FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — The first week of Atlanta Falcons AT&T Training Camp wrapped on Saturday before pads came on for the first time on Monday.

Putting the pads on brought an increased level of intensity to kick off the second week, but there were plenty of interesting insights to glean from the first four camp practices under new head coach Kevin Stefanski. Each day of practice, media members can speak to various players and coaches to get a better idea of their experiences and mindset ahead of the season. There are a lot of conversations that take place, but not all of the information discussed has a natural home in a story. That's where this piece comes in.

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• Training Camp Reports: Day 1 | Day 2 | Day 3 | Day 4 | Day 5
• Penix still working towards full medical clearance
• Position previews for 2026 training camp

Camp Chatter is our attempt to provide fans with the best quotes from players and coaches that they may not see anywhere else. For those who want to hear directly from the team, this should offer more in-depth answers in a curated way.

Here are the best quotes from the first four days of training camp practice for the Atlanta Falcons.

KEVIN STEFANSKI

Question: What is your philosophy on playing starters in the preseason?

Stefanski: "I think every team is different. What your team needs can be different year to year. I do think in general, it's good to play in the preseason. Now the number of plays varies, of course. We'll really treat the first game and the third game as games that we'll play some of our starters in. The second game, you know we're going over to Indianapolis to practice versus the Colts for a couple days, so majority of the reps versus the Colts will go to our starters. So those guys will not play in that second game. We'll work through our plan for the first and third games. But in general, guys, to get ready to play football, you've got to play football."

Question: What is the most rewarding part of training camp and preseason to you?

Stefanski: "We don't want to chase the reward. We want to reward the chase, is what we're trying to do. So what that means is all of it is part of the process, whether it's those drills we just did on the field. And even the minutia of football is so simple - and they're everyday drills that you do - they're all just trying to get you ready for the long haul. What we do in the weight room, what we do in the meeting rooms, how we attack this training camp and get our minds and our bodies ready for a long season. I just think it's so important for us as coaches, us as players, to keep our heads down. Keep the main thing, the main thing, work like crazy and not focus on what comes after that. We're just going to keep our heads down, and we're going to work."

Question: How have you seen Zachariah Branch progress?

Stefanski: "Zachariah [Branch] is wired the right way. That's something we knew going into the draft and certainly have figured out about him spending so much time with him through the offseason program into training camp. He's somebody that really puts in the effort on a day-to-day basis. Again, that was no surprise because that's what [Georgia Head Coach] Kirby [Smart] told me. That's what all his coaches have told us in the past. And it's true. You watch him at practice, and he goes and he goes and he goes. He's got the right makeup for what we want him to be."

Question: Can you expand on Michael Penix Jr. not being cleared for 11-on-11s?

Stefanski: "All along, as you guys can imagine, we have put total trust into Mike [Penix Jr.] and the medical team and the doctor who performed his surgery. I'm very, very comfortable with where we are and the plan that we have. Also, I know Mike and he has the absolute right attitude, which is he's going to keep on grinding every single day and get better every single day. When that time comes, he'll be a part of those types of drills. In the meantime, he's working very, very hard. He's working very hard in all aspects of what goes into playing quarterback."

Question: How do you handle the Bijan Robinson situation from your end?

Stefanski: "Understand that there's a business side to everything we do. There's the football side, and sometimes you're living in both worlds, if you will. But just going to continue coaching the football team."

Stefanski: "I think just the NFL, you understand different things come up, all sorts of things, and obviously contracts are a part of that. It doesn't change relationships and those types of things."

WR ZACHARIAH BRANCH

Question: Were you homeschooled for a while growing up to train more?

Branch: "I was homeschooled my seventh-grade and eighth-grade year. I ended up doing an extra year and just wanted to develop physically and mentally overall. I was getting up at 5 a.m., going to the gym at 6 a.m. with my dad and my brother for those two years. And I think it definitely paid off for sure."

Question: What does the presence of fans mean to you out on the field?

Branch: "I think it's pretty cool just to get the fans out here, get that atmosphere and everybody coming to show support. I always love that, and I kind of want to put on a show and just be better for them because people are coming to watch it. Might be a kid's first time getting a chance to see me play or whatever the case may be. So, I want to always leave a good impression on them and just show we're always trying to be the best version of ourselves for the team as well. Because that's what it's all about for the fans as well, to see the best version of ourselves. So, it's always fun getting out here to compete with everybody and feel the atmosphere and love from the fans as well."

LB KENDAL DANIELS

Question: What do you like most about this defense now that you're in it?

Daniels: "The speed and violence that they play with. How versatile we are as a defense and how we play together. I've heard that you don't see that a lot around the league. You see a lot of, you have some big-time-name guys, and they're there for stats. But we're here for a sole reason, and if you're not a part of that, and if you're in it for the wrong reasons, it'll show."

Question: Have you been looking forward to the pads coming on?

Daniels: "Yeah. I'm a linebacker. Of course I've been thinking about it. You always think about it. Running around in no pads, I wouldn't say it's not football, but it's a different type of football. Different type of physicality and violence and speed. You have to play with a little bit of a different edge when it's inside drill, and you have to love those things. I used to not [love it]. When I played safety, I did not like inside drill, but you learn to love it because that's when, if you're having a bad day and you go to inside drill and hit somebody, your day changes. And if you're having a good day and you go to inside drill and something bad happens, your day changes. So, you got to go into drills like that with your chin strapped and ready to go."

WR JAHAN DOTSON

Question: What's your mindset heading into this year?

Dotson: "I came here to have a role in this offense because I know the capability that I have in myself as a player. And this coaching staff, they saw that in myself as well. I came here to be a guy in this offense who's able to make plays, and help our team win a lot of football games. I've been at the top of [the league]. I've seen what it takes to win the big game and make plays in the big game. So, I'm here to bring that experience to these guys, to the guys who haven't done it, and be an outlet for the young guys. I'm here to make plays. That's what this coaching staff brought me here to do, and that's what I'm going to do."

RG CHRIS LINDSTROM

Question: What are your takeaways from how Bill Callahan operates so far?

Lindstrom: "He's great. He's got a real intensity to everything, and the passion that he still has for coaching and — I don't want to speak for him — but, observing it, you can tell he's got that passion and energy. And the detail, and just such a wealth of knowledge, and he's showing guys from all these different years and the reason why things have evolved in his coaching, and then he explains it. It has been a great resource and a great tool. I'm so thankful that I get to work with somebody like him."

WR DRAKE LONDON

Question: What do you enjoy about offensive coordinator Tommy Rees so far?

London: "He's about his stuff, and you can tell he's just an offensive mind, and he just wants to rattle off things and get things going. … I'm excited for him, and I know he is too."

Question: Why did you propose to your girlfriend at a Taco Bell?

London: "She loves Taco Bell. And funny enough, I think it was our second date, and she explained, 'Oh my god, it would be a dream if somebody proposed to me with Taco Bell.' And I said, 'Noted.' I didn't know, but I noted [that] if it was going to go good, then yeah, I'll do it. Which, obviously, it did."

Question: Was she appreciative of the gesture?

London: "She was actually more stoked about the Taco Bell than the ring. That's telling what type of woman I got. So, I was excited. I was excited. She was, too."

OT JAKE MATTHEWS

Question: With the quarterback rotation, is your role at this point to provide some level of consistency for the offense?

Matthews: "Our job is always to kind of be the guys working hard, doing the work in the background, in the shadows a little bit. And that mindset doesn't change. I think we take a lot of pride in, regardless of what the variables may be, we're going to go out there and give our team the best opportunity to win. So much of this game is won, like they say, in the trenches. The O-line and D-line play is such a vital part. It's just another opportunity for us to go out there and say, 'Alright, this is what we have. This is who's at quarterback, Bijan's not in,' whatever it might be, 'let's go out there and find a way to get it done and still move the ball.' So, we take that challenge uh personally and all that stuff too It's all going to shake out."

QB MICHAEL PENIX JR.

Question: How did you feel when you weren't cleared for 11-on-11s to start camp?

Penix: "I care about getting back healthy because the last thing I want to do is get out there and not be able to give my team 100 percent. I feel like that's only right for the team. And that's only fair for the team that whenever I do come back, I'm 100% for them."

Question: What are you doing differently while being limited to prepare?

Penix: "Just a lot of mental reps. A lot of mental reps. Even whenever I'm not in, I'm still behind the quarterback that is in, and I'm back there looking at the defensive structure, thinking about the play call because I'm getting a play call as well. So, I'm thinking about the play call and what I would do if I was in that situation. Obviously, it's not the same because you're not in there, but as best as I can on the mental side of it, I try to take that seriously so I can get those mental reps so that whenever that time does come, I'm already mentally there."

QB COOPER RUSH

Question: How was Day 1 with the Falcons?

Rush: "Fun. It's a good reminder, especially when you're out of it for a little bit, how much you love it, how special it is. It just feels right."

Question: What's your mindset joining the team so quickly?

Rush: "It kind of reminds me of when I first started undrafted. You come in, and it's a whirlwind. We've been down there before, and you just go and play ball and see what happens. So, looking forward to that. Like I said, it was really cool to be out there and kind of remind yourself how fun it is."

QB JACK STRAND

Question: How did it feel to get starting reps on Day 1 of training camp?

Strand: "I didn't think about it too much. I'm coming into training camp and everything just trying to take it day by day. Keep attacking every day. Keep getting better every day. Whether I'm getting a bunch of reps or I'm not getting as many reps. Whatever reps that I do get, whether it's in Indy, whether it's in RVA, whether it's in team, anything, I'm just going to try to attack those reps and try to keep getting with those. And then also from watching the guys around me."

Question: How important is it for you to stay the course after this unexpected start to camp?

Strand: "That's something that I've been telling myself a ton: Be where your feet are. Enjoy the moment. Don't look in the past, don't dwell on any mistakes or any success that you might have had. Don't look to the future and wonder what's going to be happening in two weeks, in three weeks, in a couple of months or anything. Just be where your feet are."

Question: Have you been getting a bunch of texts from back home?

Strand: "Everyone from back home in Wisconsin and back up in Morehead, they've been so supportive of me. [They'll] text me just seeing how things are going going into training camp, and that's such a blessing to me. To hear from those people and see the support that I have from back home and the spotlight that I have for the people back home. The people in my hometown, the young kids like my brother. He's going to be a freshman in high school, and all his friends are so excited about it, and they're trying to get my phone number and anything from him to text me. And being able to go to high school practice and stuff back home and just see the reaction from all those kids and see the platform that I have back home. And then up at school too, like being able to kind of just be like a face for our school and our school up in Moorehead. We weren't really getting a lot of national attention with our football team in the time before myself, and my class and the guys around me got there. And so, the years that we had there and then me being able to come down here and kind of elevate that platform for the school, that's been something that I'm so happy to be able to do."

QB TUA TAGOVAILOA

Question: Are you sitting out as a precaution? Would you be able to play if this were a game week?

Tagovailoa: "I think just right now it's just a precaution thing early on in camp, and then we'll work through that. But I feel great right now. Like I said, it feels good to be out there with the guys, be able to throw, continue to hear the plays, get in the huddle with the guys. All of that."

Question: What have you liked about this system as you continue to learn it?

Tagovailoa: "You're constantly learning, and I think a cool thing that we do here is the night before, we go through the installs. Then, the next morning, you have a lot of time to sort of get your body ready. But at the same time, you're able to see who is able to regurgitate what was installed last night into today's practice because we don't meet before. I think that's something really cool. You can see who's studying, who's been in their playbook, who understands where to go, and where they need to be at. All of that."

Question: Has your mindset changed about a quarterback competition changed now that you're in camp?

Tagovailoa: "I don't think the mindset changes at all. At the end of the day, you have to allow the coaches to be able to do what they got to do, and all you can control is what you can control. You go out there, you study. You do all the things you need to do to be able to go out there and perform. And if the cards fall where they fall, then that's what you're dealt with at the end of the day."

Question: What do you think you bring to this locker room?

Tagovailoa: "Outside of being a football player, I think I bring some good vibes for the guys in the locker room. Making sure everyone's having a good time, making sure guys are smiling. And if guys are not smiling, checking up on them. And then outside of that, having the tough conversations with guys as well."

EDGE JALON WALKER

Question: Do you feel more comfortable showing your leadership skills in Year 2?

Walker: "[It's] something I ask myself to do more. That's part of my standards, part of how I roll, how I hold myself on a day-to-day basis. As I've said plenty of times, I was born into it. My dad being a college football coach and watching him lead his football team and being at Georgia, being named captain of the team, going through my hard days there and leading us to SEC championships and winning and things like that. Last year, of course, going into my campaign, I've [been] finding my way, but throughout the year, I've gained that confidence of figuring out how I can be able to lead this football team. And, going into Year 2, I plan to do so."

SAFETY XAVIER WATTS

Question: What are you working on in Year 2?

Watts: "Right now, just recognizing plays a lot faster. Kind of just formations coming out [of the huddle], knowing what's coming. I had a good grasp on it last year, but I feel like I was a little slow. I could have recognized things a lot faster, missed out on a lot of plays that I went back if I would have recognized it faster."