HEAD COACH MIKE MUNCHAK
(on first practice open to public)
It's always great to have the fans out here. I think we find energy to practice. Players are a little more game like when they practice that way. I appreciate the energy that they're seeing, what they're watching out here. They get to watch like 12 or 13 practices this year.
(on the energy during practice)
It's a great night. You can't beat the weather, it feels like its October or November, I mean it's awesome. I figured they'd come out and we'd get a good workout in. I think having the fans here watching, yelling out and cheering for good catches I think its adds a lot to the practice than a normal practice. Really you hear nothing other than the coaches yelling and screaming. I think they enjoyed themselves and we'll have a couple more night practices coming up on Sunday night, Tuesday night this week and then at the stadium Saturday. So, a lot more chances to see the team and hopefully to continue to build some excitement about what they're seeing.
(on Coty Sensabaugh's start at camp)
We were happy how the season went for him last year. He just keeps getting better. They trust each other with him in there. This gives him a chance not just at nickel but a chance to compete at corner with the rest of them. He's done well, he does great things.
(on Jake Locker's overthrow at practice)
I didn't see it. I'll see it when I watch tape tonight.
(on the development of team chemistry coming together at camp)
I think it's in practices like this. In practice you look for a period when the offense, in the team period, is running the ball well, doing some things early. Then you want to see how the defense responds to that. Can they come back and change the practice tempo, which I thought they did. I think the offense just had some ups and downs throughout practice. What you want to see, I think, as a coach… you don't want to see it one sided, you want to see guys rally. I think that's when leadership comes out. You start seeing guys having to handle it when they compete. That's how it's going to be on a Sunday afternoon. Come out here and maybe have a bad throw, have a bad catch, drop a ball. And you want to see how they come back. So I think that is when leadership will come out. There's a lot of energy, the guys are excited about what they're doing. I know it's early, and all of that stuff, but I think it's just fun to watch it. I think we're just going to get stronger as we go.
(on intensity level once pads are on)
I think it'll be a lot different. I think this pace, they're happy it's over. You just finish a couple more days with just helmets on. So I think the guys are excited to get to that next spot. And there is some separation at happens at every level I think, because pads do change things. Pads on your legs, pads on your shoulders, the hitting; everything is a little bit different. Plays you thought you were making out here you're finding out, 'maybe I wouldn't have made that play.' Now that something is a little more up tempo, now I'm getting hit a bit little harder. So that's the phase we need and so the next 10 days will be great work for us in that way.
*(on Michael Griffin wearing pants along with Bernard Pollard) *
I think they're just getting a jump start on tomorrow and the next day when we start wearing pants and getting a feel for that. I think it's just getting that comfort. I think some guys just like wearing the pants, they like it better than the shorts. I just think its preference. A lot of guys would rather be in shorts when they can be. There will be enough time when they have to wear pants. **
(on how often he plans on the team wearing pads)
Tomorrow, we'll have pads on pretty much every day now all the way through and we'll just change back and forth. Like tomorrow, we'll have shorts on with the shoulder pads and then in two days, Sunday night, we'll be in full pads and kind of be in full pads for a while so they can get used to that once we get started. And then we'll just see how it goes. It's about them figuring out what they want in their pads cause there's all different options for them. A lot of these guys never wore pads on their legs in the game, so it's not a big thing, but something they've got to get used to, so we'll just kind of wear pants a little more because of that.
(on Alterraun Verner being with the first team at cornerback on the first day and Tommie Campbell being there on the second day and if he will continue to rotate them)
I think that we will start that way. I think the thinking is to roll it just like I mentioned at the center spot and doing some of the same things. Other spots, you'll see the same thing with trying different guys in there and seeing how they handle it. Sometimes it's just different. Some guys need to be out there first and see how they handle being first and how that goes. Practice is one thing, and games are another, but you'll see different looks and experimenting in different ways and a lot of us talking and seeing the best package as we go forward and once we start competing a little more with pads on.
(on if Blidi Wreh-Wilson will get a chance in that rotation)
I think it's like (Brian) Schwenke. I think it's something that you want the rookie to get a little more time and see what he can do, to see if he deserves to be up there with the first group on a starting basis or that mentality. I think he's a guy we feel is capable of doing that. I think from what we've seen, we're seeing him get better from the time he's gotten here. I think he's a guy that at some point, maybe more into next week, all of a sudden, you're seeing him maybe moving up in reps, depending on how he handles what he gets now.
(on if Schwenke taking reps at guard was planned before the delay in signing Chance Warmack)
It's a combination of both. He has to be, if he's not, I mean for a young guy, especially, he wants to be suiting up on Sundays, which means if he's not starting, he's got to be the swing guy, so he knows he's got to be able to play all three spots (left guard, center, right guard). We feel that he can. He would have done it either way. I think he'll get a little more at guard now because Chance isn't here at this point. But the rotation, we've got a good group of veteran guys with (Chris) Spencer and (Rob) Turner and Fernando (Velasco). We've got a nice group of guys to move around, so that gives us a lot of options as we move forward through this training camp.
(on Chance Warmack not being in camp for another day)
The good thing about that, I guess the only good thing, is when he does come in, he can jump right into it. The rule, they changed that rule as far as having to wait three days, like having to work him in slow because we're in pads, so the good thing is we won't have to really, he can jump right in. We'll obviously be smart with how we do that, but again, hopefully, that's something we hope is done this weekend and he's here and we can get this thing rolling because we need to. There's no way around it. We need to.
(on what the rule was before it changed)
(The player) had to go two days with no pads on so that he would have to come in, if we were in a padded practice, he couldn't practice. So, now, at least to be able to do that, and like I said, he got a ton of reps for six weeks when he was here, so that's the real positive thing. The biggest thing is that he's working out and he's in good shape when he gets here. That's the main thing because he'll be able to jump right in to what we're doing, and we'll just have to limit reps is all, just being smart with that early and he should be fine.
(on if he thinks that Warmack is working out) I do. I think he's excited about his opportunity. He's a guy that watches a ton of tape. Playing well means a lot to him. I think you saw that in college. I think that's why he was so good in college. He worked at it. He never took anything for granted just because he had one good year and won a national championship, he worked harder the next year to get better. He got better each year in college so he's that kind of worker. He's meticulous like that, so I think he'll come in knowing that a lot's expected of him. He knows he's going to get a lot of attention when he comes in, the attention he doesn't really want, but it comes with being in the position he's in, so I think he'd want to come in and show people that he is going to be a great addition to this football team.
