"It meant everything...my dad was like 'I want you at the Commanders. I want you at the Commanders so bad.' I really wanted to come here too," Taylor explained. "I took a couple days, that's why I didn't say nothing after the draft. I just wanted to pray on it, and at the end of the day, it was my decision."
The decision to come to Washington meant opening the door to what Coach Quinn has described as a "golden opportunity" for tryout players. This weekend in Ashburn, Gabe Taylor is focused on showing Washington's coaching staff that he can contribute to this team.
It would be easy for Taylor to get swept up in the "what ifs" of these few days. He, like other tryout players who are here, can taste the NFL dream. Taylor, however, says he is taking it "one day at a time," which is exactly what Quinn wants the attitude around minicamp to be for these guys.
"We don't really want them to really think about that \[the 53-man roster or practice squad\] yet. We don't really go so far as to say, 'What's going to happen in September?' Just work these skills, learn the system and the skills that are needed for the system," Quinn said. "If we can do that excellently then the 53 and the practice squad will kind of work itself out. If you're already looking ahead to that, I think you're going to miss all of the development, all the things that are going to take place."
Taylor has come in with the approach to soak up as much as possible from his minicamp time. He knows there are aspects of his play that could use refining and traits about him that some might see as a disadvantage. While he doesn't want those opinions to be a distraction, he isn't the type of person to hit the mute button on the noise.
"I like to see those comments, you know? I'm the type of person that thrives on critics. I'd rather be criticized than all the positivity, because I gotta get better," he said.