GH: How do you see it for Joe Burrow? It’s his first camp that’s not delayed by COVID protocols or by his rehab. What do you see different for him?
ZT: There are things he can help along with the offense. We’ve got new offensive linemen we have to bring up to speed and the communication and rapport with those guys. With Tee (Higgins), he’s coming off the shoulder (surgery), so we’re going to protect him early on in camp and so it’s an opportunity to continue to develop some of that receiving corps and Joe is certainly a big part of helping bring that along. Hayden Hurst, the new tight end, to build that chemistry with.
There’s always changes that occur from year-to- year for the quarterback and we’re counting on him to him to help bring people along and make sure our offense continues humming.
GH: How can Burrow and the offense be better?
ZT: You’re really just talking about the entirety of the offense at that point. Score more points in the red zone. We certainly didn’t always start some games the way we want to. We did a really good job of finishing. We had a lot of production late in the first half, but I think now the next step for this offense in its entirety is to really build some leads early and score points early in the game. The best brand of football is playing with a lead. That’s an area we can certainly improve on.
GH: Are red zone and short yardage the big emphasis in this camp?
ZT: Those will be key areas of focus for us. We map out training camp and make sure we hit all our areas and spend some time on it and talk through our weaknesses from a year ago and strengths from a year ago and that’s part of what we present to our players. We feel good about what our plan is going into training camp.
GH: You’re always looking at trends and tendencies. Do you think defenses are going to dare you to run the ball this year?
ZT: It’s hard to just put a general blanket on every team we play. We know that each team can throw something a little bit different at you. Teams have shown that over the years. You just have to prepare for each game as an individual game and see what the defense throws at you and adjust the next week. That’s a part of it in this league. No two teams are usually the same when you prepare for them.
GH: After getting the contract extension, have you changed anything knowing you’ve got five years?
ZT: I think in this profession you aways approach things year to year. It’s what have you done for me lately. Sure, there were some great things that happened here last year. The expectation and standards continue to be raised every year. That’s what you want. That’s why you’re in this profession. If you don’t have that mentality, that you have to improve on the past, you’re probably in it for the wrong reasons. That’s just the mentality we’ve all taken here.
