My rookie year, I played with a lot of quarterbacks. We had something like six starters throughout that season. So I’ve played with that.

Which makes it cool to work with Drew — because he’s still a developing guy — and I get to see first-hand his progress form week-to-week. I love it. He’s a young quarterback with great skills and talents, so it’s great to see him improve each practice, each day.

As a veteran, I take it as an honour to be on the field with him, do my part to teach him and make him more comfortable. I know that the best thing is to do my best for Drew, get open and make the throws easier for him. As he gets more comfortable, he’ll be more able to go out and do his thing.

For example, on the touchdown tonight, we ran the same play twice and the second time I was open. I made sure to run off the safety and that helped Drew get a bit more space and I found my way to the end-zone. Drew just made a great pass and put the ball in there.

Our other receivers were clutch, too. Talley made a great catch down the sideline. Marquay has made some real clutch fourth-quarter catches the last two games, moving the chains.

They are two great receivers. We’re growing as a team. It’s good to have young guys and veterans mixed in together.

I’ve learned to reflect in my career and you get to a point where you feel it’s good to win any games — even exhibitions.

Once you’ve been playing a while, the games mean more. I feel blessed to stay healthy and play this game as long as I have, so each one counts.

Nik Lewis, #82
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