Brian Flores – September 4, 2019
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Wednesday, September 4, 2019
Head Coach Brian Flores
(I know you’re getting ready for the Ravens this week, but what would your first NFL win mean to you as a head coach?) – “It would mean a lot. It’s going to take a lot to get that done against a really good team. We’re going to have to prepare at a high level, and we’re going to have to practice at a high level. There’s a lot that goes into that. This is a really good team we’re playing that’s physical, that’s tough, that’s well-coached, that’s disciplined. We’re going to have to play well against this team.”
(How physically and mentally ready do you think RB Kenyan Drake is for the start of the season?) – “I think he’s both physically and mentally ready. This is a guy who has as much talent as we have on our team. He’s fast. He’s physical. He’s explosive. He makes a lot of plays, and we’re looking forward to getting him a lot of touches this week.”
(You’ve had so many players coming and going in the past several days. How hard is to incorporate all these new faces into the team and get them up to speed for Sunday?) – “We have had some turnover here. The one thing I’d like to say is I like that we’ve been aggressive trying to bring in players that we feel will help this team and better the roster. I like that aggressive approach. As far as getting them ready, we’ve got to coach them. That’s part of our job. We’ve got a good staff. It’s something we talk about as a staff and finding the best way to get these new guys up to speed in roles where they can play fast.”
(Does that mean for some of those guys you’ve had to simplify things as far as game plan, so they know what’s going on?) – “I think every week it’s a little bit different. Some guys, could – you’ve got to see how much a guy can handle. Sometimes there’s – conceptually, football, it’s the same, pretty much. Cover 3 in Pop Warner is Cover 3 in college, is Cover 3 in the NFL. You can have a few exotic forms of Cover 3; but at the end of the day, it’s three deep. I think conceptually, there’s some things that some guys can get both offensively, defensively and in the kicking game. If they can understand the concepts, that kind of tells you how much we can or how far we can go as far as how exotic we can get with looks and schemes both offensively, defensively and in the kicking game.”
(Have you had any players in the last few days – looking at all the turnover you’ve had – and say, “What’s the vision here? I’ve lost a lot of teammates, a lot of friends. What’s going to happen here?” LB Jerome Baker was kidding but said he’d like to ask you, but he’d be afraid that he’s next. Have you had any of those interactions with your players, and what was your message?) – “I think these guys are focused on Baltimore. That’s what I see. I think the attentiveness, the preparation – guys were in here yesterday watching film. It’s their day off; but they’re in here, and they’re in here lifting and watching film and getting a workout in. I think that’s where the focus is, and I think that’s where it should be. Again, this is a tough team. This is a physical team. This is a well-coached team. We’re going to have to play well in all three phases in this game to have a chance, so I think that’s where their focus is – not on anything else, not on turnover. I don’t think it’s on that, so no, I haven’t had any conversations that way.”
(Can you give us your impressions of Baltimore Ravens QB Lamar Jackson and the challenges he presents?) – “He presents a lot of challenges. (laughter) He’s an explosive player. (He’s) dynamic. I think he’s throwing the ball a lot better than – I think he’s improved in that area. This is not a one-trick pony. Let’s put that out there right now. This guy has had a good preseason. He’s throwing the ball well. Obviously, we know what he can do. If he gets outside of the pocket, he’s as explosive a playmaker as they have on their team. We’ve got our work cut out for us against this particular player and the entire team. They’ve got a really good offensive line. They’ve got good backs. They’ve got good receivers. They’ve got tight ends who block and are good pass-catchers, so we’ve got our work cut out for us defensively.”
(What’s the most encouraging on-field thing you’ve seen from DT Christian Wilkins?) – “Well, he’s played with a little bit of a better pad level the last few weeks, so that’s been good. Hopefully we continue to do that. This is a guy who’s getting better and developing on a daily basis. Again, he’s still a rookie, but he’s working to improve and get better. I’m sure he’s looking forward to playing his first NFL game Sunday afternoon.”
(What was it about T Julién Davenport that made you guys want to include him in that trade package and have him out there now as the left tackle?) – “He’s athletic, good length, smart player. I think he’s got a lot of potential, so we’re excited to have him. We’ve got to get him up to speed as quickly as possible, get him out there and hopefully we get a productive player.”
(You have so many newcomers on the offensive line. Is the situation now just to stay with the consistency that you have on the four other positions or will those guys like G Danny Isidora get an opportunity to get in the mix to compete for that starting spot?) – “Yeah, I mean we had all (of our) guys practice Monday. We worked a few different groupings. The good thing with this group is that there is a lot of versatility, so (Michael) Deiter has played right and left guard. He has played left tackle as well. (Julien) Davenport has played left tackle, right tackle. Jesse (Davis) has played right guard, right tackle – he has played left tackle in the past. So there is a lot of versatility with this group. So, we have an opportunity here where we can mix and match it and see what the best group is. So, we will work that in practice today, practice tomorrow, practice on Friday. We will put what we feel is the best group out on the field on Sunday.”
(On the same question, obviously the three back-up interior games have all started NFL games – C/G Chris Reid, G Danny Isadora, C/G Evan Boehm – do you go into the season saying Dieter and Calhoun we would like to see how they do but obviously these three veterans will compete with them, or is this week an open competition among the five of them to be your starting guard?) – “Well you guys know I love competition, so we will start right there. I do think that competition brings out the best in every individual. I think in this situation, we have brought in a couple of veteran interior players to push the rookies. The rookies have done well. I think how they respond will tell us a lot this week. Again, all of those players we have talked about, they have position flexibility as well and we will put the best five out there.”
(On Sunday, QB Ryan Fitzpatrick will be starting for his eighth different team. I guess this has never been done before. Can you discuss the magnitude of doing something like that?) – “Well, that is a testament to Ryan Fitzpatrick. It is hard to start at quarterback in this league, so that is a testament to him and the work he has put in. He is a really good player, he is a good leader and I am excited to have him. I am excited to watch him go out there and play.”
(Do you have season captains selected that you can share with us?) – “Not yet. We will vote on captains this week.”
(There were two front seven guys you added who might need to play defensively right away. DT John Jenkins has obviously been around and DE Avery Moss. Can you talk about what you like about each of them and do you feel like they can come in and contribute defensively on Sunday?) – “Well, Jenkins is a big guy, physical, interior d-lineman. He has some athletic ability that I like. (He’s) got some quickness. I like the film we saw from the preseason. (It) was good. So, we were excited to get him. Avery (Moss), again, he is an edge player. I like what we saw from him as well. He is physical, does a good job setting the edge. He has some pass-rush ability that we felt like would help us, so I’m excited about both guys.”
