Reggie Roberts: You and your wife, Heidi, have been married for a long time and you guys still make time for date night. As grueling and demanding as the NFL season is, how do you guys manage that?
Todd McClure: We've been having our date nights since we had kids (2001). So every Monday night, we usually get together to go get something to eat and just spend some time together.
RR: I've seen you guys out. You both are pretty consistent with the date night, right?
TM: We have been up until this year. We lost our babysitter, man. The kids have more practices. My son is playing football now and my girls are in gymnastics.
RR: I'm curious. You said you lost your babysitter. What happened to her?
TM: The lockout, man. Because of the lockout and the uncertainty of the NFL season over the summer, she had to go and get a real job. She didn't know what was going to happen, so she went and got a steady job.
RR: Before the lockout, was she full-time?
TM: Yeah, pretty much. Heidi and I actually went on our first date this past Monday. We went to get something to eat at the Mall of Georgia. We're getting old. We were going to go to a movie after dinner, but it was getting late, so we took it on in to the house.
RR: The word in the Falcons locker room is that your culinary skills are pretty good. Is there any truth to that?
TM: I love to cook. I normally cook for the kids on Monday and Tuesday nights. I've make gumbo or chicken stew or roast rice and gravy, which is their favorite.
RR: Let's talk about some of your teammates – specifically the offensive line. What's one thing about Tyson Clabo that would surprise people?
TM: That he is a budding entrepreneur. He's gone and bought a bunch of houses and he rents them out and makes a little money on the side. He's also got a shipping company where they go to businesses and handle all of their shipping for them.
RR: Which offensive lineman is the cheapest guy in the group?
TM: Clabo for sure. He just got all of that money (On July 28, Tyson Clabo signed a five-year deal worth $25 million dollars), and he's the cheapest for sure. For the O-line, it's kind of standard that when you sign your new deal, you take the entire line out to dinner to celebrate. It was like pulling teeth with Tyson. We all went out to Ruth Chris the night before we played the Buccaneers in Tampa Bay, and he and Justin (starting guard Justin Blalock) wound up splitting the bill. Both of those guys got paid over the summer, and they split the bill. Unbelievable!
RR: Rumor has it that the Falcons are playing a big game in the Motor City on Sunday.
TM: Winning on Sunday would be huge for us based on where we are. We would have won two games back-to-back and we would go into our bye week with a little momentum. Sunday's game will be tough. Ford Field has become a tough place to play and the Lions are playing well. But if we go play our style of football and don't stop ourselves, we can beat anybody in the league.
RR: How had has it been to maintain your health after 12 long NFL seasons?
TM: The good Lord's been watching over me during my entire career. I've been blessed, but I also believe that you've got to play through some injuries, and I've been able to do that, too. I know my body and I know how to take care of it.
