On being on the same page after limited preseason reps:
I think the biggest way I get a feel for that is from practice. We have some live reps together, which is a good thing, but you have way more quality time in practice. You're confident that if you practice well then you'll play well. We've been putting together some good practices as of late, so, feel really good going into it.
On unknowns and nerves:
No, I don't think there's any nerves. Everyone's professionals here, but you do know there's times where it's going to look amazing, and times where it's going to look like a peewee team out there. So you just gotta avoid that and try and be as consistent as possible. Obviously a lot of new pieces on both sides. We're working together, and I'm looking forward to seeing the hard work pay off. It doesn't matter, again, if you do well in practice, you're confident about it. You still have to execute in the games, and that's what it all comes down to.
On holding stuff back from preseason, and how it compares to other situations:
You practice things, you don't show everything that you have, but at the end of the day, it's football. We're not gonna have some magic play these teams have never seen before. It might be new coming from us, but it's nothing they've never seen before. So, you don't want to show all your cards, but they know what you have. So it's on us to go out there and play well. And it limits you in the preseason. There's certain things you can't get out of, certain calls you can't get out of because you want to see what it looks like, put it on film so we can see it in practice. There's no secrets, we'll see what happens on Sunday, see what kind of cool stuff we have. Probably mores for the defense than us.
On deep strike early to set a tone:
I mean I'd like to have us score some points. Whatever way that happens. But it's not like the defensive coaches are going to look at me on the field and not know that I can't run. So, I'm not really, I approach it all the same. I just want to go out and score points, and whatever may be, whether it's running the ball all the way down the field, or dinking and dunking, or making one big play. We just need to score some points, figure out a way to win.
On Smith and Kap working on the deep ball:
Yea, since you all left it's been lovely. We've hit a lot more as of late in practice. But again, it's practice. I've been catching them for years, he's been throwing them for years. We just gotta make it all happen at the right time, you know? During the game. It's a whole, on a play like that, it's not about just us two. It's about the guys up front, getting it done, giving him time. We're the last leg of the race. We gotta make it happen, especially when they work that hard.
On what's needed for jump from preseason to regular season:
I think it's on all of us to be consistent. Just make plays that are there. Don't make things too complicated, and move the ball. That's on all of us to get it done. There's no secret to being a good offense. Do the little things right, it'll all add up.
On Acker, Reaser:
I didn't even know they missed all that time when I first got here. I think it says a lot about what they did, rehab-wise, to get to where they are. They're doing a great job. Both young, both very talented. There's gonna be some bumps in the road, but I think they'll be able to handle anything that's coming their way, that's gonna come their way. They've been showing in practice, doing a great job.
On comparing traits of corners as a receiver:
I think they're just as good as anyone else. Get out of their breaks very well. They can be physical, mix it up. I think they're both very smooth, that's probably the thing that stands out the most about them. And they're confident, which probably means more than anything. Especially at their position, because like I said, there's gonna be some times where receivers make some plays and they're going to have to be able to bounce back. And they're new, so quarterbacks might try to pick on them, see where they stand. They're gonna have to be able to stand up to that. I think they'll be ready for it.
On conclusions from preseason and holding stuff back:
Again, it's all just football plays. It's on us to, whatever we run, we need to make it work. Whether it's a simple play that's going to be a staple for us, or a brand new play that we're going to put in, it's all about execution. If we did that a little more, we probably would have scored more points while we were in there, but I think it was alright. I don't think it was anything special. In the preseason, and it's on us to get started off on the right foot and continue to grow throughout this marathon. It isn't just a one-game thing.
On being back with Anquan Boldin:
Oh, it's awesome. A familiar face, a guy I look up to a lot. He's real family, like a brother to me, so to be able to play with him again, I'm real excited about it. Seeing what we can do, and help him out, taking some pressure off him.
On overcoming offseason:
I think that, I mean all these things that have happened, so many different things. It is what it is. Everyone has their own individual things that happen when they leave here, and we have to focus on playing football. That's the most important thing. Things are going to continue to happen, both on and off the field. That isn't the team's fault. It's on us as players to carry ourselves a certain way. It's not the league's fault, getting on us as players to take care of business when we leave here. And things have happened, and everyone's dealt with it, and it's on us to focus on Minnesota.
On nine captains:
I think that we have a lot of great leaders on this team. I've been able to see that, especially coming in. It's a lot of natural leaders. It isn't forced, and I think it's pretty cool the coaches allowed us to keep more. It's not like it puts pressure on anyone, but it just shows we have a lot of quality guys and we didn't even have that many votes. If anything it shows how balanced out it was, which is always a good thing.