As part of ESPN The Magazine’s NFL preview, Kevin Van Valkenburg sat down with Washington Redskins cornerback Josh Norman to talk about a number of different topics.
To the surprise of few, Norman had plenty of strong opinions to share. The Washington cornerback had plenty to say about NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and the nickname of his new team.
When speaking about Goodell, Norman had nothing but bad things to say. He called the head of the league “straight horrible.”
“He’s so cold. There is no emotion or nothing. … Horrible. He’s straight horrible.”
As for his team’s nickname, Norman says he doesn’t have an issue with the name “Redskins.” However, Norman pointed out that both his mother and father are part Native American.
“I’m part Native American on both my mom’s and my dad’s side. It’s kind of a funny thing, though. A redskin playing for the Redskins.”
A lot of eyes will be on Norman this year following the amount of headlines he’s made in the past year. It started when Norman and New York Giants receiver Odell Beckham Jr. went at it during a game late in the 2015 season.
Things are getting a little heated between Odell Beckham Jr. and Josh Norman. #CARvsNYG https://t.co/7nCfeMJXcI
— NFL (@NFL) December 20, 2015
In the interview with ESPN, Norman had plenty to say about the New York wideout. After giving himself the title of “best cornerback on Earth,” Norman went on to ask when Beckham Jr. would grow up.
Norman also garnered attention this offseason when he was surprisingly cut by the Carolina Panthers back in April. The move ended up working out for Norman, as he became the highest paid cornerback in the NFL by signing a five-year, $75 million contract with Washington.
Even though we’ve heard plenty of interesting things from Norman during his time in the league, he says he now has more freedom to say what he wants.
“They (The Panthers) kind of shunned me,” he said. “They turned down a lot of stuff for me, interviews, sponsorship deals, stuff I didn’t even know about. They wanted it to be about the two main guys, Cam [Newton] and Luke [Kuechly].”
This interview shows us that things are probably only going to get more candid with Norman now that he is on a new team. He might have to prepare himself to pay a few more bucks back to the NFL in fines.
[ESPN]
