After officially signing with the Detroit Lions on Thursday, cornerback Justin Coleman took part in a brief media circuit, interviewing with the local Lions’ media in a press conference and sitting down in a one-on-one interview with Lions’ media journalist Tori Petry.

Here are five takeaways from those introductory interactions.

He’s “cousins” with Darius Slay and Tracy Walker

Growing up in Brunswick, Georgia, Coleman played his football at the same high school as Darius Slay and Tracy Walker. While Coleman isn’t technically second cousins with Slay, like Walker is, Slay considers him part of the family.

3 cousins in the secondary… this about to be crazy!!!!!! Welcome to the team fam @JustinColeman27 https://t.co/NrpZjNHIy1 — Darius Slay (@_bigplayslay23) March 11, 2019

During his press conference, Coleman had a fun story about his time running track with Slay and Slay’s dislike of the cold — something he has joked about over his career in Detroit.

He’s also familiar with the Lions coaching staff

Coleman went undrafted out of Tennessee in 2015, signed by New England, and during his first two seasons in the NFL, was coached by then defensive coordinator and current Lions head coach Matt Patricia.

Coleman commented that he enjoys that Patricia’s game and practice preparation, which allows the team to play with an edge, adding he believes Patricia knows how to win.

He fits in with the aggressive mindset in the secondary

“I like that they like to play aggressive,” Coleman said in his interview with Petry, “they’re always making contact on the ball, wherever the ball is. You know, I guess you can call them ballhawks. Their personality on the field, they show they have a lot of passion and those are the type of guys you want to play with and play for.”

He’s a hard worker

“In a lot of situations, effort beats talent.”

He expanded on that in his press conference, “I feel like I give a lot of effort when it comes to finishing plays, and just giving it my all. That’s pretty much how I got here, a lot of effort, a lot of hard work because I’m not the biggest, the strongest or the fastest, but I can put myself in the position to make it seem that way.”

In 2018, Coleman had 55 tackles one interception, one forced fumble and 10 passes defended. In 2017, he had 35 tackles, two interceptions, returning both for touchdowns along with nine passes defended. In both seasons, he maintained a perfect burn rate, never allowing a receiver to gain five-yards of separation, according to Player Profiler.

He’s preparing to play more than just slot corner

When asked about how he expected to be used in Detroit he stated as a “matchup cornerback and play a lot of special teams, as much as possible, and just be used to help the team.” Coleman mentioned he studies various positions in the secondary and is going to give his best effort to succeed in any role he is asked to play.

To watch the full 10:39-minute press conference and 5:21 one-on-one interview with Tori Petry, click on the video links below: