Transcript of owner Woody Johnson's remarks to reporters on the sideline during the Jets' Tuesday morning training camp practice at SUNY Cortland:
On being in Cortland for training camp…
You can't get this kind of team-building other than coming to a place like Cortland. Cortland is key to the New York Jets, really. All the things that Coach [Ryan] wants to do, I think this place helps him do it.
On when he arrived in Cortland …
Last night.
On if this is his first practice and his thoughts so far…
Yes, this is my first, seeing all you guys [laughing]. No, it's good, I'm encouraged to talk to the coaches. I talked to Rex, Mike [Pettine], some of the other coaches, Tony [Sparano]. Last night we had a walkthrough. It gets cold here at night, I forgot how cold it gets, but now it's great. They're very confident putting in the plan. A lot of the rookies are overwhelmed, but the vets are getting it. It's a different language, but it's the same thing, so they're learning that, and I think they're pretty confident.
On his expectations for the new offensive system…
I think the guys are taking to Tony. Tony has a different system, but it looks like he's a good teacher, he's a great teacher, from what I can gather. The players seem to be doing well with him.
On his expectations for the team as a whole…
They're the same every year. We want to go all the way. We want to do well. My expectations this year are just the same as other years.
On if he feels that last season didn't end well…
I'm not even focusing on then. We're looking forward from this point. We always want to do better every year and this year is no different. And I think we're equipped to do it.
On if last season can be used as motivation…
Coaching is all about teaching. Coaching is another word for teaching. Teaching is motivation. You have to get your students, if they're learning something complicated, to get motivated so that they're enjoying themselves as well. If you enjoy it, it's easier to learn.
On what he thinks of all the attention on the team this year…
I think it's all part of letting the fan in on what's going on with the New York Jets as opposed to when I talked to you guys about [being transparent] few years ago. We can talk about it on 3-by-5 cards or we can try to let our fans in, through you, on what's going on — the good and bad.
On if he is surprised at the amount of Tim Tebow coverage…
I think the enormity of the coverage probably surprised me a little bit, but nothing more than that, really.
On President Obama's comments about the quarterbacks…
Well, I'm glad. At least he's a New York Jets fan, first and foremost. That's important, the President of the United States being a Jets fan, that's good. The fact that he's a Jets fan, he cares and he's passionate about the New York Jets, obviously, I think it's a positive.
On if he would talk to Mitt Romney about crafting a response…
[Laughing] No, but Romney has been to some games.
On Boomer Esiason's commenting that the team should cut Tebow…
Well, I disagree with that. I think Tebow's going to be a very valuable part of this team going forward. We're optimistic that Tebow can become and be a valuable part of the team.
On what he expects from Sanchez after last season…
I expect a lot and I think he expects a lot, more importantly. When the offense consolidates as a team after Cortland, I think that's going to help. We always have high expectations.
On if the perception of the team after Monday's fight at practice bothers him…
No, not at all. This is camp and they've been hitting each other for a couple of weeks now, so things are going to blow over. They've boiled over every year at every camp. It's not just the New York Jets. To me, that was pretty minor, actually. It's something you don't want to do, but it is something that does happen in camp. It's inevitable.
On how he was updated and stayed informed while he wasn't able to visit training camp…
I called Mike [Tannenbaum] three to four times a day. I would get reports. Anything that happened, I'm notified of. So yeah, before practice, after practice, training room, diet, Cortland, everything that's going on, I hear about it.
On his sense of what's going on now…
I think they're going well. I think the defense is a little ahead of the offense right now, because they've been around. But the tone? They're happy. The guys seem to be getting it with Tony and his whole crew. Putting it in, being here in Cortland, they feel helps because there's less distractions, less things going on. So that's going to be a huge positive.
On if he was surprised by the amount of coverage the team has been getting and why…
Well, I knew there would be press, there would be interest, but even by our standards this is pretty amazing. I don't know. You tell me [laughing].
On the evolution of Rex other than his weight loss…
It's been an incredible accomplishment of his, losing all that weight. He looks much different, doesn't he? I think it's going to be a lot easier on him coaching. I just think it's one of those things as you learn how to do anything. You learn and, if you're humble, so you can learn from things positive and otherwise, you get better. I think he's maturing just like anybody would in a job like this. You don't know everything coming in as head coach. He came in day one and didn't know where to stand. He's never done it before. Now you know where to stand, and you have a better feeling towards the tempo and cadence of being a head coach.
On if he feels just as strong now about Coach Ryan as he did when he hired him to be head coach…
Oh yeah, stronger, stronger.
On ticket sales…
Good, really good. We will be sold out, guaranteed. Guarantee — it'll be like Namath [smiling].
On deciding to lower season ticket prices…
We just felt we wanted a higher percentage of season ticket holders in the upper-bowl seats. We would sell them on an individual game day, but having a season ticket holder we felt was valuable, just from a fan communal standpoint, so we did that and the fans are enthusiastic and we have a lot more season ticket holders as a result.
On his schedule for the rest of the week…
I'm going to be in and out.
On if he will be in attendance for the first preseason game…
Yes.
On if Tebow impacts ticket sales…
I don't know if any single player does that. I think as we get close to the season, we've been selling very, very well all the way through since we announced the discount in particular. I don't think it's one player or another player. It's basically the excitement about the season and the timing of how close we are to the opening of the season.
On if he's had much interaction with Tebow, and his impressions of Tebow…
He's a great person, well-spoken, man of convictions, strong, hard worker, in early, out late — all those things you've heard about him.
On if he likes the amount of interest in his team…
Absolutely. We are in a media business and we want to give our fans an insight and the fact that they're interested, I think, works out well for us. We'd rather have them interested in it rather than apathetic and not paying attention.
On if he is OK with every Tebow move being covered…
I don't like it or not like it. It is what it is. You guys are deciding that that's important for you and your audience, so you're making that decision and emphasizing that more than maybe looking into some of the other stuff on what's happening with the team.
On how he thinks Sanchez has handled the addition of Tebow…
I've talked to Mark and played golf with him a couple weeks ago. I think he's handled it great. Mark also is maturing into his position. It's his fourth year and you'll see the evidence of three years of doing what he did, starting off with a bang. He's throwing it well, he's understands the new Tony Sparano system, I think, and I think he's going to do great.
