Below is a selection of Tampa Bay Buccaneers quotes from today's earlier media availability. Full video of press conferences can be found on Buccaneers.com.

Head Coach Dirk Koetter

Defensive Coordinator Mike Smith

Defensive End Jason Pierre-Paul

Head Coach Dirk Koetter

(On tackle Donovan Smith at practice)

"Yeah, good to get Donovan back out there. Probably the healthiest we've been for a long time today. Good to see it."

(On if there is a drop off in New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees' play)

"Well, he's a really good player. If there is a drop off, I haven't seen it. I know there are some people talking about that, but I haven't seen it."

(On how difficult it is to sack Brees)

"Well I think you just have to disrupt him in other ways. He works hard based on his height to be able to see where he's throwing. Just staying in front of him is part of it and not making those lanes, getting your hands up, it's hard to get to him. The guy – that's why he's good as he is and that's why he's going to be in the Hall of Fame, because he is so good at that."

(On if it's weird without Jameis Winston in the facility)

"We said that the other day. It was weird, but again, everybody's got to take care of their business that's at hand. Of course, it'd be great if Jameis was here, but he's not. At this point, it's like any other injury that a guy's out for three weeks. We're going to be missing him for three weeks. Things move on."

(On what New Orleans cornerback Marshawn Lattimore does that makes him a great player)

"He's got size. That's the thing. He's almost a perfect match for this division because he's got the size to go up against Mike [Evans] and go up against Julio [Jones], the big receivers not only in our division, but around the league. He's also got excellent ball skills. He had a couple of picks last year where you're used to being able to throw balls in certain spots and a lot of corners won't make a play on the ball, but he's shown he can make plays on the ball as well."

(On if the Lattimore versus Evans matchup is one of the better ones in the NFL)

"Definitely. I think it is right now. I don't think we have to wait. I think it will be this Sunday."

(On how much the Saint's defense has improved over the past two seasons)

"I think they're a lot better and part of it I think is they've had the same defensive coordinator. This will be the sixth time that we've played them with Coach [Dennis] Allen as their defensive coordinator. Continuity and they've added pieces like we just mentioned in Lattimore. 94 (Cameron Jordan) is playing at the peak of his career and one of the best defensive ends in the game right now. So, they've added pieces, they've got continuity, they've built on their package and they play really hard."

(On if a division game is like a double win or a double loss)

"It's like a double win if you're on the road. You know, when you're the visiting team, I don't know about a double loss. It's definitely like a double win if you're the visitor."

(On wide receivers Chris Godwin and DeSean Jackson both being listed as starters)

"I think most teams in the league have more than two starting wide receivers. The way the depth chart is they have you list them as two wide receivers and two tight ends, so we list them that way. We don't put an 'or' in front of Adam Humphries' name, but obviously when we have three wide receivers, Hump's going to be out there. We're going to have some wide receiver groups with all kinds of mixtures of those four guys."

(On if Godwin still feeds off the big play he made last year)

"I mean, since it was the last offensive play of the season, I think it's maybe a little harder for that. But Chris makes plays every day that – when guys makes wild plays whether they be in practice or in games – I think Chris's reputation in our building is already growing. I don't know how he is around the league. He's going to have to make some more plays for some other teams to notice him. Chris is doing all the things that he needs to be doing right now to be a really good player in this league."

(On if he has talked to the team about keeping composure during this game)

"We have talked about that, but we would talk about that regardless of who we're going to play in the opening game because these guys train all-year-round and go through a lot of stuff – offseason, camp, preseason games – to play in real games. Real games [are] why these guys are in this business. No matter who you're playing, that's something that has to come up. The fact that it's a very loud place and if you fall behind in that building, it can be intimidating. I mean, it can. That's their home-field advantage and they're smart to play to it, so of course they're going to try to intimidate us. But anything that happened last year, that's all last year. I mean, you've got two teams that both want to win, two teams that both want to compete and there's – I can assure you from our end – there's no bad blood. We recognize what kind of a football team New Orleans has and we're going to go out there and do everything we can to give it to them on Sunday."

(On how defensive end Will Gholston being able to play inside has helped with two players down)

"Yeah, a lot. I mean, the fact that Will's versatile enough is much like a offensive lineman that can play guard or tackle or center and guard. Will has been effective as an inside player and I'm sure that we'll continue to use him that way."

(On if who will be the starting kick returner)

"You know, sometimes I wonder if there's any reason for fans to tune in and watch the game. If we just tell you guys everything, why would anybody tune in and watch the game? We're going to have kick returner out there and we'll see. I'm not going to tell you guys every exact thing we're going to do. That doesn't do me any good. It might do you guys good, but it doesn't do us any good."

(On how to slow down New Orleans running back Alvin Kamara)

"You've got to swarm tackle. You've got to get population to the ball. The guy – we watched some highlights of him today in the team meeting – he's more powerful than you think. He's faster than you think. He's more slippery than you think. He jumps over tacklers. He runs through tackles. You know the guy – again, everyone in the league passed on him twice for him to make it to the third round and I'm sure everybody's kicking themselves on how did that guy make it to the third round? Because last year was a highlight reel for him. He's definitely a game-wrecker that we've got our eye on and saying it and doing it are two different things."

(On Donovan Smith's streak of consecutive games played)

"That's impressive and guys when they get streaks like that going, they become important. When I was in Atlanta, I think Roddy White had something like 109-110 games in a row going and he had a high ankle sprain coming out of preseason. He would've done just about anything to play. It's important to those guys. They take it personal, and I know Donovan feels that way as well."

(On if Godwin has some of the same characteristics of former Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Roddy White)

"I didn't get to coach Roddy until much later in his career, so I wasn't as familiar with Roddy in his early days. But, I do think Chris Godwin reminds me a lot of the style of play of Roddy White, and I mean that totally as a compliment because Roddy is one of the best guys I've ever coached."

(On what is similar between White and Godwin)

"Competes in everything. That was Roddy: competes, toughness, smart, could play every position, would knock your block off if he got chance, wants the ball in crucial situations."

(On last year's handshake with Sean Payton following the Week 17 game)

"I'm not sure, and again, I lose zero sleep over that. I'm sure he doesn't. Two guys that want to win and are going to do everything they can to win and that's it. I mean, other than that I've got the upmost respect for him. I study what they do. They're one of the elite teams in this league and he's one of the elite coaches."

Defensive Coordinator Mike Smith

(On quarterback Drew Brees)

"Definitely a first ballot Hall-of-Fame quarterback. Knows how to run the offense with Sean Payton. Moves the ball around, gets it in different guys hands. I don't think – you watch the tape and you still see a great player."

(On if Brees is playing at a high level, despite his age)

"There's not many. When you start talking about great quarterback, he'd be in the discussion on the first hand you pull up. He's really good. He understand Sean's offense, and he know where to go with the football. I think that shows in last year's percentage. Completing over 70 percent of your passes in the NFL – it's never been done before. He's doing a really good job. I think they've added some pieces to their offensive weaponry with Kamara last year, so I think that really helped him in this past game."

(On the difference between the two games against the Saints last year and how that will help this year)

"Well, the difference in the two games was we had a stretch in the game in New Orleans of about 15 or 20 plays that was just horrid football defensively in terms of a 2-minute drive right before the half and then we came right back out and gave up a touchdown and then from that point it was tough. I thought that we hung in there prior to that two-minute drive where they hit the two-screen passes, but you've got to play a 60-minute game. I think we did some nice things here at home. Every time you play the Saints, it's going to be a different game. It's going to have a different dynamic because Sean has such a big playbook – he's one of the guys that's got a lot of weapons and he can attack you in so many different ways. It's always fun to prepare to play against a Sean Payton-coached team."

(On what is impressive about defensive end Jason Pierre-Paul)

"Jason's got a real drive to be a good football player and he's got a real drive to understand what we're trying to do on defense. That's the thing that's been most impressive, and then the second thing is the guy doesn't want to come off the field. He's a guy that's played – when's he's been healthy – 90-plus percent of the snaps on defense and that is unheard-of a lot of times in the NFL. We've gone to rotations up front, he's a guy that doesn't want to come off the field."

(On safety Justin Evans' progression as a player)

"I think he's got a very high ceiling. Justin is a guy that is learning every day when he goes out there. I still believe he has a good understanding of what we're trying to do. I think it was a good situation when we had to line up and play him for three or four days at the nickel position. It gives us flexibility. It also gives him a much better understanding of what the other guys are doing around him on the defense. He's a safety that's got athleticism of a corner. He's prepared himself to have a really good year this season – a breakout season."

(On how much confidence he has in rookies Carlton Davis III and M.J. Stewart)

"They've done a nice job. I've got a lot of confidence in those guys because we've put them out there on the field when they've been healthy. Carlton's missed some time. M.J.'s missed some time here of late. Both of these guys we drafted them to come in here and compete. They've done a great job of competing and they've earned the playing time they've gotten in the preseason. And we need to get these guys ready to play in a regular season game which as you guys know, the intensity in what happens in terms of preparation is completely different than what happens in a preseason game. No disrespect to our preseason football."

Defensive End Jason Pierre-Paul

(On the defensive line)

"It's crazy. Like you said, I'm not the only new face. The whole training camp – I wasn't here OTAs, but got here mini-camp, got a little piece of it. All training camp we've been trying to figure guys out. Guys have been trying to get that chemistry together. We made the final cuts, but I think that we're about there. The challenge is really going to come this Sunday. That's going to be a big challenge. We'll figure out where we're at.'

(On how to win against the Saints)

"I think when it's all said and done, it's going to come down to who's going to give the most effort. When I say the most effort, I'm talking about individually. Every guy's got to fight for themselves. At the same time, we're fighting to get that one goal accomplished. It's going to come down to who's going to beat who. Beat your man in front of you and take care of your job. That's how I've always looked at football. No matter what, I've always looked at it that way."

(On what he does the night before an opener)

"Man, the night before an opener I'm eating Snickers – just playing. Night before an opener I'm getting my mind right, going over the plays, asking coach a lot of questions, asking players a lot of questions, making sure we're on the same page. Even out there on the field we'll get a call on the field from the middle linebacker and I'm like, 'Hey, is it this? Is it this?' Because communication is key. I've been preaching that to the defense. Not just the D-line, but the linebackers. I say no matter what it is, communication is key. I can know everything, but let's say if I call the defense out and I say, 'Defense is upfield' and the other defense probably even know that or D-tackle, but now I know what to do because he's going upfield. That's just like the little things. If you communicate those things, I think it will all play out."

-BUCCANEERS-