Malaki Starks: ‘Everything We Want is Still in Front of Us’ | Baltimore Ravens

Malaki Starks: ‘Everything We Want is Still in Front of Us’ | Baltimore Ravens

What what is kind of the the mindset of the the defense right now? It’s been kind of a rough start to the season, but as far as, you know, as you’re out there practicing, being room, what how would you describe the mindset of the defense? Yeah, I think the biggest thing is just to get back to playing our type of defense and, you know, who we want to be. I think uh we know who we have in the room. we know the guys that we have on the defense in the locker room, the type of coaches that we have and just really focusing on ourselves, you know, finding out what we need to do to get to where we want to be and just kind of focusing on the steps and not so much the bigger goal. Is it challenging to play team defense when when the unit’s struggling that you know that it’s not 11 guys going out there trying to do something extra, try to make a big play? I mean, how how challenging can that be when things are not going the way you want it to? Yeah, I think um I mean it can be, you know, and I think the biggest thing is I think what I love about our locker room and our team is that like guys realize you’re playing with guys who know how to do their job. Um people you can trust, you know, uh and yes, like the season’s not going how we want it to. We’re not getting outcomes that we want right now, but um there’s not a single guy in that locker room that doesn’t trust a person next to him, you know? And I think that’s like the biggest the best thing really. Um so like nobody’s like really focusing on like, okay, I got to do my job and then like I got to go make a play. Yeah, I got to go make a play. Like the biggest thing is like you make the play whenever it comes to you, you know? I mean, I think that’s kind of like the mindset of everybody. What’s it like to wake up and see two new faces in your room and that can help you guys out at on defense at safety? Um, it’s awesome, you know, uh, especially for me like as a rookie, you know, just really learning from guys who have so much experience, you know, like I I got a chance to talk to both of them today a lot and just like, you know, how they view the game of football. Um and just you know that older those older presence in the room like you can never complain about that you know so just you know coming here and meeting them seeing them going out to practice today um you know it always brings a new type of energy to the room uh so we’re all excited. Okay. Uh Kyle Vanoi after the game Sunday said, you know, talked about accountability and everyone’s got to be accountable. Who on the defensive side is with the injuries and so forth. Who’s who’s taking charge of that within the defensive not not or but who who among players is leading right now? Yeah, I think I think the biggest thing and he was right. You know, accountability is huge, but it starts like within yourself. Like you can’t take accountability until you look yourself in the mirror. Um, and I think a lot of guys are are doing that and it’s kind of coming as one. Like for instance, Vanoi, he’s a really big voice in that room. You know, he’s an older guy. He’s been in the league for a long time. Like he knows what he’s doing. Um, like a lot of guys who are that voice like they’re doing it, you know, but everybody has to start with their yourself first, you know, cuz you can’t like it’s hard to it’s hard to do something like tell somebody do something and like you’re not where you’re supposed to be as well, you know? Uh, so it’s really looking yourself in the mirror and and figuring that out first and then taking accountability as a team. Mal, you saying that first start looking at yourself, how would you evaluate how you played so far through through uh five seasons? Yeah, I think uh I have very high expectations. Um I don’t I don’t pay attention to uh to stats or whatever, you know, as long as a play gets made, it gets made. But I think my biggest thing is just trusting myself. um trusting what I see, trusting what I feel, and just going out there and playing and having fun. Um I think um I’m still learning. I’m going to be learning for a long time. I mean, everybody is. Uh but I think really just playing ball, you know, just cutting it loose. Um I think that’s the one thing I really want to focus on is just going out there and being myself. You think at times you’re being a little tentative. Is that kind of where you’re going? Uh yeah. Uh just sometimes like I’ll see something and like it’ll be like a like a split second where I think about it, you know, like there is no time for that in football. just when you see it, you go. And I think that’s what I just want to get to. Have the last five weeks been a shock? I mean, you didn’t play in a lot of losing games. Georgia, I mean, you’ve joined a team that everyone thought was going to be a Super Bowl contender. I mean, what’s just what’s it been like? Yeah, I think um I think it’s been a lesson, you know. It’s a test, you know. I think there’s there’s two ways to look at it, you know. It’s it’s either like, oh, it wasn’t our year, you know, we didn’t we didn’t have whatever. It wasn’t our year. Or, okay, this is a test. It’s like what do we need to do to get to where we want to be? And like I said earlier, I think that’s the mindset, you know, like nobody’s pointing fingers, nobody’s doing any of this stuff. Nobody’s dividing within. So like it’s really just focusing on where we want to be and like the steps to get there. Uh focusing on the steps that it takes to get to where we want to be cuz everything we want is still in front of us and I think everybody knows that. You can see that they’re obviously trying to as far as personnel, they’re bringing in some new guys. I’m trying to tinker with that a little bit. Have you seen anything this week where maybe scheme wise, philosophywise, has anything changed as far as that defensively? Yeah, I think um the coaches, you know, want to make it simple. Uh they want they want to they want us to go out there and play. Um and they’re doing their best job. They’re putting the best game plan they can and it’s on us to go out there and execute. So, uh they’ve been doing a great job so far. with the Bishn being lost to the year and Adop being traded. I mean, Cub didn’t already feel like on this defense, the secondary has to be the kind of tip of the spear. Yeah, I think um I think every group has like its own energy, you know, like um like the game is one up front. Everybody knows that. And then the linebackers have their own type of energy, you know, the defense have that the DBs have their own type of energy. So, I think um I think it’s time for everybody just to to take it up one notch, you know. Um, and I think a lot of guys understand that. And, uh, just like how I said earlier, just going back to being us, you know, going out there, flying around, having fun, and competing, um, at the end of the day, no matter what it is or what the case may be, just being the defense that we want to be about that, you know, there’s personnel changes, a trade, bringing some new guys. Does it kind of drive home the point of of doing everything possible to get the thing turned turned around and pointing in the right direction? Does it kind of drive home that point? Yeah, I think uh I think it does. You know, I think some guys can I guess this was like my first time like kind of going through it, you know, like that don’t happen in college. Like I woke up today and I was like, “Dang.” Like there’s two new faces in the room, you know? So it’s it’s a little different, but like you realize that it’s your job, you know, like there’s a sense of urgency that goes behind it. Um but you know, like the coaches have 100% faith in us, 100% trust in us, and we have 100% trust in them as well. So just really going out there and figuring out as a team, as a defense, offense, special teams, what we need to do and how to get it done.

Safety Malaki Starks on the state of the defense, evaluating his performance through Week 5 and more.

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