November 3, 2020 LIONS OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR DARRELL BEVELL CONFERENCE CALL QUOTE SHEET (VIA ZOOM) On how much TE T.J. Hockenson has grown in his second season and how much creativity the offense has with Hockenson involved in the playbook: “I think we’ve had some good conversations about T.J., and kind of the process that he’s gone through since he’s been here and then obviously, this offseason coming back from the injury. Was it two weeks ago? I kind of challenged him a little bit just in terms of gaining separation, but I see a guy that’s improving each and every day, a guy that it’s super important to, he really is trying to be on his details, trying to do the things that we’re asking him to do and I think it’s starting to show up. I appreciate what he’s doing in the run game, he’s improving there each and every time we go out and then these last couple weeks in particular, you can see him doing a great job of running routes, gaining some great separation and giving us opportunities to give him the ball.” On potentially playing without WR Kenny Golladay and if he thinks WR Marvin Hall deserves more playing time and what does Hall bring to the offense: “Well, he did a nice job of stepping in in this last game obviously, and made some really big plays for us. He’s been that kind of guy. He’s made some big plays for us in the past and some of those plays that have been down the field, over the top and have trust in him, expect him to step in there and do a great job for us. I think the thing that he brings for us is speed. It’s the one quality that he has that I mean, immediately you see it on the field, and you feel it and that can really change some things in the back end. We try to use that. We try to get it out there, but when you’re out there more, obviously then he’s going to have more opportunities to make plays.” On if he sees anything different about the Vikings defense this season and if they are still the same menacing group: “Yes, same group, different names. I think that’s the biggest thing. It’s not the same players that we’re used to seeing, really, other than the safeties. So, there’s a lot of new names, new faces that we’re getting used to right now, that we’re watching on tape to try to learn more about, but the safeties are really the two guys and probably the strength of that defense. You look at the schedule and the teams that they’ve played, they’ve been in every game. They’ve played a lot of the higher ranked teams in the League and pushed a bunch of those teams to the brink. I mean, you know, just looking at the record, it’s not something that you can go in and sleep on somebody. It’s going to be a hard-fought game. It’s going to be NFC North, important divisional game, so we’re going to have to be at our best.” On if he anticipates TE T.J. Hockenson having to shoulder more of the targets if WR Kenny Golladay cannot play and if that reflects the offense in the second half against the Colts: “I don’t know if that’s the exact thing to say. We have a bunch of good players on our offense and we’re trying to get the ball to all of those guys. T.J. is definitely one of them. Marvin Jones (Jr.) is a guy. Obviously, Kenny (Golladay) is a guy. Danny Amendola comes up big. Marvin Hall had a big game this last week, liked to get the ball to (D’Andre) Swift. So, we have players. Obviously, Kenny (Golladay) will be a big loss for us because of the big plays that he can do. You’ve seen him the last couple of weeks with over 100 yards in games, but we have other players and I think all of them need to step up and be able to help us to make plays on offense.” On if there is a point in which he will use RB Adrian Peterson less since his yards per carry have decreased since Week 1: “Well, we don’t just go straight off the stats. I mean, we look at the film. Obviously, this last week was not a good day for us offensively in really any facet of the game. We didn’t run the ball very well. We didn’t protect the quarterback very well. So, we have to evaluate just different than looking at what the yards per carry, or whatever comes up. We’re looking at how we’re using them. Obviously, I’m sure you can go back and count the number of plays that different players are in. So, D’Andre Swift is getting a lot of playing time, probably has the most plays of anybody and then Adrian’s in there and then Kerryon’s (Johnson) getting a lot of plays as well. So, we’re always evaluating that though. It’s important for us to make sure that we’re using our guys the right way, but you can’t necessarily always just base it off what the stats look like. We’ve got to look at how’s the play designed, what are we asking that player to do, is he capable of doing that. Are we giving him a chance to even do what he’s capable of doing by how we’re protecting him, how we’re blocking the play and those type of things? He’s had some of those opportunities that he’s had where he hasn’t had a well enough blocked play, or we haven’t done exactly what we need to do to help him. In fairness to your question, we’re still evaluating every single day. Every day we go out there, every day in practice, we’re trying to put the best guys out there and trying to give them the best opportunities to make plays with the design of the plays and we’ll continue to do that.” LIONS DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR CORY UNDLIN CONFERENCE CALL QUOTE SHEET (VIA ZOOM) On how excited he is to have DE Everson Griffen given DE Trey Flowers’ injury: “Good question. I think it’s fair to say that everybody’s excited. Haven’t even seen him yet because of the protocols with the virus and all that. I have talked to him on the phone. I’m excited to see him in person here. So, we’ve got to get him on the field first, get him in the meeting room and then get the game-plan in, and then I think we’ll get a feel for the best spot for him. With Trey, unfortunately, we’ll look at a few different scenarios there for each package. Feel good. We’ll make it work. Obviously, blessed to have him here now, and then with the guys coming back and everybody that we still have. So, we’ll make it work, we’ll have a good plan.” On if the team struggled in man coverage and crossing routes on Sunday: “I think – talking about man coverage – I mean I think there was, I couldn’t give you the stats, but I know at half-time because we made a point of it at half-time, it was 42 plays in the first half, I think. We played some version of man, I think, 15 times. We talked about Philip (Rivers) last week, he’s sharp, he’s smart. So, created a couple of pick opportunities in there for us, we didn’t get through on them. So, some of those situations ended up with some great coverage in man coverage on other plays as well. So, he got us in a couple of them. It is what it is. You’ve got to go on to the next play and then keep playing. I’m not going to second guess anybody or the calls in man versus zone. Played a lot of zone in that game, and he found some soft spots in zones, too. I was proud of the way the guys played. We obviously did not finish the game the way we wanted. Talked about the two plays there before at half-time, then we come out, start the second half, two three-and-outs, and we hit the fourth quarter (and) we’re down six points. So, after all that happening, we’re in a great position to hopefully find a way to win the game. We didn’t, obviously, so that’s here nor there. Going back and forth, we had a third-and-10 there going, called zone, and he ends up sliding out of the pocket. Romeo (Okwara) is about to get a piece of him there, and he ends up throwing that ball across the middle. They convert on that, and then two plays later, we’re back to third-and-14. That ball was close to midfield, so you’re playing the game of – you want to play zone there, and then give them eight yards and then they kick a field goal. You want to play man and tighten it up so they can’t get it into field goal range. Those are the games you’ve got to play there in that situation. Called man, and then put Justin Coleman in a tough spot down there on that deep ball. He ended up throwing that ball down there, we end up getting P.I. If I could go back – you always do this, especially as a play-caller, as soon as the game’s over. Go back, and hindsight’s always 20/20. You can have a couple plays back, but as soon as I say that, the players are like, ‘No man, you can’t say that. We’ve just got to go out there and execute it.’ So, coach it better, play better, and then maybe we get a better outcome there. We’ll learn from it and go forward.” LIONS SPECIAL TEAMS COORDINATOR BRAYDEN COOMBS CONFERENCE CALL QUOTE SHEET (VIA ZOOM) On if the multiple missed field goals by K Matt Prater is tied into the snapping and holding: “No, honestly, I don’t think so. I wouldn’t say we’ve been perfect all season, snap, hold, but the other day it was pretty clean. I really don’t think that was part of it at all.” On what happened on K Matt Prater’s missed field goal against the Colts due to his track record of success within 50 yards: “I think prior to the other day, even the ones he had missed for the most part were pretty good hits. I think a lot of times, I mean obviously we judge based on misses and makes, but you try to judge a lot based off just the actual hit of the ball. I don’t know if you guys golf, but kind of like when you’re golfing, you can tell more from the actual contact on the ball than whatever else happens – the wind, can it fade, slice, anything like that. So, we try to really focus on the actual hit itself and his misses prior to the other day had all been pretty good hits for the most part and maybe just faded a little bit or didn’t play the wind right, whatever. I think Matt was frustrated the other day because that was the first time, really, as soon as the ball came off his foot, everybody who was there could tell it was no good. Just didn’t get a good hit on it at all, just missed it and it is what it is. We don’t get a do-over. So, really for us, this week, it’s just going to be kind of get back to the basics a little bit. Break down some just really basic techniques, kind of get back to more offseason type of work where you’re really focusing on all that stuff and a little bit less game specific. But yeah, it wasn’t a good one, he’d like to have it back, unfortunately it doesn’t work that way.” On how important S Miles Killebrew is to what the team does on special teams: “Yeah, I was really excited for Miles the other day for a number of reasons, really. He’s been a guy who since we got him re-signed as a free agent, been a cornerstone in terms of building the foundation of our culture and just kind of what our program and the kicking game – been heavily involved in that both in giving me input, but really in kind of setting an example for the rest of the guys. Does everything – I tell him or ask him one time, that’s all it takes, he does it exactly the way that I coach it. He puts in extra time, puts in all the preparation, has really done everything right since I’ve been here, both in practices and games, has been in position all season long. So, to see him breakthrough in the first quarter the other day and really make a couple impact plays to set the tone for us early in the game, that was very cool. I told him Saturday, I’ve been in a similar position. All three of my kids were born in football season. So, been there a little bit, can relate and I told him you’ll never forget your first game as a dad. You’ll remember a lot about it. So, make sure that it’s good memories. So, that was cool to kind of see the look in his eyes after making a couple of those plays. I’m sure he’ll never forget. It was awesome for us as a team. We needed a play, there was a little bit of a lull there early in the game and I think that really got us going, so that was cool, was really happy to see it for him.” On what he saw on S Miles Killebrew’s blocked punt against the Colts: “I think to block a punt in the NFL is really hard, right? I think the last decade or so, I think the average is 14 a year, so less than one per week league wide. It’s not easy to do and it’s really almost impossible to do without some sort of error on behalf of the punt team. If everybody over there does their job, snappers and punters, they get the ball out too fast. It’s just tough. But that doesn’t mean you just throw your hands up in the air and say, ‘Well, we can’t do it, they’re going to do their job.’ For us it’s about creating pressure, moving things around, moving parts around, doing whatever we can to make an opponent perform in a high-pressure situation. Make it as difficult as they can to execute one, otherwise it’s a mundane procedure that they go through 25 times throughout the course of a week in practice. So, just trying to present different things to create confusion, create the potential for mistakes on their part and then for us it’s really one thing that we preach in our punt rush meetings all the time – to the point where the guys like to give me a hard time for being repetitive – but you just have to rush as if you’re the guy every time. You never know when it’s going to be you, whether the rush is designed for you specifically or not. Like we talk about pressure burst pipes. As we’re creating pressure for the opponent, it might be designed to hit on one side of the formation, but the way that it breaks down, it might be somebody totally unexpected that comes free. So that’s why it’s really important that all 11 guys are out there doing their jobs, got the pedal to the metal, because if you wait until after – you realize it might be your opportunity, then it’s too late. It happens too fast. It’s 1.8 seconds, so you’ve got to expect to be the guy every time. Miles (Killebrew) did a great job of doing that and then once he found himself in position to make the play, making it. Really, we just have to do a better job of scooping and scoring there.” |
