TYTUS HOWARD: It felt pretty good. I haven't played guard since my rookie year, my first game, but it felt pretty good to be out there this weekend and playing good, being out with my boys. I feel like up front, we did a pretty good job. There's always stuff we can work on, but I feel like we made progress from where we were last year and I feel like we're going to be pretty good.
Q. Do you feel like you didn't run the ball like you wanted to?
TYTUS HOWARD: Every week, we've been going against each other in training camp, game plan, this and that, but I feel like we were make something blocks and making some guys move out of the hole but we just didn't get what we were supposed to be getting. I think that's something that we can take it this week's practice and work on and I think it should be better this weekend.
Q. You and Laremy teaming up, how excited are you about playing next to each other?
TYTUS HOWARD: Oh, yeah, that's my boy right there. It's going to be pretty good year for us. You know, I'm on the left side. I'm playing left guard. He's at left tackle. It's going to be real. It's going to be real. But I think the whole front, the whole offensive line, we have Justin, Charlie, Lane, Cannon, this group is going to do good things this year for this team. I think we win some games because what we do up front.
Q. What kind of asset is Justin, having played so many different positions on the line and advice he can dispense?
TYTUS HOWARD: He's been very helpful for me. Justin, he came into the league as a tackle, played tackle with Seahawks in the Super Bowl and then end up moving to center. When I first got moved to left guard he was talking, hey, man, you need some advice, just tell me, I can help you out, I've been through this.
So I listened to some things from him and I learned a lot from him and he's a great guy. I'm happy for him to be on this team and to be our center.
Q. What advice did he give?
TYTUS HOWARD: Just own in on it and just take it as, oh, you've just been moved. Take it as you've been put in a position to better yourself and help the team, and I accepted that.
Q. What do you think makes you a good guard?
TYTUS HOWARD: I think that I'm smart, so learning the plays and learning the different stuff at left guard versus being right tackle, it wasn't hard for me. Physicality, I think I bring that to the table. My athleticism, I think I can use that in the inside and then I think it's going to help.
Q. Every year is different, but what do you think it is that makes this offensive line -- as far as the movement --
TYTUS HOWARD: I just think it just comes from the guys we have in the room. Like I said, I think coaches, they do a good job of bringing in guy who is value being a Houston Texan. All the guys have put in work in this training camp and we established that we can't do nothing as a team unless we win up front and that's what we got to do. I think that's the goal for us this season to set the tone up front and I think we'll do that.
Q. Schematically for you guys as a line, the run game specifically, anything different?
TYTUS HOWARD: Yeah, every O-Line coach has their different ways of teaching and I think Coach came in and he's taught us a lot from all the stuff he's learned over the years, so I think we're doing a good job of picking up on his philosophy and I think it's going to be good for us.
Q. When did you know they were going to have you switch positions?
TYTUS HOWARD: I mean, it's not completely set in stone where I'm going to be at but as of right now I'm at left guard. When I first came into training camp I was going right tackle, left tackle, left guard, all over the place. But it wasn't just to move me. It was to see how comfortable I could get at each position and see what's best for the offensive line.
Q. Things can change fast. How comfortable are you if they say, okay, we pick our best five and you're back to right tackle?
TYTUS HOWARD: Oh, yeah, I think I can just go back out and do it again. I practice it every day, so they prepare me for something like that. I think that's why the coaches took it the way they did, moving me from tackle to guard, tackle to guard, stuff like that.
Q. How much do you think your game has elevated so far?
TYTUS HOWARD: I think I got better, a lot better. He teaches a lot of technique, stuff like that, to help with my game. I'm just out there playing my first few years and now the game has slowed down for me and stuff like that. With all this technical work and stuff like that and his mentality towards each play has helped me out.
Q. On Saturday night, Coach Culley and Mills -- where are you guys at with your comfort level of recognizing misses and protecting?
TYTUS HOWARD: I don't think we have a problem with picking up blitzes. I just think it's the preseason and we're going against each other so much in training camp, so versus your preseason versus your regular season, in the regular season, you are working on what the other team is going to be doing. I think when it comes to the season and we get the scheme of what the team is doing, we'll be fine.
Q. How much of a challenge is it to learn the position at left guard after being at right tackle for so long?
TYTUS HOWARD: It wasn't hard at all. Like I said, I'm pretty smart. I played guard as a rookie and I played it throughout training camp. Started my first game plan against the Jags my rookie year, so I still remember mostly everything. For me, just technique-wise, just picking up stuff a lull bit faster, being more tight when I'm inside versus I have a lot more room to do stuff when I'm at tackle. So that basically was the only thing different.
Q. As far as getting ready for games at guard versus tackle is there much difference or the same mindset?
TYTUS HOWARD: Same mindset for me. You can't take nobody in this league different. Everyone in this league is getting paid to be here for a reason. Yeah, you have guys who get better numbers than other guys, but I take each game the same and I take each player the same.
Q. What has been your impression of the defensive line going up against them in camp and what you've seen from them?
TYTUS HOWARD: Pretty good defensive line. They move around a lot. The linebackers move around a lot. I think we've got a lot of talented guys up front. I think like I said, the games this year, we do a good job up front on both sides of the ball this. Football team should be pretty good.
Q. What does it mean to a veteran that they brought in 53 players, 30 have at least five years of experience, and still loading up on rookies?
TYTUS HOWARD: Experience helps a lot, especially in the locker room and stuff like that. I've got plenty of guys I see on the offensive line that I can go talk to, Laremy, Justin, Lane, Marcus, all those guys have played seven or more years. That's a lot of experience to talk to some of us young guys who are already on the team and I think that's what their goal was to do so we want to win now.
Q. Does it help the coaching?
TYTUS HOWARD: It does help the coaching. Those guys are some pretty good guys and they brought in people who value being a Houston Texan.
Q. After the game Saturday, Mark Ingram called you a beast. What do you think about that?
TYTUS HOWARD: That's my boy. Mark is a great dude. He is by far one of best people I've met on and off the field. He's a great leader for this team and he's going to be a big running back for this team, too.
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