Deon Butler's Rookie Diary

Deon Butler planned to spend Thanksgiving with a cousin who lives in the area. His cousin just returned home from a long assignment with the Coast Guard, so it was a chance for them to finally catch up. But the Turkey Day plans didn't end there.

"I'm catching everybody else's leftovers on the team," the wide receiver declared. "I'm asking anybody. Anybody need an extra mouth to feed at the dinner table?"

In this week's installment of his rookie diary, Butler talks about missing his family during the holidays, his elusive special teams tackle and what it's like to have a locker next to the outspoken T.J. Houshmandzadeh.

'Oh, yeah, it's a holiday'

"I've gotten into this mode where, on holidays, I'm used to not being around my family. Christmas is probably the biggest one. I was fortunate enough at Penn State to always be at a bowl game during Christmas time. I was just talking to some friends yesterday, and they were like, 'Aww, yeah, I'm home.' And I was like, "What are you doing home?' They're like, 'It's Thanksgiving.' Oh, yeah. My days get so monotonous around here. Football kind of trumps everything, so it's like, 'Oh, yeah, it is a holiday.'

"Definitely once I've talked to my other friends and they're home with their families, I wish I could be with mine. But in another light, I guess I don't feel as bad because my brother can't make it home all the time because he's down in Miami working. If the whole family got together, I probably would feel real bad, but since he can't make it either, my parents probably feel worse than anybody. Whenever we can, we try to meet up all together at one spot. Before this year, it used to be my bowl game at Penn State. My brother would take off to come there, and my parents would be there. But now, I'm not sure. Hopefully, for this year, it can be Christmas. I know my parents want to come up and my brother's really looking into trying to get up here for Christmas. So hopefully we can spend Christmas here and start a new tradition.

'Man, I have no idea what's going on'

"It was another tough game last week. I didn't much play at all. I think I only logged two plays when Nate (Burleson) came out with minor injury. Then I had some special teams playing time. So for me it was kind of boring sitting on the sidelines and being frustrated because we weren't winning. But in another light, I'm watching Brett Favre and Adrian Peterson. After the game, after I'm all finished being mad, I can sit back and all my friends call me and say, "What was Brett Favre like? How was watching Adrian Peterson?' Then I realize how special it is to be in the NFL. It was another good experience to see those guys live and in person. Still, I'm very frustrated we lost. We just gotta keep pushing.

"I'm still watching to make a tackle on special teams. I thought I had a chance last week, but man, I have no idea what's going on. I'm out there, and Obo (Ben Obomanu) is stealing all my tackles. Obo has got all the tackles. I don't have any. I need to get it going. I don't know what's going on. I've got to brush up my tackling skills. I've got to tackle someone in practice. That's what it's got to be. Tackle somebody in practice (laughs). Get that feeling back."

'I hope I'm going the right way'

"I had my autograph sessions on Tuesday, which was great. I met a lot of people. A lot of people. I'm sure some of them were regular readers of this blog. They didn't really say it, but I'm sure some of them were because that's how they said they knew about it. So that was good. At both signings, I had a good turnout. It was just good sitting there talking to people. They had questions about the team, and I was able to provide some insight on the team, about their favorite players or how things are going. They had a little poster out there of me. It's kind of funny because they had me, like, sectioned off at Sports Authority. So when the line died down after 40 minutes or so, it was kind of like I was sitting alone sectioned off and people were like, 'Oh, well, who's that? Look at the poster? Oh, that's Deon Butler. Well, OK.' And I'm just sitting behind this roped-off section like, 'Yeah, well, if you want an autograph, come see.' But it was cool, though.

"I had no clue where I was at when I was going to Lake Stevens. It was so dark outside, and I was like, 'I hope I'm going the right way.' The GPS was taking me somewhere. I guess I really wasn't that far from Bellevue. It was like 30 minutes, maybe. But it just seemed like, 'Man, if this is the wrong way, I'm out in the middle of nowhere.' It just felt like that because I still don't know the area that well."

'The stuff they ask him is funny'

"My locker is next to T.J., that's pure entertainment, I'll tell you that. First and foremost, on those days when he's here and there's like 10 reporters with microphones and recorders to his face, I have to walk around them to get to my locker. Those first couple of times, I was like, 'Man, are they waiting for me? Oh, that's for T.J. OK, OK I got it.' The stuff they ask him is funny. They'll ask him anything because they know he's an outspoken person. They'll have questions, and I'll sit here and listen, and they won't even be about football or the team.

"One time, they asked him about Rush Limbaugh back when he could've been a part of an ownership bid (in St. Louis). They'll just ask him anything because they know he's a straightforward guy. It's funny to listen to his answers. They know he's going to be honest with them all the time.

"Of course, one day I want to be a No. 1 receiver, but I'm not sure I'd be as vocal as T.J. I'm quieter, but I've still got some good opinions, I think. I'd just handle the attention my way. I have to be me."