After the 13th and likely final day of OTA practices, the Texans spoke to the media as they headed off the field at the Methodist Training Center practice facililty.
Texans owner Bob McNair
(on the golfer he's sponsoring, **Bobby Collins, playing in the U.S. Open this weekend**) "It'll be very exciting, and I'm just holding my breath. I'm so hopeful that he'll have a good day. I saw where Matt Lauer, who has a 6.2 index, the NBC guy, I think, played out there and shot a hundred. One hundred. So it's not an easy course, but Bobby's a good player, and I hope the weather is in his favor. He plays late in the afternoon; starts at 4, 4:30 I think. And so I hope it's not too windy because that does make a big difference, I think. So I'm going to keep a close eye on it and, who knows, I may go out there if he made the cut."
(on Collins wearing Texans gear around the course) "Well, he loves it, and we love having him do it. He's a fine young man, and it's just a wonderful story and, gosh, I'm just keeping my fingers crossed that he can really play the way he's capable of playing and if so, I think he'll make the cut. I couldn't send better wishes to him than I do."
General manager Rick Smith
(on his thoughts on OTAs) "Well, I think the guys have worked extremely hard. I feel pleased about where we are in the process. Gary (Kubiak) talked to them today about the fact that we've got a huge challenge ahead of ourselves and so it'll be good to get away from each other for a little bit, but I'm pleased with the effort so far."
(on players talking about wanting to make the Pro Bowl in June) "It's nice to hear. It's talk. But what means something is what happens out here on this practice field every day starting July the 25th into the season."
(on the decision to cut QB Quinn Gray and T Jordan Black) "It's going to be increasingly more difficult as teams try to figure out how many guys at various positions to take to training camp and I think that we have decided on the number we are going to take, and just felt like at this point he (Gray) did not have a good chance of making it. So in fairness to him, to give him an opportunity to maybe go and try to latch on with another team, to make that release today."
(on Gray being well thought after last season) "Well, and he's still well thought of. I just think that from a fit standpoint with our football team, it made more sense for us to let him go now. I still think this guy's a quality NFL quarterback and I think he's going to have a good career. It's just not a fit here. So much of this league is just timing and fit, and it just wasn't a good fit for us at this point."
(on if talks with LB Rosevelt Colvin are ongoing) "They're ongoing, yeah. I talked to Kennard (McGuire, Colvin's agent). I've stayed in contact with him, and so we will continue to explore that option and see if it's something that we can come to an agreement on."
(on if his feelings on the chances of landing Colvin have changed in the past week) "No, they haven't changed. I'm behind that preposition. We've talked. We've got good conversations going. You know my relationship with Kennard, my relationship with Rosevelt, and so if it's something that we feel like we ought to do, then we'll move on it."
(on what cutting Gray says about QB Shane Boyd) "You know what, it says that Shane is making progress. It's saying that Alex Brink is making progress. We've got some young quarterbacks that we really like that are doing a decent job and we feel comfortable with those guys going into training camp."
(on how much he will massage the roster between now and camp) "I don't see much. Obviously, because we have not signed the draft choices, we've still got over 80 men on our roster at this point and so we'll make adjustments to get to the 80-man roster limit, but beyond that I don't see a whole bunch of movement."
(on T Duane Brown) "He's doing a nice job. He's learning. That's a difficult position, as you know, to come in this league. And then you couple that with the fact that he's playing against a guy that probably in my opinion could be the most dominant defensive end this year the way he's prepared and working this year, Mario (Williams). So he's got a lot to work on but he's got a great attitude and all the athleticism that we need and the right temperament, so I'm pleased."
(on how Brown handled his first month of practices) "You know what? He handled it great. You look at the first day he came out here, it was a rude awakening and he was able to compose himself even as quickly as the next practice and improve, and so he's got the right temperament. This kid's a tough-minded kid. He's smart. So he's going to be fine."
(on what he expects to see from DE Mario Williams this year) "Continued improvement, just like we talked earlier about the rookies and what you look for from year one to year two and that kind of thing, and it's just consistency. And so I think what he found last year was that if he works consistently, he's got all the ability in the world and he's shown that this offseason so far. He's come out every day and worked hard."
(on what the team will do with T/G Charles Spencer) "Well, we don't know. We've got a lot of conversations to have between now and training camp. His rehab process has gone slow, and we had hoped that it would have been a little bit better at this point and so from a lot of standpoints, that's a little disappointing. But we're going to continue to be patient with Charles and give him every opportunity that we can to make it back."
(on how hard it is when they like a player like Spencer to take emotion out of a roster decision) "Well, and that's it: You'd like to say it's business, but I don't think you ever make a purely business decision. And so you see a kid working hard the way he has worked and you want to give him every opportunity, but like you said, at some point we've got 80 guys who'll go to training camp and we can't afford to have a bunch of guys standing around because we've already got one in Dunta (Robinson) that's going to count, so we're down to 79 and you can't have very many guys that are counting that won't practice. So it's tough."
(on DT Travis Johnson) "Travis is going to be fine. He's rehabbing and he's responding well to the treatment and so we expect that he's going to be ready to go."
Head coach Gary Kubiak
(on what the team accomplished in OTAs) "We got some things done that we needed to get done, just teaching some various situations in a game. Those OTAs, it's like a pro football spring ball. We got a great deal done. Now, I think we need to separate from each other for a little while, but they need to keep working. We know what's ahead of us and we've got to get ready to do it. But we are looking forward to it."
(on roster changes) "We released two players today. We released Jordan Black and Quinn Gray, two veteran players. My philosophy is if I've got a veteran player playing in this league and I don't see the opportunity or feel like I can give them a fair opportunity to make a football team, then I want to give them a fair opportunity somewhere else. I felt that way with both those players and with where they are at those positions. Mainly at the quarterback positions, I made a decision to work with those two young players. You guys know the 80-limit roster is the rule in this league, and I'm sure there is going to be more (cuts) here in the next three weeks. We still have to get down some more. Tough decisions, but two good kids. We wish them the best."
(on doing anything with T/G Charles Spencer) "No. We are still going to take our time with that. As I told you before, I would have loved to have done some things on the field to make me feel better about our verdict, I should say. But it is what it is. It. The kid's not there yet, not ready to get his feet turned loose with these guys. We've got six weeks here, a little less than six weeks. We'll keep pushing him and see where he's at."
(on QB Quinn Gray getting cut) "It's not disappointing. If anything, I'm excited about the two young kids. I knew when we signed him he had played in a lot of games, had some experience. But I watch Alex and I watch Shane and I think they have a chance to play in this league. We can't take five quarterbacks to camp. As I told Quinn, I know if I can't give you reps, I don't want to do that to you so I'll give you an opportunity somewhere else. It's really an excitement to work with those two young kids and see how they do."
(on DT Amobi Okoye making progress) "He's grown up. He's a much more mature kid. He's an effort player, down in and down out, right now which is something I wouldn't say he was last year so that's something he has corrected. But he's got a lot more maturity about him as we move forward. He's a better player."
(on what he accomplished in OTAs ) "We basically went through a mini-look at our camp, trying to hit all the situations, trying to let the players know what they are up against. We've got a couple of tough cuts to make here. Believe it or not, this time of year we are still trying to evaluate some guys. We got a lot accomplished, and the good news is that we are really healthy. Only the guys who have been out for a while, Travis (Johnson), (N.D.) Kalu, and we plan on keeping them out for a while. We got good work down. We are all in one piece, so we are ready to go to camp."
(on the progress of the rookies) "It's amazing. You look at (Antwaun) Molden. You look at (Xavier) Adibi. The young tackle, Duane (Brown). The progress they have made, they've made it because they've gotten reps. It's almost like their first training camp before they've ever been to one in a lot of ways. We had some great work with them mentally. I would say those kids are – I don't want to say any further ahead than some of the ones we have had in the past, but they are every bit as close to them. Hopefully, they'll help our team like our young guys have had in the past."
(on T/G Charles Spencer) "It is frustrating for him. I had a long talk with him in my office the other day. When you are a kid that knows you could have been a starting left tackle in this league for a long, long time and you have this happen to you, it's just a tough pill to swallow. I told him, 'The good Lord's got a plan for all of us. Just keep working.' And he's a great kid, a good man. Things will work out some how, some way. So we just have to figure out where we go from here."
(on negotiations with LB Rosevelt Colvin) "We are still talking to him. I think we are still a part of his decision process. We will wait to see what happens."
(on how many more cuts he has to make) "I don't know the exact number right now. I want to guess four or five, somewhere in there. We've got to get up there. That's what we'll be doing all day today. We'll figure out where we've got to go from there."
(on WR Andre Johnson's knee) "He's doing really well. I expect him to be out here opening morning in training camp. He's got a good period of time here to work some more. I expect him to be ready to go."
