OTA’S

TODD HALEY: “Good afternoon everybody. We had the first of our OTA’s today and we are trying through this period to integrate some football as rookies and veterans are together for the first time. At the same time, we’re still going to continue lifting and conditioning. This is still the time of year we’re still trying to get the team into physical shape as it needs to be.

“We had 83 guys here which is excellent considering the OTA’s are voluntary. We had nice weather and we all got some sun.”

Q: Mike Vrabel and Brian Waters weren’t here.

HALEY: “As I said earlier, I’m not going to talk about who’s here and who’s not here. You guys are out there and you have a good view and you can figure most of that out. Again, this is all voluntary and 83 guys were here, so let’s try and focus on those that are here and working hard.”

Q: You clearly wanted everybody here and at what point does that become a problem when they’re not here?

HALEY: “Yes, we’d like everybody here but those that weren’t here were not a surprise to any of us. So, I feel comfortable where we’re at with those guys.”

Q: As far as from a talent standpoint, did you like what you saw with the rookies and veterans together?

HALEY: “Yes, a couple of us were standing their commenting that the big guys on the front line are starting to look like a group now. Whether they can get it done is another story, but I thought today was a good start and it looked like guys had an idea of what was going on. It was the first day and the young guys just got in last night and they’re clearly behind in some of the things. But some of them did some good work to come in this week and be ready to go.”

Q: I’m not trying to beat a dead horse but even though participation is voluntary it is important isn’t it? Can you elaborate on that or does it speak for itself?

HALEY: “No doubt about it. I don’t think you can say it speaks for itself. But it is a voluntary deal and we have a mandatory mini-camp that’s coming up here in two weeks and at that point I expect to see everybody but our one college guy who is not allowed to be here. At that point we’ll have a better idea of where we’re at.”

Q: Is it a big day for the young guys seeing that this is the first time they’ve seen the veterans and been around them?

HALEY: “No doubt. They’re all of a sudden standing in a room with some guys they’ve seen or heard about or watched on TV. I think that’s the reason you have the rookies by themselves (on a separate orientation weekend) without that added pressure. They get that under their belt and at least know what’s going on and how to get around the building and where everything’s at.

“I was down there working out this morning when everybody was coming into the weight room to start and you could see some guys had some big eyes with the veterans around.”

Q: Did you think that your number one pick may have had some pressure today being around the veterans?

HALEY: “I’m hoping that he handles it well because those were some of things we liked about him: his personality and demeanor, not only his playing ability. But you’re right. He’s here and he’s going to be under more scrutiny than most of the other guys all the time. That’s just something he’s going to have to deal with and that’s something you have to take into consideration when you pick somebody with a high pick. You believe you did the work on the guy to believe he’ll come in and handle it well.”

Q: How much class work are you doing now?

HALEY: “We’re about an hour and 15 minutes. One group lifts; one group meets and then they switch. We try to make it pretty fast-paced and, like I said, stressing that we’re still trying to get stronger, not getting into that maintenance mode, if there ever is that mode.”

Q: How important is it that you begin to set a tone and tempo for what you want from a football standpoint?

HALEY: “Very important and it’s really the first thing I said to them before each of the periods started. I said this is a non-contact deal and a lot of this is going to be learning and training how to practice efficiently and fast, as I talked about before. Now we have the numbers and can come out and practice fast and I thought the tempo was a little closer – still not there today. That’s one of the big items as we go through what we’re trying to get accomplished.”

Q: How do you feel about your offensive line without seeing them with pads on?

HALEY: “Well, I think I’m feeling a little better about them. We’ve added some guys that know what we expect and are really into the football aspect of it. That’s pretty obvious to me considering that they’ve been here and working hard and getting themselves ready. They’re losing weight and I think they’re getting into a little better condition, so I feel like all those things considered without pads and where we’re at now, I like where we’re at.”

Q: What does Goff bring to you that you may not have had before?

HALEY: “Mike’s another one of those guys. As everybody we’ve brought in here, we’re looking for a certain type of character along with the ability to play. He’s been with a good team that’s had some success. He knows what winning is about and how to prepare to win. That’s what I was touching on: you watch a guy like Mike come in every day. He’s in here every day in the early group ready to work. I think there are some guys watching him and learning from him. That’s one of the big things that Mike brings along with his ability.”

Q: Is it more comfortable to see Matt Cassel work with receivers in this setting?

HALEY: “Yeah, that’s really what you’re getting out of these sessions without contact. They’re learning the offense and they’re learning about each other out on the football field. They’ve been learning about each other in the weight room and running but now they’ve got a chance to learn about each other on the football field and develop some chemistry there. That’s a big part of what’s going on this time of year.”

Q: How’s Brodie Croyle’s recovery from his injury?

HALEY: “Brodie’s working hard and trying to get himself in a position to compete right now. His timetable is a little different from some of the other guys.”

Q: How’s Glenn Dorsey?

HALEY: “He’s alright. He’s got a little issue right now that we’ve been working on. He’s been working to get himself ready. But he should be going before too long. I think he made it through today pretty good and that’s what we were looking for.”

Q: How are the guys doing that have been moved around or shifted from other positions they used to play? Are they catching up?

HALEY: “Again, it’s very early. Are you talking about guys who have changed position?”

Q: Yeah. Have they adjusted?

HALEY: “It’s still early. They don’t have a lot under their belt and that’s a tough transition. But I think it’s pretty positive for those guys who have switched or we’ve moved.”