WR Anthony Schwartz (5.14.21)
On Seahawks WR DK Metcalf’s 100-meter dash Olympic Trails performance last week:
“It was a very good performance from him, especially him being around 6’4, 230. For him to run a 10.3 and even for the first 50 meters just keeping up with them, that is just very impressive to see from him.”
On when he decided to focus on football over Olympic hopes:
“I would say it was around last offseason – March or April. Especially when the Olympics got canceled, that is when I was like I am going to stick to football and try to get the best I can at football and improve my craft. Thankfully, that lead to me being able to have an opportunity with the Cleveland Browns.”
On if the Olympics were at one point a top priority for him:
“They were never really a top priority for me, but it was always something I wanted to train for when it came to that point.”
On if he wants to race anyone on the team to show he is the fastest:
“I do not feel like I have to race them to show that, but if they want me to or if they want to test their speed against me, I will be glad to do it.”
On what he has to do to prove that he is more than just a speed player:
“I just have to show them on the field my toughness, show them how I work, show them how I learn and just show that I belong here.”
On the messages from coaches on what they want to see from him at WR:
“They just want to see more from me and not just being a speed guy or a guy who is just going to run verticals or run screens. I want to become a guy who can run every route in the route tree and that can develop into a top guy and not just a gadget player.”
On what has he learned from WR Jarvis Landry:
“Just training with a guy like Jarvis is very good from my stance and just everything really because he is a great guy. He is good to be around. He was one of the instrumental players in changing everything and is one of the leaders of the team to be able to pick his brain to get some tips from him on what to expect, what they are expecting out of me and what I can do to prove myself and making that jump to the next level has been very good. Just seeing how hard he works out and trying to match him and surpass him working out. Just showing him that I am here to work with you.”
On advice Landry has given him about the NFL and how to be a successful player:
“The main thing that he told me is just you have to take care of your body. Like he said, if he can go back, that is the one thing that he would do is just invest more in his body and taking care of it because that can take you a long way. Then of course, learning the plays and stay in your playbook so when you get called upon and when it is your time to go, you are not looking around and looking lost – you are ready to go.”
On if his time with Landry is invaluable for his immediate development, given not every NFL player has that opportunity as a rookie:
“For sure because especially like you said, working out with a five-time Pro Bowler and a guy of his caliber, not everyone gets to do that. I am in the blessed opportunity to where I get to work at the same facility as them and I got to know him a little bit more. I feel like just learning from him is going to do a lot for me moving forward. He is going to help me get a jumpstart on the rest of the rookies out there.”
On why he picked No. 10:
“No. 10 is the number I wore pretty much all throughout little league, and I wore it my senior year of high school. It was just always a number I grew close to. There is no specific meaning behind it, but I just kind of grew close to it growing up. Being able to get my number back in the NFL is going to be a great thing. Also, I was pick No. 91. Nine plus one equals 10 so it kind of worked out perfectly.”
On why No. 1 did not appeal to him if it was available:
“No. 1 would have been my second choice, but I always wanted to get my No. 10 back.”
On Landry’s reaction to him getting picked by the Browns and if their workouts have changed since they became teammates:
“When I first saw him again, he was like, ‘Congrats. Let’s get ready to go. We have a lot of big things ahead of us.’ Now that we are on the same team, he can kind of walk me through what to expect and he can take his time and walk me through the top of the routes and everything that comes with route running and being a successful receiver in the NFL. It has been great to learn all of that from him. He has taken me under his wing. He will send me an address and say, ‘Meet me here and we will get some work in there.’ It is just great to have him and great to have a guy like that to show me the ropes.”
On if he knew WR Donovan Peoples-Jones trained with Landry last year and if it is encouraging that Peoples-Jones was successful in his rookie year:
“I did not know that. Especially seeing the season he had last year and how he was able to blow up the scene, it is just encouraging for me because now I know I am on the right track. Especially with a guy like Jarvis, it is the perfect guy to learn from.”
On blocking downfield and if he is aware of how the team’s WRs stress blocking ability:
“We have not talked in depth about that part of the game, but that is one of our three keys playing receiver for us. I know it is something I have to improve on. It is something I want to improve on. It will help me to get on the field more. It will help me stay on the field more. I can’t wait to start that part and can’t wait to just see improvement from my college career to now in terms of from a blocking standpoint.
On Landry’s teaching approach:
“He breaks it down into everyday terms. He is not going into detail where you have to write it down. He is going to tell you what you need to know, and he is going to make it easy to understand. He will bring up examples and everything to make it easy to understand. He always says, ‘At the end of the day, you are playing the same game you have played your whole life. You just have to do this much more.’”
On if he gets the sense Landry enjoys teaching him:
“Yeah, he seems like he is a guy who loves to teach. He is very knowledgeable of the game. He knows a lot of things. He is happy to explain everything to me. He is always giving me pointers. He is always correcting everything I need to do. I really appreciate it from him.”
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