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(On how they’re feeling)
Jeff Fisher: “I would have to say that we’re very excited, to say the least. It was a scenario that we had been discussing for several days. In this particular draft, hard thing to accomplish, I think, the way it fell and what we were able to do. So, we’re very, very excited. We got two very explosive, talented young players that are going to help us right away.”
(On if they played it conservatively in this year’s draft)
Les Snead: “We were just talking, we have yet to stay put with our first round picks over the last two years. It’s not something you just say we’re going to do. Like Coach (Fisher) said, this scenario, the one we just executed, was discussed really over the last week of how you go about doing and getting what we got tonight.”
(On what made WR Tavon Austin worth the trade)
Fisher: “You look at his college career and what he’s accomplished. The fact that he has not missed a game and the explosive plays just week after week after week. It felt like we needed a player that created the mismatch and so he helps to create that for our entire offense now. We had a feeling that interest was increasing over the last couple of weeks. We did go down (to Morgantown, W.Va) and work him out. We took a trip down there and worked him out and we were just really excited about what we saw down in person. He came in for a (top) 30 visit and just felt like he adds something that we just don’t have, that’s just hard to find in this league. Of course we felt a few days ago that we were probably going to have to go up and get him. I credit Les and (Executive Vice President of Football Operations/COO) Kevin (Demoff) and the guys for creating those opportunities and creating trading partners because we knew we were going to need them.”
(On when they began to get the idea that the trade would need to occur with Buffalo at the No. 8 pick)
Snead: “I think Buffalo did give us a clue early on that they might be willing to come back in the draft to acquire picks. But really for this particular deal, probably sometime Tuesday was the day that, OK you had a good feeling they were going to be in and you could probably get something done.”
(On how quickly the trade with Atlanta materialized)
Snead: “This one’s probably been in the works a little while. Let’s call it over the last couple weeks. They probably flirted with going even farther up along the way, so I think they were trying to get up for a multiple set of picks. They always let us know they would be willing to come up if we were willing to come back.”
(On being accurate when he spoke with media earlier in the week about the direction they would move with their picks)
Fisher: “I was actually telling the truth.
Snead: “I’ll go on record right now and say Jeffrey never took a trip to see the Clemson wide receiver.”
(On if the team moved up for Austin because they felt he was the one type of player they were missing)
Fisher: “Not necessarily. We spent a lot of time sitting there at (No.) 16 and (No.) 22 and looking at our options, so we were prepared. There was some concern about somebody jumping ahead of Buffalo and getting him. We heard some reports about the Jets and so on and so forth and what he had said, so we were prepared at 16 and 22 to just pick. We also feel like we had a pretty good feel for what’s going to happen over the next 30 or 40 picks and then we need to go do this. Then of course, we had Alec (Ogletree) way up there. He’s a very, very good player. We had him in for a 30 visit, talked to him at the combine, spent time with him, and convinced that he’s looking forward to the future and understands how to do things right and knows that this is a great opportunity for him. He’s a very, very talented player.”
(On Ogletree’s similarities to former Tennessee LB Keith Bulluck)
Fisher: “There are a lot of similarities when you watch him on tape. A lot of similarities, yes. Long arms, quickness, slippery, can take on, can tackle sideline-to-sideline. Very explosive player. That’s a by-product of his safety background.”
(On if Ogletree would’ve been a top-10 pick if it weren’t for his off the field issues)
Fisher: “I would say probably top-10, top-15 at the worst.”
Snead: “You could easily, probably, conservatively say a top-15 pick.”
(On what made them think that his off the field issues could be manageable)
Fisher: “You know people are going to make mistakes and I think that this was a maturity issue. He understands. He learned very well, very quickly here tonight what kind of effect those choices have, but we don’t have a concern. We felt, because of some of the issues, that he had a chance to fall. Didn’t think he’d go that far, but were in the right place at the right time.”
(On what a combination of (TE Jared) Cook and Austin can do for the offense)
Fisher: “It creates opportunities for everybody else. It creates opportunities for (WR) Brian (Quick) and for (WR) Chris (Givens), (TE) Lance (Kendricks) and the running backs just because they are threats. They are going to create mismatches that are going to have to be dealt with defensively, which is going to open some other things up for us.”
(On what the reaction was of the staff to the draft selections)
Fisher: “I think the collective reaction in the draft room everybody, offense, defense. Defense was probably more excited because they know they don’t have to defend him (Austin), but everybody’s very excited.
Snead: “I can go on record and say that was one player (Austin) the defensive staff wanted to pick, so they didn’t have to defend him. And he keeps them off the field and rested so when they do get on the field they’re ready.”
(On if it’s reasonable to think Austin can be effective in the backfield)
Fisher: “Maybe, we’ll see.”
Snead: “I wonder if we’ll see it in preseason?”
Fisher: “No.”
(On any thoughts of moving back up into the second round)
Snead: “As Jim (Thomas, St. Louis Post-Dispatch) said, ‘You never know.’ But, I will say this, right now we’re probably going to come in late tomorrow, rest up, sleep in and we’ll see how the day goes. You take it case-by-case.”
(On if Austin’s size is an issue and the idea that smaller receivers do well with a bigger quarterback)
Fisher: “It’s not when you’re dealing with a quarterback like Sam (Bradford). Sam’s got excellent vision, he’s got a quick trigger and he’s very accurate. That creates opportunities for a receiver with that kind of quickness and stature. A shorter quarterback’s going to have a little more difficult time getting the ball to him on time.”
(On if Austin will return kicks and punts)
Fisher: “He’s a returner. He’s a dual returner. Most of his production was in the area of kickoffs. We assume and have seen him do punts, but again the more often you get the ball in his hands the better off he’s going to be.”
(On if Ogletree can make the transition to inside linebacker)
Snead: “They ran basically a 3-4 scheme and Coach knows the schemes, but it was probably a derivative of Wade Phillips’ 3-4 scheme, some under defense. That inside backer played a little bit like a Will, but remember he was a safety. I think, as a lot of Will linebackers are, they get to college and they eat a little bit and they grow from safety to Will linebacker.”
(On how Ogletree’s speed will help defend quarterbacks in the division)
Fisher: “First off, he’s a smart football player. He’s instinctive, he understands concepts. You can see him making coverage adjustments and anticipating players. That in itself helps as opposed to someone that is just reacting to something. He’ll put himself in position to make plays. He can chase down. As I said, he has excellent speed, pursuit speed to where he can close very quickly. That’s what we need in our division.”
Snead: “A good story, (Linebackers Coach) Frank Bush was drawing up a lot of things we’re going to see in our division and said, ‘Hey what do you do right here?’ Basically Ogletree drew a line and said, ‘I go right there and make the tackle right at the line of scrimmage.’ He didn’t get into this or that, he just said, ‘I’m going to meet that guy right there.’ I think Frank was sold at that moment.”
(On if Ogletree’s SEC background helped him get drafted)
Snead: “You don’t come into the draft and say, ‘We have to take an SEC player.’ I think when you go to study those players, you get to watch them against some really good competition over the years. Usually those guys are going to transition relatively easily to this league. You don’t set out and say, ‘We’ve got to have an SEC player.’”
(On what kind of impact Austin will have on the team)
Fisher: “Clearly there’s a lot you can do with him. He’ll start off as that slot receiver, but it doesn’t end there. There’s a lot of different things you can do with him. He can stretch the field. The 4.28 (40-yard dash) is real. That itself creates some problems. He’s got excellent hands. He’s quick out of the break. He understands and likes football. He’s going to be really fun to watch.”
(On if they timed Austin during the personal workout)
Snead: “We did not time him when we saw him, that’s from the combine. I know we took a couple of our quarterbacks to throw. I think it was after two throws, Jeff said, ‘Hey will you please tell the quarterbacks to quit smiling so much,’ because there were some people watching the workout. They did make the comment that it was like trying to throw to a lightning bug. We said in these private workouts when you have your quarterback there, they know at certain steps where normal players are in their routes. They can affirm that that guy is getting there pretty quickly.”
(On if the team would have taken Austin at number one overall)
Fisher: “The first pick in the draft? We’re pretty good at not dealing with hypotheticals.”
<a class="postlink" href="http://www.stlouisrams.com/media-center/videos/GM-Snead-and-HC-Fisher-1st-Round-Press-Conference/6d632af7-9091-485f-b0ae-26693415d0aa" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;">http://www.stlouisrams.com/media-center ... 693415d0aa</a>
(On how they’re feeling)
Jeff Fisher: “I would have to say that we’re very excited, to say the least. It was a scenario that we had been discussing for several days. In this particular draft, hard thing to accomplish, I think, the way it fell and what we were able to do. So, we’re very, very excited. We got two very explosive, talented young players that are going to help us right away.”
(On if they played it conservatively in this year’s draft)
Les Snead: “We were just talking, we have yet to stay put with our first round picks over the last two years. It’s not something you just say we’re going to do. Like Coach (Fisher) said, this scenario, the one we just executed, was discussed really over the last week of how you go about doing and getting what we got tonight.”
(On what made WR Tavon Austin worth the trade)
Fisher: “You look at his college career and what he’s accomplished. The fact that he has not missed a game and the explosive plays just week after week after week. It felt like we needed a player that created the mismatch and so he helps to create that for our entire offense now. We had a feeling that interest was increasing over the last couple of weeks. We did go down (to Morgantown, W.Va) and work him out. We took a trip down there and worked him out and we were just really excited about what we saw down in person. He came in for a (top) 30 visit and just felt like he adds something that we just don’t have, that’s just hard to find in this league. Of course we felt a few days ago that we were probably going to have to go up and get him. I credit Les and (Executive Vice President of Football Operations/COO) Kevin (Demoff) and the guys for creating those opportunities and creating trading partners because we knew we were going to need them.”
(On when they began to get the idea that the trade would need to occur with Buffalo at the No. 8 pick)
Snead: “I think Buffalo did give us a clue early on that they might be willing to come back in the draft to acquire picks. But really for this particular deal, probably sometime Tuesday was the day that, OK you had a good feeling they were going to be in and you could probably get something done.”
(On how quickly the trade with Atlanta materialized)
Snead: “This one’s probably been in the works a little while. Let’s call it over the last couple weeks. They probably flirted with going even farther up along the way, so I think they were trying to get up for a multiple set of picks. They always let us know they would be willing to come up if we were willing to come back.”
(On being accurate when he spoke with media earlier in the week about the direction they would move with their picks)
Fisher: “I was actually telling the truth.
Snead: “I’ll go on record right now and say Jeffrey never took a trip to see the Clemson wide receiver.”
(On if the team moved up for Austin because they felt he was the one type of player they were missing)
Fisher: “Not necessarily. We spent a lot of time sitting there at (No.) 16 and (No.) 22 and looking at our options, so we were prepared. There was some concern about somebody jumping ahead of Buffalo and getting him. We heard some reports about the Jets and so on and so forth and what he had said, so we were prepared at 16 and 22 to just pick. We also feel like we had a pretty good feel for what’s going to happen over the next 30 or 40 picks and then we need to go do this. Then of course, we had Alec (Ogletree) way up there. He’s a very, very good player. We had him in for a 30 visit, talked to him at the combine, spent time with him, and convinced that he’s looking forward to the future and understands how to do things right and knows that this is a great opportunity for him. He’s a very, very talented player.”
(On Ogletree’s similarities to former Tennessee LB Keith Bulluck)
Fisher: “There are a lot of similarities when you watch him on tape. A lot of similarities, yes. Long arms, quickness, slippery, can take on, can tackle sideline-to-sideline. Very explosive player. That’s a by-product of his safety background.”
(On if Ogletree would’ve been a top-10 pick if it weren’t for his off the field issues)
Fisher: “I would say probably top-10, top-15 at the worst.”
Snead: “You could easily, probably, conservatively say a top-15 pick.”
(On what made them think that his off the field issues could be manageable)
Fisher: “You know people are going to make mistakes and I think that this was a maturity issue. He understands. He learned very well, very quickly here tonight what kind of effect those choices have, but we don’t have a concern. We felt, because of some of the issues, that he had a chance to fall. Didn’t think he’d go that far, but were in the right place at the right time.”
(On what a combination of (TE Jared) Cook and Austin can do for the offense)
Fisher: “It creates opportunities for everybody else. It creates opportunities for (WR) Brian (Quick) and for (WR) Chris (Givens), (TE) Lance (Kendricks) and the running backs just because they are threats. They are going to create mismatches that are going to have to be dealt with defensively, which is going to open some other things up for us.”
(On what the reaction was of the staff to the draft selections)
Fisher: “I think the collective reaction in the draft room everybody, offense, defense. Defense was probably more excited because they know they don’t have to defend him (Austin), but everybody’s very excited.
Snead: “I can go on record and say that was one player (Austin) the defensive staff wanted to pick, so they didn’t have to defend him. And he keeps them off the field and rested so when they do get on the field they’re ready.”
(On if it’s reasonable to think Austin can be effective in the backfield)
Fisher: “Maybe, we’ll see.”
Snead: “I wonder if we’ll see it in preseason?”
Fisher: “No.”
(On any thoughts of moving back up into the second round)
Snead: “As Jim (Thomas, St. Louis Post-Dispatch) said, ‘You never know.’ But, I will say this, right now we’re probably going to come in late tomorrow, rest up, sleep in and we’ll see how the day goes. You take it case-by-case.”
(On if Austin’s size is an issue and the idea that smaller receivers do well with a bigger quarterback)
Fisher: “It’s not when you’re dealing with a quarterback like Sam (Bradford). Sam’s got excellent vision, he’s got a quick trigger and he’s very accurate. That creates opportunities for a receiver with that kind of quickness and stature. A shorter quarterback’s going to have a little more difficult time getting the ball to him on time.”
(On if Austin will return kicks and punts)
Fisher: “He’s a returner. He’s a dual returner. Most of his production was in the area of kickoffs. We assume and have seen him do punts, but again the more often you get the ball in his hands the better off he’s going to be.”
(On if Ogletree can make the transition to inside linebacker)
Snead: “They ran basically a 3-4 scheme and Coach knows the schemes, but it was probably a derivative of Wade Phillips’ 3-4 scheme, some under defense. That inside backer played a little bit like a Will, but remember he was a safety. I think, as a lot of Will linebackers are, they get to college and they eat a little bit and they grow from safety to Will linebacker.”
(On how Ogletree’s speed will help defend quarterbacks in the division)
Fisher: “First off, he’s a smart football player. He’s instinctive, he understands concepts. You can see him making coverage adjustments and anticipating players. That in itself helps as opposed to someone that is just reacting to something. He’ll put himself in position to make plays. He can chase down. As I said, he has excellent speed, pursuit speed to where he can close very quickly. That’s what we need in our division.”
Snead: “A good story, (Linebackers Coach) Frank Bush was drawing up a lot of things we’re going to see in our division and said, ‘Hey what do you do right here?’ Basically Ogletree drew a line and said, ‘I go right there and make the tackle right at the line of scrimmage.’ He didn’t get into this or that, he just said, ‘I’m going to meet that guy right there.’ I think Frank was sold at that moment.”
(On if Ogletree’s SEC background helped him get drafted)
Snead: “You don’t come into the draft and say, ‘We have to take an SEC player.’ I think when you go to study those players, you get to watch them against some really good competition over the years. Usually those guys are going to transition relatively easily to this league. You don’t set out and say, ‘We’ve got to have an SEC player.’”
(On what kind of impact Austin will have on the team)
Fisher: “Clearly there’s a lot you can do with him. He’ll start off as that slot receiver, but it doesn’t end there. There’s a lot of different things you can do with him. He can stretch the field. The 4.28 (40-yard dash) is real. That itself creates some problems. He’s got excellent hands. He’s quick out of the break. He understands and likes football. He’s going to be really fun to watch.”
(On if they timed Austin during the personal workout)
Snead: “We did not time him when we saw him, that’s from the combine. I know we took a couple of our quarterbacks to throw. I think it was after two throws, Jeff said, ‘Hey will you please tell the quarterbacks to quit smiling so much,’ because there were some people watching the workout. They did make the comment that it was like trying to throw to a lightning bug. We said in these private workouts when you have your quarterback there, they know at certain steps where normal players are in their routes. They can affirm that that guy is getting there pretty quickly.”
(On if the team would have taken Austin at number one overall)
Fisher: “The first pick in the draft? We’re pretty good at not dealing with hypotheticals.”
