Jarvis Landry On Donovan Peoples-Jones: "I See Already That He Is A Hard Worker"

One of the topics Jarvis Landry addressed in his conference call with the local media on Wednesday was his relationship with Donovan Peoples-Jones, which existed before he was drafted by the Cleveland Browns in April.

In a conference call on Wednesday, Cleveland Browns wide receiver was shaking the coverage of the kids in his house while answering questions. He was asked about Donovan Peoples-Jones, the wide receiver out of Michigan. The Browns selected him in the sixth round of the 2020 NFL Draft, but Landry had already been working with him in Florida, where he was rehabbing and Jones was training.

Landry was basically asked what he thought about Jones in his dealings with him while training in Deerfield, Florida.

“A lot of our conversations, he has a lot of questions, which I admire about him. He is asking me about punters, he is asking me about the teams and he is asking about guys on the team and all of the questions that I admire about him. From being around him the last two months, I see already that he is a hard worker. I see that he is eager to learn. Those are some of the things that I appreciate about him. A lot of the things that I have told him is it is football. It is the game.

There's no doubt that missing out on OTAs and rookie minicamps is a set back for the players coming into the 2020 season, but Landry hits on an important point that is worth considering. With limited ability to work, it prevents some of these players from going straight through their final collegiate season, pre-draft process right into their rookie year. They are forced to take a break and rest their bodies, which could benefit them overall.

Right now, he has the opportunity and this whole college class has an opportunity to get their legs back under them. This is the first time that [rookies] have not played a year straight. This is kind of like a break for them. One of the things with him working has hard as he is working, I just want him to listen to his body. I keep talking to him all the time, ‘Just listen to your body. Trust your body. Trust what you are feeling right now and understand that a lot of people did not get this opportunity to kind of have this break with this quarantine,’ which is kind of like a blessing in disguise for everybody but especially the college kids that will not actually have a full year of football straight. Just kind of telling him to take care of his body and the ins and outs of everything.”

Landry was then asked about his reaction to Jones being drafted. He didn't realize it initially; only knowing that Jones was drafted.

“I was. I was excited. He actually texted me. I stopped watching the draft on Day 2. He got drafted on Day 3 in the sixth round. I did not watch Day 3. He texted me, and I texted him, ‘I just was thinking about you when you texted me.’ He said, ‘Man, I can’t wait.’ I said, ‘Man, yeah, I know. I can’t wait either.’ Then I looked on Instagram and I saw we drafted him, and I was like, ‘Oh, wait. We drafted you.’ It was kind of like an awkward moment, but it was also a good moment to understand and know being around him and understanding his work ethic that we are getting a guy who can help us with all of the potential he has.”

This might help explain why Jones seemed so content with the fact that he was drafted to the Browns, even if it wasn't as high as he might've wanted to go. Jones, who signed his rookie contract with the Browns, had developed a relationship with Landry before the draft and now immediately has a connection to one of the most important players in his position group as he enters the league, which could prove valuable, despite the difficulties the current situation present.