LAKE FOREST -- Grady Jarrett's personality shined as bright as his gold necklace and diamond pendant in his introductory press conference at Halas Hall.
Despite being 31 years old and having played all 10 of his years in the NFL with the Atlanta Falcons, Jarrett didn't hold back about his overall excitement to play for the Chicago Bears organization.
"Being able to just start here and have a fresh start is something that I'm super, super excited about," Jarrett said. "Being in one place for 10 years is definitely something special. Atlanta was my hometown, is my hometown with or without the Falcons. Atlanta will always have a special place in my heart and I'll have a special place in the people there that supported me, but in this new chapter of my life, I'm so happy to be here in a great city like Chicago, an organization who has a history of just being a dominant defense, legendary players, Hall of Famers.
I’m watching them from afar. To be able to walk in a building that’s associated with Walter Payton — I've been a two-time Walter Payton Man of the Year award nominee, I’ve met his family a couple of times. So the pride that I have in this place, I didn't even know it really lived in me until I walked into the building, you know what I'm saying? I'm just so fired up."
Chicago Bears fans already love Grady Jarrett.
That fire could be seen and heard from miles away. There were several occasions during Garrett's press conference that highlighted his vibrant personality, but when he was asked about a mic'd up moment from the 2023 season against the Packers, Jarrett gave Bears fans an answer to remember.
Jordan Love scrambled for a 23-yard gain on third-and-10 and Jarrett ran a long way to try and track down the Packers' quarterback. After the whistle, Love and Jarrett expressed some words to each other and Jarrett explained where that emotion comes from.
"When you’re playing ball, man– doing this, being professional, being able to talk and communicate with people is something, but when you’re playing ball, you cross them lines, you’ve gotta be able to go to that dark place," Jarrett said. "Sometimes what happens in that dark place, it’ll get a little crazy. Just being a competitor. I talked about mic’d up with some of the new media team here and was like, ‘You know I’ve got some crazy ones.’ That was released, so the stuff that’s not released gotta be super crazy. But you’ve gotta have that dog in you, you know what I’m saying?
Obviously, Jordan love is a good quarterback, but, you know, my thing is you already can’t hit the quarterback so many different ways. First of all, I already chased him down the field 50 yards, I went and caught him, so I got that speed on me, too. That was two years ago so I’m only getting faster. So then to walk away from me talking mess, I mean, what are we doing? You know what I’m saying. But I’m excited to go against him two times a year now, and try to help this organization get some wins over the other team."
It's not an exaggeration to say that the excitement Jarrett embodies is already being felt within the Bears organization. General manager Ryan Poles and head coach Ben Johnson sat in the front row for Jarrett's press conference and as the 6-foot, 288-pound defensive tackle detailed why he felt his best days as a player were in front of him, Poles and Johnson kept nodding their heads in agreement with the words he was saying.
Jarrett has accomplished plenty in his career. Unsolicited, Jarrett mentioned he was the Falcons' franchise leader in quarterback hits. He has played in 152 total games and has 36.5 sacks. He's a two-time Pro Bowler and was named a second-team All-Pro in 2019.
Even though he will turn 32 on April 28, he gave Bears fans and his new teammates and coaches every reason to believe he isn't finished being a productive player. If anything, Jarrett still feels like he has more to prove.
“Because if I didn’t have that confidence, I wouldn’t be sitting here," Jarrett said. "If I got comfortable after my first contract extension, I wouldn’t be sitting here. If I got comfortable after my second contract extension, I wouldn’t be sitting here. And at the end of the day, this new contract that I got with a new team is just motivating. I’m going to be like that until the day I can’t do this anymore. I’m going to always strive to be better, I’m going to always strive to learn and you never really figure it all out.
The day you think you figured it all out, you can only go down. So that’s what I’m excited about and that’s what I’m confident in. My body is good, my body is strong, and my mind is hungry to learn. I’m just in a position to where I’m in a special place at the right time around the right people and I’m super excited about what’s to come.”