FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. – Falcons Minicamp Built by The Home Depot is over and the players are off for the next several weeks before training camp, but head coach Dan Quinn still wants them to keep in touch with one another.
"I would expect a very large amount of them to be really connected, whether it's on a daily basis or, at the smallest point, a weekly basis," Quinn said. "We know each plan for every one of them, how that goes. There's a lot of accountability they have for one another. So, they know how to push it and they know that they're relying on one another.
"I think when you're playing for something that's bigger than yourself, it makes you push it a little more. Knowing that, 'My men are counting on me to be ready, and so I'm going to have the discipline I need.' It's a little bit different than everyone else's summer off… They know what's at stake, and I anticipate them really putting forth [that effort]."
Although the players won't be around the team's facility on a daily basis, they aren't completely getting out of football mode. Falcons quarterback Matt Ryan shared his plans to host a passing camp for around a dozen of his teammates this summer after Wednesday's minicamp practice, which is exactly what head coach Dan Quinn wants to see out of his players.
The players won't be under the coaching staff's supervision, but Quinn expects that reliance and accountability to one another to act as a driving force during the weeks off. He also believes the team's newly renovated weight room will entice players to spend more time at the facility working out rather than off on their own.
While this time is a vacation away from mandatory football activities for the team, these next several weeks could have a big impact on the energy and preparedness of the group heading into training camp and the start of the season. Quinn says his parting message to the team explained as much.
"I told the team now there's a break, [prepare your] heart, mind, body, soul to get ready," Quinn said. "Base camp is over. We threw ourselves a good base camp. We're ready, we've got our stuff together. Now it's a matter of in these five weeks really putting out from a conditioning standpoint so when you come back here, we 100 percent get to see the best version of you. I imagine that this camp will look faster and more complete in a lot of respects."
