TEMPE, Ariz. -- If and when he gets a call from a team this year, former Arizona Cardinals linebacker LaMarr Woodley says he’ll be ready.
The free agent explained on SiriusXM NFL Radio that he is preparing both physically and mentally to play in the upcoming season.
“I’m staying in shape,” Woodley said. “The thing is, I put myself in a situation where I’ve been hurt these past two years. So I don’t really control my situation. I can’t make a team call me. All I can do is prepare myself and keep myself ready. And also, I’m going to make sure my mind is working.”
After playing in just six games in 2014 because of a biceps injury, Woodley played in 10 games last season, due to a torn pectoral muscle. He was largely unproductive in 2015, finishing with 10 tackles and just one sack, while playing a role that mainly focused on stopping the run. He played 91 percent of his snaps on first and second down.
But Woodley contends he can still “get the job done,” but only if he is put in the right situation.
“I can go out there and play at a high level,” Woodley said. “I just need to be out there on the field to play at a high level and not just be used for certain situations, as far as going out there and stopping the run. As an outside linebacker, they predicate our game on sacks, and I have to be in there on third-down situations to get sacks. But if I’m not in there on third-down situations, you ain’t going to see the stats.”
Woodley, who played just 21 snaps on third down last season, has been critical this summer of his past two defensive coordinators, including the Cardinals’ James Bettcher. Woodley called them both “dumb.”
