How did it feel to get back in the swing of things?
It was fun. I think at the end of our camp just going against our guys and transitioning over to playing a different team, we felt the energy pick up and transition into the day. So it's good to see guys go out there and be on their stuff. A lot of guys played some really good ball. I'm excited to watch the tape.
Was it good to get the first hit? And a pretty big hit you got at the goal line. Did anyone say anything to you after that one?
Yeah. I got some people tell me, 'It's the preseason, get down'. I should have just either kept extending the play and throw it up. We had third down, I was trying to make something happen. But I think I can be smarter.
Did you think about jumping?
I thought about it for a second.
How much will throwing to Calvin Ridley help you do the things you have to do, especially on third down?
I think I just got to keep seeing things the way I see them, getting him the ball and letting him do his thing. I'm not really thinking about what he's going to do after the catch. That's his deal. So, that's great for a quarterback to have a receiver like that, to be able to turn the sevens into 20-pluses and hopefully we will have even more.
How did you feel about the offensive line for those two series?
It was great. I think coach said we only had one sack on the day. So, guys held up and were on their stuff. I felt comfortable and protected back there.
What do you think about the timing of the passing offense overall and where are you guys with that?
It was good. I think there's a couple of things, route-wise and progression-wise with us when we could have moved on faster or guys just making sure they understand the progression of the play and why they need to either get to a certain depth or make sure that they have that internal timing with their routes. So, that's something we're going to continue to work on. We got a few more weeks until we play for the real thing, and we know that we're just going to get better until then.
What was your feeling like after the first drive? And then to go out and get another score on the second drive.
Yeah, shoutout to our return team for putting us in great spots for both of those. It's pretty cool starting in plus on your first drive. It gave us some comfort and allowed us to go out there for another series too and score again. It was a lot of fun being able to get those red zone reps are critical. So, it was good for us.
Young players talk all the time about the game slowing down as they get more experience, did you feel that today? Are things slowing down for you?
Yeah, there's a couple of reads I had where I really just felt like, I was really in my timing, and I was able to move on confidently and quickly and, find the right answer. I think just with the reps I've gotten within the offense and other offenses with similar kind of progressions, I've been able to make those more second nature in that. So it's been a lot of fun.
Brian Callahan talked about wanting the operation to be clean, no false starts, no delay of games, those sorts of things. Was that a point of emphasis for you going into this?
For sure, yeah. No penalties until the second half, so that was cool to see. There's a couple things we got to clean up but that was our number one goal. And, with our group out there, I thought we did a good job of everyone on their stuff. We just got to keep getting better at it, being able to use cadence in the ways that we want to.
Brian Callahan talked about how winning means something even in the preseason with winning habits and the culture. Can you speak about that from your perspective as a leader in this locker room, what even a preseason win can do for a team?
We got to get used to winning. Winning's fun. There's a certain responsibility that comes with it. So hopefully, we can do our best in all these games and get a feel for that winning atmosphere and just keep rolling. We're excited for next week to get Seattle here and to get a couple of joint practices with them. That's going to be great for us. And then to play them here. So we got our eyes on them already, and we're excited to have them.
So how do you like how you guys did in the running game? And how good do you think that Tyjae Spears Tony Pollard combination can be for you?
They're both great at so many different things. We're going to be able to keep defenses guessing with the different schemes that we're throwing at them. I think we gave good variety tonight of different ways we were able to give them the ball. And they're going to be huge pieces of both the run game obviously, but also the passing game.
Coach Callahan mentioned your connection with Calvin Ridley. He also said he spoke to you earlier this week about how he is a special type of receiver. How much were you able to kind of feel that connection and that timing play a role tonight?
We definitely wanted to get him a couple catches and we found some spots to make that happen. It's just something that will get better with every day, understanding the type of players he is and how I need to deliver him the ball to make sure he can do the special things he does with it when he gets it.
How much are you looking forward to upcoming week with two joint practices and then a game with Seattle next week?
I'm pumped. From my rookie season last year, I remember our joint practices out in Minnesota and just how intense and fun and competitive it was. I think our team came out of that trip a much better team, just with that experience. So we're looking to get the same out of this trip, even though it's at home. So it will be a little more comfortable for us for them to come to our spot. We know they're going to throw a bunch of different looks at us, kind of similar to what we've seen throughout camp so it's going to be a good rehearsal for us with our rules and what our guys know.
You seemed a lot more comfortable this year. Was there any holdover from last year's offense to this offense? Or is this just your preparation?
No. I didn't feel any holdover at all. I just feel really comfortable in the kind of system I'm in and just working every day to get more comfortable in it.
