Here’s what Falcons coach Dan Quinn had to say after practice on Wednesday:
Opening statement:
“It was a big day for us. We did some situations in the middle field again. At the end, we finished with the portion with a move the field spot. Different guys, different spots, how do we feature them? For the players, it’s the struggle. That’s where you have to go and battle for it. We remind them that we get it on every day against one another to get each other ready. That’s what we saw from our group today. It was good to see. We’re still battling for it at right guard. We haven’t made a decision on that one. It is a decision we will wait to make for a few weeks so you don’t have to ask every day and feel uncomfortable about that with new stories. I’ll let you know when I have an update in that way. Any further questions about the practice and the team, I’ll be glad to open it up to you guys now.”
On Justin Hardy’s style of play and development in camp:
“Justin Hardy is a very versatile player and we’ve put him at different spots at X and Z, inside and slot, and he covers on kicks. I forgot to hit from the injury standpoint that it was good to have Julio Jones back in. We had him for some team reps today, but Hardy is someone our team really counts on. He makes the tough catches in traffic. He’s really got aggressive hands.”
On Jalen Collins playing with the second team in the secondary:
“Yeah, that came up yesterday regarding Collins. He is working with the second group. Right now, our first group is Robert Alford and Brian Poole inside at nickel and on the other side is Desmond Trufant. At times, it might feel like Collins is in the second or third group. That’s where he is on the depth chart right now. I know it came out yesterday that he was working with the third group. Sometimes it may seem like that with how it works out, but those are the first three and then we’re working him in behind that group.”
On Damontae Kazee getting dinged up today:
“He did. He was able to come back and finish practice. It looked like he rolled his ankle. He’s such a tough guy. We’re trying to teach him to say, ‘Nope, they’re going no huddle, you need to get in or get out’. It was a good learning lesson for him, but he’s doing well. He came back in and finished practice today.”
On Andre Roberts not being dressed out for practice today:
“He is a tough guy. We’re hopeful that we’ll possibly get into some stuff tomorrow. He really wanted to go today and from a training standpoint they wanted to do some rehab with him. He moved and did some running. We’re hopeful he’ll be back in the next day or two. He’s pushing it. He’s probably had his best two days with the team over the last couple days. I know he’s anxious to get back out there as well.”
On Julio Jones being back in action today:
“He was and that was good to see. We knew he was moving back closer. In the first four-day block, it was going to be all individual and getting his conditioning right. Now, we’re going back to return to play so to speak. We have four or five guys including Takkarist McKinley under the same guidelines where we can move those guys further along as we’re going. It was great to have him back out there today.”
On whether he has made a decision about playing Julio Jones during the preseason:
“No. There have been no decisions about that yet. ”
On what made him want Derrick Coleman at camp this year:
“I knew the man Coleman is after being on the team with him. He really had value in special teams as well. I knew he could handle the fullback job. There’s one other job he can handle. He’s played the single back. He can double as a halfback and he’s done that. He has carries if you need him to. It was the role on special teams, the role as a fullback, and the versatility to carry. He’s an outstanding teammate. It’s the effort and the strain he plays with. I thought that’s why he would fit in so well with the offense.”
On whether he addressed off-the-field issues with Derrick Coleman:
“We did before we signed him.”
On Brian Hill fitting in with the offense and complimenting the backfield:
“He has. He’s really battled for it. He’s a bigger man and I think those types of backs show up a little more in the padded practices so to speak. You feel his size and you feel his strength. Now, we’re trying to work him in on special teams as well and see what role he can have. He’ll get a significant amount of work in the preseason along with Terron Ward as we’re going through. We’re really trying to see where this battle goes as far as the third halfback plays out.”
On Alex Gray putting in extra work and handling the transition from rugby to football:
“Somebody brought that up to me yesterday regarding his time. I think there is a correlation from rugby with the contact that can take place. At the tight end position, Gray has done a good job. You can tell he is bright with very few mental busts. With the strain part and physicality, coming from his rugby background, he likes that. You can imagine how difficult that would be to come into this environment with how fast we go. He hasn’t been overwhelmed during his first week on the job and has stayed out there grinding for it. We have to give Aden Durde a lot of credit on that from NFL International who also saw something in Gray to say this guy is a really tough competitor. We’re really fortunate we have him here.”
On what he has seen from Dontari Poe and Grady Jarrett so far:
“I like the connection that these two have. They are both nose tackles with the same technique and energy that they feed off of one another. I’ve been pleased with Poe’s improvement. From OTA’s, he gotten better from minicamp to now. We’re really pushing for it again. The next month is an important one because he’s playing in a different style, but he’s got all the traits to do it.”
On whether his favorite part of camp occurs in the trenches:
“The big guys, I definitely have a spot in my heart for them. I know the strain they go after one another on every single play, especially the interior players, the guards, the centers, and the defensive tackles. There’s no fair dodging. It’s every play dealing with the guy across from you. That strain that they go against one another is where the respect comes from. They compete against one another day after day after day. Some days you’re going to win that fight and some days I’m going to on specific plays. It’s honestly about going to the next one to go battle for it again. It’s a fun group. It’s highly competitive for sure. Each time people are trying to go for it to see if they can get a little better. They share ideas back and forth as well.”
