Resting one foot on his locker stool, Darrelle Revis leaned forward and rubbed his short black beard.
"Man, you're taking me back," he said, smiling.
A wave of nostalgia washed over him as he revisited his past and then contemplated his future. For years, he was the standard _ the cornerback capable of stranding receivers, of any size, on his one-man island.
But he no longer is the undisputed shutdown corner in the NFL, the unquestioned No. 1 at his position. Now, Revis is known by other names in the locker room.
"The G.O.A.T."
"Uncle Drew."
"Old Head."
The playful jabs are signs of respect for the elder statesman, who, at 31, is as much an asset on the field as he is behind closed doors. But those nicknames are also indicative of the changing times. And Revis knows it.
During a candid interview with Newsday, the 10-year veteran opened up about being an aging NFL star and why he's considering an eventual position switch to safety.
"You've got to enjoy it and you've got to adjust to the way people view you," said Revis, a seven-time Pro Bowler, who won a Super Bowl with the Patriots in 2014. "It shows you how fast you do grow up in this league and how old you become.
"When I was 24, 25, people were like, 'You're the shutdown corner.' Now, people are like, 'He's the G.O.A.T.' or they call me 'Uncle Drew,' " Revis said of being referred to as the "greatest of all time" or the old-man alter ego created by NBA star Kyrie Irving. "They call me 'Uncle Buck.' They've got all these crazy 'Uncle' or older vet-type of names. It's cool, though."
