Q: Can you talk about your decision to come out as a junior? Why did you feel now was the right time to go to the NFL?
Sharpe:"There was a lot of talk with my coaches and my family. I had pretty good games at the collegiate level. I went against some of the top guys and got some pretty good film, started 26 games, and they thought it was best for me to come out this year."
Q: What has Luke Del Rio told you about the Raiders and his dad coaching here?
Sharpe:"It's actually crazy, man. It's a great offense, everything. He actually texted me this morning and said his dad called him and asked about me. There was a little hint there, so that was cool."
Q: Some NFL scouts have said you are legally blind in your right eye. Can you address that?
Sharpe:"I'm not blind. I'm not legally blind. The information is false, all of it is false. I just had a little cataract removal when I was younger and I've been battling that since I was young. But it doesn't affect my play or vision or anything. I'm not blind."
Q: Does that make you mad that that's out there and still being talked about?
Sharpe:"Kind of. It doesn't really make me mad. I just brush it off. It was just false and I addressed it."
Q: Do you think you can play on both sides, left and right?
Sharpe:"Yes, I believe I can play on both sides."
Q: What was your time like at Florida in terms of how you felt you progressed? What was important in your development?
Sharpe:"Every year progressing and getting better, really. Just being behind some of those guys in my freshman year, learning the way they did things. With [Florida Head Coach] Coach [Jim] McElwain coming in and teaching us discipline and how to practice, things like that. Taking the game more serious, being in the classroom, being in the film room, going hard at practice, he didn't make it easy. Becoming that leader and leading by example, that helped a lot."
Q: Do you feel like these false reports out there about your eye contributed to you being available on Day 3?
Sharpe:"I'm not sure. It could be the reason why, but I'm not sure."
Q: When you were at the combine, did they have you perform an eye test?
Sharpe:"Yes, but they pretty much already knew about it so I didn't have to do much for the eye test."
**Q: Is your vision worse in your right eye compared to your left?
**
Sharpe: "Yes, it's a little blurrier but not much."
Q: But, it doesn't affect you on the field?
Sharpe:"No."
Q: Before Luke reached out, did you have an idea the Raiders were interested?
Sharpe:"I did a little bit. I didn't talk to them much at all actually, but I did at the combine. I had a formal interview with them and things like that, but other than that I didn't talk to them much."
