HEAD COACH URBAN MEYER
MEDIA AVAILABILITY
Monday, September 27
(On trading CB CJ Henderson) “I think number one is the development of Tyson Campbell. He’s started to perform at what we expect him to be, a very, very talented guy. You get Tre Herndon back who can play the nickel. We have to improve a lot of areas of our team, and it might be a good fresh start for CJ [Henderson]. [I] had a great visit with his family. I love CJ and spent a lot of time with him and his parents. I think it’s going to be good for both of us.”
(On CB CJ Henderson needing a fresh start) “He missed a lot of games, and we just think it’s best for both [of us].”
(On CB CJ Henderson being the team’s ninth overall pick last year) “You can see it. [He’s an] extremely talented guy, great size, great length, great speed, but he misses a lot of action so maybe just stay healthy. Carolina was aggressive, and we really are excited about Dan Arnold. I wanted him out of free agency. He’s a hurdler, he’s fast, he’s big. His ball skills are very, very good to great. He doesn’t have a lot of receptions this year. [After seeing him] last year with the Cardinals on tape, I wanted him. We just couldn’t fit it in with all of the other stuff going on. The thing that knocked it over the edge with me was when Carolina was hesitant to get rid of him because of his leadership because he’s on the leadership committee. He’s very well-respected, which those are the mindset things I’m trying to really put together is making sure you get a locker room of that. I’ve talked to him three times already, so he rolls in here at 2:30 and get him to work.”
(On bringing in other kickers) “We actually have, I believe, a couple in today that we’re working on, working out.”
(On who those kickers are) “I don’t think I’m supposed to do that. I don’t really know them. It’s all [General Manager] Trent [Baalke]’s thing.”
(On when a decision on the kicking position can be made) “That’s a good question. I don’t know that.”
(On when the trade discussions for CB CJ Henderson started getting real) “I think this one’s been about a week or so and then they [the Caroline Panthers] had an injury to one of their players. But [General Manager] Trent [Baalke], he kind of would be the one to ask on that.”
(On if CB CJ Henderson would have been able to play yesterday if there wasn’t a trade deal in the works) “No, he was injured.”
(On TE Dan Arnold being able to play in Thursday night’s game) “He’ll play.”
(On speaking with K Josh Lambo after yesterday’s game) “I haven’t seen him yet today. We’re coming in here at 2:30 for a team meeting and I don’t believe I talked to him after the game. But I told you, the one thing I respect about him [is] he’s as hard working if not the hardest working specialist I’ve ever had. But there’s also the reality, you have to make kicks. There’s nothing about attitude, nothing about work ethic, but reality is that ball has to go through the uprights.”
(On preparing for a Thursday night game with a short week) “It’s tough, especially [because] the Bengals are playing very well. They had a big, huge win. They’re playing at a high level, we [have only] through three quarters. First game, nothing. Second game, we made it through a half that we were playing pretty well. Third game, we’re getting [there]. I’m looking for constant improvement. I’m looking for loyalty and faith in the locker room, which I have. That’s never wavered. I’m not taking anything away from the Cardinals, we played well enough and [if] we don’t make some mistakes, we could’ve won that game.”
(On Bengals QB Joe Burrow) “He has arguably one of the best mindsets I’ve ever seen in an athlete, his toughness. He’ll tell you he was highly recruited, he wasn’t. He comes from an incredible family. It’s just a very, very close family, a football family. But his mindset, even when he struggled early in his career, the thing you can count on is that guy’s tough as nails, [is a] competitor, refused to lose at anything in the offseason. Then you started seeing this younger body start to develop. Even he was shocked by it. I remember talking to him. I mean all of a sudden, I was like, ‘Woah.’ When [former Ohio State QB] Dwayne [Haskins] came in, he was going to play and then he broke his hand about a week before the season. That was his throwing hand I believe too, and he was out for quite a while. Then Dwayne came in and started doing well and then went into that rivalry game and won the game for us. We had open competition his, whatever year it was, and it was close. Obviously, Dwayne beat him out. Dwayne threw for 50 touchdowns and then the second year had one of the best years in college football history. But we’ve stayed in touch. I’ve talked to him a couple of times about Trevor [Lawrence]. Our relationship is fantastic and he’s fantastic.”
(On his conversations with Bengals QB Joe Burrow about QB Trevor Lawrence) “Well, we run into each other on the circuit when we have to do charity events. I ran into him a couple times, Joe [Burrow]. When I decided to come here and then I knew we were heading in the direction, regardless we were going to take a quarterback number one, I just wanted to talk to a guy that was in that position in recent history. I talked to [veteran NFL quarterback] Alex Smith quite a bit about it and then I talked to Joe. Joe was great. We talked several times throughout the spring just about what I could do to help, what we could do to help a rookie quarterback.”
(On what those conversations entailed) “Balancing your offense is one, having balance and not put a guy in harm’s way constantly. We did better this game. We’re not where we need to be, but we were better. That was closer to what we envision.”
(On returning to Cincinnati and Ohio for this week’s game) “I could say it’s not important. I love Cincinnati. I actually went to school there. My two sisters live there. I lived there for a while. I love the great state of Ohio, I always will. There’s a bunch of Buckeyes on that team that we’re getting ready to play. I was a Bengals fan growing up, so I could act like I’m not [excited], but it’s going to be great to go home. But all that matters is a win.”
(On being a Cincinnati Bengals fan growing up) “Isaac Chris and Bob Trumpy. You guys don’t remember those names. Essex Johnson, there’s not one human being that remembers Essex Johnson. Chip Myers, Bill Bergey, Ron Carpenter, and then my favorite who I idolized growing up, Tommy Casanova, because I was a safety. No one’s writing that down I can see. You guys want to talk about some other stuff.”
(On how many tickets he gets for this week’s game) “Mrs. Meyer worries about that, I don’t.”
JAGUARS CORNERBACK SHAQUILL GRIFFIN
MEDIA AVAILABILITY
Monday, September 27
(On CB CJ Henderson trade) “As a teammate and as a friend you know it is tough. I think we all know business is business. You know we wish him the best – definitely always rooting for him and definitely a guy I will continue to check up on. The relationship goes way beyond football first off, but yeah like I said it is business. We all get that when we first got here, we understand that and the crazy thing is it is kind of hard to harp on it and think about it. We have a quick turnaround so we have things we have to focus on ourselves.”
(On how Sunday’s loss compares to the first two and if playing on a Thursday helps the team get over the loss) “No, they all feel the same – you know it is tough losing in general and no one wants that feeling. The main thing is being able to make improvement. I can honestly say from Week 1 to Week 2 we made improvement and from Week 2 to Week 3, we definitely made improvement. We have to continue to build off that and whatever it is that we have to figure out we will figure it out. The main thing everybody has to do is focus on being the best at their position. Whatever it is, you know being the best at your position and bringing that along for the team. You know you can only focus on your part, and I can not focus on what the special teams does or focus on what the offense does. I can not just focus on the what the defensive line [does] sometimes I have to focus on me first and understand what I have to do and then bring everyone along. This defense right now has been focusing on being the best defense we can be for this team and this organization and I know the offense, special teams and everybody will continue to work and bring it along. There is a lot of things we all have to work on but we are going to fix it.”
(On if he had to lift players up following the game against the Cardinals similar to after losing against the Broncos) “No I do not think I had to say anything this game because I see [while] walking around that everybody sees something different. You know they felt something different this game. Being [ahead] going into halftime for the first time, you know they felt something different so after this game they know there is more to this team than they actually can think. I feel like everyone’s faith is still there and everyone still has hope and I did not have to walk around the locker room. You know I can tell the way [they feel] when I look into their eyes and they see what they feel from the first to the second game it was not the same so there is nothing else that needs to be said to that.”
(On CB Tyson Campbell’s development and areas for improvement) “Yeah and that is something we still have to continue to work on. You know him being a rookie [and] being thrown into the fire early. It is early in the season [and there are] still some things we have to focus on and work on with him. We have [had] multiple conversations. My main thing is that I wanted to see was [will] he continue to battle? You know you have some corners that give up a ball and then shut down and it is hard to get corners out of that phase and my main thing is because I have seen him battle each and every play. He makes tackles – really good fitting up tackles and that is what we need for this defense. We need someone that is going to compete no matter what happens [and] you are going to make it tough on them and the things that
we have to work on are ‘okay get your head around, let’s see the judgement of the ball’ we will work on those things [and] we will fix those. My main thing is it is kind of hard to fix confidence. It is hard to fix those things that can mess a cornerback up. In this game there are going to be some cornerbacks that give up some plays, there are some cornerbacks that get in this hole [that] they can not get out of and you can not teach that. My main thing is I want to see Tyson Campbell fight and he showed that and I can play with a guy like that.”
(On the positive things that occurred in the game against the Cardinals that resulted in a better locker room mood) “Just the way the defense stepped up, the way the offense drove the ball down the field, the way the offensive line played. Everything that we have seen was some special things that we have seen. Even making a play with [Jamal] Agnew, you see the type of returner that he is and people are going to be afraid of that. Understand that the people he had blocking for him, they believe in him as well. You know so many things that we did special out there that we can build off of going into the rest of this season and we needed that – we really needed that. We all know there are things we still have to work on, we know that and if we are trying to be the best in the league then there is a lot of things, we still have to work on. That is why we have this long season. We are going to go back to the drawing board and we have a quick turnaround so we will do whatever takes. That is why we are here.”
(On the Bengals WR’s being a handful) “I do not know, but I do know they have some weapons and I am not the type to just sit here and give everyone the praise for receivers I have not had the chance to play yet but I know they have some weapons. I have seen in film they like to go deep and that is something we look forward to. The main thing is we are going to make it tough. You know whatever passes, whatever throws or catches they make it is going to be tough and you know that is why we are here. We are here to compete and whenever I get a chance to watch the film a little bit more, maybe I can answer that question a little better for you.”
(On ever being on the field for a field goal return touchdown) “No, that was my first time. I saw it when Auburn did it a while back and then to be a part of it was pretty crazy.”
(On being right next to WR Jamal Agnew when he scored) “It was funny the way it happened. When they kicked it I am looking like ‘oh it is not going to make it’ then I actually saw [Jamal] Agnew back there. I did not see him back there at first – I did not. When I saw everyone still running and [saw] he caught it, I ran straight to my sideline [and] I saw two linemen coming at me and I was trying to figure out how I was going to block them and the first thing I did was just throw my hands up and I was just going to take it. I do not know why but they ended up trying to move around me which I am glad they did that because they could have just ran right through me but at that point I was going to do whatever it takes to make sure he got in the endzone and then they did not hit me so I ran back around to catch up with him [and] to celebrate with him.”
(On the field goal return being a fun play to be a part of) “Yeah, that was amazing because I never [have been a part of that]. I have only seen things like that and for me to be a part of it and being able to celebrate a play like that – you know that is going to be something they play for a long time and I am going to be right there.”
(On holding WR DeAndre Hopkins in check) “Yeah, that was my first time following a receiver. It was definitely different [and] it is a lot easier to study because you know you are not studying multiple receivers. That was my job [though] to keep him as quiet as possible. I feel like he did not get as many targets as he probably would have liked but you know a quiet game is not too bad for me.”
(On what it says about him that the coaches instructed him to follow a top receiver) “Yeah, that is fine. My main thing is whatever they need me to do I am willing to do it. As a captain, it does not matter – I know I have the right coaches and the right staff to make sure I am prepared for any situation and any receiver. I am fully confident that I will be ready. Definitely hat off to coach Walt [Secondary – Corners Coach Tim Walton] for making sure I am prepared [and] confident to face any receiver in line that I may have to follow.”
(On it being the first time ever following a receiver) “Yes, every now and then I might get a ‘follow him on third down’ but first, second, third [down] it does not matter where we are at. Yeah, that was fairly new.”
(On the progressions week to week and learning how to finish) “I feel like we are still dealing with a little frustration now and then. You know you hear ‘Okay get a turnover, get another turnover.’ I remember we talked about it before – people hear it so much they start to do a little more than they should instead of just doing their job. You might have people jump around or jump inside of a gap they should not be in. I feel like we still deal with that because we want to do so much more for the team and I can not talk about it enough [that] we just have to continue to harp on just doing our job. Understand when you are down and It does not matter what is going on in the game, you want to be that guy to figure out ‘how do I make the huge play, I want to help this team so bad’ and that is fine – I love that, but we have to make the play doing our job and sometimes I feel like that is the part we get to towards the end of the game. It is like okay, let’s not try to get desperate and try to do whatever it takes to get this ball back, let’s do our job and still try to fight, rip and try to get that ball out so that is the part we have to focus on. The defense has to focus on defense and being the best defense we can be. It does not matter what is going on around us.”
(On it being specifically a young player issue about being desperate to get the ball and make the play) “I do not think it is just a young guy thing. It is just a person that wants to do so much for this team. Understand, that everybody wants to win. There is nobody out there that is thinking ‘Oh, we already lost.’ We want this really bad and for a person that wants it really bad, they might do a little extra thinking they have to be the guy to do that. You know so I can not say it enough if we just focus on being the best at our position, best in our group, this defense, special teams, offense I feel like instead of focusing on everything else around it, I feel like we will be okay. Like I said, we are still learning as a whole and we are going to fix those things that we need to fix but sometimes I feel like that is where we get at. You know third, fourth quarter that score starts to get up a little bit [and] you try to figure out what you can do to stop it and sometimes that can hurt us.”
(On CB CJ Henderson being opposite personalities and the challenges involved with that) “I feel like my main thing is that I had to find out who CJ was as a person first and trying to be a leader and be able to talk to the person the right way. He is definitely more quiet than I am of course, [similarly] to a lot of people on the team. My main thing is the way you approach him, you walk up to him and you talk to him one-on-one. You do not do all that extra stuff – he is not that type of guy. He listens and he understands what is going on so when it comes to being on the back end, he does talk a little bit more and that is the type of relationship and communication you have to have between your corner and your safety. I could look at CJ and he gives me some type of signal and I know what is going on [and] what he is thinking by the way he moves, but I had to understand CJ as a person first and that part is okay. Some people are going to be vocal and some people are not but as a leader you have to learn how to coach and how to talk to each person individually. Everybody is different and I feel like I got a better feeling being around him during OTAs. You know he was injured and in camp got a chance to move around with him but sometimes just having a casual conversation [or] going to dinner, it does not matter what it is. I understood him a person, so we had no issues when it came to that.”
OL JAWAAN TAYLOR
MEDIA AVAILABILITY
Monday, September 27
(On what happened on the flea flicker play) “There wasn’t really any confusion. We all knew the play and we just had to go out there and execute. That’s all it was. It was unfortunate what happened on that play, but everybody was on the same page. We just went out there and just tried to make a play.”
(On knowing that the flea flicker play was going to be called in yesterday’s game) “I figured it was because we installed it early in the week in the game plan. We had ran it in practice a couple of times and a couple times in the walkthrough, so we had a feeling it was going to come sometime in the game.”
(On why OL Andrew Norwell spun on that play) “It’s called a whirly bird, so usually it’s just like the whole line is just zone and we try to sell the run on the front side and then the backside guy can get around to end and scrape it off the edge on the backside and try to give the quarterback some protection on the backside. He’s supposed to do that.”
(On how Cardinals DE J.J. Watt got by on that play) “Yeah because when you’re zoning like that, J.J. Watt’s the guy he doesn’t really take on contact in the run game. When he felt the run, he usually tries to jump around you or go the opposite direction of the direction you’re going. That’s just J.J. being J.J.”
(On zone blocking) “Yeah, we do a lot of zone and we do a lot of zone and gap runs, we do a lot of draw plays, a lot of stuff. We switch it up a lot, but zone is one of our go-to’s mainly, we do a lot of read option and stuff like that. RPO, we do that too.”
(On preparing his body on a short week) “It’s a little tough. I’m a little sore right now. I was just telling Trent I was little sore in the hallway, but I’m alright. [I] just got done lifting, just trying to get the little soreness out. I’ll probably get a massage and stuff. I’ll be good by Thursday.”
(On if the physical or mental turnaround is more difficult during a short week) “I wouldn’t say mental. We know how to prepare. We’ve been here before. We do Thursday night games every year, so it’s not really mental. It’s probably physical, just trying to get your body back ready to go.”
(On the energy in the locker room) “Energy’s still great, man. We have a lot of positivity in the locker room. All the guys in the locker room, we’re trusting our ability and we know that we have a lot of great players. We have everything we need to be successful, so we’re just trying to put it together.”
(On QB Trevor Lawrence meeting with the line on the sidelines during game) “He’s always just communicating, that’s all it is; what we see on the field, different checks we have to make, and if someone makes a mistake we just always say, ‘Next play, keep it moving.’ It’s just all communication whenever he comes over there and just asking us what we see and he tells us what he’s seeing, certain blitzes or pressures we have to pick up, different things like that. But we’re always just communicating, that’s all.”
(On CB CJ Henderson getting traded today) “It was pretty difficult, man. He was my teammate at Florida for I think my three years there and he was my teammate here for two years. We wish him all the best. He’s a great player. He’s going to be doing a great job for them.”
(On when he found out about the trade) “I found out this morning.”
(On if he has spoken with CB CJ Henderson after learning about the trade) “I haven’t talked to him yet. Usually when things like that happen, you give guys time to get adjusted and stuff, but I will talk to him soon.”
(On talking as an offense about getting a fast start in games) “Definitely. I know we had the ball first the past two weeks and I know we went down to score last week [on the] first drive and then this week we started a little slower. We’re just trying to start with tempo, getting going, getting faster, getting to the ball, getting out of the huddle quick, and just getting the defense on their heels early. We’re just trying to do tempo a little bit more now.”
(On being more balanced offensively this past game) “Definitely. I know that James [Robinson] had a great second half in the run game. We’re definitely happy to get that going and just show what we can do upfront, not only protect Trevor [Lawrence], but we can also run the ball too.”
(On the importance of getting RB James Robinson more involved in Week 3) “Definitely, man, because you know how great of a runner James [Robinson] is and his ability. It’s always amazing to get him out there and let him do what he does best.”
(On how it feels for the offensive line to have success in the run game) “It’s amazing and I come from just a running type of offense in college and even in high school we ran the ball a lot. It kind of just took me back to what I’m used to, and it was a lot of fun just getting out and just coming off the ball and trying to impose your will on the defensive line. It was good. It was a lot of fun.”
(On a pass play being called when being successful running the ball) “Yeah, it can get to you a little bit, but you just trust in your coaches. He may see something we don’t see and he’s up in the box looking down. Sometimes he may have a call that he wants called in the game that he felt was fitting for that situation, so we just ran it.”
(On what Cincinnati does well and what they are watching for) “Really, I haven’t gotten the chance to get into the film just yet because I was dissecting my game from last night. I went against them already twice and I know they have a couple of good veterans upfront. They definitely fly around and try to get to the quarterback too. That’s from what I remember, but once I break down the film on them going into the week, I’m going to know what they’re good at.”
(On getting a win after going 1-15 last season) “Like [Head] Coach Urban Meyer said, you just have to have a spark, just great players making great plays and just believing in one another, guys just going out there and just staying positive, keeping the right mindset, and just attacking the week every single week just like any other game and just going out there playing together to get a win.”
JAGUARS S RAYSHAWN JENKINS
MEDIA AVAILABILITY
Monday, September 27
(On yesterday’s game) “I would say just what you said. There was more of a complete game. We did some good things all around the board, third down, red zone. We even had a turnover yesterday which I know was a big emphasis for us as a defense, so I feel like we played a decent game.”
(On making improvements from week to week) “Absolutely and that’s always the goal. I know going into the Texans game, which was Week 1, we had a little bit of defensive problems there. We kind of fixed it going into the Broncos game Week 2, but still had some plays here and there that we could clean up. Yesterday I thought we played good enough for us to win, but we didn’t get that win.”
(On the trade of CB CJ Henderson shaking up the secondary) “I wouldn’t say we are too shaken up. I feel like we have everybody that we need, so I wouldn’t say we’re shaken up. CJ [Henderson] was a good player. He’s with Carolina so I know he’s going to go there and [will] make an immediate impact, so [I] wish him the best. As a captain, it’s my job to get these guys ready for this quick turnaround Thursday, so that’s what we’re kind of focused on.”
(On connecting with CB CJ Henderson with his quiet personality) “No, I wouldn’t say it was difficult with him. Everybody learns differently, everybody interacts with people differently, so I wouldn’t say it was difficult. It was different, but it wasn’t difficult for me. I have been in plenty of situations where I had to communicate or interact with someone that’s just a little different. It is what it is. But in terms of communicating, hard to communicate with him? No, I wouldn’t say that at all.”
(On preparing for the Cincinnati offense on a short week) “We just have to get in here on a day like today, really take care of our bodies physically and mentally. Then, just like you said, it’s an explosive offense so we really have to get into it right away as far as film study.”
(On losing yesterday’s game despite a two-score lead in the second half) “I would just say a loss is a loss. I feel every loss feels the same to me. Just like I said, [it’s] just something we have to just learn from. We have been playing better, but a loss is a loss, so I wouldn’t say any loss is better than one.”
(On feeling confident with CB Tyson Campbell stepping up as a starter) “Absolutely, absolutely. I saw Tyson [Campbell] as a young cornerback, as a rookie cornerback do some great stuff yesterday, do some good things yesterday. Of course, there is always, always a learning curve with rookies. I don’t know not one rookie that I played with and didn’t have a learning curve. Of course, he has some things to fix, but I do like what he’s able to bring to the table.”
(On losing yesterday’s game despite playing better and if that is confusing) “No confusion, just we know that we just have to do a better job of playing complimentary football. All units aren’t going to play great, all units can play good, and I just feel like everybody has to play good on that day. There can’t be a big separation in terms of just the play level out there. I would just say we played good enough to win. I just feel like we have to play better complimentary football.”
(On Bengals QB Joe Burrow) “Joe Burrow, he has some weapons he can get it to. [From] what I’ve seen, he likes that empty offense. I don’t think he’s as mobile now because of the injury, but he can still do some things when he gets out of the pocket. Joe Burrow is very capable, so we have to prepare just like any other QB.”
