Transcripts of interviews with selected Jets players during locker room media availability Wednesday afternoon:
QB KELLEN CLEMENS
On the many trick plays being used during today's practice…
That was just to get you guys off track. It's springtime. It's summer ball, it's a time where you can try new stuff. Will some of it show up in the fall? Who knows? Depends on how it looks out there today.
On how long the quarterback competition will last…
I don't have a crystal ball. You might want to ask [if I did have a crystal ball], it's not really good for me to pretend. Best case for you, I think, is to ask Rex. It's his decision ultimately. I know it wasn't over today.
On what his priority is between now and the start of training camp…
Well, the major thing, which took me a little while to learn, is to get some rest. It's not a bad thing to get away from the game and rejuvenate because it's a long season. Sixteen regular-season games plus four preseason games and then hopefully the playoffs, it's a long season. So first and foremost, it's to get some rest.
It's a chance for me to look at some things that I did personally, through OTAs and minicamps, and then I'll go back and look at the tapes and see fundamental things that I need to work on from an individual standpoint. I'll spend two or three weeks doing that. Keep your conditioning up in the weight room, step up, but get away from the game for a little bit and recharge your batteries.
On if he went anywhere else in particular to train during the off-season…
No. You hear of a lot of guys going to places like Arizona, but no, I don't have a place. We get everything we need right here, so I stay here.
On head coach Rex Ryan's swagger…
I like the swagger Coach Ryan has brought to the team and to the organization. I could really care less. They could call us cocky or arrogant or whatever; who cares, let's just go out there and win and that speaks the loudest.
On what he considers his biggest improvement from the end of last season to now…
The biggest thing I think is from an X's-and-O's standpoint. Protections, the running game, there's a lot of onus on the quarterback and it's easy with the group of guys we have up front. Those guys, they make it easy. That's one of the areas where I've tried to really get better because you don't want to waste plays. If you get something defensively that you don't like, then you can check out and get them to something you are [satisfied with]. So that's been a big thing.
I'm still making some mistakes, but I think the growth has been good and getting back to your question, it's one of the things that I'll work on between now and training camp.
On if he feels he is improving reading defenses and making checks…
Yeah, though it's particularly hard against our guys. They're so unconventional with what they do, which is a better challenge for us.
On if mistakes in practice are magnified because of the quarterback competition…
That's just part of playing the position. That's just being a quarterback. You're in a competition with a fellow teammate. In a game, you're going to miss a read, miss a throw. At this point in your career, it's still something you obviously have to work on, but it's something we're used to. We're quarterbacks, we should have a pretty short memory and it's always important to go on to the next play. It's the same as when you're out here competing with a teammate.
On if the competition makes him anxious…
No, if you have anxiety or anxiousness, that's going to tire you out. Get away from the game a little bit, get away from the competition and try to relax for a couple of weeks. We'll be doing this whole thing again up at Cortland. So get away from it, relax a little bit. It's always there in the back of your mind, but it's important to be able to recharge the batteries.
On if it's nice to know who your competition is this year as compared to last year…
Well, yeah, at this time last year, this is what I thought [laughing], it's always changing. What is longevity and what is security? It's a very fluid industry. You're always competing against somebody, but like you said, who is it? I don't know.
QB MARK SANCHEZ
On worrying about being overconfident…
I don't think so. I think [head coach Rex Ryan]'s doing it the right way. We're being quiet about it and we're being confident within ourselves. That is the way you have to play. You have to be so confident in yourself that you know nothing can go wrong and when it does it won't happen again. It's not something that we talk about too much, it is just something that's a noise in the locker room. Any team can have it. You just have to have your own swagger and we're really responding to the way that Coach Ryan is doing it.
On others calling the Jets cocky…
Everyone is going to formulate their own opinion on our team. We just have to create our own identity in the locker room. I think that we are going about it the right way. There really is not much that we need to say about it. It's just kind of Coach Ryan's style and he is not going to offend anybody or say anything about another team. You have to understand Rex. He is lighthearted like that and he likes to have fun with it. On gameday he will be great. It has been a blast so far and I wouldn't change it.
On the back-and-fourth talk with the Dolphins…
They just told me about that so I had no idea. I'm sure that something might have been taken out of context but who knows. People will formulate their own opinions, like I said. That is the last thing on my mind, it's not even on my mind. Everything is going well within our camp here and we are getting off to a great start and looking to get on the field.
On today's practice…
A good day. I felt like I took command in the no-huddle situation. We did a lot with personnel changes today and we looked good. The balls were there. We will clean up some things and improve everyday. I missed Wallace [Wright] on a deep comeback that I should have got him on. I let it go a little early, but it was a good route and I will get him next time. Guys are making great plays and the offensive line is doing really well.
On improvement so far…
Well, you gain confidence as you go. Now I am starting to really feel the defense and see what is going on. As difficult as our defense can be I am starting to get an idea. I am trying to figure out what they are trying to fake me out with. More than anything, judging by the no-huddle situation, today I feel that I am really in command. Before I might not have been as loud because I didn't want to say anything wrong, but now I am going to go play, be myself, have fun and let the ball go. I did that today.
On not speaking loud enough during play calling…
That's just a tool and it's an ongoing chess game. As difficult as the defense is, giving us all different looks, it's our job to try to catch them out of position. I have to get up there and look like we are going quickly then slow it down and make it look like we're going to slow down then go right away. I felt more comfortable with that today and it is just one of those things where I have to practice in my hotel room by screaming into the mirror and getting things going. It's getting better everyday. The coaches and the players are really helping me.
On how to make an impact…
I think that more than anything, the next couple of days are vital. [I have] to show that I am really coming along from rookie camp. Then next week we have rookie OTAs for first and second year guys and rookies. With all of the veterans gone, that is my chance to really take charge and assume command of the offense.
It's not like as soon as those practices are over I am done with football for a while. I might take six or seven days off to relax knowing that we have a long season coming up, but I will be in the playbook and on the phone with Coach Schotty [Brian Schottenheimer] talking as much as we are allowed by the NFL. When it is just me on my own for that dead period it's going to be about going out and visualizing those plays like I do after practice. I need to be confident and ready to go.
On where he will be training…
I am going to go home for a little while because nobody is going to be here. So I will take a vacation right away then go home and then I will work out and be ready to go. I will be able to get all of the film online and be ready to study.
On concern about burning out…
That is why that one week is going to be important. For the workouts I don't have to kill myself I just have to be in good shape. But it's not one of those things where I have to run myself into the ground everyday when I am gone. Work on my strength and conditioning and come back in great physical and mental shape.
On where he works out…
I will work out in [inaudible] facility with a friend of mine. I will get a sheet from [Head Strength and Conditioning Coach] Sal [Alosi] and quarterback-specific stuff.
On looking for a new home…
I have one week that I will be able to. My dad and brother and my mom might be out here so that is when I will be house shopping.
On schedules…
If we have practice on Thursday that means Friday I am doing something like watching film and then Friday we are going to Mr. Johnson's ranch to relax. On Saturday we can wake up late and get some nice food in. Then Sunday we come back and will be here all day, watching film on your weekend. It's important to take that little time off to reset your mind and your focus, then come back ready to go.
On whether he trusts the receivers…
Absolutely. They are running the right routes and it is our job to get it there. Now it is down to the finite details of the miniscule things, the nuances of the game. It's coverage on one specific route when you are expecting one thing and they do something else or you throw the wrong ball. That is when you get back together like we did after practice today. You talk about it, get on the same page and the next time you fix it.
It is getting better every day. The trust is developed on the field as well as off the field. Hanging out with the guys watching these playoff games, hockey and basketball games in local areas here, getting away from football sitting down, getting some food, watching the games. That kind of stuff relates to the field too because then you develop the trust on the field.
On the NBA and NHL playoffs…
I'm obviously for the Lakers. For the Stanley Cup, I have been watching. I would be excited to see the Penguins win. That would be pretty cool to see them come back like that. The NBA Finals, it's the Lakers. Orlando is going to be tough, but I am pumped for the Lake-show.
LB BART SCOTT
On having more work to do to become an elite team…
We understand that we have a lot of work to do. But, we know that we're committed to doing the work and putting in the hours. However long it is, however long it takes to put in the hours and be successful, everybody here is willing to make that sacrifice. [Inaudible] He [Coach Ryan] knows what it looks like, he knows what it doesn't look like so if we're not doing what he wants or likes, I'm sure he will start everything over until he gets what he wants. What he wants is like second nature to guys that have been playing at that tempo.
On people thinking the Jets are "cocky"…
If anything, all it does is feed into us mentally. You can't really be concerned with what other people think about yourself. People that understand us and have been around us understand that we respect the game and we take a very different approach to the game. We put a lot of attention on stopping people from scoring points, which I think is a little bit more difficult to do because the rules are predicated and made to put points on the board for the offense, you know, for fans, so we can sell tickets. We have an appreciation for guys that pay attention to defense and take that approach to the game.
On Rex Ryan's words…
Whatever Coach wants to say, he can say anything and I'm going to ride with him. That's my man. I don't care what he says and likewise. If a player comes in and makes a statement, he's making a statement and expects his teammates to have his back. Because realistically, you're a family, right or wrong. It's up to us to support it and then handle it behind closed doors. A player could say something and start a beef or give another opponent some more material, so it's up to us to make sure we back him up to make it right.
