Head Coach Andy Reid

OPENING STATEMENT:"Alright, just real quick on injuries, Ben Johnson slight hamstring, (Eric) Fisher you know the deal there, (A.J.) Jenkins slight hamstring, (Travis) Kelce same deal, Van Dyke, actually both Van Dykes (DeMarcus and David) got a little tweaked there in their hamstrings and then Kyle Williams you know that situation there. Good work this week. We're glad (about what we put) into those six practices, we're about at the halfway point. Feel good about the competition going back and forth with offense and defense. Each one of them have been making plays which is a positive. We've got good special teams work in. Young guys look like they're improving and then we'll finish up next week with four days, Monday off, and they'll come back Tuesday through Friday, for four days. Then they have the mandatory minicamp at the end there the following week."

Q: What about Sean Smith?

REID:"Sean was excused for personal reasons and listen, it's not a mandatory camp."

Q: What have you seen from Dwayne Bowe these past couple of weeks?

REID:"I think Dwayne came back in phenomenal shape, that's one thing. It looks like it out here. He's really moving around well. Look forward to getting to camp where it actually counts, but he's in the right frame of mind."

Q: What about Donnie Avery?

REID:"Donnie looks good, yeah. He's running fast and I remember this time last year he had the high ankle or there was something there, so he really missed all of the OTAs and then he came back and he had the scapula there that he had hurt. He's in good shape right now."

Q: Is Travis Kelce going to be ready for training camp?

REID:"Yeah. He's getting close. He's been working his tail off, so he and Rick (Burkholder) have been spending a lot of time together."

Q: What about Alex Smith's progression this season?

REID:"I think it's two things: I think he's more familiar with all of his receivers, Dwayne included, and he's more familiar with the offense. They all are. So, you hope that that's the next step that takes place there, where they can all pick their game up even a little bit better than they were last year."

Q: How much easier does it make it for your team when you have the same quarterback with the same team?

REID:"That's a good thing. As much continuity as you can keep, that's a good thing, particularly in that position. You hope that you're in a position where that takes place."

Q: How complex are you getting? Would you say all the plays are in there?

REID:"I wouldn't say everything is in. No, not everything."

Q: How much of what goes on during OTAs factor into the rise and fall on the depth chart?

REID:"This is similar to the install that they'll have in training camp, so some of the plays and that will carry right over for them."

Q: Do the position battles start right now?

REID:"Oh yeah, every snap they get. That's what you want to do. John Dorsey has done a great job of bringing personnel that generate competition. Good personnel. There are some spots. Really, everybody should feel that, every spot should feel that."

Q: What about the tight end battle?

REID:"It looks like it. It looks like there is some good competition there for sure."

Q: How long does it take for quarterbacks to understand everything?

REID:"Well you're always coming up with new stuff and I still send it to them. I give it. This thing is endless. Most of them have it, the ones that have been there for a couple or three years. The new guys with the rookies, the new rookies, normally by the fourth year they kind of have everything together. So if you're adding new plays, but not necessarily principles."

Q: So what about a veteran like Alex Smith understanding your offense?

REID:"The way he's wired and the history of where he came from, some of the things are similar."

Q: When you are installing, do you ever look back at Green Bay or other teams? Do you look at Mike Holmgren?

REID:"I mean we use all of it. I've still got all of the notes from him. Even though I wasn't on that staff, I've got all of the pass game notes from John Gruden. We've gone all the way back and looked at stuff there. He was very creative, Mike Holmgren was very creative, so we pull things from everywhere."

Q: Does everybody change the plays a little as it goes down the line?

REID:"Yeah, some of the base principles you pull out. They're there. I mean, you've built those in already and then you just continue to build new things. Some of the things you create and then some of the things you bring back from the past. Football seems to be a giant cycle. It recycles itself and what we think is all the stuff from a college game, well that's been there before and you just kind of recycle it."

Q: Do you use things from Mike Holmgren?

REID:"Well, you talk it every day. I mean the things you learn from him, I'm still using. That's part of the language when you're teaching. I mean you add your personality to it and some of it you're teaching according to whatever, but your base principles are from him."

Q: Today all the quarterbacks seemed to take the ball a little deeper. Was that just part of the playbook?

REID:"Yeah, we threw a lot of our deep ones."

Q: What are you seeing different from your tight end position this year versus last year?

REID:"At this time last year I thought we were in pretty good shape in the tight end spot and then we had injuries. It's not much different with the things that we're doing. Some of the guys are a little bit older now and getting the hang of things."

Q: How often do you get cheeseburgers for the players?

REID:"We had cheeseburgers Saturday night. I mean, I use that term all over. It's hard to beat a good cheeseburger. It's hard."

Q: How else would you use that term?

REID:"I don't know. This press conference is getting old; I need to go grab a cheeseburger."