Joe Philbin press conference transcript: Minicamp Day 1

(Opening statement) - "I thought our guys for mandatory mini camp, I thought our energy was good on the field today. I thought we got through the periods well and I thought the guys, the hustle was good, the effort was good. So I thought it was a real positive practice today."

(On how big a difference DT C.J. Mosley and DT Ndmaukong Suh can make together)  -- "We're just obviously getting to know him a little big and getting him on the field, getting him acclimated to the scheme. You know we'll see. We want to have a competitive environment in every room, every positon and certainly he's had production throughout the course of his career. So we're happy to have him and now we're just getting him up to speed as quick as we possibly can."

(On what he likes about DT C.J. Mosley)  -- "He's athletic. You know I think he's a good scheme fit. Again, part of football is finding players that fit the system, fit the scheme. We think he's a good scheme fit first and foremost."

(On now having both of DT C.J. Mosley and DT Ndmaukong Suh on his side after coaching against them last year)  -- "It's been good. They're both serious. They both seem like football guys. I just met C.J. obviously on his visit, spent a little time at the end of last week, spent some time with him today, just the two of us, together a little bit. So getting to know him quickly. So far I like what I see... (Greg Jennings brings sunglasses to the podium) I'm not using those shades or anything." (On wearing sunglasses)  -- "You know in 32 years of coaching I've never worn sunglasses on the field. That's old school. Old school. I'll put them on for two seconds.  It's a bad look."

(On when the music is playing if there's a time where he wants to take the hat off, drop the hair down a little bit and dance)  -- "Two out of the three, yeah absolutely. We're trying to create an atmosphere at practice where the guys are into football and they're competing each and every minute and you know it's fun. I mean you've got to love what you're doing. I mean I tell the guys all the time that, I heard this statement when I was early on in coaching that when you park your car and walk in the door, you better feel like you're at the best place in the world coaching and luckily for me 32 years, once I get out on the field and start coaching   football players, it's what I love to do. So I'm going to have to think about my rhythm a little bit before I get it out on film. If all the cameras are broken, I might do it (joking)."

(On WR DeVante Parker being out now and if he's noticed one guy stepping up)  -- "I think Greg (Jennings) has had a good camp. I think he's caught on to the offense really well. Matt Hazel's made a couple of plays and certainly I think he's improved dramatically over a year ago. He's a young guy. I mean Rishard (Matthews) has been productive catching the football as well. Mike Preston's a young guy that has really shown in a couple of weeks, last week I believe one day when we really emphasized two-minute, I think he made three, four plays in row. So I think we've had some good production out of those guys."

(On if any undrafted rookies have stood out)  -- "I mean it's a good group. The linebacker group kind of in particular you think of a lot because we got a lot of them and then they're all good. They're all guys that look instinctive and they come out on the practice field. They work really hard and according to Duff (Mark Duffner) and Kevin (Coyle) they caught on to the system well. So I like the way they're improving on a daily basis. I think special teams, for a linebacker, especially a young one and maybe you throw in an undrafted one, it's going to be important and I think Riz (Darren Rizzi) likes, Marwan (Maalouf) like what they see out of that group. So I think that's one group that's probably caught our eye."

(On if expectations for DE Olivier Vernon are sky high for him)  -- "First and foremost, for himself, that they are sky high and again not everything can be measured in sacks in football. And so the thing that I think that's underrated about him is he plays with a lot of effort, a lot energy. He does a nice job in the running game as well and I'm excited about him. He's worked hard. He's in very, very good condition and so I'm excited about what he's going to be able to accomplish this year."

(On S Louis Delmas practicing already after his injury last season and the energy he is bringing now at a time when veterans usually do not look forward to mini camps) - "As mini camp unfolds, each day is a little bit more challenging as a coach. But I thought today, like I said, I really felt the energy of the football team was good. They were attentive I thought in meetings, they did some lifting, we had a walkthrough practice, and we had lunch and came out here. I was pleased. He was one of those guys that was flying around."

(On what S Louis Delmas brings to the defense) - "He's got that energy and he's really grasped the system well, really since he first came. I think he's a good handle on things, the adjustments. I think he's been a good communicator over his time here. He's a physical guy."

(On LB Kelvin Sheppard not being out at practice today and if he's out for mini camp) - "No, he was excused for personal reasons."

(On how tough it is to gauge in offseason practices about whether LB Chris McCain can be a starting NFL linebacker, and if that can be answered before August) - "I don't know that anybody really, it's hard with the rules as they are to anoint anybody a starter, especially in positions where we're shuffling guys around. We've gotten looks at a lot of different combinations at linebacker and so I think we're going to find out a lot more during training camp and during the preseason. We're not in any rush. Chris is doing a very good job. I like his attitude that he's brought to the field. There's a lot of football in between now and September 13^th."

(On athletes always being in the spotlight and how much he talks about that) - "A lot. I think one of the things that we always talk about, multiple times maybe even during the course of a week that every action, every word that we speak impact one another. What I do impacts our players, impacts the organization and certainly what they do, both on the field, off the field, their actions, their words, their tweets, all of those things, social media, it all adds up and we all represent a great organization. We have to realize that. Today, we had our NFL security meeting and talked about a lot of those things, lot of those issues came up, and the NFL did a great job. It's an educational piece. It's something we talk about an awful lot, mostly in the context of we're all in this thing together fellas. What I do, I have to be careful about what I do, where I do it, who I do it with, and that's no different for them."

(On if there was a point during the summer when Hard Knocks was here if it seemed normal to have cameras around at all times) - "Yeah, we got used to that real quick. Again, I think I said back then, it's football, this is coaching football. Dealing with players is something that I've done for a long time. I thought it was a very professional staff, much like the media that we have here. I thought it was good."

(On the impact of DT C.J. Mosley and if they can now rotate and split reps among many guys at that spot) - "It's too early to really tell. It was really all about, like I said earlier, competition and creating competition in every single room, at every position that we can. We always are attempting to improve our roster by whatever means necessary. I think that's really, in the big picture, that's what it's really all about. We haven't gotten that far to say, ‘Look, this is how we see the reps getting split up.' It's a little too early for that."

(On free agent Evan Mathis and where his comfort level is with three unproven players vying for two guard spots) - "Again, I like what I see so far, but it's early. There hasn't been a ton of live contact, there hasn't been any. So the speed up front, it's hard to get a great assessment as to where everything's at. I believe we're going to have enough opportunities in training camp and the preseason to get a really good evaluation. I like the guys that we have. There's no question in my mind that they'll be capable of doing the job. I think they just need experience, they need repetition, they need exposure, they need to work with (Mike) Pouncey and the guy next to them and get it figured out. It may not be as pretty as we want it day one of training camp, but I think they are great guys, football is important to them. These guys have been working extremely hard."

(On if there shouldn't be an overreaction if there are struggles on day one of training camp) - "Again, we'll see. Who knows that's going to happen. I don't overreact on one day positively or negatively. I remember years when I was coaching the offensive line in this league and one time we went out in a preseason game and a rookie looked absolutely lousy and then he ended up being an all-rookie player. You just never know. You have to have some patience and kind of a long-term view of this thing."

(On WR Tommy Streeter and what he thinks stands out) - "We love his body type, number one. He's got great length and he picks things up real fast. His play speed was good today. He's competitive on throws down the field. He's a bright, energetic guy. (We're) really excited about having him on the ball club right now."