:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/14235963/gyi0061475900.0.jpg)
The eighth OTA for your Houston Texans now belongs to the ages. As always, the team's official site has a full transcript of the post-practice quote goodness; here's a link. Below for your immediate perusal are some of the more interesting things said.
Gary Kubiak:
(on S D.J. Swearinger) "He’s an impressive young man because he acts like he’s been doing it for a while. But we knew that when we studied him coming out in college. He looks like a player that you could see very, very quickly for us on the field. Very confident."
(on how far WR DeVier Posey has come in his rehab) "He’s doing great but he can only do so much. He’s doing everything he can do. The old ‘ahead of schedule,’ that applies here. But remember, we’re making a decision on him at the end of camp because of the PUP and those type of things. He’s doing everything he can. He’s going to come back and he’s going to play for us next year. How early is the question."
Brandon Brooks:
(on looking quicker and if he feels quicker) "Just being a younger guy last year, you kind of feel your way around until you know concretely what’s going on. I got a pretty good understanding of the playbook so I can just go out there and play instead of having to think. That’s where you’d see me playing a little slower last year."
(on having veterans on the offensive line as role models) "The first thing I did when I came back was get with Wade (Smith) and just let him know that I am completely serious about this and that I would appreciate it if yourself, Chris Myers and Duane would took me under their wing and they did that. When we would meet in the offseason, I would go an extra 30-45 minutes with them, so I would know what they would see along with what the coach sees, so we could all be on the same page."
Danieal Manning:
(on the entire team attending tomorrow’s Firefighter Memorial and that not every team would necessarily come to it) "This is why they’re one of a kind. You don’t have guys like this. You want to have an organization, you want to have a community in a city that’s like this. We’re expecting maybe 50,000 or 60,000 people here and I think that’s great. We’re pushing time up and nobody’s complaining about being here early in the morning because we know what this really is about. It could have been anyone’s family member, so you always want to be able to show support in that way."
(on it not taking long for the team to decide on going to the Firefighter Memorial) "It doesn’t take any time to just go there. You should want to do that. We’re all supposed to all treat each other right and do the right thing, so that’s what we should do."
Matt Schaub:
(on what sticks out to him about WR DeAndre Hopkins) "What we do every day is not too big to him. He comes out, he’s learning. He’s gotten a lot thrown at him but he’s like a sponge. He’s absorbing as much information as he can. He’s listening, he’s taking instruction and he’s really applying it to what he’s doing on the field. The more he grasps, the more his playmaking ability; what he can do with the football in his hands will take over. It’s impressive to watch his progress as we move through OTAs."
(on the importance of timing with receivers re-emphasizes the need to be out at OTAs) "Absolutely. This time period is huge for us because for veterans, it lets us get back into the groove, get back into what we’re doing, drill work and just seeing things and play. For these young guys; how we practice, how we prepare, how we meet, how we go about our business, so when camp comes, we can just go."
(on WR Alan Bonner’s progress) "He’s doing well. He’s making plays, he’s doing what we’re asking. He’s doing a lot. We’re doing a lot more than he’s probably every had to do in his past and position. He’s understanding his adjustments and what we’re asking him to do. So the more he can grasp and understand, the more he can just let his athleticism and playmaking ability take over so then he won’t have to think as much on the field."
(on how often he sits down with WR DeAndre Hopkins) "We definitely have a lot of that. It’s hard to find that time right now because of all the meeting time we have as a group. We have a lot of time this summer to go back and watch film, watch last year, talk through things, let him understand what we’re trying to get done with certain routes."