Seattle Seahawks Super Bowl Champion guard, Grey Zabel, gave some incredibly high praise for Poona Ford, Kobie Turner, and the Los Angeles Rams as a whole. He complimented Ford and Turner as great players, the type of athletes that make Zabel work, and want to play the game of football. He expressed some appreciation towards the Rams group as a whole for being a bunch of “really good dudes”.
Right or wrong, hate can be a part of sports at times, and as much as one loves Ben Jonhson (head coach of the Chicago Bears) hating the Green Bay Packers, it’s also one of the cooler things in pro sports to see players out for blood during a game, but then coming together when the final whistle blows. These guys are family, friends and or peers who tend to, but not always, have a mutual respect for each other.
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Zabel, in this interview, showed love to the Rams despite knowing that he’ll have to do battle with them again at least twice in the upcoming season.
Said Zabel on the Green Light with Chris Long Podcast:
“Poona Ford’s a great example. Dude, just pure raw strength. Like, he picked me up, like just lifted me up as I was trying to base block him, and I’m like, ‘Alright, yah I can’t do anything about it’. Kobie Turner’s the same way…I know for a fact that I would ten times out of ten, I would rather block a bigger, stronger, slower guy than some short, stocky, quick dude who can go side-to side in just like, the blink of a second.”
Zabel was then asked about, and discussed the moment after the Seahawks’ NFC Championship win over the Rams when Zabel immediately went up to Kobie Turner. Zabel explained that he was bummed Turner got hurt in the game, and he wanted Turner to know how much Zabel values facing off against him.
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Sean McVay and Les Snead talk about wanting to draft guys who love football and according to Zabel, Turner is exactly that. Also, based on Zabel’s response, he seems to love football as much as anyone else in the league right now.
“Well, first off, Kobie Turner is like my kryptonite right now in the game of football. Like, I don’t know what it is, he’s just got my number, he just works me every single game, but it’s so cool. Like I said, as much you, like, want to hate the Rams, like, they’re all really good dudes. Across the board. And like Kobie, for instance, he’s out there and he just smiles. Like he just plays the game for the love of the game. No question about it. And it was a sad deal because he got a little banged up, and he couldn’t finish that NFC Championship Game. So, the moment after the game was done, I just went and talked to him, talked how awesome he was, and what a great game…how fun it is to compete against him. And he’s just an unbelievable guy. I mean, if anybody watching knows Kobie, they know exactly what I’m talking about because it’s…he’s top tier. He’s what makes the game fun to play against defensive lineman.”
Whether you win or lose, being a good sport involves showing respect to all involved, and Zabel very much humbled himself by being overtly positive when it came to talking about the Rams. He could have said anything, and he chose to show appreciation to his division rival.
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Now, if the Rams find a way to beat the Seahawks this year, it will be interesting to see how high Zabel is on the Rams then, but that potential situation won’t come until later this year. For now, it’s peace and love across the NFL in July.
Let’s check back in on the Rams and Zabel’s mood after their first matchup in December.
