HEAD COACH JOSH McDANIELS
Opening Statement
"Alright, today was a good day to finish the first three days. I think we got a lot done with the guys that were here. I think some of the guys that we talked about the last couple of days that, you know, were coming off of injuries got an opportunity out there to get some of the rust knocked off and get some confidence back and some of the things that were hurting them before. Certainly the rookies went through a lot of information and installation and had an opportunity to get out there and run some stuff today, and in the last two days, that will help them go on forward on Sunday. So, we are starting to see some of the veteran guys trickle in now. We'll be excited to get going tomorrow."
On how QB Tim Tebow looked today
"You know, I think not rusty - I mean he's been throwing a bunch - but he's certainly getting the hang of some of the things we are doing and we are working on - specific reads and drills that mimic some plays we've installed and talked about and shown a lot of film the last few days. You know, he's got some catching up to do in that regard, and he'll be here late today and probably early tomorrow just to make sure he feels ready to go when the veterans actually start tomorrow (for a full-squad meeting) at 1 p.m. He can kind of keep pace with them, but you know typical - some good, some bad. It was just good to get him out here before we start on Sunday."
On if he tries to downplay expectations for Tebow
"Our expectations for him are to just compete and try to learn and do the things that we are asking the other guys to do. What other peoples' expectations are of him or how much he'll play or contribute or compete to play early - I don't really know. I'm not that worried about it. I think if he's the best player at some point in some area, then he'll be able to affect the team. That's really what I think his focus is on. I think, you know like I said, our expectations for the rookies are that hopefully they can come in and learn and try to get better every day, because certainly none of them are ready to help us win right now. He has a long training camp ahead of him, and hopefully he can continue to improve each day."
On how he has thought about using Tebow
"You know, I haven't ever used more than one quarterback in the NFL. I don't think that's something that can't be done if you choose to do it. Certainly people have speculated about, you know, how we may or may not use him in those roles, but since we haven't really done any of it in pads, I haven't had the opportunity to evaluate what that may do for our team. It's hard to say exactly if we would feel that way too. You know, there's going to be some things that he can obviously do that the other two can't in that regard. How much we do or don't do will depend on how productive we are at it."
On how much he focuses on Tebow's throwing mechanics
"I think that's always something that you try to refine and improve. To me, for the quarterbacks out on the field - these three days are like pitchers and catchers reporting early. There are a lot of little things that we are asking them to do in some of those periods that may just seem like we are throwing the ball and throwing the ball, but we are working on their feet, their elbows, their hips being open or square, their front shoulder being down. There's a lot of little things mechanically that I think if you don't stay on top of them and you kind of let them get awry - it's kind of like a golf swing, you know, you don't want to do that, so I think with quarterbacks in particular, we are going to talk to all of them about those little things because once the season comes you hope that whatever you've created in terms of the habits, you know, you don't have a whole lot of time to do it much during the season because everything is about the opponent and game planning and those kinds of things. So, we'll continue to work on those things with our quarterback, hard. Tim is just one of three and certainly much has been made about that, but we feel good about the progress he's made in terms of fixing a few things we've asked him to fix, and he'll continue to work hard, I am sure."
On what his expectations are for the team early on in training camp
"Well, I mean we are going to start - it's going to be a physical camp. There's no question about that. I think there are a lot of competitive situations on our roster where you can point to certain players who you think will make it, but there's also serious competition for the last two, three, sometimes one roster spot. Then, there's competition across the ball, as we mentioned the other day. I think the energy level, at least the energy level we feel in the building is extremely high. I think everybody is excited to get going. I would expect us to get off to a good start in that regard. Certainly, not everything will be perfect in terms of our execution. I think the effort, the attitude, the energy and how tough and physical we practice - I think that's what we are really focusing on. You know, we'll be talking a lot about being a smart football team and hopefully eliminate some of the mistakes that really hurt you as you go on to the season."
On the contract talks with rookie WR Demaryius Thomas
"You know, it's like a lot of these other ones. It sounds like it's going in the right direction sometimes, and sometimes not. You know, I think everybody is working extremely hard on it. I know Demaryius is itching to get in here and we are too. We are excited to have him here, so maybe we can get it done today and maybe get it done in 10 minutes. I don't know, but as soon as we can it will be done. It will be great."
On Tebow's eagerness for contact
"I think that's part of his demeanor. I think that is also part of what he brings to your football team - There's no question about it. I think that may be a little unique in terms of the contact part of it. I think normally quarterbacks add a certain level of toughness of your team because they get hit a lot when they're defenseless and have to get up and continually get up and do those types of things and I know he's had an opportunity in college to do some of the other stuff where he actually is inflicting some of the hitting at the end of a run or something like that, but it doesn't surprise me that he would say that. I think all of our quarterbacks would demonstrate a high level of toughness and hopefully that carries over to the rest of our offense and our football team. I think that's their way to affect us in that manner. They can't certainly be physical all the time but the demonstration of toughness that they show is a little different and I think they are just as excited to get going and be in pads and hear things hitting as everybody else is."
On whether there are any compelling positions he'll be watching during camp
"Well, I think there are a lot of spots where we're interested. I don't know if ‘compelling' is a word that I would use but to us, we're trying to evaluate and measure where the competition is going, who is kind of inching ahead, the offensive line situation as we mentioned the other day - certainly at center, left guard - a lot of bodies are going to be in there and a lot of guys who have the capability to play. Some young, some older, some new, some not so new, we're excited about that. I think our receiver situation is certainly a situation where we feel like it's deep but there are some unknowns in there too. The 35, 40 practices before we actually have to play a regular-season game will be interesting to see how that all sorts out - who earns what roles because we're going to let them compete for a lot of things and they know that. Defensively, I think we've got a lot of places where we feel comfortable with the front-line players in some spots but we're excited to see the competition behind (CB) Champ (Bailey) and (CB) André (Goodman) at corner - we feel like we have some good young players there who will help us and make us better. Same thing at safety and then the outside linebacker spot - we talked about a lot of those guys in the offseason - about how much progress they've made. I think the real progress and the real story will be told in training camp, so we're eager to see that. There are a lot of things that we'll be keeping our eye on and evaluating and watching the progress of hopefully a lot of players."
On whether he's ever coached a team that had two rookies starting on the offensive line
"I believe we have. In my past I think we had that once or twice in New England. I don't know that it's common but I also don't know that it's rare. I think that is a position where a lot of the things that we ask those players to do, they've done before. A lot of the line calls may be a little different terminology. There's usually an ‘R' and an ‘L' and any word that they say to tell them whether to go right or left but I think if they can play physical and they can understand what we're asking them to do and can block people and do the things that will help us be successful, I think that they can earn a job as a starter as quick as they can. We'll be eager to see that. There have been plenty of good players who can contribute and play early on the offensive line as a rookie and we may or may not have that right away but I know that there are a lot of guys who will be competing for that."
On whether it's easier for rookies to learn the offensive line positions than others
"I wouldn't say it's easier. Quarterback I think is a little different animal but there are certain things that you've got to do up front that aren't necessarily very easy physically - there are certainly a lot of challenges there. The speed of the game is the one thing that we'll be watching with the young linemen because when you come from college football to pro football and there are players moving, plus they are 320 lbs. and stronger than you, you've got to be able to adapt to that quickly and I think that's something that there will probably be some wide eyes on Sunday morning, I'm sure but get that out of the way and hopefully we can just make progress every practice after that."
On what he said to Broncos QB Tim Tebow about his Jockey endorsement
"I told him they passed me for him (laughing). I turned it down."
On whether Tebow had any trouble passing the conditioning test
"Tim? (Laughing) No, no, he didn't. He's in good shape. I think our team is in good shape which is exciting and I think there are some veteran guys like I said, they're here early and just making sure - they'll run it today on their own, just to make sure that they know they're ready to go for tomorrow."
On what the conditioning test consists of
"We run some 300-yard shuttles and there is some time in between to rest but each position group has to make it in under a certain amount of seconds. It's based on what the weight of that group normally is and what we kind of need them to be able to move like."
On how many 300-yard shuttles the conditioning test consists of
"Three."
On Broncos DL Ben Garland's Air Force commitment
"I just think, I mean, I hope that everybody else has seen what we've seen which is the work ethic that he has, the dedication that he's putting in. To me, it's a two-sided coin here. He knows also that his journey with us is going to be put off for a little while also but that has not stopped him from adding 21 lbs. of muscle in four months, it has not stopped him from working hard, learning the system, improving his use of his hands, his footwork - he's putting in a ton of effort and I think that it's our job to coach him until the very last day that we can have him this camp. Again, I think that sometimes you make investments for the future in that regard and I think that there is certainly nothing that he's done or that he's shown us that lessened our desire to keep him here past the next couple of years so we're excited about what the future would hold for him. Certainly we have to kind of put it on pause for a little bit but we understand the situation that he's in."
On the team's travel plans for its Week 8 game against San Francisco in London
"I think you're weighing a few different things. I think we've gone back and forth on it. I know we've had some different people take some different trips over there and kind of help us measure the time and how quickly we're going to be able to get from the plane to the hotel, how quickly we can do all that stuff and then get back into a normal routine during the course of the week. Different teams have done it differently. I know that different teams have gone over the very early part of the week and tried to start their week over there. We're going to try to have a couple of really solid days of practice plus have all of our gameplanning done here and put in I would say 85 percent of what we're going to do in the game at Dove Valley and then we're going to go ahead and travel over there Thursday afternoon. We're going to push the schedule up a little bit. The biggest concern we had was leaving on Thursday and then again, we're going to get there at 6 a.m. Friday morning and we're just going to go to meetings and eat breakfast and have our walkthrough or practice on Friday afternoon and then try to get some rest and get acclimated over the next 24 hours for the game and then play the game and hopefully come back here healthy with a successful trip."
QUARTERBACK KYLE ORTON
On last season
"It's tough. You know, I think so much was made saying, ‘Oh this is the quarterback's first year, this is the quarterback's second year.' Well, last year was everybody's first year, you know, and that makes it tough. It's not just me this year. It is the second year for a lot of people in the huddle and it makes it easier on myself and easier on them."
On if it feels strange to be practicing with a partial squad until Sunday
"Yeah, it is. You know, it's a good start. I like these three days to get your arm going. Just for quarterbacks - you know this is the first time we have thrown in pads since the last time (in OTAs), so it's always good just to get out and get a head start. You know, I was a little sore yesterday, which I probably would have been come Monday for the other guys, so I would rather just get that soreness out now and just move on."
On how much soreness he is feeling now in his arm
"You know, your body is sore being out here for two practices. It happens to everybody every year, and I would rather work that out right now than when everybody else gets in."
On the main goal of the team going into camp
"I think the main goal for us is just moving forward as an offense. I think I was so excited how we finished OTAs. You know, I think that's the most confidence this offense has had - this group has had as a unit. I think it's just big for us to start off fast this camp and just continue with that confidence and that's going to go a long way for us."
On his confidence going into camp
"I am real happy with the way I am playing, the way I'm seeing things, and certainly the way I am delivering the ball."
QUARTERBACK TIM TEBOW
General
"It felt great - it was so much fun just getting out here with my teammates and practicing and playing - and breaking a sweat was a lot of fun."
On being impatient to get out on the field
"I've been trying to be patient but it's been extremely hard."
On whether he was telling his agent to hurry and get the contract done
"(Laughing) We were definitely trying to push and get out here - I was - and I was blessed though with a great front office here and a great agent that handled everything and got it done and now I'm out here and I don't have to worry about anything except playing football."
On whether he feels that he's behind
"I think so, I've got to catch up on the installs that I missed and just keep working but that's something that I can control - my work ethic and just studying and trying to catch up so I'll look forward to that challenge."
On how late he'll be at the facility tonight
"(Laughing) Oh, we'll get it done, we'll get it done."
On the last month of the offseason
"I had to do a few trips but along the way I was here a lot, just training, studying, working out. Just trying to work on things that I needed to work on."
On how today's practice compares to when the full team will practice on Sunday
"I don't know. I think it's just waiting and seeing and come out here and practicing. This was (my) first practice and not everybody has pads yet so we've just got to come out in training camp and see how everything goes."
On whether it's a similar feeling to when he was a freshman at the University of Florida
"Well, it's a little bit different being an NFL player rather than being a freshman in college but you still get that feeling of just being new to everything and trying to learn and understand it and just trying to grow as fast as you can, so there are some similarities."
On handling pressure
"Well, I think I've had somewhat pressure on me the last few years and I don't really ever think about it because all I worry about is what I can control and that's my attitude, my effort and my focus. Those are all things that I can control - I can't control anything else so I'm really not going to spend much time worrying about it."
On the difficulty of not being able to participate in practice on Wednesday or Thursday
"I'll tell you what bothered me - my teammates out here practicing and I wasn't out here and I was looking forward to getting out there and just being with the team and not being separated or not being different. I was really looking forward to getting out here."
On his expectations for camp
"I've talked to a lot of veterans here, other veterans that I know around the league and different coaches and just tried to get a feel for what it's going to be like - how to prepare myself, my body, my mind, everything, the right nutrition program, the right rest program - all those things, just to handle it the right way."
On handling mistakes
"Absolutely and that's something that I'm going to have to deal with and can't get frustrated with - is making mistakes but not making the same mistake twice and that's kind of my goal for coming out here."
On his conversations with Broncos Head Coach Josh McDaniels
"Well, we talk a lot so there were a lot of conversations, but obviously he wanted me out here and I wanted to be here so it was just a matter of everybody just finishing it."
On whether he's focused more on mechanics or learning the playbook
"Well, I'm definitely focused on the playbook but I'm also focused on mechanics, my drops, my footwork, learning a new offense, the play-action fakes we've got, the different stuff that I'm not used to from college and so it's a combination of both, definitely."
On how he feels he's improved
"Well, I think I've improved a lot. I think this last month of just being able to work on those things really helped me mechanically too and then continuing to study and get better every day."
On former Broncos QB John Elway downplaying the importance of mechanics
"Well sometimes it definitely can be (overemphasized) because like he said, at the end of the day it's if you can get it to the receiver or not and how quickly you can get it to him, so I think it definitely improves your game. It can help, but also, you just got to be able to get it there."
On whether he's looking forward to contact
"(Laughing) I am looking forward to it - it may be a negative of mine is that I look forward to that and I'm a quarterback so you kind of have to stay calm but it is fun once Sunday gets out here and everybody is hitting - I'll get excited too."
On whether he's been warned about staying away from contact
"Well, I definitely have to be smart and I don't think they're going to let anybody hit me or me hit anybody so I think it's just going to be constantly doing drops, throwing and just learning the offense."
On whether he expects increased rookie hazing due to his endorsement deal with Jockey
"(Laughing) A few people have said a few things to me about it. Actually, Coach McDaniels was the first one to say something to me but you know, I'm sure I'll get some of it but it's all in good fun."
On what Coach McDaniels said to him
"(Laughing) ‘I just wonder if he's a boxer or brief guy.'"