Wednesday, September 20, 2023
QB Tua Tagovailoa
(How excited are you to have your home debut for this season?) – “I think we’re all excited. It will be cool to finally get to play in front of our hometown crowd, so I’m sure it’ll be packed and I’m sure those guys are really excited to see us go out there and play.”
(You have a streak of beating Super Bowl winning coaches nine times in a row now. And you have another one coming up this week in Sean Payton. I know you’re just trying to go win every game, but that’s got to still be a pretty cool stat to hear, no?) – “Yeah, that is and you just mentioned it to me. But yeah, it’s a team sport. You win games with the team and I’ve been very fortunate to have great teammates. We’re just in here day-in and day-out trying to do everything we can to win.”
(On the other side of the ball, LB Bradley Chubb is facing his former team here this week. Just from what you’ve been able to observe of him – I don’t know how many meeting rooms you get to be in with him – but how has he ingratiated himself into this unit, this locker room, this family since he’s been here?) – “I think the cool thing about ‘B. Chubb’ (Bradley Chubb) is he’s all-around a class act person. I would say, like the first time that I met him, it wasn’t me going up to him. He came up to me and sort of introduced himself and I thought that was super cool being able to play against him my rookie year when we went down there to play Vic’s (Fangio) team at the time. But he’s a great guy, a great person. I like hanging out with him off the field. I don’t hang out with him too much on the field, but that’s all I can say is he’s a great person.”
(Opponents have had only four quarterback hits on you through the first two weeks which is second-best in the league. Only Baker Mayfield has been hit less. Two parts to that. One, if you could talk about why you think that that’s happening and then also how beneficial is that to you? Not just for injury, just the typical beating that a quarterback takes in a regular game?) – “I think that should tell you all you should know with the guys we have up front. There’s been a lot of naysayers and I know our guys in the o-line room hear what everyone is saying as well, so that’s a way that they’re able to shut the haters up basically. And to me, it’s nothing new. Those guys have been working their butts off this entire offseason – OTAs, training camp – they’ve been working their butts off. So this is nothing surprising to me and I think that’s what it entails, is just the work ethic that they put in day-in, day-out with their coach Butch (Barry). And guys are buying into new techniques, new fundamentals with how they’re getting off the ball and different things, so having Tyreek (Hill), having (Jaylen) Waddle – having fast guys also helps me get the ball out quicker to be able to distribute that and throw off timing for the rushers as well. So I think that’s been a big key to that as well.”
(You mentioned as part of that, that your quick release has been part of it. What goes into that? Is that just quickly going through your progressions, your reads?) – “Yeah, that’s just understanding pre-snap where we need to go with the ball and then also post-snap adjusting and making that adjustment quick. That’s basically all it is.”
(Broncos Defensive Coordinator Vance Joseph with Denver this year and in previous years in Arizona has been top-five in blitz rate in the NFL pretty much since he’s been doing it. What kind of challenges does a blitz-happy defense present to you?) – “They present a lot of challenges. You’ve got to understand where those blitzers are coming from. You’ve got to understand where you want to protect them. So there’s a lot of things. We’re going to have to find out if they’re blitzing from here, where the openings are going to be and we’ve got to figure out how we want to attack them in that sense.”
(On that same token, how have you developed on the blitz throughout your career, like looking back to maybe when you started to where you are now?) – “I think a lot of it is just within the rhythm and timing of our offense. That’s basically what it’s evolved to where you understand where your hot (read) is coming from, but then if you are playing in the rhythm and timing of the play, at worst you’ll probably take a hit after throwing the ball. But that’s at worst. That’s what I’ve been trying to do, trying to get the ball out as quickly as possible, kind of seeing the defenses so that I can help myself out as well as the offensive line.”
(I saw most of training camp you guys were doing a heavy rotation with all the receivers. Now that WR Jaylen Waddle is out, how much will that benefit you in terms of whoever has to step up for him?) – “That’ll benefit our offense a lot. That will benefit us a lot because like you said, we’ve been rotating guys and it’s been allowing others to get reps with the ones, with the twos, with other guys. And it also helps with the timing of that. You know where this guy is going to be at what point. Guys when their routes a little different so being able to throw to a couple of the other guys out there today, working on timing, it’s been good.”
(In that same token, WR Jaylen Waddle and WR Tyreek Hill are obviously special for a reason. I don’t think last year either of them missed a game. How much changes or what you guys can do scheme, offensive-wise, if Waddle can’t go?) – “I think it’s tough when you don’t have two of your top guys in (Jaylen) Waddle and if we weren’t to have Tyreek (Hill) on any given Sunday, but I would say the rest of the guys in that room, they’re ready to step up. They’re ready to play. It doesn’t change how I prepare. I was going to be funny. I was going to say I might as well stay home if they don’t play. (laughter) But yeah, I think the guys in their room, they’re ready to step up and whatever cards you’re dealt with, you’ve got to go out there and play. Any given Sunday. Those guys on the other side don’t care about who’s playing or not. They just want to do anything they can to help their team win.”
(I liked that pass down to WR Braxton Berrios down to the 2-yard line and I noticed from watching the All-22 that you sort of felt or sensed pressure from your left and then slid to your right before throwing it in the buck down. I’m curious, was it just a sense and has your sort of spidey senses – are they better than every?) – “Spidey senses? Can you explain spidey senses for me? (laughter) That’s great. Yeah, I would say because I’m not the biggest person, I’m not able to always see over guys and because Tyreek (Hill) is not the biggest person, Jaylen (Waddle) is not the biggest person, Braxton (Berrios) is not the biggest person; sometimes you’ve just got to feel space for those guys and that’s when understanding where they’re going to be at the time they’re going to be there matters a lot. Sometimes we have to read the play inside out. I knew Braxton was going back up on a wheel and so as I kind of peeked towards the middle, I could kind of sense this backside player on the pressure and then I knew Braxton was going to be there.”
(I wanted to ask you, when you were growing up in Hawaii, what players did you look up to from a quarterback standpoint? Who did you admire or idolize or look at yourself and say, ‘hey, I want to be like that guy.’) – “I’d say it was hard because I grew up a Cowboys fan, so I always wanted to watch the Cowboys growing up. But in Hawaii, the games start at like seven or eight (in the morning). Then if you get a nighttime game on the East Coast, then the game in Hawaii is like at three o’clock. Whatever games we could catch, those were the teams that I would watch. I would just watch those offenses and whatnot. I wasn’t able to just specifically watch one person. I was able to watch a lot of quarterbacks. If I didn’t get to watch a certain game, then I’d just watch the highlights on YouTube.”
(You stay off social media. You’re not the type of guy to watch ESPN. But can you tap into the frequency of just the excitement around this team right now from a fan perspective? How electric Hard Rock Stadium is probably going to be on Sunday, how much pride does that give you?) – “I think it gives all of us on this team a lot of pride. We feel that the city of Miami has been waiting, and they’re ready for a championship. You look at the Heat, you look at the Florida Panthers, I mean, all those guys were able to make it to the final dance. They were able to do special things throughout their seasons. We’re kind of trying to trot along that line and sort of follow the lead of those guys.”
(You have a really diehard loyal fan base. To run through that smoke again and hear your name coming out of the tunnel, what’s that moment going to be like for you?) – “That moment is going to be special. Anytime I would say any of us are able to go back out there, this is not something that we take for granted. This game comes and goes and nothing’s ever promised. Anytime that we get to run out there and play for our families, play for each other, and play for the fans, it’s a blessing. It’ll be cool.”
(You guys do motion more than any other team.) – “We do it more than the Niners?”
(I think so, yeah. That element – the motion – how have you seen it this year in particular, change the looks that defenses give you?) – “Well, it forces them to communicate a lot more. We saw that in Week 1 and we also got to see that in Week 2. We have seen a lot of adjustments off of the motions that we’ve had. They’ve also given us different looks. So as we continue to work our motions, our snap counts, our timing with all of those, we’ll see how the defenses continue to adjust. And the adjustments that they make, we’ll come to the sideline, and we’ll hopefully be able to adjust as well.”
Wednesday, September 20, 2023
T Terron Armstead
(How proud are you watching the guys the first two weeks?) – “Extremely. Those guys have been putting a lot of work in and it’s great when you can see what comes from putting in all of those hours of work behind the scenes, and then you can go display on the big stage. We still got a lot of work to do, a lot of improvement to do, but I’m extremely proud of my group.”
(Is it beneficial for you in anyway to watch games, or is there anything you pick up watching game opposed to playing?) – “Yeah. It’s all perfecting. It’s all about your approach. Are you trying to get better? Are you looking at it in a sense to improve, to get better, to be ready? All of those things. It’s all perfection.”
(I saw you come out and the fireworks were going off, and the lights and everything and you were itching. You really wanted to be out there. Tell me what was going through your mind when you were walking out there.) – “I love it man. The energy you get on that field right at that time. Lights going off, the fireworks, the fans – you cannot recreate it. Just being in it my first time this year so far, I wanted to go out there with the guys.”
(And knowing that you couldn’t at that moment…) – “Yeah. I had to just play my role. Be a good teammate, a good captain, be a extra set of eyes out there for the guys and a communicator.”
(A lot of times we hear about the day after the workout. How have you felt in days after the workouts?) – “That’s the way to tell, for sure. The day after, try to keep any type of swelling or aches (down). I’ll be back out there tomorrow in full pads ready to roll.”
(The injury report has you with an ankle, a back and a knee. Are the back and the knee from last year? I know those were issues from last year.) – “That’s just the stuff that I told them about. (laughter)”
(How realistic are you about playing on Sunday?) – “We’re working. I feel good about tomorrow, for sure. Like I said, I’ll be in full pads tomorrow. Going to get more reps. Eyes on Sunday.”
(What do you see when you look at the performance of the line so far this year?) – “I’m excited. I’m excited for them. Those guys are just scratching the surface. They are getting confidence in areas they didn’t know exists. Just to see things work, new techniques work, in real speed, real competition. It just gives you an added level of confidence and all of that. That actually does work, not just doing it at practice. But to be able to see it against other top competition, you can keep adding, keep adding, and that’s what these guys are doing. They are working like crazy. Still a lot more work to be done, a lot more improvements to be had, but I love this group and we’re going to continue to get better.”
(What’s the biggest difference maker from last year to this year?) – “The experience. Getting more experience. The standard is high. We will never accept losing and it happens across the board. We all lose reps, for sure. But never being ok with it. And how do you respond to it? Let’s not let one bad play turn into two, or two turn into three. Just having that standard, that mindset going forward. It’s a great atmosphere that we have in that room. It’s a great mindset. Like I said, we’re going to continue to get better.”
(One thing about T Kendall Lamm that’s impressed you?) – “Everything. He’s an ultimate pro. He’s a vet, battle tested, he’s strong, he’s smart. Consistency. That’s probably the biggest thing you look for in an offensive line play and he gives you that. He’s consistent. He’s just a worker. Old school, old style. He’s an ultimate pro.”
(Obviously winning two games on the road is very impressive. Now you have the challenge of coming home, and trying to make this a place where other teams don’t want to play. How do you go about doing that? How important is it to make Hard Rock Stadium a place where people don’t want to come?) – “We got to continue to approach every day as an opportunity to get better, to improve. We can’t take anything for granted. Those two wins mean nothing. Absolutely nothing. We’ve got an 0-2 Denver team coming in that’s extremely talented. They lost both games by a total of three points. Well-coached team. They are going to be a very physical and tough group. We’ve got to approach every day with an opportunity to improve, and then we put a good outfit out there, we give our fans something to be excited about, and come out and scream and yell at the other team.”
Wednesday, September 20, 2023
LB Jaelan Phillips
(Was it a freak thing? What do you think happened and how are you feeling now?) – “First of all, I feel great. Stuff happens. I just moved weird and my back kind of spasmed on me, so I spent the 48 hours after it happened doing everything I could to get right for the game. Frankly, I felt pretty good to go but obviously it’s a long season. Got to play everything smart. So I think ultimately it gave my back some rest and now I’m feeling great, feeling healthy, ready to go.”
(What did you think of LB Andrew Van Ginkel’s game sort of in your place?) – “That boy snapped. I’ve known ‘Gink’ (Andrew Van Ginkel) is a playmaker. He’s one of the sneakiest, most sneaky athletic people I’ve ever met. He’s very unassuming, but he’s really a playmaker all around the ball, flying around, making plays, rushing his ass of. He did a great job. A really good job.”
(You share a locker obviously with LB Bradley Chubb. It’s an important week for him, I’d imagine. Have you talked to him at all about seeing the Broncos again?) – “Yeah, I think he’s definitely excited, but we really try to keep a level head with all this. Like no matter what the game is, we try to prepare for it the same. It’s not even so much just being emotionally invested in it and letting that get you out of your preparation and your game. Like I said, just handling this like it’s any other weekend. We’re going to go out there and play our asses off.”
Wednesday, September 20, 2023
Head Coach Mike McDaniel
(Is WR Jaylen Waddle still in concussion protocol? Will LB Jaelan Phillips be able to practice today?) – “(Jaelan) Phillips is progressing, (Jaylen) Waddle is still in concussion protocol.”
(I know there’s a point in concussion protocol where they practice. Is WR Jaylen Waddle at that point, or is he still sidelined?) – “Yes, he’s not practicing today. I’m not really worried about the timeline. I’m more worried about him getting right. I’m not really sure when that is nor have I tried to dig that up.”
(What about T Terron Armstead?) – “Terron (Armstead) will be in practice today. He’ll have an uptick tomorrow when the pads are on, so we’re full steam ahead. We’ll take it day by day.”
(With T Terron Armstead, I know sometimes the day after a workout is important. How did he do last week on day after workouts?) – “That’s where we saw the progression. That’s why we felt pretty good about moving forward and upping the ante, so to speak, this week. Then we’ll be really just taking a close look tomorrow and see how he responds and same thing the next day.”
(Where does RB Salvon Ahmed stand?) – “He won’t be practicing today. Until otherwise noted, I wasn’t planning for today or tomorrow. So we’ll see how it shakes out, but I always leave room for people to have an unexpected fast expeditious recovery. But as far as today, I’m not planning on seeing him.”
(How did RB De’Von Achane do in his debut and where do you feel he’s at?) – “I thought he did well with his opportunities. You can tell that the game is not too big for him. The biggest challenge is absorbing the entirety of the gameplan, which I think he’s made vast improvements upon really since the spring and through training camp. I think fortunately for the team, he’s prepared for the further opportunities that he’ll be given moving forward.”
(Your first NFL game as an intern was a Broncos at Dolphins matchup, right?) – “It was.”
(What did that show you about the early season September home field advantage that exists here?) – “Well, that was pre-global warming. It was hot. (laughter) I think it’s all in each individual team and how they’re prepared. I think there’s a challenge to adapt to every place you play in terms of it’s outside of normal to a degree, but the good news is it’s the same atmosphere for both teams. I think they’re very used to it when people travel to Mile High, and I’m sure they’re going to be prepared for the humidity.”
(Along those lines, it’s your first regular season game against your hometown team. When you think of the Denver Broncos as it relates to your journey, what comes to mind?) – “I mean it’s a big part of it. It was the team that I found my love for football with. Their jerseys were orange at the time for the most part. Also a couple of the biggest influences that I’ve had from the game of football in terms of Mike Shanahan and by extension Kyle Shanahan and Gary Kubiak. It’s a great franchise. I have played them before, but not as a head coach. What’s weird in the journey is once you get in the business, the teams don’t feel the same. So I guess it’s like how you don’t treat bosses the same. Technically, the organization is my boss, so it’s just like, ‘Aright.’ It kind of loses its fandom so to speak. But a tremendous organization and I wouldn’t be here without it.”
(Broncos CB Patrick Surtain II has not allowed a whole lot of completions or yards this year. What’s the challenge of game planning for a defense that has someone that can lock down a full side of the field?) – “If you want to talk about a tough position, that’s why you kind of know by name the guys that are the best in the business, and I think he’s in that category for sure, because put it this way, your job is to cover someone with your back to the thing your defending, which is the goal line, and you have no idea what they’re going to do. You talk about you have to have certain traits to be able to execute that, as well as you have to be deliberate in your approach, you have to have technique and fundamentals. You have to be patient when you need to be and aggressive when you need to be, so I think he deserves all the praise he gets. He’s a heck of a player.”
(You have a relationship with many players. What’s different about the head coach/quarterback relationship and how essential is it to success?) – “I think every relationship is unique to itself, I think especially when you enter into the journey with each individual player like I try to do. However, there are certain things that, as a play-caller more than anything, you’re hypersensitive to the extra things that someone has on their plate that maybe people don’t pay mind to. The stability and the grounded nature that the quarterback position necessitates – listen you have the ball in your hands and if you’re throwing a temper-tantrum, there are residual results to everyone on the field and the organization. For guys to be able to make plays, you have to either hand or throw the ball to them. I think I keep that in mind and bear witness to that. It’s hard to ignore all the different things that you’re instructing him to do. I think it gives you a true appreciation for all the things that need to take place from that particular individual as well as his immediate surroundings and all the people that are in his corner, with position coach and family. It is all encompassing. You are judged retroactively and no one cares how much you’ve invested and you have to be ok with that. You have to just guiltlessly approach your job and not feel entitled to anything. You have to be hungry consistently and you have to be ready for the unforeseen. You have to continue to get better. It’s very humbling. I have a more direct scope. I wouldn’t call the relationship necessarily different. I would say that I have as true of an appreciation as you can have for all the success and things that he earns.”
(This will probably be a unique week for LB Bradley Chubb as well. What he showed last week, how encouraging was that? And how confident are you that’s what we’re going to see the rest of the season?) – “I think there hasn’t been a day that has gone by since we were able to acquire him that I haven’t been thankful. It’s been production is more of a when, not if. I think it’s awesome to see earned production. I think what’s unique about Bradley and one of the reasons why we chose to acquire him, and we chose to pay him, is because he is a difference maker that is also selfless. I think a lot of times, particularly at the edge position in the National Football League, it’s almost like a receiver blocking. You have to, as an edge player, defend the run if you want your team to be good, but you don’t necessarily get direct compensation all the time for it. Guys get paid for sacks. So when you’re fortunate enough to have a guy that can get sacks, but also takes extreme pride in the overall complexion of the defense and his part in it, you feel very, very fortunate to have that. I think there are some people with ties to the Broncos organization for sure, but one of the great things about this team and the people in that locker room is they would feel enormously guilty if they approached it with anything other than the team’s best interest. Thinking about last year, or where you’re drafted – I’m sure there are memories and stuff and I will never speak for them – but the one thing that I can tell by actions is that their primary focus is the Miami Dolphins and not their score to settle or whatever maybe created in the media. That’s not really going on in-house. They are focused on this team getting better from the last (game).”
(How have you seen Offensive Line Coach Butch Barry’s approach and mindset translate to the field over the first few weeks?) – “Directly. I was fortunate enough to work directly with Butch in San Francisco for my last season there. The in’s and out’s of a season, especially the one we had there where people were speaking on next year in the middle of the season, then we went on a run and found a way to galvanize and got to the NFC Championship Game. That relationship, there’s no hiding. You kind of know what you’re going to get. And after really digesting the whole 2022 season, I thought he was just what the doctor ordered. I think if you ask the players, they would say the same thing. And it’s not because of anything but his commitment to the task at hand, his commitment to the players, and his integrity of his position. He’s relentless. I mean, he’s sweating in a sun hat every day. He brings the juice and takes it very, very serious. So I think the residuals are in the players and I commend the whole group for understanding their various roles, and using each other to maximize all their potential, which if this is letter C in the alphabet, we have a long way to go. But it’s been very encouraging thus far.”
(We saw the Patriots use a common unique defensive plan to maybe try to stop some of your tendencies and you guys adjusted well. Can you maybe take me through that adjustment process in year two with you and QB Tua Tagovailoa of trying to stay ahead of the defense as they scheme for your tendencies?) – “I’m very hesitant to have a crystal ball. I think my job is to have things, I think I said it the other day, I kind of view it as equity in the plan, so that you can allow the players to dictate the terms, regardless of situation. We have plenty of pass plays we didn’t call and some run plays we didn’t call, but you’re trying to disperse it around ‘okay, well, they could do this, this or this.’ You don’t quite know what it’s going to be, but it didn’t take a rocket scientist to kind of come to the conclusion they might try to stop a pass or two. So you’re thinking along those lines. But then the biggest thing is about where the players are with regard to the coaching staff. Because what happens in those situations is you’re having a puzzle that doesn’t replicate any puzzle that you’ve really seen up until that point. There wasn’t playbook drawings of the defense. But for everyone to be accounted for in a pass play or a run play, you kind of have to be able to sort it all out collectively with a collective vision. So to me, it’s those types of games, which will come if you are fortunate enough to have success. Those type of problem-solving abilities are absolutely fundamentally (something that) the team depends on for you to have success in big moments and big games. That is something that I hope for the team that we’ll continue to get work at as we progress through the season because I know those are problems that you have to solve live speed in games that you remember for the rest of your life. So, it’s good to get those reps early.”
