Grady Jarrett was mic’d up for a Falcons game against the Green Bay Packers back in 2023 and had some choice words for quarterback Jordan Love.

We won’t repeat them here on this family-friendly site, but a paraphrased version suggests that Jarrett prefer, well, that Love not talk so darn much. Jarrett had just run 50 yards in pursuit and then caught someone far lighter, so he didn’t appreciate Love’s comments after the play. Jarrett let him know that in no uncertain terms.

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“When you’re playing ball, when you cross them lines, you’ve gotta be able to go to that dark place,” Jarrett said in a press conference. “Sometimes what happens in that dark place, it’ll get a little crazy. Just being a competitor. I talked about mic’d up with some of the new media team here and was like, ‘You know I’ve got some crazy ones.’ That was released, so the stuff that’s not released gotta be super crazy. But you’ve gotta have that dog in you, you know what I’m saying?”

Jarrett certainly has that, but it doesn’t consume him. That was clear during his introductory press conference just days after signing a three-year deal with the Chicago Bears in free agency, when his magnetic personality simply stole the show.

There’s something else that has defined his exemplary career, guiding him through 10 years and three contracts in Atlanta.

Head coach Ben Johnson used the perfect term when describing his new defensive tackle.

“He’s relentless,” Johnson said. “He’s passionate about what he does. Just talking to him today gave me goosebumps because this guy loves football and he’s gonna bring that element to the team.”

The description is apt.

Jarrett is relentless in all his pursuits. He’s relentless pressuring the quarterback. He’s relentless in his training and while attacking each practice rep. He was relentless rehabilitating from season-ending knee surgery, the first major injury of his NFL career. He was relentless in pursuit of Love a few years back.

That’s how a former fifth-round pick has achieved so much and played so well for so long. While it’s natural to raise an eyebrow when a 31-year old says his best days are ahead of him, it’s unfair to doubt someone who continually defies expectation.

Jarrett never, ever stops. He puts in the work, which in turn creates confidence.

“If I didn’t have that confidence, I wouldn’t be sitting here,” Jarrett said. “If I got comfortable after my first contract extension, I wouldn’t be sitting here. If I got comfortable after my second contract extension, I wouldn’t be sitting here. And at the end of the day, this new contract that I got with a new team is just motivating.

“I’m going to be like that until the day I can’t do this anymore. I’m going to always strive to be better, I’m going to always strive to learn and you never really figure it all out. The day you think you figured it all out, you can only go down. So that’s what I’m excited about and that’s what I’m confident in. My body is good, my body is strong, and my mind is hungry to learn. I’m just in a position to where I’m in a special place at the right time around the right people and I’m super excited about what’s to come.” 

Even after the Falcons released him in a cost-cutting move after 10 years of service to his hometown team, Jarrett didn’t pout. He didn’t need time to collect himself. He hit the open market for the first time and started looking for the right fit. The dollars would come from most anywhere. The right spot needed to be found.

That was Chicago. The Bears were all in after a conversation between general manager Ryan Poles and Matt Ryan, his former college teammate and legendary Falcons quarterback.

“They shared a locker room and the words, how he describes that man is special, and it won’t take you long to understand that,” Poles said. “He’s different.”

The Bears made Jarrett an offer he didn’t need to shop, and he was committed to Chicago just hours after getting released.

“(I’m) somebody who wants to be in a position to compete for championships, encourage the younger guys around me, and just really share my experience and my hunger for greatness to others who want to achieve it,” Jarrett said. “I’m in as special place in a special time in a special moment where I’m supposed to be.”

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