HEAD COACH TODD BOWLES
(On what the meaning of "What an op" is from the shirt he is wearing)
"It is 'what an opportunity' from Coach [Kevin] Carberry and the offensive line. It has the play on the back, our favorite play that we like to run, and 'what an opportunity.'"
(On which players are out for Sunday against the Seattle Seahawks)
"Bucky [Irving] is out, [Mike] Evans is out, [Jamel] Dean is out, 'Izzy' (Christian Izien) is out, [Benjamin] Morrison is out."
(On how he feels about who is going to start at the cornerback position)
"I feel great... [It] might be [Jacob] Parrish, might be [Kindle] Vildor, might be [Josh] Hayes, [just] depending on the packages."
(On if Seattle's offense is an offense the defense can play less nickel packages against compared to other offenses they have faced)
"They come out different every game, so you may be in a lot of nickel, you may be in a lot of base, you may be in a lot of big people [packages]. They change it up every week. They do a good job of doing that and running all of their plays out of it."
(On how confident he is with the running back depth the Buccaneers have)
"Rachaad [White] and most of them have played before, other than Josh [Williams] -- he has not played before. Everybody else we have played with before, we think [they] can do a hell of a job, so we feel good about them playing."
(On what he has seen from RB Josh Williams behind the scenes)
"He puts in the work all the time. He wants to get better every day. He studies, he stays extra, he comes early, he does a hell of a job on the scout team giving us a look, [and is] just waiting for his opportunity."
(On Bowles previously saying RB Sean Tucker needs more touches on offense)
"I still feel that way, but it is hard to do when you [have] Bucky [Irving] and Rachaad [White] sitting right there. I did not say it was fair, I just said he needs more touches – I would like to [give him] more touches, but the other two guys deserve their touches, as well. It is just one of [those] good problems to have as a coach."
(On his earlier comments that DL Elijah Simmons is the strongest player he has seen behind NT Vita Vea, and if he meant the strongest player he's ever seen or the strongest he's seen on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers)
"With the Buccaneers. I have seen some strong guys in my day."
(On if he is pleased with DL Elijah Simmons' performance so far)
"Extremely pleased. As he learns and gets better, we feel like he can really help us."
(On if the signing of several players off of other teams' practice squads is a good test for the pro scouting department)
"It is great work for them; it is hard work for us. It happens when injuries happen like this. I think it is going on all over the league, they do a good job of understanding what we need and who we want and how they can fit in our system."
(On if he feels like it is an advantage to have more days off than your opponent like Seattle has coming into their Week 5 matchup after being on Thursday Night Football last week)
"If you are injured, for resting guys, yes. Other than that, no."
-BUCCANEERS-
