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Speaker 1: Colts. Camp continues for the Colts. I'm Matt Taylor and

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Speaker 1: joining us today a second year wide receiver Mike Stron,

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Speaker 1: who's fresh off three catches for forty five yards and

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Speaker 1: a touchdown against the Lions in preseason game number two. Mike,

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Speaker 1: first off, thanks for the time and congrats on that

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Speaker 1: big play in the end zone. What did that catch

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Speaker 1: mean to you in your young career? Here all I

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Speaker 1: mean the world to me. You know, I'm excited to

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Speaker 1: be able to, you know, come out here and make

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Speaker 1: some place on my team. You know, it's been a

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Speaker 1: long process for me, but being back in and making

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Speaker 1: some plays is real exciting. And you came off of

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Speaker 1: pup last week after missing a lot of time in

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Speaker 1: the spring and that first chunk of camp. How difficult

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Speaker 1: was that for you to miss that that valuable time

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Speaker 1: for you on the field. The hardest part for me,

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Speaker 1: you know, it was being away from my team. You know,

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Speaker 1: my team made the coaches. That was the hardest part.

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Speaker 1: Not being able to practice, It was real difficult. And

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Speaker 1: but you know, right now, I'm you have some greatful

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Speaker 1: men to moving forward and I'm glad to be back.

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Speaker 1: What did you do to stay mentally and physically sharp

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Speaker 1: during that time. I guess start first with the mental.

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Speaker 1: How did you go about making sure that you were

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Speaker 1: on top of the playbook even though you weren't on

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Speaker 1: the field. Oh yes, mentally, you know, I had to

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Speaker 1: take a mental approach and I was not able to

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Speaker 1: go out there and do anything physical. But mentally, you know,

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Speaker 1: I stayed in the game, stayed in the playbook, you know,

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Speaker 1: continue to meet with the QBS, stay on top of

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Speaker 1: the game. So from a mental standpoint, I just stayed focused,

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Speaker 1: stayed the course. And then physically, I mean, Frank Reich

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Speaker 1: talk last week. You've gone from zero to sixty in

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Speaker 1: a short amount of time. I know you're you're dealing

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Speaker 1: with that need. How did you physically stay conditioned while

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Speaker 1: you weren't on the field. You know, a lot of praying,

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Speaker 1: you know a lot of praying, a lot of you know,

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Speaker 1: doing extra work to make sure that my boddy is

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Speaker 1: where it needs to be. So a lot of extra work,

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Speaker 1: a lot of a lot of time with the trainers

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Speaker 1: and making sure you know good to go. It's Mike

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Speaker 1: Stron with US Colts wide receiver. Mike, how much more

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Speaker 1: comfortable are you now? Compared to last year as a rookie. Um,

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Speaker 1: you know, the more the more I'm out there, the

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Speaker 1: more uncomfortable, you know, so being you know from like

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Speaker 1: you said, hear me in a rookie, you know, the

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Speaker 1: first time coming in, you know, it's always it's always

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Speaker 1: the area where you got to you know, get comfortable

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Speaker 1: and get you know, get adjusted with the team. But

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Speaker 1: you know, I'm just a lot more comfortable now and ecided,

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Speaker 1: you know, for the process moving forward. Decided for the season.

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Speaker 1: I mean the regular season coming up. You know, it's

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Speaker 1: real exciting. I mean it was. It was crazy last year.

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Speaker 1: I mean COVID was still still ongoing. You had the protocols,

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Speaker 1: you were a rookie. You know, obviously a lot of

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Speaker 1: quarterback carousel around that position, around you trying to make

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Speaker 1: the team coming from a Division two school. I mean,

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Speaker 1: can you describe just all that you were dealing with, uh,

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Speaker 1: you know, on the field and off the field last

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Speaker 1: year as a rookie trying to make this team. Yeah,

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Speaker 1: you know, it was a lot that went with it.

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Speaker 1: You know, me coming from a small school, A lot

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Speaker 1: of people look down on me because of that, you know,

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Speaker 1: and that was another obstacle I have to overcome it.

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Speaker 1: Just keep you looking down, down down on me because

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Speaker 1: I came from a D two school. But you know,

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Speaker 1: I have a big heart and I'm not, you know,

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Speaker 1: worried about that. I'm just ready for what this team

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Speaker 1: has so often, you know, I'm excited. You know, you're

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Speaker 1: looking good offense, defense, special teams, and I feel we

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Speaker 1: can go all the way this year. Yeah, And what

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Speaker 1: ways has the game kind of slowed down for you?

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Speaker 1: If we can focus on the field for you, Mike

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Speaker 1: being able to being able to you know, I'm recover

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Speaker 1: this ready, you know, convert off a certain um zones,

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Speaker 1: you know, different stuff like that. Um. Um, it's just

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Speaker 1: becoming more annatable, uncomfortable for me. It's Mike strown again

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Speaker 1: as a wild ride last year again drafted and shining

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Speaker 1: in camp and then inactive down the stretch. Were you

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Speaker 1: able to kind of take some things away from last

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Speaker 1: year off the field that can kind of help you

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Speaker 1: going forward? Um, you know, just just staying mentally there,

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Speaker 1: you know, staying staying focus. That's the biggest thing. You know, people,

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Speaker 1: you know, when you're in a situation like me, you

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Speaker 1: tend to, you know, kind of drift away but my

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Speaker 1: whole mentality is, you know, my time is coming, and

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Speaker 1: you know I believe that one hundred percent. But also

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Speaker 1: you know, saying that, you know, I'm just here to

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Speaker 1: do whatever I can for the team. You know that

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Speaker 1: that that comes first, and I feel blessed to the year.

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Speaker 1: It's Mike Strown again, Colts wide receiver with us. What's

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Speaker 1: your confidence level like now year two? You're finally healthy,

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Speaker 1: You're back on the field. Now you can just focus

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Speaker 1: on football and all that you learned last year. What

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Speaker 1: has that done to your confidence level going into this

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Speaker 1: last preseason game? Um? Right, right now, I'm you know

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Speaker 1: my confidence level. You know, I'm really confident and my

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Speaker 1: goal is to help my team win every game. You know,

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Speaker 1: we play trying to stock wins and you know, trying

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Speaker 1: trying to chase after that conference champ. All right. I

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Speaker 1: love asking guys this question. What's it like working with

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Speaker 1: Matt Ryan on yourin What has that been like for you?

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Speaker 1: Working with a fifteen year vet. He raises to standard

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Speaker 1: real high you know, that's that's a big thing. He

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Speaker 1: has high expectations for us and that that just raises,

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Speaker 1: you know, the love it of competing. You know, so

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Speaker 1: being able to compete, you know, and show what we

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Speaker 1: can do. You know. It's just he's that type of

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Speaker 1: guy that that brings that energy getting on the field

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Speaker 1: with him again missing a lot of the spring and

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Speaker 1: then the early portions of training camp. Have he learned

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Speaker 1: anything about him or has anything about him surprised you

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Speaker 1: that you didn't know before you actually got in the

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Speaker 1: huddle with him. For me, he's just watching his routine,

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Speaker 1: you know, even pre snap. You know what he's looking at,

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Speaker 1: you know, things that he's seen just his routine throughout

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Speaker 1: the day. You know, those are the things, you know,

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Speaker 1: I pay attention to. You know, I like to ask myself,

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Speaker 1: you know, what what does the fourteen year event like

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Speaker 1: him do throughout the day? And what are some of

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Speaker 1: the things that he's looking at pre snap? Um? You

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Speaker 1: know stuff like that. So watching his routines and seeing

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Speaker 1: what he does, it's kind of the things that I

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Speaker 1: pay attention to. Mike stron is our guest Colts wide

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Speaker 1: out and Reggie Wayne is your position coach. Mike, how

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Speaker 1: has he made you better so far? Um? In many ways?

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Speaker 1: You know he's actually been there and you know he's

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Speaker 1: he's played the game. Um, so you know, there's a

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Speaker 1: lot of a lot of things. You know, he is

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Speaker 1: helping me with, um, you know, as far as the

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Speaker 1: details in being a receiver. I'm playing for the for

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Speaker 1: the Colts, you know, and for him. You know, he

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Speaker 1: has a high standard for us as receivers. So you know,

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Speaker 1: we have to bring the juice, you know, and you

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Speaker 1: know he always tell us, you know, bring the juice. Um,

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Speaker 1: you know, come ready to go, and you know everything

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Speaker 1: else will take care of itself. This might be a

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Speaker 1: little bit of a weird question, but this is his

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Speaker 1: first year on the job being a coach at any level,

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Speaker 1: coaching wide receivers in the NFL. Are you guys having

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Speaker 1: to kind of subtly help him evolve as a coach

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Speaker 1: as well? How have you seen him kind of in

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Speaker 1: a short amount of time here in camp, How have

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Speaker 1: you seen him kind of transition and evolve as a

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Speaker 1: wide receiver coach in the NFL? For you guys, you know,

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Speaker 1: it's just our relationship with each other, you know, obviously,

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Speaker 1: you know, we know that this is his first as

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Speaker 1: as actual coach, and you know some of us has

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Speaker 1: been here before he you know, before he was but

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Speaker 1: you know, it's just just a relationship we have with

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Speaker 1: each other. You know, we hold each other accountable, and

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Speaker 1: you know that's what you know, that's what he does.

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Speaker 1: You know he all hold each and every one of

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Speaker 1: us accountable and make sure we're ready to roll. That's

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Speaker 1: Mike Strong with his final couple of things with you, Mike,

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Speaker 1: what are these camp battles like at wide receiver? Because

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Speaker 1: several players of battling for roster spots, but at the

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Speaker 1: end of the day, you guys are still teammates. You're

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Speaker 1: all great friends. You have each other's back. What's that

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Speaker 1: dynamic like for those that just can't wrap their heads

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Speaker 1: around how that works, I'm it's you know, we love

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Speaker 1: to compete, that's the biggest thing, you know, and this

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Speaker 1: wide receiver from we love to compete, you know, um

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Speaker 1: going up against going with each other every day, up

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Speaker 1: against the defense. You know, it's just a fun thing.

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Speaker 1: You know, this is a fun game, and you know

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Speaker 1: we try to keep it fun, no question about that.

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Speaker 1: And then for you, lastly, how important will it be

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Speaker 1: for you to make this fifty three men roster? What

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Speaker 1: would that mean to you? Considering again, you had that

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Speaker 1: injury in the spring, you missed the first ten practices

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Speaker 1: of camp. How important is it to you to make

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Speaker 1: this this roster? What would that mean to you? I'll

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Speaker 1: move with me in the world. To me, you know,

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Speaker 1: it's such a blessing to even be here. You know,

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Speaker 1: that's that's that's the biggest thing for me. I'm just

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Speaker 1: always thankful to be a part of this team, to

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Speaker 1: be a part of you know, have such great teammates,

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Speaker 1: such great coaches, you know, and a great stuff. And

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Speaker 1: you know that's the biggest thing for me is you know,

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Speaker 1: once I come my hand, do my job every day,

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Speaker 1: everything would take care of itself, all right. A line

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Speaker 1: one more? What do you want to get out of

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Speaker 1: this last week of training camp? Mike? What are some

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Speaker 1: things you're prioritizing heading into that game against the Buccaneers

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Speaker 1: and the clothes out strong? Ah, for me to you know,

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Speaker 1: just continue to build from where I'm not, continue to

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Speaker 1: get better. You know it's still got some work to

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Speaker 1: be done, but you know, for me, it's just continuing

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Speaker 1: to get better and building. You got it. That's Mike Strong,

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Speaker 1: second year wide receiver for the Indianapolis Colts. Mike, always

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Speaker 1: a pleasure to talk to you, man, best of luck

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Speaker 1: this weekend and continue success. Thank you, appreciate you, thanks

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Speaker 1: for having me