Tampa Bay Buccaneers defensive tackle Gerald McCoy has admitted that he relishes facing offensive lineman Davin Joseph in practice.
The duo are former first-round picks having been selected in the 2010 and 2006 drafts respectively and have become core players for Greg Schiano's side in their time at the club.
McCoy told The Tampa Tribune: "Davin is the man; I love going against Davin. Every time he takes a rep, I'm there. If they say ,'Gerald, get out of there,' I say, 'No, I'm not getting out because Davin is up.' That's my partner.
"He's been mentoring me since I got here, staying on me. If he thinks I'm having a bad practice he'll come up to me and say, 'That's not good enough, pick it up.
"That's just what we do. We go at it. And that's why I couldn't wait for him to get back. And when he got back he was looking for me. I was like, 'All right, I'm up. Let's go."
The Buccaneers face the New York Jets in their regular season opener on September 8.
Simon Sinclair
