SPECIAL TEAMS COORDINATOR HEATH FARWELL
MEDIA AVAILABILITY
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2025
(On how it feels to remain in Jacksonville) “It’s good to be back. It’s good to be back. We
were excited, my family and I. We have loved it here the last three years and to be able to
stay here, it’s exactly what we wanted. To have some stability for my kids is huge. It’s a big
deal for us.”
(On how excited P Logan Cooke, LS Ross Matiscik and K Cam Little were to learn he was
staying in Jacksonville) “They were excited. Getting the band back together. We’ve got a
good group. That’s one of the reasons why we wanted to be back. Those guys are special
talents, special guys, special families. They’ve got a great family, and they’ve kind of taken
my family in with them. Got to spend some time with them at the Pro Bowl a couple weeks
ago. It’s just a good group. To bring those guys back with us, [Assistant Special Teams
Coach] Luke Thompson, my assistant’s able to come back as well. I tell them all the time,
not only those three guys, but the rest of the group, we wouldn’t be back if they didn’t play
as well as they did. So, they’re a huge part of it, the way they played every single day. That’s
why we’re here. They were excited. It’s great for everybody.”
(On what kind of impact of Thompson staying with the team will have) “I mean, continuity.
The guys love him. He works with the gunners outside. He works field goal block. We
blocked two kicks last year. It was a big part of what we were doing. Our gunners played
fantastic. So, he does a really good job across the board. The guys love him. Again, just
bring everybody back together, we did a good job, and we’ve got to continue to get better.
That’s the best part, is Cam will be in his second year, so things are going to change a little
bit for him, but that’s part of the progression. We’ll keep working with him. Ross and Logan,
they’ve got to stay at that level. That’s the standard: Pro Bowl level. Let’s keep it that way
and keep growing everybody else. I think that’s the beauty of it. We’ve got good continuity,
but let’s keep getting better with it.”
(On his impressions of Head Coach Liam Coen) “Great energy. I mean, that’s what you’re
going to see. Whenever you talk to him, it’s always good energy. He’s young, energetic, and
he’s going to tell you how he feels, which I think is a great quality. Him and I have hit it off
really well, and the staff he’s brought together—great energy, young guys, and some of the
cool stuff. The comradery, I think, stuff we’re going to do of getting together for some
dinners at the Combine and some of those things, that’s really what’s going to bring the
staff together. That’s what it’s going to take. It’s going to take bringing all these staff together
from different places, getting them ready to go. The players are going to show up in no time
at all, so we’ve got to get on the same page.”
(On if he anticipates needing a couple more guys to add to the special teams core) “My
guys were great last year, and if everything stayed the same, fantastic. But the reality of
special teams, it obviously comes all the way down and a lot of times it ends up being the
back half of the roster. So, that’s something that with Liam, the general manager, we’re
going to have to all come together and figure out what is the best formula to win. So, the
reality is, we may lose a guy or two. Hey, guess what? Next guy up, maybe it’s a draft pick,
maybe it’s a practice squad guy. That’s part of my job and Luke Thompson’s job; of how can
we get the most out of the roster and elevating these guys’ play. Every year, the cliché is ‘the
roster changes every year,’ especially on special teams. We’re going to have to bring up
some young guys, we’re going to lose a player or two because of free agency or whatever
that looks like. We’re going to have to develop more players and we’re going to do that.
Whether it’s a rookie or a practice squad guy, young player, let’s get the most out of them.”
(On how long he was in “limbo” amid coaching staff changes) “We were right in that area
and the best part about it from day one, the Khans, the organization made it very clear they
wanted me here and that was a big part of where we were going forward. So, I had that
going. I did get some interest, but ultimately, we wanted to be here. The organization
wanted us here. It was a clear-cut deal for my family and I. This was the best situation.
Blend in with this new crowd of staff and make the best of it here, and let’s do this. Let’s
figure out a way to win. Obviously, adding in Boselli [Executive Vice President of Football
Operations Tony Boselli] will be a huge part of that. Tony’s a good friend of mine. I think
those are what it’s going to take for us to win. So, those are all big factors in why we wanted
to be here. But it started with the Khans. I think that’s the biggest thing. Mr. Khan [Owner
Shad Khan], Tony [Chief Football Strategy Officer Tony Khan], they obviously wanted us
here, which is—I don’t know if there’s a better person that you’d want to have in your
corner.”
(On what he thinks Boselli will bring the organization) “I mean, he’s been around forever.
Obviously, a Hall of Famer, what he’s done for this team, and then of course, the city. It
means so much to him. When you talk to him, I’ve never seen him so excited about
something, about just this project of the challenge of getting us to be a winner. Every time I
talk to him, he says, ‘We’re going to get this thing rolling.’ You can just feel his excitement
and that’s what we need. We need that good juice, that good energy of where this is going,
where this is headed. We’ve got the right guys in place. Let’s get it rolling. I think that’s a
great message of like, this is where it starts, right here, and let’s get it to a winner. But
nobody’s more passionate about this organization than Tony Boselli.”
(On his opinions on the kickoff format, having now experienced a full season with it in
effect) “It’ll be interesting to see if we make any changes to it. I think we’ll learn more at the
Combine. That’s kind of when we get together and kind of go through some of the
possibilities. The average drive start was over 29 yards. Touchback was the 30-yard line. So,
that’s kind of one of those things we’ve got to look at. How does that affect drive start and
all that? I think we’ve got to get better. We learned a ton throughout the season, but that’s
the biggest project for probably all special teams coaches is taking a look at what we did,
what the top groups did on kickoff and kickoff return. What did they do? What did we do?
And how can we get better at it? What are they doing that we weren’t doing? I’ve got to do a
big study on that. So, that’s my biggest project this offseason. How can we get better to
make sure it’s the number one kickoff, kickoff return group next season?”
(On if he has any critiques of the kickoff format) “I think the biggest thing is that—I think it’s
a 29.6 drive start. I think that’s the biggest thing is how do we fix that? There’s a couple of
different ways to look at it. Do you move the kicker back to the 30-yard line, make it tougher
to kick touchbacks? Or do you put the touchbacks to the 35? I think those are probably the
two possibilities. Moving it back to the 30-yard line would be great. I think that’d be a great
challenge. It would up the value to a kicker and it makes the importance of having a good
kicker so valuable that I think is a big part of the game. The kicker position, whether it’s you
see in the playoffs with the big field goals, and then also the kickoff aspect. That’s a huge
portion of the game. I think that’s an important specific quality that if a kicker, if a specialist
has, it’s a good thing.”
DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR ANTHONY CAMPANILE
MEDIA AVAILABILITY
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2025
(On his excitement for this opportunity and what he sees from this defense) “I couldn’t be
more excited about this opportunity, really to work with these guys. Just looking at the
players, looking at the roster, that’d probably be the most exciting part of it for me. Getting
to know some of the guys being in here, it’s been awesome. So, pretty fired up about it.
Obviously, the opportunity to work here, work with Liam [Head Coach Liam Coen], I’m
just—I’m amped up, I’m amped up in every which way.”
(On why he wanted to work with Coen) “I think that’s a good question. Both Northeast guys,
but we’ve known each other for quite a bit. Working at camps, circuits over the years in
college. But really just his energy, what I got from talking to him, he’s just the right type of
guy. His vision, his toughness; I’m really, really fired up about that.”
(On what his vision for the defense is) “Yeah, I think the most important thing you talk about
when you talk about defense, is your play style. My vision for us defensively, we want to be
a tough, fast, physical, violent at the point of attack team. What does that mean? That
means that you’ve got guys who take pride in not getting blocked. Everybody talks about
running to the ball. I don’t think there’s another person in the world who believes in running
to the ball more than I do. But you can’t run to the ball if you don’t get off the blocks, and
that is something that’s going to be celebrated in our room. It’s going to be celebrated in the
culture of our team. There’s a point in every play where somebody tries to block you, right?
Your passion to not stay blocked is really what makes plays on defense. Coaching, scheme,
all that stuff—that’s great, really important. But at the end of the day, the players win the
game, and the violence at the point of attack, the effort, the strain, and the finish that it
takes to not stay blocked and run to the football—that’s what really creates a great defense.
We want guys that are going to play with their shoulders square, be able to read
everybody’s number and name tag every play, and attack contact, and never turn it down.
Those are tenants of a great defense. Those are tenants of all the great defenses in the
history of football and the great defenses I’ve ever been around. I watched that on the tape,
when I watched the guys here, I see a lot of that. I see great effort, great strain. Meeting
these guys, we’ve got a lot of great people in here, guys I’m excited to coach. You just asked
about Liam, he’s about the same things. He wants strain, he wants effort and that’s the
environment I want to be in every day, and I know we can succeed in.”
(On how far along he’s into the roster evaluation process) “We’re all just kind of going
through that right now, all our coaches, letting everybody go through everything
positionally. I’ve been able to watch a lot of guys myself. But obviously with hiring the staff
and evaluating the players right now, still I would say relatively on the front end of it, in all
fairness. We’re kind of collaborating and meeting on that as a defensive staff right now as
well.”
(On if he feels he has to be done with the full evaluation before going to the combine)
“Yeah, I’d like to be. I think we’re close to that, and obviously there’s a lot coming up now, or
coming down the pipe, free agents, and obviously, the Draft with the combine coming up.
So, guys are working hard. They’re in here, honestly. They’re in here early, and we’re grinding
until late night. I know I am. Trying to make sure we put the best group of guys together and
obviously do the best job in our evaluations.”
(On how much tape he’s watched from last year) “I watched a fair amount. I watched quite
a bit of it, to be honest with you. I have a lot of respect for the guys who coached here and
the guys who played here last year because I see strain, I do. I see effort. I know maybe
there wasn’t a result that everybody wanted all the time, but I knew when coming here,
there was a lot of guys that I did, or was excited with the opportunity to coach.”
(On which guys he’s specifically excited to coach) “Sure, sure. Yeah, absolutely. There’s
guys, and then at linebacker, I would say I’ve evaluated a lot of these guys, probably know
them a little bit better because you’re evaluating pretty closely going into the Draft every
year. That was my position. So, there’s really a bunch of guys I’m pretty familiar with. The
way they play, their play style as college players, and then you usually keep up with guys in
the NFL and you see guys from crossover tape. But absolutely. We got some pass rushers.
We have some interior D-linemen. We have some toughness at linebacker. We got some
guys on the back end that I’ve been really impressed with.”
(On what he’s identified as the main issues with the defense from the tape he’s watched)
“No, I mean, I’ve gotten less into that in terms of schematics. We’re kind of moving forward
on that, and just looking at how everybody plugs into what we want to do, moving forward.
So, I probably spent less time on what all the issues are and more time on evaluating the
players and their play style, their play ability, to be honest with you, because that to me is
like the most important thing for us right now, that we know our players and that we know
our roster.”
(On how many decisions he will make scheme-wise now as opposed to when the players
return) “Yeah, I think when you look at, whenever you come into a place, a new
environment, like that kind of happened in Green Bay last year, to be honest with you, for
me. I was in Miami for a bunch of years and went there. As Jeff [Packers defensive
coordinator Jeff Hafley] and I were kind of ripping it down to the studs and our defensive
staff was building it from the ground up, you always evaluate what’s in the building. What
do the guys do well and how does that fit into our scheme? I think great coaches always
have the ability to be malleable with the scheme to fit what the players do best. So yeah,
that’s part of it. Then, as you go, for sure, like as your roster changes, sometimes that
affords you the opportunity to do a little bit more stuff or less.”
(On the reasons why a defense doesn’t get turnovers) “I could probably answer it better by
saying the reason, in my opinion, for turnovers. I think a lot of that comes from vision on the
ball. If you look at it statistically over the years in the NFL, a lot of takeaways occur with
vision on the ball. I think like some of those happen in the Super Bowl, like you just think
about some of the playoff games, some of the games that you’ve watched most recently.
When you have vision on the ball, you have a better opportunity to create takeaways. I also
think that the guys that have great ball awareness and the guys that strain that as a team,
the units that really strain that, you go back and look at it, how many attempts are you
making on the ball, whether that’s punching the ball, right? Whether that’s violent contact
on the ball, how I’m clamping on a tackle. All those things can factor in to takeaways, and to
me, you have to do a really, really good job studying that and presenting that information
visually to the players. Get as many great visuals for them, knowing how people carry the
ball, right? Is a guy late to the tuck after he catches the ball? Does he carry the ball on his
inside arm, near his sideline? Is he a guy that switches the ball on traffic? Is the ball off his
body? Is he an elbow-out runner? Those are the guys that you want to target, and you want
to target them in specific ways. So, to me, there is a little bit of—I don’t want to say a
science to that, but certainly a technique and a coaching philosophy to that.”
(On if he’s focused on the details in every drill) “Absolutely. I think every drill you do, we’ve
talked about this as a defense of staff, I don’t want any drills that don’t end without a tackle
or a takeaway or an attempt at a takeaway. Every play is going to end that way. That’s what
we’re shooting for. We’re shooting for, violent finish on a tackle, violently trying to separate
somebody from the ball when the ball’s in the air, or violently trying to take the ball away at
the point of attack. So, we need to be drilling that every day, and that’s on me to make sure
we are.”
(On why it was important for Defensive Backs Coach Anthony Perkins to be on the
defensive staff) “Yeah, he had a great—Perk’s got, you guys will meet him—he’s got a great
disposition. He’s just super easy to talk to, great communicator. He’s a really, really good
teacher, and the dude is just like a tireless worker. I don’t know if he sleeps. So, he might be
a vampire (laughs), but he works like an animal. So, I have such a deep respect for that, and
those are the guys I always kind of gravitate to. I love the guys that do more, find a way and
just super detailed, like, really clear, concise, direct and easy to talk to. So, the players
really got along with him really, really well and they were able to learn from him because he
presents the information in a way that is easy to learn.”
(On how important DE Arik Armstead could be as a leader on the team) “Yeah, I mean, you
look at him winning the Man of the Year award and all that, it speaks to the character of
him, the type of guy he is. I’ve gotten the chance to talk to Arik. So, been awesome and
been around a bunch of guys who have coached them too, which is cool. But he’s, yeah,
absolutely, the leadership quality is that super, that excites you, keeps you super excited
about that. But also, watching the guy play over the years, he’s got a great play style. A big
explosive guy, and he’s had a ton of success in his career because of that. So, excited to
coach him, without a doubt. One of the guys I’m definitely excited about.”
(On if he envisions Armstead as a defensive tackle) “Yeah, I think for the majority of his
career, he’s had so much success doing that. He’s a guy that’s obviously, as you’ve seen
last year, was able to move around a little bit, so he’s got some multiplicity to his skill set.
But he’s just a problem. Honestly, wherever he is. You watch him there, as he lines up on a
tight end, that’s not a great matchup. He lines up on a guard, that’s a tough matchup. So,
it’s good to have guys that are a matchup problem. He’s had so much productivity inside
over his career.”
(On how tough is it to set the tone that he wants to build for this defense) “I think that’s just
your effort and the enthusiasm you come into building with every day. You know what I
mean? Like me personally, the coaches, the players, it’s making sure that our mindset is
right every day and we’re on it every day. It’s not something you could talk about, though.
Your meetings got to be that way. The practice has got to be that way. Individuals have got
to be that way. Everything you want to go through with a fine-tooth comb with the intention
of getting guys better. Everything you do is about getting guys better. Everything we do has
to have a purpose, right? So, that’s how we walk through. We walk through with detail.
We’re all just kind of like sauntering in there and you know, milling around. That can’t be the
case. It’s got to be done with detail and everything that we do individually with these guys.
Look, we film the individual for a reason, right? You film the drills for a reason. You’re
watching those every day trying to pick up little things that can help the guys play better
and improve their techniques so they can go out on Sunday and produce. But that
environment, yeah, it’s got to be about strain in everything we do, in my opinion.”
(On how flexible and open to suggestions he will be from players and other coaches) “Yeah,
I think you have to be flexible. I think I’ve been really fortunate, being in a lot of systems
defensively. I’ve been with some guys who, some of their best qualities are their flexibility
and the system’s flexibility. Meaning that I think a lot of people get into the, hey, are you 3-
4? Are you a 4-3? You’re 4-2-5? What do you guys do on defense? I think when you look at
all the teams, even the 3-4 teams, they play a bunch of four-down. So, if you’re looking at
that, you’d be aware of that and you’d see that there’s flexibility within everybody’s scheme.
Sometimes the offense’s personnel grouping forces you to be flexible, right? And then
defensively, how do you make it hard on them? Do you play different groupings to those
personnel? Maybe some stuff that they’re not expecting and playing to the strengths of your
defense. Even in Green Bay last year, we played a bunch of four-down. We played a lot of
three-down spacing with four-down people, because we felt that gave us a better answer
versus some of the things that we were seeing and let us be pretty flexible. So, I think in this
league, you have to be able to adjust, like in the game. In the game, you have to be able to
adjust. To me, I think [Minnesota Vikings Defensive Coordinator] Brian Flores, I would say,
the guy I worked for, I thought he did a great job of making sure everybody was seeing it that
way. In the game, the information is so valuable, and from drive to drive, we all have to be in
great communication with each other to get into the next best call or the next call, next
series that’s going to help us get off the field. So yeah, I mean, some of those guys I’ve
learned a bunch from, you know, I would say Vic is, [Philadelphia Eagles Defensive
Coordinator] Vic Fangio is the same way, just super adaptable and super intelligent. Great
guys to be around.”
(On if it’s challenging to run the defense with the personnel grouping he has) “I don’t think
it’s that challenging. I mean, maybe I shouldn’t say that, but I have a very good idea—it’s
probably a better way to say that—of what I want to do and doing that with the people we
have in the building. I think what we want to do, part of the reason why this job is appealing
is, I think with the people in the building, what I want this defense to be, it’s a pretty good
match. It’s a pretty good fit. I feel like a lot of those guys fit into what we want to do and
they’re going to have an opportunity to do it really, really well. To me, that’s on us. How hard
we coach them, how well we coach them. I feel like we got some really good pieces in
place to do that, to execute the scheme.”
(On if he learned anything new about the defense when he was preparing to face
Jacksonville in Week 8, last season) “No, I think, really in the preparation for the game,
obviously, like you said, it’s primarily with the offense. I learned a lot about some of the
personnel on offense. That excited me too because we had to go out and defend some of
those guys and they’re very good players. So, that part of it excited me also. But really more
so in, you watch some crossover tape and then getting ready, when you start interviewing,
you start that process. You really start to do a deeper dive into the personnel and the pieces
that are in the locker room that you would be working with. Yeah. That’s really where I got
most of my info and probably a better feel for that.”
OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR GRANT UNDINSKI
MEDIA AVAILABILITY
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2025
(On if he had any misgivings about not being the offensive play caller) “No, no misgivings at
all. This is a phenomenal opportunity to work with the guys here, the staff here, the
organization here. So, once I found out about this opportunity, I probably don’t have enough
words to describe how fired up I was to be able to work with Liam [Head Coach Liam Coen]
and the rest of the staff. I know that element, that part of it, the play calling won’t be a part
of my role, but I’m looking forward to support and help the team win in any way I can.”
(On the extent of his relationship with Liam Coen prior to interviewing for the offensive
coordinator position) “Yeah, I think there’s an element of all of those things that come
together. I think, ultimately, that’s probably a little bit of a question for Liam more so than
me, but I think he takes into account the indirect recommendations. But the direct
relationship is ultimately probably most important, in my opinion, and from my
perspective, at least my relationship with him because he’s the guy who I’m going to be
working with every day and he’s the guy who’s going to have to deal with me every single
day. So, if that’s not good, then that’s not a recipe for a good product.”
(On why he wanted to work with Liam Coen) “That’ll be a long list too. So probably the same
reasons that he’s hired here, not just his track record, but what he’s done with
quarterbacks, what he’s done with offense, what he’s done in the run game, the pass game.
There is an added benefit of us seeing things similarly, philosophically or schematically. But
in terms of the football stuff, there’s a wide array of things that I can learn from him and
hopefully that I can bring to him and add to this team and to our offense. But from the
football side of it, we see things very similarly in terms of how we want to do things and how
we want to attack things philosophically, talk about being fundamentally sound, talk about
attacking on offense, situational masters, and most importantly being tough. So, having
that shared identity and that kind of shared vision, that alignment from the top all the way
down throughout our staff is a big deal to me and I know it’s a big deal to us collectively.
Then, on top of that, like I said, he’s got to deal with me every single day whether he likes it
or not now. So, there has to be some level of the person, the human being, the guy that he
is that comes into play that makes me ultimately so excited to be here and work with him
and everyone else here.”
(On his thoughts on QB Trevor Lawrence and how he establishes their relationship) “Yeah,
I’m beyond fired up to work with Trevor. Like I said about Liam, probably the same thing with
Trevor, I don’t have enough words to explain how excited I am for the opportunity to work
with him. The relationship side of it is something that takes time, not just me getting to
know him, but him getting to know me. This is a collaborative process. There are no
dictatorships or anything like that in this business or on our team, just like we’re
collaborative as a staff or collaborative with our players. So ultimately, if the players come
first, ‘players over plays,’ like Liam’s probably told you guys a number of times. And if that’s
true, then we have to be willing to go above and beyond and do whatever it takes to put
them in the best position for success, and part of that is committing the time and effort and
resources to forming those relationships.”
(On what stands out about the current players on offense) “I think that’s still something that
we’re looking at. We put all this stuff together and you get to know guys and get to learn
guys. You don’t want to come to any premature conclusions on guys based on the past
because you’re focused on the present and moving forward. But just like I talked about with
Trevor, you’re excited about the opportunity to work with the potential that you see in these
guys, whether it is upfront, out on the edges, receiver position, tight end position, the
backs, Trevor, basically down the line, across the roster. There’s a lot of excitement and
tools and pieces that you can create a vision for within our system in a multitude of ways,
and using those guys to attack defenses in creative and innovative ways where, like I said, if
we’re trying to maximize our chance of players’ success, building things around those guys
and what they do well, and taking advantage of that potential to get the most out of them.
So, our goal will be to bring the best out of each guy and hopefully take that talent that you
see and are so excited about, and make each guy kind of have the best year of his career,
respectively, whatever that may look like. But it’s that individual process first of bringing out
the best in those guys and that talent and that will hopefully create a good product as a
whole, collectively.”
(On what makes Offensive Line Coach Shaun Sarrett a valuable addition to the staff) “Yeah,
Shaun brings a lot to the table in terms of, once again, football-wise, the same thing I talked
about with the coaching staff, whether it’s schematic, philosophically football-wise, the
alignment there from Liam all the way to myself and down throughout the staff, but also the
type of guy he is, the energy he brings, the relationships he forms with players, the
relationships he forms with staff. You’re going to get a genuine, hard-working, caring guy
that’s going to go above and beyond just like hopefully the rest of us will, to bring out the
best in the players and each of us as staff members. The great thing about our relationship
and kind of having that foundation there is he can be honest with me, I can be honest with
him. I’m not going to be perfect and I’m not going to pretend to be perfect, so you need to
have those relationships and open an honest communication, so that way people can tell
you when I screw something up or misspeak it. Thankfully, I can lean heavily on Shaun to do
that for me.”
(On the impact Vikings Head Coach Kevin O’Connell had on him in his three years in
Minnesota) “Well, how much time do we have? But he influenced me in probably more
ways than I even recognize, to be honest with you. In terms of the game, seeing the pass
game, seeing how you build an offense, seeing how you teach an offense and build that
progression, and then most importantly, probably the quarterback position, how you
develop that starting from the ground up, laying the foundation and scaffolding things in a
true progression that allows those guys to learn and grow in an environment that maximizes
their chance of success. So, I could probably go on for hours about what that kind of
process looks like, but from a football standpoint, he kind of covers all the bases in terms
of, you learn things explicitly and implicitly in terms of just concepts or certain schemes
and philosophies, but all the way down to the detail on how those concepts are executed or
how those concepts are implemented or how those concepts are game planned. I think
that’s something that he does at a really high level and the results kind of speak for itself
with him and the success he’s had there in Minnesota, and even prior to that. And then on
top of that, my role, I was in a very fortunate position to be with him and spend so much
time with him. Seeing the connector that he is and the type of person that he is and the
impact that he has on people’s lives, not just in the meeting room and with us as coaches
or with the players, but even beyond with the entire organization from everybody in that
building or everyone that walks through that building feels his impact and his presence and
the culture that he’s set there. That pays dividends and kind of has a ripple effect beyond
his immediate reach.”
(On if the staff feels ‘youthful’ and what the advantages are to having younger coaching
personnel) “I probably wouldn’t describe it like that. I would say we have an energetic staff
for sure. So, maybe that’s how I would look at it there, but in the sense of youth, I think you
feel the energy, the excitement, the passion for football, for coaching, and the work that
goes into making this thing ultimately what we want it to be. I think that carries over not only
into our interactions with each other so far, but I think that will show up in our relationships
with the players and the relationships, hopefully, with everyone else in the building. So, I
think the energy there is palpable.”
(On if it feels different than the staff that he started on in Carolina in 2020) “Every staff is
different. Every staff is unique, certainly. At the end of the day, football is still played by
people. It’s still coached by people. So, it’s individuals. It’s certainly different in some ways.
There are probably some ways that it’s similar, but ultimately every staff you’re on is
different. Even year-to-year, you typically have a guy leave. It’s just like players, on the
coaching staff. It’s never going to be the same exact staff every year, so there are certainly
some differences.”
(On his thoughts on having WR Brian Thomas Jr. and being able to use him within the
schemes) “Yeah, excitement. Once again, so probably that would be the same thing I
answered for probably ten of these questions as excitement overall. Like we talked about
with the players and the opportunity to work with these guys, he’s one of the guys where
you watch the tape and it’s hard to stay seated watching his tape. Just in terms of the
excitement and the tools and the ability that he has and the potential there for, you saw the
results this year, but the potential for growth beyond this year and the different ways you
can use him to attack defenses in a multitude of ways.”
(On what stands out about Lawrence that he’s most excited for) “There’s a lot that stands
out. Once again, that the physical talent you can see, and you guys probably have had more
time watching it than even me over the course of the past couple of years. The most
exciting thing for me is the guy and the person as I’ve started to form this relationship,
because like I said, the quarterback position is still played by a person. It’s still a human
being back there who’s got to stand back there and navigate tight pockets and hits and
escape and deal with ten other guys in the huddle, all eleven on defense, and make those
decisions in snap judgment. So, the person that we’re getting to deal with and work with on
a day-to-day basis is super exciting for me because, listen, if we’re up here spending as
much time as we do trying to pour ourselves into somebody, he’s the type of guy that you
want to invest time in.”
(On how important is it to develop the running game) “Yeah, we’ll be multiple. We want to
be a complete offense in the sense that we have the ability to attack defenses in a variety of
ways, whether that is in the run game or the pass game or screen game, whatever that may
be. You need to kind of have all the tools in the bag and then find the way to make those
players, to take those tools and fit them to the players that you have. So, it comes down to
how can we take what our guys execute, what our guys execute well, and put those players
in the best position for success. So, the run game is a piece of that without a doubt
because we never want to become one-dimensional. We always want to be dictating and
having the ability to run the ball and run on our terms and be attacking like I talked about
earlier, kind of predicated on the ability to do that down in and down out.”
