NEW LION TAYLOR DECKER CONFERENCE CALL AFTER BEING PICKED IN THE FIRST ROUND, (16TH OVERALL) OF THE NFL DRAFT BY THE DETROIT LIONS

On his preference on playing right or left tackle: “I mean, that’s always been something I’ve been open about. At the end of the day I just want to play football. You know, I know I’m not going to come into a team and have a position handed to me. You have to go out there and you have to earn it and you have to work hard, remain humble. So, you know, all this – this is opportunity. The Lions organization is giving me an opportunity and I’m going to try to do everything I can with it.”

On if his goal is to play left tackle: “Again, my goal is just to come in and work as hard as I can to maximize myself. I’m excited to meet the team and just get to work.”

On how much he and Lions G Larry Warford have discussed playing alongside each other on the offensive line: “We have. Yeah, we have talked about it because, I mean, obviously, we are out there training together. You know, he’s obviously a very good player. He’s a great person too, so that will be nice to be on a team that I already know somebody. I’ve worked out with him, done drills with him, things like that, so that would absolutely be exciting.”

On why he is ready to contribute to an NFL team: “Well, I mean, again, it’s not like I’m going to step in day one. I’ve not played one down in this league. I have to earn every opportunity, but I think just my track record, playing at Ohio State, you know, you’re playing at a high-level school, you play at a high level. But again, that doesn’t always, 100-percent correlate to the next level. So, again, I haven’t played one down and there’s a lot of work to be done.”

On what his draft day has been like today: “I was just so excited because, again, one thing – it’s close to home. So, all my family will be able to come and see me play and I know that’s important to them. You know, I’m just so excited for the opportunity. That’s really all I can say. I’m not going in there expecting anything or thinking anything is going to be handed to me because it’s not. So, when I got back home and my phone rang and I knew they were on the clock, you know, my heart jumped a little bit.”

On if he was always big growing up: “Well, my dad’s 6-5. My mom’s like 5-9, so I’ve always been pretty tall growing up, yeah.”

On the communication he had with the Lions in the pre-draft process: “Yeah, I met with them at the Combine, you know, thought we had a good meeting. Then I had a workout with them as well. So, I definitely did think that they were a team that was interested, but there’s always going to be a handful of teams that are interested. So, I did know that they had interest and I was just excited when I got that call and that phone rang when they were up.”

On his biggest intangible in his game: “I mean, I do think I come from a very competitive program, so I would say that’s definitely one thing, kind of like a toughness. And then I think I have a relatively decent football IQ. I think I can learn the plays and execute them, so I know an NFL playbook is a lot different than a college, but I think I will hopefully be able to digest it well and learn the playbook.”

New Lion Taylor Decker on what he learned going against former teammate DE Joey Bosa in practice at Ohio State: “He’s such a complete player. I learned that if you make one small, minor mistake, you know, he’s going to expose you for it and he’s probably going to beat you just because I think he’s a very complete player. So, he’s good at figuring out what tackles do wrong. I mean, he’s a huge reason that I was able to improve and become a better player.”

On if he is familiar with any of his new Lions teammates: “No, I mean, I know – I’ve seen them play and things like that, but I’ve not met anybody. That’s one thing I am excited about, you know, get in there and meet those guys.”

On his impressions of the Lions offense: “In college I was watching so much of my own college film. You know, when I was watching games I was just kind of watching them just for pleasure. So, I’m just, again looking forward to getting in and learning the playbook and just trying to do everything I can to maximize myself.”

On how he describes his own strengths and weaknesses: “I think I run-block well. I like to finish blocks, I think I need to be more consistent about that for sure. I think being a tall guy, pad-level is a thing I definitely want to work on that I think if I can get that squared away that will help me a lot. As a tackle, especially, you always want to stay square in pass protection and be efficient with your movements. So, there’s multiple things, but I think I was a durable, consistent player at Ohio State.”

On the questions about his arm length: “I have no clue what my arm length is because, I mean, there’s been so many different measurements. I’ve seen that people say (that I have) short arms, but I mean, I think at the end of the day the thing you need to do is watch the film. Watch the film and see how it’s affecting. So, I’ve heard that as well and I’ve heard a million different measurements for my arms, so that is it what it is, but I think I can play football.”

On if there was any indication that other teams were going to pick him ahead of the Lions: “There were teams that I did think had interest, but you know, again, with this whole process there are going to be teams that were interested and teams that were not. I’ve heard guys in the past being picked that they didn’t really have a lot of communication with. So, I had four teams that were interested and I had the Lions, who were one of them.”

On where he was expecting to be selected in the draft: “I think where I went was right in the range that I was kind of expecting, or was kind of getting the vibe that I was going to go. I think where I went to Detroit was spot on.”