Photo courtesy – NFL.com
On if he knows QB Johnny Manziel and what he thinks he’ll do as a pro:
“In college, of course, he was on ESPN every day. We’d get to see all his highlights. I was a college kid. That’s what you do. You watch ESPN so I got to see him, got to see him play in all those games. I thought he was a great athlete – makes plays obviously when things break down. I’m no quarterbacks coach. I don’t know the exact things that I’m talking about, I guess, but I think he’s going to be a great player. I wish him nothing but the best. I got to talk to him, hang out with him a little bit at the combine. He’s a good dude. I have nothing but good things to say about him.”
On if he thinks it’s better for a rookie quarterback to learn in the game like he’s doing or learn on the sidelines like Manziel is doing:
“I think it’s different for every person. I can only speak for myself, and for me, it’s been better for me to be on the field and learning because now I can say, ‘Oh, I’ve seen this coverage before,’ or, ‘Oh, I’ve seen this blitz before. Oh, I’ve seen them try and do this and they do this.’ Especially playing against some really good football plays so far in my six-game career, including the preseason, for me, it’s been better to be on the field because that’s just how I learn, but for other guys, it could be different. For me, it’s been good to be out there and learn that way.”
On Head Coach Mike Pettine talking about him like he was a first-round pick and if he’s surprised where he was picked at:
“Going back to that day, I put everything I had out there. Obviously, certain teams didn’t think I was. It didn’t work out that way, but I can promise you I’m more than happy where I ended up because I’m home. I’m in a place where we’re building things the right way, and I’m happy just to be on the field playing. It’s a blessing to be in this league.”
