Johnny Maxey
Mars Hill
Defensive end
1st-year pro

**

Who is your football mentor or inspiration?**
I had some high school coaches that really gave me an extra boost, they were always pushing me. They're the reason I even got a college scholarship anywhere. That coaching and that mentoring right there did a lot for me.

What motivates you?
My worst fear is failure. I never want to be a failure, never want to fail at anything. I want to win at everything, so that's what motivates me.

What is your approach to football?
Just get the job done no matter what else. Do your job, don't worry about anything else, don't worry about anybody else's job.

**

When did you start dreaming about playing in the NFL?**
In college I went to a small school so I was one of the bigger guys. I had more of a motor, had more of a better work ethic. I stood out to scouts. I stood out to coaches. I stood out to my teammates. It put me in a leader role and it just climbed from there.

Why do you play football?
I play because I love football. I play to represent my name, my family. There's a lot of benefits from playing this sport but when you're doing something you love you kind of forget about the benefits of it.

What is your proudest football moment or memory?
My first game was the Ravens game for the playoff berth last year (Dec. 25). I wasn't supposed to play a whole lot. I wasn't supposed to play at all, really, and that was my first time seeing real NFL action. That's something I'll always remember. It was the division winner, we clinched the playoffs that game. I played a lot more snaps than I was supposed to but I did well in those snaps.

When you hear "Steelers," what do you think?
Just hard-nosed, but mostly winning, there's a winning tradition here. I've been on one college championship team, but championship is the main goal here. Playoffs aren't good enough, they want to go to the Super Bowl, Super Bowl or bust.