QB Daniel Jones
September 3, 2020
Q: I’m just wondering if it feels to you like it’s been a different receiver every day here for these last couple of weeks? (Alex) Bachman, (David) Sills, (Austin) Mack, (C.J.) Board, everybody seems to be contributing after (Darius) Slayton, (Golden) Tate and (Sterling) Shepard. The other guys. Does it seem to you like there are a lot of guys there stepping up, competing for roster spots?
A: Yeah, I think we’ve had a lot of guys step up and make plays. That’s been fun to watch. Across the roster, we have a lot of guys who can make plays, who you can count on to go up and make the catch or to be in the right spot. As quarterbacks, it’s a good feeling for us. Like you said, we’ve had guys step up. A lot of guys are out there making plays for us.
Q: Next time we talk to you next week, you’ll be back and getting ready for the Steelers. I guess how ready do you feel like this team is for the start of the regular season? You haven’t had the preseason game barometers that you normally do in other years. How do you know where you’re at?
A: We’ve done a good job as a team simulating some of those preseason games and trying to get reps with a game feel to it, practicing a lot of situations and a lot of things that would come up during games. I feel like as a team, as an offense, we are in a good spot. We’ve had a good camp and made progress every day towards where we need to be. Next week, we’ll be into game prep and into week one. I feel like we’ve had a good camp and we’ve been able to simulate a lot of the game like situations that you would have gotten in the preseason.
Q: I’m sure you heard some of the buzz about a week ago about (Head) Coach (Joe Judge) saying that he wanted to get you hit a little bit and kind of knock you around a little bit. I’ll confess that it was my question that launched that thought in his head. Has he done any of that yet? Have you gone through that? Or are you, I don’t want to say looking forward to, but are you ready for that first hit on September 14th?
A: Yeah, I’ll be ready for it. I haven’t been hit yet. We’ve been simulating a lot of pressure in the pocket, simulating a rush, and doing that throughout drill work, focusing on that. I’ll be ready and confident going into that first game and that first snap.
Q: You were talking about how you guys have prepared for a lot of different situations. Were you actually running to the side today to simulate if you had lost your headset communication with Jason (Garrett)?
A: Yeah, that was the practice today. Just trying to get ready for whatever could happen in the game and I thought we did a good job with it.
Q: How prepared do you feel for anything that could come up? It seems like you guys, at least from the outside, focused a ton on situational football.
A: Yeah, we have. I think that’s been a big point of emphasis for Coach Judge. Like I said, trying to simulate a lot of those different situations that could come up during a game that maybe we would have gotten during a preseason game. To be able to simulate those during practice I think has been good for us and me as a quarterback for sure, learning those situations and being comfortable when they come up in the game.
Q: You worked with Joe virtually most of the offseason. Now, you’ve had a month or so to work with him here at training camp as your head coach. I’m wondering if there’s anything that kind of surprises you about him or kind of sticks out as different?
A: Not really. I think we all got to know him pretty well through the spring and through our virtual program. More than anything, you can tell he’s very intentional about the drills and everything he’s focusing on in meetings and out there at practice. I think guys see the purpose behind it, guys understand why he’s doing it. As players, it’s our job to execute that. I think I’ve learned a lot. We’ve learned a lot as a team. It’s been a good camp.
Q: He’s an intense guy. You kind of recognized that beforehand and knew that he coaches pretty hard? We listened to the coaches out there at practice. You kind of expected that?
A: Yeah, I think you could tell he’s very enthusiastic, he’s energetic on the field. Guys respond to that. Like I said, it’s been good. I’ve learned a lot. I think as a team, we’ve learned a lot. I’m looking forward to next week and to get ready for week one.
