DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR MIKE CALDWELL
MEDIA AVAILABILITY
THURSDAY, JANUARY 4, 2024
(On if any WNBA teams will tank to draft Caitlin Clark) “Her or Angel [Reese]? There’s Charisma
Osbourne, she’s at UCLA. You probably haven’t heard of her, but she played with my daughter back in
the day. She can really go. She’s really, really good. She’ll probably be top 10.”
(On the defense’s confidence after shutting out the Carolina Panthers) “Well, we talked about playing the
right way. I think the guys had a great week of practice and they came out and they performed. We’re on
the same page. They went out and executed, it paid off for us.”
(On OLB Josh Allen and OLB Travon Walker’s performance by lining up on the inside) “Really, it’s just
matchups. Matchups we thought we could take advantage of. Those guys get an opportunity to move
around. Travon lined up inside a little bit last year and this year, not as much but it worked well for us
and it’s something that we could use going forward. Really, it’s just week to week, and I thought they did
a good job.”
(On if OLB Travon Walker will line up on the inside more in the future) “Really, it just depends on the
matchup. There are guys inside that we’d like to match up as opposed to the guy outside. We’d be able
to move him inside. He’s such a versatile player and he’s a guy that will do anything you ask of him. It’s
really good to have those types of guys on the team to be able to plug in different spots for other guys to
take advantage of, possibly a matchup on the other side.”
(On OLB Josh Allen wanting OLB Travon Walker to break his record he just set) “I think you see the talent.
I think it really does. He’s a hand in developing that, I think just like Calais [Campbell] was with him;
showing him the way and then just like you would teach your younger brother. You want your younger
brother to average more points than you in basketball in high school. That’s the way he is and it’s great
to have one of your leaders that’s a humble guy and that’s a team guy. We think the world of him.”
(On the season OLB Josh Allen is having to be a Pro Bowl nominee) “It’s a bunch of hard work that’s
paying off. You go back and you think about when we first got here and the season he had the first
season, the opportunities he missed. Then, he dedicated himself, went back and said that he was going
to finish. He’s doing a great job. It’s a really good as a coordinator when you have a player come off the
field and say, ‘I got you, Coach.’ He says that a bunch. When he says that, I know he’s going out there,
looking out for the team and he has us. He’s carrying us right now. We’ve got other guys that are playing
at a high level, but Josh is one of those guys that when it’s time to show, he’s showing. We’re happy for
him.”
(On CB Tyson Campbell’s confidence boost after sitting out recently due to injury) “I think just getting
back and getting his body right, it’s hard for your mind to be in the right spot if your body is not where it
is. I think his body feels better and his mind is in the right spot. He went out there, he played good and
he’ll get better this week and continue to get better. Tyson is a guy, just like all of us, if something good happens, we accept it, we move on. If something bad happens, we accept it, we get back to work and we
move on. That’s just the way we are around here and after a win or after a loss, it’s always good to get
back to work because just after the shutout, I had a bunch of things that we needed to get better at.
That’s the way we go about it. When we win or lose, we come back, go back to work, and understand
that the job is not done yet. We have to go out there again and continue to get better.”
(On S Antonio Johnson has secured the slot position) “I think it’s really good for us because we can rotate
guys. We can Tre [CB Tre Herndon] in on third down, Antonio on first down, vice versa. It just depends on
what the calls are and who we’re playing against. He’s a guy that the game is not too big for as a rookie,
he’s a playmaker. You want that. You want guys that when they’re thrown out there, the lights don’t get
too bright for you. You go out there and you perform just like you perform in practice. He’s making plays,
he’ll continue to make plays, we’re happy for him. That position, I think with Tre and with Antonio, we
have a group that solidified that spot and they’re making plays for us.”
(On surprise of rookie S Antonio Johnson being able to handle the game well) “It’s really not, he’s
drafted. He had a little bit of injuries coming early on in the season, now he’s really starting to show what
he can do. As a rookie, you always have to earn your stripes and he’s earned them. Then, given the
opportunity to play, he’s gone out there and he’s continued to earn those stripes. We look up and he’s
making interceptions, making sacks. He’s a guy that’s a playmaker for us and the more guys we can
throw out there that can make a play, the better we are.”
(On expecting to see talent from Titans RB Derrick Henry in potentially his last game for Tennessee)
“That’s Tennessee that’s this the division. You understand when you get there that you have Henry, you
have guys down in Texas, you have guys in Indianapolis. We have our guy here. We have a division that
has a bunch of good runners. Tennessee, they’re a physical, run-first team with quarterbacks that can
throw the ball in the right spots. We understand that coming in here, knowing Tennessee, they’re going
to be running the ball, they’re going to be making the game physical and we understand that. We know
it’s a big challenge for us. He’s a guy that has done it for a long time in this league and he’s done it at a
high level. He continues to do it at a high level.”
(On expecting extra hype from Tennessee with RB Derrick Henry’s potentially last game) “Well, right now
you really don’t know if it’s his last one. He’s playing at such a level that he has three or four, five, six,
seven years left to play. Whatever happens in Tennessee, we understand that when you’re leaving and
you’ve been in a place for a long time and you want to go out on a good note, guys are going to play for
you. We’re expecting to get their best shot and we’ll be ready for them.”
(On the defense needing to be on their toes for Tennessee to give everything they’ve got to this game)
“That’s weekly. Weekly, we talk to our guys about you never know when it’s going to happen, until it
happens. You prepare yourself for different types of formations, different types of trick plays. I think
we’ve gone back five years just to understand possibly what could happen, let the guys see the plays and
hopefully a little muscle memory will take over. At the end of the day, we understand what type of game
it’s going to be. I think they’re leading the league or in the last seven weeks with gadget plays. We
understand they’re going to go out there and do a little bit of that. We’ll be ready for it.”
(On reaction of LB Foye Oluokun not getting a Pro Bowl nomination) “That’s the thing, I talked to the
guys this morning about our room. In my view, we have a bunch of guys. I don’t know if alternates have
been released yet, but we have a bunch of guys that are deserving. At the end of the day, you play for
the guy next to you. The guy next to you, if he has a high opinion of you as a player, that’s what matters because the other guys around, they don’t know the work and what you mean to certain defenses and
certain schemes. You play for the guys next to you and being able to walk into our locker room and
there’s a bunch of guys that other guys think are deserving, that means the world to them. In time, those
accolades will start to come for him.”
OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR PRESS TAYLOR
MEDIA AVAILABILITY
THURSDAY, JANUARY 4, 2024
“…We need to make. In terms of building the best five, giving us an opportunity. Going back to last week,
I thought Tyler [OL Tyler Shatley] did a good job. Every time he goes in there, gets his opportunity, he
makes the most of it I think. He continues to be available and provide a valuable role for us.”
(On excitement with team creating a winning culture) “Our goal will never change in terms of trying to
achieve a Super Bowl. Getting yourself in the playoff is the one way to give yourself an opportunity to
win the Super Bowl. I think just creating that environment, creating that culture, creating that
expectation, setting the standard for what we expect out of ourselves, this team, organization, our unit,
whatever it may be, I think that goes a long way in terms of just how people view the Jacksonville
Jaguars. That’s something we value.”
(On the ramifications of this weekend’s game going further than just the playoffs) “We’re going to try to
win. Winning helps establish that and that’s what we’re trying to do.”
(On how he reacted to RB Travis Etienne Jr.’s 62-yard touchdown run as a play caller) “Anytime we score,
we all have a reaction, and everyone is going wild. Especially something like that, it was a game we were
able to stick with the run, we continued to try to pound it, pound it, pound it, then it broke open. That’s
the way the run game has gone for us, you think back early in the year, there was a couple of games like
that. I think back to Buffalo, Indy, a couple of those, when we were just trying to hammer some runs and
eventually Travis breaks one and provides that big spark for us to kind of get us over the hump in terms
of the run game within a game. It was something we certainly expect, we’re capable of, and we’re
excited for whenever we see it.”
(On challenges of using younger players in the pass game when veteran players are unavailable on
gameday) “Yeah, it’s a challenge in some way, but the expectation is in the next man up. We expect a lot
from the young guys even as they get in there. Now, it’s not fair to them to expect to put them in the
situations we’re going to put the veteran players, the players that have played a lot in this system or in
the league, it’s not fair to us to put the young guys in that situation. We do everything we can to manage
it the best we can, we have a pretty good feel for who could go at some point in time. There may be a lot
of times where you build a plan just saying this guy can’t play. It’s easier to plug a good player into a plan
that’s built without them as opposed to here’s a plan for these really good players and all the sudden
they don’t make it on gameday and you’re trying to shuffle and put young guys in situations they haven’t
been in. I would say we probably take that approach, but we’ll always continue to build it for who we
know is available and then build the pieces around as we get going.”
(On what WR Christian Kirk brings to the offense) “I think the big part is the chemistry he’s built with the
quarterback, the trust he has from the coaching stuff and from Trevor [QB Trevor Lawrence] as well, the
quarterbacks as well, just because he’s done it for a long time. He’s proven his worth in this league, he’s
a dynamic playmaker for us, he’s a mismatch problem for us. He’s a guy we can put in a number of roles,
whether we intended to or not. As the game goes, there’s a lot of times Christian just takes the next spot if somebody missed a rep, was out, whatever it may be because he knows the system so well, he knows
the expectation, he knows the details of everything we’re asking to do. He’s certainly a very valuable
piece for our offense.”
(On plan of scoring early to start the game off strong on Sunday vs. Tennessee) “I think there’s always
kind of that thought process, you have a team that technically has nothing to play for where you say
that. The NFL just doesn’t tend to work that a lot of times. You’re going to get everybody’s best shot,
playing a team like Tennessee, you know what they’re going to be. They’re going to be tough, hardnosed,
physical, smart. Great respect for Coach Vrabel [Titans Head Coach Mike Vrabel], the way he’s built his
program, the way they play. They certainly have our attention, our respect and we don’t expect them to
lay down or anything.”
(On any players discussing a desire to reach a benchmark or milestone to him) “No, I think more than
anything, I recognize that because I know that’s important to our players. There will be times where,
even the other day in the game, I don’t think we threw a pass in the fourth quarter of the game. We’re
pulling Calvin [WR Calvin Ridley] out of the game at certain times. I try to go out of my way, hey,
understand what we’re trying to accomplish. Those guys are awesome. They tell me stop talking before I
get started; Evan [TE Evan Engram], Travis [RB Travis Etienne Jr.], Christian [WR Christian Kirk], TJ. All
those guys are like, Coach, we’re good. We won, we understand what we’re trying to accomplish here.
It’s silly that you want stats for these guys, but you do because of what they put in, the recognition they
get, it’s unfortunate we didn’t have more Pro Bowl nominees or Pro Bowl winners than we have because
we have tons of players that are capable of it. But I think that speaks to the unselfishness of our group,
they understand what we’re trying to accomplish. I’m sure they’re probably in some way, shape or form
affected by it, but they don’t show that to us in any way, shape or form, they never say anything like that.
I couldn’t be prouder of our group and the individual sacrifices they make for the betterment of the
team and for our unit as well.”
(On how QB C.J. Beathard’s start last week helps him prepare for this week if needed) “I think that’s a big
deal. I think our guys have a lot of belief in C.J., but it’s one thing to say that from what you’ve seen in
preparation and practice and preseason and things like that. For him to go out, execute the gameplan,
lead our team to a win, protect the football; I think that just increases everybody’s level of respect and
trust in him and what he’s capable of.”
TWO JAGUARS NAMED TO THE 2024 PRO BOWL GAMES
JACKSONVILLE – Jacksonville Jaguars OLB Josh Allen and LS Ross Matiscik were named to the 2024 Pro Bowl Games, the NFL announced today. Matiscik has been named to the Pro Bowl Games for the first time in his career. This is Allen’s second Pro Bowl selection after making the AFC Pro Bowl roster in 2019, his rookie season.
In 2023, Allen has posted 61 tackles (41 solo), 16.5 sacks, 16 tackles for loss, 31 quarterback hits, two forced fumbles and one interception in 16 games. Allen’s 16.5 sacks broke the single-season franchise record, previously set by DL Calais Campbell in 2017 (14.5), and currently rank third in the NFL. He is the second player since 1982 to record at least 2.5 sacks in four different games this season, joining Pro Football Hall of Famer Lawrence Taylor (four games in 1986).
Matiscik has posted eight special teams tackles, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery in 2023. His eight special teams tackles through Week 17 currently leads the NFL at his position. After recording one fumble and one fumble recovery in Week 11, he became the first long snapper since 49ers Brian Jennings in 2005 to record a forced fumble and a fumble recovery in the same game.
The 2024 Pro Bowl games will take place in Orlando, Fla. beginning on Thursday, February 1. The Pro Bowl Games are a multi-day AFC vs. NFC competition with skills showdowns and a seven versus seven flag football game to be played at Camping World Stadium on Sunday, February 4.
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