Q&A with IR Adam James
RP: How does fall practice this year compare with where you were last fall?
AJ: I feel a lot more comfortable with the system. I know the offense. I’m still learning it, obviously, but last camp I came in still learning the plays, even. So it’s mainly just the comfort zone.
RP: With Eric Morris out, you’ve been taking snaps with the first string. What is it like playing with the first team offense as opposed to the second?
AJ: I wouldn’t say it was a whole lot different. I would say maybe the tempo’s a little quicker. But for the most part I’ve gotten pretty comfortable with the speed of the defense, the speed of the game. So it’s mainly just getting my timing down with Graham and the first team offense.
RP: How much more versatile do you think it makes you that you can play both hand-down and in the slot?
AJ: I’ve always thought that that would be my strength, being able to go down and up. But I think if I can run routes from tight end, the defense never knows if we’re going to run the ball or if we’re going to throw the ball, so it keeps the linebackers honest. They can’t be cheating up on the run, so I think it will be an advantage.
RP: Do you like getting to block from the hand-down position?
AJ: It’s fun. I mean, that’s all I did in high school. I need to keep practicing on it; I don’t get many reps in practice, but it’s fun. It’s a change up.
RP: How much does it help having a guy like Eric Morris in front of you helping you learn your position?
AJ: It helps a lot. It helps just being able to watch him, how he sets up linebackers and safeties with his routes and sticks his foot in the ground. It helps a lot, just being able to see a great receiver like Emo run his routes and try to improve myself to try to run like him.
RP: What about having a Graham come over and help you when you’ve maybe missed a play or aren’t running your route correctly?
AJ: It’s great. I know the play you’re talking about. I was supposed to hot a route because a linebacker blitzed and it’s just little things like that it’s just repetition, seeing linebackers blitzing and knowing that I need to alter my route a little bit. But it helps a lot having Graham, a leader of the team come over and give you a little pat on the back and tell you, “It’s alright, we’ll get it next time.”