NFC Notes: Robert Quinn, Bears, Lions, Packers

Bears

Regarding a report that Bears DE Robert Quinn has wanted to be traded since the organization began its rebuild, Quinn responded that he’s “happy as I can be” in Chicago.  

“People like stories,” Quinn said, via Jason Leiser of the Chicago Sun-Times. “I’m not walking into this building thinking about being somewhere else. I don’t want to walk in being a fake, acting like I want to be here but really I don’t. I’m here, and I’m as happy as I can be.”

Quinn added that he prefers to stay put with the Bears given his wife and children are in Chicago with him, but he can’t control his future should he get traded. 

“I’ve got a wife and kids, so that’s a part of it, and I know this locker room pretty well,” Quinn said. “I’m a pretty quiet guy, so it takes a little while for me to kinda show my personality. But all I can control is myself. Anything that happens after that is coming from upstairs and out of my control.”

Lions

Lions RB D’Andre Swift is “pushing” to play this Sunday against Dallas.

“It is tough. It’s tough. Like I said, all I can do is control what I can control, and it’s getting better,” Swift said, via Detroit News. “It’s football. Everybody is going through stuff, injuries, but some stuff you play through, some things you can’t. You try to play through ‘em, but it is what it is. At some point, you gotta keep going.”

Swift said he was challenged this offseason by running backs coach Duce Staley to push through minor injuries and continue to play.

“That’s how I’m built…I mean, I sprained an ankle the second quarter of the Eagles game. Y’all probably didn’t even know that,” Swift said. “But just trying to push through, and if it’s something minor I can push through, I will, no questions asked…But some things, you’ve just gotta let it heal. If you don’t, it’ll make it worse. (It was) rough early on. When you first get injuries, you kind of think like, ‘Is this just my luck?’ It’s the cards I’m dealt with. I can’t do nothing but control what I can control. I can’t really sulk about it, can’t be sad about it. It’s football. It’s what I signed up for.”

While Swift is pleased with the team’s run game success thus far, he believes there is plenty for him to clean up and improve upon.

“I feel like I can get better at everything,” Swift said. “Vision, pass protection, yards after the catch, better between the tackles, better outside, all aspects of the game, I feel like I can get better at, so always room for improvement.”

Packers

Regarding Packers QB Aaron Rodgers saying that they need to “simplify” their offense, the quarterback explained that it should be taken as “an alert” for their players to improve. 

“The point was if we’re not executing those plans, which to be honest they’re not the most complex things the majority of the time, then the only slight reaction might be to even simplify things even further,” Rodgers said, via Christopher Kuhagen of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “That doesn’t mean less motions or checks at the line of scrimmage. It just means let’s make sure these guys can handle what we’re doing. It was really an alert for our players. We need to lock in a little bit more and simplify things in our own mind. Even the most complex plays can be simplified in our mind. We just need to be better in the details. The details have not been good enough.”

Rodgers reiterated that the players must be able to execute HC Matt LaFleur‘s offense. 

“We need to simplify our own game,” Rodgers said. “It’s not anything against the staff. Those guys put a lot of work into it. At some point the accountability has to fall on the players to go out and execute.”

As for his relationship with GM Brian Gutekunst, Rodgers said that they communicate often about the direction of the team. 

“The relationship between myself and management has definitely improved,” Rodgers said. “It’s not a new revelation I’m sharing here. Brian and I have a real good relationship. We communicate often about a different number of things not just personnel stuff, but pulse of the team, direction and mindset and energy and how everyone is fitting together. I trust they’ll be in the mix on certain guys they’ll like. It comes down to need, price, cost of those players. I know Brian is going to do what’s best for our football team.”