Q&A with Dan Quinn on free agency: ‘We nailed it’

Here’s Quinn on a few things that didn’t make the story:

ON MATT RYAN: "Once you're around him and you found out what kind of competitor he is, that what has probably stuck

Credit: D. Orlando Ledbetter

Credit: D. Orlando Ledbetter

out to me more than anything,” Quinn said. “How hungry he is. How driven he is to even take his game to another spot.”

ON THE OFFSEASON PROGRAM: "I just wanted to fill you in on the offseason program. The guys just reported here on Monday. What an opportunity for us to connect with the guys, talk about the program, put some of the schemes in and connect with the guys.

“I’d been looking forward to this day for a long time. Each day, I was probably wearing people out, ‘It’s only 20 more days until the guys come. Only 10 more days.’ . . . Needless to say I was really excited to have everybody here. I look forward to connecting with all of them.”

D. Led's Mock 2.0: Falcons select Randy Gregory with 8th overall pick

ON ATTENDANCE/IMPROVEMENT TAPES: "The turnout has been outstanding. The first thing, not only just connecting with the guys, we make point of attack tapes on all of the players, whether if they were here or if they came in from another organization. That will be the case for next year as well. These point of attack tapes are some of the things you're doing well and here are the things we want to focus on and improve on this offseason. If you can get better at these two things, if you can get better at these two and this player can get better at these two things, collectively we'll really be at our best. I wanted to really … it was a good way for our assistant coaches to get to know these players as well as we can."

ON GETTING TO KNOW THE TEAM: "You may have heard me say it in the past, one of my biggest challenges was getting to know our own team as well as we could. Those point of attack tapes were a really important part of it. That's what this week has been about, not only just the scheme that we're doing, but a way for us to connect with these guys and talk about some specific and detailed things that each of them can have some focus to improve on."

ON HIS MESSAGE: "The real message for the guys was can you have the best offseason that you've ever had. Whether if that's a second-year player, an eight-year player or a 10th year player. That's the challenge for them and the coaches. As we're going through this offseason, that was the challenge that I wanted to start off with these guys today."

MORE ON ATTENDANCE: "Just them being here, I know that's just a step in the right direction. . . .it's a new scheme for everybody. For the players, they wanted to come in get their head around the things that will be a difference for their scheme. It's up to us as the coaches to find all of the unique stuff that a player has and then find out how we can best feature them. It's important on both ends. It's important for us to get to know the guys and it's important for them to learn the scheme so that they can play at their fastest."

ON ANY SURPRISES: "There are a number of guys that came back in ridiculously good shape. (Ra'Shede Hageman is one according to our pal Knox Bardeen over at Fox Sports South). I think that mindset, not only did my offseason start way earlier than this offseason program. I think some of the guys who came in in great shape are really ready to take this offseason on and really have that best offseason that they've ever had. That mindset coming in, being in that good of shape, told me a lot."

FOOTBALL SHAPE: "I think when we get into the OTAs, that's really when it begins. The first part of this first stage, all the coaches are able to do is meet with the guys and their conditioning is on the field with their strength coaches. As we get into phase two, there is some drill work involved. A good part of it will be some of the drills that we'll do when we get to our OTAs, that will be our final phase.

“I think it’s good how its broken down into the three phases. You really have to go through five, six, seven or eight of those OTAs to really to see how fast you can practice. How fast you can play. For us, playing fast and part of the competition is getting to go against the guy across from you and how well those guys can work together. Football shape is definitely something that you can’t (replicate) other than through practice.”

ON FREE AGENCY: "The free agency part is an important to continue to add overall guys to our team. . . . It was collectively guys we could add to the club. … What we were really trying to say is can we add speed. Can we add toughness in terms of adding to the team that we already had. That was the real factor going into it. How many more guys can we add and it was our job as coaches, how would these guys fit on our team? I thought in that way, we nailed it."

NFL DRAFT CORNER

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FALCONS COMBINE MEETINGS

Oregon DE Arik Armstead talked scheme with the Falcons

Falcons met with Alabama quarterback Blake Sims

Falcons to meet with Florida DE Dante Fowler Jr.

Falcons met with Wake Forest CB Kevin Johnson

Falcons met with Alabama safety Landon Collins

COLLEGE PRO DAY VISITS

SOUTH CAROLINA: Ex-Gamecock Davis leans on brother for NFL help

SOUTH CAROLINA: RB Mike Davis (Stephenson High) has strong showing

GEORGIA: Todd Gurley reflects on his career in Athens

GEORGIA: Quarterack Hutson Mason has solid showing at Pro Day

GEORGIA: Chris Conley performed well in position drills

GEORGIA TECH: Synjyn Days hopes to run to daylight in NFL

GEORGIA TECH: VIDEO -- Head coach Paul Johnson 

ALABAMA: Amari Cooper aiming to be top wide receiver in the draft

ALABAMA: VIDEO: Amari Cooper on his draft status

ALABAMA: Lineman Austin Shepherd has met with the Falcons

CLEMSON: Vic Beasley would love to play for the Falcons

AUBURN: Nick Marshall doing 'whatever it takes' to make NFL

PHOTOS: College football Pro Days