Giants linebacker and defensive captain Jonathan Casillas tackled some Q&A with Post columnist Steve Serby.

Q: What is your definition of a captain?

A: A leader, a motivator, a path-setter. A guy that goes out there and leads by example. No matter what he says, he’s doing what he has to do, and people can look for him, ’cause he’s gonna be right in the right spot at the right time. He’s very reliable, and he sets the tone, he sets the standards.

Q: If you could go back in history and pick the brain of any football player or coach in history, who would it be?

A: Lawrence Taylor. … We’ve heard so much about this guy, they’ve got specials on him here and there. If I speak to him, as a New York Giant captain, what is Lawrence Taylor gonna say to me, when I start picking his brain?

Q: What would you want to ask him?

A: I would ask him how was it being him in New York? Being Lawrence Taylor in New York. From the off-field to the on-field. I got coached by Bill [Belichick, with the Patriots in 2014]. Bill Belichick was [Taylor’s] linebacker coach when he was here. I tried to get something from Bill, Bill didn’t give me nothing. I said, “Bill, you got a story for me please?” He didn’t tell me nothing (smile). Jessie [Armstead] told me something though. … Jessie said when he was a rookie, they gave him the starting nod at Mike linebacker. Jessie said he was in the huddle like, “All right, everybody shut the f— up and listen to me.” So everybody in the huddle’s talking, and LT was probably one of the guys talking. And [Armstead] said, LT looked at him like (laugh), he said, “You shut your damn mouth when you’re in my huddle. You don’t talk to me like that. I put these fans here. I built this stadium.” Jessie said, the next call comes back, they were waiting for the call, and Jessie did not say anything to the defense.

Q: What is the difference in motivational styles of Tom Coughlin and Ben McAdoo?

A: I feel like Tom was up and down. Tom was fiery, then he was cool. He was hot, he was cold. It was kind of like you don’t really know what you’re gonna get on a given day (chuckle). He’d come in, he might be monotone, then all of a sudden you come out at practice, he’s jumping around like, “Let’s go guys!” McAdoo’s always the same way — he’s fiery all the time.

Q: Have you ever seen anything like Odell Beckham Jr?

A: No. The kid’s amazing. I brought my daughter to his house to watch the LSU-Wisconsin game. She’s calling him his whole name: (high-pitched voice) “Odell Beckham, hey Odell Beckham, how you doing?” She’s staring at him the whole time (smile), I’m like, “You’re embarrassing me, stop staring at him.” It wasn’t really that, it was more or less like that’s the guy that she sees on TV. He’s a rock star on this level. That’s off the field. But on the field, nobody works harder than him.

Q: Who are linebackers now you like to watch?

A: When I first got into the league, I had film on Jon Beason and Patrick Willis. Now, I watch Lavonte David, Thomas Davis, NaVorro Bowman, and of course [Luke] Kuechly.

Q: What drives you?

A: At first, when I was younger, it was to get a scholarship … to let my mom not pay for my education. And then, when I got to college, it was to be good enough to get to the NFL. And then when I get to the NFL, I won my first Super Bowl as a [Saints] rookie, and that spoiled me. And now, it’s the quest for the rings. I’m always trying to get another ring. I play like I want to go to the Super Bowl. I practice like I want to go to the Super Bowl. I talk like I want to go to the Super Bowl, because I’ve been to the Super Bowl, and there’s nothing better in this profession than going to the Super Bowl and winning it. And, I want to get rings for other guys. I want to get Eli [Manning] his third, I want to get Zak [DeOssie] his third. I want to have DRC [Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie] actually win one — he’s been to two, he’s lost both of ’em.

Q: You won your second Super Bowl with the Patriots. Is it addictive?

A: It is very addictive. My first time around, I didn’t know any better, I’m just kind of soaking everything in. The second time around, I realized the first time I didn’t have any pictures with the trophy. The second time I got a lot of pictures with the trophy (laugh).

Q: In the Super Bowl XLIV win over the Colts, did you recover the onside kick at the start of the second half for the Saints or was it Chris Reis?

A: I say it’s both of us, because when I went in there, I got the ball. But I could not get up because the referee was sitting on top of me. And the referee was like, “White ball, white ball, white ball,” so I let the ball go, and Chris Reis got up with it.

Q: What did you thinking when the Seahawks didn’t give Marshawn Lynch the ball at the 1-yard line late in Super Bowl XLIX?

A: (Chuckle). Not a good call by them. Not a good call by them.

Q: In 25 words or less, describe Olivier Vernon.

A: OV is a quiet beast.

Q: Jason Pierre-Paul.

A: Freak of nature.

Q: Johnathan Hankins.

A: He’s a better player than he was last year, and he was good last year.

Q: Damon “Snacks” Harrison.

A: He’s the immovable object.

Q: Defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo.

A: Spagnuolo is a very passionate, caring, smart, well-intentioned human being.

Q: Describe your draft-day experience in 2009.

A: I call it the best, worst, longest day of my life. … We were at my mom’s house in Somerset, and I got everybody there, man. At one point, late in the fifth [round], before the sixth, my aunt’s asking me, “Is your phone on?” I’m like, “Yes, my phone’s on!” So at one point I went upstairs, I’m like, what the hell? Is this really happening to me? Am I good enough to play? My mom came up there, and I cried a little bit. I’m not a crier, but it was a very emotional thing for me. She always says what I need to hear. It was something along the lines like, “Don’t worry, it’ll happen. It’ll come soon. Don’t worry about those guys that passed up on you. Whenever you get your opportunity I know you’re gonna get the best of it. But come back downstairs when you get a chance.”

Q: You signed as an undrafted free agent with the Saints.

A: I told my family like, “Look, I’m not going down there to make any friends, I’m going down there to take somebody’s job.”

Q: Did that fuel your fire?

A: (Reveals tattoo on right hand) 4-26-09, that’s draft day, on my hand, you see it?

Q: When did you get that?

A: Like two days, three days later. Before I had my neck tattoos, my only visible tattoo when I had sleeves on. So I could see it every day, for motivation. I knew that I would have to go above and beyond to go ahead and make this team.

Q: Your 5-year-old daughter Jade drives you now.

A: She is amazing. She’s so smart, and funny. But she’s caring. She sees a little kid or baby, she goes (in high-pitched voice), “Oh look at the baby! Can I hold the baby?” She’s always been like that. She has a huge heart at such a young age.

Q: Describe your mom.

A: Born in Puerto Rico, moved here very, very, very young, maybe 1 or 2 years old. She was a nurse. When we were growing up, we didn’t have too much. At one point, she had three kids, welfare, public transportation, I remember taking buses and stuff. We didn’t know any better though. She was taking [Routes] 1 and 9 to work from Jersey City to New Brunswick, instead of taking the Turnpike because she couldn’t afford the toll. And I didn’t know that until I got older. That’s a straight shot, that’s like 45 minutes. On 1 and 9? That’s like an hour-and-a-half at least.

Q: Who was your boyhood idol?

A: Allen Iverson was everything to me. He was like us — when I say us, he was a young, black kid, with the braids, and how he dressed. It was like he was reachable, ’cause he kind of looked like us. he wasn’t that big, and he played like the biggest guy on the court.

Q: Who are athletes in other sports you admire?

A: LeBron [James] was the best player on the planet at 17 years old (chuckle). I admire him because he’s like a New York team — one year you’re doing hot, everybody loves you, got your haters still. … And then when you’re not doing so well, when you’re losing championships, when you’re not making the playoffs, everybody turns their back on you. They talk crap about you, they put you in a category and they compare you to other people and other teams, and only thing he’s doing is just fight, fight, fight, and grind and grind and grind and be the best player he can be and improve every year, and now he’s got another one. He did it for his city. I’m trying to do it for my city, my state, and I’m trying to follow in this man’s footsteps and come home and win a championship.

Q: Anybody else?

A: I’m a huge [Floyd] Mayweather fan. I grew up watching boxing, Arturo Gatti’s from Jersey City, Roy Jones is my favorite boxer of all time. [Mayweather] makes everyone rich that fights him. He’s not only set the standard, he’s broken anything that any boxer’s ever done before him, he’s broken that mold. Not only is he a great fighter, he’s a great promoter. And he plays the villain role the best I’ve ever seen. I just like during a fight how he breaks his guy down and at the end of the fight, the guy really doesn’t have a chance. Stops fighting, stops throwing punches, and then like, “Oh it’s a boring fight.” Yeah, because Mayweather made it that way. And as a defense, that’s what you want to do. You want to make the team that you’re playing a boring team. You want to make it a boring game.

Q: Four dinner guests?

A: Muhammad Ali, Obama, Martin Luther King, [Michael] Jordan.

Q: Favorite movie?

A: “Paid in Full.”

Q: Favorite actor.

A: Denzel [Washington].

Q: Favorite actress?

A: Scarlett Johansson.

Q: Favorite meal?

A: Family Thanksgiving food.