We compiled the most effective quotes from the primary week of Atlanta Falcons AT&T Training Camp, together with feedback from the workforce’s quarterbacks, Zachariah Branch, Jalon Walker, Jahan Dotson, Kendal Daniels and lots of others.
Will McFadden
FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. The first week of Atlanta Falcons AT&T Training Camp wrapped on Saturday earlier than pads got here on for the primary time on Monday.
Putting the pads on introduced an elevated stage of depth to kick off the second week, however there have been loads of fascinating insights to glean from the primary 4 camp practices below new head coach Kevin Stefanski. Each day of observe, media members can converse to numerous gamers and coaches to get a greater thought of their experiences and mindset forward of the season. There are loads of conversations that happen, however not all the info mentioned has a pure house in a narrative. That’s the place this piece is available in.
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Camp Chatter is our try to supply followers with the most effective quotes from gamers and coaches that they could not see wherever else. For those that wish to hear straight from the workforce, this could supply extra in-depth solutions in a curated method.
Here are the most effective quotes from the primary 4 days of coaching camp observe for the Atlanta Falcons.
KEVIN STEFANSKI
Question: What is your philosophy on enjoying starters within the preseason?
Stefanski: “I think every team is different. What your team needs can be different year to year. I do think in general, it’s good to play in the preseason. Now the number of plays varies, of course. We’ll really treat the first game and the third game as games that we’ll play some of our starters in. The second game, you know we’re going over to Indianapolis to practice versus the Colts for a couple days, so majority of the reps versus the Colts will go to our starters. So those guys will not play in that second game. We’ll work through our plan for the first and third games. But in general, guys, to get ready to play football, you’ve got to play football.”
Question: What is probably the most rewarding a part of coaching camp and preseason to you?
Stefanski: “We don’t want to chase the reward. We want to reward the chase, is what we’re trying to do. So what that means is all of it is part of the process, whether it’s those drills we just did on the field. And even the minutia of football is so simple – and they’re everyday drills that you do – they’re all just trying to get you ready for the long haul. What we do in the weight room, what we do in the meeting rooms, how we attack this training camp and get our minds and our bodies ready for a long season. I just think it’s so important for us as coaches, us as players, to keep our heads down. Keep the main thing, the main thing, work like crazy and not focus on what comes after that. We’re just going to keep our heads down, and we’re going to work.”
Question: How have you ever seen Zachariah Branch progress?
Stefanski: “Zachariah [Branch] is wired the right way. That’s something we knew going into the draft and certainly have figured out about him spending so much time with him through the offseason program into training camp. He’s somebody that really puts in the effort on a day-to-day basis. Again, that was no surprise because that’s what [Georgia Head Coach] Kirby [Smart] told me. That’s what all his coaches have told us in the past. And it’s true. You watch him at practice, and he goes and he goes and he goes. He’s got the right makeup for what we want him to be.”
Question: Can you broaden on Michael Penix Jr. not being cleared for 11-on-11s?
Stefanski: “All along, as you guys can imagine, we have put total trust into Mike [Penix Jr.] and the medical team and the doctor who performed his surgery. I’m very, very comfortable with where we are and the plan that we have. Also, I know Mike and he has the absolute right attitude, which is he’s going to keep on grinding every single day and get better every single day. When that time comes, he’ll be a part of those types of drills. In the meantime, he’s working very, very hard. He’s working very hard in all aspects of what goes into playing quarterback.”
Question: How do you deal with the Bijan Robinson scenario out of your finish?
Stefanski: “Understand that there’s a business side to everything we do. There’s the football side, and sometimes you’re living in both worlds, if you will. But just going to continue coaching the football team.”
Stefanski: “I think just the NFL, you understand different things come up, all sorts of things, and obviously contracts are a part of that. It doesn’t change relationships and those types of things.”
WR ZACHARIAH BRANCH
Question: Were you homeschooled for some time rising as much as prepare extra?
Branch: “I was homeschooled my seventh-grade and eighth-grade year. I ended up doing an extra year and just wanted to develop physically and mentally overall. I was getting up at 5 a.m., going to the gym at 6 a.m. with my dad and my brother for those two years. And I think it definitely paid off for sure.”
Question: What does the presence of followers imply to you out on the sphere?
Branch: “I think it’s pretty cool just to get the fans out here, get that atmosphere and everybody coming to show support. I always love that, and I kind of want to put on a show and just be better for them because people are coming to watch it. Might be a kid’s first time getting a chance to see me play or whatever the case may be. So, I want to always leave a good impression on them and just show we’re always trying to be the best version of ourselves for the team as well. Because that’s what it’s all about for the fans as well, to see the best version of ourselves. So, it’s always fun getting out here to compete with everybody and feel the atmosphere and love from the fans as well.”
LB KENDAL DANIELS
Question: What do you want most about this protection now that you just’re in it?
Daniels: “The speed and violence that they play with. How versatile we are as a defense and how we play together. I’ve heard that you don’t see that a lot around the league. You see a lot of, you have some big-time-name guys, and they’re there for stats. But we’re here for a sole reason, and if you’re not a part of that, and if you’re in it for the wrong reasons, it’ll show.”
Question: Have you been trying ahead to the pads approaching?
Daniels: “Yeah. I’m a linebacker. Of course I’ve been thinking about it. You always think about it. Running around in no pads, I wouldn’t say it’s not football, but it’s a different type of football. Different type of physicality and violence and speed. You have to play with a little bit of a different edge when it’s inside drill, and you have to love those things. I used to not [love it]. When I played safety, I did not like inside drill, but you learn to love it because that’s when, if you’re having a bad day and you go to inside drill and hit somebody, your day changes. And if you’re having a good day and you go to inside drill and something bad happens, your day changes. So, you got to go into drills like that with your chin strapped and ready to go.”
WR JAHAN DOTSON
Question: What’s your mindset heading into this 12 months?
Dotson: “I came here to have a role in this offense because I know the capability that I have in myself as a player. And this coaching staff, they saw that in myself as well. I came here to be a guy in this offense who’s able to make plays, and help our team win a lot of football games. I’ve been at the top of [the league]. I’ve seen what it takes to win the big game and make plays in the big game. So, I’m here to bring that experience to these guys, to the guys who haven’t done it, and be an outlet for the young guys. I’m here to make plays. That’s what this coaching staff brought me here to do, and that’s what I’m going to do.”
RG CHRIS LINDSTROM
Question: What are your takeaways from how Bill Callahan operates to this point?
Lindstrom: “He’s great. He’s got a real intensity to everything, and the passion that he still has for coaching and I don’t want to speak for him but, observing it, you can tell he’s got that passion and energy. And the detail, and just such a wealth of knowledge, and he’s showing guys from all these different years and the reason why things have evolved in his coaching, and then he explains it. It has been a great resource and a great tool. I’m so thankful that I get to work with somebody like him.”
WR DRAKE LONDON
Question: What do you get pleasure from about offensive coordinator Tommy Rees to this point?
London: “He’s about his stuff, and you can tell he’s just an offensive mind, and he just wants to rattle off things and get things going. I’m excited for him, and I know he is too.”
Question: Why did you plan to your girlfriend at a Taco Bell?
London: “She loves Taco Bell. And funny enough, I think it was our second date, and she explained, ‘Oh my god, it would be a dream if somebody proposed to me with Taco Bell.’ And I said, ‘Noted.’ I didn’t know, but I noted [that] if it was going to go good, then yeah, I’ll do it. Which, obviously, it did.”
Question: Was she appreciative of the gesture?
London: “She was actually more stoked about the Taco Bell than the ring. That’s telling what type of woman I got. So, I was excited. I was excited. She was, too.”
OT JAKE MATTHEWS
Question: With the quarterback rotation, is your position at this level to supply some stage of consistency for the offense?
Matthews: “Our job is always to kind of be the guys working hard, doing the work in the background, in the shadows a little bit. And that mindset doesn’t change. I think we take a lot of pride in, regardless of what the variables may be, we’re going to go out there and give our team the best opportunity to win. So much of this game is won, like they say, in the trenches. The O-line and D-line play is such a vital part. It’s just another opportunity for us to go out there and say, ‘Alright, this is what we have. This is who’s at quarterback, Bijan’s not in,’ whatever it might be, ‘let’s go out there and find a way to get it done and still move the ball.’ So, we take that challenge uh personally and all that stuff too It’s all going to shake out.”
QB MICHAEL PENIX JR.
Question: How did you are feeling once you weren’t cleared for 11-on-11s to start out camp?
Penix: “I care about getting back healthy because the last thing I want to do is get out there and not be able to give my team 100 percent. I feel like that’s only right for the team. And that’s only fair for the team that whenever I do come back, I’m 100% for them.”
Question: What are you doing in another way whereas being restricted to organize?
Penix: “Just a lot of mental reps. A lot of mental reps. Even whenever I’m not in, I’m still behind the quarterback that is in, and I’m back there looking at the defensive structure, thinking about the play call because I’m getting a play call as well. So, I’m thinking about the play call and what I would do if I was in that situation. Obviously, it’s not the same because you’re not in there, but as best as I can on the mental side of it, I try to take that seriously so I can get those mental reps so that whenever that time does come, I’m already mentally there.”
QB COOPER RUSH
Question: How was Day 1 with the Falcons?
Rush: “Fun. It’s a good reminder, especially when you’re out of it for a little bit, how much you love it, how special it is. It just feels right.”
Question: What’s your mindset becoming a member of the workforce so shortly?
Rush: “It kind of reminds me of when I first started undrafted. You come in, and it’s a whirlwind. We’ve been down there before, and you just go and play ball and see what happens. So, looking forward to that. Like I said, it was really cool to be out there and kind of remind yourself how fun it is.”
QB JACK STRAND
Question: How did it really feel to get beginning reps on Day 1 of coaching camp?
Strand: “I didn’t think about it too much. I’m coming into training camp and everything just trying to take it day by day. Keep attacking every day. Keep getting better every day. Whether I’m getting a bunch of reps or I’m not getting as many reps. Whatever reps that I do get, whether it’s in Indy, whether it’s in RVA, whether it’s in team, anything, I’m just going to try to attack those reps and try to keep getting with those. And then also from watching the guys around me.”
Question: How necessary is it so that you can keep the course after this sudden begin to camp?
Strand: “That’s something that I’ve been telling myself a ton: Be where your feet are. Enjoy the moment. Don’t look in the past, don’t dwell on any mistakes or any success that you might have had. Don’t look to the future and wonder what’s going to be happening in two weeks, in three weeks, in a couple of months or anything. Just be where your feet are.”
Question: Have you been getting a bunch of texts from again house?
Strand: “Everyone from back home in Wisconsin and back up in Morehead, they’ve been so supportive of me. [They’ll] text me just seeing how things are going going into training camp, and that’s such a blessing to me. To hear from those people and see the support that I have from back home and the spotlight that I have for the people back home. The people in my hometown, the young kids like my brother. He’s going to be a freshman in high school, and all his friends are so excited about it, and they’re trying to get my phone number and anything from him to text me. And being able to go to high school practice and stuff back home and just see the reaction from all those kids and see the platform that I have back home. And then up at school too, like being able to kind of just be like a face for our school and our school up in Moorehead. We weren’t really getting a lot of national attention with our football team in the time before myself, and my class and the guys around me got there. And so, the years that we had there and then me being able to come down here and kind of elevate that platform for the school, that’s been something that I’m so happy to be able to do.”
QB TUA TAGOVAILOA
Question: Are you sitting out as a precaution? Would you be capable of play if this have been a recreation week?
Tagovailoa: “I think just right now it’s just a precaution thing early on in camp, and then we’ll work through that. But I feel great right now. Like I said, it feels good to be out there with the guys, be able to throw, continue to hear the plays, get in the huddle with the guys. All of that.”
Question: What have you ever favored about this method as you proceed to be taught it?
Tagovailoa: “You’re constantly learning, and I think a cool thing that we do here is the night before, we go through the installs. Then, the next morning, you have a lot of time to sort of get your body ready. But at the same time, you’re able to see who is able to regurgitate what was installed last night into today’s practice because we don’t meet before. I think that’s something really cool. You can see who’s studying, who’s been in their playbook, who understands where to go, and where they need to be at. All of that.”
Question: Has your mindset modified a few quarterback competitors modified now that you just’re in camp?
Tagovailoa: “I don’t think the mindset changes at all. At the end of the day, you have to allow the coaches to be able to do what they got to do, and all you can control is what you can control. You go out there, you study. You do all the things you need to do to be able to go out there and perform. And if the cards fall where they fall, then that’s what you’re dealt with at the end of the day.”
Question: What do you suppose you convey to this locker room?
Tagovailoa: “Outside of being a football player, I think I bring some good vibes for the guys in the locker room. Making sure everyone’s having a good time, making sure guys are smiling. And if guys are not smiling, checking up on them. And then outside of that, having the tough conversations with guys as well.”
EDGE JALON WALKER
Question: Do you are feeling extra comfy exhibiting your management expertise in Year 2?
Walker: “[It’s] something I ask myself to do more. That’s part of my standards, part of how I roll, how I hold myself on a day-to-day basis. As I’ve said plenty of times, I was born into it. My dad being a college football coach and watching him lead his football team and being at Georgia, being named captain of the team, going through my hard days there and leading us to SEC championships and winning and things like that. Last year, of course, going into my campaign, I’ve [been] finding my way, but throughout the year, I’ve gained that confidence of figuring out how I can be able to lead this football team. And, going into Year 2, I plan to do so.”
SAFETY XAVIER WATTS
Question: What are you engaged on in Year 2?
Watts: “Right now, just recognizing plays a lot faster. Kind of just formations coming out [of the huddle], knowing what’s coming. I had a good grasp on it last year, but I feel like I was a little slow. I could have recognized things a lot faster, missed out on a lot of plays that I went back if I would have recognized it faster.”
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