LIONS OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR BEN JOHNSON QUOTE SHEET
January 15, 2024
Opening Statement: “Right where we need to be here fellas, this is exactly the goal that we set out for back in training camp, back in the springtime, it’s what we’ve been talking about, and so I really like where our guys are at. So far this week they’ve been focused, they’ve been dialed in, and we’ll have another good day of practice here today and get ready here for Saturday night.”
On the changes in the Commanders’ defense in the past year and if he has had the chance to look at how much better they have been playing late in the season: “Yeah, hard to say how much they’ve changed from a year ago because we didn’t play them last year, but this is – to me, this is exactly what (Commanders Head Coach) Dan Quinn does everywhere he goes, Atlanta, Dallas and now to Washington. This is a defense that, what stands out when you turn on the tape, they all pursue, they all tackle, they rally around the ball carrier, they play balls to the wall every single snap, and that’s really the first thing that you see. And so, talent-wise, they’ve got guys all across the board, a lot’s been said about the defensive tackles, I’d say their edge players are equally as disruptive here this year, I’ve got a lot of respect for what (Commanders LB Dante) Fowler’s been putting on tape, the two linebackers are flying around and they’re very challenging to pick up in pass-pro, and then on the back end they’re competing – they’re competing, and today’s third down day, you see a lot of man coverage, coming up and challenging, much like what we saw from our own defense in training camp. So, a lot of respect for this crew and it’s going to take our best stuff here Saturday night.”
On what he learned through his third head coaching interview process that has made him a better candidate: “Oh shoot, this go-around, I’ve just – I’ve been a lot more prepared for the types of questions that they’ve been asking, I’ve also changed my frame of mind a little bit, and instead of worrying solely about the offense and what we’re doing right here, I’ve been able to have offseasons and summers to think about, big-picture view, what a program would look like where I’m running it. And so, I think that way, I’m a lot more prepared for the questions that come my way and I’m much more comfortable answering them.”
On what would have to stand out to him about a head coaching job for him to take it: “I see what you’re doing right now, and I’m not taking it. I’m going to stay focused on the main thing right here, and that’s going to be the Washington Commanders right here and now. That’s what we’re about, I told the head coach when we came in – he asked me about how it went this weekend, it went great, and that’s the end of it. The focus right here and now, for the players, for the coaching staff, for everybody in this building, is about this game, this week.”
On if he is allowed to have any contact with former QB Tom Brady on the field as he had an interview with the Las Vegas Raiders: “I know nothing of that nature. I met him at the Packers game on the field, I saw him for a second in pregame, that’s the first time I’ve ever met him, and that’s it.”
On if he talked with former QB Tom Brady this past weekend because he is a partial owner for Las Vegas Raiders: “Above my paygrade.”
On if he has compared notes with Lions Defensive Coordinator Aaron Glenn on the head coaching interview process over the past few years: “We’ve had a lot of conversations, football and otherwise, big-picture stuff to more specific defensive philosophy, scheme and all those things. So yeah, we’ve had great conversations over the last few years.”
On if he gets asked about Lions Defensive Coordinator Aaron Glenn’s head coaching candidacy and what he would say to people about him as a candidate: “Well shoot, I think I told you guys this last year, he is beyond qualified right now. You hear all of our players singing his praises right now, and that’s exactly what I would do, I would second that. He is more prepared to be a head coach than maybe anybody I’ve ever met. He wants that and I think he’d do a phenomenal job in charge.”
On what ways he feels Lions Defensive Coordinator Aaron Glenn has helped his development: “Listen, it’s everybody in this building, from Aaron to our head coach to (Lions Assistant Head Coach/Running Backs Coach) Scottie Montgomery to (Lions Offensive Line Coach) Hank Fraley – it’s everybody in the building. Everybody’s authentic and they’re not trying to be people that they’re not, and I think that shows up, our players see it. Former players like Hank, like (Lions Tight Ends Coach) Steve Heiden, they can really tap into that experience and that helps relate to the players. Other guys that weren’t former players, they can show their superpowers as well to the players – and equally respected and help these players get better. That’s really what we’re here to do at the end of the day, is help them get better, help the team get better, win a lot of ballgames, and so what I’ve seen from Aaron, from (Lions Head) Coach (Dan) Campbell and the rest of the crew is just, be yourselves, and the team has responded well.”
On if he feels a sense of irony that they are facing the Washington Commanders as a team he interviewed with last year: “No irony. I mean, these guys, they have good coaches, they have good players and they’ve won a lot of games this year, so a very dangerous opponent, and one that we’re certainly not taking lightly.”
On if he needs to feel out where Lions RB David Montgomery is during the flow of the game if they will automatically go back to the way they split things between him and Lions RB Jahmyr Gibbs: “It’s to be determined. Gibbs has certainly had a hot hand as of late and I expect David to come in and pick up where he left off. If the last two days are any indication, he’s of the right mindset right now, so we’ll see what it looks like today on the field and tomorrow as well, and we’ll finalize our plan after that.”
On if they have a level of comfort in having been to the playoffs and knowing how to win and what it is like to lose: “Yeah, I’ll tell you this, I don’t think anybody in that room, myself included, has forgotten that feeling of flying back on that airplane from San Francisco. And so, we’ve been, all year long, extremely detailed, extremely locked in, and to see it go up another level here this week, it’s been really impressive. So, our guys know this is exactly what we’ve been working so hard over the course of the spring, summer, over the course of the season, and so now we’re ready to go.”
On what he has seen from Commanders CB Mike Sainristil: “You know, the thing about him that stood out to me, and this goes back to the springtime, we had a number of Michigan players come into the building, whether it was Top 30 visits or a local pro day, and every single one of those players said that they would bring him along. Every single player said he was the one guy from Michigan that they would want to bring along with them, and to me, that spoke volumes because it’s rare that you see all these same guys from the same school and they say the same person, it’s normally the cliques you hang out with. And so, I see a guy on tape that fits their defense – in a nutshell, same thing we’ve been talking about, they are flying around, reckless almost, borderline reckless, but calculated, and he fits that mold for them perfectly. He’s always around the ball, not afraid to tackle. It’s been a really impressive rookie year for him.”
On what goes into starting fast after having time off from the bye week since some teams start off slowly: “Yeah, well, we had a great practice right before we left for the bye week, and I know (Lions QB) Jared (Goff)’s had these – the pass-catchers at least run routes for him full-speed, so we’ll get a good feel here today. They’ve put in a lot of work here over the course of the season, and so I think the timing and the rhythm, the anticipation, I think it’s all going to be just fine.”
On how he feels when Lions Head Coach Dan Campbell decides to go for it on fourth down and stay aggressive: “Yeah, I mean, it’s been our identity since Coach came in here, right? So our players, the coaching staff, we’re all behind it, certainly the numbers help support it, and so you’ve got that in your back pocket, but something we emphasize over the course of the week, I know defense has certain calls, we have certain calls on offense, fourth down of the week, and we feel really good about executing it once we get into the gameplan. So, our guys rally behind it, they love it, and it’s certainly helped us score more points this year.”
On if he will have Lions QB Teddy Bridgewater as the backup quarterback and Lions QB Hendon Hooker as the emergency quarterback in the postseason: “Yeah, I’ll let (Lions Head) Coach (Dan Campbell) answer that question, but I’ll say this, I’m equally confident in both of those guys here at this point. I’ve seen enough from Teddy since he’s come back that I know he’ll be able to function in games at a high level, and same thing with Hendon over the course of the season, he just keeps getting better.”
LIONS DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR AARON GLENN QUOTE SHEET
January 15, 2025
Opening Statement: “Listen, since OTAs, going into training camp, this is what coaches and the players were fighting for, and we expected to be in this situation. We were going to fight to have home field, we wanted to have a chance to be in front of our fans, we know exactly what our fans do for us, the best fans in the NFL, so we’re excited to be able to play at home with them. During the bye week we did a lot of self-scout to see exactly what we can improve on, which was good to look at, to be able to step back from afar and say, ‘These are some things the we need to work on, these are some things that we’re doing really well at.’ And we’re excited about some of the things that we’re going to have going into this game. Quality opponent, obviously the quarterback, man, he has taken this League by storm by some of the things he can do, the way he operates, his calm demeanor, his accuracy, his ability to exactly know where the matchup’s at and get the ball to that player. And then, they have a receiver who I think is one of the top receivers in this League, he is highly, highly competitive – played against this player before, so we have to do a good job on him. We have to do a good job in general because this offense gives you a lot of eye candy to make sure you’re not on your Ps and Qs, and then they just run simple concepts, which, offensively, you like because it’s really easy for your players. So, looking forward to the challenge, it will be a good game, and our guys will be ready to play.”
On if he lost his voice from all of his Zoom calls last weekend: “No, they had nothing to do with it. It’s just – I guess just what happens at this time of year when it gets cold outside. Detroit did that.”
On how much better prepared he felt for this round of head coaching interviews and if he gets questions in those interviews that change the way he looks at coaching or leadership: “I think you learn a number of things from each year that you go through them and you try to improve on those each year, but I think the one thing that I get out of all these interview is, man, I’m going to be myself, either you’ll like it or you don’t, if you don’t, all good. I keep telling you guys, I have a great job here, and if you like it, if it’s an opportunity I think that’s best for me and my family, then we’ll take a look at it. But I had a really good time over the bye week looking at those, but now, man, we’re all locked in, ready to go and play this game against Washington.”
On how much time he allows himself to put a staff together for a head coaching job or anything else that may come with that: “I think those are things you always look at during the offseason, guys that you think that mesh well with you, that are compatible with how you think and how you want to operate. I think during the season you really don’t even mess with it at all because you’re so locked in to what you’re doing, and then once the interviews start, you start to come back to some of those things, some of those people that you talked to. You start to think about, ‘Is this a guy that I feel like I can win a Super Bowl with?’ And I always look at it that way.”
On if he turned down a head coaching interview with the New England Patriots and if he still harbors feelings against them from when he played for the New York Jets: “I’ve never felt anything against that organization, it just wasn’t the best situation for me.”
On how this season prepared him better to be a head coach: “Man, that’s a good question. Well, you know what, I’m going to go back to ’21 and going into this year because we started, as we all know, 3-13-1 and then the following year we go 1-6, but the thing that I could remember that sticks to me is, our head coach, our coordinators, our coaches, we never wavered from the things that we believed in, and I think that’s a strong statement when you stand in front of a group of men and say, ‘This is how you have to win, and we believe that you’ll win this way.’ And those guys believed it too. And then, once our owner had an interview and she backed everybody, all the coaches, that we have a formula to win and it’s this close, and from then on I think we went 8-2, and to now – so here’s what it taught me, we know, as a staff, how to build a winner, and now we know, as a staff, how to sustain winning, so we want to continue to do that as long as we’re all here. So, to answer your question, building it from the beginning, and sustaining it from here on out.”
On why it seems that offensive coaches tend to go on to be Super Bowl winning coaches as opposed to defensive coaches: “Well, I don’t know if that’s truly accurate. I can just go off the top of my head with (former Steelers Head Coach) Bill Cowher, (Steelers Head Coach) Mike Tomlin, (former Patriots Head Coach) Bill Belichick, that have won a ton of Super Bowls as a defensive coach, and here’s the one thing that I will say about myself, I’m a coach, I just happen to be on defense. I understand the offense just as well as a number of people, so if you want to hire me, you’re going to hire a coach, you’re not going to hire a defensive coach. I’m going to talk to the offense just as much as I’m going to talk to the defense.”
On if they ever try to force mobile quarterbacks to a certain direction and play to their weaknesses in their games: “Absolutely, especially when you look at his rush pattern and the way he tries to escape from the pocket. If there’s a guy that really wants to escape to his right or to his left, you try not to let him escape that way for the most part, but as you see, this League is trending toward all these quarterbacks that are just so athletic that it’s hard for your defensive linemen to try to contain these guys, so you have to do a lot as far as being disciplined in your rush, obviously sending more people at him so you can make sure you close up as many lanes as you can, and man, we try our best to do that. Against (Cardinals QB) Kyler (Murray) I think we did a really good job, obviously Buffalo we didn’t do as good of a job, we expect to do a really good job this week against (Commanders QB) Jayden (Daniels).”
On how the team’s aggressiveness on fourth down affects him in the moment and his game planning in a game: “Listen, this is what I teach our guys from OTAs and training camp, that any time we have a sudden change – say, if we don’t make a fourth down, say, if our offense throws an interception, they have a fumble or whatnot, man, it’s more TV time for us, alright, so we look forward to going on the field. So, every time you see something like that happens, our guys immediately run on the field because that’s the mindset. So, listen, we’re behind our head coach 100 percent, I actually believe in that – actually believe in it. So, I’m not surprised, I know everybody else is surprised, but I’m not surprised, the players are not surprised, the coaches are not surprised, we’re just ready to play. Whatever happens, we’re behind him.”
On how playing against a team like Washington that uses all four downs on offense affects how they play on defense: “Yes, so now you look at what they’re going to do on third down, alright? They might tend – it really opens up their offense because they might tend to run the ball more on third-and-5, third-and-6, because they know they’re going for it on fourth down, so we have to be in-tune to that, and that comes from film study. So, we’ve done a good job of understanding who this head coach is, how they try to operate, to try to make sure we’re prepared for all those things.”
On how impressed he is with Commanders QB Jayden Daniels’ mental game and if there are things that he does that you do not often see from rookie quarterbacks: “Absolutely, his demeanor and how calm he is, I mean, it pops out all over the TV copy when you watch the TV copy, and another thing that pops out is, he’s having fun playing this game, which we all should, but you can tell that he’s having fun, and there’s no better way to play this game than when you’re in a situation where you’re having fun. I mean, obviously winning has a lot to do with that, but his ability to go make plays, even when he doesn’t make plays, he’s having fun playing the game, and I think that’s one of the reasons why he’s so successful. He’s not taking this for more than what it is, he understands what his skillset is, and he’s utilizing everybody on that offense to make him better. It’s almost like he’s trying to be a point guard, and he’s just delivering and leading.”
On what Lions LB Alex Anzalone brought to the team in his return against Minnesota and how he thought he played: “Listen, he’s our captain. Any time your captain’s gone, you lose a little something, and obviously when he comes back you gain something. He understands me to a T, he understands how I’m going to call the game, he studies the game plan just as well as anybody, and if something goes down with my mic, he knows exactly what AG’s going to call, and he does a good job with that, and we have so much conversation on, ‘How do I see it?’ That he understands how I’m going to call the game.”
On how critical it was for Lions Director of Pro Scouting Rob Lohman to bring in players for the defense in the midst of so many injuries: “I think everybody will attest to the first thing I would always say, is how good our personnel department has done a good job of bringing guys in that fit us, not just bringing guys in, but guys that fit us, because at some point, when you start to bring so many guys in and they have to play the following week, it’s not about the playbook, it’s the playstyle, and these guys fit our style. So, I’m going to always praise those men and women that are over there, they do a really good job of getting us the types of players we need.”
On what makes Commanders WR Terry McLaurin so good and why his touchdown production has increased: “Well, (Commanders QB) Jayden Daniels had a lot to do with that, but he’s highly, highly competitive, he does a really good job on 50-50 balls, which you wouldn’t think that he would because of his stature, but he does a really good job of that. He’s always been a good player, we went against this player several times, but that’s the one thing that really stands out, is his competitive nature. He kind of reminds me of how (Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown) Saint goes about, because he will block, he’ll go across the middle, he’ll take hits, he’ll get back up, get back to the huddle, so he’s a gamer. He’s a gamer, so it doesn’t surprise me, the success he’s having.”
On his leadership and having players like Lions LB Alex Anzalone vouch for him and his leadership: “Listen, here’s how I sum up leadership. It’s really one word, it’s influence, and everybody that I come into contact with, I want to influence them in some positive way, and I don’t take that for granted when it comes to players, because that’s my responsibility, it’s almost the same as my children. I want to make sure that everybody that I come into contact with, that when they leave AG that they have something positive to say, and it’s not always going to be like that because I do get pissed off at people too, but to me, that’s what I want to impart on every player that I come across with, even the players that end up leaving here, I want to impart something positive into them, so as they go about their way, that I’ve taught them something that can make them a better person and a better player.”
LIONS SPECIAL TEAMS COORDINATOR DAVE FIPP QUOTE SHEET
January 15, 2025
On how proud he is of the punt coverage unit for what they were able to accomplish this season: “Yeah, it’s awesome. Obviously, it does start with (Lions P Jack) Fox because if you don’t have a guy who can pound the ball down the field, it’s hard to net that 46.2 or whatever it was. But yeah, obviously proud of all of those guys. It took a large contribution from everybody and then really for Fox, it starts with the snap and we had a rookie snapper come in who has been outstanding for us all year long, I’ve said that over and over, so he’s really the next guy and then (Lions LB Jalen Reeves-Maybin) Germ or (Lions LB Ezekiel) Zeke Turner came in and led the group as a personal protector spot and we really didn’t miss a beat when Zeke came in, that’s a credit to him. And then Germ did a great job obviously, he does a lot for us at that position, he’s a quarterback, putting us in and out of calls, punts, all of that kind of stuff so that’s been huge. Then obviously all of those guys protecting, if you get one blocked or have a bad play, it just takes one of those to knock you out of having a stat like that at the end of the year. So really – and then (Lions CB Khalil) Dorsey on the outside and these gunners on the outside making plays down the field. So, it really does take everybody, that honor is really everybody’s honor on that unit as far as I see it. I mean, Fox hit the ball, but the other guys covered it. If they didn’t cover it, he’s not worth very much. So, it’s truly a team effort, I’m happy for them and that, the bottom line for us though is finding a way to win a game this week which is really the focus and the most important thing and I’m not huge on individual things, stats like that, in case you haven’t noticed. You’re trying to win a game and that’s really the most important thing you can do is find a way to win the game each week and this week’s obviously no exception and certainly when you get to this time of year and you have to win or else you go home. So, this is really what you do it all for so we’re excited.”
On how happy he was for Commanders K Zane Gonzalez to get the game-winning field goal in the Wild Card Round: “Yeah, I’m fired up for him. I think I say this all of the time, I’ll usually talk to the other teams’ specialists before the game. I wish him the very best and I hope that those guys play as good as they can play and then I hope that we play better and that’s really what the goal is. But I think as a competitor you want your opponent to have played their best game and have no excuses. I think Zane – he’s a very good player, he’s made a bunch of big kicks, he made a bunch of big kicks when he was at Arizona and so I’m super happy for him that he made that one at the end there and look forward to playing against him.”
On how nice it was to get Lions WR Kalif Raymond back and how close he was to getting an explosive play returning punts against the Vikings: “Yeah, super excited to get him back. I mean, having him back there, there’s nothing like that. He’s an explosive player, he’s super competitive, you can feel his energy and urgency on those returns last game. We had three of them, one of them went for zero yards but the other ones went for 13 and nine, and it gives you a chance. I think everybody around him knows that, so obviously thrilled to have him back there. This should be a good opportunity. This team that we’re going against, not that I’m big in the metrics, but according to my metrics, they’re the best in the NFL, this Washington team, on special teams. These guys are really good. They do a great job really in all phases, punt, punt return, kickoff, kickoff return. Their special teams coordinator is a guy that I respect a lot, both personally and professionally, (Commanders Special Teams Coordinator) Larry Izzo, played in the League for a long time, was a heck of a player when I first got in the League in 2008, San Fran. We played at Candlestick against the New England Patriots, he was on that team, played great against us. That’s really when I first got to know who he was. At that point in his career, he was already established and then he went on to coach and has done a great job. Been in Seattle for a long time, we played them the last three years when he was up there, he always does a great job with their units. (Commanders Head Coach) Dan Quinn, he’s a ball coach. I love the guy. When I was at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, this is way back, but I was coaching 1AA and just north of us is San Francisco 49ers, he was a quality control coach coaching D-line there and we went up there. We got a chance to go up there because the guy who I played for in college, Dick Tomey, he was an assistant on the staff at the time and so he got us in the building and we got a chance to talk to Dan Quinn on defense. I was coaching defense at the time and he spent all morning with us in a room and he was going over everything, D-line play, arm bar, arm over, swim moves, all of the different techniques that they use, and spent damn near a whole day with us and our defensive staff from Cal Poly. It was just incredible and then he went on, he was at Seattle, I was in San Fran and so we see each other twice a year while he was up there. But a hell of a football coach, a football guy who gets the game, loves the players, very passionate, and these guys play like that. So, for us, this is like the ultimate. We’re going against a great team who’s really well coached, they have good players on special teams, they do a good job and I think we have a good group too. So, we’re excited to really play against these guys, should be great.”
On where the Commanders special teams unit really shines in his metrics: “They’re in all four – so I take everything into consideration. All four plus field goal, field goal block, takeaway, giveaway, field position stuff, it’s all in mind. They’re number one. We’re two.”
On if the Commanders having a high number of special teams tackles is a symptom of them having returnable kickoffs: “Yeah, that would be a product of kicking a lot of returnable balls for sure, yeah.”
On if he likes to get returnable kickoffs: “Yeah, it’s great. We’ll take them, for sure. We’re excited, let’s see what we can get.”
On if he still does not have a desire to be a head coach and why: “Yeah, I think when I was a young coach I wanted to be a head coach, that’s all I really wanted, and then really when I became a special teams coordinator in Philly when I was younger, I still thought that I wanted to do that. And then as you’re doing that job, or as I was being a coordinator on special teams and watching the head coach and all of the stuff that they have to deal with and put up with – I’ve told you before, the thing that I love the most is working with the players and I love the meeting room, it’s my favorite place in the building is the meeting room when it’s full of players. I get to coach every player on the team, I get to be involved with a lot of different aspects of the game, offensive, defense, or offensive plays, defensive plays, offensive players, defensive players, and I really can’t imagine not having that to be honest with you. It’s my passion. I’m trying to – my goal is to keep my job and I mean that. These jobs are hard to get, I feel very fortunate to have the one that I have. It gives me a ton of fulfillment and there’s really nothing else that I’m looking for. I don’t want to deal with all of the stuff that the head coach has to deal with on a daily basis because that would be probably my least favorite side of the game of football at this level is a lot of what that guy has to deal with all of the time. So, that’s really it for me. I mean if somebody said, ‘Hey, man. You have to do this for me.’ And it was somebody that I knew really well, I don’t know, maybe. But other than that, there’s no way. So, I don’t see it happening obviously, but I love what I do, I love the players, I love being around those guys, I love teaching football and coaching football and being in the meeting room with them, being on the field with them, watching guys improve, watching guys reach their goals and dreams and achieve things that they might not have thought possible at one point or helping them get there along the way.”
On Ravens Head Coach John Harbaugh saying that special teams coordinators make great head coaches because they interact with so many players: “Yeah, I would say it’s an interesting thing because I think what happens – it happens in every profession, but it’s like, somebody does a good job and then it’s, ‘OK well what was that model? How did they do that? (Lions Head Coach) Dan Campbell is the head coach, OK we need to find the next-’ And people get it all wrong. The bottom line is the guys who do the best at the job in my opinion are dynamic leaders. They’re super smart in all phases, they know how to relate to a lot of different people and please a lot of different people, they know how to motivate a lot of different people. But it really comes down to less about the guy can call this play or that play, he’s good on this side of the ball or that side of the ball. I mean, these guys are dynamic leaders who know how to handle an NFL locker room and so I think ultimately, it doesn’t matter where they come from. People need to just look for the best leaders possible and the problem is that they look for the same formula as the last team that did a good job and they don’t realize that the things that make that guy successful – like the (Commanders Head Coach) Dan Quinn, the stuff that makes him successful is probably more about the day that I was in there going over football with him and his passion and energy for the game, it’s infectious and he’s super bright and obviously those players feel all of that energy and everything that he does. So, anyway, he’s a great leader, guys want to follow him, obviously the exact same thing with Dan (Campbell), but anyway I do think that it’s a shame that special teams coaches don’t get an opportunity because there’s a lot of very good, talented coaches who are very dynamic and have to be in order to get that job done because you are dealing with so many different people on the roster. It’s not necessarily the thing that those guys want to do first, cover a kick, they’d all rather be the starting safety and lead the League in interceptions than cover punts and kicks or block on return games. So, I think a lot of those coaches or there’s a lot of coaches who coach special teams in the League who are very dynamic and should get an opportunity, but ultimately it doesn’t work that way. So, it is what it is. This business is also the fans and the fans have to vote and they have to be excited about it and it’s about selling tickets and there’s a huge business side of it too.”
On what it is like to be a part of the calls to go for it on fourth down: “Yeah, really that’s all (Lions Head) Coach (Dan) Campbell, the fourth down decision making stuff, what we’re going to do, fake it, go for it, punt it, kick it. He really handles all of that stuff, but we have a lot of trust in him, faith in him. I would say that during the course of the week, we get a pretty good idea of what it’s going to be like going into that game in terms of how aggressive or how many chances we’re taking and where we’re going to take them. So, I don’t feel unprepared going into the game, I have a pretty good idea of what our plan is. And I think that’s the one thing that he does an incredible job with and I’m super fortunate to work for the guy, I love him to death, I think he’s an unbelievable coach, but one of the things that he does very best is that he knows how to win a game and he’s not worried about what anyone thinks and he knows exactly who the other team is and exactly what it’s going to take. He’ll come in during the week and say, ‘This is how I see it going down.’ And damn near every time it’s exactly like that and it’s like, damn. His ability kind of predict how the game is going to go early in the week is better than any coach that I’ve ever been around.”
