Head Coach Joe Judge

Opening Statement: All right, so we can open it up to any questions you guys have today.

Q: Joe, yesterday you said (Running Back) Saquon (Barkley) is making tangible progress? We didn't do a very good job following up, what does that mean? What's tangible progress for him?

A: That's really tied more into the strength and medical in terms of the numbers they're looking at and where his body is compared to where it was in the past. The tangible results right there really reflect on the numbers, really can measure things directly to the strength, his recovery, all of that stuff. There's sheets and stuff that we go over all the time and I just kind of tell them, 'keep me informed in terms of where he is in the ramp up process and where you think he is compared to last week, the week before and things of that nature.'

Q: So, is there like a quantitative point he needs to get to in their eyes before they clear him?

A: I think it's more than just a point. I think with this we got to take the whole picture into consideration. There is the point physically of what he has to hit like any player. But then there's also the measure of getting on the field and having the confidence to play at that speed and that's just going to come with phasing him in the right way in practice. I've explained to Saquon and I've said it before, he's not going to go zero to 100 when he comes back, like any of our players. (Linebacker) Blake (Martinez) will be out at practice with us again today and he's not going to take every rep he would normally take either. It's a situation where we get this guy phased in indy (individuals), some group work, limited team work, make sure that his body is in the right position to keep phasing and going forward.

Q: Joe, with guys like (Wide Receiver) Kadarius (Toney) and Blake who are in the protocol, is that for the sake of learning some of the stuff from last year? Is that— are they all the same as far as did they have issues with COVID that now have to be rectified? Or do you say, 'I don't care if they had symptoms or anything, this is what we're doing because this is what we think is best for them?'

­­A: Well, first off, we definitely learned they're not all the same. Everybody's affected by this virus differently and exposure to it. So even if we learned last year that people were just close contacts, we have to take into account the time away from training that they've had, whether that's five days, 10 days, two weeks, whatever it's been in different measures. We have to take into account, one, they haven't been training hard with us. It's just like any new player we get into our program. We've got to make sure that we don't assume that they're ready to go, put them out there. Normally the first day, the anxiety's up, the urgency's up, they get through practice, but it's the second and third day when that toll becomes a factor right there. So they're not all the same. We've got to consider each guy as an individual. Both guys will keep doing more than they've done in the past. We'll start doing a little bit more with Toney football-wise today. He'll be involved a little bit with some individuals, some group work as we phase them all through. We'll kind of see where his body reacts today as we build him into team going through the week.

Q: What are you looking for today? You know, you're in pads for the first time.

A: Well, I think the biggest thing the first day in pads we've got to stress with our team is obviously the intensity's up, the urgency's up, but we've got to make sure we play at the prescribed tempo. That, as coaches, we control the tempo of the drill and as players, we don't abandon our technique and fundamentals. It's natural to go ahead and try to raise the intensity, raise the speed of the game. That happens naturally putting pads on for the first time. We've got to make sure all the things we've been working on – football position, feet, hands, eyes, knee bent, keeping the head out of contact, seeing what you hit, that's got to carry over. We can't turn around and say, 'it's the first day of pads, the handcuffs are off and you know, just go play as you want right now.' We've got to make sure we enforce the fundamentals for the effectiveness and the safety of our players. We're going to have some situations where we say this is more live. We're going to have a lot of situations where it's more what we call team-tempo, where that's really thud, let the runner finish. If the runner's facing us, we're going to pop him, thud him up and then let him go finish down the field, so the defensive backs can finish their space pursuit and angle of entry. We're going to work that. What we're not looking for in team-tempo is the running back gets in a pile with defensive linemen and all of a sudden it just looks like a mosh pit and then no one else gets any work. We want to make sure the running back or receiver, whoever that is, continues down the field and gets as much work as he can on open field running technique and then everyone else can get the pursuit for tackling.

Q: With what you said yesterday, you explained the idea of the tight red zone and kind of gradually moving towards the middle of field. When the pads go on, do you go back to start in the tight areas or do you just kind of continue to gradually progress?

A: We continue that progression, we're in the field right now. What we do a little bit different is when the pads go on, the periods become more run centered. Now it may be a 12-play period and maybe it's five to six run plays, but there's more runs mixed in. When you're in shells, you're going to sprinkle a run here and there but it's really a passing camp at that point. You have specific run periods when you're in shells. We'll still have a run period where it's run, play action pass and screens that we're going to go ahead and make sure that the players get a number of short space contact and fundamentals of those plays, but then when it's the team periods themselves, there's going to be more runs mixed in. So, that kind of controls some of the volume that I have. In terms of the ramp up this week, yesterday was the shortest practice of these first three days, today will be the longest, tomorrow will be a little bit reduced. Same type of themes in the practices today and tomorrow, just a little bit less than the overall time on the field. That's because three days are only days, we can control our players in each position.

Q: Joe, you had three players from some Super Bowl teams here yesterday, do you care to share any interactions they had with the team and what your impressions were when they were playing?

A: First off, Osi (Umenyiora), Kiwi (Mathias Kiwanuka) and Justin (Tuck) coming back and talking to the team, that was huge for us. I've said it from the beginning, this is a different organization, there is a connection between past players, past history of these teams and the players that sit in these chairs today. It's important our players understand and have respect for the history that they come after. They have to understand what's happened, the players who did it, and the culture and the standards that remain consistent throughout those great times of this organization. Without going into direct specifics of what they said, I would just say that everything you could ever ask to be said to a team and needed to be said, they covered. Covered very direct from a player's perspective, very strong message, it was very well received. I heard from a lot of players, a lot of coaches, I could say from my own perspective of the impact it had on the team in terms of understanding the standards, the expectations of former players, this is different. Some organizations, you kind of come and go. This is one of the different ones where history matters, history carries over. In terms of former players coming back here, if anyone hasn't heard my voice yet, I hope they hear it now, I want them back. I want them here, I want them involved with our team, I want them here at practice, I want them in meetings, I want them around our players, I want our players to understand the pressure they should have on them from past players who achieved great things here. I want these guys in this program. They were here before us and the history of this program will go on after we're gone here. I want them to understand they are valued, they are respected and they are important to the players who are currently on this roster and our current players have to understand the significance the players played in establishing the culture here. 

Q: How do you think (Quarterback) Daniel Jones has done and what are you looking from him today?

A: Yeah, I think every player on the team right now needs to keep improving on the system basis. There's been a lot of positive things. There's no one player, no one position group, no one unit that's put it all together yet. At this point, we've all got to coach better and play better. We're looking for significant improvement each day in camp but that comes from daily practice. There's still a lot of things to get done. Obviously, there's things internally that we coach every player to improve on. Every player has something to do. We're far from a finished product. Look, at this time in training camp, you're going to see offense flash, defense flash, certain phases of special teams or players flash at different times. You can't ride that roller coaster, you've just got to watch the tape and coach the fundamentals, keep it consistent with what you're demanding of the players so they understand what they're doing on a daily basis, and just make sure that we coach them well enough that they can improve every day.

Q: Where's (Offensive Lineman) Kenny Wiggins? Is he out here today?

A: He'll be out here today.

Q: Joe, your secondary looks a lot different this summer than it did at the end of last year? But against an improved wide receiver corps, where do you think those guys are, (Cornerback) James Bradberry, (Cornerback) Adoree' Jackson, all those guys? What's your confidence in them right now?

A: A lot of confidence in every player on this roster. They've got to come out here and compete every day, keep improving and we'll have confidence going into game one that we'll go out there and execute the plan together to win. But I'd say in terms of how those guys work together, they've got a great rapport, they're very competitive. Our DBs versus our receivers, our tight ends, our skill players, those are definitely matchups that we're looking to go ahead and watch through training camp to see how guys match up against each other. I love the way they're working right now. That being said, everyone's far away from where we need to be. We've got to improve across the board in all aspects, all phases, every single player, every coach, we need to do our jobs better. If we think right now is a measuring stick to where we're going to be, then we have no standards here.

Q: Joe, what have you liked (Running Back) Devontae Booker?

A: I like the way every day he comes out to work, improving on his details. He's definitely shown up as he's gone through spring with us and training camp at this point. His conditioning has improved every day because of the way he's practicing and attacking every day. I'm very pleased with that. He's a fun guy to coach. I think he's a guy like a lot of these guys who are waiting for the pads to get on because that's really where their game steps up a level.

Q: Joe, what made (Quarterback) Mike Glennon the right choice for this team's backup quarterback? Unless I'm missing one, there's not an obvious staff connection to him throughout his career and I feel like quarterbacks usually go somewhere they're familiar and coaches usually sign somebody they're familiar with.

A: We just liked Mike from knowing the league. He had history, obviously, some experience playing a lot of games in this league. He's had some production along the way. He's got physical tools that we think will fit into our system very well. We like his demeanor and his mentality as far as coming on in. We obviously looked at a lot of quarterbacks this offseason. He was a guy that was available and a fit for us, so we work on him, (Quarterback) Clayton (Thorson) and Daniel every day and the competition will sort itself out.

Q: What did (Tackle) Matt Peart show you guys last year in the reps you gave him? And what do you want to see from him in his second training camp?

A: Kind of sound a little like a broken record, I just want to see consistent improvement from him. What we saw last year was competitiveness, very coachable player and daily improvement. Obviously, he showed up. The first action he got last year was versus Washington in that first game we had. It was kind of on short notice. He jumped on in there, we threw him in there on the edge and he held up pretty well for us. And as we went forward, he gave us confidence to mix him through and we had a three-tackle rotation, and he kept getting better week by week. He had a setback with injury at the end of last year that kind of took a little playing time away from him because he couldn't go out there and give 100 percent, but we had confidence in him every game last year to put him out there when he was healthy. And look, right now between all of our tackles, we're looking for all of these guys to keep on improving and as many players as we have that we're able to get in the game, we're going to play them.

Quarterback Daniel Jones

Q: Daniel, you were at the bottom of the pile there in the fight, what happened? What made you want to go running like that?

A: We were just competing and everyone was excited, first day of pads. I think we've got to do a better job controlling that and making sure that we're controlling our enthusiasm and excitement.

Q: Down at the bottom of the pile with 90 grown men around you, what were you thinking?

A: I was fine. I was all good. No problem.

Q: (Head) Coach (Joe) Judge got the message across then?

A: Yeah. I think, yeah. There's consequences for that kind of stuff and that's the way it is in the game. If you lose your cool, there's consequences and that hurts the team, so that was the message and everyone understands that.

Q: Have you ever seen him that angry before?

A: Yeah, he's a pretty – he can get excited, and I think the guys respond to it and I think we certainly got the message today.

Q: Daniel, some people would say the starting quarterback can kind of stay out of that. What made you want to run in and participate?

A: I'm part of the team. Part of the team and part of the offense and we're competing, so I don't see myself separated from that.

Q: How were things going up to that point? The offense seemed to be doing pretty well before.

A: Yeah, we had some good plays and the defense had some good plays. I thought it was good competition and kind of going back and forth a little bit. We've got to keep improving, keep focusing on certain things and keep taking steps forward, but I thought we were executing before that alright.

Q: Daniel, (Wide Receiver) Kenny (Golladay) went off at one point holding his hamstring. What's your concern there? A hamstring usually means you miss a couple practices, what'll that do to your guys' chemistry?

A: I haven't gotten a chance to speak with Kenny yet. That's something that you're going to have to ask Joe.

Q: But assuming he can't practice, what would that do?

A: I mean, I don't want to assume anything. Kenny's worked real hard and I feel good about the progress we've made, so we'll keep working.

Q: What did you think of the initial hit on (Running Back) Corey (Clement) that started that fight?

A: I don't know. I think both sides there was issues with people losing their cool and as an offense and as a team, we got to do a better job in that situation.

Q: Are you OK?

A: I feel great.

Q: Did you have a pass hit the ground today? Did you have any incompletions today?

A: I'm not sure. I've got to look at the tape. I'm sure there was a few I'd like to have back. You know, get it out of my hands quicker and see it quicker and be more accurate at times. Just keep working, but I thought we executed a little better.

Q: Daniel, sometimes in the first day in pads some young guys get a little overheated and don't really understand the tempo, but these were prominent team captain kind of guys who were starting it really. Is that either troubling or is that something that needs to be looked at and say we need to not do this?

A: I think for one, the energy and the excitement and willingness to compete and wanting to compete is all positive. I think regardless of who it is – people who are excited to be here, people who want to play football, who want to compete. Right now, the opponent's the defense. Their opponent's us, so we're competing against each other. But like I said, we've got to do a better job of handling it.

Q: There are moments with every team whether they're successful or not that kind of define what they are. Do you feel like, I know it's just happened, this is one of those moments that will kind of go a long way to finding out what this team's all about?

A: I don't know if we can say that at this point. It's not our job to get into analyzing the situation, but there's a lesson to learn here and I think guys certainly will.

Q: What's it like to have (Wide Receiver) Kadarius (Toney) back on the field and how important is that for him and you to get to work together? You really haven't had much work at all.

A: It's good to see him out there. We'll keep working and talking and building that chemistry. He's a talented guy and can make a lot of plays, so we're excited to get him out there.

Q: What'd you see from him?

A: I think you see that. I think you see his athleticism, his twitch, his quickness and that's exciting.

Q: Daniel, was it hard to run after a long practice in full pads for the first time? You guys were going up and down the field and doing pushups, were you getting gassed doing all this stuff?

A: Yeah, I think that was the idea to make it hard.

Q: Joe said this morning about the idea for everybody, especially for you guys offensively and even you personally, not to ride the rollercoaster of camp and the good days, bad days, good plays, bad plays. Is that something that you've kind of appreciated so far in this camp that you don't want to get too high or too low?

A: Yeah, I think the biggest thing through camp for me, for any position, is understanding it's a process. It's not being caught up in the results or trying to evaluate if it was a good day or a bad day. There's lessons you've got to learn from each day and focus on that, focus on improving here and there and not really getting into judging a day or evaluating a day or evaluating a string of days. It's about building something and trusting that process.

Q: You talked about there is a lesson to be learned from that incident, what is that lesson in your mind?

A: Just we've got to control our energy and our enthusiasm and wanting to compete. I think we've got to control that and be able to harness that and make it productive towards what we're trying to do.

Q: Would you be surprised if anything like that ever happened again as long as Coach Judge is the coach?

A: Yeah, it'd probably be pretty surprising. 

Q: Joe can use some language, any new ones out there or just more of the same recycled?

A: I don't know. I think he definitely got his point across and people understood exactly what he was trying to say.

Defensive Back Logan Ryan

Q: So what happened there?

A: We had a competitive practice. Guys getting after it. First day of pads, it gets physical, it gets chippy. Obviously, can't have penalties. It's unfortunate, but I think everybody's protecting their sides and just trying to establish physicality the first day, but we've got to keep it within the rules.

Q: Have you seen (Head Coach) Joe Judge that angry before?

A: Yeah.

Q: Really?

A: It's not the first – yeah, I have seen him. Six years with Joe Judge in my career, I've seen him mad a couple of times.

Q: Logan, I know you were defending your teammate, but do you regret kind of hitting a guy in the back like that? I mean, isn't that kind of the way some guys get hurt?

A: I regret any penalty. If I would've cost my team any yards, I would regret it.

Q: Have you ever had a coach line the team up to do pushups and run gassers like that after a fight breaks out like that? Has that ever happened to you?

A: Uh, yeah.

Q: Was it Joe in New England?

A: It was in New England, yeah. I mean, look guys, it's not my first time running laps at practice, not my first time having punishments at practice. I mean, I've been coached by some pretty tough coaches in my career, and I don't think Joe's reinventing the wheel with running laps for penalties or gassers. It's just you've got to be more disciplined.

Q: Logan, how does this team move on from this? I mean, you guys have to be in the same locker room.

A: We're great, man, it's football, you know? It's a physical sport. If you're not tough or chippy, I don't know if you can play at this level. So, it's football. Everything matters between the lines and we'll pay our dues, but I mean, we're great. Me, (Tight End) Evan (Engram), we're locker buddies. We'll be fine. Whoever else was involved, you know, I think (Quarterback) Daniel Jones might've jumped in. I think everyone respects Daniel. So, this stuff, you might write about it, I'm sure, but this is a football team and practice gets physical and chippy, but everything is left in between the lines for sure.

Q: What did you think about your staring quarterback going in there and ending up at the bottom of the pile?

A: I was at the bottom of the bottom of the pile, so I don't know anything that happened after me. I was just trying to defend my teammate and at the end of the day, I have to defend my teammates and I'm going to try to do it within the rules of the game. But first and foremost, I mean, I'm going to defend my guys. It's my job as a leader on this team, just like it's Daniel's job, just like it's a lot of our jobs. I'm sure (Running Back) Saquon (Barkley) would've hopped in there if they cleared him to. I don't know, he might've hopped in there. I don't know. I'm OK with guys that are willing to respect each other because right now we're against each other, but when another opponent comes in here, hopefully we'll be on the same side.

Q: Was Evan's hit a cheap shot?

A: I got to look at the replay. I got to talk to the refs.

Q: Do you regret that you hit from behind him?

A: I'm gonna pay my punishments. I don't regret anything I did out there. I'm protecting my guys, so at the end of the day I'm a grown man and I pay my dues. That's what this league's about.

Q: Have you ever seen anything like this in regards to the running afterwards?

A: Yeah, I have. I have seen stuff like this before. I've seen stuff. I've seen some training room fights.

Q: I just meant to that extent, like in regards to the running afterwards – Joe's penalty for you guys.

A: Yeah, I have.

Q: We heard one word repeatedly from Joe from a distance, but what was his message to you guys when he pulled you all together?

A: You know, there's consequences for penalties and we're a team all together. So we broke it down as a team. Everyone who had differences said they're good. I mean, I don't wish for any more training camp fights, but it's not my first training camp fight. It's not my 10th. It's not mine personally, but on a team – it's training camp. Like, there's going to be some animosity between the sides, but I think it's all well and good for sport.

Q: Daniel said that he believes whatever Joe said, he got his point across to everyone that was out there. Do you feel the same way?

A: 100 percent. Joe's the leader of this team and he's got our respect and what he says goes. He definitely – I mean, we're a team. I think you ask any guy in that locker room, we're united. We're happy to be teammates and looking back at it, I understand what everyone was doing in that situation and I think people respect protecting what they thought was done wrong.

Q: Was that a record for f-bombs that you've heard from Joe?

A: It was a lot. It was a lot. I'm happy my kids weren't at this practice. 

Q: Logan, can something like that threaten team unity or from your experience, when it happens does it bring teams together?

A: We had Kiwi (Mathias Kiwanuka), Justin Tuck and Osi Umenyiora come speak to us yesterday and they talked about how great teams, they respect and they take the identity of their head coach, which is Joe Judge, which was Tom Coughlin, but the players run the locker room. So, if me, Evan Engram, Saquon, Jabrill Peppers, Daniel Jones, if we want to stay together, the team will stay together. I'm standing here right now as a leader on the team, Blake Martinez as well, James Bradberry, we're fine. We're together. Players got to take ownership. Players are tired of losing games around here. The fan base is tired. Us players are tired. Management gave us an opportunity. They gave us a better roster this year. They allocated the funds to it and we're coming out competing, but we've got respect for each other. 100 percent. But we're going to protect our sides and we're going to compete. If our nucleus, our key veterans, are together, the locker room will follow. Just like the great defensive linemen and the great linebackers and the great leaders of this team in the past – you don't think they had chippiness about them? You don't think they had griminess about them? We play in New Jersey, man. There's going to be some chippiness. There's going to be some griminess, but we're leaving it within the lines, and I'll take a team like that. I'll take a team like that every single day and I told the secondary, I'm their leader and I'm going to protect them. If I feel like something's wrong, then I'll take my punishment like a man, but there's no bad blood. Me and Evan, we're close and we're going to push each other to both be great players. He's a tough tight end to cover and I'm trying to make him concentrate each and every play, and I'm going to try to make it the hardest day of his life every single day out here, and Daniel. I'm trying to make it hard on those guys and they're making me better, too, as a safety.

Q: Obviously, when you're back in there, you'll see him when you guys are in the locker. What are you going to say to him to kind of hash this out?

A: What do you want to eat for lunch?

Q: Do you view this as an opportunity when some of this stuff happens to be able to establish that rapport and those relationships? Can you view this as a good opportunity for you as a leader?

A: I view every day as a good opportunity. I think as a leader, you've got to come in with a certain energy. I think it's not only my job to do my job, but I think it's my job to pick other people up around here with some experience under my belt, some Super Bowls under my belt. Sometimes guys look at me to bring the juice a little bit on my side and in the locker room side. As long as they respect me, then I'm doing the right job. I view each and every day – look, we're in full pads tomorrow, so I'm excited to see how we come out and how we can lead into tomorrow and have a cleaner day out here. It was definitely physical today. The offense moved us off the ball a little bit. They had, in my opinion, their best day today, so we get to get them back tomorrow. We're all Giants and whoever comes in here this year, hopefully, we have a homefield advantage with the fans and we're going to be a chippy, grimy group. If I learned anything from those veterans who came in yesterday and spoke about winning Super Bowls, you need a tough locker room and I've been in a couple tough locker rooms and I've won a couple of Super Bowls and I know what it takes, and I know what those training camps were like. So, like I said, it wasn't my first time as part of a training camp fight. It wasn't my first lap. It wasn't my first f-bomb, my first pushup. I've been in this for quite some time. It's not necessary all the time but understand there was a lot of passion out there, and I'll take passion.

Linebacker Blake Martinez

Q: What was it like to be back at practice?

A: It felt amazing. It's something you always look forward to. First time back just throwing on pads, getting ready to go, so it felt like actual football when I first came back.

Q: And then at the end there, are you kind of like, maybe I could've missed one more and not be a part of that fight?

A: No, it's part of football, things happen. We're all brothers out there. You have little fights here and there, but you always come back as a team and finish strong.

Q: You've been through those before. So, what's the locker room like right now. Is the offense and defense friendly right now, or is it like you need a day to cool off after a fight like that?

A: No, 100 percent. I think, as brothers, you fight, and then you're back to being friends right after. It's one of those things.

Q: Is that the angriest you've seen (Head Coach) Joe (Judge) before?

A: No, I've seen different moments here and there, but it's all being the head guy, and making sure we're on the right page and doing the things the right way.

Q: Afterwards, what was his message to you guys?

A: Those words mean something different to us. It's like a different Joe language, so we know what it means, but you guys just hear that. No, it's one of those things that you take that criticism and bounce back.

Q: What did you think of (Tight End) Evan Engram coming in late on your guy? That's what sparked it, so what did you think of that?

A: Actually, I didn't see really anything. Next thing I know, I look back and everyone is on the ground. So yeah, it's news to me what exactly happened, but it's one of those things when you have those moments, you have to learn from them because that's going to hurt you in the game if you do that.

Q: Is your heart in your throat when you see (Quarterback) Daniel Jones is at the bottom of that pile?

A: Oh yeah, he's one of my buddies, so I always got to try to save him.

Q: But I mean, you know what the quarterback means?

A: No, 100 percent. It's one of those things, like I said, you lose games for that reason alone. If any guy gets hurt down there, penalties, all those types of things, it's going to make you lose.

Q: What can you share about your COVID experience?

A: Right now, I'm not really focused on it. It's one of those things you had to work through, but I'm just happy to be back.

Q: Did you have symptoms? I don't want to get too personal.

A: It's just one of those things where I went through the protocol for that 10 days and once they said I was ready to go back from all the doctors and everything, I was ready to go.

Q: (Linebacker) Carter (Coughlin) was saying that during meetings, you were like the voice of God in the background. They would just hear you pop in every now and then.

A: Yeah, I was always. I would hear myself sometimes talk, but half the time it wasn't working, so I was like talking to myself, so I was about to go insane. I was just yelling into the iPad and nobody was responding back to me. I was like, 'I hate this!' But yeah, it was good.

Q: How tough was it for you? I know you wanted to be out there obviously, how tough was it, even if it was only a few practices? I mean, it's still football.

A: Yeah, it's something that I love to do. Not being out there with the guys, like, being able to be back, mess with guys, joke around, have fun, call plays, and just be a team. It's the best part.

Q: How do you feel physically?

A: I feel good. Just like anybody, you come back from that five weeks off, you want to get the rust off, and things like that. So, it's one of those things just like that.

Q: Has conditioning gone good for you?

A: Yeah, I mean as good as anybody likes conditioning. But yeah, it's one of those things you can work through, and it makes you better? 

Q: Have you gone through any of the vaccination process?

A: Yeah, I'm fully vaccinated.

Q: Before this?

A: Yeah, before everything.

Q: So, it was one of those weird things, right?

A: Exactly, that was my thing.

Q: It's like what the heck, right?

A: Yeah, just like why is this happening to me? But, hey, it happened, and work through it.

Q: Do you have any idea how it happened?

A: No, it's one of the things you went through every single aspect. Every person I hung around was fully vaccinated, things like that, and it just happened.

Q: Do you have any young kids, or anything like that?

A: Yeah, I have a daughter.

Q: I presume she's under vaccination age, right?

A: Yeah, exactly. It was one of those situations. Obviously, it was definitely scary, but we did a rapid fire of making sure everybody tested and came back negative. Once that happened, it kind of calmed back down.

Q: How do you think the league should handle this? Because they have different rules for vaccinated and unvaccinated guys, but as you can see, vaccinated people can still get it. So, what do you think of the rules that exist? You're in the building now, you see how it exists. What's your feeling on how they set everything up?

A: For me, I'm just going with what the guideline is right now. Based off what they told me was, hey, in ten days, you'll be able to come back and do those types of things. So far, it's worked out well and just kind of working through that until things change.

Q: Can you do everything normal?

A: Yeah, so I've been working things in.

Q: Do you have to wear a mask?

A: No, I'm good and all that stuff. I'm going through the same protocol as everyone else.

Q: Physically, do you feel back to your old self?

A: Yeah, I feel good. It's one of those things, like I was saying, getting the rust off, and coming back, and getting out there, getting that movement, wearing full pads for the first time in, you know, six months, and those types of things.

Offensive Tackle Matt Peart

Q: What was your perspective on what just happened out here?

A: So, overall, we're just a team. We're coming out here to do our best and get better every single day. For me personally, I just want to make sure I work on my craft. I had some time lost, but it is what it is. I just want to get back up to speed with my brothers and love them up and be with them.

Q: How good do you feel at this point? You got a few reps today.

A: I'm just happy to be out there. Like I said, every day is a new opportunity to work on our craft and get better. I just think of it as a blessing now to be able to be out here, just to be with my brothers, to be with the family again. It just felt good to be with my guys.

Q: I'm curious, how much better do you feel entering your second year? How much more prepared do you feel than you did maybe a year ago?

A: Second year coming back, the emphasis is that much more. It's the second year of being in the system, so the attention to detail is that much greater. Like I said before, building a cohesive unit with the guys. I'm just happy to be here, just happy we got good work in today.

Q: How tough was the end of last year for you? Getting COVID and maybe not playing as much toward the end of the year. How difficult was the end of the season for you?

A: That's one thing with football, it's just playing through adversity. That was my adversity going through the end of last season. I'm just so fortunate to have a great group of guys around me that really rallied around me when times got rough for me. So, I'm keeping it with stride. I just take everything day-by-day. I got out here and took everything day-by-day and tried not to dwell on all that adversity because, like I said, it comes with football. So, I'm just really fortunate that I have a group of guys that were able help me.

Q: How much did all that experience you got, they kind of eased you into it and got some snaps, how much do you think that helped as you come into your second training camp?

A: It's amazing. Experience is the one teacher of all. That's one thing that comes with football and, like I said, I'm just happy to be out here.

Q: Last year, they liked the way you looked, but they wanted you to get bigger and stronger. How did that manifest itself going into your second year?

A: Like I said, coming into the second year, the attention to detail is that much more. I knew what I had to do coming into the offseason to get bigger, faster, stronger, so I really took the onus to really work on my craft and to work on those abilities, and work on the tangible things that I had. Just to make sure that I come into year two not having the same little lapses here and there that I did last season. So right now, it's just come out here and compete every single day, and like I said, grow with my guys.

Q: How much bigger are you?

A: Bigger? Ah geez, I can't remember the numbers off the top of my head.

Q: Is there a weight gain?

A: Oh yeah, there was definitely.

Q: You were 318 pounds last year?

A: Give or take, I probably just leaned up a little more, got more muscle mass, cut more fat. But like I said, grinding the offseason program, getting bigger and stronger.

Q: Does the starting right tackle position really entice you?

A: Like I said, every day I'm just coming out here competing and growing with my guys. I'm willing to do anything to the benefit of the team. Right now, I'm just taking it day-by-day to grow with the opportunity to come out and get better.

Q: You played around 150 snaps last year on offense. Does that sound about right?

A: I'm not too sure about the exact numbers, but every opportunity I got out there on the field to play with my guys was a blessing.

Q: When you look, I'm sure you've analyzed every one of them, what did you see?

A: Obviously, it's just working on my craft. You know, just building communication within the five guys on the field. I was rotational, so even working with the rotation tackles all camp, as well as building cohesive communication across the board – where I had a lapse here and there or he saw something to work better on for me when I get back on the field. It was just how we streamlined communication across the board.

Q: When you look back, did you get more action on offense than you thought you might have last year at this time?

A: I mean, every single time I got called up I just thought it was a blessing to go up there and just work on my craft, just being one-of-five on the field.

Q: Was it hard to go side to side, in and out of the lineup? Was that difficult at all?

A: Like, through practice and through the preparation, switching from right to left, the coaches do a great job getting you prepared for that and for the moment. So, when you get out there, it's really just communicating with your guys and at the end of the day, just going out there and playing.

Q: You and (Tackle) Andrew (Thomas) talk every day I'm sure, but two young guys who could possibly be anchors at tackles for this team for a long time, is that something that is a goal for you guys?

A: I mean, Andrew's a tremendous talent and we know what it is every time we step on the field. We just want to come out here and compete and get better every single day. That's a testament to him and his work ethic and for me, it's just for me to come out here and show and to just compete. Just to work on the communication and the finer details and just get better every single day.

Q: Do you feel a sense in the difference in you being stronger and faster in the full contact drills today? Do you sense, 'alright, I can see where this is making a difference?'

A: For me, I just like want to come out here and just do the best job I can physically do on the field. Like I said, every day is a single blessing. Every day is a day to get better and work on your craft and for me, it's just to make sure that the communication is on point and my technique and what I have to do relative to the line is always on point.