Mike Pouncey – August 12, 2016 (Postgame
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Friday, August 12, 2016
Postgame – at N.Y. Giants
Miami Dolphins Center Mike Pouncey (transcribed by the N.Y. Giants)
Q: Obviously it is going to take a while to get the chemistry of the offensive line together, how would you evaluate the performance so far?
A: I think we are doing pretty good, we are enjoying the process and right now we have a bunch of different guys rotating at different positions. So hopefully by the time we are done with the preseason we have the best five guys on the football field. I think all units did pretty good tonight.
Q: In terms of first team offense, two drives, two three and outs, how troublesome is that?
A: It is tough to evaluate all six plays, but we have seen that we can do a lot better in certain areas. We will fix that when we watch the film as soon as we get on the plane and we will just learn from this game. Obviously once we get to playing more reps and more snaps, we can evaluate our offense.
Q: You know what Jakeem (Grant) can do, but once you actually see it, how do you guys react to that?
A: He looks so fast out there, man. His legs move so fast. We hope that he becomes a heck of a player for us. He did a great job tonight and he made a lot of plays on the opposite side of the ball and made plays on special teams.
Bobby McCain – August 12, 2016 (Postgame)
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Friday, August 12, 2016
Postgame – at N.Y. Giants
Miami Dolphins Cornerback Bobby McCain (transcribed by the N.Y. Giants)
Q: For one night you had good defense. What’s different about it from practice?
A: It’s just the competitive nature that we have. We’re trying to build a culture, a defense that has a culture of taking the ball. That’s what we’re going to have to do to win ballgames.
Q: What did Defensive Coordinator Vance Joseph say about that? I’m sure he stresses it a lot.
A: Yes, all the time. We go through practices and that’s the biggest thing for defensive backs and the back end guys. We have to get the ball away. The more turnovers you have, the more possessions the offense has. And that one extra possession may win you a game.
Q: Are you guys doing any drills designed to create takeaways?
A: Yes, we are. We do drills for takeaways. We just go out and practice, and competing. That’s our job.
Q: How much have you worked on the boundary and how comfortable are you out there?
A: I’m comfortable out there. I work inside and outside. Last year I played a lot of inside and the end of the year, I played a lot of outside. My whole life I’ve been playing corner, so I’m comfortable wherever they put me.
Q: Do you have a preference for inside or outside?
A: No not really. I just want to play. I just want to compete.
Ryan Tannehill – August 12, 2016 (Postgame)
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Friday, August 12, 2016
Postgame – at N.Y. Giants
Miami Dolphins Quarterback Ryan Tannehill (transcribed by the N.Y. Giants)
Q: How would you summarize your game today?
A: I thought the young guys came out and played well. The defense got their hands on the ball multiple times and it really turned the game around for us. Offensively, we didn’t get much going in the first half – first or second group – but then they started getting their hands on the ball and it flipped the momentum and it really got the game going for us. I’m really proud of those guys with the way they came to play, and the way they made plays.
Q: I know it was only two series, but how did the game go from your perspective in those two series?
A: We didn’t move the ball like I wanted to. We had a couple completions short of the sticks. Then, in the second drive, we kind of got going in the run game, and then a penalty put us back behind the sticks, and that’s not where you want to be. So – frustrating. Frustrating that that was our limited sample size there, but there’s some good things in those plays that we did well. We have things we have to clean up and have to clean up as soon as possible. It’s definitely something to build on moving forward.
Q: Did [Olivier] Vernon tell you he was going to start chasing you all over?
A: (Laughs) Yeah, he hit me pretty hard on that first one. He made it count. But, no he didn’t give me much warning. I talked to him after the game. He’s a heck of a football player and he’s going to make a lot of plays for them. I enjoyed my time with him in Miami and wish him the best.
Q: Ryan, do you start evaluating the first team offense with this game, or do you wait until you have a larger sample size?
A: I mean, we’re in the process right now, so we’re not coming to any conclusions or jumping to assume what we are or are not. We’re in the process and this is just another step in the process – Preseason Game One. We’re just going to stay the course; keep getting better every day and moving forward. Nothing to stress or worry about; things we can do better and things we did well. We just have to keep moving forward and moving the ball forward.
Q: Ryan, is it fair to say that one of the things that need to be done better is [to] protect the quarterback?
A: Well, it’s going to be a big part of every football team in the NFL. You’ve got to be able to protect the quarterback and get the ball out and get the ball in playmakers’ hands. We have a lot of playmakers and we want to get the ball in their hands. You have to protect to do that, so yeah, we want to protect, we want to get the run game going, we want to protect the ball, we want to run the ball – it’s all part of the formula to great offense, and it’s a big factor for it.
Q: Ryan, we’ve made a big deal about your empowerment at the line-of-scrimmage from Adam Gase. How did that come into play tonight and how did it feel for you?
A: It felt good. We didn’t have too many checks in my two series – maybe a couple – but I felt good at the line. I felt confident in what we were doing. We knew exactly what we were doing. Our guys were confident in what we were doing. They made a couple plays on us upfront and forced us to get the ball out quickly and kept us short of the sticks, so you have to give some credit to them. We left a few plays out there – we had Jay [Ajayi] in the flat there and weren’t able to make that play. Then in the run game, we had the holding that really set us back. We have things that we can clean up, and they’re going to be good for us, but there were some good things in there as well.
Q: When you see that you guys are 2-for-3 in the red zone; I think you rushed for more than 100 yards. Do you look at that as starters-reserves, or the offense?
A: Yeah, we’re all in this thing together. I don’t think it’s categorized in our minds. Obviously, we know who we played with and who was in, but we’re a team and we’re in this thing together. I was proud of those guys – the way they battled and took advantage of the turnovers the defense made. That’s one of the big things in this game – when the defense makes a play and gets their hands on the ball, the offense has to take advantage of that and get points, and we did that several times tonight. I’m proud of both sides of the ball there for making plays. We had some young guys – [Thomas] Duarte – on a fourth down, able to catch it and cut it up into the end zone. Matt Hazel, you know, coming back in and getting one from Matt Moore. There’s a lot of good things that happened in that game, and things we can build on.
Q: What type of role could you envision Jakeem Grant maybe having?
A: I think we saw some as a return specialist tonight. It was pretty fun to watch – just the moves he can make and the creases he can hit with being how small he is. The tiniest little crease makes one guy miss, and he’s moving. I definitely think he’s going to help us a lot on special teams and we’ve seen what he can do as a receiver as well at practice. He’s a guy who can get open and make plays in the pass game, so I think we’re going to keep developing there, but you see already his impact on special teams.
Adam Gase – August 12, 2016 (Postgame)
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Friday, August 12, 2016
Postgame – at N.Y. Giants
Miami Dolphins Head Coach Adam Gase (transcribed by the N.Y. Giants)
Q: Your thoughts on the two starting units, offense and defense?
A: I thought we were in a good situation with defense. We get a penalty, thought we were off the field, and that’s what usually happens when you hurt yourself on third down, something bad usually happens and, you know, it just didn’t quite work out for us on that drive and they scored a touchdown. On offense, we just once again, second and three, run the ball, we get called for holding, and now we’re back in a backed up situation and we’re third and long and it’s not ideal for us.
Q: And what do you think about the reserves—twenty-seven unanswered points?
A: I love the fact that those guys came out, great energy, flying around the field, playing the kind of football we’re looking for. I feel like we’re going to get a great evaluation off this tape when we watch it tomorrow.
Q: Bobby McCain did some good things, playing almost out of position, right?
A: I think he kind of got thrown out there last minute. I mean, we knew we were going to have to put them out there at some point in the game, but I think it was a little sooner than we thought and he got a pretty good rhythm in tight coverage and doing what he’s coached to do and that’s what we’re looking for.
Q: Did you change your mind at the last minute on [Byron] Maxwell?
A: No, actually I was walking in and I noticed he was just full sweat, running around out there and he said he was tight and he was trying to loosen up and couldn’t get loosened up, so we went back in and then our trainers and the rest of our crew went back out there, VJ [Vance Joseph] went back out there and we just decided it was smart to not take a chance of something happening to him. He’s had a good camp for us, we just want to make sure he really goes when we start the season.
Q: How much will you take from what the starters did? How seriously will you take it? How harshly…?
A: It’s just part of the process. You know, that’s the boring answer for you. But that’s what it is. I mean, it’s a couple of drives. You know you get better from it. Obviously we can’t have the penalty; that just kills us, so we’ve got to get ourselves in third and manageable. We didn’t do that with the ones. A couple of the other groups had better opportunities as far as keeping themselves third and manageable, makes the third down conversion easier.
Q: How did Jakeem Grant do? Is that about what you expected him to do?
A: Yeah, I mean it’s, I’ve been waiting for this, for a little bit—since we drafted him. Just to get him out there, throw the ball to him and just see him getting space, see what he can do.
Q: How do you think that Matt Moore recovered?
A: Great. I was shocked when he threw the interception. That surprised me because that just wasn’t, that was very unusual as far as what I had seen from him running exactly that play in practice and I think he just waited and he had what he wanted, but they did a good job of recovering off the play action. I think he came right back and he was like that ball shouldn’t of gone there, he knew it right away, but I almost feel like it loosened him up and then the best part was our defense ran out there. They do a great job of sudden change defense, which I love the energy the coaches were bringing on the sideline as far as that happened and those guys were, they were excited to get out there and make it…
Q: What were your thoughts on getting Laremy [Tunsil] a lot of playing time and how do you think he did?
A: I mean I’m going to have to check the tape. I mean it’s hard to watch. You know we’re calling plays and then we’ve got [Darren] Rizzi going crazy on the sideline, so we’re trying to figure out what was going on half the time. But with him, it was great that we got him in there and got him a ton of reps because this is going to be our best evaluation. It’s harder in practice because it’s just, it’s not real, but when you come out here, it’s as real of a game as you can get and this is our best evaluation.
Q: Did [Brandon] Doughty look about as comfortable as ever?
A: Yeah, that’s the beautiful thing about him is he never looks like he’s under any kind of duress. He’s calm even when he got hit a couple times. A couple things were not correct. He just never seems like he’s got any kind of panic in his face, just a real calm demeanor. That was a good job as far as keeping his huddle calm, so it was good to see him get out there and get in a of couple situations.
Q: A couple of numbers and I’m not sure that I’m totally right on these, but I want to know how seriously you guys take them. I think you guys had a four to one in turnovers. I think you guys were two for three in the redzone with touchdowns. How seriously…
A: I mean that’s usually the formula to having your best opportunity to win when you win the turnover margin. You score touchdowns in the redzone and you’re not kicking field goals, that gives you your best chance. Two out of three is what you usually want to be at. Sixty-seven percent, I think. So if you can be around there, you’re going to be in good shape.
Q: The running game, [Isaiah] Pead and I guess Daniel Thomas were fairly effective, had good numbers. What did you think overall?
A: It was good. It was good to see both those guys, we were trying to see and just get some kind of a drive going so they could get in the flow of the game and had to get a little bit of a rhythm. That’s why we kind of went to the back-to-back series with both those guys and then once we still had a couple left, we started alternating who was going in. I felt like they ran hard and they were sticking their foot in the ground and getting north and getting us those positive yards.
Q: With [Laremy] Tunsil, how do you evaluate the mental part or the physical going against two’s?
A: It’s going to be. It’s everything. I mean, whether you’re in a one, a two or a three, you’re going out there and all these guys, they’re not in the NFL if they’re not good. So he’s going out there against NFL competition and you know the mental side of it, obviously that’s a big evaluation when you’re a rookie, to make sure you’re doing the right things because when you’re in there with the veteran guys, you’ve got to make sure you’re on it because there’s two guys next to you counting on you to be right.
Q: Regarding Ryan [Tannehill], do you judge him just on how the offense did or do you look at his so-called empowerment at the line of scrimmage? His demeanor?
A: I’ll look at what he did. I mean I’ll watch it tonight when we’re flying back, but I don’t know how much of an opportunity he really had to do anything. The first throw, I think we were kind of waiting to see what would happen and he held onto the ball waiting on Jarvis to come back out of that thing. It just wasn’t an ideal situation as far as what we called and what they played.
Adam Gase – August 12, 2016 (Halftime)
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Friday, August 12, 2016
Head Coach Adam Gase (Halftime)
(On what he liked about the first half) – “I liked the fact that our defense, especially after that first series, came out and did a good job of getting their hands on some balls and causing some turnovers. And then (the defense did a good job) not panicking on that sudden change. That could have been an easy score for them. They did a good job of holding them to a field goal. It changed a little bit of our mindset. It was good because our guys kind of changed their attitude on the sideline with a great stop and tried to get something going. Offensively, we just couldn’t get into a rhythm. We’d get a positive play and then we’d move back.”
(On scoring 17 straight points) – “I liked the fact that our guys kept playing hard and they’re having fun and just flying around.”
Chris Culliver – August 10, 2016
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Wednesday, August 10, 2016
Cornerback Chris Culliver
(On where he is at in his rehab and how far he is from being ready to play) – “Everything is going well right now. I’m just taking my time (and) learning the defense. I’m glad to be here. I’m just taking my time and progressing so I’ll be out there soon.”
(On if he is running yet and what he can do) – “(I’m) running (and) doing light cuts, doing my thing and just progressing. They’ve got a good training staff here and I’m just glad to be here and to keep progressing my training.”
(On why he signed with the Dolphins with other teams interested in him) – “(It was) the best fit for me. (It was) the best fit overall for me – the organization and how they do things. I’m just glad to be here and I’ll just keep continuing my progress and see how it goes.”
(On the team’s sales pitch to him and if they told him that he could compete for a starting spot when he’s healthy) – “Oh yes, definitely. That should be anybody’s mentality. You want to come in and you want to compete and you want to play; but you’ve got to get yourself ready first and as long as the process keeps going well, you’ll see me out there soon.”
(On when he first talked to the Dolphins) – “A little bit ago. We’ve been in contact and things and came out here and visited and everything was good. (We) just went forward from there.”
(On when he thinks he’ll be healthy enough to get on the field) – “The next couple of weeks. (I’ll be on the field) here soon.”
(On the most difficult part of his rehab) – “It’s not really hard, it’s just a process. You’ve got to be patient. That’s the hardest part – being patient. You want to really get out there now but evaluation and things like that – you don’t want to set yourself back. You want to keep progressing and keep climbing that hill.”
(On how his career has gone and if he is pleased with where he is right now) – “There’s a lot more – a lot more that I want to do and a lot more that I want to accomplish. My biggest thing – you know (what) I do – (is) I compete. That’s what I’m going to do. That’s what I’m going to do here and I hope to look forward to that.”
(On his strengths as a corner) – “Press man. Cover 1. Me against you.” (laughter)
(On if he talked about his style with Defensive Coordinator Vance Joseph and how it would suit his game here) – “Definitely. That was one of the parts here; portraying the defense and things like that. They have a great defense – a great defensive line, great halfbacks, a lot of good pieces. I just hope to be here and contribute.”
(On if he has played with or has any connections with players on the Dolphins) – “Yes, I have a couple of connections. (Mike) Pouncey (is) one of my guys – cool people. ‘Mike T’ (Thomas) – that’s my guy. We played together in San Fran(cisco) for a little bit together. I know a couple of other guys but yes, (I have) a couple of connections here.”
(On if he has a timetable to practice) – “(There’s) not necessarily a timetable to when I’ll be practicing. You guys will see me out there running around and doing a couple things and things like that. I’m just (going to) keep progressing.”
(On if he was surprised the Washington Redskins didn’t show him patience or if he saw the writing on the wall once they made some roster moves) – “I’m not really worried about their moves and who they made or what happened. I just keep going and keep doing my thing. I don’t look back at anything about what they’ve done or anything like that. I’m a strong man so I’m going to do what I’ve got to do regardless.”
(On if we won’t see him in a game until October) – “I wouldn’t say that. You said that. I’ll be out there soon. You’ll be surprised when I get out there and touch a couple of people. Then you’ll know.”
Jarvis Landry – August 10, 2016
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Wednesday, August 10, 2016
Wide Receiver Jarvis Landry
(On whether the offense is ready for the preseason game on Friday) – “Yes, I think so. (We are) coming out here the day before we travel with the opportunity to fine tune things that we want to go out there and do and get ready for a game week, finally.”
(On how comfortable he feels in the offense) – “Real comfortable. We’re forming our identity, and that takes time. But I can say that the growth of the offense as far as (with) the little details, we have to find a way to continue to make the plays, move the chains and score in the red zone.”
(On the quarterback-wide receiver connection with him and QB Ryan Tannehill) – “It comes with trust. It comes with all the hard work that we put into individuals with (Wide Receivers) Coach (Shawn) Jefferson helping me get in and out of breaks and allowing us to attack the football. The thing about the quarterback (position is) when the house is burning down and you see your color flash, you want to throw the ball. For me, I want to be open as many times as not.”
(On his chemistry with QB Ryan Tannehill) – “I think it’s continuing to grow, and this offense allows the ball to be touched by a lot of different people. But in doing so, it’s also an offense built and predicated off matchups. If we get the right matchups, I understand before the play where the ball is going to go. Me and Ryan’s connection has been something we’ve been working on since I’ve gotten here.”
(On the differences between this year’s offense and previous year’s) – “Our main focus has honestly been on this offense. It hasn’t been (on) what we’ve done in the past. It has been focusing on this 2016 offense and having the opportunity, again, to get numerous guys the ball, to create matchups – mismatches – and take advantage of scoring in the red zone. I think this offense is going to allow us to do that.”
(On how he feels in the new offense) – “Again, like I said, (Head Coach) Adam (Gase), (Offensive Coordinator) Clyde (Christensen), (Quarterbacks Coach) Bo (Hardegree) – those guys go up there in those meeting rooms every day and try to find the best possible ways to get guys the ball. I can’t wait to see it come to life against a real-life opponent.”
(On whether it is too much to expect that he will catch more passes this year than last season) – “Too much to expect? (laughter) I want to catch more. I think for me, again, I’ve never really been one of those accolade guys or too much into the numbers. I’ll take the win any day. But as many times as (Ryan Tannehill) throws to me, I want to catch it. If he throws more than last year to me, I want to catch more than I did last year.”
(On how the offense can improve scoring in the red zone) – “It’s a little bit about everything, but I think at the end of the day in the red zone, it’s about trust, because those windows get tighter back there, defenders use the back line as another defender. It’s about trust and timing. I think that’s something that – as you’ve guys seen – we’ve worked the red zone a lot. (It is about) trying to develop that timing, develop that chemistry – especially here – (and) put that ball in the box.”
(On whether the offense has cleaned up what it needs to from last week’s scrimmage) – “I can’t wait to see. It’s kind of hard to judge not having that scrimmage aspect these last two days, but having the chance to go up against another opponent – and having them try to match our intensity, try to match our tempo – is something that we’re looking forward to seeing.”
(On what he has seen from WR Leonte Carroo) – “I’ll tell you what, he made a hell of a lot of plays today. For me (it is about) watching him grow, watching him mature, watching him be coachable. (Wide Receivers) Coach (Shawn) Jefferson, he’s a tough coach. He’s a tough coach, but he coaches us on the fine tune things and the details that we need to do to be fundamentally sound when we step out here on the field. I see the kid every day step up to the challenge, and he’s rising to the occasion.”
(On what his advice to WR Leonte Carroo and WR Jakeem Grant would be before their first preseason game) – “Trust your technique. Trust your fundamentals and detail everything up. What you put on film is everything, especially here in the preseason. It gives the coaches a skill to where you guys will fit in as far as when (the) regular season starts.”
(On whether QB Ryan Tannehill throwing to the receivers from the 6-yard line to the end zone are red zone specific drills or for timing purposes) – “For timing purposes. Of course, without the DB, it’s a little later than usual. But Coach Bo (Hardegree) – the quarterback coach – he tries to do a great job of getting those guys to throw as soon as their plant foot hits. If it’s a hitch and a throw, they try to get it out on time. For us, we try to get our head around and make the plays and understand it’s going to be tight windows and contact catches.”
(On whether the timing drills help with building trust between the quarterbacks and wide receivers) – “Absolutely.”
(On what he wants to improve on this year) – “(I want to) continue to hit the details as much as possible, honestly, and make those tough catches on the outside, try to be an outside receiver, continue to grow as an outside receiver and not just a slot receiver. For me, (I want to) make those catches, compete against bigger corners and keep matching up that trust that me and Ryan (Tannehill) got.”
(On whether he would like to continue returning kickoffs and punts this season) – “I’m the starting returner. We’ll see how many reps I get in preseason, but I’ll be excited to see what Jakeem Grant and those other guys can do as well.”
(On whether the goal is for him to return full time or selectively) – “Right now, I don’t think there’s a number on it. For me – like I’ve told coaches – it gives me an opportunity to get the ball in my hands and make a play and create some energy. That’s what special teams means to me as far as returning.”
(On there not being many receivers that play in the slot and outside) – “There aren’t many, but I would never want to be a guy with limitations, honestly. This offense, honestly, it allows guys like myself … (It allows) guys (with) a bigger body like DeVante Parker to come down to the slot and a smaller guy than DeVante – me, Kenny Stills – to be able to work on the outside as well. This offense allows us to come out of our comfort zone a little bit, but at the same time not limit us to being a particular slot receiver or outside receiver.”
(On the offense’s goals for the first preseason game) – “Have a great first drive – have a great first play, honestly – (and) test their defense. And then from there, watch the young guys go a little bit.”
(On whether the speed and tempo of the offense is the biggest difference between this year’s and last year’s offense) – “Right, and that’s the whole emphasis of this offense – trying to make defenses match our intensity, match our tempo. That’s how we get our mismatches. Defenses have to communicate a lot more than we do, so the faster we get to the line and get the play going, the more efficient it can possibly be.”
Adam Gase – August 10, 2016
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Wednesday, August 10, 2016
Head Coach Adam Gase
(On how he knows there is trust in the red zone) – “I don’t if you ever really get there completely. You’re always working on things because once you get into the season and you feel good about a certain kind of concepts, defenses catch up very quickly. There’s not a whole bunch of things that you can do in the red zone that defenses haven’t really seen or studied. You always feel good coming out of camp probably about a few things and then as you get into the season, you have to evolve as you go. You can’t just be stagnant with one thing and (say), ‘Hey, this is what we’re just going to do,’ because defenses are so good. They’re so well prepared and there’s nowhere to hide. Everything’s on film. You have to keep evolving and that’s going to be an important piece for us. As we go through the season, we’ve got to keep (saying), ‘Hey, what’s our next thing? What’s our next thing?’ We got to keep developing trust throughout the season.”
(On if he has a number in his head for the touchdown percentage in the red zone and if that number is 60 percent) – “Yes. I mean that’d be great. It’s tough. You get down there and those windows close tight. You want to try to … at the end of the day if you can be two out of three every game, that would be great. But the top five teams, that’s usually probably where they’re about at.”
(On if he has a feel for how much the starters will play Friday night) – “I’m just going to go by feel. I think the better idea as far as the defense is going to go, I have less concerns on that side of the ball with a lot of those guys because they’ve played. I think on the offense, it’s mainly just kind of that chemistry of our guys getting used to playing what we’ve been practicing and, at the same time, Ryan (Tannehill) and myself getting on the same page – him being able to go through the communications of the offense. We probably need to try to play a little more in the preseason; but, it’s one of those things we’ll see how it goes. I know last year when we were in Chicago and then Miami came to us, I think they had a 17-play drive to start the game. You never know what’s going to happen. You always have a number in mind and then it could change.”
(On what was different about the offense today in practice) – “I think the last two days they’ve come out with a different mentality. I think Ryan (Tannehill)’s done a good job of jumping in that huddle right away and being that guy – chirping a little bit, getting the linemen going. And then I think the rest of those guys have really just been doing their job. The receivers have been in the right spots. I know we’ve had some drops here and there. It happens (when) we throw the ball as much we do during practice. I think for the most part it’s just going back to guys are just, instead of just worrying about the outcome of everything, they’re saying ‘Hey, we’re sticking with our process.’ We’re going to make sure that we do a great job of just doing what we’re supposed to do.”
(On if he sees things that ease his concerns from Saturday night’s scrimmage) – “Yes. I feel lightyears better. We needed to go through that. We needed to see what happens when just about everything possible could have gone wrong. Somebody screwed up on every play. It was like second-and-20 and then we were third-and-17. That probably needed to happen. I think guys just kind of took a step back and realized it’s about just doing my job and then things will work out. The more guys we have doing that, the better chance we have.”
(On the depth chart for the game and how much each string will play) – “We go by the person. Some guys may stay out there longer. Like on the defense, if it’s a younger guy that happened to be rolling with the ones, he might stay in there for a little longer. It’s really the feel of the coordinators of saying, ‘This guy, he needs more work. We want to get him some balls.’ If DeVante (Parker) doesn’t go and (Leonte) Carroo’s with the ones, we’re going to leave him in. He’s not going to come out because he needs snaps. Every guy is kind of treated a little different.”
(On RB Arian Foster is game ready) – “I would say he’s one guy that on offense, I’m not going to play him in this game. That’s strictly my decision. I have a certain way that I treat running backs that have played for a while and I don’t like them taking any unnecessary hits in games where it might only be a couple of snaps for him. It’s like, ‘How do I get him ready for the regular season?’ Plus I just want to be smart. We’re getting him back to where he’s almost to that point where we can go the full practice (with him and) there’s no restrictions. I just want to keep him on track on that and then the next week, we’ll reevaluate what we’re doing.”
(On if there’s anybody on defense that he made that same decision to keep them out of the game) – “Yes. We’re still going to talk about it. We’ll probably finalize it tonight as far as what’s going on. We got to talk to those guys first. Arian (Foster) knows that he’s not going to play. I’ve already told him. The other guys we haven’t told anybody anything so I don’t want to say it first here. We still got that last discussion to have.”
(On how far away is CB Chris Culliver away from being able to help) – “I think right now we’re on a day-to-day process. We’ve got to get our hands on him. I feel like we got a good feel for who we got (and) the kind player we have. I’m excited to see him when we can get him out there and get him rolling to see what he can do in this defense. I like the fact that we were aggressive and went out and got him and adding depth to that position. (Miami Herald columnist) Armando (Salguero) is happy, so that’s all that matters (laughter).”
(On what he sees in CB Chris Culliver) – “It’s a guy that wants to get up, he wants to press, he wants to be able to play man-to-man coverage. That’s what we’re looking for. That’s what we are. We’re an attacking style of defense and our corners have a lot of pressure on them to be able to cover and he’s a guy that can do that.”
(On the advantages of having taller corners) – “I just think it’s hard to get balls over (their heads). If you get beat, you got to throw a great ball. You got to get it over the top of the guy. And unfortunately I have a lot of experience watching (Byron) Maxwell break up balls. I’ve seen it first-hand where I’ve seen some good receivers get by him and he recovers and it’s because of his length. When you’re trying to get off the line of scrimmage versus press and he gets his hands on you, it’s challenging to get around him because he really extends and gets around. It’s hard to get his hands off of you. When you got a long guy like that it’s the advantage to that player. It’s tough on the wide outs.”
(On WR Leonte Carroo and his progress so far in training camp) – “He’s been doing good. He’s been making some positive plays. His biggest thing is mentally, what are we going to do? Is he going to keep growing? Are we going to get stuck? Are we going to have that rookie wall hit? He’s going to keep rolling on that.”
(On if he wants to see the offense get more vertical or if he’s fine with things the way they are) – “I’m fine with it. I’m the one scripting the plays and calling the plays. I had a little success with what we do. There’s a time and a place (to get vertical) but there’s also a time and a place not to get sacked 60 times in a year too.”
(On if he has been pleased by S Walt Aikens this training camp) – “Yes, he’s been doing a good job. Obviously we know his value on special teams, as well. The fact that he’s showing up at safety as well, that’s a bonus. We know we’ve got a guy that when we put him in on defense, he’s going to make plays.”
(On RB Jay Ajayi catching a deep pass in practice today and if that is good for his confidence) – “I thought it was great because, I don’t know, it’s been like five years since I’ve seen a guy actually lay out for a ball in practice. The fact that he went and got it, you know he’s a big man running down the field. It’s good to see. Any time we hit a shot like that, that’s a good thing.”
(On DE Cameron Wake coming back from an Achilles injury and if he’ll play on Friday night since RB Arian Foster will not) – “I haven’t talked to him yet. We’ll finalize it tonight.”
(On what the conversation is like when you tell a veteran he won’t play when you know he wants to play) – “More times than not, I personally haven’t had any bad experiences in that area. They want to play but at the same time, there’s certain guys that know that we have to be smart. You’re looking to get work in the preseason and at the same time you’re looking to get the guys you want to the regular season, so where’s the fine line of (staying) healthy but still getting what you need to get to get ready for that first game?”
(On if the short plays run in practice are a result of play calling or plays getting checked down) – “The whole league is 10 yards and under. That’s what it is. Nobody is going down the field like that. There is one team that does it really, maybe two – Pittsburgh and Arizona. They hold onto the ball and they chuck it down the field. More teams than not, it is 10 yards and under. That’s where all the passing game is. The d-ends are too good. If you want to stand back there and have your quarterback get his brains beat out, go at it.”
(On WR DeVante Parker’s status for Friday) – “I’ve got to watch practice and see how he looked. We’ll see how it goes. I want to make sure he’s good. I don’t want any setbacks with him.”
(On if he can tell when guys are pressing in preseason games and if he takes that into account when he judges them) – “Yes, you can tell. You start watching the game … Really it starts going with the mental. When guys start busting their assignments with things they don’t normally do, that’s when you start to realize there’s something not right. You keep an eye on it. You evaluate it after the game. You evaluate everything – how was he on the sideline? What was the look in his eye? That’s the good part about being down (on the sideline), a guy like (Wide Receivers Coach) Shawn Jefferson will be able to tell me, ‘Hey, this guy did not have a good look in his eye.’”
(On if he takes that into account when he makes the final 53-man roster) – “Yes, because if a guy is freaking out in a preseason game, there’s a good chance he’s going to … like Seattle. I don’t know if you’ve been there lately; it’s interesting.”
(On his first preseason game as a head coach) – “I’m lucky to have the two coordinators on offense and defense and then to have a special teams coach as involved as we have him right now with (Assistant Head Coach/Special Teams Coordinator Darren) Rizzi. I don’t know. It feels comfortable to me. The fact that having those guys around you and even a guy like (Linebackers Coach) Matt Burke, who is a smart guy and involved in what we’re doing situationally and the conversation that we have every day in practice. That’s why we do as much situational work as we do because if we screw something up, that conversation is happening fast and we’re like, ‘Okay, maybe we should have done this and maybe called timeout here.’ So those discussions are going on. I feel like the biggest thing is going to be getting into that rhythm of calling plays and now we have to start thinking about timeouts and things like that in 2-minute drives.”
(On if that was something he was involved with in previous stops) – “I mean, having (Chicago Bears Head Coach John) Fox, because him not calling either side of the ball, it made it really easy on me. I was just calling plays until somebody told me to stop, which was nice. It won’t quite be … we don’t have that luxury.”
(On what he expects from his team on Friday night) – “I just want energy. I want energy and I want guys flying around. If guys screw up, oh well. Just go 100 miles per hour. I know with what we’ve done out (on the practice field), that should take over. We’ve been practicing in some tough conditions. Today wasn’t easy. The guys battled. Nobody said anything. (They) just grinded it out. If we come out with that kind of mentality and enjoy what we’re doing, we should play fast.”
