Q. What do you try to impart to the younger guys?
ROBERT WOODS: Just trying to set the expectation for this offense and this team, show them how to work, kind of like my experiences on Super Bowl teams, and then from our receiver room, the offense more so, just setting the standard of being in the right spot at the right time.
Just trying to be an accurate offense, to be efficient. Yeah, be efficient, be an efficient offense.
Q. I know it's the first day, but what do you think of C.J. Stroud and your initial impressions of him?
ROBERT WOODS: I would say a good leader already coming in, vocal, speaking up in meetings, being able to sit with him at times in the quarterback meetings and hearing him ask some great questions, trying to pick apart the offense and grasp it pretty early.
Out on the field, making some strong throws, good reads, good decisions. That's really a good thing to start with a rookie quarterback coming in, being able to make the right decisions, know when to throw it, know when to pull it down. Good decisions on timing and accuracy with the football.
Q. Davis said you were in some of the quarterback meetings early on. What are you trying to get out of those meetings?
ROBERT WOODS: Just trying to pick their brain. Trying to be in there and know what they expect from a quarterback perspective and then what they want from a receiver and being able to have some extra time.
Kind of just relaying messages of what I expect in the route and what I'm thinking from the quarterback and defense perspective, where we're both expecting the ball and being able to steal a rep on the film, and being able to go out there and make it come to life in person.
It's really just finding ways to get extra reps in the meeting room without taxing our bodies.
Q. What was it about this team that made it a destination you wanted it to be?
ROBERT WOODS: I would say Coach, knowing the offense he's coming from, me having familiarity with it, and then trying to just, like I said, pick back up in a good offense, efficient offense, having a young quarterback being able to pick it up and kind of just knowing what to expect, me and the Coach having the same expectations with the offense and me understanding it and just trying to get in that same rhythm and knowing how it works, knowing what plays could be made.
Q. This is very early, but Tank Dell has caught a lot of attention in people's eyes. Young receiver. Your early impressions of him, and how will you work with someone like him to get him up to speed?
ROBERT WOODS: I would say from a receiver standpoint, good technician, good feet, good hands. You see him run his routes really crisp with his feet. For me, just give Tank confidence knowing he could do it at this level, believe in himself. Obviously he has all the physical abilities to be able to play in this league, fast, quick, really just want him to be able to have an impact right away.
Q. With size, how can it be an advantage?
ROBERT WOODS: Tank's size? I mean, he's very agile. Being a smaller guy, being able to put his foot in the ground and change direction, accelerate right away, mismatch against linebackers, of course, bigger corners, and he's shifty enough to mix up well with the smaller DBs.
Q. Last time you were here you had a lot of complimentary things to say about this franchise as far as them rebuilding. Did you ever imagine yourself being here? What have your interactions with Coach Ryans been like?
ROBERT WOODS: I never knew I would come here to this offense or to this team, but being here, I would say just my -- just coming here and hearing DeMeco talk for years, I guess, being in the Rams and seeing him kind of develop with the 49ers and take over that defense and give energy to that linebacker group, that whole team, and be able to see him come here and kind of feed that same energy to our team.
I see from our defensive side, a lot of energy, a lot of juice spreading over to the offense. I think a lot of hungry players, hungry coaches. I feel like this is a similar situation to when I came to L.A. with a young McVay. Some say it was a rebuild. I feel like it was just a team buying into your coach, believing in the coach, believing in the system, and I think Coach Ryans has that here.
Got a lot of young players buying into this defense, into this culture, and we can change this environment.
Q. How would you describe the injury in '21, last year heading in with the team, and then what's gotten you to where you're at right now.
ROBERT WOODS: I would say growth and like just a journey. The ACL was a huge shock, I guess, injury to myself and my career, just being able to have a huge injury like that. But being able to bounce back, being able to come back and play every single game last season, contribute, make plays when called upon, and being able to finish the season healthy, come back, finally get a full off-season to train, run routes, get with the quarterback.
Being able to do OTAs again and run routes with the quarterback, I feel like all this is important to our timing and to our offense and to myself. Really just being able to like feel it again and coming out here, feeling good, feeling fast, feeling crisp from my routes. Just feels good to be running routes and catching the football again.
Q. You moved to inside, outside. You mentioned Slowik's offense is partly why you came here. What can you provide to this offense physically and as a receiver?
ROBERT WOODS: Everything. In this offense receivers are asked to do a lot. That's obviously run crisp routes, make plays down the field, be able to take the ball for short catches, get a lot of yack, and make guys miss. Being able to get sweeps and being able to block D-ends.
This offense, receivers, are asked to be a true playmaker and play everywhere on the field. That's what I'm able to bring.
I'm able to block, able to catch, good routes, have Good speed. Match up well against outside corners, nickel corners. That's why being in this offense, being able to play all around, move all around, will help me and this offense.
Q. Robert, it's very easy for you to go in and pinpoint last year where this team was, but from being on the opposing side, what were some of the positives you saw?
ROBERT WOODS: Being on the offensive side, I would say I was more so just focusing on the defense. I feel like Sting was a great corner, good matchups with him, great potential. Good size corner, good feet, good strength.
Pitre in the back, played against him. I would say a good, strong, willing safety, doesn't turn down contact, being able to fit in the hole. Good instinct.
Then playing with Jimmy throughout the year, a good, strong playmaker, being able to play in the nickel, play post safety, play down safety, good playmaker and good leader to play all around the field and get lined up and obviously take the ball away.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports