Transcript of quarterback Tim Tebow's news conference following the Jets' Monday morning training camp practice at SUNY Cortland:
On how practice was today…
It was a good practice. I felt like we kind of came out and started fast, executed pretty well, 7-on-7 was probably the best one of the camp, and I felt like we did some good things offensively.
On practicing new things that have been talked about…
Well, you know, it's fun. Anytime you get an opportunity to go out there and run around a little bit and play football, it's always fun.
On what the team practiced today…
That was a good question [laughing]. I just played the football that they asked me to play.
On if the Wildcat and run-read option is easier for him to grasp…
Well, it's something that I've had so many reps and gone through that so many times, especially at the University of Florida and even in high school, too. So it's something I'm very comfortable with and obviously, that's why most of the time I am under center and doing things that I haven't done as much, play-action drops, seven-step drops, five-step drops. Getting in the 'gun and doing that stuff has always been a little easier for me.
On if he can perform some of the same checks when he's in the Wildcat…
Some of the same. I think it all depends on our game plan, on our plays, on our checks, going into that game. Getting to the line of scrimmage, we had certain checks verse the looks and were just trying to get in and out of those checks as fast as possible, as clean as possible and as crisp as possible. So with whatever is called, that's what we're going to do is execute and have a fast tempo and play fast, but you can do that in the 'gun, under center, whatever, based on the play.
On how much his size and athleticism will make the Wildcat work…
I don't know, we don't even really know what our game plans are yet. We're just out here trying to execute the plays that they call, so hopefully I can add something to this team. I feel like that's why I'm here, but whatever I can do to help, I'm going to do it with all my heart.
On if being smaller and slower would make the Wildcat tougher…
Well, this is the NFL, so it does help to have a little more size and speed [laughing].
On when he first found out he would be doing the Wildcat in practice today…
I guess in meetings last night. It's just stuff that's brought up in meetings, we talked about it first, tried to come out here and execute.
On if he was surprised they started practicing the Wildcat so quickly…
No, those decisions aren't up to me. I just go out there and practice and do whatever I can to help this team and get better as a quarterback. My priority first and foremost is come out here and execute as a quarterback and go through my reads and get better as a quarterback, which I felt I did today, and I felt we executed well at quarterback, and then whatever else I can do.
On if he is excited about the upcoming game against the Giants…
Absolutely. They're a great team and congratulations to them for winning a Super Bowl, that's great. I just have a lot of respect for them and their players, and it'll be a lot of fun to get a chance to play them.
On if practicing something he's comfortable with makes him more excited …
I don't know if it makes it any more exciting. I think what gets me excited is when you see us go out there and execute. Whether it was that or just regular plays, I felt like today we were able to execute and have a lot of explosive plays, a lot of big plays. Besides probably that last drill, I felt like we had one of our best days out there, so it's a great sign for the offense. We just keep getting better.
On if he is excited to see how innovative Coach Sparano will be with the offense…
Well, that's the thing about Coach Sparano, he's someone that is extremely creative, extremely passionate, and he's going to do whatever it takes to win. It's not same old, same old with him, he's continually talking about new things, looking at new things, and I think that's the sign of a great coach.
On if it's important to keep the offensive plans close to the team…
I don't know. I think obviously, anything scheme related based on plays, other things, obviously you want to keep that in house, but at the same time we've got to go out there and execute it and run it, so you can't be too secretive either.
On if there has been any emphasis to keep their plans in house…
I don't know if it's been an emphasis. I think similar to anything we do, we don't want to talk about our schemes, our plays, our leads, stuff like that, probably as little as we have to.
On if Sparano is worried about details getting out about the Wildcat plays…
I think he's just a smart coach. And he's someone that has been around for a while and been doing this awhile. And he just wants it to be something that we know and that we understand, but not something that we are always talking about.
On if he's seen this much secrecy around a game plan…
Also, I don't know if I've ever seen this much interest [laughter]. I don't know, I don't know if its secrecy. I think it's just we're going out there, we're running our offense and our plays and our reads. It's just part of the offense to us. Like we wouldn't talk about play action plays, it's just not something that we're going to talk about how we do it.
On having a part of so much secrecy…
I've never been a part of that before. I mean, playing for Coach [Urban] Meyer, he's definitely someone that keeps it close to the vest. So that's probably the most I've ever been around. But here, it's just trying to execute our plays, wasn't hiding anything, just going out there and running it.
On his role on the team…
I feel good about my role on the team, every day coming out here, trying to get better, learn my teammates, be a great teammate, give great effort, have a great attitude. I try to be someone that's a leader out there on the field. So every day I'm getting more comfortable.
On if Denver was secretive with read option plays during the first week of last season…
Not really. That grew more as the season went along. But starting off, there really wasn't a whole lot in early on. One or two things that I guess you could technically say were, but for the most part it was just our offense.
On running plays today…
I felt we did some things that were pretty smooth. I think we executed some of it pretty well. Obviously there are certain areas we want to get better at, but for the most part, overall, I felt it was a good practice.
On if it was the first time they ran the plays from today's practice…
Some of it was the first time. Some of it we've done bits and pieces before. Some of our new play action stuff we've done before so we're still putting in some of the install. Some of that stuff was new out there today for us. But some of it we've gone over once or twice. But overall, I felt with everything, we executed pretty well. I think it was a good day offensively.
On if he thinks he's getting the ball out faster…
I do. I felt today was probably one of my best days at that. Getting it to the backs, checking it down, seven-on-seven, first and third-down plays. So I felt it was overall a good day.
On how the first game felt…
Well, it was fun. It was fun to go out there and play the first game. Being in a Jet uniform was fun. It'll be fun playing at home. I am looking forward to that. That'll be exciting. Yeah, it felt good. It felt good to go out there and get some plays. It's exciting. I look forward to my second opportunity.
On how he handles questions about the Wildcat plays…
[Laughing] I don't know. I handle it like anything else, like all the other questions. Just handle it as best I can and just on the field handle as best I can here, have a great attitude. Just be genuine and real and authentic about it. Just be who I am, I don't know.
On why he thinks there's so much interest…
I don't know. It's hard to say. We're still just going out there and playing football. You just got to block, tackle, run, throw, catch. It's all the same.
On how he feels about having a lot of work as the second-string quarterback…
It's exciting, keeps you involved, working, helping the team. Those are all things you want. You want to be involved, you want to feel like you're adding something to the team, helping this team. And those are all things that excited me and make me want to work harder and go out there and continue to get better every day.
On if he felt more involved today…
I don't know if I was more involved. I probably got similar reps as most days. I mean, obviously in certain periods I probably played more. But right now, it's just training camp so our main focus is just executing, getting better as a quarterback first and foremost.
On his foundation…
Yeah, it's going great. It's something that's very exciting. Hanging out with Sepp [Joseph Shirley] the other night, he was a great kid. I met him when I was at a football camp. He was literally running around with crutches and asking to catch the ball and I was just so inspired by him and I was like, this kid is awesome and his school had him out there the other night.
On if this whole situation has been wild… [Laughing] I don't know. It's interesting, it's fun.
