KANSAS CITY, Mo. — With pride, Trent McDuffie hoisted the ball over his head, high enough for all of his teammates to see it.
Even before the officials confirmed the Kansas City Chiefs’ takeaway in their win over the Cleveland Browns on Sunday, almost all of McDuffie’s teammates on the field celebrated more than he did — jumping into the air, first pumping and eagerly waiting their turn to pat him on the helmet.
McDuffie, the Chiefs’ third-year cornerback, finally accomplished the lone individual statistic that had eluded him longer than he or anyone else on the Chiefs expected: He made his first career interception.
“Man, it’s a blessing,” McDuffie said after the game. “It’s special. A lot of emotions. We finally did it, but also during the time of when I did it. They were driving down the field and trying to get back into the game. They were putting together a pretty good drive, so getting that pick and stopping that momentum, for me, was huge.”
Early in the fourth quarter, the Browns were just 29 yards away from scoring their second touchdown, which would’ve cut the Chiefs’ lead to 7 points. Quarterback Jameis Winston scrambled out of the pocket and toward the right, finding a one-on-one matchup in the corner of the end zone.
At the same time, McDuffie was doing something he had never done before.
“The funny thing is, for whatever reason, I somehow gazed up at the jumbotron because it was a scramble drill,” McDuffie said, smiling. “I just saw (Winston) launch it and I was like, ‘That’s to my side, so let me turn my head around.’
“I could just tell by the way (receiver Michael Woods II) was running and his eyes, he was kind of lolling around. I just peeked. I was like, ‘All right, let’s do it.’”
Read more about McDuffie below.
