HEAD COACH TODD BOWLES
(On T Tristan Wirfs leaving the practice field early)
"Yeah, he's fine, just cramped up a little bit."
(On if he has an update on Ryan Jensen's status)
"Not at this time, I don't."
(On how practice was on a very hot day)
"It started out good, obviously. The heat index got up there a little bit, so we took longer water breaks. But the effort is there – we've just got to make sure the mental toughness is there. It won't always be this hot early in training camp – it's going to be training camp no matter what – but the effort is there. We've just got to iron out the kinks to be expected early in training camp."
(On if the team might hold some subsequent camp practices in the indoor facility due to the heat)
"We'll probably have some inside. We'll probably have some inside. We have some [practices] that we talked about wanting to go inside on some. But just getting them out here early, getting used to the pads and getting used to the heat, and getting some extra conditioning was important."
(On some things the team can 'really dig into' in training camp)
"Well, it's early in camp – we can dig into everything. We've got to make progress every day. It's going to be a grind every single day. I'm not going to say we got great at something one day and then we go back the next day. It's training camp, it's early, we've got to progress as a team, not as an individual group or position. That's where we try to get to, so right now every day is a grind."
(On if any players are catching his eye)
"We've seen a lot of give and take. As it goes on, we want to see consistency, not one-day wonders or one-hit wonders. It's a lot of give and take right now. Again, it's still early and [there are] a lot of position battles on day two of pads. As it goes on, we'll see who starts to separate."
(On what CB Jamel Dean can learn from going up against WR Julio Jones)
"Anytime you go up against a Hall of Famer you're going to have some things you want to learn, and you want to play your best. But Julio's smart mentally and he has a lot of crafty moves at the line of scrimmage, so Dean can't do [anything] but get better playing against a player like that."
(On how the defense meets its goal of getting more interceptions)
"First of all, we've got to catch the ones they throw to us and then we've got to be in the same place mentally. We've got to be in position to make those type of plays. We dropped I don't know how many last year and Carlton [Davis] dropped quite a few. He caught a bunch, but he dropped quite a few. But we've just got to catch the ball. You can practice it all you want, but you've got to catch them in a game. So that type of thing – getting tips and everything else helps, and breaking on the ball. We've just got to keep working on it."
(On if the final word on Jensen's knee is waiting on further tests or swelling to go down)
"I'm not sure. We're waiting for everything, the testing and the swelling, to go down so we can see more."
(On if it also involves second opinions)
"I'm sure of it."
(On how the defense can use a bigger safety like Keanu Neal)
"He's a great safety. He's in good shape right now. He came out big. When he was playing for Atlanta, he was a big safety. We knew that coming out. What Keanu does, he can think the game and he can play back. He's not just a box player. He understands schemes, he understands how to play zones and he can play some man. So, he's a utility-size safety but he impacts the game because when the ball is played on the perimeter so much, when smaller wideouts and running backs go try to block him he can run right through them. So, he has a role. We're still trying to figure that part out and we understand it, but we like everything he's doing."
(On Neal not being limited to playing in the box)
"No, he's a safety. We don't have any handcuffs on him. He's a safety. He's practicing all the safety stuff and he's doing [well]. He was a little heavier in Dallas because he had to play linebacker, but he's gotten back down to size, and he looks good."
(On if he knows how much weight Neal lost to go back to playing safety)
"Maybe 10 or 12 [pounds], give or take, but he's gotten down to his playing weight when he was coming out of college."
(On how much emphasis there is on communication on the back end of the defense)
"It's a big emphasis, not just the back end, all the way around, offensively and defensively. If we don't have communication [and] they're not on the same page, we can't execute at a high level. That's what most of this stuff that's going on in practice is centering around right now, situational football, being on the same page and being smarter. Talent will only get you so far – you've got to be intelligent to make it the rest of the way."
(On what has stood out about the players competing to be backup offensive tackles)
"Well, you've got to be able to play both sides, obviously. That plays a lot to do with it. You've got to be intelligent, probably without getting the reps. So that's going to be important going forward as well. It's hard to find backup tackles, because if a tackle is that good as a backup, he's probably a starter. So, you have to develop them, you have to make them. We've got a couple guys that we're looking at right now. We've got some that we've had, and we've got some new ones. That will play itself out as we go forward."
(On where RB Leonard Fournette excels in the offensive system)
"Just his endurance, being an every-down back. He's a three-down back. Before he was a two-down back; he's become a three-down back. He was a great pass-catcher when he came out of college, he just didn't get the volume. So now you're seeing the volume of that and his versatile game. You can't just crowd the box because he can catch the ball. I think that's where his game grew."
(On Fournette having moves for such a big back)
"I watched him coming out and I've seen him. He's light of foot no matter how big he is. But he understands the passing game and he can run away from you."
RUNNING BACK LEONARD FOURNETTE
(On how he's feeling six days into camp)
"I'm good, man. I'm in great shape, happy to be back, happy to be with my coaches and teammates. There's nothing like being back with your teammates. There's a chemistry that you have, there's some of the locker room talks you miss doing when you're working out and training, so I'm happy to be back."
(On picking up the blitz from linebackers Lavonte David and Devin White)
"Our defensive scheme is tremendous, man. You have guys all over the place who can play various positions and come with different techniques, to be honest. So, challenging myself each and every day to go against Lavonte [David] and [Devin] White, it helps me when I have to go against other guys on other teams. To me, they're the best of the best – that's who you want to compete against."
(On RB Rachaad White)
"We talk every day - he sits right next to me. He's always coming to me, asking me questions and I give him my best answer. A lot of people made a big deal about him saying he's coming and starting, I mean, why wouldn't that be your mindset? I mean, when I was a rookie I had the same mindset, and my job is to pass that on down the line and help him out as much as I can while I'm here, while I'm still playing."
(On whether he's getting QB Tom Brady a Super Bowl ring for his birthday)
"I want a ring, too. For a guy like that - just come out and work hard, for him. We all deserve another ring, but a guy like that, at that age, still playing, still putting up the numbers he [is], still out here with young guys like myself – he definitely deserves it."
WIDE RECEIVER TYLER JOHNSON
(On the battle at receiver)
"My mindset has just been control what I can control. Knowing that we have a big group in the receiving room, just got to take advantage of the opportunity that comes my way. When the ball is headed toward me, I'm just looking forward to making plays."
(On his approach to camp and receiving a compliment from WR Mike Evans)
"My approach this year was to be a professional. This entire offseason, [I was] working my butt off for real, day in and day out. [I] appreciate my trainers that I had, you know, helping me get to where I'm at and how I'm feeling right now. As far as Mike [Evans], he's a great guy – you know it's good whenever Mike talks good things about you. But like I said earlier, just coming out here and looking to get 1% better every day – that's my mindset with everything."
(On what makes the Buccaneers secondary so tough to go against)
"They're in sync – whatever they're doing, they're all on the same page and that's what makes our secondary so good. You know, them being on the same page, communicating, and then just playing off of one another, you know, playing to their strengths."
(On WR Julio Jones)
"When Julio [Jones] first got in the room, I told him anything that you see, just coach me up on it. He said, 'Most definitely, and if I don't coach you up on it, that means you're doing it right.' So just being around someone like that, somebody that I grew up watching destroy the game for real – just an amazing player. It's amazing to have him in the room, just to be able to learn from him, watch him play, watch him run routes, just things like that."
SAFETY ANTOINE WINFIELD JR.
(On the defense improving their interception total this season)
"We have to be on the same page, and we have to make plays. I feel like communication is big part of that and knowing where your help is. Being able to play aggressive in certain situations where you know you have help over the top or underneath anything like that, I feel like that's a big way to create those interceptions."
(On new additions of safeties Logan Ryan and Keanu Neal)
"Both are great guys, they're vets. It's great to have them because they have knowledge of the game. I feel like its great to have because it makes our room more versatile."
(On his initial impressions of covering new wide receivers Julio Jones and Russell Gage Jr. in practice)
"Our wide receiver room is crazy -- I'm not going to lie. Going up against those guys, I mean you have Julio, Mike (Evans), Chris (Godwin), Gage, Tyler (Johnson), Scotty (Miller) -- all those guys are great to go up against in camp. They have a great room and going up against them every day makes us compete and makes us work hard – [it's] a great room."
(On where he thinks the leadership on the defensive side is coming from)
"I feel like a lot of the leadership is coming from still Lavonte (David), Devin (White), Vita (Vea) – all the guys that have been in the system. I feel like it's still coming from those guys."
-BUCCANEERS-