Head Coach Chan Gailey
Monday, June 11, 2012
On CB Aaron Williams leaving practice early today:
He's had a recurring irritation in his knee. We've had two or three guys that have had just recurring irritations in their knees and he's been trying to work through it… We're going to shut him down for a couple of days here and try to let it rest. It's nothing major. It's just a little irritation in there. We can't get rid of it.
On DE Spencer Johnson's injury:
Same thing. Exactly.
On rotating CB Aaron Williams, CB Stephon Gilmore and CB Leodis McKelvin:
A lot of it is Aaron's been a little hobbled and we've been trying to protect him a little bit. We want to find out who can play. We give everybody reps with the ones and twos as much as we possibly can.
On how CB Terrence McGee is looked at going into training camp:
I think we all know the type of player he is. Terrence (McGee) is an extremely good football player and has proven that on the field in big ball games, he's proven it. So I see Terrence as one of those guys that we've got to make sure is healthy and let him get as many reps as he possibly can. Hopefully he can play a bunch for us this year. That's what we're looking forward to.
On McGee acknowledging that he's running out of second chances:
You keep getting injuries and it takes a toll on your psyche as well as it does on your body. Hopefully we can get some of this behind us and he can stay healthy for a full year. That'll help everybody.
On McGee returning to the kick return game:
We would like to have all the good players do what they do best. I would not put that as a priority on my list for him. The priority would be getting him ready to play in the secondary.
On rookie LB Nigel Bradham so far in OTAs:
Good. He's got a lot to learn and to be honest with you you're learning a lot when you get in shorts. When we get the pads on then we'll really find out in training camp where everybody is. He's progressing but he's got a lot to learn. He's got to put it all together on the field in seven on seven, team, red zone and all of the sudden we're throwing two-minute at him. There are a lot of things being thrown at the guy. He's just got to stay with it. It's not easy.
On all the rookies' progressions so far:
So far they've done a good job. I don't see any reason that they would not be playing quite a bit this coming season if things continue to progress now. All of the sudden they hit a wall. You never know but it doesn't look like that's going to happen with either one of those two (Cordy Glenn and Stephon Gilmore.)
On his expectations for TE Scott Chandler for this season:
I don't see any reason he shouldn't have a better year this year than he had last year. He and Fitz (Ryan Fitzpatrick) have a great feel for each other at this point in time. He's made some plays down the field. He's a big target. I see nothing but more positive things happening for him in the future.
On the competition for the No. 2 receiver spot:
It's too early. To be honest with you, you can ask me about the third week in training camp and I'm going to tell you it's too early. We'll know exactly where we stand and it all works itself out by the time we get to the first ball game. We've got two or three guys that have done a great job. Donald Jones probably a little bit ahead of everybody at this point.
On if the depth is better this year than last:
I don't know. That's what we're trying to find out. We've got some players that we've added. (David Clowney) we added, obviously T.J. (Graham) we added. So there are some guys that we've added to the mix that we need to find out how much they can give us. They have ability or they wouldn't be here. So what can they do once we get to training camp and once the lights are on in preseason games? All those kinds of things.
On how he likes the scheduling of OTAs with the new CBA:
The basic thing that you can't do is any one-on-one pass rush and you can't do any bump and run one-on-one drills. We've tried to make sure that we have never pushed our guys to go be physical in OTAs. That's not what this is about. This is not about finding out who the tough guys are. This is about finding out who can play fast and mentally be into the game. To be honest with you there's not anything different than last time we had OTAs. There's just four fewer of them.
On the different combinations he's putting together on the offensive line:
There are no groupings right now to be honest with you. We're putting guys out there and letting them play and seeing who can do what. If somebody has a bad day we'll put somebody else in there. If somebody else has a great day we'll make sure he'll get more reps tomorrow. I think I said it last week when we were talking about Derek Hagan, don't put any stock into first group, second group or third group right now. We're just trying to get guys reps and evaluate who can do what.
On when he starts putting together a depth chart:
Training camp. Nothing's set. They're up but it's all magnets. They can be moved.
On how encouraging it is to see WR Stevie Johnson out at practice:
Very encouraging. He's worked extremely hard to get back on the field. I know he would like to get some reps with Fitz before we get through here. So hopefully if things continue to progress maybe we'll get him for a few reps before we're all said and done this spring.
WR Stevie Johnson
On the progress that he's making so far during OTAs:
I'm very pleased with it. I'm way ahead of schedule and I'm just ready to go. They said it was about six to eight (weeks) but I feel like I'm ready to be out there and I think we'll be moving towards that next week.
On if he thinks he'll get some reps next week:
I believe so. I'll be out there and we'll see how things go. As of now they are saying I'll be out there to get some reps.
On what played into his timing of his return:
Just all the work that we've been doing here and then while those guys are out there I'm in here running. It's just looking good. E (Eric Ciano) and G (Greg McMillen) are taking care of me. The progress has been really great.
On being cautious not to re-injure when coming back:
Most definitely. That's always in the back of your head when you come back from an injury or a surgery. You don't want to rush it. We've been doing a lot and it feels like it's about there. Obviously I'm going to have a little pain or what not. That's fine with me. Throughout this league you always have something going on. I think it's about that time to see what I can do.
On participating in individual drills:
We've been doing individuals. As far as sprints today we did some routes, ladders and that stuff. They said I looked pretty good. My legs feel heavy and weak at the same time. I'll see what happens when I get to line up against our DB's and go about it like that.
On how much has he been helping rookie WR T.J. Graham:
As much as I can with little things. They say he's been thrown to the fire but he looks good to me. We're all really helping him out. One thing I want to help him out with specifically is (getting) off the line. He has the burst. He can run routes. He's been catching the ball. It's just off the line, that's what we can get better at. That's another reason why I want to come back, too. You can see the difference with me getting off the line and then get off the ball regularly, so he could see that instead of me just telling him.
On if he feels that the WR group is deeper this year:
If we didn't have anybody I still think we would be deep. I think that we've got a great group of guys. Obviously David (Nelson), Donald (Jones) and Naaman (Roosevelt) played well. I have confidence in my guys no matter what whether we brought in T.J. or we didn't bring in anyone. (Derek) Hagan's been looking real nice. We have guys. (Marcus) Easley I believe he'll be able to help us out. Last year was tough because he had the heart condition so hopefully nothing happens with him now and he can show what he has. I have confidence in my guys. I've had confidence in them.
On with more popularity if he can still call the WR group the "Goon Squad":
We might have to switch it up. We were the goon squad and everybody went down so we might have to switch things up and have another name. We'll have something probably by training camp.
On how important it is to get reps with QB Ryan Fitzpatrick as early as possible:
It's always important to get some reps with the starting quarter back. Like you said it's June and it's early but this is where it starts. If it wasn't important I don't think any of the teams would be having OTAs or having things like this. It's always good to be able to connect with your quarterback. That's pretty much how I see it whether it's too early or not it's important.
On how the defense looks to him:
They look good. I want to get out there and go against them just to see if they are as good as they look. I think our defense overall is dominant. They look pretty sweet. I want to get out on the field and give them a little shimmy juke and see if they can really keep up and then we'll go from there. I know we'll be ready once the season starts.
On if the defense gives him a "hard" time about not practicing:
But I mess with them back by sending them a text saying I'll be out there tomorrow and they'll be hyped up and next thing you know I'm not out there. They're on me like I'm milking it. That's a part of it just joking around. You've got to have some fun some way. I'll be out there next week with them.
On if he has any impressions of rookie CB Stephon Gilmore yet:
He's a good DB as far as if you want to play man-to-man Stephon (Gilmore) will go guard him and he has the ability to do that. He's very fluid. You rarely see guys get behind him coming on the outside. His hips are good. I can run down a list. Even if he wasn't on my team and just checking out film you could tell he's going to be something special. I'm happy to have him. He told me he's happy to have me on his team but I'm happy he's on my team. He'll have me getting ready for the top cornerbacks in the league.
On receivers being able to get under Gilmore's skin:
He seems pretty cool. That's exactly what we see a lot. I heard he talks a little bit but that's confidence, that's the swag that he's got. He's real mellow and he handles business out there. I like his game. I like all the games. Ron Brooks shows something, too. He has that fight and that hunger. You can see it in him. Back to 27 (Stephon Gilmore) I think he's going to be one of those dominant cornerbacks in the league.
