DAILY INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPTS
Head Coach John Harbaugh
Opening statement: "Happy Labor Day. Good to see everybody, good to have you here. As the rain picks up, it's supposed to rain for the next, what, five straight days now? Two huge storms coming in? Aren't you guys in the news media, don't you cover that stuff? (laughter) It's supposed to be the remnants of the tropical storm, plus another big Midest storm coming in. Anything else you want to know about the weather?" (laughter)
On the addition of C Andre Gurode:"We added Andre Gurode. He was here for part of practice. Then he had to slip out and go back and get his stuff – get his family. He'll be here tomorrow in the second half of the day to work on learning the offense. It's a big addition for us."
On whether Gurode was signed as a backup or someone who could potentially start:"I wouldn't even want to define it because he's another good player on our team. He's just another guy that we add that can play. It'll be our job to get him up to speed as quick as we can. He's, obviously, a very good player and he helps us."
On what the corresponding roster movement was that allowed the Ravens to sign Gurode: "We only had 52 at that point."
On whether offensive line players need to play together to develop good chemistry or if good players just play well together:"There is truth to it. But also, the better the players, the easier that is. You could not have good players – and you can work together all you want – [and] it's not going to be a good product. If you have good players, you have a better chance to be better. But, it's going to take some work. It's going to be a work in progress into the season. But, I like where they're going."
On whether he thinks the offensive line will have enough chemistry to go up against the Steelers:"I mean, we're going to make sure it's not a problem. It's our job. All of us, together, make sure that it's not a problem. We're playing on Sunday at 1:00, so we're not making any excuses. We know what they're going to do; they know what we're going to do. There will be a few wrinkles here and there. But, we're just going to go play. I'm very confident in how we're going to play."
On whether there was an excitement at practice because of Steelers week:"I think it brings your focus into it. It's your first practice with your team; it's the first game. That's always a special day. There's always an excitement."
On whether the Steelers are a good team to start the season with:"Yeah, it was good to have the Jets last year – kind of the same thing. I think it's always good to have a team that… All through training camp, it kind of sharpens your focus."
On whether they were preparing for the Steelers throughout camp: "We do that every year. We always work on the opener throughout training camp – the first four weeks really."
On TE Ed Dickson's progress between this season and last season:"Well, he's grown. [We] would have loved to have him in the offseason to see if we could do even more with him, but I think he's made great first year to second year progress. [His] run blocking tremendously improved. Just understanding the game – speed of the game, all that stuff – he looks like he's very comfortable."
On how they decided to add OLB/DE Michael McAdoo to the roster:"It's just a future move for the future of the team. That's the way [general manager/executive vice president] Ozzie [Newsome] structured the agreement with the agent. He's here for a week, and then we'll go from there. He's a practice squad guy in my mind."
On the surprising addition of rookie free agent WR LaQuan Williams:"Here's a guy, really, that our special teams coaches kind of found off the radar. Heck of a special teams player out at Maryland. [Assistant special teams coach] Marwan Maalouf spearheaded it along with [assistant head coach/special teams coordinator] Jerry [Rosburg]. That was their guy. He had no other offers to be a free agent anywhere, and here he comes in and makes the team. That's just a great story. It's going to be fun to see where it goes from here. He's on the team for a reason. He's on the team to contribute on special teams and offense, so we'll see how he grows. We'll see what happens."
On whether Williams will have an additional role because of the loss of WR David Reed for the first game:"Absolutely. With David Reed gone, all those guys bump up a spot. So, the three young receivers are going to be big."
