ATLANTA FALCONS
Head Coach Raheem Morris
QB Taylor Heinicke
CB A.J. Terrell Jr.
WR Casey Washington
DT Brandon Dorlus
JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS
Head Coach Doug Pederson
QB Trevor Lawrence
HEAD COACH RAHEEM MORRIS
Opening Statement:
“Preseason in the books. Hard decisions for all of us. Obviously, this is the hardest part for coaches,
really the hardest part that you do when you go through this process of eliminating people off your team
and doing those things. Toughest thing for a coach and a front office. So, [we’ve] got to get those things
done in the next couple of days.”
On how he feels the second team played:
“I thought they played physical and tough. I think they came out and they played against that first group
for the Jaguars and did some nice things early, standing up, really going out there and playing the right
way. You never want to call the second team, it was the guys we put out there today. And the guys that
went out there today played tough and physical for us, trying to define some of the roles, trying to form
the bottom of our roster. We’ve got some tough decisions, like I said. When you go back and look at it
individually, you’ll always find things you want to see, and you will always find things that you don’t. We’ll
do those things every time we go out and play.”
On the training camp LB Donavan Mutin had:
“I really don’t think he’s defined in just today. I think it’s been defined throughout the whole process since
I’ve been back. Watching him in OTA days learn what we do and how we do it, watching him put his pads
on and become a really physical player in practice. Then, watching him go to some of the games and lead
our team the right way. I think those are the most important things that you want to do when you talk
about players. He plays with great energy. He plays with great passion. He loves the game. You can feel
his grit and his effort all the time, whether it’s in the locker room, whether you are walking by him in the
lunchroom, whatever the case may be. He’s a passionate young man that you cheer for all the team.
Those are the kind of guys you want to work with.”
On how he feels the scrimmage went this past week and how he plans to carry that momentum
into the regular season:
“I was extremely ecstatic about the scrimmage. It was a physical, competitive, highly fun environment that
you guys got a chance to go out there and watch. And I know you guys really appreciated that day. We
got a chance to get our owner out. I kicked him off the field once or twice, but he couldn’t stay off the field.
He was just out there. They did a nice job of really going out there and making it a game-like situation for
those guys who did not have the helmets on. I forget I didn’t talk to you after that practice, but the
excitement about that and getting that many snaps – I believe it’s 107 snaps on the day. The transition
from special teams to offense, to get it going at halftime to be able to come out and get those guys to
come back and rally and get a good first half from the offense and a great second half from defense,
highly competitive. You guys enjoyed it. I know [D’Orlando Ledbetter] kept asking who won the game,
what was the score, and nobody had an answer for it. I was thinking about what I was going to say when
he asked me that because I had no idea. I just felt like the Falcons won the day.”
On the thought process behind CB Kevin King playing safety against the Jaguars:
“Just the versatility of the young man. We can play a little bit at corner. We’ve seen him make plays in the
first game against Miami. We’ve seen him play it throughout camp. He has a little versatility to go play
some dime position for us, which you have seen in camp and our practice and some of the packages that
we have. And today, you put him at safety a little bit with the experience that we have to see him go back
there and be able to move around. When you create that kind of versatility, you create a lot of help for us
in all the different roles. To give the guy the best chance to be on football team in any fashion, I just think
that’s a great job by our defensive coaches to get him ready to play all those different spots, particularly
by Kevin King coming off all the injuries he’s had and the tough times he’s had in the National Football
League and watching him go play with complete passion and fun.”
On whether it is harder to make roster cuts all at once than making cuts throughout training
camp:
“I believe it’s happened the last three, four years since they’ve done that – since COVID, I believe. I
actually like it that way better because you give every young man a chance to go out there and prove
himself, to give him that fair shot, that opportunity. There is nothing worse than cutting a guy that you had
planned on playing in the fourth and you can’t because you have to get down to a certain number on the
roster. So, giving a guy a chance to go out there and get some reps, some game-like reps, to put film on
for other teams, to talk about being on a different team. I talked to these guys about putting on the shield
in the National Football League and how important that is. I learned that the Herm Edwards a long time
ago. To give them an opportunity to see other people, to give them an opportunity to advance in their
careers or to go home – I talked about it with our owner today – to go home and get ready for when your
number is called and your name is called at some point in the season. Those are things that we value. It’s
no different than what our culture, it’s no different than what our ethos is when you put people first. The
more time you get people to be around us, the better.”
On CB A.J. Terrell Jr.’s contract extension:
“First, I have to say this: I don’t think anybody knew he was up, and that was like the most beautiful thing
about the whole process. We’re behind the scenes. We’re talking about a contract. You got his agent
working with Terry. We got our money people working with Terry, talking to his agents. All this stuff is
going on, and all A.J. did was show up to work, play the corner position, lead defensive backs, give us
great energy at practice, tackle, knock down passes, get better, go to work and just play. The excitement
for me being here when we drafted him and that process – that was my draft pick. It wasn’t Terry’s. We
have to make sure we say that. Terry did not draft A.J. When we drafted him back then, you knew what
kind of man he was. You knew what kind of resolve he had. I remember giving him a bunch of stuff about
getting beat in the national championship game. Who knew it was going to be Justin Jefferson and
[JaMar] Chase? You knew he had some type of fight to him, a certain toughness. He has done nothing
but show us that since he’s been here. When a young man is rewarded for doing those things, and we
can’t thank the Arthur Blank and the Blank family enough for what they do to reward the guys that really
deserve it in our community that’s been a part of what we do, it is absolutely outstanding. I can talk about
A.J. all night if you asked me to because I’m proud to have him. His family came. It’s a beautiful occasion.
Got a chance to walk around with those guys. Remember it was COVID, so really didn’t get a chance to
meet them back then. I was fired up for him to do that. When a young man tells you that’s one of the best
days of his life, that’s absolutely outstanding. And his teammates and how they cheered for him and how
they were excited for him, that’s just different than what I’ve seen in most places.”
On the flexibility of building the roster with the guys that are currently on the team versus ones
that have gotten released around the league:
“You are always going to score scour. We’ve got the nosiest scouts in the National Football League. I talk
about Ryan Pace and Kyle Smith, that crew, Hakeem [Smith] and all those guys. Talking about Sal
[Conti], it’s all of them. So much. I know right now, Ryan Pace is looking, and he is going to come in and
have a fullback on us. We don’t even use a fullback. He’ll have it on my desk tomorrow. It’s just how he is.
He goes and looks and finds ways to get people that are better. He finds ways to keep churning the
bottom of the roster along with the top as we’ve seen the last several weeks. I’ve got all the confidence in
the world in our guys looking around the league finding people. And then it’s up to Terry and I to make
those decisions on who can we bring in, how can you make space, whether it’s now, whether it’s later,
whatever the case may be. I really appreciate that about those guys.”
On the decision not to play certain players in the preseason:
“For me, personally, and what we have spoken about as a group because we do everything collectively, I
hold more value in the joint practices, the mimic scrimmage that we’re able to simulate and do those
things. Hopefully, moving forward, you want to be able to have four of those joint practices. One set at
home, one set in the road, which we’ll be able to do moving forward because of our new facility that we
have, we’ll be able to get the exhibition game with some of our younger players and go show their stuff
and put their stuff on the brightest stage in order to put themselves in the best position to make the
football team to get them out there. And those are the ways where you can mitigate injury of losing people
that you are going to count on when it’s time to win the real games. Like I mentioned before, you don’t get
mulligans for losing guys on a team that you are going to count on. I’ve got a lot of respect for this game
that for the guys that we put out there, if I’m putting you out there, it’s for an opportunity to do something
at a higher level than we think you can do within practice. It’s no different than the first game when we
had our two safeties go out there and get a little bit of time. We get one injured and pull the other one
because we wanted those two to really go out there and battle for that position to find out who can
separate themselves. So we’ll play people based on those decisions, and we’ll continue to have that
philosophy as long as I’m fortunate enough to be the head coach of the Atlanta Falcons.”
On what the next week is going to look like for the players as the team gets ready for Pittsburgh:
“It’s still going to be a training camp philosophy for us. You still have the two weeks before that point or at
least a week next week you have to get ready. You make the cutdowns and have a different set of
practice because of the amount of people that you have for some of the practices. You have more of a
low volume, but you have to get some stuff. As you put those people back on your roster, you’ll be able to
pick up a different intensity with the medium volume or high volume. You get two of those with the jog
thru. That will get us right to that mini bye for the players, get them out of the building a little bit and come
back and get ready for Pittsburgh.”
On an update on ILBs Kaden Elliss and Nate Landman:
“I’m going to mess this up, and I’ll tell you later, but they definitely both are day-to-day. I can’t remember
exactly.
David Bassity: “Kaden has a groin, and Nate, a quad.”
On joining the Jaguars’ huddle:
“I was in the breakdown with the receivers today because of [Austin] Trammell who played here. You
guys know [him] well. He came out to L.A. with us last year. I broke it down with their receivers. I did.
Guilty.”
On his thoughts on this preseason game being the last time some of the players put on pads:
“That’s the part I always talk about is tough. That’s the hardest deal when you’re a coach. That’s the
hardest deal when you are a personnel guy. That’s why we value so much sitting down with them and
telling them and being brutally honest, but at the same time being compassionate about what we think
their beliefs are and how they can further move on. And all you can tell them is your opinion. Then you
have players that will go out and prove us wrong and you’re going to have players that go out and find
ways. They always respect the fact what they got, the open and honest communication from the Atlanta
Falcons. And we’ll continue to give people that because we owe them that.”
On how he evaluates the receivers that did not play today:
“The rook made a couple of tough catches over the middle, which is really exciting. Chris Blair came out
today and had another couple of exciting catches. They made challenges for us in who you want to keep
and how many can you keep and some of those different things. We had a couple of different perimeter
runs with some of the guys and watching them block a little bit on the edge. For the wideouts in our
division, it’s not all about just the recessions, you’ve got to be able to put your face on people in order to
create some runs [and] do some different things. You’ve got to be able to enjoy the process of those guys
learning and doing what you can do every single time. They always make it tough on you, and we’ll get
together in the next couple of days and we’ll figure out where we want to go next.”
On what he’s seen from WR Chris Blair:
“Been really proud of Chris Blair. When he got here, you really saw him working. I remember walking
around the building, not really knowing his name and just noticed that he was one of the guys in the
makeshift weight room that we had in our indoor facility right from the beginning. He was in there for a
long time, and he was in there with A.J. Terrell every day. Then I would come out, and I would watch him
run sprints on his own before we even hired a full-time strength coach who was able to be in the building.
He was in there working. Every single day, he would just would walk by me. I was always too
embarrassed to ask him, ‘Hey, what’s your name?’ Then OTA day started, and he went out there and
made plays and ran routes. He was able to take coaching and able to do the right things all the time. I
remember going out there in the OTAs, making some plays in shorts and you’re not wanting to give him
too much credit because it’s not as competitive as he wanted to be. But then he got to camp, switched
positions, was able to do a little bit more on that side, learn some more stuff, make stuff a little more
versatile. Then I watched him get in the games. I watched have a mistake, bounce back from the mistake
and come out, really lead the receiver unit. He was able to go out there have a big game last week and
become a captain for us in the preseason and did some really nice things. Those kind of kids, they always
make if tough on you in these times.”
QB TAYLOR HEINICKE
On how tough it was to go against Jacksonville’s ones:
“Yeah, obviously we knew it was going to be a challenge. But I think the guys had a really good mindset
going into the game. It’s a great opportunity for us to go against ones, kind of put some film out there, see
how we can do. I thought we moved the ball pretty well. We got to the midfield two, three times, we just
stalled out. But again, like you said, to do that against those ones, it gives you a little bit of confidence.
We wish we put some points up there.”
On how he feels knowing he could be cut:
“Yeah, you know, it’s one of those stressful times. It’s really the worst time of the NFL for all these guys,
just kind of not knowing where you’re going to be. For me personally, I did everything I could throughout
OTAs and training camp. When I got the reps, I tried to go in there and make the most of it. When I wasn’t
in, I was trying to help Kirk [Cousins] and Mike [Michael Penix Jr.] in any way I could. I would love to be a
part of the Falcons. I think this is probably the best roster I’ve been a part of when you kind of look at it
from top to bottom. I think Raheem [Morris]’s built something special here, and I would love to be a part of
that. That being said, who knows what’s going to happen. I think the cut day is on Tuesday, so we’ll find
out from tonight until then. But again, I would love to be at the Atlanta Falcons. If not, I just love the game
of football. I just want to keep playing football. So, yeah, that’s the dream.”
On what stood out to him from this training camp and team compared to others:
“This was a different camp than most. I think Raheem [Morris] had a different approach to it. One that’s
different than anything I’ve been through. But it obviously worked for him. Maybe he learned that from
L.A. or something. We brought in [Justin] Simmons. We brought in [Matthew] Judon. Kind of going out
there and looking at practice every day, those guys came out and worked. There was a lot of times we
were in full pads two or three times in a row and the guys were sore, and they just came out and kept
working. So, I’m sure every guy in that locker room would tell you it was a little rough. But we got better
every day. You can see it. So, again, you see a lot of special things during practice, during camp. And
those are the things that make me want to stay here.”
On his fourth-and-3 throw to WR Casey Washington:
“Yeah, so we had a little motion come in. And we pretty much had a shell from number three, like a little
five-yard in from number two. And based on how they played that motion, it looked like they just bumped.
So, it was like a cover three. And for that concept, you don’t really like cover three and how they’re
supposed to play it. So I saw Casey one-on-one backside and thought I’d give him a chance. Of course, I
go back and look at the iPad, and their linebacker kind of messed up so that number two was open. So,
again, it’s little things like that you kind of just keep working on, see more of that on film, and then maybe
make the right decision next time.”
On what he thinks about having a third quarterback on the roster:
“Yeah, I think it’s good for the NFL. You go back, I think it was two years ago, the NFC Championship
game, and those two quarterbacks got hurt. People don’t really want to watch a big-time game and not
have a quarterback in there. So a great example from last year was Case Keenum. He was third-string in
Houston. I think he had to come in for a game or two. He’s a 12-year vet, I believe. He came in and did
great. So I think the more quarterbacks you can have, it’s good, because there is a lot of injuries. The
NFL stands for ‘not for long.’ I think 100% of the guys get injured. So, again, I kind of always point back to
that playoff game two years ago. You don’t want to see receivers or running backs play quarterback.”
CB A.J. TERRELL JR.
On his thoughts or feelings on getting the extension done:
“Yeah, just playing the game of football all your life and just putting in so much work and finally being able
to reap the benefits of everything that you went through. And for myself, I know all you can do is just
reminisce and just pay respects to all the things I overcame. I just give thanks to Arthur Blank and Terry
Fontenot for believing in me and seeing what they saw in me being here for the next four years and
hopefully forever. Just being able to bless me and my family and just be the best version of myself for the
next four years.”
On how it feels to get the contract done considering the fact that he’s from Georgia and the fan
support:
“Shout out to the guy or lady who was cheering for me, I did hear it and it meant a lot. Growing up here
and being able to stay home for your NFL career and a lot of people don’t get this opportunity of being
able to play at home and make a statement and be loved by the fans and things like that. So I don’t take
none of it for granted, never did. When I go out there and play, it’s always for my family, the city, and the
team. So I’m excited to be here, man. It’s been a blessing for sure. Finally soaking in the last couple of
hours and just thankful.”
On role to the team and impact on the community:
“Yeah, all the community service events have been one of my main priorities. Just being able to be
somebody that you can physically touch outside of the uniform and see face-to-face has been very
important. Just going out and trying to help any way possible. Just lay eyes and be able to physically
touch somebody and help somebody become a better version of themselves. And just things that I enjoy
doing is never hesitating to help out. Me and my team, my foundation with AJT, we always try to find
ways to impact the community any way possible. So just being able to just be a physical touch to those
people and just help them is just the beginning. I’m still trying to find ways to even be more of a staple to
the community and just represent Atlanta.”
On excitement with the addition OLB Matthew Judon and S Justin Simmons:
“I swear every year coming into the season, you always have so much faith in the team and the pieces
that were added and the coaching changes. Every year, the new start is always the best start. Every team
feels like they can make a run for the playoffs, Super Bowl, and just have that. I’ve been here five years,
and every year has been better. This year, just adding Matthew Judon and Justin Simmons and all the
other pieces we did around. But, just them in particular just having their vet presence and them controlling
the back end or the D-line or the linebackers and just having to put pieces around me and the rest of the
pieces that we had being the top defense in the league and help our offense and the whole organization
just make a push for the Super Bowl. I feel great. I can’t wait to get started. Preseason just wrapped up,
so now we head down working.”
On if he feels more motivated with a new contract to increase his interceptions:
“Always motivated. The interceptions, they come just off of plays, the schemes and things that are drawn
up and just watching film, the X’s and O’s and just making plays when they’re there because once you
miss the opportunity, you most likely won’t get it back until it comes again. So, I try not to pay too much
attention to it, but I know the defense is all about the ball. We try and get the ball, and definitely going to
make a push for that, just getting the ball. That’s the main thing, punching at it, any type of ball
production. It’s not just interceptions. It’s PBUs. It’s force bumps. It’s scoops. It’s scores. It’s points. It’s all
those things added to my game and to the defense. That’s what we pride ourselves on.”
On his mindset during training camp amidst contract conversations:
“I never really paid attention to it. Let my agent do it. That’s his job. So, me just coming in and doing
something I love with the team I love for the city, like I said, it wasn’t hard for me coming in. Like I said, I
was sleeping peaceful at night. I wasn’t ever thinking about – as long as I’m going out there handling my
business and practice, leading by example, and making my presence felt, it will all take care of itself. So, I
never had any thoughts like that. I just played my cards and just kept my head forward and just kept
working.”
On how much of his mentality can be attributed to his support system:
“That’s where I was brought up with morals, just having a lot of life lessons growing up with my parents,
never having nothing given to me, always going out there to work. God blessed me with this deal, but at
the end of the day, just believing in what my parents always said growing up – being coachable, a lot of
things, just staying ahead of the game, competing with myself, not comparing, and just challenging
myself, setting goals and accomplishing things and being self-motivated – all those things played a role to
today. It’s still like that. It’s never me losing my mind or trying to be somebody I’m not. I’m always level-
headed and humble and just going to get the job done.”
On what he has seen from CB Mike Hughes, CB Clark Phillips III and CB Natrone Brooks:
“We’ve got bodies, like you said, Clark and Mike and Brooks. We’re talking about them because they’ve
all been making plays. That’s the great thing about it. I love all those guys. I’m tight with all of them. We all
kick it and laugh and joke and compete and have fun. So, whatever happens, leave that to the coaches.
But, everything’s been good.”
On the talent on the roster:
“You look at us on paper, we’ve got everything we need to be successful. it’s on us to just go get the job
done week in, week out – how we prepare for games, how we take care of our bodies, how we attack a
week. We’ve just got to go. We’ve just got to handle business, take it one game at a time, one practice at
a time, and just stack 1%”
On players from Westlake High School being successful in the NFL and if he has heard from Cam
Newton:
“Westlake, four years strong. No, I ain’t hear anything from Cam [Newton]. It ain’t nothing personal. I ain’t
thinking about none of that. I know it’s all love. I looked up to Cam, went to his camp 7-on-7s all my life.
So, I know he means well, and everybody else who are alumni who went there, ‘Pac-Man’ [Adam Jones]
and so on. We’ve got a little pipeline out of there where we tend to produce great athletes, not just in
football, but all around in track and basketball and things, too. So, I’m thankful for the ‘Lake’, man. I’m a
proud representative for Westlake. I’ll be there actually this weekend, I’m an honorary captain. They’re
retiring my jersey. So, I’ll be there on the 30th before the Clemson-Georgia game. I’ll be there for that, too.
So, it’s a good weekend ahead coming up. I can’t wait to get to it.
On if he was #24 in high school:
“I was #8 in high school.”
WR CASEY WASHINGTON
On the biggest thing learned during preseason:
“The speed of the game is definitely a thing from college to the league. It’s different. Everyone out there
can move around. Physically, it’s faster, but at the same time, mentally, you have to learn how to process
things quicker. For me, I’ve just tried to be as intentional as possible and pick up the playbook as fast as
possible as well.”
On his preseason performance:
“I feel like I poured everything out I had. Obviously, there’s a perfectionist mentality or mindset. You want
to go back and clean some things up and you see things on film that you can improve on, but I only can
control now and just leave the rest up to God.”
On the feeling in the locker room:
“It’s real. As much as this is a game that we’ve all played from a young age, it’s a business. We know that
going into this. We know it is, so all we can do and all I can do personally is put my best foot forward and
see where the chips fall.”
DT BRANDON DORLUS
On how the stadium compares to others he has played in:
“Honestly, everything is nice here. The grass is nice out there. The field feels good on my feet. I love all
the lights and all the shows. But the biggest thing is the people that’s in the building. Just to have them,
their support throughout the four quarters, even though we’re losing, they were loud the whole game. I
appreciate them for that.”
On what he has gotten out of the preseason:
“The NFL’s hard. It’s not going to be every day. It’s going to be a great experience. But there’s times
where you’ve got to learn. Take it on the chin and just learn from the veterans. Just keep learning. Just
keep stacking days and getting better.”
On the impression he hopes he left on his front office:
“Honestly, just bringing energy every day. Bringing the juice to the room and guys who are older veterans.
Honestly, I just hope that I showed that I was able to be a dominant player. Not just a pass rush player,
but someone that they’d be able to trust.”
JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS
HEAD COACH DOUG PEDERSON
On his overall thoughts postgame:
“Yeah, I thought both offensively and defensively, the starters did a nice job coming in. It’s always tough, I
know, on those guys, because you just don’t know how long you’re going to play. But for them, especially
offensively, to come in and get the two scores like they did, put some good drives together early, it was
good to see. Defensively, the same way. Being able to get those stops and come off the field all night,
and even when the back-ups and the young guys played, they played hard and fast and proud of
everybody for the way they competed tonight.”
On getting a look at the offensive line together for the first time:
“I thought it was good. I think there’s still some things we can improve on and continue to work, but I
thought overall they did a nice job. Atlanta threw some pressures at us that we were unblocked, which is
going to happen, one extra and Trevor [Lawrence] did a nice job getting the ball out of his hand. But,
overall, I thought they played well.”
On the team’s level of preparation heading into the regular season:
“Well, I think we’re on track. I don’t think that we’re a finished product. We’re still working on some things
in all three phases, but it was a good preseason. It was tough. It was physical on them. I thought they
handled it extremely well. It showed obviously in their play these three games, but now quite honestly, it
doesn’t matter, right? We have to get ready for Miami.”
On the team suffering no injuries on the night:
“Yeah, we didn’t have any issues tonight, which is good.”
On judging preseason performances with teams taking different approaches:
“I don’t look at it as far as ‘us versus them’ that way. I look at it as just us, right? Our execution, are we
executing? Are we targeting the right way, especially in the offensive line? Are we fitting gaps in the
defense? Are we in the right coverage, leverage, things like that. We’re still working on things, and at the
end of the day when the ball is snapped, there’s a man over you, and you’ve got to do your best to win
that matchup. But, it’s more about assignment football, and when your starters don’t play a ton, games
like this matter because you want them to feel like they came away feeling good about themselves, and
execution was good.”
On the team’s position after three years in his system:
“I believe we’re in a good place there. It’s still all about communication, right? It starts with me, and I’ve
got to communicate with the entire team, but offensively, with our quarterback, and understanding what
we’re asking of him, and then what we’re asking of the offense. I think there’s some – the last couple
years have really, we’ve benefited from being together, all of us. I think it did show a little bit tonight.”
On whether offensive coordinator Press Taylor will call plays this season:
“Yeah, we’ve got a couple weeks. We’ll discuss that, and go from there.”
On if he cares about the Jaguars’ 6-0 record through the last two preseasons:
“Nope. We’re sitting here, 0-0.”
On the team rushing for over a hundred yards in all three preseason games:
“I do. I do, and that matters. That’s good to see. I think that playing with a healthy offensive line and
keeping those guys together, and even our backups, I thought, in all three games, really have done a
great job running the football. Coach Rauscher has done an excellent job getting those guys prepared,
and just keeping it simple too, keeping the scheme simple, so we’re running a lot of the same schemes
over and over. It makes a difference as well.”
On K Cam Little’s performance:
“Yeah, he was disappointed I didn’t put him out there again for that long one at the end, but I wasn’t going
to do that. But, I think you come away from preseason feeling good about our situation there, and right
now, it’s just got to carry over. It’s got to carry over to the regular season here in a couple weeks.”
On his thoughts on QB Mac Jones:
“Mac [Jones] has played extremely well in the last couple weeks, and really has bought into what we do.
He’ll still revert back to his Patriot ways every now and then, and we’ve got to remind him he’s in
Jacksonville, but he’s done a good job. He’s done a good job managing and running the offense, getting
everybody involved. He sees the field well, throws a good ball, so he’s done a good job.”
On the chemistry between QB Trevor Lawrence and TE Evan Engram:
“I just think it comes with the three years that they’ve been together, honestly, and the time they’ve spent.
Trevor [Lawrence] knows exactly where he’s going to be, and Evan [Engram] runs extremely good routes,
and he’s very disciplined there in detail. So, it’s just a complementary piece to our offense, and it was
good to see them connect to that.”
QB TREVOR LAWRENCE
On how he feels:
“I feel good. I thought it was a good night, very clean. Obviously, we haven’t done any prep for Miami yet.
We just got out of the training camp, so that’s its own thing. We’ve got to get prepared for them and really
dive into their scheme and get to work on prepping for that game, so that’s a different thing. But as far as
just our team, our offense, where we’re at, I think we’re in a great spot. But you’ve got to continue to get
better, even when camp’s over. You’ve got to keep getting better every week, so that’s the challenge for
us.”
On the importance of getting game reps behind the starting line:
“I thought it was great. We got settled in. We ended up only being two drives, but they were long drives,
so we got some different situations, a few third downs in there, had an opportunity to move the ball.
Obviously, there’s always going to be some stuff to learn from that we can clean up, but I thought overall
it was clean, sharp. Guys were physical, ready to play. It was good. It was awesome.”
On the physical nature of the team this year:
“That was something we made an emphasis this offseason, and it’s paying off. The guys, sending hats off
to the guys up front, the running backs, the tight ends, receivers too. I have my part in the running game,
but I’m not the one hitting people. It’s physical from those guys up front and the tight ends blocking and
receivers and the backs running. It’s those guys that have bought in and made it go, and you can see the
improvements. Like I said, we just got to keep getting better though.”
On his chemistry with TE Evan Engram:
“Yeah, I love where me and Evan’s chemistry is right now. I feel great about it. We’re on the same page
as much or more than ever. He’s just a guy that works really hard and communicates and wants to get
better. We see things very similarly, and it’s cool to see it pay off. A guy that works that hard, it’s cool to
see it pay off for him. I’m excited for him. I think we’ve expanded his role. As you guys have seen, he’s
doing more, so it’s just going to help us. It’s cool to see that from him.”
