JACKSONVILLE – These are fun, good times for DaVon Hamilton.
He's a veteran in his prime playing at a very high level – and doing so for a team playing big, late-season games. In NFL terms, that's as fun as it gets.
"I've seen a lot, been through a lot and I'm blessed to be here," he said.
Hamilton, a sixth-year veteran defensive tackle and a major reason the Jaguars are the NFL's No. 1-ranked rushing defense, joined senior writer John Oehser for this Week 14 O-Zone Podcast. He discussed multiple topics, including the mood of the Jaguars (8-4) as they prepare to play the Indianapolis Colts (8-4) at EverBank Stadium Sunday for first place in the AFC South.
"It is pretty cool," Hamilton said. "Anytime your team is winning and you feel like your team is gelling a lot more, it's very cool because obviously, I know what it's like to not be gelling or not be winning. It's very cool, especially with new people around and kind of dealing with that change at the beginning of the year."
Hamilton, originally selected by the Jaguars in the third round of the 2020 NFL Draft, also discussed his relationship with other veteran Jaguars defensive linemen such as Dawuane Smoot, Josh Hines-Allen and Travon Walker.
"We've known each other for a while," said Hamilton, in his sixth season playing with Hines-Allen, his fifth with Smoot and fourth with Walker. "We work out during the offseason together. We try to hang out as much as possible too. You work with your brothers and try to figure out what they like to do, what we like to do, how do we want to win this game. You really rely on one another.
"I would love to think most NFL teams start with their offensive and defensive line. We take extreme ownership over that as a group between all of us. That's really what we plan on doing. We know we can take over games. We can win games for us, as a team. That's how we feel."
That's a camaraderie that Hamilton said is hardly limited to four established veterans along the defensive front, a camaraderie he said comes in large part because Jaguars players as a team this season "just hang out a lot more."
"Guys are willing to hang out a little bit more outside of the football, talk about stuff outside of football and care about each other's families," he said. "We ultimately become closer in that realm before ever even stepping on the football field.
"I feel like that's been the biggest change. I think that's a priority of most guys in the team."
To listen to the entire O-Zone Podcast with Hamilton, tune-in below. For more interviews on the O-Zone Podcast, click HERE.
