On what he needs to accomplish as the team’s starting quarterback:
“One thing that I’m focusing on is consistency, one rep at a time. I don’t want to get caught up too much in the big picture, it’s a long season. You can break it down into every game, you can break it down into every practice, you can break it down to every rep. So I just want to focus on one thing at a time.”
On what it felt like running onto the field for his first training camp practice as the starter:
“It felt good. It’s obviously a little bit different, but again, I try to block out all those distractions and not worry about if it’s my first time or not, just try to get out here and practice well.”
On whether he noticed getting a different reaction from fans as compared to previous training camps:
“A little bit. I think everybody’s excited, not only the players, but the fans and the coaches—everybody. There is a sense of the unknown a little bit, so everybody’s anxious to see what we got, including ourselves, so we’ll keep working hard and hope that will be a positive thing”
On whether he recognizes that there are more eyes on him:
“I don’t. Like I said before, as a kid, my dad taught me, ‘all eyes are on you, so just live every day like that. Do what you would do in front of everybody.’ That’s the way I’ve always lived and that’s why it doesn’t affect me now.”
On whether it would have been difficult to wait another year to become the starter:
“Yeah, it would have been difficult. I want to be on the field, you know? All the way through my career, starting in seventh grade, whatever the situation was, I’m going to role with it, and I’m just glad to be out here and be the starter.”
On whether he felt any sense of being more hyped for today’s practice:
“I don’t think so. I thought it was smooth. I thought everybody’s attitude was great, and the thing I like is that there was good tempo, and that’s what we want to keep throughout [all of training camp]. This is not the important one, its day four, day five, when everybody’s hurting—to see how everybody reacts.”
On whether this is the most exciting training camp for him:
“Absolutely, but I think my first camp was more of the sense of the unknown. I think I know where I’m going now, I know how everything happens. So now I can just focus in and build with the team, and everybody, and get that continuity and keep working.”
On whether he feels like a rookie because he was surrounded by mostly first-year players today:
“No, not at all. I feel comfortable and feel like I’ve been here for 10 years. I want to continue to feel that way and work through every day at camp, every practice and walk out of here feeling like I’m ready for the season.”
On how he felt he performed at this morning’s practice:
“I thought it was good. My arm felt great. We don’t have a whole lot of [wide receivers] out here, so these guys are working tired, and everybody was thinking and catching whenever they weren’t tired. If we can continue to do that we can have a good practice.”
On whether he used today’s practice to get rid of any jitters:
“Well, I didn’t have any jitters this morning. Like I said, I felt comfortable and for me, I just want to take it one step at a time. I know I sound repetitive, but I want every day to be crisp. That was my main focus this offseason. I want to be mentally tough, where I don’t let one practice, one rep slip away, because when you do that you fall behind. And I think that’s what the great ones do. That’s what I’ve picked up this offseason—that’s what the great ones do. They focus every single time and they have that mental toughness.”
On what will happen when he is not sharp in practice:
“That’s one of the tests. You’re going to have those ups and downs, especially here at practice. There’s so many of them, your arm’s going to hurt one day, but the thing that I want to work on with that is forgetting about them. I think I strive hard enough going into practice, but forget about them when you have a bad one, and move on to the next one in the afternoon.”
On whether the first full-team workout will be different:
“Absolutely. It’s always a big difference when those guys come around. Things are a little bit faster, a little quicker, but it’s a good different. We like having everybody in and again we need as much time as possible with these young players, including myself, here on the field together, so we need to build that rapport.”
On whether he sometimes has to tell himself to slow down:
“Yeah, I do. Especially when there’s not a lot of guys like we have right now. Those guys need a break, and I’m kind of a fast worker, I like to get things done. I tell them to let me know whenever they get tired.”
On whether he has spoken to any other starting quarterbacks:
“I’ve talked to a few of them. I’ve gotten a couple of messages out to [Packers QB] Aaron Rodgers and [Saints QB] Drew Brees. We’re trying to catch up with each other, and I know we will, and I look forward to talking to them. I know they have some insight on what they went through. Both of them are very successful, and I hope to be in their shoes one day.”
On whether it helps him that the Eagles are a young team and he can grow together with his teammates:
“Yeah, I think whatever the situation was, I would hope that I could adapt to it. But I do like the feel here, and I feel like we are all in this together, and I think there’s that core group feeling that we can all grow and mold, all as young players. And sometimes when you are young, you don’t realize the potential and expectations, and I want to make sure we do that, and I want to be able to roll with this and go get a lot of wins.”
On whether he has feels he has to prove to his teammates that this is his team now:
“Well, I think that’s part of it, but I don’t want to get caught up in what other guys are thinking and doing. As a player you’ve got to understand that you’ve got to do your job and the rest of it will come along. I think I proved myself a little bit last year and these guys saw what I had on game day, but we always can get better. We’re always going to continue to get better and I want them to keep believing in me and knowing there’s two minutes left and we’re down, that we’re going to win the ballgame.”
On whether there is a change stepping into a leadership role:
“Well, I’ve always tried to be a leader, even in the backup role. There are some things that do change, but I don’t want to go outside of my comfort zone or do anything that’s not expected of me. I want to be myself and do the things that are asked and expected. With that being said, I know there won’t be any problem with it, and the guys will respond well.”
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