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Packers' confident Quarless: 'I just really want to be the best tight end in the NFL'
GREEN BAY, Wis. -- Andrew Quarless isn't interested in merely being a good NFL tight end. At this stage in his career, Quarless knows he finds himself in that middling category.
To get into the conversation amongst the league's elite tight ends, such as Rob Gronkowski and Jimmy Graham, would take a major jump for the Green Bay Packers' sixth-year player. Quarless hopes, though, that the work he's putting in this offseason will propel him to that spot.
"I just really want to be the best tight end in the NFL and help my team to a Super Bowl," Quarless said. "I know what it's like to get there, the type of hard work it takes. That's been my focus this whole season."
Before departing on the team's annual Tailgate Tour in April, Quarless was already confident he had inched closer to being the NFL's next star player at the position.
"I can consider myself the top echelon of tight ends," Quarless said at the time. "That's really where I see myself, and that's really where I'm trying to take it. A couple other guys like Gronk and a couple guys who are up there. I put myself in that bracket. That's definitely where I'm training to be."
That training has included frequent CrossFit workouts. Even during the down time between minicamp ending in mid-June and training camp beginning in late July, Quarless isn't resting. He's looking ahead to the regular season and getting his body ready for always being on the field with the offense.
"I really push my tempo when I work out, just to kind of correlate to the no-huddle," Quarless said. "You have to really be able to go however many plays, 16-20 plays, however long it takes to score. I really just push my tempo. I don't get a lot of rest in between reps and just go hard."
Quarless has never been an every-down player for the Packers. His career-high in snaps came during the 2013 season when he played 62.4 percent of the time.
Quarless doesn't look at it like that when it comes to his preparation. He's a goal-oriented type of player, and those goals aren't low-reaching ones.
"It's hard to really feel content," Quarless said. "I'm the type of guy, I don't know when I'll be satisfied. But I'm definitely not satisfied with where I'm ranked at amongst the tight ends. I watch film every week, watch different defenses, and I look at other tight ends around the league and I look at myself, and I know my potential. It's really just about working hard."
Statistically, Quarless has leveled off. His production was nearly identical the past two seasons. From 32 receptions to 29 receptions, from 312 yards to 323 yards and from two touchdown catches to three.
However, as quarterback Aaron Rodgers looked back at the 2014 season, he wished he had gotten Quarless more involved.
"He really made some jumps last year; not enough targets for him," Rodgers said. "But I think if he keeps playing the way that he's playing right now . . . he's playing very fast, he's really been detailing his routes and he's been one of the top guys that's showed out in the offseason program."
Coming from Rodgers, those words really meant a lot to Quarless.
"I'm definitely ready to step up and make an impact," Quarless said. "I know my potential, and I know how hard I'm working. This offseason has been encouraging, just to build with A-Rod. We talk a little bit more about routes and how to run routes, so the communication has been there, and I think it's only been a positive thing."
And while Quarless knows that his stats looked similar to the year before, it didn't feel that way to him.
"Last year was probably my most productive year overall," he said. "I'm definitely not satisfied with those numbers. I'm definitely just working hard, building the relationship. And hopefully as we build more, I can get more opportunities, more attempts, stuff like that. It's really about making the most of your opportunities when you're out there."
Quarless wants more chances to be sent out wide on the single-receiver side. It's in those situations where he believes he has the greatest advantage.
Even if what Quarless has shown thus far turns out to be the best work of his NFL career, he can take some solace in it. The severe knee injury he suffered in 2011 had him wondering whether he'd played his final downs. He missed the remainder of that season and the entire following year.
"The injury was probably one of the toughest things to deal with in my whole life," Quarless said. "Just not being able to walk, it brings a lot of doubts in your mind. I never had to go through that before. To be able to bounce back and really recover and feel good, my body feels good, it's a blessing. I'm super thankful."
The strong physical recovery has led him to the possibility of earning another contract extension next offseason. The two-year agreement he signed in 2014 was for $3 million, a relatively low amount by NFL standards. It's certainly not the type of money that tight ends like Gronkowski ($9 million average per season) and Graham ($10 million average) are getting.
But Quarless signed that deal after just one healthy season. Despite his years of NFL experience, he's still only 26 years old. That's a significant advantage for a player.
"You definitely try not to make it (the upcoming contract situation) the main thing, but it's hard not to think about it, also," Quarless said. "I would love to stay here. And you never know. That's the biggest thing; you don't know where your future is going to lead you."
He'll likely never put up Gronkowski numbers or have Gronkowski's salary. Being in a loaded receiving offense with Jordy Nelson and Randall Cobb is naturally going to result in fewer targets than what Gronkowski enjoys in New England. But that's the type of player Quarless is going to continue striving to become.
"I've really been challenging myself, really just trying to perfect my craft," Quarless said. "I feel like I'm so close, and it's really about just getting over that hump and taking my game to the next level. That's what I've really been doing, just focusing on the little things. Not just being a pass-catcher; focusing on blocking, footwork, all the little things that goes into being close to perfection as far as my craft."
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