ATLANTA- The Jackets once again enjoyed lovely weather ahead of a building storm system getting in practice with just a light drizzle on Wednesday morning on the Rose Bowl Field. The team was in full pads again and had another spirited two-hour practice to prepare for Saturday's closed scrimmage. After practice, running backs coach Mike Daniels and new receivers coach Del Alexander spoke with the media along with new transfers running back Dylan McDuffie and wide receiver E.J. Jenkins
For Alexander, Fall Camp has really been his first time working extensively live with the receivers after replacing Kerry Dixon who left for a job with the Baltimore Ravens late in spring ball. Alexander arrived in time for the final two days of spring ball, but he was playing catch up at that time learning personnel.
"It has been a normal transition minus the foundation that you get in spring practice," he said. "I'm working the guys hard and I've put in a little overtime to make up for the lost time but the guys are responding and they are putting in consecutive days working hard and I think they are trying to learn the little subtle things that are going to help you win."
Alexander said that Ryan King has been giving great effort and trying to meet their expectations and that is why he is performing at a higher level now. He is trying to show them he can do the things to help them win in tough times when the game is on the line. He is looking for grit, but also guys who are smart and understand what they are doing. He said the guys are getting tired now but fighting through that is big as well. He said they have also not overloaded the WRs and that has helped them as well.
Alexander said that the slot competition has gone well, it is Nate McCollum, Malik Rutherford and Jamal Haynes there and they can show the consistency and explosiveness he is looking for. He said they are also not limited to playing just slot and he has trained them for the outside receiver as well and they could push there or play situationally there.
Alexander said that Malachi Carter has made a lot plays this summer, he understands the offense and he is a leader when it comes to contributing and having stats, but he also has to prove it to him because he has a clean slate with guys. He is doing what is asked of him every day and he has caught the ball in practice or in the stadium. He wants to push him for more though.
Alexander referred to EJ Jenkins as a tree and he said he has had a few guys near his size in the past including at ND. He said with Jenkins fundamentals are big but he should be a guy who can win one-v-one matchups against the boundary and around the goal line and then they are using him and lining him up in different ways to create mismatches as well. They are still working on making him an every-down receiver and he still has work to do there but has made a lot of progress. He said he has not had someone with his weight and size combo though.
Alexander said the move to this system has been easy except he had to learn the vocabulary they are using because Chip Long adapted to what was already in place and added his concepts and pieces to the previous lingo the offense used to make it easier for the players. He said the concepts and philosophies are the same as they've been and he and coach Long are like brothers and can scream at each other but they are cool afterward, Long is intense and he is intense and old-school as well. He said Long has enjoyed having him because he does not have to worry about the WR room as much as he might with someone he is not as familiar and comfortable with and for Alexander he can close his door and work with his guys because they trust one another.
I asked Mike Daniels about kick and punt return, he said they have really worked that a lot the last three days and they are looking at Nate McCollum, Malik Rutherford and Malachi Carter there as well right now. He said that Coach Collins does a great job of allowing them extra time to work on kickoff return or punt return and working gunners or whatever they need.
Daniels said that Jamie Felix is doing a good job as true freshman (Antonio Martin was here for spring ball) and he is green and young but they think he is tough and has a great skillset and he has learned a lot about toughness and lower body balance and he is great in space. They are excited about his development and future. He said Antonio is a much better product overall from the spring to now and they think he also has a chance to be a good player in the future.
Daniels said he got a good taste of balancing multiple RBs as he tries to balance Dontae Smith, McDuffie and Hassan Hall this upcoming season and he knows they will need at least all three guys and each of them has a different skillset as well and it is his job and Coach Long's job to balance that and maximize their abilities within the game plan.
Daniels said he views the three veteran backs as all ones. He said if you watch practice they rotate throughout the day and series as well with the various huddles. He said they are also using some 2-RB sets now so there will be plenty of snaps for the guys to get in the mix. He talked about how they mixed and matched with Kevin Marks Jr. who is with the Los Angeles Chargers now and McDuffie and a third RB at Buffalo to great success.
Daniels talked at length about recruiting to GT and how amazing the school is but how the city of Atlanta is also a selling point by itself as well. He said that Atlanta is one of the best places to live in the world and it has Georgia Tech there which is also a special place within this amazing area.
Daniels said the key to keeping all the RBs happy is communication and being clear with them and managing them as a coach/leader/whatever and he harps on what they need to do better as well if they want those additional opportunities to motivate and keep the competition level up in the RB room as well.
McDuffie said his teammates, the coaches, and Coach Collins have really embraced him and having coach Daniels here has helped a lot along with knowing Atlanta a little bit from having family here and spending some offseasons and summers down here over the years.
McDuffie said he views the competition as iron sharpening iron right now and they all have the same goal and approach and want to win games. He likes the WR room and he says Jeff Sims is great so they are ready do do whatever is asked in the RB room regardless of which one of them gets the ball.
McDuffie said the team is expecting to win and they want to win every game and every rep in practice and every day on the field. He said that is the standard and expectation from Coach Collins down the roster and they have to keep putting in the work to make that happen.
On the red zone, McDuffie has a simple philosophy that is where RBs make their money. He said RBs need to pride themselves on punching it in down there.
Jenkins said that camp has been a learning process for him and all the young guys as well and they are all learning on a fly a bit too because of Coach Alexander being new too. He said every day he approaches it as a new challenge.
Jenkins said that Coach Long's offense is designed to create mismatches all over the field and he is one example of that.
Jenkins said he thinks his body and strength will create some issues for CBs because it is hard to hold up a 240-pound WR and the wear and tear of doing that all game is going to grind down a DB.
Jenkins said the WR position battles as a whole have been intense for playing time. He said he sees a lot of grit in that room and the young guys are pushing the older guys too
Jenkins said that Coach Del is very old-school and black or white with stuff, but he is also really funny and has a great personality. He doesn't hold back when you mess up and he will tell you about it, they all respect him a lot in that room and Del has great wisdom and knowledge.
Jenkins said he went to 0 because he watched "Mortal Kombat" a lot as a kid and wore 0 in basketball and they called him Sub-Zero and he just wanted to bring that back to life.
This is my Sub-Zero
OF NOTE:
The team heads over to Mercedes-Benz Stadium tonight, but not for a walk-through or anything football related but rather futebol for the Atlanta United game against the New York Red Bulls.
Top plays during the open periods, KJ Wallace had a heads-up play in 7v7 getting a pick off a tipped ball. Horace Lockett had a big TFL to stop a scoring play on the goal line. Jeff Sims threw a rope to Nate McCollum for a big play.
For Alexander, Fall Camp has really been his first time working extensively live with the receivers after replacing Kerry Dixon who left for a job with the Baltimore Ravens late in spring ball. Alexander arrived in time for the final two days of spring ball, but he was playing catch up at that time learning personnel.
"It has been a normal transition minus the foundation that you get in spring practice," he said. "I'm working the guys hard and I've put in a little overtime to make up for the lost time but the guys are responding and they are putting in consecutive days working hard and I think they are trying to learn the little subtle things that are going to help you win."
Alexander said that Ryan King has been giving great effort and trying to meet their expectations and that is why he is performing at a higher level now. He is trying to show them he can do the things to help them win in tough times when the game is on the line. He is looking for grit, but also guys who are smart and understand what they are doing. He said the guys are getting tired now but fighting through that is big as well. He said they have also not overloaded the WRs and that has helped them as well.
Alexander said that the slot competition has gone well, it is Nate McCollum, Malik Rutherford and Jamal Haynes there and they can show the consistency and explosiveness he is looking for. He said they are also not limited to playing just slot and he has trained them for the outside receiver as well and they could push there or play situationally there.
Alexander said that Malachi Carter has made a lot plays this summer, he understands the offense and he is a leader when it comes to contributing and having stats, but he also has to prove it to him because he has a clean slate with guys. He is doing what is asked of him every day and he has caught the ball in practice or in the stadium. He wants to push him for more though.
Alexander referred to EJ Jenkins as a tree and he said he has had a few guys near his size in the past including at ND. He said with Jenkins fundamentals are big but he should be a guy who can win one-v-one matchups against the boundary and around the goal line and then they are using him and lining him up in different ways to create mismatches as well. They are still working on making him an every-down receiver and he still has work to do there but has made a lot of progress. He said he has not had someone with his weight and size combo though.
Alexander said the move to this system has been easy except he had to learn the vocabulary they are using because Chip Long adapted to what was already in place and added his concepts and pieces to the previous lingo the offense used to make it easier for the players. He said the concepts and philosophies are the same as they've been and he and coach Long are like brothers and can scream at each other but they are cool afterward, Long is intense and he is intense and old-school as well. He said Long has enjoyed having him because he does not have to worry about the WR room as much as he might with someone he is not as familiar and comfortable with and for Alexander he can close his door and work with his guys because they trust one another.
I asked Mike Daniels about kick and punt return, he said they have really worked that a lot the last three days and they are looking at Nate McCollum, Malik Rutherford and Malachi Carter there as well right now. He said that Coach Collins does a great job of allowing them extra time to work on kickoff return or punt return and working gunners or whatever they need.
Daniels said that Jamie Felix is doing a good job as true freshman (Antonio Martin was here for spring ball) and he is green and young but they think he is tough and has a great skillset and he has learned a lot about toughness and lower body balance and he is great in space. They are excited about his development and future. He said Antonio is a much better product overall from the spring to now and they think he also has a chance to be a good player in the future.
Daniels said he got a good taste of balancing multiple RBs as he tries to balance Dontae Smith, McDuffie and Hassan Hall this upcoming season and he knows they will need at least all three guys and each of them has a different skillset as well and it is his job and Coach Long's job to balance that and maximize their abilities within the game plan.
Daniels said he views the three veteran backs as all ones. He said if you watch practice they rotate throughout the day and series as well with the various huddles. He said they are also using some 2-RB sets now so there will be plenty of snaps for the guys to get in the mix. He talked about how they mixed and matched with Kevin Marks Jr. who is with the Los Angeles Chargers now and McDuffie and a third RB at Buffalo to great success.
Daniels talked at length about recruiting to GT and how amazing the school is but how the city of Atlanta is also a selling point by itself as well. He said that Atlanta is one of the best places to live in the world and it has Georgia Tech there which is also a special place within this amazing area.
Daniels said the key to keeping all the RBs happy is communication and being clear with them and managing them as a coach/leader/whatever and he harps on what they need to do better as well if they want those additional opportunities to motivate and keep the competition level up in the RB room as well.
McDuffie said his teammates, the coaches, and Coach Collins have really embraced him and having coach Daniels here has helped a lot along with knowing Atlanta a little bit from having family here and spending some offseasons and summers down here over the years.
McDuffie said he views the competition as iron sharpening iron right now and they all have the same goal and approach and want to win games. He likes the WR room and he says Jeff Sims is great so they are ready do do whatever is asked in the RB room regardless of which one of them gets the ball.
McDuffie said the team is expecting to win and they want to win every game and every rep in practice and every day on the field. He said that is the standard and expectation from Coach Collins down the roster and they have to keep putting in the work to make that happen.
On the red zone, McDuffie has a simple philosophy that is where RBs make their money. He said RBs need to pride themselves on punching it in down there.
Jenkins said that camp has been a learning process for him and all the young guys as well and they are all learning on a fly a bit too because of Coach Alexander being new too. He said every day he approaches it as a new challenge.
Jenkins said that Coach Long's offense is designed to create mismatches all over the field and he is one example of that.
Jenkins said he thinks his body and strength will create some issues for CBs because it is hard to hold up a 240-pound WR and the wear and tear of doing that all game is going to grind down a DB.
Jenkins said the WR position battles as a whole have been intense for playing time. He said he sees a lot of grit in that room and the young guys are pushing the older guys too
Jenkins said that Coach Del is very old-school and black or white with stuff, but he is also really funny and has a great personality. He doesn't hold back when you mess up and he will tell you about it, they all respect him a lot in that room and Del has great wisdom and knowledge.
Jenkins said he went to 0 because he watched "Mortal Kombat" a lot as a kid and wore 0 in basketball and they called him Sub-Zero and he just wanted to bring that back to life.
This is my Sub-Zero
OF NOTE:
The team heads over to Mercedes-Benz Stadium tonight, but not for a walk-through or anything football related but rather futebol for the Atlanta United game against the New York Red Bulls.
Top plays during the open periods, KJ Wallace had a heads-up play in 7v7 getting a pick off a tipped ball. Horace Lockett had a big TFL to stop a scoring play on the goal line. Jeff Sims threw a rope to Nate McCollum for a big play.
