Friday, November 27, 2020
(On the plan for the offense even with the injuries) “Well, obviously, we have a plan. But we’re comfortable, we’ll have—Keelan [Cole] will be out there for us and obviously Laviska [Shenault Jr.] is back and he had a good week, Collin Johnson and then we’ll probably make a move and bring someone up from our practice squad, Trey Quinn, he’ll come on up. We may even make a move later on to bring up a fifth receiver, but we’d have to make a roster move to bring up Terry Godwin. Those are the things we’re doing, and we’ll just go in there and try to execute the game plan we have in place.”
(On how much CB Greg Mabin was able to practice with them this week) “Two days.”
(On whether he’s comfortable throwing CB Greg Mabin in there on Sunday) “We don’t really have a choice, so we’ve got to get him ready to be ready to go.”
(On the defensive plan even with all of the injuries and adversities) “I think you look to go and play well. I mean, you look to these guys that are coming in there and see the new opportunities that they have. Guys that might not, wouldn’t have gotten these opportunities if the other players were there. So, it’s a chance to show what they can do, whether they should be in this league or not, and it shows you about the roster. So, we’ll see. I mean, that’s all I can say. Those guys practice hard. Like I said before, it’s the same thing, they’re looking forward to it. They have a great opportunity in front of them. I don’t think anyone gets on a team and wants to be a backup for their career, unless they had gone out there and really don’t have any confidence and then they just want to stay there and not get exposed. I think it’s going to lead to great teaching, because I’m a firm believer that you can only take someone so far as far as when you practice. So, you can go ahead and practice, you can practice all you want. You can take a player—I just remember a story with Brandon Moore when we were with the Jets. Brandon Moore was a converted defensive lineman. I was coaching him, so I’d keep him out after practice and worked him, worked him, worked him. And I remember going to Terry Bradway [former New York Jets General Manager] and I said, ‘I can’t do anymore. We’ve taken him to where—we’ve got to see if this guy can play.’ We went into the last game of the year, we were playing Miami, he was playing against a guy that was six or seven-year vet, good player. Brandon played extremely well and after the season was over, at the end of the year evaluations, we had to make a decision because we were going to move on from an offensive guard and we were trying to figure out who that guard was going to be, for the future. And I said, ‘I think we found him.’ I mean, it was Week 16 and Brandon Moore took that starting guard spot and I think he played, I don’t know how much years, and he became a captain and it’s a great story. So, there are things like that. Do you like to do that as a coach? No, you don’t want to do that. But when opportunities arise, people have a chance to take advantage and either open up some eyes or you could be in trouble. I mean, it could go either way for you. But I’m excited for the guys that are going out there, to see what they can do.”
(On the passing of Dallas Cowboys Strength and Conditioning Coach Markus Paul) “It was hard. I mean, you’re talking about a guy that was my teammate. I got the call early, before it was anywhere out. I was just shocked. We were on a call, not a call but those strings of text messages that you get from guys that you played with or you’ve been around. And I really can’t say enough about Markus. Not only did I play with him, I actually worked with him again when we were in New York. So, I got to know him in a different light and got to know his family a little bit. When I tell you, you talk about a guy that can brighten a room, that is never down, that is always positive, that always did the right thing, everyone can look at for support and clarity. Just an unbelievable person. Obviously, we know he was an outstanding football player, but I mean, it’s hard. You get to a point, Floyd [Little] is not doing well, he’s in hospice and this happens to Markus and it’s during Thanksgiving. Our thoughts and prayers go with him and his family. So, it was tough. It always is tough when you lose someone that you have a ton of respect for, and you worked with and played with, and it’s just a tough deal.”
(On how the adversities this week have galvanized the team) “I had a good time. I mean, I’m out there calling the defense, running around with those guys. I mean, it was fun. I think that—I don’t want to take away how hard it must be for the coaches, being away and not being there actually on the field. So, I think that was difficult. Again, I give a lot of credit to the players, the players are working hard. Individual basically, we don’t have enough to go around to all the individual groups when they’re working. So, they’ve got a schedule, the leaders of those groups took those groups, worked them through. I kind of just managed it, everyone was going, and we did a good job with substitution, cards, players helping each other. Like I said, there’s no issues on this team when it comes down to things that could happen when coaches aren’t around. So, I give a lot of credit to these guys and I know I appreciate it as the head coach and I know that I’m sure the coaches that are watching the practices on tape, and working with them on virtual meetings, appreciate the effort and how they went about their business.”
(On whether the loss of players on defense is similar to that of the Cleveland Browns’ defense) “I don’t know. I mean, you look at their team, I mean, there’s a lot of concerns. I mean, you have those two running backs are outstanding football players. Jarvis Landry, I’ve always had a ton of respect for. You’ve got tight ends that can run with [Austin] Hooper and David [Njkou] and a good offensive line. I think, defensively, Olivier Vernon is still there and playing at a real high level, coming off the AFC Defensive Player of the Week. So, it’s going to be a great challenge for our football team, but again, they’re 7-3 for a reason. Don’t get me wrong, they’ve lost two really good football players. Myles Garrett potentially could’ve been and could still be defensive player of the year, in the league, with what he’s doing. I mean, he’s wreaking havoc out there. The corner [Denzel Ward] is a really good football player that’s playing at a really high level. So, I just think, I don’t know. I mean, I know that it’s a great challenge for us. It’s hard for me to look at it from the other side.”
(On what the Cleveland Browns are doing well) “I mean, obviously, they’re running the ball extremely well. They’re one of the best running teams in the NFL. They’re shortening the game, time of possession. I think both of those running backs [Nick Chubb and Kareem Hunt], each one of them could take it to the house at any time, if you lose a gap and go. I believe that the play action pass, passing early, obviously, Baker Mayfield could make all the throws. He could move, he could hurt you with his feet, he could extend plays. I think the line is playing really well, they’ve got some good players up there. So, I don’t think it’s a team that’s a one-dimensional team. Even though the stats may not show that. The stats will show that they run the ball, run the ball. But they’re doing a good job of it, they really are. They’re running the ball extremely well, I think it’s 158 yards a game, or something like that. But you can’t sleep on those receivers, you can never sleep on Jarvis Landry. I’ve always –played against him when he was in Miami—had a ton of respect for him.”
(On preparing for WR Jarvis Landry to throw now) “Oh yeah, you’ve got to be ready for all the plays. I mean, I’m sure they have other guys that can do it. From reverse, it’s the [trick plays] and the double reserve is to all that stuff. When you’re getting ready to play a game on Sunday, you’ve got to be ready for everything and everything has got to be covered, because if you don’t do that, then you fall short of coaching and putting players in the right position. And at the same time, I think there’s a balance of making sure you don’t give them too much information to where they’re looking for that stuff and then they can’t react as quickly to the plays that we need to stop.”
(On expectations for Sunday) “I think it’s going to be a great challenge for us. I think that we’ve done a better job and I think what you’ve said, we’ve progressed on it. But again, I think we’re talking about two elite running backs, two guys that—you miss a tackle, they can out-run that second wave or that next wave of people that are coming. I think that in space, both players are outstanding in space. So, you’ve got to get as many people to the football as you possibly can to try to get them down. I think they’re both two #1-type backs that are in the backfield, that can do an awful lot. There’s a lot of misdirection to their offense. So, you’ve got to make sure that your eyes are disciplined, everything that you’re doing is disciplined. Or otherwise, at any point in time, they can take a run that would be a 3 to 4-yard gain, that you would normally say, ‘Okay, they’re just going to run it right up the middle.’ One missed block or one missed gap, I mean, that thing can go 80 in a heartbeat.”
(On the COVID-19 situation and his confidence on playing this game Sunday and moving forward) “Again, I’ll go back to what I said before about the league. The league is continuously looking at ways to improve the protocol. I think that it’s been a whole learning experience for all of us. And this is the NFLPA and the league office. So, they keep coming out with protocols that keep trying to protect the league, so that we can finish these games. I don’t know the answer to if these games, if something does happen where you do have these large outbreaks, but I’m sure that people in New York and the PA, they probably have already discussed those plans. I don’t know what they are, but it seems like we all read, they can go pretty much until Tuesday to play, and then after that, I don’t know if there will be a Week 18 or anything like I that. I got a bunch of questions this morning on the radio, but I really don’t know. For me, I think you guys can all understand, we have so much going on here right now, I’m not—I’m just trying to make sure that we can build a team, go out there, and get ready to do our best to win a football game.”
