HEAD COACH CHAN GAILEY
PM Session - Friday, July 27, 2012
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On CB Leodis McKelvin's health:
(McKelvin) got sick in practice. They kind of just kept him out the rest of the time. He is in great shape so I know it is not anything like that. We will just see what it is.
On if holding him out was precautionary:
It was. We could not get him back to feeling right. We just made sure we took him in and made sure what it is.
On if everybody else came out alright:
Yeah. Nicks, bumps and bruises, but nothing major.
On if the team will wear shoulder pads at Saturday's practice:
Yes.
On if how challenging it is to not be able to wear pads starting on day one of training camp:
If you look at the statistics over the past couple years, it has been growing the number of passes we throw each year percentage-wise. Obviously a lot of people are not spending time on the running game.
On if the running game is really hindered by not wearing pads right away:
I do not. I think we can get the job done. We have the time, we have enough padded practices and preseason games to get where we want to get to. I do not have an issue about that.
On rookie LB Tank Carder having a nose for the ball:
Yeah, he has gotten his hands on more passes defensively than maybe any other player to this point, which has been pretty impressive. It would be hard not to notice him on the field. He has a nose for the ball. He has some instincts. We will see when we get the pads on. Some guys do it better. Some guys do not do it as well. Some guys keep doing it just like they have been doing.
On rookie WR T.J. Graham showing what he can do:
He is getting better as a receiver. I think he still has a long way to go but he is getting better every day he walks out there. That is what he has to do. He has to get better every day he goes on the field. As a pro, if you do not look at it that way you are going to get left behind.
On if there is a big difference in the offense as a result of having OTAs this year:
Yea, I am. I feel like we are much more on the same page. We have a lot more things ironed out. We have been able to add a few wrinkles that we think will help us down the line. I see us being a lot further ahead than we were last year.
On DE Shawne Merriman being able to contribute:
I see him more than contributing. I see him possibly being an impact player on our defense. And as you said, I am not sure to every down but I think it is having an impact on our defense and our football team in a positive way. He shows flashes of that great quickness, the instincts and pass rush that we all saw earlier.
On the status of the left tackle job:
We have not had pads on so it is hard to tell anything right now. We start real football tomorrow. We will find out a lot more in the next week. You probably saw it out there today. We started (Chris) Hairston at left tackle. Yesterday we started Cordy Glenn at left tackle. We are going to keep alternating that until we find out which direction we want to go.
On his favorite part of training camp:
Tomorrow is the start of camp. When you can put pads on, that starts camp. This other stuff is good and important. It helps us but you really start to find out about your football team when you put pads on.
QB RYAN FITZPATRICK
PM Session – Friday, July 27, 2012
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On the over-under on long touchdown passes to FB Corey McIntyre (jokingly):
(laughing) When you have weapons, when you have that speed you have to use it. We are trying to feed him the ball.
On Head Coach Chan Gailey's comments that camp truly really starts tomorrow when the pads are on:
Nothing really changes for me. But I think so. It is something that we have been excited to see just because there is no contact in OTAs and mini-camps and the first couple days of camp here. To get the pads on, we will get some more running game stuff going tomorrow just to see how everybody is doing. But it is nice to get a couple days before you get the pads on just to get your feet under you and to get going. And other than the pads, now we have a little more stuff installed, too. The first couple of days, I do not want to say they have been boring, but they have been very vanilla in terms of what we have been doing. As camp progresses here it gets a little more exciting.
On the significant amount of offensive weapons he has to work with this year compared to years past:
I think the biggest thing is we really have a lot of the same guys. But the biggest thing is the understanding. The level. They all know what I am thinking and what I am expecting. And that has been nice so far to be on the same page right out the gate. It is not one or two guys. It is everybody out there we are able to put in different spots. I am throwing the ball expecting them to be somewhere and I think we have a good understanding of it right now.
On how QB Vince Young is picking up the offense:
It is a tough offense to get. And especially for him to come in it was good to get the OTAs and mini-camp, just like the rookies, to be able to digest it because it is a completely new system for him. New terminology. And that is not easy as a quarterback. We have been very vanilla the first few days. But as we get going here we will see how much he can process and how much he can retain that stuff that we learned back in the OTAs and carry it onto the field. But the thing that jumps out to you about him is he is a great athlete, obviously. And he is a guy that can really throw. He can spin the ball. So we will see as we go how his progress is. But I like helping those guys out. I am looking forward to seeing him compete and play.
On how important it is to get rookie WR T.J. Graham some confidence with big plays like today:
The only reason I threw it to him today is because it is his birthday. And he did not tell any of us that until somebody told me walking out to practice. So I figured I would give him one little softball that he could catch out there today and get the fans cheering. But he is obviously a speedster. He has really improved since the first day he stepped on the field in OTAs until now. I think the biggest thing, and once we get pads on it is going to get taken to the next level, is just being physical. Being able to use moves to get off the line and not just relying on his speed all the time. We just hope that he continues to progress in that way. He is obviously a big-time deep threat with his speed.
On having OTAs and a full preseason this summer which did not occur last season because of the lockout:
It has been huge because we have been able to be in meeting rooms together. We have been able to work on so much of that stuff on the field with defenses. And there is only so much you can do when you are out there throwing routes with nobody else out there. To be able to have all the stuff in the offseason this year and to be able to get it on film and talk about it we still watch the OTAs now. As we get into training camp here, just to draw back on those experiences we have had on the field with different looks and how we want it run that was huge for us and our progression as an offense.
On improving his consistency:
I think the biggest thing, again, is being on the same page. The receivers doing what I expect them to do and me making sure that they know what my expectations are. And that has been something, you know I think communication is one of my strong points, but that has been something that we have really done a good job with since last season.
On how he feels about the two players competing for the starting left tackle job (Chris Hairston and Cordy Glenn):
You know what? People always ask me that kind of stuff about who is in front of me and who is playing where. Really as a quarterback I have to rely on those five guys to do their job, whoever it is. I am excited. I think we have two talented players. I think we have two young guys who are going to kind of grow and learn as this thing goes on. But whoever the front five are up there I am going to be very confident in that and we are just going to go out there and play.
