Xavien Howard – October 28, 2021
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Thursday, October 28, 2021
CB Xavien Howard
(I wanted to ask you this question. I know you’re experienced at shadowing guys, but when you have to go inside and you have to go into the nickel spot, how comfortable are you and does that lead into more communication issues?) – “Playing inside there is a lot of communication, especially being inside there is a lot of field you have to cover. Like outside – I wouldn’t say it’s a cheat code, but using the sideline and knowing where everything is at kind of helps out when you’re outside. But when you’re inside, there’s a lot of space so you’re covering a lot of things. And there is a lot of communication using your leverage and knowing where the safety is at and trying to use that help.”
(The trading deadline is Tuesday and a player of your stature and teams looking for cornerbacks, your name is going to come up. What goes through your mind between now and then?) – “Miami Dolphins baby.” (laughter)
(That interception you had on Sunday, another one of those over routes you kind of undercut. It seems like that’s where you get a lot of your picks from. What’s the key to success on that particular route to get the ball away?) – “That’s a tough route. I’d say I’ve been getting that week in and week out. A lot of running away from me and making me trail and making me chase guys. That’s what I’ve been seeing for these six or seven weeks. I’m expecting that now, and like I’ve said, everything the coaches scheme up – my job is not going to be easy. Everything I get is going to be hard. I’ve got to understand, as a player, who I am and what teams are going to do. I just try my best to make a play and make something happen for the team.”
(Is there a little bit of baiting that goes into that? Because it seems like sometimes they may think they have a window and then they throw it and the window’s gone. Do you bait quarterbacks that way?) – “I don’t. I don’t think I’m baiting quarterbacks to get the job done for me because like I said, most of the guys are running away from me and it’s making my job harder. When the ball is in the air, I just try to make a play on the ball.”
(When you play the Bills, they do so many crossers when you guys go to man. How difficult is that as a cornerback to cover that kind of route?) – “It’s tough man. It’s a tough job. At the end of the day, you’ve got to understand. You have to know what teams are doing to you and you just have to take the challenge on and take it how it comes.”
(How do you feel the secondary has faired in instances playing man versus zone?) – “I’d say we try to mix it up. Try to give guys a different look. At the end of the day, we’re definitely a man team. Zone helps also, so we just try to mix different coverages up. Not playing just one and give the quarterback an easy read like ‘oh, they are playing this.’ We try to mix it up.”
(How important is exactly that against a QB like Josh Allen?) – “Especially against Josh. Like you were saying, a scrambling quarterback, it makes the job even harder knowing you’ve got to stay on your guy. With the scrambling, you can’t look in the backfield. It’s really like backyard football. You just got to stay on your guy.”
(Can you ever look in the backfield? Do you peek?) – “I do sometimes. Stuff happens when you look in the backfield, like I said. If I’m beat or not, I’m still going to try to look back and get the ball. That’s my whole mindset, just finding the ball.”
(Do you feel like you’re getting fewer cracks at interceptions this early part of the season?) – “I try every week. That’s my goal, but it hasn’t been happening for me lately. Whatever opportunity I get, the best thing I try to do is just give the ball back to the offense so they can make something happen.”
(With WR Stefon Diggs, WR Cole Beasley, WR Emmanuel Sanders, WR Isaiah McKenzie.) – “(Gabriel) Davis.”
(As far as wide receiver corps, is Buffalo about as good as it gets?) – “Yeah, that’s a good team. That’s a good playoff team. Those type of teams we have to face if we want to call ourselves a playoff team. That’s the type of talent we have to see.”
Adam Shaheen – October 28, 2021
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Thursday, October 28, 2021
TE Adam Shaheen
(You guys took a rough one early in the season against the Bills and I know the focus is on the team and the performance of the team, but how much do you feel like there is excitement about going up against them again?) – “It’s no secret we didn’t score last time as an offense. I think this is a game where we have to go out and that’s just not happening again. That’s the mentality is it’s not happening again.”
(Your room has had success against Buffalo, even in the game there on January 3 – you, TE Mike Gesicki and TE Durham Smythe. Do you feel like you’ll be a big part of the gameplan Sunday and there are things you can try to capitalize on?) – “Yeah, I mean not just against Buffalo but overall, the tight end room, there’s been some bright spots and we’ve got to continue that this weekend.”
(What’s QB Tua Tagovailoa been like this week?) – “Same as always, business as usual. Everybody, including him, is doing their best to improve and turn this thing around.”
(What’s the mood right now among players? Is it down? Trying to stay upbeat? What would you say?) – “I think we’re all disappointed and like I said last question, we’re all doing what we can to right the ship.”
(How difficult has it been to keep the positive attitude or the locked-in mindset considering when you’re at four losses, it’s not great but pressure doesn’t ratchet up like it is when you’re at six straight losses?) – “I can’t speak for anybody other than myself and that’s just how I’m wired. If we were winning seven in a row or if we lost seven in a row, it is what it is. I’m going to be doing everything I can do and try to bring one or two other guys with me.”
(Your production has gone up the last couple of weeks. Do you feel like you’re getting more and more involved and incorporated?) – “I think so. Like I said earlier, I think it’s the tight ends in general and not just necessarily myself. Durham (Smythe) has had the same increase in production and Mike (Gesicki) is doing Mike.”
Myles Gaskin – October 28, 2021
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Thursday, October 28, 2021
RB Myles Gaskin
(You and RB Malcolm Brown always shared the backfield. Everybody always shares the backfield. This is a multiple-back team. But now with him gone, do you feel more pressure or more opportunity is here?) – “I feel for Malcolm. That’s a brother. When he goes down, my heart goes out to him in his situation. For myself, how do I feel towards it? Just keep on playing for Salvon (Ahmed) and myself. Just take on that workload, execute and do it for him. We still talk to him about how he sees things when watching film and stuff like that. It is what it is. It’s football but just kind of keep it going, keep it rolling.”
(You and RB Salvon Ahmed have made a career taking advantage of opportunities that have been presented to you. This year, you haven’t really had the opportunity to be a featured weapon. Do you feel like that’s coming for you?) – “Yeah. I mean I’m more focused on the gameplan and whatever the play call is to execute it to my best abilities. I’m not really worried about being called a weapon or whatever it may be. I’m worried about wins, trying to help this team try to get wins. That’s the only thing that’s important to me.”
(I know this is not your favorite topic but I saw on a fantasy football thing that you’re a sleeper pickup this week.) – “I could care less about fantasy. I really could. That’s somebody else’s game.”
(Where did the hatred for fantasy come from?) – “I don’t have hatred for fantasy. It’s just like pickleball or something. I don’t play it so I have very little care for it. (laughter)”
(So you never played fantasy growing up? You grew up in the fantasy football age.) – “Nah. I’m into real sports. I’m into real things. Fantasy football is what it is. It’s called fantasy.”
(What was working for the run game against Atlanta?) – “We had good communication with the O-line. Salvon (Ahmed) and myself were talking about what we were seeing. Just being able to build off of that – it really didn’t start in the first quarter so just keep on pushing, keep on going. We didn’t give up on it and I think that was the best thing that happened with the run game. Just communicating. Looks change. Things that you practice during the week might not come up and it might be a totally different look and I think we were able to capitalize on that and just help each other. The O-line, obviously, the receivers are out there blocking and everybody was doing their jobs.”
(Is that something, who do you communicate to? Your position coach, the offensive linemen themselves?) – “A mixture of both. Definitely go walk up to the O-linemen and ask, ‘Hey what you guys seeing? What you guys feeling? Is it cut back on this? Should I keep it front side? What you thinking? How you feeling?’ Like I said, just communication. Practice is practice but once you get into the game, things change. Bullets are flying and once you come to the sidelines, I think that’s the biggest thing for us, just to communicate, speak up when we don’t think something is going right and things like that and just try to fix it.”
(Even if you’re not having that initial success, do you feel like as you stick to and commit to the run and get those carries, you get in a groove and get a feel for where lanes are opening and whatnot?) – “Yeah, I think it takes that. I think you just – obviously not every run is going to go to the crib. So just find those lanes, find them run lanes, find those cutbacks, which is most important. It might not, like you said, pop the first quarter, it might not pop the second quarter, but you stay on it. Obviously, depending on what the game looks like – if you’re down by a lot you’re going to have to air it out – but if the time comes where you can keep pounding the rock, just keep doing it.”
(With RB Malcolm Brown sidelined, you guys are going to have to pick up a heavy burden of the pass protection jobs. How much pride do you take in trying to change that perception of you?) – “I’ll probably always take pride in that or I will always take pride in that. Like I said multiple times, being a smaller guy, you’ve got to be able to really throw yourself in there and not hold back. Those guys are 220 (pounds) and above. Those linebackers you’ve got to take on head up. A lot of it is heart, a lot of it is belief, a lot of it is aggression. You can coach technique and all that stuff but it all starts with your heart and I feel like just to give Tua (Tagovailoa) or whoever is back there the time they need to make the right throws, make the right decision.”
Jesse Davis – October 28, 2021
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Thursday, October 28, 2021
G/T Jesse Davis
(The line played well on Sunday. In Offensive Line Coach Lemuel Jeanpierre’s internal grading system, was it the best graded game collectively as a group this year? One of them?) – “I don’t know. I know there are a lot of things each week that we have to fix and correct. I don’t know in terms of best graded out, but the most important thing is we’re close. We’re right at the end there and Tua (Tagovailoa) is playing good. As long as we can keep him clean and keep him comfortable, I think we’ve got a chance.”
(I hate to bring back bad memories but is there a sense of looking for redemption for the offensive line considering you had a rough time in Week 2 against Buffalo?) – “Buffalo – this is a historic game for the Dolphins. It’s always kind of a dogfight, I guess. But yeah, the last couple four, five or six times we’ve played them, it hasn’t been very good. I’m looking forward to this one just because it’s the next one. It’s going to be a good environment up there and we’re ready for the challenge. I think we have a good gameplan ahead of us.”
(As an offensive line, what’s your takeaway from that Week 2 game that you guys have to correct to not give up those six sacks and however many quarterback hits?) – “I think they did a good job. They had a good gameplan against us. There’s some things that we needed to make corrections on early in the game and I think we’d be alright. We let things kind of spiral out of control and that’s tough for any line to handle. This gameplan moving forward, I feel like we’re in a better spot. I think our communication is better with the O-lines so I think everything is kind of moving forward, which is what we want.”
(How personally did you take that game considering it was your play that got QB Tua Tagovailoa hurt and obviously not one of your better games in your career.) – “Yeah, a communication issue led to that, so it was tough. Every time the quarterback gets hit and I’m sitting there going, ‘what the hell happened?’ That hurt me a lot. I talked to Tua and we had words with it, so it was good. I’m just looking to get better.”
(How would you assess and evaluate your play at right tackle right now?) – “I don’t know. You guys are the best critics here so you guys can do it for me. (laughter)”
(Has there been any change in terms of blitz identification and communication since that game? Not giving away secrets obviously, but have you changed anything in the approach since that game as a collective offensive line, receivers, running back and quarterback?) – “Yeah, I think their playmakers, it’s not a secret who they are. So for us, it’s like let’s find those guys, let’s get to them and let’s play ball.”
(You mentioned when QB Tua Tagovailoa got hurt, it hurt you a lot. How did you cope with that? How did you get through that?) – “I talked to Tua first. Then I kind of just spoke about it with my room and guys with me. It is what it is. It sucked with how it happened. I’m not going to finger point. It was my guy and my responsibility and I’ll take it.”
(On a positive side, you guys put up some of your best numbers last week in terms of the run game. What did you see out of the run blocking that helped lead the way for that?) – “I don’t know. I think we’re playing physical. I think that team was familiar with us because we played them in camp and preseason. I think for us, we were more determined. I know that for sure. As long as we – especially with Tua (Tagovailoa) being accurate, as he was – it kind of helps us in the run game as well.”
(Did you like how you guys ran the ball more? As blockers you get to get downhill.) – “Yeah, any time you can run it, it’s better than sitting back there and trying to pass 50 times a game. As long as we can get the run game going, I feel like we play with a lot more confidence.”
Jerome Baker – October 28, 2021
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Thursday, October 28, 2021
LB Jerome Baker
(I’m glad you dodged a bullet without anything major with the knee. Is it feeling well enough that you think you are going to play on Sunday?) – “I don’t know yet. I’m just trying to take it one day at a time. But the goal definitely is to play on Sunday.”
(Is there much discomfort?) – “It has it’s days. Sometimes it’s better, sometimes it’s not. I’m truly just taking it one day at a time and we’ll see Sunday.”
(Was there a sigh of relief that it wasn’t anything serious? There has to be any time you have an MRI.) – “Yeah, so I definitely was happy it wasn’t anything major. Just me personally, just my own health. I’m one of those guys that knees are nothing to play with. After that, I was definitely happy that it wasn’t nothing traumatic or career hindering.”
(You haven’t had any major injuries even going back to Ohio State, right?) – “Yeah, I was just joking with the guys the last time I missed a game was like high school – senior year of high school. I really pride myself on that. Hopefully everything goes well.”
(What happened senior year in high school?) – “It was my ankle. I think I had a high-ankle sprain. I missed like three games or something. But yeah, I’m just trying to keep that streak alive.”
(What did you think of LB Sam Eguavoen while he was in there? Did you talk to him?) – “Yeah. Sam, if you just watch Sam, he’s one of those linebackers that I don’t think he gets enough credit of what he can honestly do. I know if anything happens, he can step in and he can do the job. That’s exactly what he did. I’m definitely happy for him that he’s getting some reps. We definitely have full trust in him.”
(What was the level of concern on Sunday? How concerned were you at the time?) – “I was scared as (expletive). (laughter) Like I was truly scared. I was scared because it was like – sometimes I twist my knee and it’s just a quick little, take a few steps and it’s back to normal. But I think I went a few plays and was like, ‘Alright, it’s still painful.’ But after the MRI, it was just a big sigh of relief. I’m definitely blessed and happy that it wasn’t nothing serious.”
(I saw you talking with the doctors on the sidelines. Were you trying to talk them into going back in or was it just concern on everybody’s part?) – “They were just cautious of making sure I was right. (Head Athletic Trainer) Kyle (Johnston) does a great job of that. He knows how much I want to be out there and how much I want to play, but he’s also protecting my safety. It was just that conversation of what is wrong – we didn’t know exactly what was wrong yet. We went back and did some tests and whatever and just decided it wasn’t the best thing to go out there and continue playing. But Kyle always does a great job of making sure my safety is first.”
(Scheme-wise, how important is it to just mix up coverages against a quarterback like Josh Allen?) – “I mean it’s very important. If you just pop on the film, he’s playing very comfortable. He’s very comfortable in that offense right now. They’re hitting on all cylinders. We’ve got to switch it up on him. We have to give him different looks. Honestly, it’s going to be a tough one. We’ve got to go out there and execute. We can have all the schemes we want, different packages, pressures and whatever, but it doesn’t matter if you don’t go out there and execute. For us, our thing is really to just focus on the little things. That’s definitely our approach Sunday.”
Byron Jones – October 27, 2021
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Wednesday, October 27, 2021
CB Byron Jones
(What’s the mood been like? Is it easy for disappointment to set in? Not depression – that overstates it. But is there a sadness, a melancholy at all?) – “No there’s actually a really good pop and a sense of focus and a sense of urgency to get it right. I think we all understand how hard it is to be in this position, just to be an NFL player, and we’re not trying to squander this opportunity so the sense of urgency is very high. It’s actually nice to see.”
(How do you feel like your season has gone?) – “Mine personally? I don’t think anyone can say that they feel good about anything at this point. As a team we’re not performing well and usually when you don’t have team success, individual success is not following either. So yeah, we’re still trying to turn everything around.”
(Is there any sense of surprise that it’s gone this way given what you thought of this team in the offseason and where you guys were?) – “Yeah, no one ever comes into the season and thinks you’re going to have a six-game losing streak at all. I think we understand what our issues are and now it’s about correcting those. It’s no easy task, but that’s a challenge that we all accept as NFL and professional players. So no, no one envisioned this. We didn’t want this. But let’s dig ourselves out. Let’s see what we can do and let’s see what we can shake from this point forward.”
(You said you know what the issues are. What would you define as maybe the biggest issues?) – “Just critical situations. You see flashes of good football, but we make mistakes where it’s just too hard to overcome. We’re putting ourselves in bad positions. It’s all three phases as well. It’s not just one side of the ball. We’re working on that.”
(Switching sports here but in basketball sometimes on an off night, you just need to see the ball go through the hoop. Is there one of those analogies I guess for breaking out of a slump like this?) – “No, you just need to win. You just need to win and we’ve had games where we have tremendous momentum in the game. We’ve got to figure out a way to complete that throughout the finish of the game. I think just winning would cure a lot and just that good feeling and knowing okay, the work we put in in the week, it mattered and now we know how to win. But we’ve got to get that win. No question.”
(When you talk about critical situations, I assume it would very much include Atlanta getting the ball on the 25-yard line at the end there and driving for the field goal. What went wrong there and how frustrating must that drive have been for you?) – “They made a really incredible throw and an incredible catch on the sideline. And those are the situations we’re talking about because there are 20, 30, 40 seconds left before the half and we’ve got to find a way to get off the field. There’s no way that they should be able to drive that many yards down the field so we’re getting that cleaned up. No question.”
(You talk about just getting a win and maybe that would be the first step in the right direction. Is there any added excitement when you’re going up against a team like Buffalo who you guys have struggled against and it’s just kind of another team, but it’s not another team to get a win over anyway?) – “For us honestly, any team that we’re going against, we’re all excited. You only get so few opportunities. It’s an incredible challenge this team coming in – or going to them. They have good receivers, good quarterback, a good running game, have a great defense, good coaches. So we like those challenges. That’s fun for us. We see a really good opponent in front of us and we see an opportunity to win. That’s why we’re going out there. We’re going out there to get a win.”
(How do you think the secondary has fared in instances of playing man versus when you change to zone?) – “It’s tough to say, but we watched our third-down tape – I’d say probably two or three weeks ago – and the one thing that I saw – all the third downs that we’ve given up this season – and a lot of it was guys weren’t out of position, nothing like that but we just need to finish at the point of attack. We’re covering but in terms of getting the ball out or getting another interception or changing a PBU to an interception and stuff like that, I think we could do a better job of, especially in man coverage because we are a defense that’s predicated on playing man. No question.”
(Last year you guys had obviously a lot of success and obviously it’s a different year but do you see anything teams are doing or figuring out differently about your defense that maybe…) – “Honestly, I just look inward. I think it’s about us, to be honest. Like I said, when we saw our third-down clips it was a lot of great coverage and good positioning. It’s just about getting the ball at that point. You get a couple of third downs in a game and that changes the course of a game. You give the ball back to the offense immediately. So finishing those drives and getting their offense – even when their offense gets the ball in the red zone, not letting them score as opposed to – not letting them get seven points as opposed to just kicking a field goal. I think that also is a momentum shift for us as well, too. I think it’s just what we’re doing. I don’t look at teams and say they’re scheming us up in a specific way because they were doing the same thing last year, to be honest. We’ve just got to finish those close calls, 50/50 balls.”
(Any time you play a quarterback like Bills QB Josh Allen – his caliber – it seems like disguising coverage is tough, we come up with a lot. So your experience as a cornerback and safety in this league, what’s the different roles in terms of how you disguise coverage for a cornerback compared to a safety?) – “It’s all got to be married together so the corners can’t be doing something different than the safety. If you want to show Cover 2, it’s not just the corners and it’s not just the safeties and in fact it’s also the linebackers, too. It’s where they align, some of their checks and what their calls may be. Disguising is really a whole secondary thing and oftentimes it does include the linebackers, so it’s not one group doing one thing. It’s really all of us operating on the same level in unison.”
(Defensive Coordinator Josh Boyer has been very hard on himself in sessions with us saying he needs to do a better job to put you guys in position. Has there been any sort of sessions with Josh where he’s solicited ideas from his veteran leaders like you and DE Emmanuel Ogbah, CB Xavien Howard and others about things you could be doing without giving away what those are, has there been a session like that?) – “I think Josh (Boyer) is smart enough without our input. I think he understands exactly what we need to be in and what his best coverages are and what best suits us. He can be hard on himself, but I always look at the players. You’re never going to get the perfect call in a situation. It’s really up to us to execute it and sometimes we haven’t, as players, been the best at doing that. I love the fact that everyone is taking accountability and ownership, but I’d like to do the same as well. I’m not going to point fingers at him. It’s definitely us.”
(As cornerbacks playing through some injury, is it easier, more comfortable to stay in zone as opposed to in man where you’re sprinting more often?) – “No, I’m healthy. I’m healthy. I’ve been healthy since Day 1 so no issues there.”
(Sometimes when you see teams going through a lull like this, they have meetings where they’re player-led or team-led to get on the same page. Have you guys had that or felt a need to do that?) – “That’s confidential.”
Christian Wilkins – October 27, 2021
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Wednesday, October 27, 2021
DT Christian Wilkins
(Obviously the gap in score the last two Bills games have been pretty lopsided. Do you all look at that and say it shouldn’t be this way, our teams are closer or comparable in talent than what the score reflects?) – “You really just have to take each game game-by-game. You can’t really think about that. Obviously, the last two times we played them, they were the better team that day. We just have to focus on this game and the task at hand, which is following the game plan, working hard, studying hard and just prepare as best as possible so we get a good result Sunday.”
(I wanted to ask you about DE Emmanuel Ogbah. What has stood out to you about what he has been doing this season and also since his arrival?) – “I love having Ogbah around. He’s a great teammate. He’s the vet in our room. Sometimes he sees things that we don’t see or just always helps us in all the ways he can. He just loves to compete, loves to play. He always plays hard, runs after the ball. Great get off, ability to pass rush and he’s strong in the run game. Whether he’s on the edge or inside, he does a really good job for us.”
(I know it’s been a few weeks but how much does that first loss against Buffalo still stick in guys’ minds?) – “Again, that was so long ago you don’t really – like I was saying earlier, you don’t really try to think about that. You focus on this week because they’re a different team than they were then and we’re a different team too. You just got to have the right approach – a week-by-week basis, don’t really think about the past and just focus on the present and what we’ve got to do this week.”
(In what ways do you think that your defense has gotten better since that first meeting?) – “I feel like the obvious one is that we got better at defending the run. We’ve been able to do a pretty good job the last few weeks, which is important. That’s obviously the big one. We just try to improve each and every day, each and every week. It’s not ever going to be a perfect game but we are going to try to always strive for that each week.”
(I know you’re a high-energy guy. How do you bring that energy and juice when things are going like they have?) – “It’s just a part of me. It’s just a part of who I am. It doesn’t matter whether we’re undefeated or 1-6. You just have to be who you are and that’s important. That’s what you kind of need at this time when things aren’t going as you would want. You need that leadership, you need guys to bring some juice, bring a spark and just really have some fun because this is still just a game. It’s work to us, we love it, we’re passionate about it,but it’s still a game so I’m always going to have fun playing this game.”
(Do you still see guys having fun each week?) – I feel like there’s definitely still great energy around the facility and around the building. Guys just come in still every day with the right mindset and just want to get better and want to keep striving to be our best.”
(On the subject of fun, an incredible oversight but last week we forgot to ask you how much pleasure you got out of seeing Head Coach Brian Flores in a Clemson shirt?) – “It’s just good to know you have someone who likes to keep his word and pay their debts. That’s good. That was kind of fun for a second. I got a chuckle out of that.”
(We’ve seen your production in terms of the counting stats tick up this year and last week I talked to DT Zach Sieler on some of the stuff you worked on. He mentioned your hands. I’m curious how just what you do with your hands correlates to that uptick in production this season?) – “I recognize that as an area for me to improve on. All offseason, just countless reps of shooting my hands, inside hands, doing grip things to make my hands stronger because that’s important as a d-lineman. Really, hands and eyes go together so seeing my hands in, shooting at my target and being strong at the point of attack, that’s something I’ve just tried to improve on all offseason and continue to try to improve on each week during the season.”
(Since the last time you played the Bills, they moved OT Daryl Williams into guard. Do you notice a difference, besides personnel, in productivity or anything in what that group looks like with him inside?) – “Not so much of a difference there in anything I notice but it does present a different challenge where I’m used to one guy being in there but now, they kind of switch it up. At the end of the day, if I just play with the techniques and the fundamentals I’m taught, we should be fine there. It definitely is a little bit of a switch up and a little bit of a different look than I’m used to.”
(How much are you guys emphasizing getting off to a fast start?) – “That’s always important. We stress that each week regardless of the opponent and regardless of the game, it’s always important to start fast and finish fast. If we can do that and keep that momentum and start fast and keep going, it’ll put us in hopefully a good enough position to carry it out, get on the right end of things this week.”
(I know it’s the coaches’ job to point out mistakes on tape but how much have the coordinators and Head Coach Brian Flores been in terms of trying to stay positive and upbeat so that the group doesn’t get down at 1-6?) – “Like I said, there’s still been good energy around the building. Everybody – not just players, coaches – everybody just still trying. It’s easy to start going off the rails and things like that but there’s still a lot in front of us and we are just trying to get better each week.”
(A lot of times when you go through a losing streak, you see the players will lead a meeting and get everybody together. Have you felt the need to or done that so far this year?) – “Well, I’m going to keep that between us whether we’ve done that or not or if that’s something we – I’ll just leave that between us. But again, like I kind of was saying earlier, we’ve got good leadership on this team and guys who want to win and guys who played a lot of ball in this league. We’re trying to just figure things out to do whatever it takes to get on the right side of things.”
Raekwon Davis – October 27, 2021
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Wednesday, October 27, 2021
DT Raekwon Davis
(How do you feel since you’ve came back from the knee?) – “Still a little rusty. Still trying to get back a little bit. Still trying to get my conditioning up. I still get a little winded out there, here and there.”
(How disappointing was it for you to have the injury. I know you put in a lot of work this offseason, lifting a lot of weight. For you to kind of start not playing, how does it feel to be back now?) – “Just being on the sideline, it gets depressing sometimes. But I’m happy to be back with the guys, just to be out there with them.”
(I saw you playing some 5-tech on Sunday. I’m curious when you try to rush a guard or center versus a tackle, how does that kind of change your approach?) – “It’s just rushing. What do you want – for me to break it down like (Defensive Line) Coach (Austin) Clark to you? (laughter) The tackle go out, go back to the guard. I don’t know what you’re looking for. (laughter) But it’s just rushing. I’m just trying to get a good rush in, do my best move, go with my best move basically.”
(What have you guys been able to do differently over these past two weeks? It’s the first games all season where you’ve held opponents under 100 rushing yards.) – “Just try to put the best player in the best position basically. That’s about it for us.”
(You missed the first meeting with the Bills due to injury right? When you watch the film of that game, what’s something that you noticed in the area of run defense that the group you think can do better or differently?) – “Just being on the same page. Just communicating and just playing our game.”
