HC ANDY REID
Opening Statement: "Not much for you as far as injuries go. Most of the guys were out here that have been out here. Isaiah Battle would be the new one. He came back out, he had a slight hamstring. He practiced today and felt pretty good. That was really about it. I appreciate the season ticket holders and the fans that were here. It was a great turn out and our guys get into that. It's hot and they're working hard. The first day of pads is never an easy day, but this gives them a little boost. As a result, we had a good practice. Both sides challenged each other, kind of back-and-forth. We've got good players here, so as long as they continue to do that and push each other, you have a chance to get better. That's what this camp is all about. With that, time's yours."
Q:When Tyreek [Hill] is going against Marcus [Peters], is that fun for you as a coach to see those guys go at it?
REID: "Yeah. You have two good players, so they challenge each other. Both of them are competitive guys. That's what it's all about. There are other matchups out there too. It was great to have Justin Houston back out there. He's doing a nice job. There are the matchups that he's got with the tackles. Dee Ford's back healthy and ready to go, so everything is good there. Those are all fun to watch."
Q:It seems like Tyreek is running a little more on that side against Marcus than before, is that about right?
REID: "No, we have all right-handed quarterbacks and for some reason you have a tendency to throw right maybe a hair bit more than you do left. Are we lining that up for that reason? No, that's not what we're doing. We're not trying to get that matchup or any of that stuff."
Q:Tyreek Hill made a lot of plays today. Everyone knows about his speed, but how much better have his hands gotten over the last year?
REID: "He's blessed with pretty good hands, but consistency and keeping them in a position that you can catch the football. So defenders are trying to knock your hands down, neutralize your inside arm, all of these things with hand slaps. So trying to get him to stay strong and get them in a position has been a good challenge for him. He's done nice with that. And then running accurate routes where he's on the same time with the quarterback and make sure he stays disciplined with that. But he's getting better in all those things."
Q:Justin Houston was a little bit late for practice?
REID: "The league has tests that are mandatory tests that they do your whole team here and they mix and match it. It's random. So he got a random drug test today, and there's no time on it, and he had just gone to the bathroom. So he had to put a few liquids down to get ready to give that one. Maybe it's too much information here, but it's pretty simple. Sometimes that happens and that's not the first time that's happened that way and it's probably not the last."
Q:What do you see from Justin from a health and athleticism standpoint now that he's back out there in full pads?
REID: "He's got his quickness. His weight is good, his strength is good. He cruised through the conditioning test we had. I think he's got confidence in his leg. He's in a good place. We're early here, but he's got to keep pushing on it and continue to build game endurance through these practices. It's great the first day, but let's keep building on it as we go."
Q:What are some of the strengths you've seen from Seantavius Jones so far?
REID: "We've kind of seen him grow a little bit to where he's given himself a chance to get in there and work with the ones, at least in the rotation. Again, it's important that he maintains that. He's done some nice things, but now the defense goes and studies him. They watch some tape, now what are you going to come back with. Can you sustain this? That will be his challenge."
Q:How about Bryan Witzmann?
REID: "Bryan Witzmann playing at the left guard spot, so again, I'll tell you the same thing. He's in the rotation. He and Zach [Fulton] are rotating in there and both of them are getting a lot of snaps, obviously Zach's also playing some center in there. He's been competing. I'll have to take a look at the tape on it and see how he did, but he's in there competing for an opportunity. He's a tough kid and we'll just see how he does."
Q:Any of the young guys jump out at you in pads, particularly Kpassagnon?
REID:"I probably wouldn't pick one. I thought they did a nice job collectively, I'll tell you that. They surely didn't shy away from things. That is a start. We will see how it goes with days here."
Q:How did Kevin Pierre-Louis look?
REID:"He did some good things. He is learning. He's learning French overnight here. The terminology is not the same from where he has been. It's really from scratch. Sometimes you will get that player that will run the same terminology, but that is not the case here. He is working through it. He is spending a lot of extra time learning the defense. He will get it. It won't happen overnight, but he will get it here."
Q:Is it easier to evaluate with pads on?
REID:"It is closer to real football, so yes. Then it continues on with the preseason games and then sustained practices. You may be good today, but what are you tomorrow and the next day and all the way through camp?"
RB SPENCER WARE
Q:First day of pads, was it fun?
WARE:"Yeah. Pretty fun. A lot to work on and a lot to build on, but it was pretty fun out there."
Q:What are your initial impressions of the offense with the first day in pads?
WARE:"Pretty good. We attacked downfield. Alex threw some great balls and our receivers made some great catches. The o-line, we communicated up front with the protection and the run game. Everything seemed in-sync, but this is just day one. We have a lot of days ahead of us, a lot more tests and obstacles we are going to have to get over."
Q:How does having most guys back on offense help the chemistry and communication?
WARE:"Chemistry goes a long way. If we are all on the same page, we can go out there and achieve exactly what it is that we are trying to accomplish."
Q:Bennie Logan said you recruited him, why did you think it was important to get someone like that here?
WARE:"I played with Bennie my three seasons down at LSU. We came out in the draft together. This is the place to be. I told him it reminded me of those hard days in camp and just the tenacity of this team. And Coach Andy Reid, how he wants that toughness to come out of people, offense and defense.* *Just the physicality reminded me of how our time spent at LSU was with that team we had down there."
LB DEE FORD
Q:The last couple of seasons have ended in the playoffs, how much of a sense of unfinished business do you guys have heading into this season?
FORD: "A lot of it. We have a big window of opportunity for us. You don't want to think ahead but you still want to think about that. We've been to the second round and then last year we had the first round bye. We want to get to big plans. We're definitely coming into this year, chopping wood each day but also thinking of where we're trying to end up."
Q: Is that a message that a lot of the leaders in the locker room try to put out there?
FORD: "Of course."
Q: You had a big breakout season last year, double-digits in sacks. How do you look to translate that to have a repeat or even better this year?
FORD: "Not doing anything different, just doing it more efficient. I was still inconsistent at times last year and I just want to do the same things I've been doing but just want to become efficient. That's how you become great. You don't change up anything, get better at the running game. Doing the same moves. I probably have a couple of new moves, but I'll leave that for excitement. I'm looking forward to it."
Q: Team wise the number of sacks and pressure was down last year. What can you do to build on that?
FORD: "I don't want to point to anything, that just is what it is. We're all men. We own our shortcomings so we'll take that into the season and we'll ramp that back up. That's the type of men we are."
Q: What do you have to do to ramp that back up? To get that going again?
FORD: "Rush the passer. Rush the pass every play, it's real simple. Rush the pass and it starts right now. Getting in shape for it. Getting that muscle memory going, that's how you do it."
Q: You didn't get a chance to work a lot with Justin Houston last year because he was banged up again. Getting to work again with him at the full camp, what's that going to be like the two of you trying to work together at the same time?
FORD:"It's going to be great. We're going to grind it out every day and we're going to take that momentum in the preseason and we're going to take it into the regular season. We're going to see how it goes. We haven't scratched the surface at that part. We're working, that's all we can do at this point is put in the work then the result comes."
Q: What was your reaction to everything Tamba Hali had to say before camp?
FORD: "I don't get on Twitter. I don't Facebook Live or any of that stuff. I'm either working out at that time or chilling with my girl, or talking to my mama. But Tamba is my big bro, he'll always be my big bro and that just is what it is. Whatever he had to say, he probably had a reason to say it. I don't really know the context of what he had to say. I heard about it. That's not our focus."
Q: You haven't talked to him about it?
FORD: "No, I haven't seen him in months. So we catch up and we talk about different things. I was holding his kids yesterday in the parking lot. He has a beautiful family. I really could care less as to what he had to say on Twitter. Tamba is my big bro, he'll always be my big bro."
CB MARCUS PETERS
Q: How much growth have you seen from that guy (Tyreek Hill) this year to right now at this point?
PETERS: "You can see it. He was hungry when he first got here and it displayed in his year that he had last year. You know a Pro Bowl year. He is just hungry man. All the guys are hungry. We just want to get out there and continue to strive for greatness."
Q: You have a good eye for what the receivers are going to run. How sophisticated is his (Tyreek Hill) route running right now?
PETERS: "They think he is just fast but he is a really technically sound receiver. He is just a little dude, but he is in a big man body."
Q: You have been having some good battles. Do you like seeing him come your way?
PETERS: "Yeah, that is what you want. You got to compete with the best if you want to be the best. He is one of the best receivers in our league right now so you have to get work."
Q: What do you have to do when you see a guy with that kind of speed coming your way?
PETERS: "You have to cover. What else are you going to do?"
Q: Sometimes you see cornerbacks stay back, but you get closer to receivers. How does that speak to your ability to see what is coming?
PETERS: "That is what makes me different from everybody else. I do what I feel is comfortable for me at the time and I just play my game. I am not trying to play anyone else's game but mine and help my team be successful."
Q: You always make a play later even if you get beat. How do you explain that?
PETERS: "It is always about finishing. It is not about how you start. It is about how you finish. It is easy to start fast but can you keep that up through four quarters? We are in our first phase of camp right now. It is all about getting yourself into football shape first and foremost and just coming out here and competing and having fun. If you are not having fun, what are you doing this for?"
Q: Because of how you read the field do you ever give Tyreek tips on how to run a route or are you just straight competing with these guys?
PETERS: "No, you have to give them information because it is going to help them. We have good corners in this conference. We have Chris Harris Jr. We have (Casey) Hayward and we got (David) Amerson so we have some good corners in this conference so it is going to help me help him and then help the team first and foremost. In the end, it is going to help us get some touchdowns and yards. It is all about getting the ball in his hand and let him do it."
Q: What can you tell me about Juiceman Underwear?
PETERS: "It is going crazy man. I had an idea about giving back to my women. I grew up with a lot of women. Both of my grandmothers in my life. I had a whole lot of aunties and girl cousins. I just figured that we just need to uplift our women some more. I am not saying that they lack this, it just means to uplift some more to put them on stage so they can feel some more love."
Q: Were you involved in the design and all of that?
PETERS: "Yeah, I am fully involved in it. I broke it down to what I like to see. I kept my mama in contact and my girlfriend in contact and my grandmother in contact and my aunties. We all just work with it. It is doing good for me."
Q: Do you get feedback on it? PETERS: "Yep."
