The former Eagles wideout muses about growing up in South Central L. A. and playing the Birds twice a year as a member of the Redskins
DeSean Jackson appeared on the Arsenio Hall Show Monday night to promote his children’s book, but he also got to answer a bunch of questions about football. And about the Eagles. And about his ex-coach, Chip Kelly.
“You see him twice this year?” Hall asked.
“Oh yeah,” Jackson responded. ” Twice. Two times. Not once; twice.”
“Now look, I’m in this business, and I know our publicists load us with politically correct answers for questions, but you have to be waiting for those two times to wear his ass out,” Hall then asked. “Just personally, you want to get in Chip Kelly’s head.”
“Yeah, I mean, for sure them two games, there’s gonna be something special about them two games,” Jackson said with a laugh. “For sure. I’ve got to definitely go up on that. For sure.”
Hall later asked Jackson about the much-bandied “gang affiliations” label.
“The speculation, it is what it is. Myself growing up in Los Angeles California, South Central, Inglewood, Crenshaw, I was raised through that,” Jackson said. “So at the end of the day, me being a professional athlete, I just can’t look at them at the end of the day and say ‘Peace Y’all, I’m gonna go over here and do my thing.’ I know how to separate it from my business and going to work, and when I’m hanging out having a good time with my friends.
“But a lot of us all said we wanted to make it, and I was fortunate enough to make it, so I want to share light with my boys,” Jackson said. “I want them to come out and have a good time, I want them to live the life I’m living too. It ain’t no fun if the homies can’t have none, right?”
And Hall then asked Jackson whether he ever sits back and pledges to act differently with his next NFL team.
“I mean, I’m an honest person,” Jackson said. “I’m a realist at the end of the day. I’m human, I’m not perfect. At the end of the day, I came in the NFL at 20 years old, so that was a lot given to me. And coming where I came from, I had to get along, I had to learn some things, I had to go through what I had to get to to get to where I’m at now. I’m 27 now, and I can definitely say I learned a lot, and for sure I’m going to do things a little different.
“But as far as overall being a bad energy in the locker room? None of that stuff never occurred,” Jackson continued. “I love my teammates, I love to go out there and do the things I can to help my team win. And at the end of the day, that’s all it’s about, you feel me?”
