SATURDAY DESIGNATED AS “KIDS DAY AT LIONS CAMP"

In Play Magazine

Allen Park, Mich.—The Detroit Lions will host “Kids Day at Lions Camp” during their training camp practice Saturday, August 6 that will begin at 9:15 a.m. Saturday’s practice is open to the general public. Gates will open at 8 a.m. and access is on a first-come, first-serve basis.

In addition to watching the 2011 Detroit Lions prepare for the upcoming season at the team’s training facility in Allen Park, there will be additional festivities geared for young Lions fans.

Among the activities and events tentatively scheduled are:

• Appearance by Roary, the team’s mascot
• Facepainters for the kids
• Lions Interactive Inflatables: the popular Giant Lions Head, Quarterback Challenge and Lions Helmet House
• Team’s autograph tent will be designated for Kids Only (14 years of age and under)
• Free Lions mini footballs for the first 300 kids in attendance and other Lions giveaways.
• Special autographed raffle items for Detroit Lions Kids Club members or for new members who sign up on Saturday. Winners will be drawn and notified Monday, August 8.

Practice sessions at Allen Park are open for outdoor practices only and are subject to change. In the case of inclement weather, practices will be moved indoors and therefore closed to the public. Rain Dates are available as necessary and will be announced for selected sessions that close due to inclement weather.

Parking, Entry and Fan Viewing Areas

• Parking is available in designated lots on Republic Drive near the Lions Headquarters and Training Facility.
• Re-entry is not permitted and children under 18 must be accompanied by an adult. Personal belongings are subject to inspection upon entry and items not permitted into open practices include: professional cameras (lenses over five inches long and/or 50mm or above), any video camera, food, beverage, coolers, lawn chairs, blankets, umbrellas, backpacks or large bags.
• • All cell phones should be turned off or placed on silent or vibrating mode. The fan viewing area features: bleacher seating areas, additional standing areas and a shaded tent area. Concessions are also available.

Autographs at Allen ParkThough autographs are not guaranteed, it is common for Lions’ players to meet fans following practice sessions.

Read In Play! Magazine Here

DETROIT LIONS STATEMENT ON DT NICK FAIRLEY

In Play Magazine

MONDAY, AUGUST 3, 2011
5 P.M. ET
“The examination of Nick Fairley's foot today by Dr. Bob Anderson resulted in a diagnosis consistent with that of Lions’ team physicians that surgical correction was required. Accordingly, surgery was successfully performed this afternoon in Charlotte, N.C., by Dr. Anderson. Nick is expected to miss a significant portion of training camp.”

Read In Play! Magazine Here

DETROIT LIONS DAILY UPDATE FOR TUESDAY, AUGUST 2, 2011

In Play Magazine

Team signs WR Maurice Stovall and releases WR Jared Jenkins.

 

TRANSACTIONS

The Detroit Lions announced today the contract signings for the following players:

 

Unrestricted Free Agents: WR Maurice Stovall (one-year deal).

 

In other roster moves, the team has released WR Jared Jenkins.

 

Read In Play! Magazine Here

DETROIT LIONS DAILY UPDATE FOR MONDAY, AUGUST 1, 2011

In Play Magazine

Team signs LB Stephen Tulloch.

TRANSACTIONSThe Detroit Lions announced today the contract signings for the following players:

Unrestricted Free Agents: LB Stephen Tulloch (one-year deal).

In other roster moves, the team has released CB Marquis Liverpool.

 

NOTEBOOK

• The team completed their third training camp practice today at the team’s practice facility in Allen Park (MI) with a morning workout in shells (shoulder pads and helmets) on the outdoor fields in front of a crowd of 1,281 fans.
• T Jeff Backus and CB Alphonso Smith did not participate in practice today and remain on the Active/Non-Football Injury list.
• The following Lions players are not permitted to practice until ratification of the new CBA (expected August 4): LB Korey Bosworth, LB Caleb Campbell, WR Rashied Davis, LB Justin Durant, FB Jerome Felton, DT Andre Fluellen, C Dylan Gandy, T Corey Hilliard, CB Maurice Leggett, WR Stefan Logan, CB Brandon McDonald, CB Prince Miller, LB Ashlee Palmer, S Randy Phillips, DT Quinn Pitcock, CB Paul Pratt, K Dave Rayner, LB Stephen Tulloch, T Tony Ugoh, QB Drew Stanton, S John Wendling and CB Eric Wright.

Read In Play! Magazine Here

DETROIT LIONS DAILY UPDATE FOR FRIDAY, JULY 29, 2011

In Play Magazine

Team announces first free agent transactions of new league year.

TRANSACTIONS

The Detroit Lions announced today the contract signings for the following players:

• Unrestricted Free Agents: WR Rashied Davis, LB Justin Durant, C Dylan Gandy, K Dave Rayner, QB Drew Stanton, and S John Wendling.
• Free Agents: CB Maurice Leggett and DT Quinn Pitcock.
• Restricted Free Agents: FB Jerome Felton and DT Andre Fluellen.
• Exclusive Rights Players: LB Korey Bosworth, LB Caleb Campbell, T Corey Hilliard, WR Stefan Logan, CB Prince Miller, LB Ashlee Palmer, S Randy Phillips, CB Paul Pratt.

In other roster moves, Detroit released LB Jordon Dizon and WR Bryant Johnson and placed T Jeff Backus and CB Alphonso Smith on the Active/Non-Football Injury list.

 

Read In Play! Magazine Here

STATEMENT FROM LIONS PRESIDENT TOM LEWAND

In Play Magazine

“First and foremost, we are happy for our fans because all they ever wanted was for us to play football and, thankfully, that’s what we are getting ready to do. This agreement is a big win for NFL football and for all NFL fans because it helps secure the long-term health of our game.

 

“It is a fair deal for players and teams. We will be able to grow the game and appropriately share that growth with our players as partners. It is a deal that places a high priority on player safety and on the integrity of our game.

 

“Both sides worked extremely hard throughout this process. All involved are to be commended on getting a deal done in time to avoid any disruption to the 2011 regular season.

 

“I want to especially thank our player representative, Kyle Vanden Bosch, and all Lions players who conducted themselves so professionally over the past several months. We are excited to see them again beginning tomorrow.”

Read In Play! Magazine Here

LIONS HALL OF FAME TE CHARLIE SANDERS ON PASSING OF HALL OF FAME TE JOHN MACKEY

In Play Magazine

“His loss is a tremendous loss, not only for the NFL and what he stood for, but it’s also a reminder of what this game is all about.

 

“Even after his career was over with, he remained a hero for a lot of other reasons than just playing football. The primary reason being some of the things that he brought to the forefront of football in terms of injuries and so forth.

 

"He was a tremendous ball player, and he was a great person and a role model too. When I came into the league as a rookie, he was the premier tight end of the NFL. He really set the standard for the prototype tight end.

 

“I didn’t have a hero or idolize anybody growing up, so he was the one player that I idolized and tried to copy more than anyone else throughout my career. I took pride in trying to get to the top where he was.

 

“He’s going to be sorely missed.”

Read In Play! Magazine Here

HEAD COACH JIM SCHWARTZ ADDS BRANDON FISHER TO DEFENSIVE STAFF

In Play Magazine

Allen Park, Mich.—The Detroit Lions announced today that they have added Brandon Fisher as an assistant to the defensive coaching staff. Fisher spent part of the 2010 season helping the Tennessee Titans’ offensive coaching staff.

 

Fisher was a standout linebacker at the University of Montana where he played in 54 games (30 starts) and finished with 169 career tackles. As a senior, he was a second team All-Big Sky Conference pick and helped lead the Grizzlies to a 14-1 record with their only loss being to Villanova (23-21) in the Football Championship Subdivision title game. Fisher began his collegiate career as a safety, but began the transition to linebacker in 2008.

 

As a business marketing major at Montana, Fisher was named to the All-District 7 academic squad with a 3.9 GPA as well the FCS Athletic Director Association’s Academic All-Star team. He was also a three-time all-league academic team selection.

 

Fisher’s father, Jeff, was head coach of the Tennessee Titans for 16-plus seasons (1994-2010).

Read In Play! Magazine Here

Detroit Lions #1 Draft Pick NICK FAIRLEY - Stats

In Play Magazine

NICK FAIRLEY

Defensive Tackle/Defensive End

University of Auburn Tigers

#90

6:04.1-298

Mobile, Alabama

Copiah-Lincoln Community College

Lillie B Williamson High School

OVERVIEW

Auburn relied heavily on two junior college transfers during its run to a BCS Champion-ship title in 2010. While Cam Newton garnered most of the media’s attention for his production on offense, it was Nick Fairley who provided the Tigers with a disruptive interior force on the defensive side of the ball. Fairley’s effort didn’t go unnoticed, as he was presented with the Rotary Lombardi Trophy, awarded annually to college football’s top lineman.

Fairley earned consensus All-American recognition and was named the Southeastern Conference Defensive Player of the year after placing third in the NCAA in tackles for loss (1.71 tpg) and 12th in sacks (.82 spg). The junior broke Auburn’s single-season record with 11.5 sacks for minus 74 yards, topping the previous mark of 11 reached by Gary Walker (1994),

Kevin Greene (1984) and Craig Ogletree (1989). It was nearly impossible to keep the defensive tackle out of the backfield, as he posted an impressive 24.0 tackles for losses totaling 106 yards and 21 quarterback hurries.

Fairley has had a profound impact on the Tigers’ front four. Before his arrival, the Auburn run defense ranked 54th

nationally, allowing 138.92 yards per game on the ground in 2008. Fairley played in all 13 games in 2009 but started just two contests while his team finished a lowly 78th vs. the run (156.08 ypg). He started all 14 games of the 2010 season and emerged as a dominant presence along the Tigers’ front wall, leading a unit that boasted the NCAA’s ninth-ranked rushing defense, allowing just 109.07 yards per game.

Fairley was a standout on both sides of the trenches at Lillie B. Williamson High School (Mobile, Ala.). His blocking raded out at 97 percent on offense while he tallied over 90 tackles on defense. He was a finalist for the 5A Lineman of the Year Award and was a 5A All-State selection by the ASWA.

Recruiting services viewed Fairley more as an offensive line prospect coming out of high school. He was given a threestar rating by Rivals.com, who listed him as the 28th-best offensive guard in the nation and the 15th overall prospect from the state of Alabama. Scout.com also rated him a three-star prospect and ranked him as the 27th-best offensive guard in the country. He was also listed as the 32nd offensive tackle recruit by ESPN.com.

He was offered scholarships from several universities, including Auburn, Alabama, Kansas State, Louisville, Southern

Mississippi and West Virginia. Auburn recruited Fairley as a defensive end and he elected to commit to the Tigers on signing day.

Fairley improved his grades first in Wesson, Mississippi, where he signed with Copiah-Lincoln Community College in 2007. He enrolled late and was allowed to redshirt his first year to retain eligibility. In 2008, he earned an All-Region XII selection after collecting 63 tackles with seven sacks and nine stops for loss in seven games.

Fairley was rated a four-star defensive tackle according to Scout’s junior college rankings, while Rivals listed him as a three-star prospect. A few schools tried to make a run at the standout defensive lineman, but Fairley never wavered on his commitment to Auburn.

Fairley finally enrolled at the University of Auburn in 2009 and played in all 13 games during his first season at the FBS level. He started the season opener vs. Louisiana Tech and the Outback Bowl vs. Northwestern, finishing the year with 28 tackles (36 solos), including 1.5 sacks for minus 15 yards and 3.5 stops for losses totaling 20 yards. He added seven quarterback pressures, a fumble recovery and a blocked kick.

In 2010, Fairley enjoyed a breakout campaign that saw him earn SEC Defensive Lineman or Defensive Player of the Week honors on five occasions. He appeared unblockable at times and finished the year ranking fifth on the team with 60 tackles (36 solos), including 11.5 sacks for minus 74 yards and 24.0 stops for losses totaling 106 yards. He added 21 quarterback hurries, two forced fumble, two fumble recoveries and an interception.

Auburn was pitted against the Oregon Ducks in the BCS Championship game and the two team’s high-powered offensive attacks garnered all of the talk leading into the matchup. However, it was Fairley and the Auburn defense that stole the show, holding a Ducks unit that had averaged 49.33 points per game to just 19 points in a close victory. Fairley earned Defensive Most Valuable Player honors after registering five solo tackles with one sack for minus seven yards, three stops for losses of 14 yards and one forced fumble to put a fitting end to a stellar junior season.

CAREER NOTES

Fairley started 16-of-27 games for Auburn, recording 88 tackles (50 solos) with 13.0 sacks for minus 89 and 27.5 stops for losses totaling 126 yards

…Delivered a total of 32 tackles-for-loss (solos/assists), as he posted 28 quarterback pressures

…Forced two fumbles and recovered three others

…Intercepted one pass and added a blocked kick

…Fairley set a school record with 11.5 sacks in 2010, topping the previous mark of 11 reached by Gary Walker (1994), Kevin Greene (1984) and Craig Olgetree (1989).

2010 SEASON

Consensus All-American first-team selection (AP, Walter Camp and FWAA)

…All-SEC first-team choice…Recipient of the Rotary Lombardi Trophy, awarded annually to the nation’s top collegiate lineman

…Finalist for the Chuck Bednarik Award (Top Defender)

…Honored as the SEC’s Defensive Player of the Year

…Defensive MVP of the BCS Championship game

…Earned SEC Defensive Player of the Week honors vs. Mississippi State, and Defensive Lineman of the Week honors vs. Louisiana-Monroe, Arkansas, Louisiana State and Alabama

…Started the entire year at defensive tackle, ranking fifth on the team with 60 tackles (36 solos)

…Had 11.5 sacks for minus 74 yards, as he led the SEC and placed 12th nationally with 0.82 sacks per game

…Posted 24.0 stops for losses of 106 yards, as he led the conference and ranked third in the NCAA with 1.71 tackles for loss per game

… Led a unit that was tops in the SEC and ranked ninth in the nation, allowing just 109.07 yards per game on the ground

…Paced a unit that placed 24th in the NCAA in sacks (2.50 spg) and 16th in tackles for loss (7.07 tpg)

…Forced two fumbles and recovered two others

…Made 58 plays vs. the ground game, holding those ball carriers to minus 25 yards (-0.43 ypc), as the defender limited those runners to just three first downs while producing 12 third-down stops

…Delivered four of those tackles inside the red zone, including one on a goal-line play, as he posted 27 total stops (solos/assists) for loss and six tackles that brought down ball carriers at the line

of scrimmage for no gain

…Made two stops vs. the aerial attack, holding receivers to 17 yards (8.5 ypc) and one first on

those receptions

…Had 21 quarterback pressures, including two on third-down and two more on fourth-down

…Intercepted one third-down pass attempt, returning it for minus one yard

…Set a school record with 11.5 sacks, topping the previous mark of 11 reached by Gary Walker (1994), Kevin Greene (1984) and Craig Ogletree (1989).

2009 SEASON

Played in all 13 games with two starts and finished 13th on the team with 28 tackles (14 solos), including 1.5 sacks for minus 15 yards and 3.5 stops for losses totaling 20 yards

…Added seven quarterback pressures…Also recovered one fumble and blocked a kick.

JUNIOR COLLEGE

Attended Copiah-Lincoln Community College (Wesson, Mississippi) from 2007-08, playing football for head coach Glen Davis

…All-Region XII selection in 2008

…Played in seven games and delivered 63 tackles with seven sacks and nine stops for loss

…Rated a four-star defensive tackle prospect according to Scout.com’s junior college rankings

…Given a three-star rating by Rivals.com…Redshirted his first season in 2007 after enrolling late.

CAMPUS AGILITY TESTS

4.83 in the 40-yard dash.

HIGH SCHOOL

Attended Lillie B. Williamson High School (Mobile, AL), playing football for head coach Bobby Parrish

…5A All-State selection by the ASWA

…Finalist for the 5A Lineman of the Year Award

…Graded out a 97 percent on the offensive line and added five receptions for 150 yards as a tight end in 2007

…Posted more than 90 tackles on defense while his Lions squad registered a 6-5 record

…Participated in the Alabama-Mississippi All-Star Classic as a senior and the AHSAA North/South All-Star game as a junior

…Given a three-star rating by Rivals.com, who listed him as the 28th-best offensive guard prospect in the nation and the 15th-best recruit from the state of Alabama

…Also given a three-star rating by Scout.com, as that recruiting service ranked him as the 27th-best offensive guard in the country

…Rated the 32nd-best offensive tackle recruit according to ESPN.com…Offered scholarships from Alabama, Kansas State, Louisville, Southern Mississippi and West Virginia before committing to Auburn.

PERSONAL

Undeclared major…Son of Paula Rogers and Herbert Rogers…One of nine siblings…Born 1/23/88…Resides in Mobile,Alabama.

PLAYER STATISTICS

DEFENSIVE STATISTICS

STATS GP GS TK SO AS FR FC INT TFL PBU SACK PRES

2009 13 02 28 14 14 1 0 0 3.5-20 0 1.5-15 7

2010 14 14 60 36 24 2 2 1 24.0-106 0 11.5-74 21

TOTAL 27 16 88 50 38 3 2 1 27.5-126 0 13.0-89 28

INTERCEPTION RETURNS

STATS NO YARDS AVG TD LONG

2010 1 -1 -1.00 0 0

ADDITIONAL STATISTICS…Had 63 tackles with seven sacks and nine stops for loss at Copiah-Lincoln Community College in

2008…Blocked a kick vs. Tennessee in 2009.

Read In Play! Magazine Here

DETROIT LIONS GM MARTIN MAYHEW TALKS ABOUT DRAFT DAY

In Play Magazine

April 21, 2011

Detroit Lions GM Martin Mayhew spoke to the media today about the upcoming 2011 NFL Draft.

Opening statement

"We finished up our draft meetings on Tuesday and now we're in the process of going through some scenarios and talking about some players and breaking some ties and that kind of thing. We'll be doing that up until next week. I feel great about the process. I can't say enough about the great job that our coaches and our scouts did in the process. I guess we're pretty much ready to go."

On if he will draft more for fit than best on the board since there are fewer needs

"I think we have a lot more needs than people realize. There are a lot of places we can get better and there are a lot of good players in this draft. Our philosophy has been to take the best player – I don't think that's going to change."

On the differences in how this draft will fall without free agency or teams' ability to re-sign players

"It actually fits in great with our philosophy because it allows us to just be true to our board. We know there's going to be some form of free agency coming forward – we believe that. So it allows us to kind of stick with our board and take the best player and fill in whatever gaps we have to fill in later with a better, quality player."

On prospect of trades during the draft this year and whether they've discussed them with other teams

"I think the great thing about the draft is you don't know how it's going to go – you really have no idea how it's going to all play out. I think the fact that there are a lot of teams that seem to have a need at quarterback could cause there to be more trades in the first round – the first, second round. But you really just never know. "It's still pretty early in the process, but we have contact with a couple of teams. We can keep our options open; we could go up, we could go back. It could go either way for us, but we make calls on both ends of that."

On if he's confident he can get an impactful player at 13

"We think there's going to be a good player there at 13. To say impactful… players have various levels of impact. I think we'll get a quality player that should be here for a long time. "Our philosophy – going back to what we were talking about the last couple years – we're not drafting to get ready for the first game of the season. We're drafting for the future of the franchise. We also don't view the draft as a finish line; we're not going to get done with the draft and say, 'Hey, we're all good.' I thought our pro scouts did a great job last year finding players after the draft. Guys like Stefan Logan, John Wendling; two pro bowl alternates that we found after the draft. Young guys like Alphonso Smith, Lawrence Jackson. So we'll keep looking after this process. We don't think that we'll fill all of our needs or take care of all of our personnel problems in this draft; it'll be an ongoing process this year going into next year and years following that. It's a long-term process for us."

On having two first round picks in each of the past two drafts and if moving up is part of his philosophy

"The last two years were unique situations. Obviously we went into 2009 with two first-round picks. Last year there was a player who we felt was an early first-round talent who was dropping down in the draft and we had a very early pick in the second round, which made it a little bit easier. We were able to move into the first round without giving up a pick – just flopping picks in the fourth round and giving up a seventh. Those situations were kind of different and it will be a bit more expensive to get back in the first round this year. "If you go back to 2009 I think we started off with eight (selections) and ended up with 10. Last year we started off, I think, with eight, ended up with six. We have six now. I don't know if we'll end up with more or less than that, but I think it's a safe bet that we probably won't have the same six when it's all said and done."

On the team having a home Monday Night Football game

"I think it's great. It's great for our franchise, I think it's great for our players who haven't played in some of those games – I know how exciting it is when your whole family can see you play and people you went to grade school with and all that can see you play. The entire league watches that game; it's a showcase for us as a football team and we can show our brand of football to the rest of the NFL. I'm excited about that – it's a great opportunity for us to show off what the Lions are."

On whether there are any updates on QB Matthew Stafford

"He's coming along well. I guess he was in the halftime show at the Georgia spring game; got good reports on that. Obviously we can't talk directly to him, but from what I understand, his rehab is going very well."

On how important player character is

"It's very important. Obviously character and football character and how guys carry themselves, how they prepare, what their work ethic is like, what they do off the field, those guys represent our franchise; so the character aspect of our decision making progress is very important."

On how extensive the process is to evaluate character

"It's very extensive. Our college scouts do a whole lot of work on these guys. We do some work at the pro days; we make phone calls, we'll talk to high school coaches, college coaches, position coaches, people who know the player. We do a lot of research and a lot of work on these players. We spend a lot of time talking to people who know them and who knew them. You can get a lot of good information by following those leads."

On Colorado CB Jimmy Smith

"I had a great talk with Jimmy. After meeting him I felt much better about him as a player. I spoke with his position coach, Ashley Ambrose, who is now coaching at CAL, and he had nothing but great things to say about him. We've done a lot of work on Jimmy and I feel better about him than I did before I met him."

On being aggressive on draft day and whether it's part of the job to take risks

"I think so. I think some calculated risk makes sense. When you feel strong enough and have a strong enough opinion and when you feel confident enough, I think it makes sense to make some calculated risks. I don't think you want to blindly take risks; that's always something to be cautious about. "For example, Jahvid Best; we really liked Jahvid Best as a player. He was available late, we didn't want to lose a pick to get him and we had discussed that scenario prior to and we contacted some teams and we were looking for a team that was willing to flip with us in the fourth round and not give up the fourth round pick. Several of the teams we talked to wanted us to give up a fourth round pick, we didn't want to do that, and we were finally able to find a team we could agree to make a trade with. That's probably a good example of a calculated risk we think is going to work out great for us."

On the key to handling the chaos on draft day

"I think everything you do before the draft to avoid chaos and you do a lot of planning and a lot of discussion before. It's very rare that we're on the clock and we don't have an idea of who we plan to take and that comes from the preparation prior to from our meetings, from the meetings that we'll have this week, and early next week. We try to get a lot of those questions answered before our draft starts. I think that's the way you can avoid that problem."

On whether the organization is on the same page with which player they want

"I think that's something that's going to come. That's why it's always interesting to me – and funny – when I read that somebody said that we're not going to take an offensive player or we're not going to take a certain player or whatever, because I don't' even know who we're going to take right now, so I'm not sure how somebody else could know. "It's a process and we're' working through the process right now. We'll have a lot of discussion about those players. There are probably a little bit more than a handful of players who were talking about (at 13) and we'll continue to talk about those players until we make a final decision."

On how far the franchise has come over the past few years

"We've made a lot of progress here I think. Obviously we hired the right coach; I think our scouts are doing an outstanding job; we've improved our personnel; we've got some good, young players and a good young core to work with, but we have a long way to go to get to where we really want to get to. "I can recall over the last 10 years there being times when we've felt like, 'Hey, we're 6-2 now,' or 'Hey, you know, we beat the Giants in New York and now were...' We're not in that game anymore. We're looking to improve this team every day, every week, every month until we get to our ultimate goal which is to win a championship. We have a long way to go."

On whether the lack of an offseason will factor in to any of their draft decisions

"I think that's something you've got to take into consideration. When you talk about players, you've got to weigh the players with whom you feel very comfortable with not seeing for some period of time and the players whom you don't feel comfortable with in that situation. Whether its character issues, weight issues, learning issues, it certainly is a factor."

On whether it has been strange not having the offseason program begin and free agency take place before the draft

"It is a little awkward because you don't see the players working out and that kind of thing, but honestly for me, I have really been working hard on this draft. Not having free agents visit… It's sort of a distraction when you're in draft meetings and you've got to go spend 15-20 minutes with a guy and you don't know if you're going to get the guy and that kind of thing. I've really been focused on the draft and I've been excited about being able to just focus on this process. It's awkward but it hasn't really effected (me)."

On not having been able to address any needs with free agency before the draft

"As I've said before, with our belief that the best thing to do is to take the best player available, it actually, in a counterintuitive sort of way benefits us. Because I think there will be some form of free agency at some point this year and rather than fill in holes with players who've been passed over for several months, you'll be able to enter that period of free agency and fill holes with a better quality player."

On the excitement of preparing for the NFL Draft

"You know going into this process that you have a certain type of team; and you know when you get done with (the draft) you're going to be a better football team. You have an opportunity to sort of address whatever objective you want to address; if you want to get faster, if you want to get bigger – obviously you would get younger – if you want to get healthier; you're able to make yourself a better football team over a period of days. It's really an exciting time for us as an organization. Our scouts enjoy it; I think everybody in the building is excited about the NFL Draft."

On how he views the four-game winning streak at the end of last season

"I think it was good. I think it was very good for our players; I think it promoted some optimism around our franchise. I think it gave our players some confidence, to be able to beat some of our division opponents late in the season. It was very good I think for our franchise as a whole and I view it sort of as a stepping stone to what's to come."

Read In Play! Magazine Here