Q: How’s married life?

A: It’s been great. Every time I come home, everything’s clean, she has  dinner for me. … She makes everything so much easier on me.”

Q: What are the qualities that Erin has that makes her the right  girl for you?

A: Some girls say that, “My husband, he’s just like my dad.” Well she’s very  similar to my mom. She’s the sweetest person ever, but … she can be brutal if  she has to be. If somebody’s not doing something how they should be, she’ll  definitely let you know about it.

Q: Your five top NYC restaurants?

A: Obviously Peter Luger; you have Buddakan; Abe and Arthur’s; Beauty and  Essex; The Dutch.

Q: Is there a food you won’t try?

A: No, I don’t think so. If anybody else will try it, I definitely will try  it. But I’m not gonna do any Fear Factor-type stuff … unless I see somebody  else try it. If they try it, I will try it.

Q: Your DVD collection?

A: It’s huge. I haven’t even counted, but I have a ton of ’em, and I watch a  little bit of everything. I have a lot of movies so if you need to borrow one,  let me know.

Q: The Dustin Keller Foundation.

A: It benefits underprivileged kids. Just kept that really broad just so I  could help with a lot of different causes that have to do with kids. … [I]  didn’t want to focus on anything in particular ’cause my foundation doesn’t have  an exact direction just yet, so we’re still trying to figure that. And we may  keep it broad. There’s a lot kids out there in a lot of areas that need help so  … anything we could do.

Q: What is the Manitou Experience?

A: It’s a camp for kids that have lost a parent. They thought that I’d be a  really good spokesperson for it because obviously I lost a person early on, and  I used it as energy to push me forward and to push me further, so it’s really a  good deal.