Adam Gase – September 12, 2018
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Wednesday, September 12, 2018
Head Coach Adam Gase
(You guys had a very good per play average out of no-huddle on Sunday. Was that about the amount you want to run it or even more moving forward?) – “It’s just kind of how the flow of the game is going. We still didn’t have as many plays as we were looking for. It’s a good start for us with really the conditions we were playing in. I felt like we were getting going and then we head a stoppage and kind of reset everything. Then they had a couple of good series and we got a couple going there. We’ll see how it goes this week. Being on the road, that will be a good test for us to see where we’re at.”
(I saw a story where after you gave the players off on Monday, QB Ryan Tannehill went around the offensive players and suggested they come in and watch film. What does that say about his leadership?) – “I mean it doesn’t surprise me. I know those guys weren’t real excited about how they played. They felt like there was more there for us to have and there were some execution things. There were some things where we just missed some opportunities. I think a lot of those guys wanted to make sure that they watch it together and everybody was on the same page. We hit a lot of things today as well to where we can make sure everybody is on the same page. Really, that’s the biggest thing. That’s why you come in on Monday and try to do that; or Tuesday, whenever you do it. It’s so everybody gets things cleaned up and everybody can move forward, learn from those experiences and improve from those.”
(Is that something you expect from your quarterback?) – “Yes. He’s really always been like that. He’s always trying to pull those guys in. He’s done it after practices on Fridays. He’s always looking to get with those receivers, especially, and the tight ends, to make sure they’re all on the same page.”
(How does WR DeVante Parker seem to you?) – “He looks like he wants to get out there and get going for real. It was good to see him running and catching balls. We’ll take the progression towards the next step and we’ll move on from there.”
(What does WR DeVante Parker bring when he’s available that is different than the other guys in the room?) – “Well, I think he’s about a foot taller than everybody else. (laughter) He’s a big guy that has really good long speed and has good quickness in and out of his breaks. He has an unusual skill set for a guy that size. The times that have been really good with him in games, he can make some freak-ish plays. It’ll be good to kind of get him going again. Really, it’s a start-over for him. Whatever happened before he was injured, it’s really behind him. I’m glad that he did a good job of staying involved in the meetings and engaged in everything that we were presenting to him in individual. He didn’t miss anything. That’s smart on his part to make sure he’s right on track to where when he’s ready to go, he can jump right in there and he’ll be alright.”
(One of the Jets players last night said that they were fully aware of all of the Lions’ signals on offense. Is that something that probably concerns you knowing that you guys play them twice a year?) – “No.”
(We saw some nice holes open for the running game, especially in the first half there. What kind of stood out when you went back and looked at the line play from that game?) – “I thought the guys did a really good job of executing what we asked them to do. Really, we felt like a lot of those things were happening in practice but sometimes it’s hard (to tell) because our defense, there will be days when we’re going against those ends and Cam (Wake) shuts a lot of things down when we run to his side. We don’t want to just get in the habit of running one way in practice because he’s on the other side. I think the positioning of what their defense was doing and some of the things that we had called, our guys did a really good job of executing and understanding why we were doing it. With them, the tight ends and the running backs, they were all on the same page. We executed most of our runs fairly well.”
(The two veteran guys that came in on the offensive line – C Daniel Kilgore and G Josh Sitton – what difference have they made in the unit of this line?) – “Experience. Those guys have been around. It seems like that chemistry in that whole room, from the first guy to the last guy in there, they all get along and they work together. They know how to practice well on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. They’re an intense group. They’re not very talkative. They’re there to do one thing and that’s work and protect the running back and protect the quarterback.”
(I know you mentioned on Monday that you and Tight Ends Coach Shane Day talked about tight end snaps. At this point, do you have a good comfort level with TE A.J. Derby because of his experience and he’s been around you before?) – “It’s just kind of how the game worked out. It’s one thing to have a plan going in. It’s another thing to get it to go the way you want. Some of the things that we had planned for, we either didn’t get to … We might have had some different personnel groupings. He probably got more reps than what I anticipated at first but I’m alright with it when he executes the majority of the stuff the way we need it done.”
(We didn’t see WR Danny Amendola out there today. Is he okay?) – “Yes. On Wednesdays he won’t be … this is going to be the whole year. He won’t be practices on Wednesdays.”
(G Josh Sitton also?) – “Sitton got banged up in the game so we’re kind of still evaluating him and kind of seeing where we’re at.”
(Did any Jets defensively stand out to you from the tape on Monday? Obviously they had a lot of picks and were around the ball a lot.) – “Yes. Their defense … (Head Coach) Todd (Bowles) is really good. He’s always … It’s one of those things that it’s always fun to compete against him but at the same time, it’s a huge challenge because whatever we see on tape, good luck seeing the same thing. He’s always been a tough guy to prepare for. I feel like his team is built more of the way (of) his personality. They’ve moved on from some guys and it seems like they have a lot of guys that are on the same page as he is. That’s a good thing. He has a lot of young players that are very good. I think you can tell by the way they play. Those guys are flying around. They’re executing their defenses properly. They’re creating turnovers. They’re scoring points. They’re doing a good job.”
(What are your impressions of Jets QB Sam Darnold?) – “Any time you can bounce back from the first play of the game like that, that’s impressive. He was able to get into a little bit of a rhythm. I think (Jets Offensive Coordinator/QBs Coach) Jeremy Bates is a really good coordinator. People don’t remember that he had the No. 2 offense in 2008 with Denver. They were rolling. (Jay) Cutler, that was the year he went to the Pro Bowl. He knows what he’s doing. Now he has another opportunity with a young quarterback. I’d expect no less because I know how he’s going to call plays and how he’s coaching those guys. They’re going to be successful. They’re going to be tough to go against. He’ll have them ready to go and he’ll do what’s best for the quarterback every week to make sure that he has success.”
(Banged up doesn’t sound serious. Is G Josh Sitton’s injury serious?) – “We’ll see. We’re still going through some tests and stuff. He just had kind of a weird hit. We’re going through that right now.”
(Are you able to let us know what body part it is with G Josh Sitton?) – “Once I find out all of the details of everything, I’ll let you guys know.”
(How is LS John Denney doing?) – “He’s good. He’ll be ready to go on Sunday and we’ll be good to go.”
(RB Frank Gore has a chance to pass RB Curtis Martin for fourth place on the NFL’s all-time rushing chart this week. What do you think that means?) – “To him? He won’t even talk. If you ask him, he’s not going to talk about it. He’s so wired in on just helping us win. It speaks volumes for what he’s accomplished. It’s unbelievable the amount of years he’s played and the amount of carries he’s had over his career and the success that he’s had, the things that he’s battled through. When you watch him practice, at his age, you can’t tell. It was fun for me to watch him get introduced and him playing, getting out there and ripping off a couple of runs. We get a first-and-20. I don’t remember the last time we got a first-and-20 (conversion) on a run and getting an explosive play like that. Guys did a great job of blocking up front. He found that hole and Kenny (Stills) did a good job at getting to the safety and he did the rest. It was great to see him get going a little bit. Him and (Kenyan) Drake, that’s a good combination. Those guys work well together.”
(This week I guess you have a couple of bigger receivers out there with the Jets. Is there something different you can do to prepare your corners for that size they have on the outside?) – “We can try to sign some bigger guys so they can see them on scout team but that’s about it. (laughter) They’ve had to go against DeVante (Parker) quite a bit. That’s really a lot of the experience they can lean on from practice. Every week it’s going to be a different body type. They know what they need to do to use their strengths against those types of players. You have to be physical at the line of scrimmage and you have to get hands on them. You have to re-route them. Then when the ball is up in the air and it’s some kind of jump ball, they’ve got to be aggressive to the ball.”
(With WR Albert Wilson and the variety of roles he’s lining up on offense, how enthusiastic is he that he’s used in so many different ways?) – “Oh, he’s excited. It’s almost like we had a plan for him all of this time. (laughter) He likes doing all of the things we’re asking him to do. We’ll keep expanding it.”
(Is this something you had in mind before WR Albert Wilson was signed that you could do?) – “Yes. Sorry I didn’t show it in training camp. (laughter)”
