Take a look at top quotes from the group's press conferences after Tuesday's practice.
TE Donald Parham Jr.
On returning to the practice field:
"It's great. It's the opportunity of a lifetime. I'm just taking advantage of every moment that I have back. After everything that happened, it feels good to be back, for sure."
On his appreciation for life and the game following the injury:
"It was crazy because once it happened and I was in the hospital, I was like, 'Will I ever play again?' That reality set in very quick. I had to take my time and really just think about if this was something that I wanted to do for the rest of my career, just making sure that if this was what I wanted to do, I would make my mind up to do it and take the right precautions, listen to the doctors and what they say, that kind of thing."
On the camaraderie of the team:
"[Head Coach Brandon] Staley has done a very good job in terms of getting us to be a team. He's very prominent about being a team and being a family because these are your brothers that you're going into battle with every Sunday. That's the big thing that I've gotten from him. That's very special to me because family is everything to me. That's where I wanted to be. Extended family is always love. I like that about Staley and what he's trying to do here."
OLB Kyle Van Noy
On signing with the Chargers:
"Everything [stood out]. I think it starts with the foundation up top, very firm. [Head] Coach [Brandon] Staley is doing a great job. I connected with him. Then, the atmosphere that they had and this is home for me. It just made complete sense and get the best of all worlds for my family and be able to be on the West Coast so they can come watch me play. Then, to be with a group of guys and the coaching staff that they have in place, it's special. I'm excited to be part of it."
On his versatility:
"It starts with IQ. I'm very prideful in what is going on around me and how I approach the game. I'm trying to get the most out of players around me. I just have always been someone where I'm not a hater. I want everybody to do well. I believe in that because I believe in good energy, good karma. I believe that if I can pump the guy next to me up to be their best, that's going to make me want to be on my best game, too. Competition, keep that always up. I take pride in that, 100 percent. I think God blessed me with some athleticism and being able to move around at my size and great trainers to help me get right. I think it's a little bit of everything involved with that. It took a village to get where I am today, so have to give credit to a bunch of coaches to help me get to this point. That's helped out a lot. A little bit of everything."
On capitalizing on defensive talent to put forth a good defensive unit:
"Talent can start you, but it's not going to get you anywhere if you can't put it together. The more we get together, the more we continue to work together and work, and work, and work some more, I think we'll be alright. It doesn't matter how much talent you have. At the end of the day, you have to put it together. You have to have the right pieces. We're going to try to do our best."
DL Morgan Fox
On his offseason with the Chargers:
"It's great. I have no complaints. I'm super excited. Glad to be back playing ball with a great group of guys, great group of coaches. Really excited to be a part of it."
On the similarity between the Chargers' defensive scheme and the scheme he played in [2020] with the Rams:
"Super similar, super similar. You have the same calls, same verbiage. Just kind of getting used to different techniques and moving around with different guys, but it's all starting to come back pretty quick."
On the defensive line room:
"I love it. Everyone in the room is awesome. Great guys. There's great energy in the room. A super talented room across the board. Everyone in there is talented and extremely good at something. I love being around them, love learning from the guys and the coaches. I'm really grateful and happy to be part of this room."
Defensive Coordinator Renaldo Hill
On the defensive additions:
"We knew going into the offseason that we'd be kind of attacking the defensive side of the ball. We wanted to change some of the personnel to fit the scheme. The guys that we targeted, we got those guys. We got some guys up front that know how to play in our scheme, have the build and the size. We're really happy with the guys that we got there. Then, you got a premium corner on the outside to help us as well, and not to mention the edge rusher. And then, you got a jack of all trades in [OLB] Kyle [Van Noy] who can do multiple jobs. It definitely helps us. It definitely keeps us multiple. We always talk about being a multiple team, so we have a lot to work with right now."
On OLB Khalil Mack:
"He looks amazing. I don't know if you saw him doing the jugs with the DBs over there. He's out there catching one-handed. His foot is good. We're just making sure that we're smart with it, as coaches. He's doing an excellent job out there."
On secondary depth:
"Having a guy like [CB] J.C. [Jackson] come in definitely helps with all of that. I think the biggest thing is, I mentioned it last year, is making the room competitive. When you have a guy not really looking over his shoulder and not worrying about who's the next guy — but if you have a guy where it's like, who's going to be the No. 1 or No. 2 guy behind J.C., no one knows. It makes these guys really come out here and perform and know that we do have options. I think that's the way the game should be. There shouldn't be any lax mindset within any room. The better that we can do evaluating and getting the right guys in here, I just think it can make our team much stronger. When we do have those injuries, no one is sweating thinking about who is going to line up there. We know we have a guy that's really capable and we can play everything within our system."
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