Patriots' Will Campbell explains why he stiffed media after poor Super Bowl performance: 'I know myself'
Nobody on the New England Patriots offense looked otherworldly during Super Bowl LX, but Will Campbell took the brunt of the blame.
The offensive tackle was the fourth selection of last year's NFL Draft, which automatically comes with quite high expectations.
Campbell struggled throughout the season, especially in the playoffs, as he had just returned from a Grade 3 MCL sprain in Week 18. In the Super Bowl, he allowed 14 pressures — the most in a game by any lineman all season.
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Knowing he’d have to answer for arguably the worst performance by a lineman all season, Campbell did not speak to the media after the game. But back in New England on Tuesday, he went to the microphone and voluntarily apologized to the media, saying he was afraid of saying something he’d regret.
"(I) just had a lot of emotions, obviously, going after a tough loss, a long year. Just a lot of emotions come with that," he said, via the Boston Herald. "I just wanted to make sure that I had my head on properly before I said anything I didn’t want to say, anything that I didn’t need to say. And I know that can happen, especially with myself, whenever there’s emotions involved."
"When I get emotional, I tend to have no mind. And that's not the way that I need to approach this thing. I know myself, and if I would have spoken after, I would have said something that I didn't need to say," Campbell added.
As for the blame he's gotten, Campbell said it comes with the territory.
"It comes with the job. When you don't perform, obviously, I was (drafted) high, paid a lot. So people expect a certain thing, and I expect more of myself. So whenever I don't perform, I don't expect everyone to be like, 'It's OK, buddy.' I mean, obviously it sucks. But it doesn't suck for anyone more than it sucks for me," he said.
Campbell started in all 17 games he played this season, including the postseason, and expects to improve significantly.
"I don’t think one performance defines a season. I think I did some good things this year," he said. "Obviously, there’s room for growth in every aspect of my game. I’m 22 years old. I have a lot of room for growth in every aspect as a player, as a leader — whether that’s strength and conditioning, pass protection, run blocking, whatever it might be. I have growth everywhere. I’m young. I’m learning."
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