Washington Commanders tight end Cole Turner addressed the media after practice on Aug. 2. Here is a full transcript of the press conference.
On how he's felt after the first week of camp:
"I feel good. Overall, a couple nicks and bruises, but nothing you can't just play through and practice through every single day. So, I feel good right now."
On the height in the tight end room:
"We're all interchangeable and it's tough on the defense because we're guys that can do a little bit of everything. You know, we're trying to be savages out there, so just doing our part."
On Assistant Head Coach/Offensive Coordinator Eric Bieniemy's offense:
"We're getting a lot more options this year as far as targets and we're a lot more in involved in the pass game. So, you know, it's fun and it's exciting. Every single day there's something new going in and a little creative, you know, something that we're not used to before. It's fun. It's fun to be a part of this offense."
On what he has seen from QB Sam Howell going into his second year:
"I think he's grown a lot as a leader. First off last year, you know, Sam's a pretty quiet guy by nature, but he's really came in now, especially in camp and kind of take control of the offense and rallied the guys around him. It's a little deja vu from when I was at the Senior Bowl with him because I remember at first, he was quiet and then started taking control of offense as the week went on. It's good to see him grow."
On if the intensity and environment changes when pads get on:
"Yeah, I mean, like you said the pads come on and it's a little more physical, a little more intense, more run game. We've been going up against each other for the last 10 days straight now, so guys start to get a little annoyed with each other but that's part of the game and that's what makes you better. You have to learn to deal with those kinds of situations because you have to keep your poise in games too. It gets you ready for the season."
On if he feels a difference in the offense with Bieniemy here this year:
"There's definitely a new sense of urgency. A lot of guys are getting new opportunities to do new things and it's something that every single person here is excited about. We're all lucky to be a part of it. EB's done a great job of leading us and trying to build a culture that is a winning culture and something that we all wanna be a part of."
*On the mentality he has of competing but bettering his teammates: *"I think we all just try to show up with the same mindset every single day and as an offense that's just executing the plays that's called. As far as going against the defense, I think that everyone kind of understands that it's football at the end of the day and we're all to compete hard and we wanna win every single rep. But this is a tough league with a lot of good players, especially on our defense. So, going up against those guys makes us better every single day."
On what the meetings were like yesterday after Bieniemy was telling the offense to get in the huddle faster:
"In the meetings, he just brought the whole offense in and he is just talking about the sense of urgency, procedure and how important those little things are. [Head] Coach Ron [Rivera] and Coach EB, they talk all the time about how close the margin of error in this league. I think we had nine-coin flip games last year, so those type of little things are the things that's are going to make the difference between us winning and losing this year. That's just something they preach every single day. We just have to do our best as players to be mindful of it and take it and execute it on the field."
