No question of talking about the bad luck of the second year for Benjamin St-Juste. The Washington Commanders defensive back has cemented his place in the starting lineup and his name is resonating more and more across the NFL. The 25-year-old Quebecer spent about fifteen minutes on the phone with The Pressfrom his wife’s home in Colorado, to discuss the past, present and future.
There were 35 seconds left in the game. It was last October 13, in Chicago, as part of the Thursday Night Football, in prime time on US national television. The Bears trailed the Commanders 12-7. After three unsuccessful plays in the pay zone, they went for it all on fourth down, four yards from base. “In the NFL, on the fourth down, you have to score, the ball has to end up in the hands of your best player and the best player on the other side, it was Darnell Mooney”, explains St-Juste, dissecting the game in great detail, even though the footage dates back almost four months.
“I was one on one with him. I knew the ball would come my way. At that moment, he had to “stay calm”: “I had to focus on my technique. »
Upon lifting the ball, Mooney started an option plot. He sold a slant, a 45-degree path inside, but he changed his trajectory to go outside, “which is very difficult to cover for a defensive back”, insists the athlete from Rosemère.
“Thanks to my agility and my footwork, I was able to make the change of direction quickly enough to return to one yard in front of the goal line. »
Quarterback Justin Fields tossed the ball towards Mooney on the corner of the end zone. St-Juste explains: “The goal was to put my arm between his two arms when the ball arrived. That way he couldn’t close his hands to catch the ball and have control. And then, with my other arm, I managed to get him off the goal line to make sure it wasn’t a touchdown. »
Mooney never entered the area with the ball. St-Juste had just made the biggest play of his career to secure the victory for his team. “I even received the match ball from coach Rivera. »
The Quebecer took the time to savor the moment. “These are not things that happen every day. »
This kind of frenzy “just makes him want to do more and play like that again for [son] team,” he insists.
A positive balance sheet
Thanks to the importance of this game, but also to its effectiveness throughout the season,
St-Juste stood out all over the league. Even within his team, he has become indispensable. He was on the starting lineup in all 12 games he played. He had to miss five times to recover from an ankle injury.
PHOTO FROM WIKIPEDIA
Quebecer Benjamin St-Juste, defensive back for the Washington Commanders
It was a big leap from my first year to my second year.
Benjamin St-Juste
In truth, he describes his 2022 season as “a season of development, progress, ups and downs, both individually and collectively”.
He caused 1 fumble, had 2 quarterback sacks and 42 tackles. Its performance nearly doubled in all categories. “I think my future is bright in Washington. »
Especially since the team continues to improve. The Commanders finished the year one berth in the playoffs, in addition to being the first team to inflict a loss on the Philadelphia Eagles.
A new challenge
St-Juste will nevertheless participate in the Super Bowl, but in an analyst role. He will join the Réseau des sports (RDS) team during the presentation of the report on Sunday evening.
“I’m excited to work with them,” he says. […] When they offered it to me, I accepted on the spot. I think I’m going to love it, I’m very comfortable with interviews. »
St-Juste’s addition to the panel is a fitting one, as he regularly faces the division rivals Eagles. “It’s still football, so I’m able to give good content and information to Quebecers who will watch the game and who like to learn about it. It gives another perspective to have a guy who plays against the players who will be on the field. »
Who benefits?
According to St-Juste, we will be entitled to an excellent confrontation. In his opinion, there will be an abundance of points.
They are two teams that score a lot. They have explosive players, good quarterbacks. I expect each of the teams to score at least 21 points. Otherwise, it would be surprising.
Benjamin St-Juste
The Commanders were the only team to beat Jalen Hurts this season. For the Chiefs, whose defense raises a lot of questions as this big game approaches, it will be necessary to excel in the deep areas to hope to be able to compete with the Eagles.
“You have to limit explosive plays, that is to say all plays of 35 yards or more, like long passes to DeVonta Smith or AJ Brown. The Eagles like to take advantage of plays like that and that’s how we managed to beat them this season. »
The winning recipe would therefore be to “limit the Eagles to short games, like short races”.