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Cornerback Cortez Allen Part 2
From Patrick Shay: Can you explain the difference in the way you set up on the outside before the snap in base defense versus in nickel or dime with help over the top?
Cortez Allen: Being outside it's a different mindset. I can use things as leverage based on how he is lined up because I have sideline help. I have a lot of different hidden help to help me know what they are going to do. At the nickel position there is a lot more thinking involved. A lot of what they do with the scheme they are running. In a course of a play a lot of things can change for me more in the nickel than at the corner position. It's a lot more thinking. It's not a big tight end you are going against; it's a small shifty guy. It's fun though. I have a fun time doing it and the competitiveness of it.
From Brett Martin:With the expectations this organization has, is anything less than a Super Bowl championship a disappointment?
Cortez Allen: That is every year. That is the goal for every team in the league and should be for every individual. You should want to win it for your team, city, fans, and organization. That should be the goal every year.
From Sarah King: With the six Super Bowl trophies in your practice facility, how bad do you want to have your name on one of them some day?
Cortez Allen: I have never won a trophy in football. I came close in high school, but I never got a trophy for football so it would be amazing.
From Bill Morrow: Who is the toughest player you have ever had to cover?
Cortez Allen: I would say the guys we have here. We have a great group of receivers. It's a hard-working group that put a lot of pride into what they do. Competing against that every day helps me a lot.
From Derek Murphy: What do you do during the offseason to get away from football?
Cortez Allen: Is there such a thing?
From Paul Callahan: What's the feeling like to get an interception in an NFL game?
Cortez Allen: With our crowd there is nothing like it. It's one of the most amazing feelings I have ever had. I can't describe it. It's a big ball of emotion.
From Ben Miller: How much does it pump you up when Renegade is played at Heinz Field?
Cortez Allen: The funny thing is it not only pumps us up, it pumps up the team we are going against. I had the opportunity to train with a friend of mine, Nigel Carr from Baltimore, and he was telling how it gets everybody going. We take pride that it's our song. Once you hear the first beat, the note, you feel it.
From Randy Gray: What is the best advice you ever received and who gave it to you?
Cortez Allen: Put God first in everything I do. Give him the glory in everything I do. That came from my mom. Whether it's good or bad I give God praise because there is something to learn from everything you go through. Without God I could do nothing.
From David Lowry:What aspect of your game would you like to improve on this year?
Cortez Allen: I would say staying healthy right now. Being able to finish a full season would be my goal. I think the most important thing is to stay healthy.
From Andrew Holloway:How tough was it to first learn Dick LeBeau's defense? Is it as tough as is seems?
Cortez Allen: We were under a lot different circumstances that year coming off the lockout. Everything was fast in a sense. I took the time and got in extra film time and talked to the veterans and it became easier every game. It's tough to learn. There is a lot going on. But if you put the time in you can learn it.
