Bears rookie diaries with Tory Taylor, Austin Booker | Week 3
As told to Gabby Hajduk

Bears fourth-round pick Tory Taylor—a punter from Iowa—and fifth-round pick Austin Booker—a defensive end from Kansas—share their training camp experiences exclusively on ChicagoBears.com. This series will feature both players giving first-person accounts once a week throughout training camp.

My first road trip and game in the NFL were definitely a fun time. I really enjoyed just getting out there and seeing the team compete. Even in college, I always enjoyed trips and away games because there's no better feeling than winning away — especially at Iowa when we went to Nebraska and Wisconsin. Great times.

Technically the game was at a neutral site, but it was still the same type of vibe. Going from college to the NFL, the logistics of traveling are pretty much the same. But in terms of the game, there's no comparison to the NFL. It's just that much better. In college, you have a couple tiers of players whereas in the NFL, everyone is either great or amazing.

Because none of the starters played in the Hall of Fame Game, I didn't have the chance to punt, but I was still the holder on all three of Cairo's kicks and then held on one of the kickoffs.

As silly as it sounds, my favorite play of the game was my first hold. I mean, that was my first NFL play. It was definitely one of those things you want to get out of the way because you're obviously a little nervous. Before the play, you're just thinking, 'oh, don't screw up.'

But once I got onto the field, none of those nerves were going through my head. I put myself in a calm state of mind, so I didn't feel too many emotions. But it was a fun experience. Definitely something you feel more once you come off the field.

I know I've said it before, but I really just try and keep everything simple and that includes those emotions. Obviously, it was pretty exciting putting the Bears jersey on for the first time in a game. It reminds you how far you've come. But in terms of the operation, everything remains the same. I always tell myself, "all I gotta do is focus for three hours on gameday." Then, "what can I do in the 10-second period of time I'm out on the field to put the team in the most successful position possible?"

Setting up that success starts with my pregame routine. For the last two years of college, I had a superstition that I needed to eat peanut M&Ms the night before a game. But I recently had a conversation with someone who told me, "that is going to have no bearing on how you perform." It made me realize sometimes you just gotta let things go. There's a difference between a ritual and a routine, and the latter is more important.

So every gameday, I have to do all of my stretching exercises. I do the same thing every time no matter where I'm at. It makes me feel like I'm in the same place from a mental perspective. If you keep things the same even when the environment changes, it gives you the same chance of being successful.

During the game, it's more so doing things like breathing exercises to create a calm state of mind. As weird as it sounds, that takes a lot of work and is something I'm continuously working on. I know if I can get that one thing right, I'll have the highest chance to succeed. Our sports psychologist at Iowa gave me a lot of tips to find that calm state of mind. (Mental performance and leadership coordinator) Andy Riise here at the Bears has also been a huge help in giving me different things to try when it comes to breathing and getting the mind and body right.

Being in that mindset when I go to punt in a game helps me focus on the most important task — how can I make maximum contact with the ball? I don't think about anything else. Just maximum contact, which means I have to get my leg all the way through and put everything into this ball.

While I wasn't able to showcase that in the game, I put in some good work at Tuesday's practice. It was a bit of a chillier day compared to our other practices and I was kicking straight into the wind. In the past, I'd probably think, "oh man, we gotta kick into the wind." But now I know being in Chicago, I'm going to experience this in the game. It was a great opportunity to work it out now.

And honestly, it was probably one of the best punt periods I've ever had in my football career. I was really happy. I was just dropping the ball and swinging straight, keeping things simple. Because if it's breezy, swing easy.

Coach Hightower was happy too, and it always nice to hear him say "great punt" after I hit a good ball. I'm really just lucky to have a coach like HT because not everyone is like him.

He's always trying to find a way to help me be successful, but he lets me go out there and just do my thing. He's never out there telling me "you have to hit this this or hit that." He just says, "what's your best ball? Let's go." HT is just great about finding a happy medium of what works for the both of us.

I really love that because it leads to a better result for me. I can go out there relaxed while knowing I have someone who has my back. I'm not second guessing myself. I'm just looking forward to showcasing the work he, I and the entire unit have put in at practice out at our next few preseason games, so it should be another fun time in Buffalo this weekend.

Going into my first NFL game, there was definitely a mix of nerves and excitement. I was really just going with the flow because it felt like another football game to me, just at a different level.

At the same time, I definitely had the little butterflies before kickoff. I do feel like I get those butterflies every game. But I like it. That's what gets me going. As long as the butterflies are channeled the right way and I still feel confident, I just let it ride.

The trip out to Ohio was a good time with the guys, but the night before a game I really just try and get as much rest as I can. I'll look at the playbook and watch some film just to keep the preparation up.

Because this was my first game here, I'm still working on an exact pregame routine. I feel like it'll be more established this week for Buffalo. But on the bus ride to Canton, I watched some highlights to lock in and get in my mode. Usually I'll watch my highlights or other pass rushers' film.

Listening to music is another thing I'll always do. Thursday I was listening to Destroy Lonely and Ken Carson. Their songs are my favorite type of hype music, so that always gets me right.

On the field during pregame, I try and keep it simple. I like to walk around the field barefoot to ground myself. That's something I do a lot, like after practice on the field. It's good for you and just helps you reset. When we go into the locker room, I'll get stretched by our strength staff and then finish my own warmup on the field.

It was cool to be on the field for the first play of the game, and really the first play of the NFL preseason. I was on special teams for the kickoff and all that was going through my head was "go hit somebody and go full speed." Football is not perfect. Something is bound to go wrong on every play, so as long as you're going 100 percent, it'll work out.

I played about half of our defensive and special teams snaps Thursday night, but I felt like I was just getting my flow going when the game was called off. Overall, I feel like I did my job, did what needed to be done, but I didn't really come away with any stats or major plays like sacks and turnovers.

I had a couple good pass rushes where I put the offensive lineman on the ground, but the ball was coming out quick for sure. I definitely held my own out there, set the edge well and all those things, but my production needs to be up.

I do think I set myself up well for next game, though.

I was doing mostly power moves against the Texans which was just my instinct based on what the offensive line was giving me. They gave me a bunch of passive sets where the lineman is backing up and waiting for you versus being aggressive. Usually on those, you want to go power — go right down the middle of a guy, put your hands on them and drive back. But doing that every time won't work because it takes a while to get to the quarterback that way.

This week, I want to go back to my roots of speed moves and staying on the edge a little more — at least give a mix of power and speed. The speed moves are more finesse moves, trying to get a guy on his toes and make him guess.

It was good to work against a new offensive line since we've been competing with the same guys all training camp. It was cool because the left tackle I was facing was Blake Fisher, who I scrimmaged against in high school. I had never played game reps against him, so it was fun to see him out there.

Being back at camp after playing a game was definitely a weird feeling. I've never been in this situation, so I'm focusing that much more on staying on top of everything — my body, my mind and of course, the playbook.

Every night I fit some studying in back at the hotel. At the start of camp, I made flashcards where I drew the play on one side and wrote the call on the other. I'll see the call, use my whiteboard to draw out the play, flip the card to see if I got it right and vice versa. Things like that just help me stay consistent in my work.

I'm excited to head to Buffalo this weekend and get some more live reps. I just want to contribute more for the team and build those stats up, whether it's tackles, batted balls, fumbles — anything. I'm just gonna fly around and do my thing.

I just can't wait to get another shot at a sack. I wanted one so bad last game. Everyone thought I had one too — I saw some of it on social media — but it wasn't a sack. People were on there super happy and celebrating, but I was over here just pissed off that I didn't make the play.

It is the NFL, though. I know those types of plays will be harder to make because everything is faster and everyone is better.

But if you're really like that, you will find ways to be a playmaker and fill up a stat sheet. I know I can be like that. I feel like I can do it and I'm confident in my preparation to get there, so I'm just eager for Saturday.