Cam Hart’s first career NFL interception came when the Chargers needed it most Monday night.
In his 26th career game, Hart hauled in a fourth-quarter tipped pass for his first pick. The second-year cornerback was in disbelief postgame and said that it would take some time to appreciate that milestone.
A few days removed from the special moment, he couldn't shake a feeling of wanting more.
"It was special, definitely special," Hart said. "I think I'm just hard on myself."
It's the sort of mentality he has toward everything that has allowed him to thrive so far through almost two NFL seasons.
He's more than happy to have hauled it in, though.
"I don't take it for granted, they all count," Hart said. "But I feel like it came off someone else, so I look back at it and now I'm like, 'I want one where I actually feel like I earned it.'
"I'll take it, they're hard to come by," Hart added. "I haven't had an interception in a while."
In fact, it had been over four years since Hart last had his hands on an interception.
His last interception came in September 2021, a game at Notre Dame where he notched two against Wisconsin.
Now with one down, he's looking forward to adding more to the tally.
"It's a feeling I can't describe," Hart said. "I've felt it when I've caught interceptions, but it's hard to put into words."
Hart's performance on Monday was massive in the Bolts overtime victory and one of his best to date.
The cornerback was disruptive all night. In addition to his first career pick, he also had a hand in the game-winning play where he tipped a red-zone pass up in the air before Tony Jefferson caught it to seal the win.
But going past the game-changing plays he made throughout the night, Chargers Head Coach Jim Harbaugh had high praise for how he was able to hang in tough against high-level competition.
"That sticks out No. 1 in my mind," Harbaugh said. "You're going against a good guy. They're all good and really good quarterbacks.
"Just that ability [to say], OK, they got that one.' But then you come back and get the next one," Harbaugh added. "Having the resiliency and the relentless to play good, play sticky coverage and step up to the challenge."
Hart was matched up on one of the premier pass catchers in the league in AJ Brown a bit throughout the night.
He finished allowing two catches on four targets, according to Pro Football Focus, with both going for first downs.
The two incompletions, however? A pass breakup and his interception.
Chargers Defensive Coordinator Jesse Minter was pleased with how Hart battled back when he was up against it, but far from surprised that he was able to respond the way he did.
"He's such a down-by-down competitor, that's what I like about him the most," Minter said. "Like every corner, there's plays in game that you may want back."
Minter later added: "Not letting a play where a guy catches the ball affect you on the next play I think is the No. 1 quality of a good corner because you may play, I don't know how many snaps, but it's going to come down to the eight or nine snaps they actually throw the ball at your guy."
Hart finished the night being targeted seven total times, allowing just three receptions and a 25.6 quarterback rating when targeted.
It was the best mark in a game so far during his young career.
"He just kept coming back, and every time it happened on him, the next play he made a play," Minter said. "That's a major credit to him, his mindset, his resilience and that was the epitome of our game as a defense too."
Listed at 6-foot-2 and 207 pounds, Hart has lined up against a lot of the NFL's top receivers so far throughout his two seasons.
It's something he said he doesn't shy away from and always looks forward to.
"We always harp on being the best. In order to be the best, you have to compete against the best," Hart said. "I don't think, for me, it's not more so what I say but what I do. Rather than proving anybody right or wrong, I want to prove myself right.
"I don't really feed into the noise, whether it's good or bad," Hart added. "Every time I'm on the field I want to prove myself right and doing that against the best receivers in the world."
Hart is not the one to reflect on a season while it's still going on, but Monday's performance has left him wanting more.
With that game in the past, it's about continuing to build like he has each week since arriving with the Bolts.
"Keep raising the level," Hart said. "Don't be complacent and attack every week like I did from Day 1, a fifth-round guy who's hungry to prove himself right again.
"I think I reset every week, every day and prove that to myself," he added.
