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Tned
08-09-2009, 08:01 PM
Transcript 8/9 - Broncos Coach McDaniels and Knowshon Moreno press conference

Josh McDaniels

On RB Knowshon Moreno
“He fits in with all of our backs. He catches the ball well. In the individual drills, that showed up. (The defense) had a hard time tackling him in the tackling drill. He can run between the tackles (or) run outside. He is what we thought he was when we drafted him. He is just going to add more of all that to our backfield. It was a decent first day. I know he made some mistakes. He has got a long way to go, and he knows that. He is working the way he needs to work to catch up.”

On if Moreno meets the expectations of when the Broncos drafted him
“He is every bit of the 217 pounds that we wanted him to play at. He showed good quickness. Again, mentally, he made the mistakes that I thought he would make, too, today. He knows where he stands. He is a smart kid. He knows how far behind the other guys he is and what he doesn’t know. At this point, that is as important as what he does know, because now, he knows what he has to work harder at.”

On the benefit of practicing at INVESCO Field at Mile High tomorrow morning
“Again, it is our second run through. Everyone is new here: the coaches, the players, the sideline substitutions. We are going to walk through stretching, our sideline operation, where we want to sit when we are not on defense, where we want to sit when we are not out there on offense (and) just communication between upstairs and on the field (and) the coach and the quarterback (to have) just one more time through that before we actually do it on Friday night for real.”

On if Moreno will have the chance to play in the Broncos’ first preseason game in San Francisco on Friday
“Absolutely.”

On the competition at outside linebacker
“They are still competing. There are a couple of them that were in the doghouse today just because of some of the things we did on the field today. That is good for the other guys. It is, certainly, not a done deal in terms of the competition at that spot on either side of the ball. (ILB) Mario (Haggan) was out there with the first group some today, deservedly so. We will see how he does with that roll. (OLB/DE) Darrell (Reid) got better today, and (OLB/DE) Tim Crowder did well. (OLB/DE) Elvis (Dumervil), (OLB/DE) Robert (Ayers) and (OLB/DE) Jarvis (Moss are) competing on the other side. It is really a wide-open competition. None of that stuff is going to start separating itself until we go a few preseason games into it.”

On if ILB Mario Haggan played with the first-team defense because of other players’ miscues
“No, Mario was out there because he earned the right to have that opportunity today. Certainly, not anything (is) set in stone there either. There were a couple guys that loafed a little bit too much for my liking today.”

On if he is concerned that WR Brandon Marshall has not practiced in one week
“No, it is not a concern, and when he is ready to go, he will be out here.”

On S Brian Dawkins status
“When he is ready, he will be back. When he is ready to practice, he will be out here.”

On if Dawkins was excused for former Philadelphia Eagles Defensive Coordinator Jim Johnson’s funeral
“Brian did not go.”

On his favorite memory surrounding the NFL Hall of Fame ceremonies
“The enshrinement ceremony was something that I always looked forward to, because I think it is a really emotional—it used to be in the morning. Now, it is the middle of the day (or) the evening. It is an emotional time for the people that are getting enshrined. I think there are a lot of people that share that emotion, family and friends. I think it is just a special night for football in general. You see how much that induction and to be placed in the Hall means to those people. It gives these young kids that are still playing today a little bit of a different perspective on the fact that this means a lot (and) don’t take it for granted. The guys that get enshrined every year usually do a phenomenal job.”

On if he attended the Hall of Fame parade when he lived in Ohio
“I used to go to the parade, the ribs burn off, the enshrinement (and) the game. Everything that I could get into, I was there.”

On significant Hall of Fame speeches in his lifetime
“I loved Terry Bradshaw’s speech. He talked about if he could do anything over again, it would be put two minutes on the clock, give his team the ball, give them two timeouts and he has got to go the length of the field. You have got hair standing up on the back of your neck, and it made the crowd feel his passion and his enthusiasm for the game of football. There are so many special moments. I try to catch it every year or TiVo it, at least, so I can see it. What they say on that night usually is from the heart, and it is about football and their love for the game.”

On if WR Brandon Marshall’s absence will cause him to be behind on opening day
“Mentally, he is in all of the meetings. He sees all the film sessions (and) sees all of the corrections. I am not concerned with that. We still have over a month left for that to kind of come into the fold. He has got plenty of time, and when he is ready to go, he will be out here. Again, he is improving in certain things in terms of his understanding of the offense just by being in every meeting.”

On DL Chris Baker
“Chris has shown the ability to knock people back. That is something that you hear (Defensive Line) Coach (Wayne) Nunnely say a lot is that if we can change the line of scrimmage, then you can certainly help our run defense in some areas and push the pocket in the pass rush. Chris has done some good things in this camp. It is going to be really an interesting deal to see how a lot of these rookies play in the preseason and see how much they can do within our scheme against somebody else’s scheme that they are not used to seeing every day. Chris is one of many that we are looking forward to seeing.”

Knowshon Moreno

On how his first practice went
“It felt good. It felt good to get back out here with my teammates and practice a little bit and get in these pads.”

On whether he had butterflies
“Definitely. I definitely did. I felt sick to my stomach a little bit there before practice. But after I got the juices flowing, it was just practice.”

On the aftereffects of missing part of training camp
“It definitely hurt me but I’m happy to be out here now with my team. I’m behind, but I’m out here and I’m having fun.”

On how far behind he feels
“Missing those days hurt, not being here. But at the same time, I’m in that playbook. I’m getting here early with the coach and I’m studying again. So it’s all going well right now.”

On whether he will play in Friday’s preseason opener at San Francisco
“I’m not sure. Right now I’m just back at practice.”

On the welcome he received from the coaching staff when he arrived
“I got there, talked to (Running Backs Coach) Bobby Turner, and got to see (Head) Coach (Josh) McDaniels. Other teammates congratulated me and stuff like that. But it was good to be back out here.”

On working out on his own
“I was just pretty much working out with the team at (the University of) Georgia—working out with them and getting out there in the heat, and just running. That’s basically all I can do and just waited it out.”

On whether he’s further behind mentally or physically
“I think more with the playbook. I haven’t put on pads since last year at Georgia. Putting on the pads was definitely something to get used to on the first day, but it was a good time.”

On contact with LB D.J. Williams in one-on-one drills:
“Yeah I needed some. I thought I needed some contact getting out here for the first day. I got that.”

On whether he can win the starting job by opening day
“I think it’s too early to even talk about that. I’m just now getting back. I’m just now getting into the flow of things. Guys have been here working hard. I’ve just got to catch back up with that and get adjusted to this air again.”

On staying in touch with teammates over the last week
“Yeah I was just making sure to see how everyone was doing. Everyone was doing well and just hoping I’d get there real soon.”

On competing with several veterans in the backfield
“We have a couple of veterans and it’s great just to have them back here so we can learn as young running backs and see what they’re doing—and just keep on learning.”

On what he brings to the offense
“I think my energy, my passion for the game—my ability just to compete. That’s all we can do right now since it’s so early. The rest will fall into place.”

On whether his college skills can translate quickly into the NFL
“It depends on how I prepare myself. It’s a different league. Everyone’s stronger, faster and smarter. So it just takes some studying on my part.”

frauschieze
08-09-2009, 10:24 PM
Anyone know if there's any footage of the one on one drill with Moreno and Williams?