2013 Houston Texans OTAs: Quotes From Day Four

As organized team activities continue, so too do the excellent quote sheets from our friends at the team's official site. In light of yesterday's OTA injury news, I reckon you'll want to read on. Here's a link to the full story; I'll hit on a few of the more noteworthy snippets below.

Gary Kubiak:

(on RB Arian Foster’s injury) "(He) strained his calf; we’re gonna go get it looked at. I don’t know, it was the first play of team, so we’ll see."

(on if RB Arian Foster’s injury is concerning) "It’s always concerning. Like I said, you’re trying to get better out here and work everybody. It’s part of football so we’ll see what’s wrong, see what happened."

(on OLB Willie Jefferson) "He’s doing some good stuff. He’s long, he’s thin. He can put on some weight. Reminds us of (OLB Bryan) Braman a lot when we got Braman started a couple years ago. So a lot of ability there and see if we can get it all channeled in the right direction."

(on RG Brandon Brooks coming back for his second year weighing less) "He looks really good. And I talk about young players getting better, he’s obviously a guy who stands out right now. He’s been very good throughout these OTAs. The thing you hope for as a coach when you’ve all the sudden got a young guy and you say, ‘Okay. You’re the starter,’ which is basically what we’ve done with (RG) Brandon (Brooks), he starts acting like it. And he’s done that; he’s had a good four days."

(on the potential of RG Brandon Brooks) "The potential is unlimited, it really is. He’s got so much. The thing is, he’s getting comfortable with what we’re doing. That’s the biggest thing right now. He acts like one of the guys now. He doesn’t stand out as a young guy now. He acts like one of the guys. So I’m excited for him."

(on how the team is using OLB Brooks Reed) "Well, we’re not very flexible with him right now. He’s lining up inside and working inside. We think that’s important for his development, to get the reps there right now. Obviously, he can go back and play SAM any day, so that’s a good thing. (OLB) Brooks (Reed) is going to be a good player wherever we put him, whether inside or outside. So he’s having really good OTAs."

DeAndre Hopkins:

(on if he’s seeking advice from any other receivers than Andre Johnson) "All of them. Every single receiver out here because they’ve been in the system for a year. So why not?"

(on the biggest part of the learning curve so far) "Just the pace of the game. It’s faster than college even though ours was fast-paced at Clemson. It’s a lot faster."

(on if he holds his breath when he sees a teammate like RB Arian Foster leave the field with an injury) "Of course."

Andre Johnson:

(On if WR DeAndre Hopkins still has a lot of questions for him) "Yeah, now with the practices and stuff like that going on it’s just plays that he sometimes gets confused with. He pretty much, most of the time, knows what he’s doing. Like I said, you’re going to have questions with the system being new for him and stuff like that. He’s not really out here making a lot of mental errors or anything like that during practice, which is a good thing. As time goes on, he’ll continue to get better and better."

(on if he saw what happened to RB Arian Foster) "No, I don’t even know. It was when we were running a play and I just saw him limping back off the field. I don’t know exactly what happened. I’ll find out once I get in the locker room."

(on if he holds his breath when someone limps off during practice) "I think if it was real bad, I think we would’ve known about it by now. I don’t think that it’s nothing real bad, maybe a strain or something. I don’t know. I’ll find out once I get in the locker room."

(on WR Keshawn Martin) "Keshawn, he looks comfortable. That’s one thing that sticks out. He looks comfortable and very confident in what he’s doing. I think he’s going to be a lot better for us this year."

Sam Montgomery:

(on if it’s tough to adjust to the NFL, where players are bigger, stronger and faster) "You have one choice: either you get with them our you get out. So I’m definitely trying to progress with them and get with them."

(on if it was emotional to sign his first NFL contract) "Of course it was emotional, but really, I don’t have time to relax. I don’t’ have time to do that because I have to go practice tomorrow. I’ve got to compete with (DE) J.J. (Watt) tomorrow. I’ve got to compete with (DE) Antonio (Smith) tomorrow. I’ve got to compete with (OLB) Brooks (Reed) tomorrow. So it’s definitely one of those things where it might be a moment of relief but overall, it’s long work."