Detroit Lions head coach Jim Caldwell met with the media after Friday’s training camp practice – the first of camp in full pads. Here is a look at what he had to say, as provided by the Detroit Lions.
Opening statement: “Just wanted to talk a little about practice today. It was the first day in pads. First day in pads, typically you want guys to get accustomed to carrying those pads and playing low with the pads, as well. There were a lot of good things and some things obviously that we’re going to need some improvement on. Like I told them, we don’t have to play tomorrow, so we’ve got time to correct those problems and issues that we have. But we had a lot of good things happen out there today.”
On the competition at slot wide receiver: “I think anytime that you have a number of guys that can play a position and play it well, it bodes well for your team. You know that you’re going to have a good, quality starter and then obviously you’re going to have some depth, as well. We’ve got a number of guys that are out there battling and playing pretty well, coming along and taking some of the young guys.“
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On WR Corey Fuller: “He’s been making some plays. I think you can see out here that he’s been catching the ball well. Often times, that’s what maturity does for you. He’s been in the league for a short period of time and he’s gotten better than he was last year. We anticipate that he will continue to improve.”
On C Travis Swanson’s transition to guard: “One of the things in particular that this good work does for us (is that) in pads it gives the chance to face some pretty good defensive linemen across from him. So, he gets tested every single snap, but he’s shown the ability, just in terms of understanding, of being able to do both. He has a real good understanding of the inside techniques to utilize. Obviously, he hasn’t arrived yet, but I think he’s working at it. He studies awfully hard, just in terms of the material we’ve given him but you can tell he’s got a natural bit of leadership. He’s a natural leader in there. The guys listen to him. You can hear his voice above the rest of the group particularly, when he’s barking out signals and things of that nature, in terms of blockings schemes. I think it’s going to help if you play center and you know everything that is going on around you, you can play guard.”
On the competition between the kickers: “It’s a good one right now, Giorgio (Tavecchio) kicked well, Nate (Freese) kicked well today. It’s a good one and guys are punting the ball well. So anytime you have good competition I think it’s going to make your team better.”
On the first team offense vs. first team defense drill: “You know we don’t try to put a label on that today, that’s not really the goal or aim. We try to be as proficient as we can, but make them play in different situations. That one we gave them one timeout with 1:30 to go, down by four, so they needed a touchdown to win, which is a tough scenario, but nevertheless, I think the more we do it the better we will get at it. We try to put them in the toughest situation possible. That length of the field to go, you have to play well to move the ball. You don’t have to play perfectly, but you have to play well. Dan (Orlovsky) was able to get the ball down the field a little bit. I think the next time you see it you will see a little bit better of a job on both sides.”
With the First Pick
On what stood out to him during the first day of full pads: “There are a number of things when you first get them in pads the first time around. You want to see them play low with pad level, but yet be able to stay off the ground. We don’t want a bunch of guys falling over one another’s legs and things of that nature. I think they were able to stay up, were able to get some pretty good pops out there and I think we got some pretty good work done. We will probably do a little bit more the next time we’re in pads in terms of inside run. But we tried to incorporate it all in what we call our special categories period, where we could get a little bit of run and pass, but predominantly run. I think the guys are certainly benefited from that action.”
On when the team will practice in pads next: “It varies. We’re going to have shoulder pads on again tomorrow, but full pads will be sometime next week. Often times we have to see the health of the team and where that stands and make adjustments accordingly.”
On if he tries to get the kickers more simulated reps: “We typically do quite a bit in our kicking game anyway because we know we value it. It’s extremely important to us. So, you can see we have a number of different scenarios that we’ve gone through here with the kickers. We’ll continue to do so. Not just necessarily because they’re youthful, but that does have something to do with it as well. We’re going to try to kick them as much as we can.”
On what has stood out to him about CB Mohammed Seisay: “He is one of those guys that has natural pop. Certainly he has toughness, he has length and he’s one of those guys who shows up rather quickly. As soon as we put the shoulder pads on, he started to show up a little bit more than he did in shorts. Often times, that’s when you find out. That’s why you have to wait until you get into pads because some guys, once they get the pads on, they end up looking like they play faster. Certainly because they can add some physicality to it and I think he’s one of those. He’s doing a nice job.”
On how G Larry Warford has performed thus far: “He’s tough, agile and a good leader. He’s doing a nice job. A real nice job so far.”
On what Warford can do to improve upon a solid rookie campaign: “I don’t think there’s any question that he’s going to get better because there’s not too many guys that have gotten the amount of playing time he’s gotten that don’t get better. He’ll continue to get better. Not only that, but he has the attitude to do so. He’s not one of those guys that will rest on his laurels and thinks he’s arrived after one year. He understands that in this league, you’ve got to do it consistently. Not only day in and day out, but week in and week out. I think he’s of that mindset.”