Alfred Morris is a former sixth-round pick who drives a 1991 Mazda 626 -- which he affectionately calls his "Bentley" -- when he's not riding his bicycle. Put another way: the Redskins running back knows he's like the rest of us, even if he's a professional athlete making relatively good money.
It's one reason Morris' pregame ritual at FedEx Field includes spending time with his "stadium family" -- the security and guest service employees he now knows by name thanks to a tradition that started during the 2012 preseason.
“I mean, I’m a person just like anybody else. You’re a person; I’m a person; but just because I play a game, they elevate me,” Morris told the Washington Post's Dan Steinberg. “I’m a normal, everyday person; I just happen to play football in the NFL. ... I ain’t no better than the next person. That’s just the way I look at life, man. In God’s eyes, we’re all equal, so why should I act like I’m better than anybody else when I’m not?”
So what do they talk about?
“We just talk about regular things, regular life,” Lorenzo Parker, a guest services employees, told Steinberg.
“He acts just like he’s one of us,” Parker continued. “I just look at him like a regular friend. It’s nothing different.” My first reaction was, ‘Dang, this is Alfred Morris.’ You know what I’m saying?” McKenneth said. “But seeing how cool and relaxed he was in talking to us, it made us feel cool and relaxed and easy talking to him. I think it does say something for him. It just shows the type of character that he has.”
Indeed. As a rookie, Morris went from late-round afterthought to cult hero, rushing for 1,613 yards and 13 touchdowns. Now he's sharing time with Matt Jones, who has emerged as a play-making back through the first three games of his NFL career. Through it all, Morris remains grounded.
“I’m just paying it forward,” he said. “I had older guys who would do the same thing for me, not only in this world but in college as well, so I just always want to give that back. I know we’re competing, that’s easy, but just to be able to help each other, I think it’s definitely been paying off. … I’m happy for [Jones]. I really am.”
