QUARTERBACK CAM WARD
Can you walk us through the touchdown pass? What that felt like and what went into it?
Just really the o-line giving me time. Elic (Ayomanor) just knowing what I like from a scramble drill and then just connecting on the play. It was exciting to throw my first touchdown, but I wish we came out with the win.
How did you feel getting in that good rhythm in the second quarter there, especially with you and Elic (Ayomanor) and then it seemed like the second half you guys weren't able to put anything together. What did you feel like changed?
I don't think nothing changed. I just think we've got to continue to have urgency. I think in at times it dropped. I think that's the biggest thing, in offense we have to have urgency in every play. At the end of the day, we've just got to stop shooting ourselves in the foot. My turnover, penalties cost us throughout the game, both sides of the ball. We've just got to lock in.
With Elic (Ayomanor), the play you made on the touchdown and the play down the sideline, how's your confidence growing in him?
I've always had confidence in him since day one. I knew it from the jump. Me and him went to the rookie premier. We had workouts. Me and him both wake up, working out and we throwing in the hotel room. I just knew me and him would connect on a lot of plays this season. I'm glad for it to be a big game like this and try to continue off that.
When you guys are all behind the chains the way you do, whether it's penalties or a bad play in the first couple of downs, what's your mindset? How do you go about keeping from panicking, knowing that pressure's coming with it?
I think that's the biggest thing about us right now. Every time we get behind the sticks, we end up shooting ourselves in the foot. Whether it's we got to punt, whether we're not ending with points, I think the biggest things is us staying behind the sticks. I think, the stuff that I notice about is that, especially in the NFL, it's hard to overcome that. We got to stay above the stick, stay on schedule, and the more we do that, the more successful drives we have.
I know you don't want to overreach and you're going to stay within what you're asked to do, but how much more do you feel like you're capable of doing?
Well, I think I'm capable of a lot. Coach (Brian) Callahan, he's gave me a lot of authority. So, I want more of it. And that's the relationship that me and him are just building every day. He's already called two games for me. I want him to call a lot more games for me. He's one of the coaches who's going to do his best for his players, get his players in the right situation, in the run game, pass game, and we just continue to grow. I think that's biggest thing.
Is it hard to be, I don't want to say hard, but there's a lot of patience involved in this thing and you're playing the long game inside the short game. Are there challenges to that?
I wouldn't even call it playing a long game. I'm trying to win every time I step on the field. That's our mindset as a team. I just think we have to do it at a faster rate. We've got to continue to have more urgency every day. We've got to get better every day. It is all a process. It's all about patience. But at some point, it just comes to you just got to go take it.
Cam, on that touch down, did you communicate to Elic (Ayomanor) first to kind of reverse field and go to the left side or did he tell you that he was headed that way?
It's kind of both. He knows what I like. We watch film all the time. He knows how I see the field and I just think I gave him a little point, and you know he did the rest. So, he made a contested catch in the end zone, and got us to touchdown.
Cool to see them do your celebration there afterward?
Hell, yeah. Elic, he's somebody you want on your team. He's a great teammate. He's there early, there late, and the guy's from Stanford, so he's smart. He teaches me a lot of stuff just in how he sees it from a receiver standpoint. So, he's getting me better every day.
Do you feel like there's anything different you could have done, ball security-wise, on the fumble?
I would say not slip on the turf as much. Hopefully, we get grass. So, I just think it all came down to me. I stepped up in the pocket. I didn't have it firm enough, and it just slipped out. Especially in our territory, I can't have that happen. So, it's just something that I got to watch and learn from.
There's typically a degree of danger of throwing back across your body. You're pretty good at avoiding danger when you do that. How confident are you as you're letting that ball go that going against a rule there isn't going to get you in trouble and that you've got room to make that play?
I just think it comes with confidence. It comes with film. It comes with watching DB's and how they play scramble drill. I think a lot of people don't watch scramble drills enough. Then I would say just me, just playing football. I live for plays like that, but at the end of the day, it is a time and a place to have those plays. We've got the perfect look for it. No one's backside, and Elic (Ayomanor) made a play.
Two weeks in a row now, Cam, you've faced two of the most dangerous defensive fronts as far as pressure. Do you feel like you're caught up with the speed of the game now and navigating that pressure and being able to still make plays for this offense?
Yeah, I think it comes every week, the speed of the game. You play a different front every game. And you're also playing a different DC every game, so everybody can see me different or our offense different. So just continue to get better, continue to try to limit the mistakes that we've been having, that I had today. At the end of the day, we've got to grow from it fast.
Those plays where you find like the second play within the play, like the third down last week to (Tony) Pollard, the toss to (Gunnar) Helm this week. How do you make sure that the guys are on the same page as far as knowing, "Hey, this play is going extend. I've got to stay alive."
Just all the conversation we had over the off season, watching film. Those guys, they know who they have at quarterback. It's somebody who wants to distribute the ball to them. I think the more that I continue to get out to my playmakers, like I did with TP (Tony Pollard) last week, Gunnar (Helm) this week, I just think it's going to end up opening up our offense a lot more.
Despite the outcome, Cam, do you yourself feel like you made some strides from one week to another?
I think I did, especially in just getting in and out of the huddle, the speed of the game. But at the end of the day, I'm trying to win. So, that's what our goal here is to win, and we've got to turn around fast. We've just got to continue to work, come in next week with the right mindset like we have every week, and just continue to try to get better.
How much of a sense of urgency is there next week with a divisional opponent coming to town?
Big sense of urgency. That's a must-win game. Every game is a must-win game, but especially in the division. So, I just continue to lead my guys, continue to make sure we still have that team camaraderie and just get better from one week to the next.
What can you say are some of the lessons that you've kind of learned in these first two games in the NFL?
I would say situationally is the biggest thing. I think I've got better at that from last week to this week on some key downs. I would say taking care of the ball. Those would be the biggest, just to take care of a ball. Even though we had two turnovers last week, one turnover this week, and just staying on schedule. Offensively, we have to stay on schedule. We have yet to do that. And the more we continue to stay on schedule, we'll just continue to be good drives for us. Every time we don't stay on schedule, it's always a bad drive. So, just continue to get better, up front locking in, myself locking in, and receivers and running backs locking in.
At the end of the Cody's (Barton) interception, did you lobby Callie to take a shot at the end zone?
Yeah, I always want to go deep. That's my mindset. But, at the end of the day, the goal is to get points out of there. Cody made an incredible play for us. We got points out if it, and so, that was a win for us right there.
