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Below is a look at what Detroit Lions head coach Jim Schwartz had to say after Tuesday's practice. (Quotes provided by the Lions.)
On what does he look for with the fourth preseason game: "There are some evaluations that will come right down to the wire. You want to get good physical evaluations and you want to see the team execute the schemes that are called. Most of all, you want to win the game. We're going to try to do all three of those."
On releasing K Havard Rugland and his future: "He had a good camp, but I think when it was all said and done (David) Akers was a clear cut winner in that position. What the future holds, I don't know. I do know that he had a good camp and that he improved from beginning until the end. The future is probably in his hands."
On if he thinks Rugland can kick in the NFL: "There's a reason we brought him to training camp. He has good ability. Like a lot of young kickers, he needs to work on consistency. That's a lot of guys who have been released over the last few weeks is for the same thing. It's not a matter of talent as much as consistency and things like that.
On how critical this game is for the players on the edge: "It's critical number one, making our team and number two, playing well enough that they can be considered by other teams. We're not going to be able to keep all 75 guys. We're going to have to cut down and other teams are in the same position. Those guys are competing not just with guys in our own locker room for spots on our team, but across the NFL. This is certainly a time some of those guys will have their most extended play time during the preseason, which will be important also for them to be able to show well."
On QB Kellen Moore's growth from last season to this season: "He's a very improved player. He's played well when given the opportunities and has improved a lot from over the course of the season last year, but then particularly in our off-season program and training camp. In all facets his understanding of our offense, his understanding of what defenses do, and also physically he's improved."
On the turnover ratio during preseason: "It's been a point of emphasis, but like you said it doesn't count. When you get to week one it goes right back to zero again. It is good to see a response to something that was an area last year that hurt us. Nobody is trying to fumble the ball or trying to throw an interception. Our offense has done a good job of protecting the football. Our defense has been opportunistic to strip the ball and to make plays. You don't want to get out of position. You can get a little turnover happy on defense where you're not doing your job and you're trying to make a play. On offense you can also get too conservative. There's a way to never throw an interception and that's never take a chance and to never throw the ball. You can run the ball at every snap. You need to balance both of those, but it's something that has been good to see the response that we have had over our troubles last year."
On if the turnover mindset can carry over to the regular season: "I certainly hope so. That's been the plan with that that our guys would learn from those mistakes and would do better. Again, nobody is ever trying to make a turnover. Nobody is on offense trying to fumble it or things like that. There are some things in little different areas that we can improve. Those things depend on so many different things. You get more turnovers generally on defense when you're ahead in games and offenses are taking chances, and vice versa, you're ahead a bunch on offense. There's generally no excuse for turning the ball over on those situations."
On how difficult this year's cuts will be in comparison to the last few years: "They're always tough. Guys have worked very hard and have put their whole heart and soul into trying to find a niche and contribute. It's always difficult to say goodbye to those guys. I think if those guys all keep in mind the fact that they're working to improve as football players and they do a good job at that then they'll be in a better position when camp is over. But it's always a very difficult time."
On how the players get reminded about the roster always changing regardless of the initial cut: "You answered your own question too. I agree 100-percent. That's the NFL. You'll always have to work on improving every opportunity that you can. There are going to be times where injuries that come up and there are going to be a lot of things that will happen over the course of the year that you need to be prepared for. You're going to have to handle that in a lot of different ways from a management standpoint of managing a 53-man roster."
On DE Jason Jones' style of play against Patriots QB Tom Brady: "We're really not trying to hold our ground, we're trying to rush. We've done a better job of keeping those guys in. That's probably a little bit more relation to a different kind of quarterback and things like that. I think what you see from Jason is how strong he is and also the fact that his length helped him out in some of those plays. He was blocked, but he was able to reach out and get an arm on him. We saw early in the preseason that Devin Taylor could knock a ball out even though he was blocked. Jason got a hand on the quarterback and got him down, even though he already had a blocker on him."