Dan Quinn at the final day of mandatory minicamp: “Our job as coaches is to try to put them into those spaces where they can really excel”

Dan Quinn speaks to the media ahead of the 40-day break. “See you in July!”

Dan Quinn

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Opening Statement:

It’s been a cool eight weeks or so, which began the same week as the draft. We started with the players the 22nd, did the draft that weekend, and then over the next few weeks we really pushed it hard on the skills. And then as we added the new players here: how we would onboard them; standards; got into some of the practice work, and then that finished today where we got to see where we’re at.

So, it was a really meaningful session for this offseason. And perhaps one of my favorite parts was having a time for their families to be here today. Maybe at some places throughout the years, the end of a minicamp might have felt like one foot out the door. What I thought was cool for me to watch from afar is the connection the team has had for one another. So, on the day where that sometimes happens through the years, there were a hundred kids and another hundred adults hanging.

That meant a lot — that they enjoy spending that time together as a big team. And so, I’m like, that was really cool!

Now, we have about 40 days till we get rolling again and we had a couple guys talk about what that time looks like. Ken Norton and Wes Welker addressed the team about that this morning. I think between the two of them they played about 25 or 26 years so they know what training into that space looks like — when you really want to go for it — and what that training looks like to be in that kind of shape to get ready.

So, it was a fun day and open up to you guys to get rolling.

No update on WR Noah Brown:

l have no update on Noah. He’s getting an MRI today, this afternoon. So yeah, I don’t want to speculate.

What he’s getting an MRI on:

Yeah, MRI today. Yeah.

The highlight of minicamp:

l love that we came back in really hungry to prove it. And that’s I think a good sign as opposed to letting your skills go down or your eye not as sharp or those things.

To come in with things specific to work on to go get better, that was big for me. And then to see people who were here year to help the first year players now — first year free agents, first year rookies — get up to speed.

When I see Nick Bellore over the last three days teaching like he’s a coach, that means a lot because we don’t ask Nick to do that, but that’s how he pays it forward to the other guys here. And that’s what a leader does, helping get everybody ready. I saw him with Bill [RB Jacory Croskey-Merritt], I saw him with — not just another linebacker — he was with a running back talking through punt technique and what to do.

That, to me, is what I’d hoped I’d see from developing leaders — that it doesn’t just come from the coaches. Through my time, man, have I learned a lot from players over my last 25 years or so. So, that was cool to see.

If players taking a leadership role is more enhanced this year:

For sure, [it’s been] more enhanced here this year.

The roster was pretty fluid last year, and that was true even into camp and into the season. Like, Nick wasn’t here last offseason, so perhaps he might’ve done that [if he had been], but we were all still gaining our space together. I think that’s a byproduct of spending a lot of time together.

What he wants the rookies to do during the break:

Adam and I visited with each one specifically. We had a one-on-one meeting over the last week.

Where are they?

How’s it been?

And going through that process with them — what do the next 40 days look like in terms of moving here, even away from football?

It’s so easy to get to, ‘Where are you training and what does this look like?’ compared to,

‘Who’s coming?’

‘What is that?’

‘Where are they?’

‘How are all the things?’

And so, we wanted to check on who the person was first, and then we got into: ‘Alright, I’m going to go to Fort Lauderdale; that’s where I want to train’ [or] ‘1 m going to come back here and train during that break time.’

I would say they’re all accustomed to who needed what the most. It was good to see some guys really coming in with a plan because, if you’re already coming in with ideas and thoughts about what you want to get done, man, like you’re already moving forward [rather] then waiting for Adam or I to say, ‘l think you need to start doing X, Y, and Z.’

So, I love seeing when people are already coming in with a share of like, hey man, the self-awareness to know this is what I gotta get done.

RB Chris Rodriguez Jr.’s offseason and on him slimming down:

That was one of the things we discussed for him through the offseason, and he’s really applied himself to make sure he can be at his absolute best.

You’re right, he made some really meaningful runs, and so if he could get himself into the best shape he’s ever been in, that would give him the best chance. It’s a very competitive running back room, but looking at the work Chris has done over the last three months or so, it’s been significant.

The right side of the offensive line:

Yeah, I know that with Sam [Cosmi], he’s hitting all the benchmarks, but when does that get there? I don’t know.

We’re not going to miss one step with him.

What I do know is that I love the competition that we have on the offensive line right now at guards and centers, and who’s playing that right tackle, and how we are working through the guys.

So, it’ll take some work as we’re going through into training camp, but those are the types of challenges you want as a coach. It’s not, ‘Who in the hell is going to play over here?’ It’s more like, ‘This is going to be an absolute battle to see where it goes.’

So, that’s most of the times been my experience, where the competition of one another really pushes us forward and the whole group gets better.

If today was the first time the team went eleven-on-eleven:

No, we’ve done some more, yeah.

The balance of eleven-on-eleven versus other drills:

Yeah, so we do a training camp ramp up.

OTA times are small, so, we did an OTA ramp up.

The first day of our OTA’s we did only seven on seven, and then, the next OTA, it was in one period of eight plays and then some more.

So, we kind of ramped up the team part of it where we could: ‘Hey, work on the skills, work on the skills, then put it all together.’

That’s the challenging part. I think we still have a lot of work to do as an NFL and teams to what’s the best way for the offseason to go in terms of practicing. Our number one job for all 32 teams is make everybody safe as we’re going through it.

I feel the same way [about] when we get to camp — our job is to get them to the season safely and it’s this awesome tough tug of war between balancing what’s needed and how to do it safely.

By the way, here’s some people that are here as [undrafted] free agents to go take their shot, and [other players are] trying to tell them, ‘Hey man, really take it easy here.’

[They answer]: ‘Hey, you know, the hell with that. Like, this is my shot.’

And so, you can imagine how difficult that is in training camp or an offseason — different than in season [when it’s a] smaller team, roster, game situation.

The competitive nature is what we want here. That’s really what the central theme of the program is. And so, my constant battle is keeping it safe, knowing the scoreboard’s not on here. This is not a collision, this is not a diving for a play.

And that’s the hardest lesson — it’s not hard for the veterans. It’s the hardest for the young players really trying to prove themselves: ‘l belong. I want to show you that.’ And if any of us were in that spot, we’d have a similar mindset as well. So that’s the trick and the balance of it all.

Jayden Daniels’ comfort level:

I’ve always felt he had real control of things.

We work at the line of scrimmage a lot, and he’s really comfortable in that. He was always somebody that really was on his details.

What I guess we’re seeing now is just the accuracy, the footwork — more of his body mechanics that he wanted to emphasize. I see that coming through in his play. I see the speed that he’s out on the edge with. So, those are the things that during the offseason time that you can really push.

We had one where he had a keeper yesterday and turned it up the sideline for 30 or 40 yards, and he was one of the fastest players on the field on that play. Those are the ones that [you think]: ‘Okay, that’s a person being aggressive to go take their shot.’

And then I would say the individual time with new players, [although] he did some of that last year, honestly.

When Noah [Brown] came [last season], I can remember [Jayden] staying after and working with him, but seeing him put in the work with different people who are new to him and to the organization — I think that like speaks of the leadership. It’s not anything that I asked him to do, but he knew that, for that person and him to be in sync, there had to be some unseen work together. And so, those would be a few of the things.

The advice Norton and Welker provided to the team:

For Ken, he said you don’t know when your time is going to come. He said, ‘For me it was the big year was year five.’ He ended up winning his first Super Bowl in Dallas. But all the work that he went into it with, he remembered training with a former teammate who was a DB. He’d had to run with him and then I brought him in the weight room, so it was this balance of absolutely going for it from a training spot. So, when he got to training camp, he was really ready to put it forth.

Wes talked about winning time moments. He said, ‘This is why you train this hard, so when these plays come you’ve literally put yourself in this work because it is going to hurt.’ It should in terms of like going it.

Ken [also] spoke about pushing — [finding out] what your limit is and taking yourself there. And he said, ‘No trainer does that. It’s you finding how far you can go training and pushing.’

And so, they were just talking about the 40 days and what it means to them. Everybody has their own way and what works best for them, but at the end of it, it was like you really gotta put out, that’s the message. You can’t expect really cool things to happen and not go for it.

Managing expectations for the team:

I think that’s good because it knows we’re in the right space to do that — where we have a chance to go do the things that are really, really important for us. So, at the start of the offseason, it was really just about what kind of skills we could get. And so, we try to just live our professional lives in these segments and so this is what we wanted to get accomplished during this time.

Over the next little in this break, it’s more for coaches (and all of you, I hope too) to recharge to get ready.

But for the players, this is another space that they go to, to really see so that, when we get back to training camp, I’ll have some clear goals for us — packages, identity, play style — things that you couldn’t do during this time, the padded practices we’re talking about the contact.

So, there’s specific parts of that where the training camp piece, I’d say that might be the most important time for a lineman compared to an offseason program. Where you’re working your skills but you’re not pushing against another giant human. Those are specific things that you can only accomplish during that time. So, we just try to segment it and not think too far down. So okay: what can I get done over this next short block? And if we stay in those pockets, I think that leads to not wondering way down, but just knowing I got a choice to make today and I gotta go for it and then another one to come.

It is a choice and say like, ‘l really gotta go.’ That’s why so many times, teammates working out together is so much easier. [They say to one another]: ‘Hey, come on man, we’re going.’ Especially the days when you’re like: ‘Ah, maybe I’ll chill.’ ‘No you’re not, we’re going at this time.’ And you go, so those are fun.

His plans for the break:

Yeah, I need to recharge too.

As coaches, our times together are pretty intense. We’re looking at this, then the draft and then into the offseason. I think I told you earlier, the offseason is a really busy time for the coaches from the teaching standpoint. We push ourselves to see if we could elevate to help the players elevate. I think it’s wrong to ask them to get better if we stay the same — I think that would shortchange them. So, if we could get better, we would allow them to get better.

And so, I look forward to those spaces in between and try to max out and charge up. Then, when I do come back, everybody gets all the energy I have, because usually by the end of each of the processes, the batteries in the red — [in the] season and offseason —so yeah, those times in between are important for me.

All of the pieces coming together in year two:

[Last year, we were] trying to figure out the unique things that the player has and how would we feature them in the program and how would we use them. That takes some process to go through.

What I’ve loved about seeing the team now is just this connection that they have together. That’s a really big deal for us, and I love that the guys who’ve been in the program for one year are helping the ones that are entering into it. It’s clear because of the vision of what we think certain players can do.

And now, our job as coaches is to try to put them into those spaces where they can really excel, and try to find the right scheme for that. How do we train them for that specific skill or set? If we can do that really, really well, then I think then when you’re called upon to do that specific thing, you should really nail that.

So, it’s not every player at wide receiver doing the same exact route tree. And Wes was a great example of that. He ran option routes as good as anybody in the world. He was so hard to cover at four or five yards outside leverage inside, inside. So, he was [good] at that thing and he became excellent at it compared to another player who might be, ‘Hey, I’m a down the field route runner.’

Finding that thing that makes you so unique, that takes some time. It takes some imagination, it takes a little bit, with the new players they may not even sure what that can be yet. But we’re saying to a free agent, tall corner: ‘Hey man, you can play down on the line. You may have not done that in college, but we definitely think you can do that.’ So, then they have to gain the confidence to do it.

I want them to fail successfully sometimes, [for a player to have the mindset]: I’m going to try this technique and it may not work. [or], okay, I liked it.

I can remember that we had a conversation with a corner the other day. He was like, ‘l got it.’ You could feel that moment when you talk to somebody and you know that the light just clicked. I love that feeling when you know it and the eyes go like, ‘l got that. I know how to do that, I can do that.’

That’s part of being an NFL rookie, ‘l belong, I know I can do this.’ You need those moments to show that you can do some things. Otherwise, the trip out’s pretty quick because you don’t have the belief in yourself to say, ‘l can make this, I can make it happen.’ Because then you won’t really go for it. ‘l don’t know, 1 1 m not sure. Maybe I shouldn’t go against him, I could look bad.’ You got to go put it out there, even knowing it may not work out.

I think that can be hard, where you always want success and just want it to go exactly right. And then all of a sudden, you’re starting to try to be perfect and then all of a sudden you’re playing slower because you’re not going. And so, there’s a fine balance of being aggressive and making some mistakes. Okay, I gotta tweak it and like being too perfect, too careful.

Which of the new offseason acquisitions have impressed him:

Yeah, a number of them, honestly.

Deebo I think has been very impressive to me for maybe a different reason than I [had expected].

He’s such a difficult person to tackle that you spend so much time [thinking], ‘How are you going to tackle this person?’ Somewhere along the way, I’ve forgotten how fast he is.

And so, sometimes when you’re playing against the receiver you say, ‘Man, you better either get him at the line or you better be on top of him.’ With him so many times there was so many run after catch plays that we had a tackling plan and how would you go about it?

And then, I can remember one time, he just ran by somebody down the field on a deep ball and I was like, ‘Yeah, I forgot about that’. So, it didn’t surprise me, but it was maybe that I missed talking about it because it was easily [forgotten that] he’s one of the fastest players on the team.

Luke McCaffrey’s offseason:

I think going into year one with Luke, there was never a question how hard he was going; He’s like a golden retriever with a tennis ball; you throw it, he went and pick it up and he’s running back and he tail’s wagging and you’d throw it again and he goes. And he couldn’t go hard enough. He was so committed to being a competitor that his limit of how he can go physically — it’s way out there. He is very tough-minded.

What I saw this year was the detail and footwork of route running and it was so evident of the work that he put in during his time away from here. So, to see that come to life, I didn’t really need to see what the competitor was. I already knew this guy is an absolute dog. So, then to see the technique and the footwork to go with it, yeah, that made me really smile. Because if the competitor’s right and you can match the skill part to it, man, you really have something. And if you’ve got good skill, but the competitor’s not right, it’s really hard to be exceptional because when it gets really hard, that’s when you need the absolute dog the most.

There are some plays in the NFL that are really hard — [not] seven on seven and throwing against zone and routes on air. There’s, a lot of people in America can do that. It gets hard when somebody’s pressing you man-to-man and you break them off and win and after a catch. Those are the things that I’ve seen from him this offseason as a really polished receiver.

Was I surprised that he did it? No, because I knew he’s a person if I go back to the competitor, he’s going to find a way or make a way. And he found a way to get those things just right, because he was fairly new at the position from being in college, transferring, even playing quarterback there and moving to receiver.

So, Adam’s vision was there earlier that he saw the Senior Bowl, the competitor. Then I got to see that to say, ‘Okay, I see it too.’ And then I knew spending time with [Wide Receivers Coach] Bobby [Engram], that would take place to go there. And so, it was cool to see him coming into year two as a really polished route runner.

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Laremy Tunsil

Josh Conerly Jr:

Washington’s offensive line:

Jayden Daniels: