Detroit Lions 2026 Minicamp Day 1 Recap

The fourth week of offseason workouts for the 2026 Detroit Lions has begun with mandatory minicamp, which will be the last two official team workouts before training camp starts in late July. Let's recap the most important bits of news that came out of the three-day camp from the press events, photos, interviews and boots on the ground from the Lions beat reporters.

Photo - Jeff Nguyen Detroit Lions

Injury Updates

Dan Campbell gave some updates in his media press event on injuries and said it was basically the usual suspects not participating today.

• The list of those not practicing

  • Avonte Maddox was missing for Personal reasons per Campbell, but that was the only unaccounted player after a bunch of guys missed last Thursday.

• QB Teddy Bridgewater

  • Teddy was back at practice after an unexplained absence last Thursday.

• TE Sam LaPorta and Tyler Conklin

  • As Campbell mentioned, LaPorta was out there for walkthroughs but came out during the 7-on-7 and 11-on-11 situational drills.

  • Tyler Conklin's was still absent with the unknown injury he left OTAs with last week.

• OG Ben Bartch

  • Per Dan Campbell, OL Ben Bartch was still out with his foot injury suffered last year but reiterated he is expected to be ready for training camp.

• CBs Terrion Arnold, Ennis Rakestraw and Rock Ya-Sin

  • All three were back out there this week after missing parts of last week's OTAs due to the sickness going through the defensive back room.

• S Brian Branch and Kerby Joseph

  • Campbell mentioned no new injuries, so more of the same for both Branch and Kerby.

Week 3 OTA Observations form the Lions Media

• General Observations

  • Practice had 7-on-7 work, special teams punt drills and ended with situational 11-on-11

  • You get an INT, you get an INT, you get an INT: Apparently the defense was in an INT mode, as it picked off three passes and should have had two more. Rolder started it with an INT off Bridgewater in 7-on-7s that was reported as a likely pick-six if it had been game conditions. Altmyer was the next victim, as picked off by rookie Aamiaris Brown the throw after a beautiful TD pass to Tom Kennedy, Finally, Chuck Clark completed the tri-fecta getting a pick off Goff in situational 11-on-11 near the end of practice. Khalil Dorsey apparently dropped a perfectly read wheel route and Loren Strickland jumped an out route to Greg Dortch that should have been Teddy's INT #2 on the day.

  • The defense was getting their hands on plenty of other balls as well, with it reported that LBs Joe Bachie, Trevor Nowaske and Jack Capbell all were able to tip passes and Reed, Whiteside, and Rucker also knocking down throws.

  • Tim Twentyman observed that Jameson Williams had a really good practice, making some nice catches in 7-on-7. Also mentioned how much his route running has improved over the last year and is starting to look like a complete receiver heading into year 5.

  • People helping people: Brock Wright and Derrick Barnes were working on the side on Wright's Pass Blocking footwork with Barnes showing him counter moves and how he might attack him based on his feet and hand placement.

  • Anthony Lucas the Pest and instigator: Prior to practice Hank Fraley when answering about Skipper moving into coaching jokingly said he told Skip No fighting coaches or players. About an hour later, the first observed practice fight (during walkthroughs) took place between OT Devin Coachrane and UDFA Edge Anthony Lucas, which Skipper helped break up. It was reported that Lucas continued to harass the OL with Manu and Sorsdal his targets. Something to keep an eye on to see if it continues, because counterintuitive actions will get a player tossed off the field and cut.

  • Situational Drill: The previously mentioned situational 11-on-11 had the Offense with the ball down 1 pt starting on their own 8-yard line with :45 seconds and 2 timeouts.

    • The 1st team offense completed a 17-yard pass to St Brown, called TO and on the next play Goff was picked off by Chuck Clark.

    • The second team offense led by Teddy Bridgewater sucked a bit less, completing an 8-yard pass to Kitselman, nearly had a pass picked off by Loren Strickland, an incomplete ball to Lovett and then a Nowaske blitz on 4th down forced an errant throw down the sideline to Kitselman.

• Offensive Line

  • 1st OL: Sewell-Mahogany-Mays-Ratledge-Borom/B Miller

    • Borom started the walkthrough, but B Miller was first out there at RT for the 11-on-11s

  • 2nd OL: Manu-Frazier-Scruggs-M Miller-Cochran

    • Reports are that Juice Scruggs continues to be the primary backup C, but is repping all three IOL spots

• WRs

  • 1st Team: St Brwon, TeSlaa-Williams

• TE

  • Wright, Kitselman, Horton and Gordon continued to spill the reps

  • Kitselman was reported as being on the starters field today with Wright and getting 1st tea reps.

  • Oliver mentioned that Jackson Meeks is basically a TE now.

• DL

  • 1st Unit: Hutch-McNeil-Williams-Rotation DE

    • More reports that Tyler Lacy is the big DE in the Five-man front.

    • In the end of game scenario, the DL was Hutch-McNeil-Wingo-Payton Turner.

  • 2nd Unit: Rotation DE-Wingo-Onwuzurike-Rotation DE

• LBs

  • 1st Tean - Campbell, Barnes and Rodriguez have been the starters in all sessions

    • Starting Nickel LBs are Campbell and Barnes

  • 2nd Team - Damone Clark and Joe Bachie appear to be next two up, with Rookie Jimmy Rolder working his way on the 2nd group

  • 3rd team - Rolder, Hunter and Nowaske

• Safety

  • 1st Team - Christian Izien (In for Kerby) and Chuck Clark (In for Brian Branch) continue to get 1st team reps

  • 2nd team - Loren Strickland (Maddox out) and Thomas Harper

  • 3rd team - No Reports (Hunter and Jackson)

• Nickel

  • Roger McCreary

• Outside CBs

  • 1st Team - DJ Reed with Rock Ya-Sin and Ennis Rakestraw rotating with a bit of Khalil Dorsey with Arnold still limited

  • 2nd Team - Nick Whiteside and Arnold/Dorsey/Rakestraw

  • 3rd Team - McCreary

Rookies

• Blake Miller - It was observed that although he was splitting reps and 2nd RT out there after Borom for the 1st offense, he was the 1st tackle on the field in the 11-on-11 situational drills to end practice. Hank Fraley mentioned he likes where he is at. Said he is willing, hungry, quiet and listens to whoever's coaching him.

• Derrick Moore - Was mentioned that he was getting plenty of playing time on the starers field, but LTyler Lacy was repping ahead of him and DJ Wonnum..

• Jimmy Rolder - Rolder made what was described as a likely pick-six of Teddy Bridgewayer in 7-on-7 drills and had excellent coverage on TE Gordon later, but the ball was still caught.

• Keith Abney II - No mentions or appearing in photos

• Kendric Law - Done for season with a torn ACL suffered win OTA Week2 practices, spotted on field.

• Skyler Gill-Howard - No mentions or appearing in photos.

• Tyre West - No mention or sighting of him in any offseason session.

• UDFAs

  • Luke Altmyer - Altmyer had a bad pick one play after what was described as a "gorgeous" TD throw to Tom Kennedy. Ups and downs are expected out of any rookie, let alone a QB, so good to see he is out there and making both plays and mistakes when it doesn't count. QB Caoch Mark Brunell had praise and mentioned he's a smart kid. who has played a lot of football and is like a big sponge.

  • Miles Kitselman - It was reported that he received some run with the 1st team offense and caught a pass form Jared Goff that was punched out late by the defender.

  • Anthony Lucas - Second week in a row that Lucas was mentioned in media reports, but not so much ina positive light today. He got into a fight with OT Devin Cochrane and continued to chirp at both Gio Manu and Colby Sorsdal later in practice.

  • Aamiaris Brown - Brown was the CB that victimized Altmyer for an INT on a throw across the middle to RB Small, jumping the route, although reports are he may have gotten their early.

  • De'Shjawn Rucker - Rucker was one of the active Lions defenders that got his hands on a pass intended for WR Dominic Lovett.

Lions Rookies QB Luke Altmyer and CB Aamaris Brown Photos - Jeff Nguyen Detroit Lions

Media Scrums with Players

The Lions had media availability with RB Isiah Pacheco, WR Isaac TeSlaa and S Chuck Clark after the first practice of minicamp.

Pacheco, TeSlaa and Clark media session on minicamp Day 1

Isiah Pacheco

• A couple of weeks ago when I was sleeping with you, you said that uh Char was the running back told you needing what we talking about how we picking up things and how take the constructive criticism. Just how has everything been going so far and what has been teaching, you know? “Yes. Uh first and foremost, pinpointing the details um in the work and coming out here and executing at a high level, but most importantly, not making the same mistake twice. um coming out and being better from that mistake. Um most importantly, coach is pinpoint details at a high level and he loves the game. You could tell by his coaching and he's determined.”

• You're obviously coming from a franchise with pretty high pedigree. I don't necessarily want you to compare, but like what's different? What's the same about Detroit compared to Kansas City? “Um I know that for sure. Uh they got their own culture here and um I love being a part of it so far since I got here and it's the grit. Um you got guys willing to compete um every single time we get a chance and most importantly you got guys showing up to not mandatory uh minicamp and now it's mandatory and you got guys here but we've all been here during the whole time and that's what I love to see. Um we're getting older.”

• Have you learned anything new about the game of football since you got here? “Oh shoot. Definitely, bro. You is you can learn something new every day with this game and when you uh pinpointing these details, you know that you guaranteed to learn something.”

• How things been going under uh defensing obviously first year offensive coordinator here, first year here. How are you? “Uh it's been very flexible. Um you know, coach is open always, offense is always open. Uh we got questions, he's willing to answer those. and most importantly getting us out there and having us adjust to his offensive scheme and playing fast is what he needs from us.”

• Like the Native uh Dan mentioned that Jahmyr is the bell cow. I mean, how do you adjust to that? I mean, as the role and just handling, you know, knowing that, you know, you're going to be playing obviously behind him in that sense and there's no “Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely. Um just be ready at all times. uh this game here, you know, it takes a lot of us to win the game and not just one person, everybody on the team, the staff, the coaches, nutritionists, everybody plays a part and I'm pretty sure we got that culture here to uh get things cooking.”

• How challenging is it as a running back? Cuz you know, a lot's been made of the fact that like you have to have a certain amount of touches to kind of get a feel for the runner like they're coming or like maybe not have as many, you know, touches, I guess, to get going. I mean, how do how do you kind of adjust to that? “Uh, you adjust to that during the times now and during camp, during those moments where you get those mental reps where you're not in the game. Uh, so when you're in the game, you get to play that you might may not had in camp, but then you get it, you got to execute at a higher level cuz not that you know you're not paying attention, you're not doing what you're supposed to be doing. So, most importantly, no matter who's in, if you're playing that, if you're if someone's in, you got to watch them, get that mental rep. So, when you're up and then ready to go, you got to compete at a high level.”

• How beneficial has it had to shard in that sense because he he played that role in Dallas in particular behind Demarco Murray. I mean Yes. Um how much does he talk to you about his own experience? “Uh he talks to us a lot about his own experience, how much of the guys that he played with was a dog and how hard they worked just in the room, their environment. Um it was all about working, pushing each other. Um who's going to get better today and let's win the day.”

• People talk about championship pedigree and how it carries with player when they go to a different organization. How can that translate as you step into a new team? “I've been a leader uh since league. Uh just having that that mentality um being unsatisfied. Um willing to get better, learning every day daily. Uh most importantly building that relationship with the guys in the room so we could uh figure out each other game. He might have seen something different than I on the sideline uh versus the other backs and you know compete play off each other's game and build.”

• Continue to get reps at punt returner and kick returner. Uh do you have a lot of experience that in your past and what do you think you bring to that position? “Um in high school for sure I had kick return reps uh during when I was over there at the Chiefs rookie year. Most importantly willing to get on the field at all cost. Just doing whatever I could do to help the team win and being better uh version of myself.”

• Is there a specific ask you to do? I mean, more so maybe you were likely, you know, to focus on, I guess, you know, uh, like a specific pass protection, you know, catching up, anything like that? “No, just being willing to know everything. You got to know everything within the game. Um, you see Job playing all different uh, areas over the field. Who knows if I'm going to be in those situations as well. So, I got to have those notes in my details. When he's talking to Jah, he's talking to me as well, and it goes for the rest of the guys in the room. Um, just being flexible, uh, accountable, and hungry.”

• What's the offseason look like? What are you trying to accomplish? “Get fast, physical, and continue to build off of this camp. Don't want to lose the work we put in this whole month. Uh, come back in shape. Ready to roll.”

Isaac TeSlaa

• What how exactly did you how do you work out from this? How do you work out of some of those things? What are the things you do? “Uh, yeah. I mean, a bunch of things. You got uh things you can do in the weight room. Uh, and there's things you can do like jump rope, cone drills, like there's you can do with field work. Um, are you asking like specifically or just in general? Yeah, just in general. Yeah, just in general those things.”

• Where did you do some of that work this off season? “Uh, some of it I was back home on the west side and then I was down in Fort Myers at X3 uh training with Jordan Llewellyn for month and a half. Had you done that pre-draft with him, too? Correct. Yeah. Yeah, I really liked it there. Just what's the comfort level here too? You know, you always talk to guys going into year two and they just seem calmer, more relaxed, everything comes a little bit easier. Is that kind of what you're feeling right now? Yeah, absolutely. I mean, I've told people like coming into your sophomore year like compared to a rookie is just so much more I wouldn't say relaxing because you I don't think in football you can ever really relax like you got to have an edge about you. But just being so much more comfortable uh not only like just being familiar with like the guys and I'm not like trying to learn names and stuff, but also with the offense. We have a lot of translate from last year. Uh, so it's just a lot more comfortable and I feel like I'm able to play a little bit faster, doing a lot less thinking this year.”

• Do you think this team is in a place where you can focus on more of those small things and not trying to learn everything all over? “Oh, absolutely. And I think that's the biggest thing from last year to this year is just like I wouldn't call it simple, but it's just like I feel like we're trying to nail the basics before we start adding on stuff. Uh, I felt like there were times last year where we were just kind of like throwing a lot and we had to kind of sift through it and figure it out. I feel like this year we've done a good job like mastering the basic things, especially during this OTAA period where we can really, you know, harp down on those things and then just building off those as we go throughout the weeks and then into training camp.”

• Isaac, we saw your role expand last year once Dan took over and play ball in more snaps per game or a few more targets per game. Did you feel that over the past nine games? What kind of platform does that provide for you to turn on your team? “Yeah. Uh I definitely felt a little bit of a shift. I don't know if it was play calling or is it just comfortability overall with um you know being a new guy and just trying to uh learn my place on the offense. So I don't know exactly what the shift like what caused the shift, but yeah, I definitely feel like uh as an offense we got a lot of weapons and I'm excited to see how we utilize them in this next season.”

• We're starting year two, but Dan said in his press conference earlier that you approach the game like a veteran. to hear that from your head coach heading into your second season. I mean, does that tell you you're doing things the right way? “Yeah, absolutely. But I don't want to like hang my head on that and say, "Oh, I've done a good job." You know, pat myself in the back and keep going. But I always want to have an edge about me and kind of have that mentality of being a rookie where it's like, you know, you got to do everything the right way in order for the coaches to even notice you. And once they notice you, then you got to keep building on those things and making plays and they'll be comfortable with you. So, just keep building on those things and just become more and more reliable on the field.”

• You mentioned the skill level. was the excitement level of just playing in this offense in a bigger role, you know, and there's so many different ball type guys. I mean, they can't cover everybody. There's going to be some one-on-one situations there. How excited are you to potentially get a little bit more of that in your team? “Yeah, I mean, it's exciting for me. It's exciting for the whole offense just cuz I mean, with the weapons that we have, I don't know how you're going to guard all of our skill positions. Uh I feel like if you want to try to double a guy, then you're just leaving another extremely skilled person wide open. So, I think it's a great opportunity uh for the whole offense. Uh they got to worry about a lot of guys and we're excited to punish them on the field.”

• Earlier, earlier I asked Dan about the Knicks title win, seeing them in their drought, you know, the Lions fan, the drought of not being able to win the Super Bowl. You've been a being Michigander, long time Lions fan. Did you take a moment watching them win the title like kind of sit like the like what it'll be like to win the title with the Lions? “So, I'm going to be completely honest with you. I didn't watch a single game in the NBA finals. I just I could never get into it. I don't know why. I've just always been an NFL guy. Like I watched one NBA game this year and it was the one that I went to and it was actually the P the Pistons beat the Knicks by like 40. So when people like I I don't even know who's in the finals. I'm like who's in the finals? They're like oh it's the Knicks. I was like we killed the Knicks. Like why are the Knicks in the finals? And then they won it. But if I had been watching Yeah. I mean it's always surreal to see you know the champions and it would be nice and it's obviously our goal to be able to hoist that and have a parade down uh what's the name of Woodward. Yeah. So, I think that's all our that's all our goal this year.”

• Do you have any goals personally suggested this year entering year two? Do you care to share any of them? “Uh, I'll keep them personal, but yeah, I do have some goals for sure.”

• How I guess how much loftier are those goals that compared to say last year? “Yeah, I mean last year I came in not really knowing what to expect. I don't know how much playing time I was going to get. I was really just working on earning my role. So, this year now that I feel like I've got a little more comfortable and yeah, I I have some pretty lofty goals for myself, I'd say.

• How much different do you feel I guess now versus say at this point last year obviously coming in you know brand new to you know the NFL experience and having more. “Yeah I think like I kind of talked about earlier it's just comfortability: “Um obviously I don't have the game master by any means on year two. Like I'm still a year two player. Uh still coming in, still have a lot of things to learn, but like you said, I do have a year under my belt so I can, you know, learn from the things I did last year and build on the things that I did well and just continue to grow and grow with this offense.”

  
  

Chuck Clark

• What's your first impressions of being out here with the guys and with everybody here now? “Uh it's been fun being out here. We playing football. I think my element I feel like it's all our element, you know, just being out here to be able to get on the grass and do what we do and compete. It's been fun.”

• You're uh feeling some important shoes while they're sitting out. Do you feel any pressure on that coming in from the outside? “Never been pressure. It's to me it's football, you know. Um regardless of how I go, who's up, who's down, you just always got to be ready. And I think for me, any player in this league, you know, that's what you train for, for the moments, for your opportunity to come whenever opportunity comes. I mean, I just look at how I got my start in this league. You know, I wasn't a starter, but in a matter of a week, you know, I became a starter, a green dot player, captain of a defense. So, it's like you got to be ready for whatever in this league.”

• I notice like between reps, you're talking a lot with the other guys. How's the communication flow going off the new guys? “It's been good. I think that's just how you learn how to be able to play and play fast. And uh it just comes with natural communication like off the field as well as on the field. You know, this past weekend we kind of got together watching film and it was actually some things that happened today. It just naturally came with our conversation over having over the weekend.

• What those conversations are like? “Just talking about certain routes that we've seen and how another person see it, you know what I'm saying? And then it's actually good, you know, hearing another person's perspective and how he watches film as opposed to how you watch film and seeing it from a different person who like who plays a different position. So just certain routes and just talking about who he's going to jump and whatnot”

• Lead to one of the interceptions today? “Uh no, it won't interception, but it was actually a couple breakups. Yep. Mhm.”

• You guys picked off a lot of passes, got your hands on a lot of passes today. That's definitely a point of emphasis. Is that something that you've been around playing in the basket or where else you've been? “Definitely. You get the ball back to the offense so they can go put up points and we do it again. That's the name of the game. Defense go get the ball.”

• Shep talked about how quickly you've stepped up as the leader for the guys in this room with your experience. Just is that something that you are mindful of? Do you step in trying to, you know, make sure that you avoid the turn? “I just think it's my personality. Uh being a safety on defense is similar to being a quarterback on offense, you know. You got to learn the whole defense. So I think that was my main thing when I first got here early OTAA is phase one just trying to learn everything, the plays, the calls, talking to myself in the room. So then when I'm on the field and I'm saying it, it's just the same thing that I did like when I was a rookie. Getting comfortable saying the calls. So when you out there on the field and you are talking and making your checks and what not, you just feel comfortable doing it. You don't am I saying the right thing or not?

• Whenever you described you as kind of I guess mature like very steady. Is that something you've always been or I mean growing into that better? “Yeah, they used to joke with me uh like my first two, three years, you know, they just saying I had a older personality, older soul. And I mean, it's cool with me, you know. I feel like it slowed the game down for me, you know. My first my first year definitely I'm, you know, like a rookie out there, you know, just all over the place. But then just start slowing the game down once you start getting that experience and whatnot and it just naturally carry over.”

• Does anyone ever tell you that like before football like as a kid were you? “No. No. No. Yeah. No, I ain't never really heard that like before football.”

• We've heard a lot about your personality, but what about like your actual physical game do you think you're bringing to this defense? “Mhm. I mean, I like to be physical, physical player. You know, I do whatever the team asks, honestly. I mean, I'm going to give my everything. I'm going sacrifice my body, lay my body on the line. I mean, I think that's any player in this league, but that's just how I feel going into any game. If it's truly something that's bothering me, I'm going to try to go play regardless. The only thing that I feel like I mean, you look at my career history like that kept me off the field was something that I really couldn't play through, you know? But I'm going to sacrifice my body and lay on the line.”

• Well, I mean, given that you play with that physical style, how what's the key to having a long NFL career, 80 games, that's kind of phenomenal given how physically you play? “I mean, it's a little grace and favor, but I mean, you also got to do the work, take care of your body as well. I mean, the weight room is a big part of that, you know? I firmly believe in that. Like, you got to got to, but you also got to, you know, stay on top of the body work, recovery, stretching, everything. Just it's not one specific thing. It's just a accumulation of things, honestly.”

• And with that meeting that the DBs had, who kind of got that together? Where was it? “Mhm. Uh it was DJ. He just, you know, reached out to the group message. It's like, "Yo, I'm having film, little food at the house. Y'all come over, you know." And I've seen that at different places I've been before, and I I respected it, you know, like, "Yeah, let's go over here and let's watch some film." So, it was a good time.”

Dan Campbell Media Session

Lions head Coach Dan Campbell met with the media on Tuesday for a quick Q&A session prior to Minicamp Day 1.

Dan Campbell Minicamp Day 1 Press Conference

• Opening Statement: Campbell hopped on stage and said, "Questions? We're good. We got two days here, two days".

• Was asked about injuries this week: Campbell said the norms, nobody new. Maddox won't be out there, personal but nothing big. Some guys will walk through but won't be doing full speed like LaPorta. Said they got some guys back that were sick like Rock (Ya-Sin) and Rakestraw.

• Follow up on if LaPorta will be ready by the start of camp: Campbell simply said "We like where he is going

• and he is trending in the right way."

• Was asked about competition in OTAs and now for minicamp and if he liked where that is going: Campbell said it's been good, you see where it will be heading once they get to camp and it live and real bullets are flying. Bartch (OL) will be ready for training camp and the D-Line, Safeties, said they are excited.

• Campbell was asked about what he does to prevent burnout: Campbell joked that he just burns the hashes and comes back up. Said, it's a good question. Tries to be mindful of that and be smart during the offseason and every year he is more Intune with that and himself, but job is consuming and he isn't perfect, but he loves it and most coaches love it. Addictive and consuming but will have a chance to step away for a minute and be ready to go.

• Asked about the annual trip to take the coaches up north: Said it is, they went to Petoskey, weather was beautiful, people will unbelievable, chance to relax and coaches are like brothers and are around each other m0ore than their own wives. Especially when season starts and to bring their wives, be together and relax and enjoy the company. Said the area was beautiful and just great people, and they had a great time. Follow up about if everyone went, Cmapbell joked only if they did a great job in spring, left a few at home. But joking aside said everyone made it.

• Asked about being able to galvanize the city of Detroit like the Knicks NBA title has: Said it was a loaded question, the fact that took that many years of going through the ups and downs, to finally get there with a loyal fan base. Was pretty special to watch what they did, whether you like it or not, you respect it and the way they go there and will it to make it happen, is what the Lions are striving for. It's about winning a championship and that's why people are in the business. That's what drives you.

• What are expectation for LG with Mahogany and whether it is open: Said it open, Mahogany is very much in it, but they know he has ability with games started in past. Said there is a reason why they brought in Bartch, why Frazier is in there, try Manu a bit, gonna let it go and see what happens. Expects that the competition will be good for everybody. Sid Mahogany is in the running and they expect him to compete and play some of his best football.

• On Dan Jackson: Campbell said he is a pretty smart guy, he was around after the injury, in building quite a bit and is a smart guy. Live reps will be new to him, but ins and out and knowing what to do, fells like he has done that. It's all about getting reps, a full training camp and preseason games and see what he can do with it.

• Where does Sorsdal stand in Year 4: Campbell said he is the same, with the rest of those guys. Lions' eyes are open, every year they acquire completion, invest in someone, they expect that they will take a spot, but not a guarantee. Coming off injury and doing a good job out there, albeit not in pads, but said they will see. So many guys in the NFL that get overlooked and they get their confidence and start making play and earn a role and a spot. Has an Opportunity.

• Asked about TeSlaa seeming to get more involved after LaPorta went down and next step fo him: Campbell said they wanted to get him more involved, along with Jamo and ST and Gibbs in the pass game. Felt like they did some of those things, when they go back and look, they left a lot of meat on the bone and wished he would have gotten more touches. Said it wasn't because of him, his growth took off, he got better every week and became a guy they had a lot of trust in him by end of year. Was steady and consistent for a young guy, doesn't get frazzled, he has been not flashy in OTAs, but consistent and where they expected him to be at this time in year 2 and exactly where they want him. Feels like a veteran right now and meant that as a compliment.

• Asked about Vaki and want him to be part of the offense: Campbell said they would love to, he has ability and when you watch him, he pound-for-pound is one if their best athletes. You watch him and he is explosive. RB is a bit raw, and he hasn't played RB that much mainly due to injury. Liosn eyes are open, if he can do protections, and a few things out of backfield, and proves that, then Lions want to move football and win, he can do that, they will be putting him on the field.

• Campbell asked what the difference is between an assistant and associate head coach: Scottie is the Associate head coach and is Jim is the O'Neil is Assistant Head Coach. Said Sciottie is the guy who he puts a lot on him but was very fortunate to have Jim stay with them, he will also pick up some responsibilities.

Lions Assistant Coaches Media Scrum

Assistant Minicamp Day 1 Press Conference

Scottie Montgomery - Associate Had Coach/Wide Receiver Coach

• Opening Statement: “Yep. Another year, man. Just good to be back. Um, a lot of the same people in the building, a lot of new people in the building, but overall, it's just been a great all season. We've been able to, you know, we're a lot further along. We feel like we've been in a lot of years. Uh, just the transition uh on offense and then defensively having new people in. Um, bringing some guys with new roles. It's it's been a really really good offseason so far, though. Uh we we probably put in more work this off seasonason on the grass and in the class than than we've been had the ability to over the last few years, but this is this has just been a great great offseason so far.”

• On no rookie minicamp and where that work is coming from: Yeah. “So I I think when when you think about just the repetition of what we're doing like it was a lot less learning I think for our guys this year. So the process of learning can kind of slow down the process of reps. Uh the process of learning takes a lot more time in the building of doing this. Now we're actually talking through the details of how the rep should look versus what the rep should be. Uh I I think all around uh whether it's in our in our front was the skilled guys, receiver, quarterbacks. I just think us being on a page a little bit earlier than we've been even in the past few years has been really good and JG and and you know and Saint and Penei uh then Hutch a lot of those guys have just really they it's just been a huge drive for those guys that are up top and our leaders and the people behind them have done a great job following so a lot more detail in the reps that we're getting.”

• On Jamo growth and change you see in him: “Mentality um you know we've really worked as hard this offseason even just even on the phone talking about the detail that it takes to go from being good to truly elite uh in our game. Uh and then the things from a mentality standpoint of uh the way that we go about we working like not even just uh the start of a drill, but also just the finish of everything that we do, his detail, his eyes, uh his catch points, his checkpoints, uh everything that we're doing now or we did March, April, man, it showed up. We we're really excited about where he is right now. This is this has definitely by far been his best off-season, his best, you know, chance to grow as a player since we've been here for uh a number of reasons, but he's done a good job.

• Same question about TeSlaa, message to him heading into this year: “Yeah, we we try to do a good job of coming out of the season talking about, you know, where we wanted to be. Short area quickness was something that we wanted to improve. Um, and that gives him the ability in those one-on-one situations to not just win with length, but to win with quickness and length. That gives, of course, JG just a even bigger window to throw the football. Uh, he's done a good job of going and getting, you know, the football since he's been here. And then now at the top of his breaks, they they're so much cleaner. He's so much stronger. Uh, last year, what I like to do is I like to watch uh where we were. Um, especially from an athleticism standpoint to where he is now. It's not even close. He had some knee uh soreness last year. Uh this year he came in was able to work on the things before and not after. So we look forward to him really really growing.”

• What will allow Gibbs success as a Bell Cow RB: “Man, uh just you know opportunities. I I think everybody knows what this kid is and we got to keep him healthy. Uh we we got to do a good job on the perimeter of keeping him healthy. We got to do a good job on the interior of keeping him healthy and and just playing through the echo of the whistle. The biggest thing about Jhyr, he's not down. You know, you think he's going down, he's not down. He's going to come out of the back of there. At the same time, if you don't finish the play, you know, late hits on backs, different things on backs, it can slow him down. So, our biggest detail in our room and up front is just making sure that we protect his opportunities. Uh, because we know he'll do he'll do the rest with the football.”

• What like about Greg Dortch so far: “Yeah, so fit first of all. Um, you know, he he can handle being a good player in the room with great players as well. Uh, I think that Saint does a great job of leading in the room. J Mo has really stepped into more of a leadership role uh rule or role in the room and Dorch has taken that and so that's that's the first thing you know fit right after that we come to the grass he has unique short area quickness as well he can catch it in traffic and come through some of those uh we're looking forward to seeing what he can do more when the shoulder pads come on of course right now it's a little bit difficult but to see all of the things that he can do but what he's been able to do he's been able to grasp a couple of different positions at the receiver position so that flexibility also gives us something that that that Leaf at one time could give you without even thinking about it. So, he's done a lot of great things so far. Can't wait to see him in the, you know, in a real training camp with the pads on. Really excited about where he is right now.”

• Impact of Jamo in the locker room: “Uh, I think more it's more so I I can't speak to the locker room. You know, coach is not, you know, I ain't going in there. Well, don't go in there. But in the classroom, the one thing that has really, you know, surprised a lot of us and made us feel better is uh his ability to be vocal and ask questions about the why, you know, why is his depth that, you know, the fifth time outside foot hit and this one is very similar. Well, it's the reason because the option route under has maybe been reduced a yard or two. Now that he understands all that is conceptual football and now that he gets the concept of it, he also understands how we go attack. So, if he's helping one of our young guys, uh, and we have a rap option, he understands now, listen, man, you can't get any higher than three yards on this, and this is why. So, that's what we're seeing in the room.”

• What can Law bring to team: “Man, Strong, fast, physical, uh, two position flexibility already, really came in with his head in the right place. Our guys, they they fell in love with him immediately because he does have the grit that it takes to play with us. um very disappointed and and frustrated for him uh because he physically was ready. His body was ready. He was his body, you know, coming from where he came from and and and from the SEC to to this was a is an easy transition physically for him. Really wanted to see how it worked out in training camp, but you know, I like where he is right now. He's working his butt off every day to make sure that when he comes back, uh we'll get a lot out of him. He's a good pick. Like him like him a lot.”

• Opportunities for others like Tom Kennedy or Dominic Lovett: “It's stacked it's a really stacked group uh and I think because of that that's going to let our you know our ones now even go to a higher level because now they are competing those guys that are competing for that second area when they get a chance to make a play if it's a big play the ones feel that so now the ones are going to go level. Uh TK, uh Dom Lovett, Malik, uh newcomers, Ced, Dortch, all these guys are in there now and it's just this huge competition to where the hardest part is I'm I'm trying to make sure that I'm getting everybody the same looks in different situations. So, the quality control behind their opportunities is probably what's most important. So, if I come out of uh this in training camp, I want to see a certain skill set of each one of these guys matched against each other, not necessarily just their best skill set versus someone else's uh skill set.”

• On where WRs can improve and if vertical passing game is an area to see more of: “Yeah, we Yeah, we definitely want to be able to marry what we do maybe just a little bit better. Uh you know, run game, pass game. You always want to do that when you come out of years. But where I felt like we could have got better is there's explosives out there in the run game. There's explosives in the pass game that either a lack of detail, uh, a not a connection that wasn't made throwing catchwise. Those are the things you you don't you don't get those fixed in the season, man. You got to have those things ready to go. And right now, I feel really good about where we are.”

• Value of adding Cedric Wilson to that room: “Huge. It was huge for us. At the time, you know, we thought he was still a good player. We didn't realize how quickly he could pick up the the playbook.Uh he's three position functional. Uh he he has a large catch radius. He understands our route game. He has a certain level of smoothness to him that those outside guys have to have, you know.”

• On the part of his game that showed the guy can play for Scottie: “Uh contact balance with the ball in his hands. Receivers, you know, especially young receivers, one of the easiest things it is to do for him is to get them on the ground. This was a guy, and there was a couple other guys in the draft that we really liked like that. He was a guy that could get his hands on the ball, make a play in space, but it wasn't all about making someone miss. We're going to need four to eight yards sometimes that we need to go through guys or get on edges of guys, and that's an elite skill because that's a chain mover.”

• Impact of reduced play-action passes: “Yeah, the reduction of the run action pass game has a lot to do with how efficient you are on first down as well, right? If you get behind on first down now, the efficiency of faking the ball like you're going to run it in the second and 17, second and 18, you can't have those. So the TFL's are what's probably most important for us adding to our running action game. we get our TFL fixed, the way that we block things on the perimeter, then our run action pass game will create more explosives down the field. Yeah.

Tashard Choice – Running Backs Coach

• On Gibbs approaching season as the main runner: “You know, that's that's been one of the biggest things of me and our conversation with Job once he finished the season last year was the fact that I wanted him to start faster at the beginning of the season. And so going into the off season, how he prepared his body, uh doing some MMA training, training out there in Cali, uh with Saint doing some different things so he can come back so he's looked the best he's looked so far in his pro career pro career. And so for him, the biggest thing was to make sure that he understands his responsibility. Um, his responsibility from the head coach cuz when the head coach tell you, uh, he's giving you the keys and you have the responsibility for everybody in the organization, every kid, every fan that's a Detroit Lions fan. So my onus is to put that on him and he has to handle that. He has to handle it well. So for him to be in the best shape that he can be in, uh, praying for no injuries at all, but the fact that he's smarter, he understands the offense. So I'm I'm excited for him. He has a big role to play and I and I'm I'm really I'm really to see what level he plays at right now.

• On the MMA training: “You know with training? Let me let let me say something. When you train in the offseason, you put your body through different things. So you can handle the rigor of the season like how hard the season really is. And so when you do MMA training, a lot of times most people don't understand boxing, when you punching is all about hand placement and hand eye coordination, balance, putting the weight on the balls of your feet, the same thing you do when you in pass protection, the same thing you do when you running and playing on the outside foot. Guys got to understand how those all sports all correlate to each other. That's why you should play all sports. And so when you do MMA training, your abs, your core, striking, power through the ground, all those things affect. So when he does that kicking, extending your legs, hamstring, your quads, all that stuff takes trainers. But the mental part of it is just the aspect of always having what I would say um putting yourself in a situation where you're training in April, but you see, you see January, you see February. That's the biggest thing. It's the mental aspect of it. You know what I mean? Making sure that you're training right now for a goal to get later on. And so that's why I try to tell the guys when they're training off season.”

• On relationship with Isiah Pacheco: “You know, for me, man, like as a as a former player, you you you hate it when a coach told you a good job and you knew that wasn't the right thing to do. When you go back and look at the tape for me to Z, I I always and it's hard for me most of the time because when I see guys play, I see what they do wrong. I see all the things that I want to get better at. And for him, he's very coachable. And so when you have a coachable player who has the experience, played on two Super Bowl teams, was a starter, and played a lot of a lot of meaningful minutes, for me is to get him to be the best he can and be the most efficient I can get him. And so every little thing that he does, his alignment, his tracks, his landmarks, his eyes, I'm on him by every single thing. And when you when you coach and you want guys and you want to be great, you want coaches to get on. You want them to tell you there's always ways to get better. And so for me to him, I always want to make sure I coach the person, the player, but I love the person. So my biggest thing is to get to know who Zay is. I call him Zay. I get I want to know who he is, what the things he's been through. And then once I go through that part, then I can coach him. I can say whatever I need to to say to him on his grass because he know at the end of the day, Coach Choice rock with me. He love me. But second of all, he going to make sure I'm trying to be the best I can be cuz he going to have to play big for us this year. And so for him to understand that, I think he he respects that, man. I got man like it's a all players I coach man I want them to feel the same way so I respect that from them. I'm going keep going.”

• On Pacheco’s response: “Uh quick and it's and it's day by day and that's the thing you want to see just each and every day somebody to continue to get better and that's one thing that I realized about Zay like I can coach him on something and you can see him come out on the field the next day and he's working at it and as a coach that's the biggest thing that you want especially in this this part of the year. So once we get to the fall, he has the confidence of everything in the offense cuz he's new to the system. And so having confidence in the offense so he can be ready to roll.”

• Vaki development at RB: “Vaki Yaki. I love Vaki. And Vaki is one of the the he's probably the best kid you can possibly get. A salt of the earth type of person, but I'm probably the one that cuss Vaki out the most. I'm sorry to say it. Mama got to forgive me. But the biggest thing for me to Vaki is is when you have a player with the talent level, he's explosive, he's fast, he's smart, he's physical, and so he's putty still. You know, he had a lot of injuries last year. Had to have a chance to really be hands-on with him so much. And he's a one of our best guys in the league and special teams. And so for him this off season, you can see the development. You can see the work ethic. I can get on Vaki all day. I'm going to probably get on him the most, but he never never complains, gets back on the field, does what he's supposed to do, and he works his tail off. And so when you got people like him that works hard, and then he wants to get better, that's the easy part for it's easy to be a coach when you have guys like that. So I got to continue to to to push his envelope. But for me, to him, man, it's just it's been remarkable to see him work through the injuries, get back this year, and really work at his craft. It's been good for him.”

• On mentality needed for backup RB role: “And you know, I guess that's that's that's that's huge what you asked. You know, as a when you when you preparing for NFL as a running back, you always got to prepare as a starter because you always know you want to play away. And so for me to for me to say was the simple fact like whenever you get your opportunities, you got to make the most of them. is very huge because it's plays in a it's plays in a game that are critical yards, critical pickups, critical catches that you have to make that we didn't make last year. And I got to do a better job with the guys on when we have games where we're not clicking all the way on offense that we make those plays to turn the game around. And so for me to him was to make the most of your opportunities, love every possession that you get, every carry that you get, every catch that you get. And the more you can do that, the more trust you get with, you know what I mean? The coaches are more important your teammates cuz JG got to he got to he got to respect you. He got to know that you know what you're doing. Pay need to know what you're doing. And so it's saint cuz we got guys that are leaders out here. And so everything that you do on the football field, it's all about having the guys around you feel comfortable with you being in there and then you making the plays and now you have your own swag and now you can go out there with confidence and play well. So that's my biggest thing to any back is always to make the most of your opportunity. Don't count the reps, make them quality. So when you do, you turn back and I look at the game and you got six carries for 60 yards, but then you got you five for five on blitz pickup. Hell, you didn't had a good day for me. That's winning football. That's what we need. You know what I'm saying? And so he know he understands his role. I try to tell the guys, you don't know. Role changes from week to week. You never know. But when you do get your make the most of that's all you can do as a football player.”

David Shaw – Pass Game Specialist

• On Mike Kafka being in the building: “Oh, it's been awesome. Uh I met Mike two years ago um at the accelerator program. Um both of us were there, met for the first time, hit it off and then come to find ourselves here. Uh he's been a great addition. Uh me, him and Drew have talked about a bunch of different things, both football and life and this profession and uh he's been a great addition to the staff.”

• On if they hit it off when first met: “Uh well, you're getting us back-to-back so you kind of see we've got a very similar demeanor. Um we both have various experiences but we also have a lot of crossover right and kind of a west coast style of offense me with John Guden him with Andy Reid. Um so there's a lot of things that we see very similarly.”

• On collaborating without stepping on Toes: “I I think I trust, you know, Dan's done a great job putting the staff together and he talked about at the end of the year um with all the staff changes, he's like, "Hey, it's it's his job to put the best staff together that he can put and it's on us to work together. Um so I don't worry about titles. We don't care about titles. Um Drew is running the offense. Whatever he needs from us, we're going to give it to him. Um we're all experienced play callers. We've all had experience being head coaches. Um, so it's whatever we need, that's what we do.”

• When you take a socket with the passing game, uh, after one year, I mean, what do you what do you think you did really well? What do you think of the things that you could really improve? “Well, I I I think offensive football in general, um, particular to answer your question about the passing game, you look at what's our offensive philosophy, you look at what our players do well, and you look at what we're go, what defenses we're going against, and that's our game plan. That's what we're going to do. We're going to continue to lead on Jared's talents. St. Brown Williams, we've got such a great group of guys and with LaPorta and Jahmyr Gibbs and a bunch of other cast of characters. We're just going to put those guys in position to make plays. Um the season win and loss didn't go well the way we wanted to last year. Um but you look at some of the things that we did. I think we did a lot of good things and now Drew's brought in some more thoughts and ideas and different ways to put those guys in position. Those guys are going to win the games for us. We got to put him in those positions.”

• Timeline. What would you ask quarterback coach early? When did you kind of get an impression of a player as maybe a coaching gene in them? And I guess how you seen his mind for the game grow? “Well, the short story is that um I was given the ability to pick uh you know, Gruden's like, "Hey, I'm coaching Rich Gannon. You know, you got to find a young guy. So, I did this long process of getting ready for the draft and I focused on guys that made plays on third down and in the fourth quarter and in the red zone. Um, those win games and Marcus and Drew Brees were the top two guys coming out of college that year. Drew in earlier and we took Marcus in the second round. Um, but spending that year with Marcus, he's got a great ability to just ingest things and make adjustments. Would you look for any quarterbacks anyway? But then over the next couple years, and I stayed in touch with them, I saw those guys. Um, uh, there was when I left the Raiders and you saw him make that transformation to not just understanding, but then be able to manipulate the offense. Um, that's when you can see a guy that, okay, this guy might be able to be a good coach. I always advise guys to get the hell out of coaching, do something else, some other profession that actually makes sense. Um, but if they've got that gene and they got they've got that itch and Marcus has that.”

• How did you, you know, how did you digest it? “Uh I've been in this profession for a long time and I grew up in this profession. Uh my dad used to say, you know, you look at pretty much most great coaches at some point in time they've gotten fired. Um that's just part of this business, part of this profession. Doesn't mean people are not did. Sometimes it's a situation. Um this is a tough situation. Um but we're all professionals. Um things happen. People have to make decisions and then we gather back up and we go back at it again. Um, I think a net positive has been a net positive for the Detroit Lions. It's been a net positive for John Morton. Um, but now it's about 26. It's about what we can do with the staff and the players that we have now and find a way to get that championship.”

• Well, last year you mentioned the lack of efficiency kind of being an issue with the offense. I mean, where do you feel like you guys I kind of diagnosed I guess you know the problems with that and where do you where do you think that goes from here? I guess. “Well, I think the most important thing is that, you know, um, Coach Campbell's been on that boat. Drew Ping is on that boat. Um, we had all the explosives, a bunch of explosives, but we weren't great sometimes on third down. We weren't great sometimes in the red zone. We weren't great sometimes answering a score. Um, Coach Campbell talks a lot about we have to win the game that presents itself. If it's a shootout, we got to win a shootout. If it's a defense struggle, we got to win the defensive struggle. Um, and when those things h when those when the game presents itself, whatever it takes to win that game, what we have to do, we got in some positions last year in the second half, we didn't run the ball efficiently. Um, we didn't convert on third downs and we end up losing by 10 points. We lose by a score. Um, so for us now, it's really about what it what it is to take to win those games. Um, so looking how efficient we can be, um, we can't have a lot of second longs and third and longs. That's hard to win football games. So the more efficient you are on first down and second down, the better you'll be on third down. The better you're on third down. The more often you get in the red zone, the better you're in the red zone, the more touchdowns you score, the more touchdown score, the more games you win. It's pretty it's pretty straightforward. It's pretty easy to see, but it goes all the way back to when we call a play. it's on all 11 guys to do their jobs and be efficient and make sure the wink had a positive play.

• You've been around some pretty special football players. Just to be around Jahmyr Gibbs and to see what he did last year, what's his ceiling? “Uh, I would hate to be the one to put a ceiling up there. Um, this guy, every time he touches it, um, he gets people out of their seats, coaches included, you know, guys up in the box, you hear it on their headset, you just start to hear, "Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god." Right. Um, so that's going back to Drew and our philosophy. We have to give him those opportunities to change the game. Um, it's about the number of touches, yes, but it's also the type of touches. You know, we talked a lot about after the season, early in the season, he caught a lot of balls, but he caught a lot of them with his back to the defense. It's hard for Jahmyr Gibbs to be what he's capable of. He needs to be facing the defense, catching the ball on the move, and you see that later in the season, we did some more of those things, getting him outside, etc. Um, but this guy's a weapon and we get him to give him every opportunity to change the game.”

• David Dan's mentioned a couple times that there's more problem solving happening now with both those sides of the ball than the rose maybe at this time last year with the offensive defense maybe being in one conflict in a good way. I don't know if you felt that manifest itself or happen either in film or out here on the field. “Yeah, so I I got to go back to Drew's approach um Drew Ping's approach which is how what do what do our guys do well? What defenses are we facing? and how do we how do we get ourselves in position to score points, right? So, um maybe trim down a little bit of things that we carry and be better at the things that we do well um so we can change formations, change personnel groupings, stay in a core, keep Jared Golf in his comfort zone, keep our offensive line in their comfort zone, um and go out there and just play great football. Um so there's really it really cutting down what we do and being better at it, I think is the answer to your question.”

• Um, I think you guys threw 16 fewer passes off play action than you did the previous year. I mean, how much did that affect the vertical passing game? I mean, and your ability to kind of access that. “So, when you really dive back into the film and watching how games go, that's a direct result of not being able to run the ball efficiently. When you don't run the ball efficiently, you end up being in second and long into being a drop back passing team. When you run the ball efficient, you're second and medium. Now, the play action pass really, really matters, right? It's hard to play action pass at second and 15. So, being better, which I got to give Hank Fraley a lot of credit. Hank really dove into his guys. We've got a great group of guys. We have to run the ball better. We have to run the ball more efficiently. We have to run the ball more uh this year in order to be the offense that we're capable of. Um because I'll say this, when we play action pass, I mean, can you find a better group of quarterbacks and receivers than we have to be great play action pass uh offense? I don't know if you can. Um, so being able to run the ball better, more efficiently, um, allows us to be more of a a an offense that can put defenses in conflict. Oh my gosh, we're second and five. We can do whatever we want.”

• I mean, how important in the NFL is play action though vertical, you know, passing it because, you know, obviously if the team sits back with two high safeties is kind of. “Yeah, it's the two high safeties. It's also the werewolves that are rushing the quarterback. We have to make them think there's something else that we can't. If you if you want to be a drop back passing team, you better have multiple Hall of Fame tackles and Hall of Fame guards, right? Because even the even defenses that have under 500, they still got two great pass rushers. So, we have to keep them in conflict. We have to be able to run the ball. Now, the play actions, the movements, all those things work together, the screen game. Um, but it all hinges on once again running the ball with efficiently with efficiency allows us to be the offense that we can be.

• “As a coach, have you guys have you sensed a renewed hunger or defy from Dan Campbell as a result of what happened last year? “Uh, I don't know about renewed. Um, I would say I don't even want to say refocused. I think it's really just going back to who he is as a coach, who he is as a person, who this team is, uh, being made in his image. And that's going back and being physical. That's going back and being simple and saying the toughest team is going to win football games. So, that's our mentality. That's what we're going for this year and I love the guys we have in our building.”

Mark Brunell – QB Coach

• Curious coming off the last season the offense kind of top five in every major category. What was your I guess point of emphasis for JR going into the offseason? What did you like that he did last year? “Uh you know, I thought he did really well last year. You know, we did have some production on offense, but we as far as the wins, that's where we were lacking. Of course, we just didn't quite have enough. But uh specific to Jared, I thought he did well and uh we fully full fully expect him to continue with that. He's a good player. He's one of the best in the league. He's having an excellent spring and uh what I love is not only his talent and his ability, but this is very important to him. And uh um I think I said this last year, Jared is in pursuit of a championship and uh and that's how he approaches every day, which is great. He's uh great to coach.”

• At this stage of his career, is there like any charge you have for him or things you want to see differently, improve? “Probably more of a consistent, you know, consistency. Um and uh and what I mean by that is just, you know, just doing what do what you've been doing for the last few years for us, you know, staying consistent, staying at the top of his game, which uh he will. Uh he works very hard. uh he's smart and uh has been in the system. He's but probably well he's very accurate and uh we expect him to play at a high level and uh and he will that's what he brings to the table every day and listen this is just OTAs this is minicamp and he approaches every day as if it was the regular season which we love we will go as far as he takes us and we're very fortunate to have a quarterback like him to have a person like him to have a leader like him in in this building.”

• Coach him through that frustration at a position where ultimately, he's going to feel like the record and all that stuff falls on his shoulders despite what you put on tape and on the stat sheet. “Are you talking about last year? Yeah. How do you help him work through that? I'm sure >> uh it was it was last year. It really was and we've moved past that and uh we've done all the self-scout. We've looked at all the plays from last year, things we could have done better, situations that we are in that we could have been better all across the board, but um at some point you have to move on. And I think really uh this spring, this whole this whole team, offense and defense, special teams, uh we really are looking forward um I know it's brought up about last year, but honestly, I think this team and the coaches, all of us have we're thinking about this upcoming season and we have learned from our mistakes last year and now it's it's certainly time to go forward and uh and get ready for the Saints.”

• What was your reaction when Teddy Bridgewater was brought back in? “Oh, I was excited and I still am excited. Um, listen, I can't say enough about him to have his presence in just the quarterback room and on the field. Uh, he's been at it a long time and uh, which I remind him of all the time. I talk to him about how old he is, but uh, he's uh, he's here because we trust him. And if given the opportunity uh if he's in a position where he has to play for us, we trust him. You know, he's there is no sit there are no situations that he has not seen and he's he has always produced for us and uh he knows this system. Uh he works hard and he's very instinctive and does a very good job of getting us into the right plays, anticipating situations and uh we're just we're very fortunate to have him.”

• Know it's early, but what has been the addition of Mike to the coaching room? What has that done? “Kafka, he's awesome and uh he obviously was a player. Um he's been a quarterback coach, a coordinator, a head coach. Uh he's seen it all and his expertise, his experience. He's a great guy to work with. Always has some really good ideas and he's been great for me. It's just him having played the position and coached the position. I've learned a lot from Mike Kafka and I'm so glad he's here.”

• Does it feel like he takes a little bit of load off your shoulders? “Um I don't know about that. I he's just a great resource for me and uh um but uh and I'm I'm grateful that he's here. I'm really grateful that uh um Coach Campbell saw the same thing and brought him here and he's going to be huge for us.”

• Does it feel unique that there's so many kind of coaches in that passing game room right now? “Unique. Um I we probably have a we got a ton of quarterbacks up there. I I can tell you that. So we got that we have that co that position covered, guys. We got that position covered. Um, but uh, yeah, I mean, just the coaching staff has been great and a lot of experience. We've got some really good guys. They're all great to work with. And, uh, for some of us, we've been around here since Coach Campbell got here and so, um, yeah, we work very well together. And we have, and you know what, and we have really good players, too. That that obviously helps as well.”

• One more on Goff. Just And I apologize. I walked in a little bit late, but we've seen in the NFL like these quarterbacks when they hit 30s, you know, they're getting better and better. I don't know if that's a newer thing, but what is it about Jared that you can see that, you know, trend continue? “Well, I could just speak to the season he had last year and who he's been for us the last, you know, five years and just his performance and his production this spring. I mean, he hasn't missed a beat. Uh his accuracy, getting us into the right play, understanding our offense. I He's been excellent with the situational football stuff uh the end of game, the end of half. Um and uh hasn't missed a beat. We got to keep him on his feet and uh we're going to do some good things. We're very fortunate to have him and he's playing at a very high level.”

• Mark, in two years, what is has Tui brought to your to room? “I think I said it. You know, he played the position. He's coached for a long time and uh we work very well together and uh he's a good coach and uh and plus, you know, he's a husky, too, which I'm a big fan of. And so we have a lot of uh um a lot of things in common, but uh I've been friends with Tui for a long time. And the fact that we were able to get him a couple years ago has been huge for me. I just love working with the guy. And he is always Tui is always, hey, what can I do? What else can I do every day, every day, hey, what else can I do? Is there anything you need me to get for the quarterbacks? And uh um and I love that. He's just he wants to be a part of this. He is a part of this and he's helping us quite a bit.”

• Mark's his play, he had a great career, played with some great talent. But, you know, when you coach these coaching these guys, you take a step back and just wonder what it been like under center with that offense. “Um, yes, sure. We have some really good players and uh um and I I'll say this, you know, the uh and Jared's very fortunate because he has some he's surrounded by some guys that could play at a high level and um and that's the name of the game and he would be the first one uh to tell you that those guys deserve a lot of credit and you know, you're only as good as those guys that that are in your supporting cast and he is uh he's very fortunate as have been a lot of you quarterbacks. Um, I think they'd tell you the same thing. You know, receivers, tight ends, offensive line, running backs, you know, when you have a good group of guys, you got a chance to play at a high level.”

• Your early impression on Altmyer and what you've seen from the other. “He's doing he's doing a good job. Uh, he's a rookie and uh um and I've been uh very pleased with clearly the time that he has put into this. He's a smart kid. He's played a lot of football. um he's like a big sponge, you know, you can't give him enough information and we've seen that translate out on the field. So, uh yeah, I'm excited about him. It's been a it's been good working with him.”

• Do you see coaching in Jared's future? “That's a question for Jared. Um yeah, that's a Jared question.”

• Of all those quarterbacks in the coaching room now, who's still got the best arm? “Me. You? No doubt about it. But no, that's a great question. We talk about it quite we talk about it quite a bit but um it's not me. I mean it's really it's really not me. But my money's on uh well shoot between CFKA and Bruce and Tui. >> Who else is in there that that used to throw the football around a little bit? Yeah, they uh there's a few there's a few good ones. Um yeah, all kinds of good former quarterbacks up there.”

Hank Fraley – Run Game Coordinator/OL Coach

• So, what’s it been to have a skipper on staff and just kind of see his transition coach. “You know, the first role I gave to Skip was like no fighting coaches and no fighting players. So, um it it's been fun. It's u it's a great transition. Um you know, it takes you back to when, you know, probably any of us that played from say the professional level right into coaching and didn't really take any time off and got into coaching. Um, so it's been a good experience having it and it's been uh I don't want to take any words out of his mouth. It's definitely eye opening of, you know, how much goes involved in it, how much time's involved, you know. So, I think that's more eye opener once you're really your feet are in it. It's like, whoa. So, but he's been great. It's been a great energy. the guys uh in that room that have been around with them. You know, he's always been like coach Skip to those guys anyway, you know, after practice running drills and doing things and taking young guys under him. And so, it's just been a smooth transition for him.”

• He's okay with those rules? “It's still early, you know, we haven't got the training camp, so it's we're wearing underwear running around right now. Wait till training camp happens. just a reminder, hey, if a fight goes on in the field, just stand back here. You don't have to don't get involved.”

• So, a lot has been made about Sewell to LT, you know, to make sure the transition, but how are you helping them early on? Just mentally, physically, emotionally, switching over positions when you have that much success. “I told him I told him it's like riding a bike, right? Like, so you can go years without riding a bike um mentally and then you get on a bike, you just got to find your balance, your timing a little bit, how you pedal, how you do all that. And so, um, you know, it's been a long time since he's done, I guess, you know, consistently. I mean, his rookie year, we didn't think he was playing right tackle or left tackle, and then something happened to Deck, and he had to jump over there without any practice again, and it took a little bit, but uh, he's transitioned uh, pretty smoothly. I mean, he's a everybody knows he's a very good athlete. He takes pride in his work. Um, and it's just ironing it out uh on some of that stuff, the timing of this punch and cuz you build habits and that's really what this is about right now for us in the spring uh for us line and really anybody in here is you're trying to build those habits. You got to break old habits, you know, and a lot of its footwork, balance, weight distribution. Um, you're used to in a right-handed stance, now you're getting on the left uh constantly. But uh it's building those habits now, breaking old ones, building new ones, and being comfortable there.

• “I think the line took a lot of lot of arrows last year. I don't know, you know, as you sort of, you know, step back after the season and looked at it, some of it deserved, how much of it was deserved, and what do you think happened? “I mean, this this game's about wins and losses. Um, I think everything really starts on both sides of the ball, normally inside the trenches normally. I mean, uh, if we're not doing our job up to our standards, and our standards are pretty high in our room. Um, and I think, you know, the standards are very high. Coach Campbell sets it for the whole team, but our room in particular is very high. And if we're not living up to those standards ourselves, then we're not going to have the year we want to have. And really the thing I'm harping on these guys is it's not necessarily always the strongest, the fastest, the most talented, but you got to be consistent. And I think um if you just look back over last year, we weren't as consistent as we need to be in certain things, certain times. Um, and we got to clean that up and be more detailed on that. And we're never going to be perfect in this game. Even those years past where we got to where we haven't been where we want to be anyway as a whole team, um, holding that trophy up and stuff like that, but it's the consistency and that's how you play offensive line to be a good offensive lineman. It's how consistent can you be play in and play out because we're going to get beat, you know? Um, do we learn from what our mistakes? And um you know I think as a teacher and even as a player can you can you learn from your mistakes and try not to make those mistakes over and over. Uh cuz majority of time when we do get beat you know Aiden's going to beat us out here. Aiden's going to beat Penei. Aiden's going to beat our rookie. All right. How did he beat us? Was it because of our footwork? Was it our hands? Or did he just freaking run us over? That doesn't happen as often. It's normally going to be something technically he set it up. He worked a spin move off of something. We dropped our leverage. we lost our leverage. So I think when we when I when I watch it as a coach it's more hey our consistency lacked a little bit you know so but to be play OL throughout anywhere from little leagues to at this level it's how consistent are you because we can help you with that we can help you with other things uh to get better on or you know give you help here and there but can you be consistent.”

• I know D said he wants to kind of get back to the physical starts the ball efficiently as a coach, how do you help these guys reestablish that? “I Well, there's a lot that goes into play with it. You know, when you break it all down, but to do to do it, I always say you got to earn the right to run the ball. Um, to get the coordinator to call the next run and establish it, it takes a lot O line from everything to scheme to everybody else. It's just the mindset. I think that's where you got to go with it. It's that mindset. It's kind of when you there's not too many sports where you get to walk through on this field and you get to bully people and that's really what it is. Offensive lineman the mentality is being a bully. Um and but it's in between those white lines and then we can be as nice as we want once we get off that field. So it all starts with our mindset, our demeanor and there you know there's things we control more is like you know attitude and effort is something you always can control. So with that that in mind, your mindset going out, man, we're here to bully people, run or pass. And we want to push people around and not be pushed. So it kind of starts really the mindset when they first came back this spring and then it's going to carry over to training camp and hopefully into the season and holding each other accountable, myself included, and demanding it, you know. So uh I think I like where we're headed, the direction we're headed. The room's great and uh you know, we'll see where we're at. You know, we're still in just underwear here. So, it's like how good are we going to be? We we'll see. There's a lot to be you know, there's a lot of unknown still, but I love the direction we're headed in.”

• Did it feel like you guys lost that identity at times? “I mean, I was at the end of the year, you're just frustrated because you're watching everybody else play and uh there's sometimes you're sitting back and it's even as a player back in the day, you're like, man, I know we're better in this. I know we should be playing, but what was it? Why did it hold us back? Was it, you know, for myself as a coach, and I think all coaches should do this, it's a reflection. The first thing you should look at is the mirror yourself. Like, what indie am I running? Am I getting them prepared for the game? Am I doing the right things? Can I get them better prepared? Am I giving them the right notes? Am I showing them the right film? Am I giving them too much? You know, sometimes there's too much info and now you're thinking instead of just playing. So, you're trying to process everything. So, uh I think it all started I think all of us in this building, I think we all took a se seat back. You know, for me, I closed my door and just, you know, I knew we once we were moving on, it's like what's going on? But I still took my process. What can I do better first? And then how do I get those guys to respond better? How do I get Penei to play even better than where he's at? Because he his ceiling's not even touched yet, you know? So, uh, and from the top player to the bottom player, am I reaching them all? Am I doing all that? Cuz you're going to have to rely on we're not just going to have five guys out there all year. If we could, it'd be great. But, um, we got to be ready for the ninth and 10th guy in. So, Oh, there's a lot. Don't worry. It's there. So, hopefully we'll see. The reflection will be out there and the work they're putting in.”

• Impressions of Blake Miller?. “Yeah, I like where he's at. You know, it's not perfect. He's making some mistakes here and there, but the impression I got though, he's coachable and when he does make a mistake, is it a mental mistake or it's hard to say physical mistake cuz we're not physically going. But, um, he's able to adjust and clean that up. And that's what you want to see with anybody. Like, if you tweak something, do they revert back to what you just tweaked or do they move forward and go forward and work on the next thing? cuz you know it was old thing that there's only like one thing you should really focus on at a time in a day and you 1% better and that's how you get better and so it's like is it my first step off the ball? Is it my left hand's going to be better and that day of that focus you know once you accomplish that you can move to the next thing and that's where I like where he's at. He's willing. He's hungry. He's quiet. He's listens um from myself from whoever's coaching him. He's taking it all in. And um I think you know we have two young rookies and they're doing well for right now.”

• Where do you see Manu at this point in his career? And uh I mean how receptive has he been with the you know kind of in intermixing in guard against or guard? “Uh you know we're trying to play the best five once we get there. Uh and then when I always tell these guys if you're not the guy that's starting you know in your mind you should always want to be that starter but when you're not you got to be able to flex to different positions. Gio's been, you know, uh, great with that. We've, we've messed with it a little bit during the season, even as rookie year a little bit, throw him in at guard, you know, at times, uh, especially when there's injuries, uh, that come up, you know, guys have to go play. It's kind of how, you know, Skip was around and it's like ideally if you would just look at Skip, you're not going to be like, hey, you're putting him at guard right away. But when you need people to play it and you know what he's gonna go do, and we talked earlier about consistency and you already know how he's, it's easy to plug and play somebody like that. So, I think Gio is learning. It's a whole new um take years past. When we had Big V, he was really a tackle and he got slid in the guard. It took him a while to passing games off of a guy to my right and left. And when you slide Gio in there, it's the same way. You just got to learn and get a good feel. And he's been great with it. Um and he's been good in the classroom. And I think year three for him is a big year for him this year. And uh training camp's going to be a big year for him. So, we'll see where it goes. But the competition's great in the room. And I think all the guys are pushing each other.”

• Mays is pretty new to the center position. Just what did you see on this film that makes growing? “Uh yeah, I remember him uh one at senior ball had him a little bit um you know talking to him and then uh two just watching his tape at Carolina um there you're always growing as a player and he's willing to grow and he's learning. Um and then you know we put a lot on our centers here so he's really adapted. I mean, he put a lot of time and effort in it when we first got him, but the what you got to see off his film is he was playing physical. He could was stout at the point, kept the depth of the pocket, stuff like that. And you know, Carolina had a very good year and he was one of the reasons why. And uh we like this tape and I'm glad we got him and he's been great for the room and uh he comes ready to work every day and he's always just give me give me something new, coach. And I'm pressing him and you know, it's great. We've got Goff here. He's been in our system for a long time, you know, with Drew and all this stuff. So, he's able to help. He's a veteran out there. But, uh, Cade's really taken the leadership role. Uh, centers have a lot. Doesn't matter what center has to run in there and go, they have a lot on their plate and Kad's, you know, taking it personal and it means something to him. So, um, I'm excited where he's going to be at the start of the year.

• What's the next step for Tate and what ways we don't see him on the year? “You know, it's uh he's got, you know, like you said, I have my stuff to work on. You know, I always say every week you're writing a chapter in your book. Uh his season one's done. He's in season two. So, it's cleaning up some of those things that got him, you know, bit him a little bit and how do you uh perfect it and how do you counter certain moves in the pass rush move? You know, how what were D-Tackles doing to you setting you up? Um and then uh you know, limit that some of the pre- snap penalties, you know, stuff like that. I'm not calling him out at all. We all need to do that as a whole line. We had too many of them last year, you know, for us. Um, that's an advantage us, so we got to be better there. So, I love where Tate's at. I I think he finished pretty strong in the year, there's little things that he just needs to detail that as you go in this league and play, you get better and better and you start seeing the bigger picture. I think that's the next phase of him is seeing the big picture instead of here's my D-Tackle. All right, what's around that? What's giving stuff away? Is there pressures that given away? Is there some tips, tails? That's the next step I think for him to take.”

• You got a lot of competition at the other guards. I think that one's going all the way through. “I think at the end of the day, you got to play your best five and we'll figure it out, you know. So, I like where he's headed and, you know, we've had all our conversations. I'm pretty upfront with our guys too in front of each other and you know with all 15 guys in that room talking or 16 and then um you know so competition is you know it's there and it's breeding it makes everybody better and so Tate Tate's in a saying he's not you know settled in you know we had our conversation but I like where he's head it and we'll see where these five go.

Mike Kafka – Pass Game Coordinator

• You and how to stay out of what it feel to you about this position with this team. “Yeah. So, uh we started off with going through the interview process. Um getting to meet Dan, Brad, Chris, um and really getting to know them, what they're about. And obviously a lot of respect for them from afar and competing against them and just kind of watching over the last several seasons. So, um just a lot of really good conversations that led to me being here and it was, you know, it's an honor and it's a privilege to be here.

• But did your game against them come up at all during those conversations and in particular the trick play that you ran at their expense last year? “Yeah, we watched it that was part of the interview like we watched the game and kind of went through my thought process and um it was good. You know, it was a good football conversation. Um but yeah, that's pretty much the thought process.”

• So, what was the thought process especially with the pass? “Oh, no. Oh, we had we had a few trick plays up our sleeves that we knew in certain times that we kind of wanted to get to in the hall and uh those guys made great plays. I mean, it wasn't necessarily super clean, but those guys made make a heck of a play out of it.”

• With the with the aspirations that you still likely have as a young coach, talented coach with success in this thing, what does this stop here being part of this organization do for you and your personal goals? “Listen, I think that to really go down that road is hard because right now I'm just I'm so absorbed in what we're doing here, especially at this part of the season, you know, in the offseason getting ready to ramp up number one to finish the veteran minicamp and then to ramp up in training camp in the season and really trying to, you know, still work together with Drew with the off staff to contribute as much as possible. Um, so it's hard to really think of all that stuff right now.”

• You have a reputation for being a collaborative coach, Mike. I'm just curious how do you and Drew's views, visions, philosophies of the past game, how have they married in this this early setting for you guys? “Yeah, it's exactly that. It's like the collaboration part of it. It's talking, it's communicating. Um, you know, he obviously has a really good feel for what he wants to get done and what he wants to get accomplished, and I'm there to support it and contribute as much as possible.”

• Obviously, you lean into your personnel to kind of craft what you guys do. Uh, you used the deep ball quite a bit last year in New York. When you look at this roster, you see guys like Jameson Williams, Tesla, Jared Goff. How much do you look forward to maybe trying to incorporate more of the deep passing game into this offense? “You know, I think it's too early right now to really kind of go down there in terms of like the specifics there. And again, I'm going to support Drew and his vision and coach Campbell's vision and how they want the offense to go. And you know, that's really part of my job and to help you know, coach Brunell and Tui and Jared to be in the quarterback room and contribute there as much as possible and use my experiences whether it was at a as a player or as a coach to their benefit.”

• Yeah, Mike, it is a great problem to have. But what are your early thoughts about just having an offense that has so many weapons at wide receiver, even at tight end and running back, too? “You know, um, starting with the offensive line, been really impressed with that group and what Hank has done with that group and how they communicate. Um, and then Jared, you know, being in the room with Jared, he's phenomenal. And he's one of those guys that I've had a ton of respect for from the outside and I think, you know, you look at him, this guy's like a sniper, you know, he's just he's into it. He's got great command in the huddle at the line of scrimmage. Um, he's so accurate. I I didn't really realize how accurate he was thinking out here and seeing the anticipation, the velocity, the timing, the ball placement, all those things that go into the pass game and watch him operate. It's been really impressive. >> Your resume as a coach gets himself as a grad mentioned.”

• I'm sure you had other potential options or offers this offseason. Why was this the right fit for you? ”I thought this was the best place for me and my family. Um, one, you know, I think just being able to meet Campbell with Brad from a culture standpoint. Um, you know, to work with Drew, right, and the staff that I have a lot of respect for, you know, me and so I was a player in Minnesota when Drew was on staff there. I was in the same quarterback room with Teddy. So, you know, there's some there's some good collaboration there in that room. It's easy to kind of work through. And that's the best part, one of the best parts about this organization right now. And this team is it's a great quarterback room, right? It's really we able to kind of sit there and talk and talk it out and work it out and get, you know, problems solved. But, um, it was great for me and my family being able to meet, you know, Holly and, um, all the wives, you know, uh, last weekend, um, was really cool. and uh have a little staff retreat. So that that was really those are the those are the things that when you look at a team trying to build it's not just like the football side of it. There's a family on it too.

• What are your long-term aspirations? Would you get a taste of being a head coach like you did in the field last season? How does that sort out? "Yeah, I do have of course. I think everybody you're in this business to you know you aspire to be a coordinator, aspire to be a head coach, you aspire to continue to move on and help support your family and do things that you love. I have all those things. Uh but right now my focus is on my role with a client.”

• Dan's path is similar to the one you you're trying to chart right. He had the interim opportunity. You know, went and worked for a successful organization. How much is just maybe tapping into his experience valuable for you? “Yeah, that's one that's one thing we have in common. We've certainly shared some uh war stories about that that experience and uh you know, it made me stronger, made me better those. I mean, I loved I love every minute of it when I was there with the players, with the coaches, Mr. Mayor, Mr. Tish, like the ownership group with Joe. Um, those are great experiences I'm going to carry with me for a long time.”

• What are some of maybe the responsibilities of the past game coordinator during this this phase of the offseason, Mike? Just for us that maybe don't understand the scope of the position. “Sure. It's a lot of communication with Drew, you know, throwing him ideas, getting on the same page with how we're coaching certain routes, how we're coaching certain things. um from a schematic standpoint, it's also there's a um you know a learning curve because there is some continuity with the SAT which is a good thing. Yeah. So I'm able to kind of pick their brains how they've done it in the past some of the ideas that I've done and just kind of really work together to get all on the same page and put the right stuff out there.”

• Your early assessment of Isaac Tesla, seeing him what he's been able to do out here? “Isaac, yeah, I've been really impressed with him. Um young player, but he's got I mean he's got some juice to go up and get the football. He's an aggressive at the catch point. you can run through contact. Um, you know, kind of does it all. Can play inside, can play outside. So, I'm really, you know, been really impressed about."

• On (MSU HC) Pat Fitzgerald: “Yeah, Fitz is going to do great. So, um, coach has been coach Fitz has been a great mentor of mine for a long time. I've known him since I was like a sophomore in high school. So, um, going on the better part of almost 15, 20 years now. So, Coach Reed, I mean, Coach Fitz, not Coach Reed, but Coach Fitz has been a great mentor of mine. Um, actually, when I took over in New York, he came out for the week, it was just kind of a fly on the wall and was able to kind of sit in the background and give me some pointers and help me build the week out. So, he's been a great asset and I'm, you know, excited to go visit uh down in East Lansing.”

• That made you better. Kind of what types of things made you better? “Well, you have to problem solve different things every day. There's always things you have to work for, work towards, um, getting everyone on the same page, whether it's just simply like scheduling or, you know, um, you know, things from the football side of it. But then there's a personal element, too. You know, you're talking with kids and I've been in those shoes as a player before, but 19, 20, 21 year old kids who've got real world problems, whether they're dealing with family, whether they're dealing with um, things in their, you know, kind of arena. So, you know, you have to be able to make sure you reach and touch point a lot of different groups. You know, as offensive coordinator, you know, your focus is just on the offensive guys, those 25 these guys. Well, when you're the head coach now, you got to go to the special teams. You got to go with those guys and get them on the same page that they're carrying on your vision and carrying on your work.”

• Curious which coach on this staff that maybe you didn't have previous working experience that you've I guess enjoyed getting to know that you've kind of already started tapping into their knowledge. “Yeah, I've been spent a lot of time with Coach Brunell, Coach Tui. Um, those guys again have done a great job with Jared over the over the last several years. So, it's been really nice to work with them and get to know them.”

• Working with Drew, do you see any similarities early on with working with Andy Reid? “I mean, I think they're both different. They're both very different, but Drew has a really good heart about him where he's organized. He's well thought out. He's not afraid of um you know different thoughts and different ideas and he wants that kind of information. So that's been good. I mean I think you know we're in we're in June right we're in we're working to get to the um finish up the veteran minicamp the right way but we're doing a you know feel like we're on a good spot. Looking forward to it.”

• You referenced that retreat last week. Did you have you ever before the NFL? “No I have not. That was really that was really unique. That's cool.”

• Yeah. What do you get out of something like that? “Yeah. Well, it's just the camaraderie. Yeah. You know, you're getting the wives together, you're getting um significant others together and um and the coaches and there's an opportunity to do some do some stuff together and um have some fun, you know, for until we get ready to skip rolling during the season.”

• The vertical passing game was kind of an emphasis last year, but it didn't really like fully materialize, I guess. I mean, what are some things that you can do to kind of maybe I guess enhance that uh part of the passing attack? “You know, I think the specifics of it as we kind of get rolling. Right now, we're still putting in the introductory part of the game plan and scheme. Um, I think that'll grow and I think as we continue to work um as an identity, as our offense, whether it's in the passing game, whether it's in the running game, all those things will start to work itself together. But I think what's important is that we're all on the same page.”

  
  

Steve Oliver – Tight Ends Coach

• How's the experience been? you know, having your own room. You worked a long time to get it. So, you know, just a few months in, what's that experience been like? “Uh, it's been awesome so far. I mean, it's the transition has been great. I mean, Drew Ping has been awesome to work under and then having the familiarity with, you know, the rest of the staff. I mean, working under Hank for the last, you know, five seasons and, you know, coach Campbell and then the familiarity with the room, like so much of that crossover between the O line and tight ends, you know, being very familiar. Brock and I actually came in together at like the same time. He was a UDFA when I came in as a quality control. So, you know, getting to kind of come up with him the same way. It's really made it, you know, pretty an easy transition. And those guys have made my, you know, my life pretty easy and just trying to do the best I can for him every day.”

• I think most of us have experienced a new boss coming in and just the uncertainty of that when you first meet Drew, when do you kind of recognize like, oh, this is going to work really well for me? “I think when you just realize how quick and concise he can make complex information seem simple and he does a great job of that in front of the room as well that the second he kind of comes in and he's you know very laid-back very personable and you can tell very quickly into the conversations he knows football at a high level and when you start talking to you know very like I said very complex things and he can kind of make them dumb them down and kind of like hey a b and c kind of this is this is how you operate this I think you immediately kind of gravitate to like wow like he's been around a lot and he's a good teacher and he's a sharp he's a very sharp coach.”

• What is your early assessment with the tight end? “Uh I think it's been great so far in terms of competition, attention to detail, uh trying to ask him to do a few different, you know, techniques we might be working on that are of things that are different here and there. And uh I think I'm really happy with where they're at uh in terms of you we're putting a lot on their plate conceptually, run game wise. And uh they show up every single day with it and it's been great.”

• The label is just having that like confidence you knew Sam was going to be kind of brought along slowly in the recovery to have a guy that's had that much experience in the league, a few different schemes to just kind of go out there and plug and play. “I mean, Conk’s the ultimate pro. I mean, year nine coming in and he wants to be coached. He wants to get better every day. He's grasped the system really well and the guys in the room have been great. I mean, he's been a great addition. I'm really excited to have him.”

• Perspective, how much did the offense change? “I mean, Sam, you can always tell. I mean, he's a difference maker when he's on the field and run game, pass game, protection, all three facets. And, you know, I think Brock did a great job stepping up and, you know, putting guys in positions that, you know, had to at the time. You definitely noticed Sam's absence because the impact player he is. And we'll definitely be excited to get him back out there.”

• Skipper kind of held down that big blocking tight end. I'm sure you're trying to lull him out of retirement, but you know, how much is that a competition that you're watching this offense? Seems like there's a lot of guys kind of taking some snaps there, checking it out. Like, how much are you looking for that guy to step into the six though? “Well, selfishly now as a tight end coach, you want it to happen zero times because that means it takes one of your guys off the field. But, uh, at the end of the day, it's, you know, who can best serve the matchup week to week and uh, is it an advantageous week, you know, put an extra line on the field? Is it better to stay in, you know, 12, 13 personnel, whatever it might be? And be excited to see once the pads come on in camp, you know, who kind of separates themselves and settles into that role.”

• This is a good time to become a tight end coach given the I guess leaguewide momentum toward using more of the 12 and 13. “Uh I mean anytime you can get your f first opportunity to run a position this league is a great opportunity but uh getting to you know be involved with the run game, the pass game, the protection, all three, you know, phases of it that tie together. It's definitely great for you know all offensive knowledge of it and for you know being able to kind of have a have your hand in all the pieces of it. It's a great time for it and I you know 13 personnel 12 personnel as a tight end coach you love it but also I mean look at all the weapons we have on the offense you know we're deadly in 11 to.”

• So what was the next step for Sam? He's obviously had a very good start to his career seeing the blocking took a nice jump in his third season. What are you looking for growth for him in his fourth year? “Uh, I think it's just, you know, Sam being the best version of himself, you know, and, you know, getting where, you know, he's feels great in all three phases and just continue to hone down the little techniques, you know, little route running things here, a little, you know, footwork and hand placement in the run game, you know, protection wise. I think he's like you said, he's done a great job in all three and just continue to see him, you know, improve on those every single time he gets a chance to.”

• Impressive or unique is that mindset to come out franchise records as a rookie as a receiving option, but to put the work into being a better locker that he has. I guess how impressive our unique is that? “Uh, I mean it's definitely you don't see that across the league with, you know, not every, you know, tight end can do all three and he truly can and it, you know, it's a testament to, you know, how he came up at Iowa and the work he's put in since he's been up here and just, you know, the dedication he has in all three phases to make sure that he is an asset and, you know, he can be very effective in all three of them and, uh, I'm just excited to see him keep doing it.”

• You think of the three young guys in your room, you got, I mean, a UDFA and I think two city. I mean, what have you seen kind of those guys are obviously going to be fighting tooth their nail for an opportunity. What have you seen out of them so far? “I think that they do a good job pushing, you know, pushing each other to it's going to be a great competition once the pads come on this fall and uh, you know, have Zack Horton, Thomas Gordon, you know, Miles Kitselman and Jackson Meeks. They've all they've all done a good job of, you know, showing up every day to work and, uh, you know, indie wise, asking some different techniques, you know, putting them in different spots, you know, trying to stress them mentally a little bit. And uh physically obviously it's you know we're in kind of the underwear right now so it's going to be a little bit different until u come you know July and we get the pads on but see uh who can you know start separating themselves once uh once we start hitting and get into training camp. But I'm happy where they're at and uh not where we need to be but uh obviously, we try to work there each day.”

• You did mention Jackson there. Obviously that was a change midseason seemed like last year. Um, you know, what has he done to kind of grow into that role? Has he had to add in the weight or comfort was that receiver type? “Uh, I mean, I I'll leave all the weight stuff to coach Campbell to talk about, but I can't speak to, you know, he's attacked it every single day. It's really important to him. He's asking the right questions and it helped having, you know, Scotty Montgomery did such an awesome job with him, you know, in the receiver room for all the, you know, pass concepts and knowledge there. So, just kind of getting you a little closer to the box. some of the run game stuff. I mean, our receivers like to, you know, they get involved in the run game. So, so that's nothing new. It's just a matter of you might be working, you know, a little different guys here, combinations might be a little bit different, but I think, you know, he's done a great job trying to, you know, take, you know, sink his teeth into it and, you know, find out what he doesn't know and what he does and just, you know, some days are a new day and then other things you start to see the progress, though. And I'm happy where he's at and he's continuing to get better every single week.”

The Lions will report to training camp in late July, dates unknown at this time.