What do the players have to say, now that camp has opened in Berea? Here's some selected quotes, courtesy of The Orange And Brown Report;
Scott Fujita
(On what the defense can to do get better) – “The first thing that is most obvious is to stop the run. We have to play the run better and that starts up front. Linebackers, we have to fill our gaps better. All of the coach speak that we talked about, we have to shore up all that stuff and that’s where it starts. Beyond that, it’s finishing games better and making big plays in the fourth quarter.”
(On creating turnovers and finishing plays) – “The best way to win games is to create turnovers. For us, we were in the position to make plays at the end of games, but we didn’t always make the big play. So it’s finishing better, it’s punching the ball out, it’s getting the strip-sack, it’s catching those interceptions and you get a couple of those you will win that many more games.”
(On the importance of the team getting a full offseason together) – “It’s huge because a lot of it starts with communication and we didn’t get all of that last year. To have the whole group back, the same coaching staff, now we’re all speaking the same language and that goes so far in this league.”
Joe Haden
(On his initial impressions of Josh Gordon) – “He’s really good. He’s strong. That’s what I was telling everyone from the beginning. He has no problem getting off the line on press coverage’s. I think the only thing is making all of his routes look the same. Making his comebacks look like his fades or his digs, or come out of his breaks fast. He’s definitely looking good for only his second day out here.”
(On the quarterbacks he will face this year) – “That’s how you know we have to be on top of our game every single day coming with the (Eli and Peyton) Manning’s and the two rookies in RGIII (Robert Griffin III) and (Andrew) Luck. Just looking at that, it’s definitely going to be a challenge, but you have to look forward to it if you’re a player. If you’re a defensive back, you look forward to going against the great receivers and great quarterbacks because that shows how good you are or how not good you are.”
(On what the defense has to do to be better than last year) – “Don’t take any plays off. Sometimes we would be doing really well getting three-and-outs and then we would have a brain fart and mess up the whole coverage. That’s one thing you have to make sure you stay on top of every single play and make sure that every time we go out there and line up you know what you have to do. (We have to) know the checks and have everyone communicating.”
Benjamin Watson
(On how he assesses the excitement level this year) – “It’s definitely exciting. You know, it’s only my third year here, but this town and this team is ripe and just waiting for us to win some games. We’re excited to have to opportunity and there’s still a lot of work to be done. We’re by no means where we need to be. We have a lot of improving to do. That’s why we’re out here playing and that’s why we’re out here practicing, so that we can have even a chance to try to be more successful this year.”
(On his assessment of Brandon Weeden) – “It’s hard to make an assessment on anyone right now. We’re out here but we don’t have pads on, we’re not running in a game situation. Obviously, the biggest thing now for all of us is knowing what to do, where to be and how to play. I think he’s done a great job so far, being a rookie, and coming in and learning. There’s a lot on your plate as a quarterback. For all of us, it’s about what we do in the games and how we do once, as we say, the live bullets start when we get into preseason games to get a better evaluation of all of us.”
(On Jordan Cameron bulking up in the offseason) – Jordan’s (Cameron) an amazing, incredible athlete. He’s a joy to be around as a player. We have a great relationship. The personalities we have in there, we all have fun together and we all joke around. We’re a pretty tight knit group, because we’re tight ends and we hang around each other a lot. Obviously, we’re all good football players or we wouldn’t be here, but we enjoy being around each other.”
