Jabari Greer_Creative Competitors

Hi, everyone. Kevin Thompson here and my partner, Walt Burton. We are with Jabari Greer from the New Orleans Saints, and this is one of our episodes with creative competitors. Jabari is a good friend of mine, a friend of the firm's, and he's an old teammate of mine. And it was so gracious for you to agree to do this recording with us. Thank you so much, Jabari.

No problem. I've known Kevin probably six, seven years. More than that. 10.

2000. 2000.

12 years. 12 years. 12 years. And he's always been a great guy. This is my opportunity to serve him and to serve his firm and to help any people out there that are looking to pave their own path. I understand how hard it could be in any type of lessons that I could give or communicate to you. I am more than happy to because someone's giving me knowledge and it's time to pass on.

We appreciate that. And there's a saying, the best teacher's experience and the best experience is always someone else's. And you've had a number of experiences throughout your career. My first impression of you was when you were 18 years old and we were both on the football team. That was the year that I played, and it was summer training, and it was one on one time, receivers versus DBs. And you were the new kid on the block, and you got paired up with one of the best receivers in Tennessee history with Cedric Wilson. I mean, Cedric was amazing. He was an amazing athlete, had a great career. And you were this freshman, and he was supposed to show you what was up.

He was going to show me what was up. Supposed to.

And so you shut him down one play. He specifically called you out for another play and then another play and then another play. And I think it was four plays. And I remember watching this, and everybody watched this event unfold, and we thought, this kid is special. And one thing that stuck out was that you were just amazingly competitive. You weren't the biggest kid, but you were just competitive. So what Walt and I kind of want to explore is, you know, what motivated you then versus what motivates you now?

Well, the motivation for me then at that particular time was to know that I could hold my own, know that I had what it took to fulfill my dream. I've always dreamed of being on the field with Cedric Wilson, Dante Stallworth, guys like Travis Henry, and some of the other bigger Eric Parker, Some of the other bigger receivers that they had. They were making plays on Saturday while I was sitting in my room eating popcorn, cheering them all and finally I get my name, I get called up, you know, and it's not football time in Tennessee yet, but we're getting ready to get initiated to what University of Tennessee football was. So we go to the field, and, you know, the veteran receivers line up over here, and the rookies line up behind them. And I guess we segregated ourselves into offensive defense. I guess I played defense, you know, went to the defensive side, and Ced said, come on, let me show you something. So I line up against Ced. My heart's pounding at 100 miles an hour. He releases. He has one of the quickest releases that I've ever seen. Time slows down. I see his eyes looking up for the ball, and I speed up, knock the ball away. And then next thing I know, everybody just erupted. This little rookie has made a play on the big Cedric Wilson. But then after that, obviously, he's been one of my best supporters. Every time we played on the football field, man, there's been a kinship between me and him. You know, as a freshman, he took me up under his wing. He loved me like a brother. I rode home with him a lot, often something about that time, he saw something in me, and he helped nurture that. He helped show me how to be a professional, an amateur professional like that.

You know, I got to meet you yesterday, Jabar, and you treated us to a great night in New Orleans last night. One of the things I could tell about you immediately, and Kevin has brought out a side of you I didn't see last night. You're a pretty humble guy, right? I mean, you know, Kevin's a listening. You know, Kevin wants you to. He's baiting you to talk about, you know, what he says is the most competitive person he's ever seen. And when you took on Cedric Wilson. But I took a. I took a chance to look at your. Your resume, if you will, and just everything that you did, not just at Tennessee, but also since you've been in the NFL. And Kevin was surprised. Maybe we shouldn't have been. But you played in 51 games while you were at the University of Tennessee, which is a record, right? So you must have. Maybe you didn't start from day one at the university. You got to start somewhere, right? You can't just walk out and start. But you played in pretty much every game. And then you started 36. It was at 36 games. So you had a phenomenal career at the University of Tennessee, not just in football, but you also played. You also ran track, and, you know, you were an SEC champion 60 yard, 60 meter hurdler. You beat Willie Galt's record, so you just had huge success. How did you juggle all those competing demands while you were at, while you were at the University of Tennessee? How did you, I mean, how did you do it?

I. I wanted to. You know, I really, really had a strong desire to be a national champion. I knew that I could. I knew that I had a desire to run track. My coaches allowed me to do that also. So they allowed me to express myself creatively or physically and go out there and run. And then that's. That opened up a whole new door. Meeting guys like Kevin, meeting guys like Justin Gatlin and Gary Kakaya, Shawn Lambert, guys that were totally opposite of football players, totally opposite of what you would get in the locker room. And these practices were so easygoing, but we were just as determined and as dedicated to be the best. But it wasn't, it was very loose. We had a good time, good time going out there. So I wanted to be around that. I wanted to contribute in that. I didn't want to be the reason we. I didn't want to be the weak link. I enjoyed their time. I enjoyed the access that it gave me. I enjoyed the opportunity that. To be with these men. But first and foremost, I think that we all had similar mindsets and that's what we wanted to win. We wanted to win championships year after year and after year.

You know what I'm hearing? And just again, just from listening to you talk right there, you've always wanted to compete, compete at a high level. And you saw yourself competing with the best.

Yeah, I remember. And I told the story with you as a defensive back. And I remember you on the track. You, when you started, you were nowhere near as good as where you ended up. And actually I vaguely remember maybe being a little bit of a better hurdler than you were just when you first started. I will say that I wasn't a great hurdler, but at some point you exploded and left everybody. And you went from being just another football player on the team, which when track football players come and go, very rarely do you find one that does both really well. You became just another football guy. You became something more. You're an integral part of the team. You were one of the best hurdlers in the country, which you won the national championships in the 60 meter dash. In the 60 meter hurdles. Right. You were on the 4x1, which was an all American team, and you were also on the national championship indoor team.

Yes.

And you were in the middle of.

All that, I won the SEC twice.

You won the SEC twice? That's right. I mean, the accolades keep coming. You were an amazing hurdler. You were also a fantastic long jumper. So it seems like we haven't even talked about your NFL career. We're not even there yet. But in every setting, you compete effectively. Is there something in your work ethic? It's not just talent. It's not just talent. So what is it in your daily habits or in your mindset that separates you from. From everybody else?

When I was six, I was playing Little League football. I was talking to my grandma. I was telling my grandmama that I'm gonna play in the league. I said, grandmama, I'm playing the league. She said, oh, boy. Okay, go ahead. I used to tell my mom, I'm gonna play professional football. And my mom used to say, okay, just get your college degree first. Just. No, she said, just get. Just get a scholarship. Just get a scholarship. So this is my mom taking my dreams and, you know, put him in the right avenue. So I told my grandma, I said, grandma, when I become an NFL player, I'm gonna buy you a limousine. And this is six years old. She's like, okay, Bari, that's fine. You don't gotta do that for Grandma, but that's okay. So little be known. Five years ago, my grandma turned. I believe she was 76. She went outside, had a full limousine. How about that? Sitting there for, you know, because I had. There was something in my spirit from a young age that just allowed me to know that I would. This was. This is what. What he had for me. And it took a lot of hard work. It wasn't me sitting back and saying, that's what it's going to be. So, yeah, I let it come to me. No, there was many times where a lot I had to separate myself from people who weren't doing the right thing. There's a lot of times where I was criticized for thinking that I was all that.

I'm listening to everything you're saying, and I'm enjoying it so much just hearing about your outlook and just the goals you set for yourself. But one thing I'm just hearing from an early age, you set very specific goals for what you wanted out of your life, including that you were gonna get your grandma a limousine someday. Secondly, you have very high expectations for yourself. When you went out against Cedric, you expected to compete at that high level. And when you have high expectations of yourself, I think you have a way of fulfilling those expectations right if you set your sales high, I think that it's very important.

It's crucial to have high expectations. But you have to be wary because high expectations also foster pride.

Yeah.

You know, and pride. Prideful. Prideful people. Very prideful people are usually the ones that get shot down and the hardest.

That's great. Yeah.

You try to stay humble. You try to appreciate the things that you've been given. You try to work harder for the things that you. You see. But also you try to stay humble and realize that it's not. It's not me that's garnering the accolades, you know, it's God working through me for a reason.

Yeah.

That's great. Jamar, let me ask you this. It's one thing to make a decision to be successful. I think a lot of people make that decision. But it's an entirely different thing to actually back it up with commitment. So at what point in your life did you make a decision and a commitment, say, you know what? This is what I'm going to do, and you're going to commit your life to it. And when you make a commitment, it changes who you associate with. It changes the habits that you have, it changes your lifestyle. When did you make a commitment to actually put yourself on this kind of path that you're on?

I knew that junior year in high school. I knew that that time was for me all these years, my mother telling me the only thing I needed to do was get a college scholarship put so much pressure on me that I didn't know if they could afford it or not. But I just knew that in the back of my mind that if I didn't get. If I didn't earn a college scholarship, I was not going to college. So that was my motivation factor. The commitment was when I would get out after my parents went to work, I would be 16 years old, both parents working night shift. I would get out, go to the church parking lot right next door to my house, and run routes until like, 10 o'. Clock. I would run routes. And every route that I ran, I told myself that this is for a scholarship. I run an out. This is for a scholarship run a slant. This is for a scholarship. You know, every route that I ran and I. I was hands and feet above everybody that I played against that my senior season, you know, just so prepared, so hungry, so in tune to what my. My drive was. I went to the University of Tennessee football camp that summer, and I was the same way, you know, shining light. So obviously they offered me a scholarship there. I Remember the conversation?

Who offered you the scholarship?

University of Tennessee nominated.

Who? What coach?

Oh, Foreman.

So, Phil, did he walk up to you? Did he call you on the phone? Tell us about it.

He called me up here. He was like, hey, hey, that guy. Come here, dude. Yeah, he was in his office. Gerald, which was his assistant, told me that Coach Foreman wanted to see me in his office. So I knew something was going wrong. I was happy. Walked up there, you know, Coach Foreman, he sat back. He was like, hey, if you like what we see, we want you to play ball at the University of Tennessee. And so me being nonchalant, I was like, hey, that's great. I really wanted to come here. My parents would be surprised. My parents would be enlightened. And before I commit, I'm talking over to my mom. My mom and dad and I need.

A written copywriter, right?

They write books after. They write book after book about these kinds of principles that come so naturally for you. I mean, what I'm hearing is that you visualized yourself succeeding. You visualized yourself on game day. You put pressure on yourself at a young age to provide for your grandmother. And I think all of these things, they write books about it, but you just did it. It kind of came from within you. And like, Walt used the sail analogy. You set the sails, and it just pulled you in the right direction. Okay, so fast forward, you're an NFL athlete right now. You had a. You weren't drafted.

No.

You're sort of overlooked early. Sort of like maybe in the early days in college. And here you are. You're a factor on the field, and you're a Super bowl champion. What drives you today? Does that differ from what drove you years ago?

No. I mean, every season is different. So you get your. Determine your drive, determination factor by the life that you live. Me, in this particular instance, I want to provide stability for my children. I want to provide. I want my children's children to be not only financially set, but also to know that their grandfather or their father was one of the best corners to ever play the game. I get joy by having. I get joy by having my wife honored by some of the work that I do out there. When people see her, they're like, you know, euge's wife, he's doing good.

Does she come to every game?

She does, and she has joy. My success, you know, my children has joy. I see joy in my success, you know, in the things that I do. And I take honor in that. You know, so I work so I can see the happiness on their face. But also, I mean, there's new challenges. New challenges. I want to be the best corner in the NFC East. I want to be a Pro Bowler, you know, and those things I want to dedicate this season to my father, who is going through some things in his life. And there's many more challenges to continue to push me in the right direction. At the point where I'm at right now, I'm trying to believe in the gifts, believe and take hold of the gifts that God's given me and really use them, utilize them to uplift others, to serve others, but also to have limited regrets.

Last night we talked about some of your interest off the field. And we don't want this interview like Kevin said earlier. We don't want it to just be about football because if there's anything I've learned this weekend, there's so much more to Jabari Greer than just football. I think. So.

Okay.

All right. You. Absolutely.

When you, when you took. Well, one, you've been a tremendously gracious host, and I think I speak for both Kevin and I when I say thank you for the dinner and you're showing really, the key to the city last night for New Orleans. But we really appreciate, and I, I frankly enjoyed it, particularly when you took the tram, the tambourine and joined the band on stage. You know, but one thing you told us about is some of your passions for the Greer campaign and your foundation and, you know, just some of your activities off the field. And just a few minutes ago, I think we talked about it briefly last night, that you actually have a column in the New Orleans paper.

Yeah.

So let's talk about some of those things. Tell us about your camp, the Greer campaign.

Well, the campaign is. That's me. That's my calling. You know that. I believe that is one reason why God has put me on this earth, is to spread the word of fatherhood, is to encourage other fathers and bring us together and to enlighten us of our, I guess, social status. We are fathers in general, whether you're married or not. We are our nation's most valuable resource. I think that we see the fallout from fatherlessness. We see crime. We see identity confusion. We see people, just the lack of confidence, lack of direction from our youth. We see it everywhere, you know, I mean, in the media, we see drunkard dads that are. They're emotionally disconnected on the couch watching TV while life is going on behind them. You know, we see fathers that are more interested in going to bars before they go home. You know, and this is what we're seeing on tv. We're seeing the clueless, witless dad who doesn't know how to take. Take charge and lead his family in the right direction on tv. We're seeing on TV how these people, they're doing exposes on athletes, but all. Somehow, all these athletes have. Their fathers are not present, you know, like, hey, he was raised by a single mother, and she did such a good job, you know, and the thing is that, you know, the foundation basically encourages it, uplifts it, educates. Educates fathers who realize how tough a job it is and want to go out there and be seen for the fathers that we are. I mean, it's a program in which once we sit. I've sat in there and I've talked about some of the issues I've had as being a father, and I hear so many other men feeling the same way that I felt. And there's something powerful about a group of men getting together, expressing themselves from a singular problem. You know, like, how do we do this the right way? You know, these are some issues I had. And we might not all have the same issues, but we all have. We all understand the enormous difficulty of parenthood. So the Greer campaign is a facility that we have in Jackson in which we're looking to move within the next five years to five major cities in the Southeast to really be a building that fathers and families can come and educate. They can come and get support, and they can come and we'll have community impact programs in which our fathers go out into the community and be visible signs of positive parenthood.

That's a fantastic mission. And as a father of three, and Walt's a father of one, and you're a father of four, fatherhood is a very difficult job. And yet there is very little information out there or support as far as how to do it appropriately or, you know, where do you go if you have questions? Not everybody can go to their own father. Maybe their own father isn't around. And so to have a group of men come together, and, you know, there's a saying in the Bible that iron sharpens iron. And so by coming together, you get some best practices that come out of those meetings. There's a lot of value in that. And Walt and I, we're certainly committed to helping you out in Tennessee and with your Jackson chapter and perhaps even opening up a Nashville chapter. I think it's a fantastic mission. You hear a lot of nonprofits that are out there. There really is a need for men to Come together to learn how to be better men. So good on you. Jim Rohn has a saying. He's a motivational speaker, and he's passed away, but he always said, I don't want to die in a rocking chair. I want to die summoning the next mountain. You've won the super bowl champion. Maybe this foundation is your next mountain. Probably won't be your last. This is the next one, so it's exciting to learn about it.

Thank you.

Do you have any more questions?

Walt, tell me about your column in the Times Picuan. I'm actually very curious. How do you decide what to write about?

Just about my life. I like skit comedy. I'm a skit comic nerd. You know, if you actually wrote. I had a show in Buffalo called Out of Bounds. Yeah, it was. It was a TV show where it was a panel. Right. But I also wrote skits for the show. And if you go on YouTube, you can go to out of Bounds and see some of the skits that we read. And so the people from the Times Picayune, they saw that, they liked it. We were in talks and negotiations about doing something like here. Like that here. But just the time constraints, you know, getting ready for the season, and we just. We couldn't. You know, we couldn't shoot things. So I told them that I could write. I probably could just write something. So they gave me. They gave me a blog, a column, and I mean, it's been. People have. They've loved it.

You've written poems.

That went viral, actually. I know that went viral.

We heard about that in Tennessee.

Yeah. Yeah.

So one poem went viral.

But I think it was a good piece, though.

You know what? But that was the first time I was critically panned. This guy from CBS says it would have made Langston Hughes throw up a little bit, which is ridiculous. But anyway, that was a poem. But I write things that matter to me. How it is to be a normal guy that plays ball, play football, you know, so we do. I talk about things from, you know, family. Family stress, Money stress. Family stressing about money. I talk about friends, you know, loneliness. I talk about fear of. Fear of retirement. You know, like, what else you gonna do after you're done? I talk about everything, man. I talked about.

Sounds like we can do a whole nother show just about your. About your TV shows and your column.

Right?

Just check it out. Just check it out, man. So, you know, I'm interested. I'm interested in doing some. In some other things, but, you know, who knows?

Well, yeah. I'll tell you one thing I do know is that you're a leader. I think if there's one word that sums you up, definitely competitor comes to mind. But leader. You were a leader at a very young age on the football field of Tennessee. You're a leader on your football team now. You're a leader in the community. You're a leader in your household. It's going to be exciting to watch what you do next. And I've been following you from a distance. I'm a big admirer. You're doing a great job. Keep up the good work. It's such an honor for us to be here with you and to reconnect with you after all these years. So I just want to say thank you.

I'm humbled, man.

Absolutely.

I like the leader coming. I hope my wife's watching this.

So that wraps it up here. For creative competitors, you can visit us on the website@thompsonburton.com and Jabari has a website that he's going to share with you to his campaign.

This is www.thegreercampaign.org. and if you're fathers, hug your children, give them a kiss, and let them know you love them.

Be sure to check it out. You guys take care.

Thank you.

Sat.