Rams Head Coach Jeff Fisher – Training Camp- July 31, 2015
(Opening Statement)
“Rookies came in, traveled on Monday. We did our conditioning test Tuesday with them, got them on the field Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday. Yesterday was a recovery day for them. Yesterday we did our conditioning test with the veterans. As long as I have been here this is the best we’ve had. From the weigh- in, from the conditioning test, guys have really worked hard during the summer. Didn’t have any issues. We have a hero on the coaching staff, but other than that it was a good summer. We just finished with our first practice, as you guys know we have an acclimation period before we put pads on, so pads won’t go on until Sunday. So we have two practices… actually, Mondayrather. Tomorrow and Sunday will be similar to what we did today. Things are good. We have a few guys that we are kind of holding back a bit. (DE) Chris (Long) came in with a little back tightness; he will be okay in a couple in days. We are still kind of following up on some of the rehab. But by large and generally speaking, very impressed with what we were able to accomplish during the offseason rehabs. We are easing guys back. You saw (WR) Brian Quick, you saw (S) T.J. (McDonald), and we’re still a few days away from getting (S) Mark (Barron) back on the knee. But the only PUP candidate we had after a long discussion was (G) Cody (Wichmann). (G) Cody (Wichmann) will be ready in probably 10 days; he came off a calf off the OTAs. And then of course the big story is (RB) Todd (Gurley). And Todd ran, he did a great job on the conditioning test, he is not 100 percent. He is not ready to play in a game right now. But our feeling was and the decision was based on the importance for him to be able to participate not only in the walk-thrus , which is permissible, but also in the individual stuff. Then we will kind of add things as we move forward. Timetable wise I don’t know, but very, very encouraged as to where he is right now.”
(On if Gurley did some individual reps today)
“He did, yes.”
(On if he still has any level of excitement for the first day of camp)
“Oh yeah, because of the fact we had the conditioning test yesterday. We had all of our administrative meetings and things. It doesn’t feel like today was the first day of camp. But the first day of camp really, I think, it takes shape when you see the guys walk out with pads on. Because this is pretty much a repeat of OTAs that we’ve done from installation stand point. Overall, big picture very pleased with the condition and the athleticism, and the energy of this football team. They’re very excited to get back.”
(On QB Nick Foles having a good day at practice)
“Nick had a good day, yeah. You know it is usually the first couple days of camp you tip your hat towards the defensive side. They usually have the advantage. That wasn’t the case today. Nick did a nice job.”
(On if a contract will be done with Foles soon)
“There is some discussion, yeah that makes sense. He is not the only one we are talking with. We are talking with a number of our players right now and their representatives. Yeah we’re heading down that path. I’m really not involved with it other than that I would like to see us get something worked out at some point with him.”
(On if it is important to get those contracts done soon)
“I mean, yeah, it is important. It’s important to them as well. Each and every situation is different. You know with respect to the particular players and the positions and what their contribution and their performance have been to this point. So, yeah it is an ongoing process. It’s nothing new. I think everybody is doing it. Everybody in the league is talking to their younger players to try and get a feel for what the potential is to get contracts extended.”
(On if the players have always came in such good shape in his time as head coach for the Rams)
“I told them yesterday that this has been by far, from a results stand point it’s been the best since we’ve been here. When you talk about weight, when you talk about offseason improvement and then you talk about a conditioning level and a conditioning test that they blew away; as the rookies did as well. When you got guys like, and I mentioned this to group (RB) Isaiah Pead, (T) Greg Robinson, (OL) Rodger Saffold, and (TE) Alex Bayer that have been here really since the start of the offseason rehabbing, surgeries. Isaiah is in his tenth month after an ACL, and to see what they have been able to do out here in the conditioning test and on the practice field. It is a tribute to them. It is a tribute to the training staff and medical staff. Everrybody’s worked hard, they know it is important. And this is a one time opportunity for this football team.”
(On not having any players get into trouble during the break)
“We were in touch with them. You know, I failed them from the standpoint of, I talked to them about wave runners and four wheelers and jet skis and driving fast and all of those things. But, I forgot to talk to them about the fireworks (laughter). So fortunately, we dodged that bullet. But, no, they understand. I think they have a good feel. It’s a responsible group and we’re fortunate that, you know, while everybody was gone, they made good decisions.”
(On if he has any general goals or themes for camp)
“No, we’re not there yet. We’re still doing administrative stuff. There’s just, ‘Let’s get better each day. It’s go out and have fun, enjoy your time together, listen, pay attention and just get better each day.’ It’s kind of simple here for the next ten days.”
(On how much of a luxury it is having everyone back on defense)
“Well, we do. We got the 11, but we also got some great competition at the backup spots, so we’ve got some depth. So, when you look at (S) Maurice (Alexander), for example, who’s just a tremendous surprise. You’re okay with him playing safety if you have a problem. That gives us a comfort level. (DT) Nick (Fairley), (LB) Akeem (Ayers), the whole group, and even the rookies are getting a lot of good stuff. (DE) Martin Ifedi, for example, is really off to a great start. We’re definitely going to, as we say, as you get better as a football team, you’re definitely going to have tough decisions at the end. We will have tough decisions to make, but we clearly have depth.”
(On RB Todd Gurley)
“There was no concern whatsoever with respect to his rehab, just because of the work that we did prior to the draft and on everything that he’s done thus far. We just felt in fairness to him, the PUP thing, it just didn’t make sense because he’s just going to stand there and watch. We want to build him. We want to add individual reps. We want him to be able to practice. He could practice against the defense. You know, if you PUP him and you go into the season and you’ll lose him for six weeks. So, I think that’s kind of an indication of where we think he is. I can’t say if it’s Week 1 or Week 6, but we’re hoping that it’s somewhere in there. We’re not going to take any chances or any risks or subject him to any danger. But, you can kind of read the tea leaves there. We feel like he’s ahead of schedule and he’s a tremendous athlete, and this is going to give him a chance to know the offense inside and out. I feel good about what he’s doing on a daily basis, rather than just kind of becoming that outcast they typically feel like when they’re on PUP.”
(On whether or not he’s pleased with how Gurley has attacked his injury)
“We couldn’t ask any more from him. We have no complaints as far as what he’s doing. He’s really doing a good job with everything. Every day he comes in with enthusiasm and energy, knowing that he’s just about there. A great example for him is (RB) Isaiah (Pead). Isaiah is two months ahead of Todd and you can tell the difference. Todd understands that the next two months are really, really important.”
(On whether Gurley is pushing athletic trainers to do more)
“Yes. That’ll become a problem eventually I’m quite sure.”
(On the young offensive line)
“Well again, in notepads, I think (T) Rob’s (Havenstein) technique is getting better. (G) ‘JB’ (Jamon Brown) is doing the same. All of the young guys are getting better. Obviously, (T) Isaiah (Battle) is behind. He’s got a ways to go. We’re going to push him. But, I think the young guys have done a really good job. And I have no reservation whatsoever when we line up for the opener, playing a rookie offensive linemen. They’re going to get plenty of reps and they’re the best that we’ll put on the field in confidence. Just in talking with the defensive lineman, obviously we have a veteran group of defensive lineman, they’re saying, ‘These guys are going to be good.’ Coming from (DE) Chris (Long) and (DE) Will (Hayes) and those guys, that’s pretty impressive.”
Rams QB Nick Foles – Training Camp- July 31, 2015
(On how he thinks the first day of training camp went)
“It was great. It’s fun to be out here. To get training camp started, it’s a little bit different than OTAs now. This is when it all begins so you could tell that there was a vibe. Guys were excited to be out here preparing for the preseason games. Really it’s just getting better and continuing to bond with one another. I thought it was a great first day all around and a lot of room to improve, but I was happy today.”
(On how he feels getting to perform in front of spectators)
“It’s great to have the fans here. I mean that’s the fun part about training camp is you get to be around the fans, and I’m new here so I’m getting to meet a lot of them. They are getting to see my face. They’re not used to me. They were very welcoming and very supportive today.”
(On him being in charge of the music playlist for practice)
“I was supposed to be. I did not do my part. So I don’t know where it came from, but I thought it was pretty good. I liked having the playlist with stretching. I can’t take the credit for it. I’m not going to take the credit for it. Someone else did it and I’ll find out who it was.”
(On if he ever has had music played before during drills)
“I‘ve had music played quite a bit. I think it’s just great for rhythm. I know everybody loves music so it’s just a way to warm up during practice. Maybe go through ‘indi’ (individual drills) and just get the blood flowing, make sure guys are all good and loose. I know a lot of receivers love to dance so while they’re waiting in line, they can get their dance moves out and then they go do their thing on the field. So I like it.”
(On what songs would be on his playlist)
“Everybody will be falling asleep. You know these questions after practice with the lactic acid in the head…umm, there would probably be some country music. We’ll get some Florida Georgia Line, something like that.”
(On WR Kenny Britt as a leader and what leadership means to him)
“I mean that’s what it’s about. We’re fortunate to be here. We’re fortunate to play this game. Just having guys here…it makes it easy. There’s a lot of great guys here that want to work together. They want to play for each other and that’s really how you win. You have to play for the guy next to you. We have a group right here that’s continuing to grow but I see that in them. So I’m excited for what the future holds. We just have to approach every day, support each other, lift each other up and I’m excited about this team.”
(On him being comfortable and adjusting with the team)
“I feel really comfortable. I’ve been fortunate to play for, you know, two great franchises in my career. To be here with these guys in this locker room and how they welcomed me here right off the bat was amazing. The quarterbacks are tremendous. They’re very supportive. We all work together to push each other to be the best we can be, because you never know when you’re going to play. But at the same time, we’re all buddies and we can you know we’ll go through the film and we’ll help each other out. It’s pretty awesome.”
(On any personal goals that he has set for camp)
“I just want the team to continue to grow together. There’s no you know percentage goal or anything else. The way you win games is you’re a family. It’s as simple as that. We have to continue to grow as a family and that’s going to end up, you know fourth quarter time when we’re in an adverse situation and we have to be able to count on the guy next to you. So I just want us to have fun out here with one another. Have fun, develop those relationships and we’ll take it from there.”
(On his comfort level with the playbook)
“I feel really comfortable. A lot more comfortable than I did in OTAs and, well, that’s a daily thing. There’s so much to an NFL playbook that you’re always adding stuff, you’re always critiquing stuff. There’s better fundamentals that you can do. But I feel really comfortable. We have great coaches. You know (Offensive Coordinator) Coach (Frank) Cignetti and (Quarterbacks) Coach (Chris) Weinke do a great job of preparing us. So I’m feeling good, just have to keep going.”
(On his regimint of studying the playbook before reporting to camp)
“Yes, I like going home when I leave here, get away for a little bit. I have a wife, so I try to spend a little bit of time with her and then I’ll study at night. I’ll go you know whether it’s going through our script, going through our plays or drawing them up. Everybody has different ways to do it, but I like to study after I take a little break and get back at it.”
(On if he threw during the break after OTA’s and before camp)
“Yeah, that’s the time that you really want to just to continue to be in great shape and throw you know two to three times per week. You don’t want to overdo it, but I like to throw two to three times per week just to keep it clean.”
(On who he throws his passes to)
“I’m not going to give you all every information so maybe in the future I’ll tell you.”
(On his ability to play at a really high level again)
“The goal as a quarterback is like you all said to be a great leader, but you have to put your team in a position to win. Now stats wise that’s what everybody is going to talk about, but for me as player, the most important thing is to win the game. If I throw an interception, I can’t be dwelling about that. You know it might hurt someone’s fantasy points, but at the end of the day, I want to win the game. So the guys here know that I’m going to do everything I can to go back out there and execute the next play. And that’s how you win games. If I make a mistake, the defense is going to have my back. If something happens, we’re going to go down and score. That’s how you win games.”
(On his thoughts about his contract negotiations)
“You know honestly, I just zone it out. That’s why you hire agents because my thing here is to be with these guys, to be a player, to be their quarterback. We have to win games. We hire agents so that clears the clutter out of our brain, and you know I trust them to do the job. I love it here. I love the players. I love the coaches. It’s a great place to play and I haven’t even played a game here yet and I love it. So that will take care of itself. I’m just excited to be out here playing.”
(On his contract negotiations being a possible distraction throughout camp and season)
“It’s never been a distraction so I don’t…you know I’m one of those guys that I enjoy playing the game. I know that we’re fortunate to play this game, so whatever happens happens and we’ll go from there. My whole mindset right now is focused on being the best quarterback, best person I can be for this organization and that’s why we hire agents. So I’m just excited to be out here and play.”
(On how he thinks the first day of training camp went for him)
“I felt like it was good. I mean there’s always, I’d like to hit every pass. That’s my goal every day. You strive for perfection. There’s things we’ll work on, but I felt like for the first day it was the right direction. So tomorrow we just need it to be a little better.”
Rams RB Todd Gurley — Training Camp – July 31, 2015
(On how exciting it was for him to pass the conditioning test)
“Oh man, I’m just…it was pretty exciting. I’m just glad to be out here and just being with the guys and starting camp again.”
(On going to see the doctor and his evaluation)
“Yeah, I saw him like two weeks ago just to get my checkup. Everything has been going good and I’m progressing, so that’s the main thing for me.”
(On being ahead of schedule with rehab)
“I don’t know, like I said. It’s about to be what? Nine months, so I think I’m doing pretty good.”
(On what his conditioning was like)
“Oh, it was brutal. It was hot. I was laid out. I was laid out right after. But yeah that was definitely one of the hottest days.”
(On having an impressive showing during his conditioning test)
“I did it. I made it. I did what I had to do.”
(On if he was able to participate in practice)
“No, not too much. Just the individual, like you know like we’d planned.”
(On if he is excited to be back doing football activities)
“Yeah, it is. Instead of just being over there with the trainer, but just being with the guys and you know just getting those fifteen minutes in.”
(On if he stayed in St. Louis over the break)
“Yeah, for the most part I was here.”
(On if he got any time off)
“No, I got some time off. Yeah, I got some time off. But I was here just going back and forth but the majority of the time I was here.”
(On if he was still rehabbing in June and July)
“Yeah, just working out.”
(On how difficult it is for him to take it easy when he wants to go and be aggressive)
“It’s frustrating because you know you just feel like you can go or you know you just feel like you can do much more than the trainers or the coaches are giving you. But, they are just trying to protect you and they’ve been through this, they have years of experience. So, no need to rush it.”
(On if his leg feels good enough to play a game in week or two)
“I don’t know about all of that. But I like said, I’m definitely getting better. Everything is getting better. I’m just looking forward to keep moving forward.”
(On what it’s like making lateral movements and cuts)
“Yeah, I mean, like I said it’s been fine. I haven’t really had any problems with it working out this summer. The one thing about me I’m not being timid on it. You know I’m not really…I’m at the stage now where I’m not really thinking about it too much.”
(On if there was a time when he was being timid)
“Yeah, but you know the majority of the time it’s a mental thing for sure.”
(On what he anticipates in the following weeks)
“Man, all I know is I got tomorrow. So I can’t worry about Week One for right now.”
(On if he is doing what the trainers ask him to do)
“Yeah, basically. Like, ‘what do you want me to do?’ Alright, cool.”
(On what the rehab is like mentally and if it is a grind)
“Yeah, because it is… because you’re doing everything that everybody else is plus, you know, a little bit more. You know even though I’m not out here doing all the practice stuff I’m probably doing more lifting than they are.”
(On if it is more than a mental grind or physical grind)
“It’s kind of both. It’s both you know on your body just trying to take care of your body and push through the exercises and the rehab. And then you know for your mental, just wanting to be out there and do extra stuff.”
(On if he feels like there will be a time when he lobbies to do more)
“I don’t know.”
(On when he thinks he will get to that point)
“Yeah, I mean right now I’m just doing individual. It’s only the first day so we’ll see what happens next week and the week after.”
(On if he feels sharp on the play book and mental side of things)
“Yeah, I feel pretty good. I’m definitely still making mistakes. But, that just comes with being a rookie and learning the playbook. But that’s why we’re here, you know in camp. Here all day so.”
(On how valuable the walk-thrus are)
“Yeah, walk-thrus are big. In college, we didn’t have too many walk-thrus, but in the NFL it’s definitely a lot of walk-thrus, so that’s a good thing for me because I’m able to do the walk-thrus. I’m not able to do the team runs and the 11-on11 and stuff like that. So, you know, the walk-thrus are key for me. “
