Head Coach John Harbaugh
Opening statement:"Great to see everybody on our once-a-week deal here. You guys happy to be out, watching a little ball? Enjoying it? Getting away from the Orioles for a couple of hours? I'll be there over the weekend, by the way. I'm going to be there Friday and Sunday watching the Orioles vs. the [Detroit] Tigers."
On the Orioles' Matt Wieters' debut:"I'm excited about him. He's the catcher they're bringing up, right? I'm jacked about him, can't wait to see him play. I'll get to see him play this weekend."
On if there are ever "dog days" when practice doesn't go as well as he'd like: "Dog days? No. Sometimes things don't go as well as you'd want them to, obviously. We tell them, 'If it's 100 percent perfect, then we didn't push you hard enough. We didn't challenge you enough.' We've got to put enough in, scheme-wise, and challenge them enough, challenge each other. We're scheming each other. Defensive guys are scheming the offense, Cam [Cameron] is scheming Greg [Mattison] and guys are competing. There's going to be plenty of work done from one day to the next, so things aren't going to go great. But the tempo of practice is good. There are a lot of guys out here getting good work, so we're getting better."
On if TE Todd Heap's back is improving and the outlook for TE Quinn Sypniewski:"[Quinn] had to go back in there and reattach a piece of bone, I guess, that never did reattach. So his outlook, I'd say, is questionable for the start of training camp. We'll have to see what Bill [Tessendorf] and the doctors say. Todd seems to be getting better. He tells me that he's really improving quickly right now. Hopefully, we'll see him out here real soon. He's going through most of practice, but we'll see him through the team stuff and the seven-on-seven stuff."
On what those two players can do to stay up with the offense if they're not on the field as much:"Physically, it's hard, because the challenge is executing at full speed in a team setting. That's where you really make your most improvement. But they're doing everything they can do – they're in meetings, they're in individual drills. They're being challenged with Tess [Bill Tessendorf] and all that kind of stuff, so they're doing everything they can."
On WR Demetrius Williams getting more time with the offense in drills today:"I saw a nice one-handed grab in the corner of the end zone. I didn't see him coming back from plays looking like he was favoring [his injury] as much. It looks to me like he's putting that out of his mind a little bit and just playing. The thing has been close to 100 percent as far as when he runs, so when you start seeing the speed… Yesterday, you guys didn't see it, but he caught a crossing route against man coverage and basically out ran the secondary, and probably scored. So, we're starting to see some of his speed come back."
On if TE/LB Edgar Jones is more natural at tight end now:"Yeah, he's looking more like a tight end. The reps are helping, and he's made a couple of catches. He got challenged yesterday, because it was the first day in rain, and he dropped the first two balls in the team period. That was something, I think, he learned from, then he caught a couple of balls. It's all new for Edgar, but I think he's coming along quickly."
On LBs Ray Lewis' and Tavares Gooden's chemistry:"There is a certain chemistry there, and I think Jameel [McClain] is a part of that, too. But, Ray and Tavares, having known each other these years… I think Ray took Tavares under his wing, way back when he first got recruited there [at the University of Miami]. They have that kind of relationship, and I know Tavares is learning from Ray. But Ray's a leader for all of our guys. They do have a nice little bond, but I think Ray has that bond with all our guys, especially to the defensive guys."
On if G/C Robby Felix was someone the Ravens looked at going into the Draft:"I can't say that I'm really familiar with Felix or any of the new O-linemen. We'll learn more about those guys as we go, and probably have more for you soon."
On how the rookies are acclimating and if they still have a wide-eyed look:"They're acclimating themselves. We're getting a lot of work with those guys. They're in here. Now they'll do a little bit of work, as far as training room work, then they'll go to player development for an hour, which is the league-mandated stuff to help the rookies transition to the league. O.J. [Brigance] is running that, along with Harry [Swayne]. Then they'll go lift for an hour, and then we'll bring them back for more football for another hour, hour and a half. So, they're getting plenty of work. I'm not sure if they're wide-eyed or not. They might be a little sleepy-eyed at the end of the day, but they're working hard at it."
On if he sees nerves from the rookies being around players at the pro level:"I don't think they're intimidated at all. I think they realize now it's just football. And our guys, we don't have any hazing or anything like that, so our guys are good with the young guys. They're part of our team."
On if there will be no hazing at training camp:"There might be. There might be some moments out here on the field, but nothing too bad. I hope."
On if CB Chris Carr will be ready by training camp:"He was out here yesterday going through some individual stuff, so there's a chance he could be in team [drills] sooner than that. But probably training camp."
On if saying WR Derrick Mason "might miss training camp" is overstating it a little bit:"Yeah, that was news to me. I think there's a real good chance Derrick will be there for training camp, but that obviously depends on what's best for Derrick. What we are most concerned about – and I think the point Derrick's probably making – is that Derrick starting the season healthy is the No. 1 concern, so whatever we have to do to make that happen [we will do]. He's not a guy who's going to need a ton of training camp reps, just like Ray [Lewis]. You temper all those guys a little bit. But I'm pretty sure Derrick will be there for most, if not all, of training camp."
