HEAD COACH DOUG PEDERSON
MEDIA AVAILABILITY
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2024
(On injury updates to RB Tank Bigsby) “Tank’s going to go today. We’ll see. Optimistic.
Obviously, today will be a big day for him.”
(On injury updates to OL Ezra Cleveland) “Ezra should be good to go. Yes.”
(On any other injury updates to report) “Josh [DE Josh Hines-Allen] is good, Tyson [CB Tyson
Campbell], guys that showed up on the report. Obviously, this time of year guys are going to
be banged up, but the ones that have shown up have practiced this week. Should be good
for the game.”
(On if RB Keilan Robinson will be activated) “It’s been discussed. We’d have to make a
roster move, obviously, to do it. It’s just hard this late in the week, but it’ll be a conversation
to have, yes.”
(On if DT Maason Smith will be available vs. Detroit) “He’ll have an opportunity, but I don’t
know if he’ll be ‘up,’ if that makes sense. We’ll make the final determination later today after
practice.”
(On what he’s seen from QB Mac Jones this week) “Same Mac. I mean, a lot of confidence.
He really embraced this week, this challenge, what he’s going to face on Sunday. Continues
to lead the guys, to lead the offense. Had a good day yesterday—really the last two days. I
think I talked to you guys Wednesday, but I’m sure he wants to rebound, obviously, from the
end of the game last week and put his best foot forward. But again, he’s got a ton of
confidence, we’ve got a ton of confidence in him, guys around him do. He’s had a good
week.”
(On if he has a feel for what Jones does well after seeing him play vs. Minnesota) “Sure.”
(On if a point of emphasis this week is to play turnover-free) “Yeah, they’re obviously very
opportunistic when it comes to the takeaways. They’ve got an explosive offense, so those
two—it’s a dangerous combination. So yeah, we’ve got to make sure that we can’t and
don’t turn the ball over. Then, we’ve got to try to create, obviously, some takeaways if we
can. It just helps and it’s just one more possession they don’t have, and we get. That’s got
to be a point of emphasis a little bit this week.”
(On if he’s seen the team being “bought-in” more over the last few weeks) “Yeah, I mean,
I’ve seen it all season, and I think it comes with playing together, coaching together,
working together. Obviously, going through this is a tough stretch that we’ve been through,
beginning last season to now. But again, this group hangs together, they hang tough.
Confidence in each other, and that’s really what it takes in order to get yourself out of these
situations.”
(On what allows the team to stay connected when results aren’t presenting themselves on
the field) “That’s a tough thing in kind of the sports world today in general across all
sporting events and sporting teams. I mean, teams that go through slumps or defeats and
things like that, sometimes it is hard. They feel defeated, right? Whatever team they’re on,
they feel defeated. I’ve been on, as a player, teams where it has, once it goes sour, it just
continues to go that way, and it’s like, OK, let’s just get ready for the offseason. But I’ll tell
you what: you don’t see that with this team. I think it’s a credit to the leadership of this
group. Even they’re pulling the young guys along and then you’re seeing better practices,
better performances, studying their game plan. You’re seeing all that kind of stuff still
today, which is a credit. It’s just a big-time credit to the guys in the locker room. You have to
have that, right? In order to pull yourself out of this, you have to have that type of leadership
and a close group, even when you’re not getting the results you want.”
(On having veterans in every position group for younger players to lean on) “Yeah. That, and
I lean on that leadership council I visit with on Wednesdays. I think visiting with those guys,
giving them a message, and then they go and spread it to the team and to your point, to
their rooms, is big.”
(On if WR Brian Thomas Jr.’s involvement in the game is dictated by the game or if it’s built
into the gameplan) “I think it’s both. It’s both. But I think early is better than late, right? If it’s
not happening, it’s just like you can’t force it. So, it’s got to be earlier in the game and
something you got to consciously each week just say, ‘Hey, we’ve got to try to get the ball to
BT, to Evan [TE Evan Engram],’ whoever those are going to be. But it is harder once the game
starts and you’re not—you can’t just force it, right? It’s harder that way.”
