LIONS S KERBY JOSEPH QUOTE SHEET
April 24, 2025
On his feelings on signing his contract extension and when the idea of getting a contract extension became real: “Really, it started to seem real – I mean, it always seemed real to me. I knew – first off man, I just wanted to say – I just want to thank God. Without God, I wouldn’t be in this position, I wouldn’t be in this. As long as I kept my faith, He stuck with me through everything right by my side, every step of the way. Second of all, I just want to thank, of course, the Ford family. I just want to say I appreciate you, (Lions Principal Owner and Chair) Sheila (Ford Hamp), you know. Third of all, I do want to thank my team – my team and also my family because those are people that stuck beside me through this whole time and supported me my whole way, and it wasn’t pretty getting here. But this is something I worked really hard for, and to see this is just amazing. So, thankful for them and thankful for this team – the Lions organization, the coaches, the staff, everybody. I just – I couldn’t do this without my teammates or the coaches or everybody that works in this organization, so I want to say thank you to them all. After the end of the season, offseason, we’re talking about it now because this is the year that everything happens. I had a good portfolio of my past three years, so we were talking. I’ll say probably like a month – within that first month after the season.”
On how it felt to sign his name on the dotted line: “Oh man, it felt amazing. I signed my name a couple of times because I wanted the feeling over and over again, so that was pretty good. It’s just amazing just to sit down – I literally sat there, took a breath in and just realized that, ‘OK, this is what it is.’ All glory to God.”
On what it means to be compensated at the highest level: “I mean, it means everything to me. I feel like it strives (me) toward my goal of one day putting on a gold jacket, so I feel like this is a huge step, a huge, huge milestone in my career and in my life. It’s just crazy to see, it’s crazy to hear. Like if everyone truly knew my story, man, the stuff I had to go through to get here, man, it’s just – it’s just amazing. Man, I feel so blessed.”
On how far it goes in the locker room for players to see their teammates getting contract extensions after playing well: “I feel like that goes a long way, I feel like it’s a sense of security. I feel like the Lions, they do a great job, (Lions Executive Vice President and General Manager) Brad (Holmes) does a great job of – like he says, he likes to keep his guys and keeping that culture, keeping that locker room how it is. I feel like that’s a huge thing because everybody was happy for me when I came in today, seeing everybody talking about, ‘Let me hold a dollar.’ So, it’s just funny – it’s just funny to see everybody happy, it’s always great to see my teammates. They’re saying they wanted me back, so I’m back and they know I deserved it and they’re just happy to see me happy.”
On the idea that he will have a target on his back because of his contract and if it will be a source of motivation for him: “Honestly, the money never motivated me – I do this because I love it. Of course it’s a bonus, don’t get me wrong – it comes with it, but I really play this game because I love it, man. And it was just honestly – man, I just a have a certain passion for this game that I feel like I can never let go. So, honestly, it’s always going to be motivation, but it’s a mentality within myself that, ‘Man, now I’m trying to PR. I got nine (interceptions), now I’ve got to get 10.’ Get some sacks in there, just going against myself. And, by the way, I’m always going and striving for the greatest, striving to beat records, reach for that, but really, man, it’s only up from here, and I don’t see myself ever stopping.”
On what his expectations were coming into the NFL and about becoming the highest-paid safety in the NFL so quickly: “I would say – I mean, it didn’t happen quick. It wasn’t really quick. I would say it took its time, but I feel like it’s perfect timing, honestly. I knew it was going to take a minute, but I knew I just had to stay the course like how I’ve been doing all my life, just staying down, being humble and just keeping my faith. I feel like, as I always say, God got me, so whenever I have hard times, I just pray and I just keep my faith, and I feel like me doing that really got me this opportunity right here.”
On his thoughts when he was selected in the NFL Draft: “My thoughts were, for the Draft, they didn’t know where I was coming – where I was going to get drafted at. They were telling (me), ‘Man, you could go from like the third round – second round to like (the) sixth round.’ I’m like, ‘Bro, that’s the whole Draft.’ I had all this stuff – so, I wasn’t – I told myself, ‘Man, I can’t be anxious, I can’t have no anxiety.’ It’s just like, ‘Man, wherever I get drafted, I don’t care because as long as I get my foot in the door, I’m making my name in the League. Ya’ll are going to know who Kerby Joseph is.’ So, I didn’t really mind – I didn’t really care where I got drafted. And I didn’t have this is in my head, but I heard if you get drafted a little later, you get something called a PP bonus, so that’s a little plus side of just – just keeping your faith though. I didn’t know what was going to happen, but man, I knew that this is where I wanted to be and this how I needed to do it, so that’s what I did.”
On if he will treat himself to anything special after his contract extension: “Honestly, I already – I’m straight. I do have some people I’ve got to take care of though, Ma Dukes is definitely one of them. So, I’m all good, man. I’m just blessed, I’m just thankful to be here today. So, I’m all good, man, I don’t really need nothing.”
On his goals for the rest of his career: “Man, I want to be the best. I need to be the best. I need to put on a gold jacket. I feel like it’s just everything I ever worked for all my life. I just feel that gold jacket, you mix that in with a Super Bowl – Super Bowl champion, I feel like that’s just a great little mix right there. You can’t ever take that away from me. So, I just feel like that’s just two things that I really want to go for – Super Bowl for my team and as a teammate, and as a player for the Lions, just to put on that gold jacket one day and be recognized for all my talent.”
On if he believes timing is everything with his career trajectory being similar to that of the team: “I would say, man, it’s just – like you said, man, it’s just perfect timing. God works in mysterious ways, I feel like God placed me here for a reason, and it’s all glory to God. He put me here, He surrounded me around my teammates, He surrounded me around great people on the staff, in the locker room, the nutritionists, it’s just that – man, it’s like the culture here is just everything you would ask for. I’m not complaining, I feel like it was pretty good timing. I’m happy this happened.”
On what he thinks of the newly renovated locker room: “I love them. I love them, I was just telling a reporter the other day – they’re presidential. I feel like nobody has a locker room like how that is, and I love the floor plan, like how we can still see each other and still congregate, talk and stuff like that, I feel like that’s good. And the seats are comfortable, man, I’m not going to lie, the seats are definitely comfortable.”
