Said Bills coach Chan Gailey of TE Scott Chandler, “He’s made some plays down the field, he’s a big target. I see nothing but more positive things for him happening in the future.”
Dolphins owner Stephen Ross says he doesn’t like the team’s 1970s-era fight song, but he’ll keep it to placate the fans who enjoy it.
Patriots RB Stevan Ridley is hoping to prove he can get the bulk of the carries in New England’s offense.
Jets LB Bart Scott appears to have his passion back after a down year in 2011.
Ravens coach John Harbaugh held LT Bryant McKinnie out of minicamp practices for “conditioning purposes.”
It’s easy to feel schadenfreude when looking at the careers of former Bengals teammates Terrell Owens and Chad Ochocinco.
Browns WR Josh Cribbs is personally footing the bill for a chartered bus to take fans of his alma mater, Kent State, to see their baseball team in the College World Series.
Steelers G Willie Colon thinks QB Ben Roethlisberger deserves some good press: “Just from when I met him to now, it has been a total 180,” Colon said. “People love to talk about when you are down and doing wrong. But they don’t say anything when you are a married man, not cheating on your wife, having a kid, being an example in the community — they don’t want to talk about that. When you are on the straight and narrow, getting your life together and doing the right things, nobody wants to talk about you.”
Said Texans coach Gary Kubiak of FB Moran Norris, “He’s a big, good-looking guy. . . . He’s a banger in this league and he’s done it for a long time.”
Colts WR Reggie Wayne thinks QB Andrew Luck spending the last month back in school at Stanford was “not ideal.”
Jaguars coach Mike Mularkey describes RB Rashad Jennings as, “A little kid running around like he’s happy to be back on the field. He’s got a pretty good spring in his step. It’s been fun to have him around here.”
After tearing his ACL in 2010, Titans DE Derrick Morgan is finally ready to play without a brace.
Broncos QB Peyton Manning is not the Manning of old. (But the difference is negligible.)
The Chiefs don’t seem to have enough faith in WR Dwayne Bowe to give him a long-term deal.
Raiders DE Richard Seymour thinks teammate Matt Shaughnessy is “the best in the NFL against the run.”
The Chargers have claimed OT Taylor Dever off waivers from the Cowboys.
Cowboys rookie S Matt Johnson, a fourth-round pick out of Eastern Washington, can’t participate in minicamp because school is still in session.
Giants OT Will Beatty learned the hard way that people with bad backs shouldn’t do Olympic lifts.
Howard Mudd, the Eagles’ 71-year-old offensive line coach, says, “There’s still some gas in the tank. I want to drive fast, too, and I want to go a long ways.”
The Redskins are playing it safe with players recovering from injuries.
The Bears think they have a new-look offense that will give opposing defenses fits.
Lions CB Bill Bentley is impressing his older teammates.
Packers CB Charles Woodson is well aware of Green Bay’s ugly defensive stats: “For us in the secondary, it stings a great deal to be attached to the worst passing defense in the league.”
Vikings WR Percy Harvin has missed four consecutive OTAs, but Vikings coach Leslie Frazier said Harvin’s absence since last week has had nothing to do with the arthroscopic shoulder surgery the receiver had in April.
The Falcons are opening some minicamp sessions to the public.
Panthers OT Jordan Gross says people would be surprised to learn how complex Carolina’s offense is.
Louisiana State Sen. Karen Carter Peterson, a Democrat from New Orleans, was the only state legislature to vote against a resolution criticizing the NFL’s punishments in the Saints’ bounty scandal.
Said Bucs GM Mark Dominik of QB Josh Freeman, “He really, really wants to be great. You guys have talked to him a lot of times, just listening to him, the calmness, it overshadows how hungry he is inside, what he wants to be, how badly he wants to be successful.”
Cardinals S Adrian Wilson said other players need to step up and follow the example of WR Larry Fitzgerald: “Larry is a great player, and he’s a great playmaker, but you have to have more than just Larry.”
Rams rookie RB Isaiah Pead returned for his first practice since rookie minicamp a month ago, and coach Jeff Fisher was impressed: “He’s been working. He’s in shape. And he’s picking things up very, very quickly.”
The 49ers’ starting inside linebackers, Patrick Willis and NaVorro Bowman, were both excused from minicamp for personal family reasons.
Said Seahawks coach Pete Carroll of rookie S Winston Guy, “I really like this player. I think he brings more than we had hoped at this early time. His speed is very good, instincts are excellent, he’s got a lot to learn to not make the boneheaded mistakes and things, but he’s going to play for us and be a part of what we’re doing.”