LIONS OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR BEN JOHNSON QUOTE SHEET
December 8, 2022
Opening Statement: “It’s always fun to come in here after a game like that. We had a lot of guys step up and play some of their best football of the year. I think (Lions Head) Coach (Dan Campbell) has already alluded to that. But some of the guys that didn’t show up on the stat sheet per se but played a big role I think it started with the offensive line. They did a heck of a job protecting for us and protection. We knew that was – going into the game that was a style that we want to play and they really, they came through in a big way. That was a good front. That was a good front. They have good pass rushers, they’ve got good players across the board. And for the most part, the pockets were very clean. And then our wideouts, they made some really big catches for us and of course we saw (Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown) Saint’s on third down, he had a bunch of them. But I mean, unsung heroes like (Lions WR) Kalif Raymond, he only had a couple of catches, but both of them were really good outside of his framework catches to keep us on schedule and that was what allowed us to be efficient in that game. And when we’re efficient then we can score some points, so it was encouraging to see that from our unit. And hopefully we can continue that here for the next five weeks.”
On what it means for him to hear the praise from Lions QB Jared Goff: “Honestly, I don’t hear it. I think he and I both know – feel really good about our relationship I’ll say that. That’s been a constant really since he got here a year and a half ago. So, my role and – this has been me as a coach over – really since I got into it as a graduate assistant and kind of worked my way up is to support the people around me and try to help them be the best versions of themselves. So, for a long time that’s been supporting the coaches around me and that’s still the case it’s just now my role is a little bit more hands on with Jared and that same philosophy continues. Just how can I help him, put him in the best positions possible, that’s all.”
On Lions WR Jameson Williams’ reps last Sunday against the Jaguars and how his role will increase as the season progresses: “Yeah, I hope so. I don’t know what that means necessarily for the rep count, but it’s encouraging to finally get some opportunities to hook up in practice both in routes on air and in competitive periods because that chemistry as we talked about last week, that’s critical, that’s big. Knowing where he’s going to be, what his – the top of his break’s going to look like so our quarterback can anticipate that throw, that goes a long way.”
On the intent behind getting Lions WR Jameson Williams involved in the game last Sunday against the Jaguars: “Yeah, I think the intent was to – I mean, shoot he hadn’t put on pads and gone through even pregame warm up, and so a lot of that was just getting your bearings and now that you got that under your belt, we can progress forward from there. So, no within those numbers, snaps is hard to say one way or another, but it’s a good starting point for him. I don’t even think he was very pleased with his play, but that’s good. That’s a starting point and just like every player, we’re looking to get a little bit better each week.”
On how he balances knowing that the offense did a good job against the Jaguars and knowing that there are things they need to work on: “No, it’s a – it gives us a great opportunity to coach hard, I think because you can feel good about yourself. ‘Hey, we had great results, but at the same time there’s plenty on the tape that we need to clean up if we want to continue to produce.’ So, that’s the encouraging thing is we can get after our guys a little bit and even that first drive, yeah, we got the turnover and we took it down for a touchdown, but there was a number of things within those first few plays that we really got to – we’ve got to get that nipped in the bud real quick here because that’ll come back to hurt us. But you saw it. I mean, when our guys make plays and when our playmakers make plays, it’ll mask a lot of things for us and that’s the challenge that (Lions Head) Coach (Dan Campbell) set out for us last week and those guys answered the bell.”
On if there is something more rewarding about putting on an offensive performance like the one against the Jaguars without a ton of explosive plays: “No, I love explosive plays. It’s like after every drive we’ve got one of our young coaches he’ll say, ‘Hey, that was a 15-play drive or 12-play drive.’ And I’m like, ‘You know what’s better than that? A three-play drive, a two-play drive that ends up in the endzone.’ So, no I mean every week we’re on a quest to find more explosives and when you play a game like that and it’s about efficiency as opposed to explosives, you’ve got to be good on third down and that was probably our best all year that we’ve been on third down. So, we were able to stay on track and it worked out for us. But all of a sudden if we’re not quite as good on third down, then playing that type of game isn’t nearly as good for us.”
On the trust that he has in Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown to give him the ball on third down: “Yeah, I think – it’s been fun to watch his progression since he got here over a year and a half ago. And truthfully, I really think he’s playing like a top five, top 10 receiver in this League right now. He generates separation on a weekly basis. I think he’s very hard to cover. We’re trying the best we can to keep defenses guessing a little bit of where he’s going to lineup, but he does a lot of things himself. That catch he had over the middle of the field, and then he bounces back up a few plays later. I mean, it’s – that’s elite. Not many guys have that. That level of toughness, the hands, the breaks. I mean, it’s a complete package and boy are we happy to have him.”
On Lions WR DJ Chark getting involved with the deep ball and his impact in explosive plays: “Kind of had a feeling that was going to be a big game for him, knowing who we were going against, and that’s the challenge every week is to have that kind of production for him, but no, it was awesome. He’s another guy that made huge catches, contested catches, both on the deep ball and then the one that (Lions Head) Coach (Dan Campbell) challenged was a heck of a grab by him as well, so I think now that he’s gotten back from this injury and he’s shaken that away, the confidence level is just going to continue to rise.”
On the feeling of coaching players when they are having fun after a big win: “Yeah, it’s fun for us too. I’ve been on the other side of it. I’ve been on the other side of that type of game, and it’s hard to come back in the building time and time again when that happens. It’s a testament to our head coach, everything that he’s built, the foundation that he’s built. I think our assistant coaches do an excellent job of championing his cause, and I mean they bring the energy, they bring the juice. The success we have on offense, a lot, a lot has to do with them, them and I think the players resonate with that. Our guys do a great job coaching them up, and it’s fun to come to work every day right now, there’s no question.”
On Lions WR DJ Chark channeling his energy between playing harder against a former team and not trying to make it bigger than any other game: “No, it’s a challenge because this is such an emotional game, and truthfully, a momentum-driven game because that’s what happened in that last game. We got a little momentum early from the defense, and we kind of took off with it, just never let it go. But those emotions, they play a huge part of a play. And that is the challenge that we have is trying to remain consistent throughout it all, the ups and the downs to just staying levelheaded. I think (Lions Head) Coach (Dan) Campbell does a great job of that, preaching that to the staff, and the staff preaching it to the players as well, just staying as levelheaded as we possibly can no matter the situation, as things get hectic, the heart rate goes down. You’ve heard that one, and so I think that applies to what you’re talking about right now.”
On how much he has stayed in contact with Vikings TE T.J. Hockenson after he got traded: “Yeah, I’ve had a hard time keeping in contact with anybody right now. I’m a poor husband and father at the moment, but that’s a different story. No, I haven’t talked to him. I talked to him right when he got traded and sent my best to him. I do try to take a look at his snaps or at least his targets each week, just to see how he’s doing, just to remind myself. But I haven’t had a time to talk to him. I’m sure he’s equally as busy as he’s getting involved with them.”
On if this is a big game for Vikings TE T.J. Hockenson: “No, I don’t know if he’s going to make it anything bigger than what it is. I’m sure he’s going to feel a certain type of way coming back into Ford Field, but that’s a good question for him.”
On which part of Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown’s skillset makes him special and how that has allowed him to achieve the numbers he has in terms of yards and receptions: “Yeah, I don’t even know what those numbers are right now. I told you, to me it’s hard for defenses to take away a slot receiver. I really do believe that, especially with how much we move him around and try to generate some matchups for him, but just his skillset, it is unique. He is well-built. He’s strong, he’s got quickness, he’s as good as anybody we have on the team getting in and out of breaks to create separation at the top of the route. No, it’s awesome, and he’s got elite hands to go on top of it, so he can make some contested catches also, so it’s a fun little toy to play with as we go into the gameplan session.”
On if Lions RB D’Andre Swift’s usage against the Jaguars was the right amount for him and the team: “Yeah, each week’s a little bit different. Each week’s a little different, but it was good to see him get a little higher rep count, and get the ball in his hands, and he made some plays for us. Did a nice job, so we’ll see what this week holds.”
On the amount of times the gameplan morphs throughout the week: “There’s a lot of tweaking throughout the week. We’ll start with a core on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and by the time we get to Saturday and Sunday, there’ll be some new things popping up. I’ve been in places, and I think (Lions Head) Coach (Dan) Campbell’s the same way where Saturday night walkthrough or even Sunday morning, there’s five new plays that pop up out of the blue that you didn’t even get the chance to practice, but you feel really good about, so we’re not afraid to do that if as the week goes, we feel like we want to trend a certain direction, which I think is the right thing. Sometimes you don’t know early in the week maybe who you have available, who they have available, or how you want to fully attack them, but like I said, Coach always has a great vision at the end of the week there, and we know offensively, defensively, and special teams-wise, how we’re going to attack the opponent.”
LIONS DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR AARON GLENN QUOTE SHEET
December 8, 2022
Opening Statement: “Obviously, it was a really good performance, team performance for our team. I think the one question that I talked to you guys about last week was, “How are we going to respond after taking a loss?’ And our guys responded really well and that means a lot,’ not only to us as a defense, but to us as a team. So, really proud of the guys for that, now we’ve got to make sure we keep it going between this game, this past game and the Green Bay game were two of the best games defensively we’ve had. So, we’ve just have to look at those games and make sure we continue on this road that we’re at as far as playing good defense.”
On what the identity of the defense is: “You know what? I think all the guys understand this, I know our understanding because it’s what I preach and what I would like to have our – we’re a tough and violent team. That’s who we are. That’s going to attack the football. I think it shows as far as the takeaways that we’ve gotten and just the way that we play defense overall. We might not be the most athletic, but man, it’s going to be a tough out against us every time you play against us. That’s how I want it.”
On what the turning point was when the defense starting to improve and what contributed to that: “I think that’s something that we’ve talked about a while ago. After the bye week, about making some changes, personnel changes, schematic changes and I think sometimes in-house we understand this, but on the outside people don’t really understand this, man, we only had two mainstays on our defense, everybody else were new guys. So, it’s been two years that we’ve had a whole – just a new defense. I know to you guys you think we should be in the Super Bowl, but it takes time. It takes time. And the guys are really starting to understand, we know that, I know that and that’s all we’re worried about is how we feel about our improvements.”
On what Lions DL Romeo Okwara can add to the defense: “Length, power. A guy that can get after the quarterback, obviously he had 10 sacks a couple of years ago. So, we’re looking forward to utilizing him and seeing if we can get that out of him as far as the sack production. Excited to have that player back, he’s excited to be on the field. I know he’s chomping at the bit to get a chance to play, so I’m really looking forward to seeing how he operates.”
On holding Vikings WR Justin Jefferson to a season-low in yards in September and the plans to replicate that on Sunday: “I will tell you this, it’s hard to try to hold that player to that now. I mean, he is a player that I really, really respect on a number of different levels. Just my own opinion, I think he’s – if not the best receiver, he’s one of the top two. And the reason I say that is not just because of the production. I think he’s – he embodies everything I think a football player should be about. I think he’s tough, I think he’s competitive. Man, you see him take some hits and he gets right back up and gets ready to play. So, he’s an Aaron Glenn type of guy, but we have to get after him just like we did last time.”
On if there is anything the Vikings are doing to create more opportunities for Vikings WR Justin Jefferson: “I think it’s the same thing they’ve been doing. They move him around a lot. It’s just the fact that he beats double teams. That’s just what it is. So, if you’re not locked in like every play on this player, he’s going to beat you. He understands how to beat those double teams. So, I talked to our guys this morning about leverage, understanding what this gameplan is about, understanding their top players. It’s not – (Vikings RB Dalvin) Cook’s one of their guys too, so we’ve got to make sure that we’re on him also. So, the thing is you can’t get comfortable with success. The work has to still be done and that’s one thing – that’s the issue that we’re in right now is understanding the work has got to continue to be done.”
On preparing for Vikings TE T.J. Hockenson and how the familiarity helps the defense prepare for their offense: “He’s just another player on another team that we’ve got to watch out for. I mean, that’s the truth. I mean, every team we’ve played against have good quarterbacks, good receivers, good tight ends, so he’s just another player that we’ve got to worry about. And we’ll do a good job against him. They are utilizing him, they are especially in the red zone. I think he has the same amount of targets since he’s gotten there in the red zone as (Vikings WR Adam) Thielen who’s a big red zone target. So, obviously they want to give him the ball in that area and he’s a big body so I can understand that.”
On the defensive players who are playing well but not getting enough attention: “All of them. All of them. That’s the reason why we’re in the position that we’re in right now. They’re all doing well. They’re all doing well.”
On the move that Lions LB James Houston did that led to the sack on Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence last Sunday: “Everybody’s different. Everybody has ways to get to the quarterback. I’ve seen it done a ton of different ways. If you can get there, do what you have to do to get there. And that move that he had, I don’t know if anybody’s ever replicated that, but he got there. So, all good.”
On if Lions LB James Houston has ever done that certain move in practice before: “Yeah, he’s done it before. He’s done it before, so – and he’s been successful in practice with it. So, if it works, get to the quarterback.”
On what he calls the move that Lions LB James Houston did that led to the sack on Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence last Sunday: “The problem.”
On what the next step is for Lions LB James Houston to improve: “A total understanding of our defense. Total, base defense, third-down defense, short yardage, like all those things, he’s going to have to get better at and he knows that. He knows that. And that’s why we’re utilizing the way that we’re using him. And again, we’re going to make sure that we protect that player and not just throw him into different situations, so he can lose his confidence. Right now, he’s riding high with his confidence and we’re going to continue to use him that way.”
On how big of a difference Lions CB Jerry Jacobs can make after not having him for the first Vikings game: “Go cover a receiver. Just like he’s been doing. That’s what our corners do, go cover receivers. It’s as simple as that.”
On if Lions CB Jerry Jacobs brings anything different than Lions CB Amani Oruwariye did to the defense: “He’s a really good cover guy and he’s tough. That’s why he’s an Aaron Glenn guy too. He can cover and he’s tough.”
On how Lions LB James Houston can develop and if he is a player that can play over 50 snaps in the League: “I’ve seen a lot of guys and you take (Colts DE) Yannick (Ngakoue) for one, same player, you just have to really understand how to utilize him. That just comes from – what’s your scheme? What are you willing to change to have that player be a part of what you’re doing? Some teams might go to a 3-4 scheme because of who he is. But you don’t have to totally do that. You can run a 4-3 with 3-4 principles, that’s basically what we do for the most part to be honest with you. So, the thing is we know exactly what we want to do with that player. We just want to make sure we’re careful with him to make sure he continues to rise with the way he is right now.”
On if Lions Defensive Line Coach Todd Wash coached Colts DE Yannick Ngakoue: “Todd Wash did have Yannick.”
On if he has talked with Lions Defensive Line Coach Todd Wash on how to utilize Lions LB James Houston: “We’ve talked about it a number of occasions of how we want to use that player. Again, we want to bring that player along slowly and let him continue to get his confidence the way he is right now.”
On what stood out about Lions LB James Houston in the pre-Draft process: “Good athlete that can get to the quarterback. I don’t care where they come from. That doesn’t matter. If you have a trait that we can utilize and we can develop, come play for us.”
On how much more confident he is now in the secondary compared to earlier in the season: “I’ve always been confident in them. I never said I wasn’t confident. The thing is we just weren’t playing the way we were supposed to play, but I knew it would come because that’s just who we are. So, the guys are showing exactly who they are.”
On what the biggest bridge that Lions S DeShon Elliott needed to get over was early in the season: “The mental part for one. The communication, two. And playing within the scheme, three. And he’s doing that very well right now. Very well. And that’s the reason why he’s out there and he’s playing the way he’s playing.”
On if he sees Lions CB Jeff Okudah evolving into a shutdown cornerback in the next few weeks: “The next few weeks? Yeah, listen I see him developing into a really good player. I don’t know if in two weeks or in one week he’s going to be a shutdown corner. But I like the way he – I like where he’s at right now and I think he’s going to continue to develop. That ‘shutdown corner’ term, people really like to throw around and use, I just want him to be a really good corner. So, whatever that is, if it’s shutdown, if it’s zone, if it’s whatever, I want him to be a really good player. And I think he is because he is, he’s tough, and he likes to cover receivers.”
LIONS SPECIAL TEAMS COORDINATOR DAVE FIPP QUOTE SHEET
December 8, 2022
Opening Statement: “Good morning. How are you guys? Just good, supposed to be great. So, I always say that. People say good, I say great, so I don’t know. It was a couple weeks ago, I sent (former Eagles RB) Darren Sproles a text message, and I was just checking in on him, I haven’t heard from him in a while or whatever. And so, he writes back, ‘Yeah, how are you doing?’ And I wrote back, ‘Good.’ And he said, he hammered me, ‘Good? You’re just doing good? Something’s wrong. You’re not the same you.’ So anyway, if I ever ask you how you’re doing, you’re supposed to say great.”
On Lions LB Josh Woods pointing to the other sideline on a kickoff when a pre-snap alignment of the kicker changed: “Yeah so, what happened there is – it’s actually a good pickup by you, I would say so what happened there is they kind of had a side of the formation that they generally kick towards, and the kicker kind of has a placement of the ball, an alignment. So, pre-kick or pre-snap, we kind of have an indication of where they are going to go with the ball, and then on that particular play, as the kicker approached the ball, they started to work over the top of the ball, so he could actually kick it back to the backside of the formation. And so, it was kind of like a little bit of an unscripted look. It was something they had done once before. But anyway, so that’s what he was doing there, and so then Woods was saying, ‘Hey, check is coming back the other way,’ and calling it out, which he did a great job of. I would say in general, those players did a great job on that play. It ended up being a positive play for us, and those guys did a great job adjusting to the play that was out there. Sometimes guys make what I call a football play, and I would say all 11 of those guys just did a great job of making a football play on that and turning a situation that could be tough or tricky or whatever into a positive.”
On if the team could tell the direction of the kick change based on the alignment of the kicker during a kickoff: “Yeah, so based on the alignment, the kicker’s alignment, the alignment of the kicking group, that group flipped some players and they kept some players to the primary – what we’d call primary kick-side, and so they had shown like they were going to go to our left, their right, and then as he approached the ball, and he got back over the top the ball to go back to his left, our right.”
On what Lions LB Josh Woods provides to special teams: “Yeah, so I would say, yeah, all that little stuff is big, and it’s all behind the scenes, plays that not a lot of people see or notice, but he’s been playing really good football for us. In that game, he had a really good game. He had a tackle on a kickoff. He had a block on a punt return, a good block on a kickoff return. He called that play out, but I say even more than that is he’s really kind of an emotional leader for us. So just in the huddle, like there was a moment in that game where I was about to jump in the huddle and start talking to the players or whatever, but I heard him talking to the guys, and he was saying all the things I was about to say. And that’s really how you want it as a coach, or that’s how I would prefer it, is you really want the leadership to come from within, and those guys to feel like it’s really theirs. And so anyways, he was saying the right things, and I just said, ‘Hey man, just keep it going.’ So anyway, he does a great job of rallying the group and bringing energy to the group, really through four quarters of football there.”
On how Lions RB Justin Jackson has evolved as a kickoff returner: “Yeah so, I would say Justin’s done a great job. That play, he did a great job on that play. He was lined up over on the left hash as we’d see it, and when they had kicked it over to the right, (Lions LB Josh) Woods started pointing, he went over to the other side and showed really good range. But he’s done a great job of number one, securing the ball, catching the ball, securing the ball, getting downhill. He gets physical yards or tough yards, and then he’s also made some guys miss. So, he’s really helped that group quite a bit, but I would also say, I think it might have been training camp when you guys asked me about who’s going to be the returner, and I said, a big part of the return is the guys blocking for the returner. And I would say all 10 of those guys on that team, on that unit have done a great job all year long. We haven’t had a lot of free runners, lot of penetrators, and we’ve given the returner a chance to get positive yards too. So, I would say it goes hand-in-hand, but certainly, the returner’s a big part of it.” |
