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News | Washington Commanders - Commanders.com

Jim Zorn Training Camp Media Session

On the first day of training camp:

"I am very excited that we are starting today. Tonight we have our first installation of offense, defense, and special teams, so that we can start quickly in the morning."

On whether he is nervous about his first training camp as head coach:
"I am not nervous at all. I have been encouraged by what we have done and our participation in mini-camps and OTAs. Our players have progressed in their knowledge, and now we will be able to reinforce what we did during minicamp. Our minicamp installations will be very similar to what we will start with tomorrow, so they will have a recall and recollection of what we have done."

On whether he has taken care of all the last details before the start of training camp:
"I sure hope so. There are still some minor things to work on. We just got our last rookie signed in Fred Davis, so those are some of the last details that have to be worked out. We will be ready to go and have a great camp."

On how important it is to have all of the rookies signed before the start of training camp:
"It is not only important for us, but it is important for them to be able to start day one with the team, in order to get a flavor of the energy that will be created by our veterans and their leadership. It creates a great atmosphere if we all start out right on the first day and go.

On which positions will be the most competitive:
"The fourth wide receiver, the third quarterback, and the cornerback position. It is not so much that these positions are wide open, but that we are looking for solid guys at those positions. Punter will probably be the position that is most highly contested because we have two, and we will have to decide on one. Other than that, everyone must come to compete every day. We expect veteran players to come in and act like professionals."

On how many wide receivers he plans to keep:
"I haven't decided yet. There will definitely be five, and there may be a sixth or seventh. The seventh wide receiver may be a guy that we put on the practice squad."

On which player will be limited as a result of injury:
"Definitely Carlos Rogers and Erasmus James will be limited. Carlos and Erasmus are both hoping that they will be ready at some point in August before training camp is over. But this will be there first big test, so we have to bring them along so that when they are ready, they can go full speed. Kareem Moore, Vernon Fox, and Antwaan Randle El will all be starting out. We will have to watch these guys as well because they did not have a chance to finish out the last part of OTAs."

On watching over the health of the offensive line during training camp:
"We have to make sure Chris Samuels comes along with his elbow. I am anxious to see how Jon Jansen, who has a full go status, does with his leg. We have to be careful of Randy Thomas' elbow. I know that I will be looking at Pete Kendall to make sure his knees hold up, because he will be very hard to get out of there. It will be these guys that we monitor daily."

On the importance of preseason games:
"I think the games are the real tests. We can evaluate on the practice field and come up with opinions, but the mark of an athlete is going from what you have tried to teach to how that translates onto the field during a game. He just has to play without instruction, which is the added challenge. It is the element of being game ready, which is an extra test. The number of preseason games is up to committees and the owners, but I know that the players that step out on the field are excited because they get to play. The challenge is figuring out how much we want to risk a veteran player in a preseason game, and how much we want that player to accomplish in that time. Some of our veterans will have to play more than others. I do not see Clinton Portis playing a lot in our preseason games, but he will have to play some. Whether he plays in the first game I have not yet decided, but I do have to get him hit so that he is ready for the first regular season game."

On whether he is happy about playing in the Hall of Fame game:
"The thing that I appreciate most about a fifth preseason game is that it is a special game. It is the Hall of Fame game, and it is the only game going on at that time. It is honoring a tremendous history of Hall of Fame players, which is what I am most excited about."


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