Jarvis Landry – July 27, 2017
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Thursday, July 27, 2017
Wide Receiver Jarvis Landry
(Does training camp feel any different this year coming off a playoff season?) – “No. It’s always going to be hot, I know that. (laughter) For us today, I think we had a good day. Coach took care of us a little bit, having us in the red area a little bit, coming off the offseason. I think we had a good day today.”
(Are expectations any different this year coming off the playoffs?) – “No. Nothing has changed. The best thing about it is all 32 teams are at the same point right now. We all have that one goal in mind and that’s win the Super Bowl.”
(Is there not a confidence level of knowing ‘Look, we’ve been a playoff team. We are a good team now.’ Instead of hoping in the past that you guys would be a good team?) – “We’re not hoping. We’re preparing for each and every opportunity, each and every game. We’re excited about it. We understand that for us, it’s about today and getting back in there and looking at the film, correcting our mistakes and coming back out here for the walkthrough and tomorrow, and being even better than we were today.”
(Is there even a question of whether you would be out here today?) – “No, there was not.”
(If you could improve one aspect of your game, what would it be?) – “Just continue to finish with the ball and get in the end zone. (I want to) continue to make the catches, do the little things right and get in the end zone.”
(You said it was very important for you to be out here despite everything else that’s going on with the contract. How important was it to deliver on that promise and be out here?) – “Very. Like I said, for me, being a leader and having an opportunity to take another step, we don’t need anything hindering us off that path. So for me to be here and to show the guys that it is about them and it’s about the team, that’s what I’m here to do.”
(Do you think that was also the approach that C Mike Pouncey was taking by being out there today and getting cleared?) – “That’s Mike. Everybody knows Mike. Mike’s a fighter. He has something that you can’t coach and every guy wants. To have him cleared and have him back out here; we got the news yesterday really. To have him back out here is amazing.”
(Just so you don’t have to answer this again the rest of camp, just to get it on the record, does it matter to you one way or the other if you get a contract extension before September 10th?) – “Like I said, I’m out here just focusing on now. I’m focusing on all of the things that I can control, every time I step on the field. Everything else is out of my hands, is out of my control. I leave that with God.”
(Do you ease your way into this physically? Or are you out there just full speed, full go from the jump?) – “Full speed, full go. You have to find a way to pick your spots; but at the same time, for the most part I’m full speed.”
(Is the competition level with you guys and the secondary, is that up a level from OTAs and things like that? Or a continuation of that?) – “Absolutely. I think we got the best of the defense today. I think we won Round 1. We’ll see. (laughter)”
(You and WR DeVante Parker and WR Kenny Stills have a chance to be what in terms of where you guys rank as a trio of NFL receivers? Could it be a Top 5 group? Top 10?) – “Everything we do, we want to be the best. It’s not Top 5; it’s No. 1. For us, again, it starts with today. We’re not looking ahead. We’re just trying to find a way to better what we did last year and get better every time we touch the field.”
(How have things shifted for you as far as the way you approach training camp or your expectations for a season now that this is your fourth year?) – “Everything has slowed down a little bit. After probably your first two training camps, you kind of learn what to expect. Knowing what to expect and knowing coming in here what we were getting ourselves into, it’s a little bit … It’s hard; but it’s a little bit easier as far as just making the transition from the offseason to now.”
(Has anything changed for you over the last few years as far as what you look to get out of a season? Do you go in with numerical goals or did you used to go in with that and now you think differently about it?) – “No. Everybody goes in with goals, of course; but again, it starts with me putting the work in now and that will translate when the games come around after the preseason. We’ll talk about the rest later.”
(How much pride do you take in having, not only part of the record of most catches in the first three seasons in a career [288] but sharing it with a buddy like N.Y. Giants WR Odell Beckham Jr.? Is there a pride in both of those things?) – “Absolutely. It means everything. It’s something that we’ve both talked about. The race for Year 4 is on. I don’t think anybody has done Year 4 either, so that’s on now. It’ll be fun. It’ll be interesting. I love him to death so it’s all good.”
Adam Gase – July 25, 2017
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Tuesday, July 25, 2017
Head Coach Adam Gase
(Any news for us?) – “The only one for sure that I know is going to be on PUP is WR Rashawn (Scott) 100 percent. I’m waiting to hear back on anything with Koa (Misi) and Mike (Pouncey) right now. We haven’t done anything with the league yet, but Rashawn I know for a fact that’s going to happen.”
(What is the Day 1 plan for C Mike Pouncey?) – “I’ll have to wait until … We have a whole bunch of different scenarios right now that could possibly come up after we get more information today. Working with our guys that have been dealing with him, we’ve put together all of these different contingency plans as far as ‘Alright, he can do individual, and then we can do practice, and here’s his rest day.’ We’re waiting to hear where we’re at and then we’ll go from there.”
(What’s changed in C Mike Pouncey’s health since the last time we’ve talked to you? What’s progressed or what hasn’t?) – “He’s been able to run. I mean he’s doing everything that you need to do to be able to show that he’s in good shape and feeling good and feeling stronger. Really, now it’s that final checkup to see exactly where we’re at and once we get those results, we’ll be able to move forward after that.”
(How much work does he need in training camp for you to feel comfortable about putting him out there for the season opener?) – “Nothing. That’s me; but I know he doesn’t feel that way. I know he wants to practice and go through his routine for training camp. I was amazed by the fact that he missed as much time as he did last year during the season, he walks right back in and plays at an elite level. I’m always going to listen to him though. It’s his body and his mindset. I trust what he tells me.”
(How would you describe the importance of having C Mike Pouncey in the lineup, as you’ve said, for up to or more than 16 games?) – “He’s an elite player at his position. You guys have been around him long enough, his leadership skills are just natural. People gravitate to him, whether it’s players, coaches, fans. He’s just got whatever the ‘it’ factor is, he has that. Anytime that you can have one of your best players in the huddle every game, that’s to our advantage. You just never know what’s going to happen. I know all he can do is just keep doing what he’s been doing and working hard and trying to prepare himself as well as he can. And then after that, it’s kind of see what happens.”
(How do you feel about your depth at that position?) – “We’ve got so many guys playing center, I’m good.”
(Is there a point where you feel like you need to see him to get him ready for the regular season?) – “I don’t, but he wants to go through that process.”
(What’s the challenge of making sure that he doesn’t hurt himself or suffer a setback considering he wants to practice and play so much?) – “I think our guys have a good plan of how he should work. He’s done a really good job, especially since the last injury, of following to a ‘T’ of how we should do things. He’s done exactly what the doctors have asked him to do. That’s age, that’s experience in the league of going through this a couple of times. You feel like, ‘I feel better,’ and you get ahead of schedule. I think that he’s gotten to the point of he’s just going to listen to the people that are telling him what’s best for him. He’s done a great job of following that. I think he’s seeing good results right now.”
(Regarding LB Koa Misi, whether he opens on PUP or not, are you confident – reasonably confident – that he’ll be able to participate in camp?) – “When I get more information this afternoon … I know that’s not what you guys want to hear right now. I told Matt that we should do (the press conference) tomorrow, but he wanted to do it today. (laughter)”
(Is there any question in your mind about whether LB Koa Misi will be able to actually play football again in his career?) – “In my mind, I feel confident that (he will be able to play again) at some point. I just don’t know where we’re at right now. Once I get those results and talk to our guys and talk to (Executive Vice President of Football Operations) Mike (Tannenbaum) and (General Manager) Chris (Grier) and Koa, then I’ll know more. I just … I don’t have enough information right now.”
(If LB Koa Misi isn’t healthy enough to begin the season practicing and playing, how comfortable are you with the linebacker depth?) – “We’ve got a lot of guys that have played, I know that, because everybody had to play last year. I feel better probably than a lot of people do outside of our building. I like our guys. I saw a lot of good things in the spring. I feel like we look a lot different than we did last year with, when you get to the twos and threes, with the competition. I think that there are some guys in there that when we actually get into some preseason games with full pads, I think that we’re going to see … It’s going to look different for us.”
(Knowing how many carries you want to get from RB Jay Ajayi this season, how do you approach training camp for someone like him?) – “He’s going to do his thing. He’s going to practice. He’ll be alright. I’ll make sure I manage it right. I know that seems to be a big concern. We have a good plan for him. We understand his running style. He does a good job of telling us where’s he’s at. He’s not afraid to … If he starts to get banged up a little bit, he’ll tell us. It’s in a good way. He’s constantly communicating to make sure that we know exactly where he’s at. He doesn’t hide anything from us.”
(With the new acquisitions at defensive tackle, how do you feel about that new depth? Even though some of the players that are there are pretty young, how do you feel about that new depth?) – “Any time that you can bring in, whether it’s a veteran player or young guys, it’s just … Any time you feel like there’s someone right there with you and they are competing with you, that’s good. I think a lot of players embrace that, they like that. They like the fact that they feel like somebody is trying to push them a little bit. The more we can get that across the board, that’s what we’re looking for. I think most teams in the NFL, that’s what they’re hoping to have. They’re always hoping that the front line and then whoever’s behind them are really trying to push those guys to get in the lineup.”
(Can you give us a preview of what you’ll tell the team tomorrow?) – “I don’t know. I haven’t thought about it yet. When I get there, I’ll let you know.”
(Have you guys been in touch with WR Jarvis Landry’s representatives recently about the contract situation?) – “I haven’t dealt with anything. All the contract stuff, we never talk about it, really, publicly. That’s a different focus. Right now, I’m worried about getting ready for training camp.”
(What would you tell or have you told WR Jarvis Landry about the way you would like him to approach training camp, preseason considering that contract situation is at least in the back of his mind?) – “I don’t have to tell him anything. He does his thing. He comes in here. He works. He’s trying to get ready for the season. It’s football for him. That’s what he’s dealing with.”
(What did you learn last year from the first training camp and how’s it going to be different this year?) – “The one thing I did learn was trying to match up offense, defense – do what’s best for both sides of the ball – understanding … Offensively, you can’t say, ‘Here’s our install. We’re not worried about what our defense does.’ We took a little more time of – and it started in the spring of – we have a little more of that game-plan type feel, but at the same time, we’re installing our base stuff. We’re just making sure that we’re not putting our players on offense at a disadvantage. And (Defensive Coordinator) Matt (Burke) is doing the same thing on defense. He’s trying to put those guys in a position to where you’re installing your base stuff, but at the same time, you’re trying to give those guys enough to where they don’t feel like one side of the ball is taking advantage of the other. I really enjoyed it in the spring, because there was a sense of competition and that intensity was good. I think the players felt it as we got going in the spring – and the same thing in training camp – where they feel like a little game plan-ish type feel on each other and guys making adjustments and not just saying, ‘This is what we’re going to do.’ It’s making those tweaks here and there to help our guys have success.”
(Do you think it helps the focus, too?) – “Absolutely. Because when you start making all these adjustments and you’re talking a lot of football, guys are engaged with all the kind of stuff. When it becomes that same old talk every day and you’re talking about the exact same thing, that’s when it gets tough on guys. The fact that we keep moving situations around and trying to change it up and giving different looks on both sides, guys enjoy that and they get engaged.”
(What do you hope to see, or want to see, in this particular training camp from TE Julius Thomas?) – “I saw a different guy when it comes to the run game compared to when we were together in Denver; but it was a different scheme, so I think this fits him a little bit better. As far as the passing game goes, I liked what those guys were doing in the spring. They spent a lot of time together, because he’s the newer face and him and Ryan (Tannehill) trying to get on the same page. I like the process they went through. We had some good plays. He’s trying to feel his role out in this team and he does a good job of that, because he’s a team guy first, and he’s always going to see how he fits in and where his skillset fits in with the rest of the guys. We’ll use him to his strengths and see how it fits in this year.”
(I know you said if C Mike Pouncey showed up on Week 1 and he’d be ready to go, you’d be fine with that; but how much would you like the continuity of the offensive line, especially trying to establish that left guard position?) – “I guess that’s less of a worry for me, because when Pouncey steps in the huddle, you know who’s running it up front. He’s clear with what he does and there’s just a presence there. When he speaks, everybody listens. It’s not as difficult as you’d think when you’ve got a player like that, that steps into that role.”
(How do you feel about your guard situation? Looking, for example, at G Isaac Asiata as a rookie, what did he show you in the offseason? Is he ready to compete for a starting job potentially?) – “I think if you’re on the roster right now you’re competing, whether it be a roster spot or a starting spot. We’ll see how this plays out. We’re so far away from Week 1 and so many things can happen. I guess I feel good about our entire offensive line and that room. I like the competition. I like the flexibility. Guys really have a great feel for the scheme right now, and it has allowed our guys to play fast in practice in the spring and it should carry over to training camp. The biggest thing is going to be when we get pads on is carrying that over and being able to play fast and not thinking as much as we did last year.”
(What’s your vision for the line in 2017? What would you like it to look like?) – “I think if we can clean up some of … The times we had penetration, we had some of those negative runs, and I think that came towards the end of last year, probably those last six or so games, where we had less of that, less times Jay (Ajayi) was trying to make somebody miss in the backfield. That takes some time every once in a while with what we do with the outside zone, where guys try to get a feel for what we’re trying to do. If we can eliminate a lot of that, we’re going to try to keep working our play action and drop backs. In this league, everybody is built to pass rush. It’s a tough matchup for all these guys. The defensive tackles are getting better. The (defensive) ends are as good as I ever remember across the board. Every week it feels like you have to stop somebody. We’re always going to look to improve that. I know we’re lucky because we do have a really good defensive line and we get great work every day and it’s really going to let us know where we stand against really good competition.”
(Have you noticed a change that you are chomping at the bit and ready to go with the training camp?) — “I think the way that I look at it is as a staff, we’re trying to get our guys in the right mindset of we’ve got to start that one day at a time mentality right now. It’s easy to look ahead, like I’m sure some people are talking about the first game of the season (and) we haven’t even gotten to the first day yet. There’s a lot of meetings, there’s a lot of practice, there’s a lot of walk-throughs, and if you lose focus in any of that stuff, then that’s how you get beat. Our guys have heard it from us so many times that you’ll hear a lot of them saying the same thing about just focusing on that day and in this league right now, the way the rules are set up, if you waste a day, that’s a lot of time you lose. So you can’t have one of those days of ‘Oh, we’ll get it right tomorrow.’ Our guys, they know our big emphasis is going to be ‘Don’t waste a day.’ We’ve got to make sure that whatever we’re doing on that day, we’ve got to make it count.”
(So with that being said, are you okay with WR Jarvis Landry making comments about the season and the confidence that he has beating the Patriots and what not or would you rather he not do that?) – “Guys can do whatever they want. They can say what they want. Some guys, they want to talk about the season. I try to emphasize what we’re doing right now because you can’t get there without doing the first part of it. That’s why our main focus always is ‘He,y let’s do it right today.’ Because Week 1, Week 10, if you get lucky enough to get into the playoffs, all that other stuff you did before that is going to matter, because when you get in those single-elimination games, you make the same mistakes you did in the regular season, it’ll be a short trip to the playoffs.”
(During the spring a lot of your players came in and talked about how they self- scouted themselves from last year and the improvements they wanted to make. Did you do that and if so how do you want to be a different coach in Year 2?) – “We looked at a lot of the stuff that we did offensively. Me personally, looking at it as the play caller, there were a lot of things that I would have done a lot different those first five games, whether it be how we played as a group or certain individuals or how we use certain guys. When you get to that second year as a head coach, your involvement to be able to help the defense, it changes, because you’re not setting anything up in the spring. You’re really trying to figure out what went right, what went wrong, make those adjustments, communicate to the staff, meet with those guys. Now you’re able to at least have more conversations with the defensive coaches and ask questions and kind of have a little more give and take with those guys, where in that first year, you’re trying so hard just to make sure the side of the ball that you’re working with is all set up. That’s why I felt like I was really lucky having (former Defensive Coordinator) Vance (Joseph). I mean it was really like I was having another head coach on the staff, and obviously that showed by him getting a job after the season. I never had to worry about anything and now I feel like I can be a good sounding board for (Defensive Coordinator) Matt (Burke) if he needs me and I just kind of talked with him and we kind of go back and forth as far as how he looks at things, how I look at things and it’s a good give and take because I can always pull things from him and prepare myself that way and hopefully I’m doing the same for him.”
(With RB Jay Ajayi accepting this bell cow role coming into the season this year, can you talk about the difference in the way he’s carried himself through the offseason and what you expect from him as a leader coming into training camp?) – “Well we kind of thought that was what it was going to be last year. He did a good job last spring. I’d say we had like four bad days and this spring he did an outstanding job of coming into, just the offseason in general, talking about what he felt like he wasn’t as good at as some other guys around the league, to where he wanted to improve. You could see when we were watching him in practice he had really worked on a lot of things as far as in the passing game – routes, protection – to where he either studied video or he spent a lot time running routes and we saw it in practice. I love the fact that he challenged himself. He wanted to be a guy that could be used on all three downs that ‘Hey, when we’re doing this certain concept, we’d rather have somebody else in there.’ He wants to make sure you can call anything you want on that call sheet and I can do it. He did a great job of putting that out there, showing us that whatever we ask him, whatever we’ve got on there he can do.”
(Regarding QB Ryan Tannehill’s knee, is it 100 percent?) – “I don’t know. I have no clue. (laughter) I’m not a doctor. Ask the doctor. Ask (Tannehill) and see how that goes. (laughter)”
(Is it important? Is there a pre-injury…) – “I don’t know. He looked good to me. He runs around and throws the ball. He’s fine.”
(How have you been doing with your rookies the last week or so? Where do you feel like they’re at as far as being prepared to handle everything you’re about to throw at them?) – “So last year, I had never done it before. I had never brought the rookies in early. I haven’t really … it’s been a long time since I’ve been associated with that and last year, we had a whole bunch of coaches come back the week before we were coming back to work. A lot of guys asking ‘Hey, can I work with the rookies,’ and we couldn’t because they were coming in with the veterans. So we brought them in and if coaches were back in town and they had the chance to meet with them, we were encouraging that. But we wanted (Head Strength & Conditioning Coach) Dave (Puloka) to kind of get a hold of them and get them going in the weight room and get them outside and be able to run. So we were able to do a lot of that kind of stuff and just get them down here and settled and it wasn’t like they just got thrown in with all the vets. So we tried to do it a little different this year and getting these guys rolling just a few days here. We haven’t been crushing them by any means and just giving them a little jump start there just so … because I mean they started later than the vets, so any time they can get a little bit a head start, it’s good for them.”
(With DE Charles Harris, it seemed like he was really picking things up back in minicamp and OTAs. Are you expecting him now to just jump right in and be good to go here on Thursday?) – “We’ll see. That’s a hard prediction for me to make. I just know when we left here, he was feeling pretty good about where he was on the … like as far as the scheme goes and how he was practicing. We’ll just see how it goes in training camp. I’m excited to watch him rush the passer, for sure.”
(You guys are bring in some cornerbacks to work out. Is there an injury or is there a little bit of a deficiency?) – “We’ve got an extra (roster) spot and I’ve had so many people tell me you can never find enough corners. So, we’re checking guys out; but we do it quite a bit with a lot of different positions and some don’t make as much news as others. So we’re always making sure that we’ve got everything, you know our ducks in a row, just in case something happens in camp and we’ve got to push forward and do something. When you start working guys out, you get information on them, physicals, everybody’s kind of on the same page there and you can react a little quicker.”
