ORLANDO, FL – The Pro Bowl experience is cool. Jalen Ramsey is enjoying it.
"It's something you work hard for, so being able to come out here and experience it is super dope," the second-year All-Pro cornerback said Wednesday.
Ramsey, one of five Jaguars players participating in the 2018 Pro Bowl this week, discussed several topics after the AFC's first practice of the week at the Wide World of Sports complex on Wednesday.
Among them: His rooting interest in Super Bowl LII.
Ramsey said he's pulling for the Philadelphia Eagles, and not because of the Jaguars' 24-20 loss to the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship Game this past Sunday.
"There's a lot of Florida State dudes on Philly," the No. 5 selection in the 2016 NFL Draft from Florida State said. "You've got [cornerback] Ronald Darby. You've got [defensive tackle] Timmy Jernigan, P-Rob (cornerback Patrick Robinson) … and then me and [Eagles defensive end] Derek Barnett went to high school (at Brentwood Academy near Nashville, Tennessee). I know a lot of people on the team. I'm rooting for them."
Ramsey also was asked how the Eagles should go about beating the Patriots.
"Play man, put some pressure on him [Patriots quarterback Tom Brady], mix it up," Ramsey said before adding, "I don't know because we didn't beat them. I don't know."
The Jaguars won their first AFC South Championship this past season, their first division title since 1999. Their AFC Championship Game was their first conference-title game appearance since the postseason that followed the 1999 season.
"I would like to think we're built for a while, but every year is a new year," Ramsey said, adding, "Everybody individually probably has something they want to work on or wat to build off of from last year. Everybody will take some time off and get their body right, get their mind right and do what they have to do individually. When we get back as a team, we're going to have to rebuild that chemistry or build on the chemistry and take it from there."
Along with Ramsey, Jaguars players participating in the Pro Bowl this week are cornerback A.J. Bouye, defensive end Yannick Ngakoue, linebacker Telvin Smith and defensive tackle Malik Jackson. Defensive end Calais Campbell was selected to the game but opted out early in the week.
Also around the Pro Bowl:
*Jaguars defensive end Yannick Ngakoue and Bills guard Richie Incognito spoke Wednesday morning and discussed the incident that Ngakoue said occurred between them in the Jaguars' victory over the Bills in the AFC Wild Card Playoff in early January, Ngakoue said. Ngakoue, who tweeted after the game that Incognito had used "weak racial slurs" during the game, declined to discuss details Wednesday. Incognito declined to speak to the media Wednesday. Jaguars defensive tackle Malik Jackson said he said hello to Incognito, and said he saw Ngakoue and Incognito speaking. "That was really cool," Jackson said. "[Players] have a huge respect for each other. Sometimes the heat of the moment can get to you. You can say things you might not really mean or do things you might not really mean and you can be apologetic for it. It shows the true character of a man to come and apologize and or talk about it and clear the air. It is what it is." …
*Ramsey's reputation as one of the league's "best" trash-talkers was a topic in in his post-practice interview. He said while he likely will "cool" his trash talking for Pro Bowl week, "At the end of the day, I'm me. I'm always going to be me. Two-point-oh is out here in full effect this week." …
*As for why he refers to himself as two-point-oh, Ramsey explained that in a conversation with a reporter. "What school Prime go to?" he said, referring to Pro Football Hall of Fame cornerback Deion Sanders who – like Ramsey – attended Florida State. "That's DBU … that's NFL U," Ramsey said. "I'm two-point-oh." …
*Bouye was asked if he was over the AFC Championship Game loss to New England. "No, I'm not," he said. "But I've got to deal with it. It's only going to motivate me to, you know, go harder and motivate our team. I already see the hunger. We're even talking about it here in Orlando. I know we've got to watch the game. But we'll be there next year. We're going to find a way." …
