Kaiir Elam gives interesting response on decision to attend Florida
The Bills were enamored with former Florida cornerback Kaiir Elam, and that’s why they selected him in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft. The defensive back showed his stuff against the stiffest competition in college football through his time with the Gators, and his methodical approach endured him to Buffalo.
Evidently, a methodical approach doesn’t stay on the football field for Elam, as the former Florida defensive back revealed how he decided to join the program.
“I think it didn’t,” responded Elam, when asked if his Uncle playing at Florida impacted his decision. “Honestly, I sat down with my parents the night before signing day and I put on an excel spreadsheet, my pros and cons of going to the University of Florida. Pros and cons of going to Georgia, Miami and Colorado. Florida had the most pros, and least cons. So, that’s why I chose Florida.”
A true excel savant, as well as a football star. Continuing, Elam stated he believes taking his time helped with his decision, as well.
“I think the benefit of doing it the way I did it was just making sure I made the right decision with the most time possible to get as much information, and much knowledge from teams — I mean, from schools, as possible,” explained Elam. “I believe it benefitted me a lot, honestly.”
While the pros outweighed the cons in attending Florida, Elam didn’t shy away from the SEC. The former Florida star also stated his belief that the SEC is the best conference in college football.
“I think there’s no argument that the SEC’s the best conference in college football,” stated Elam. “Being able to compete at a high level, win key matchups and things like that, I think that will help a lot transitioning to the NFL. But everything is about what’s earned here. It’s all about results at the end of the day, no matter what the situation is. So, I’m just striving to get better, each and every day. Striving to learn as much as I can to help implement my game, and help amplify the players around me, as well. Learn as much as I can from them, too.”
Finally, the first round pick of the Bills made it easy to see why the franchise fell for him, as he spoke about his preparation and willingness to win.
“I believe I’m prepared,” responded Elam. “But I also believe I have to keep working. You’re only as good as your last performance. Honestly, I don’t believe in my past performance. I try to put my best foot forward, and that’s something I’m still learning — to put my best foot forward every time I step on the field. I’m just striving to continue to get better now, through this process now.
“On the field, it’s all about winning. So, that’s my biggest thing. That could be the little things, like one on one in practice. Or that could be the on the field, playing whatever team we play that week.”
As you can see, Kaiir Elam is brimming with potential for the Buffalo Bills. As his NFL career begins, he’ll have the backing for Florida faithful hoping he succeeds.
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Moreover, Kaiir Elam is the nephew of former Florida and NFL safety Matt Elam, who was drafted by the Ravens in the first round of the 2013 NFL Draft. Kaiir Elam impressed early for the Gators with three interceptions as a true freshman. Elam then started all 12 games in 2020 and posted a team-high 11 pass breakups, along with 39 tackles and two interceptions. His 2020 season earned him first-team All-SEC honors from the SEC coaches. In 2021, Elam missed three games with a knee injury. Still, he recorded 29 tackles, one interception and five pass breakups in the ten games he was able to start.
Elam was a former four-star recruit according to the On3 Consensus rankings, a complete and equally weighted industry-generated average. He played high school football at The Benjamin School in Florida, where he transformed himself as a player. His father, Abram Elam, played at Notre Dame and Kent State before playing seven years in the NFL himself.
According to his father, Elam wasn’t the player Florida Gators fans know when he started playing. “He was one of the worst players on the football team his freshman year,” his father told the Athletic. But then Elam started putting in the work to be the best he can be. By the time he graduated from high school, he was a top-100 recruit and Florida commit.
The On3 Consensus rankings put Elam as the sixth-highest ranked cornerback of the 2019 recruiting class, and the eighth-overall player from the state of Florida.