KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Chiefs wide receiver Dwayne Bowe did a Tuesday guest spot on 810 WHB Sports Radio.
And once his interview with hosts Steven St John and Nate Bukaty, and studio guest Eddie Kennison, a former Chiefs teammate of Bowe, rolled along, it proved hard to get away from.
Jan 4, 2014; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Dwayne Bowe (82) during the 2013 AFC wild card playoff football game against the Indianapolis Colts at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports
From Bowe’s midseason arrest in November surrounding allegations of speeding and possession of marijuana to his thoughts on quarterback Alex Smith and a contract extension, nothing appeared off-limits when it came to discussion points.
Below is a transcript of Bowe’s interview, which can be heard in its entirety here.
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Bowe recalls meeting former Chiefs wide receiver Eddie Kennison in 2007 for the first time and the rookie hazing:
“I remember like it was yesterday, coming into the facility super late, feeling like ‘The Man,’ just got drafted in the first round, nobody could tell me nothing. I run into this old veteran named Eddie Kennison and he introduced me to the NFL mighty quick.
“Gave me a few words, we had our first day of practice and he said, ‘You see this field goal post right here? Get familiar with it.’ He tied me up, saran wrapped me until I couldn’t move, cut off a couple of circulation points in my body [studio laughter].
“Had a big Gatorade cooler full of ice-cold water, him and Casey (Wiegmann in all likelihood as the only Casey on the Chiefs roster during Bowe’s 2007 rookie season) began to pour it on me and I began to lose feeling in my whole body.
“And he just told me, he said ‘This is only the beginning, get used to it. You’re going to become a great receiver here and I’m going to make sure of that.’ Look where I’m at today.”
Given what’s happened in the NFL the past season, on if he ever felt bullied by Kennison:
[Laughter from Bowe] “I’m pressing charges. I definitely felt like it. I’m definitely going to (NFL commissioner) Roger Goodell. No, I didn’t feel bullied at all. I felt like family. From Day One when I met him, he always took me in as a brother, always had my back from Day One. Definitely wasn’t bullying back then.”
On getting acclimated with the Chiefs having Kennison, also an LSU alumnus, on the team:
“It was very much helpful since Day One, even going into the playbook, studying and showing me how to be a professional at a young age was definitely the key. That’s what some guys are missing now when they come into the NFL. You’ve got some older guys trying to keep their jobs and not help the young guys.
“Eddie was always opposite. He always wanted the young guys to be at his level and that’s where I’m at today, and that’s how I treat the young guys that come in now. I bring them to the house, watch film and get in that playbook, and try to acclimate them to get on the level I am because that’s the only way you can win and become a champion is everybody’s on the same page.”
Oct 20, 2013; Kansas City, MO, USA; Kansas City Chiefs cornerback Sean Smith (27) and wide receivers Dwayne Bowe (82) and Donnie Avery (17) celebrate with fans after the game against the Houston Texans at Arrowhead Stadium. The Chiefs won 17-16. Mandatory Credit: John Rieger-USA TODAY Sports
On looking back at the 2013 season in the first year under general manager John Dorsey and coach Andy Reid:
“I look at it as I look at the record. We had a great record. We were in the playoffs, so anytime you can take your team to the playoffs, I figure that’s a great year no matter what the stats be.
“I played all-around great football on blocking and receiving and getting guys in position to be where they at today. We got three offensive guys going to the Pro Bowl, so it’s just me helping my team get to that stature is what I call a great year no matter what my stats be because I know what kind of player I am and what I can do.
“And it was the first year, so the coaches were seeing what guys can do. And next year it will be even better stats-wise for me. But when you get to this point in your life, you just want to win. I honestly just want to win, that’s all I want.”
After seven years of playing, on staying excited thought the aches and pains of the season:
“Oh man. The things I could still get excited about is come home and play with my shoulder and still can feel my arms and legs. It’s getting a little cold and that’s my No. 1 goal is to play this game and be able to come home and be healthy. That’s the one thing I can be excited about.
“And the young guys that come in, everybody wants to be like Bowe. That’s the thing I strive on is to be a good role model on and off the field.”
Kennison jokes about not missing training camp: “They can take training camp and go do something with it.”
“Yeah, please do. (sic – laughter briefly drowned out what Bowe said). Tear those pages out and burn them. Seriously.”
On if he felt pressure in 2013 after signing the five-year, $56 million contract:
“There definitely was pressure from the outside. You know everybody’s aiming for you and waiting on you to get in trouble. People try to persuade you to do things to get you caught up. That’s the only bad thing.
“Once you sign, it’s like the world wants you to fail and that’s the hard part about it. We’re still human. We still like to do regular, normal things. And when you sign that check, it’s like a big X on your house, on everybody in your family’s back, and you just got to live right and that’s the hard part of moving through daily life.
“You try to live right. You got the – you know, the police is after you – everybody just wants a piece of Dwayne Bowe and I had to learn that the hard way. That’s how it is, no matter who you are as long as you got the millions behind your name, there’s always somebody out there to get you. And that’s the only bad part about it.”
On if his early November arrest for allegedly possessing marijuana and speeding was a distraction (Bowe alleged profiling in his response):
“I mean everybody, people close around me and my team and the organization know I had nothing to do with that. I was being profiled and it will all come to light in February. It wasn’t a distraction because my teammates know and my family knows. Like I said, I was being watched and being followed. Like I said, that’s how it goes sometimes when you got the millions behind your name.
“I mean once it clears the air, everybody knows, whoever knows Dwayne knows the truth about it and know what kind of guy I am. I just can’t wait until it’s all over, so let the world know instead of the people that’s close to me know what really happened.”
Clarifying whether he really believes the police and others are really after him:
“I mean, it’s not just them. It’s everybody. And once you get those ‘Ms’ behind your name, you’ll feel exactly how I feel. It’s everybody. It’s just anything can be an influence. When you’re in a town like not a lot going on, you know, bad media is good media. So you just got to stay calm and stay collected like I do now and just move in silence. That’s how I move. You got to be patient and you got to move in silence.”
On if he’s changed lifestyle based on that mentality:
“No, I just got to move in silence. I still go places, go out to eat and I run in the city and try to find things to do with my family, but you just got to move in silence now. That’s just how it goes. Even when Tony (Gonzalez, assuming that’s who Bowe is referring to) was here, you never catch Tony out and about. He did things in silence and peace. That’s how I want to live my life.”
On if that mentality affects his play on the field:
“No. Never. I love this game, you know, I take every play seriously and that’s why I’m the phenomenal receiver I am today because I take every play like it’s my last. When the incident happened, now I just take every day off the field as my last. I try to enjoy every day with my family and just take it one day at a time. You know, not look forward to anything because you never know what could happen.”
On his offensive involvement during season and why he had the best game of season during the playoffs (150 yards and touchdown on eight catches):
“Honestly, I don’t know. I played the game just how I played the games in season. If coach called the plays, I try to make the play when it’s called. He came to me early and often, and that was the result that he got.
“I think when Jamaal (Charles) went down, you know, we had to change the game plan on how we were going to run the ball to passing it. And so it all depends on the personnel. We got a lot of great weapons on offense and coach Reid, he tries to get everybody the ball, he wants to get everybody involved. It’s not like a couple of years ago when I was the only one on offense that you got to come to me 12 or 13 times a game.
“We have Jamaal, that’s an excellent runner, then you have me, you have a great tight end, our fullback Anthony Sherman, he makes plays. The coaches want to keep everybody happy and put everybody in situations where they can make plays. That’s what you love about them because you don’t want one guy getting keyed and Xd off, and you can’t worry about that guy anymore.
“He wants everybody getting involved and everybody keeping their heads in the game. He does a great job of calling plays and we do a great job of executing it.”
Jan 4, 2014; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver Dwayne Bowe (82) catches a fourth down pass out of bounds while defended by Indianapolis Colts cornerback Josh Gordy (27) in the fourth quarter during the 2013 AFC wild card playoff football game at Lucas Oil Stadium. Indianapolis defeats Kansas City 45-44. Mandatory Credit: Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports
On the fourth-and-11 play, the last offensive play for the Chiefs in the playoffs against the Indianapolis Colts where Bowe didn’t secure the catch inbounds:
“Once I beat the corner off the grip, I was looking for the ball. He (quarterback Alex Smith) had to go through his progressions, he tried to look the safety off and then throw it to me, which he did. But once I caught it, the corner was pushing me at the same time I was trying to get my feet in.
“Nobody really knows I had a sprained foot, like I had a mid-foot sprain, it had a little crack in it since the third quarter. I really wasn’t supposed to be in the whole fourth quarter. I was supposed to been out, but I toughened it up and played just because in the last game you have to take every game serious.
“I barely can walk right now. I got my foot in a boot right now as we speak. I just tried to make that play, I tried to get both feet in. But if I would have got it in, I know I probably would have broke my right foot because it’s still – I have it in a boot right now.
“Eddie (Kennison) can tell you, I’ve been getting rehab and treatment trying to get it right. I just tried to make that play when it was called, but it was six inches away. I felt just as bad as you felt, but all I can do is try and give everybody a chance, so I tried to make it.
“Man, I still remember it like it was yesterday. It was a good and bad feeling that he came to me when the game was on the line, so that’s a good thing. Now that I have his trust, he can do that more often when the season starts.”
On if he needs foot surgery:
“No. I just got to heal it. It’s a small, small crack when my foot was sprained, like a third degree.”
On resting body and what he’s looking forward to working on during offseason:
“One thing I want to want to work on, my endurance to play the whole game. I was really, really tired that last game.
“Definitely, I know we’ll have more and more new plays in a new system, so I definitely want to get more in the playbook and just be the same guy. Basically, I don’t have to change nothing, but just the way I eat. I want to be a little lighter than 212. I probably want to play at 208 and try to be as quick and swift as possible because that’s the kind of receivers that Andy (Reid) had when he was in Philly.
“Try to be explosive and faster than I was this season. I just want to work on my workout ethic a little bit more and become more and more quicker and faster so I can be like (Eagles wide receiver) DeSean Jackson and those kinds of speedy quick guys.”
On playing weight during 2013 season and how much he has to lose to achieve personal goal:
“Probably about five more pounds. I was 212 – between 212 and 214 – this season, so I want to get like 208.”
On The Dwayne Bowe Foundation, “a public non-profit organization that serves as a support system for grandparents raising grandchildren,” according to the official website:
“Definitely, we’re going to make this an ongoing event. This year was my first event, we got it off the ground and we got it running. Definitely going to raise a family, I say probably every four to five months and really be involved and really take care of them not on a one-time basis.
“The family that we just adopted, Grandma Karen and her four kids, we’re definitely looking after them. We just got them cable, Internet, got them a computer, got them some games. Every month, we’ll do something with that family to touch bases with them and just giving them hope, and giving them insight on how much we really appreciate them and how hard they work because if it wasn’t for their grandma, they wouldn’t be here.
“And it’s the same in my situation. And it’s not just a one-time thing, we want to really – before my career is over – at least have 10 families that we adopt and take care of on an everyday basis. That’s something that’s really important to me and definitely want to keep it going.”
Follow-up on early thoughts on being a target and if he’s happy in Kansas City:
“I’m very happy; it’s just how it goes. I don’t fault nobody for being after me. I got to fault myself for just being staying put and staying clean and staying humble. That’s the part that everybody needs to work on. I have no problems. I’m in KC right now. I love my home. I love the fans. I love the people. I definitely have no problem, that’s why I’m still here and I’m loving every second.”
On if he believes quarterback Alex Smith deserves a new contract:
“He definitely deserves a new contract. He’s a leader, he’s a game manager, a game changer. And the quarterbacks I had in the past definitely don’t amount to what he did in this one single year.
“He’s learning, too, so definitely have a young quarterback with swag like him. You got me, on the other side, complement, you get another good receiver, you never know how far he can take this team.
“But he’s a phenomenal guy, he’s a great teammate, he’s a good brother of mine and I definitely think he deserves it.”
On if the Chiefs under Dorsey and Reid, as well as the current nucleus can finally win the franchise’s first playoff game since Jan. 16, 1994:
“Most definitely, most definitely. This year was only the first year. I know it’s a history, but I definitely put my trust in those guys that they’ll bring in more good players and more competition and be able to bury that hatchet.
“They know what they’re doing and they’ll bring in good players and they can play, and it’s only a matter of time before we take it all the way.”
