JAGUARS HEAD COACH DOUG PEDERSON
MEDIA AVAILABILITY
MONDAY, JULY 25, 2022
(Opening Statement) “I’d like to start by thanking Episcopal for accommodating us over here. Fields are in great shape. Our grounds crew from the stadium has done an outstanding job of putting these fields together. (Director of Football Operations) Hamzah (Ahmad) with the Jaguars. A lot of work went into putting this grass down and the fields in preparation for camp, and we’re excited to be here. Looking forward to spending the next few weeks over here at Episcopal but thanking them for this opportunity.”
(On his emotions during the first day of training camp) “It’s exciting. Emotions are high. We’re looking forward to having a really good camp, a good, competitive, physical camp. But for me, personally, it’s exciting to be back out on the grass with these guys for another training camp and seeing where we go.”
(On his biggest concern of having training camp at an off-site location) “There are a few issues that come up with that. One, when you abide by the CBA and you have an 11-hour day, you have to factor in travel and all of that. It takes up either practice time, meeting time, whatever you can do. You have to work out some of those kinks. We had a great team of guys – we did a lot of research on it. We drove back and forth in the spring time just to see how long the drive was going to be and how long it would take us. We appreciate the police department giving us some escorts and getting us through some red lights. That helps. That helps maximize the time on the field. And then just kind of seeing it all come together. It’s been kind of fun this summer to watch the progression of everything.”
(On the duration of the trip from the stadium to practice) “Just under 10 minutes. We got caught by one light.”
(On if much bonding takes place during that time) “10 minutes, on a bus full of 50 guys. Yeah, there’s quite a bit of bonding.”
(On how much of a jump he expects QB Trevor Lawrence to take this year) “That’s the goal: to make a significant jump in year two. I think building off of last year, the fact that he played the entire season, we can build off that and really expect a sky’s the limit the mentality with him. He’s in the same frame of mind as well. He wants to take that next step, not only in his growth but leading this football team. Today’s day one of that, and we’re just excited to be on the grass with him and the rest of the team.”
(On if he expects Lawrence to have a significant jump in year two) “I don’t like to compare that (him to other quarterbacks), as much as him, working with Trevor, getting him where he needs to be. Again, it’s an exciting time for him, us as a staff, to really embrace him and the team and all the pieces we have around him.”
(On what he expects from the team the first couple of days of training camp) “It’s an acclimation phase right now, so it’s much like OTAs where there’s not a lot of physical contact, but it’s an acclimation of
getting back out there on the practice field and running around. The way that practices are scheduled from a time standpoint allows the players to build some tolerance in their bodies in the next couple of days before we put the pads on.”
(On the status of the team and James Robinson) “Going into training camp, we don’t have any PUP guys. James is doing extremely well. He’s going to be out here and over here. We’re just going to still take it slow with him and make sure he’s 100 percent or better before we put him out on the field. Darious Williams is another one doing extremely well. You’ll see him here doing some individual work and running around. I will just say this, we have two guys coming out of the conditioning test yesterday – Jamal Agnew is one that we’re going to ‘day by day’ with him. He’ll be out here working with some individual work, working with our medical team. Day to day with him. Devin Lloyd is the one that’s probably going to miss some time. He has a little hamstring that popped up yesterday on him. Nothing too significant, but we’re just going to be cautious with him and give him some time.”
(On his message to the team when they got together for the first time before training camp) “That’s between me and the team.”
(On if he’s pleased with the conditioning and the retention) “I am. I’m excited. The energy yesterday was unbelievable. To get the guys in the building for the first time after about five and a half weeks. The energy, the excitement, the enthusiasm. It was a long day because there were a lot of meetings and things we had to get through yesterday, but these guys are in the right frame of mind. They’re focused and ready to go.”
(On if there was any thought to starting training camp earlier because of the Hall of Fame Game) “There’s an opportunity to maybe bring in rookies, quarterbacks, things like that, but I wanted to start this first one as a team and get everybody here together. We have time. We have a lot of practices and walkthroughs before that first game. We have a long time before we have a meaningful game too, so there’s a lot of great opportunities here in the next few weeks.”
(On the thought process of bringing Kyle Sloter in) “Had watched him a little bit in the USFL this year in some of the spots he’s been in. He’s a young guy that, with EJ, again with an injury this summer, we had to make a decision because he needed another arm in here to keep throwing and all of that. This is a great opportunity for him to really embrace this chance, embrace this opportunity, get some time in maybe these first couple of games, and get some meaningful reps and tape out there not only for us but also for other teams.”
(On when the team will put on pads fully for the first time) “I believe Sunday will be the full-padded day.”
(On his philosophy on ensuring everyone is healthy but also ready for Week 1) “You’re going by the CBA and you’re going by the rules that are put in place. Again, I want to make sure the bodies are conditioned, and the tolerance has been built before we get into pads. It just takes time. It takes a little time. Guys are coming in from all over the country, so there are time zone factors we’re looking at and different things with body clocks on all that. Just want to make sure that this week is an important week of building up each player.”
(On if he usually has a pretty good feeling about the team after this training camp period) “I think you have an idea, but there’s always that surprise player that really stands out during camp. It might be a
special teams guy, it could be an offensive or defensive player. There’s always those one or two surprises that makes it hard on the staff when it comes down to final roster cuts. You just know that at the end of camp, you’re going to lose some good players. It’s just the way the game goes, and we know we’re at 91 with the international (player exemption), Ayo (Oyelola), and everything right now. Getting to 52 is hard, and you want to make sure you’re right with the 53 but at that same time, there’s always going to be that one or two surprises that do come out of camp.”
(On what it says about James Robinson not going on the PUP list to start training camp) “Says a lot. It’s a good sign. I know and I’ve seen how hard he’s worked to get himself back this spring and this summer. He was here all summer working with the guys and with (Vice President of Player Health and Performance Jeff Ferguson) Fergie on the medical team. He’s done a great job of putting himself in the position to where we don’t have to do that but still be cautious with him and make sure he’s ready when he’s ready.”
(On if he still expects Robinson to be back on the field in mid-August) “Hopeful for that. Can’t put a timetable really and don’t want to put a timetable, but that’s probably the target.”
(On his thoughts on players taking so many offseason trips with each other to train) “Gosh, I wish I went with them. It just shows, I think, one, a sign of leadership with the guys like Trevor and Josh Allen, guys who brought the group together. To do that in the offseason, on their time and their dime. I think it just shows a lot of the maturity even with the young players. But that’s what it takes to be successful in this league, to have that comradery away from our building, away from coaches and take it upon themselves to become good football players.”
(On how many trips he’s taken to check out the status of training camp before today) “I made a couple in the spring, and we made one last Friday when I had the coaches report. I came over here and checked it out. I was in touch with Hamzah all summer long, as Trent and I were, with updates on the grass. Videos and things like that he could send me. But I would say coming over here, personally, like three times between the offseason and last Friday.”
(On if it was impressive what they were able to get done in a short amount of time) “It is. When I saw it for the first time Friday, it kind of reminds you of our stadium grass and how well it was this spring.”
(On if there’s anything they had to sacrifice practice wise when practicing off-site) “We can get everything done over here. The only thing we have to be careful of is the weather, but that’s why we’re in the mornings and hopefully the storms stay away in the morning time. We just don’t have a ton of shelter to put you guys in, but player safety is number one and we just have to make it work. We have plenty of time.”
JAGUARS QB TREVOR LAWRENCE
MEDIA AVAILABILITY
MONDAY, JULY 25, 2022
(On the trip to the Bahamas with the offense) “It was great. We had 10 or 12 guys out there. Obviously, the field work is great, and that’s important, but I think bonding, getting to know each other, hanging out, building that camaraderie, before you start the season is really important – to try to get as many skill guys together as we could just to bond a little bit. We’ve got a lot of new faces and a lot of old faces too from last year, but just gel everybody together.”
(On the goals of the first week of training camp) “Week 1 is to just see the progress that we made in OTAs. Like what we were installing last night, we’re not starting over; we’re picking up where we left off. Everything we’re talking about, we’re flying through because we’ve already installed it a couple times. Having that knowledge and everyone can just pick up quick when we install, that’s nice, so we can add new wrinkles faster because we’ve already done it. Also realizing that it’s a long season, and day one doesn’t have to be your best day. Just keep building and get better every day. We have a lot of maturity on the team, which is good, and people know that, and we’re still getting our bodies ready as far as to go the long haul for the season. I thought it was a great day today. Coach did a great job laying out practice. It was a lot of work, enough work to get us ready, but not too much to where we can build and add some more tomorrow and the next day and by the next week, we’ll be full speed. I thought it was a really good opening practice. The guys look sharp, look ready, so it’s exciting.”
(On motivation from last year) “Individually, personally, I want to prove that I belong here and that I’m the player I believe that I am, that the organization believes I am. As a team, I think we have a lot to prove. We didn’t have a great season last year, and I know the guys in this locker room are ready to prove some stuff this year. That motivation and just having this new opportunity, having a clean slate, everybody starts at the bottom, and having your chance to work your way up—that’s the special opportunity we got this year. We’ve got a good enough team to win as many games as we want to, we’ve just got to make that decision and be prepared, and we’ll have a good year.”
(On seeing RB James Robinson work at practice) “Seeing him come along more and more, now he’s running around. I saw some videos of him this summer running and cutting. He looks great. Just seeing how fast he’s progressing is definitely encouraging. We definitely need him. He’s a great player, so as fast as he can get back, we’ll take him, but also, I think they’re doing it the right way, taking their time, making sure he’s healthy for the whole season, not trying to rush him back. All the other guys are stepping up and doing great, but it will be great to have him back in a couple months.”
(On Doug’s coaching and quarterback background) “It’s cool seeing the way he approaches things. He’s definitely a player’s coach, in the sense of he takes care of us, but there’s an expectation. He knows what it takes to win and what it takes to win championships. There’s that expectation that you need from your head coach. There’s a standard you have to uphold, but he also knows how to take care of players, what players are feeling. Like in the spring, some guys are tight, he might take a period off
practice. On a day we need some extra work, he’ll throw in an extra period or whatever it is, just having a coach that’s been there, done that, coached a lot of teams, had a lot of success, he kind of just knows how to read the team, and I think that’s really important. It’s nice having a head coach who sees the play and can jump in, give me a tip, correct something I did, tell me something I could do a little better, or whatever it is, because he totally understands his offense. It’s all the coaches’ offense, but he knows it like the back of his hand, so it’s nice having that, and knowing he played the position, so he’s been in my shoes, so when he says something, you’re definitely listening.”
(On the main thing he wants to improve on his second year) “We talked about in our QB room trying to get better at one thing, specifically each day, obviously you’re going to work on a lot of things, but to have one focus. I think for me, a broad focus, not getting into too much detail; turnovers, obviously I had a lot of turnovers last year. Finding that balance of being myself and making plays, but also being smart and putting our team in the best situation to win. I think that’s important. Limiting those but not letting it change my game. I think that’s something I’ve worked this offseason, and I’ve seen improvements, so just continuing to do that.”
