SANTA CLARA -- Deommodore Lenoir is the smallest player on the 49ers defense, but he doesn't play like he's small.
He's one of the biggest hitters on the 49ers defense, and he's a major trash talker as well. Every game, you see Lenoir get in someone's face and say something disrespectful to a player much bigger than him. And every game, Lenoir backs up his trash talk with excellent performance.
Here's what Lenoir said Wednesday in the 49ers' locker room about his demeanor on the field.
ME: Do you talk trash on the field?
LENOIR: "Oh yeah, for sure. I'm an open book on the field. I feel like you have to talk trash in this league. It brings out that confidence, that swag. Deion Sanders did it, and look at him. He's one of the greatest. I don't knock people for talking trash. It's never personal."
Q: Do you remember talking trash in your first career game, which was against the Lions?
LENOIR: "That was the first game I ever played that I didn't say nothing. That was my first game, so I had to earn my stripes before I said something."
Q: Nick Bosa described you as a rabid dog.
LENOIR: "Yeah that's pretty accurate. There have been a lot of times he has had to calm me down and tell me, 'We need you, we need you, chill out.'"
ME: How often do you face Brandon Aiyuk in practice and how has that daily competition changed you?
LENOIR: "He lines up mostly on my side, so I will save 70 percent of the time. He definitely helped me get way better. Facing him in practice helped me sharpen my tools, so now when I face other receivers who aren't as good as him, it's like practice."
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