Darrell Bevell – October 13, 2022
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Thursday, October 13, 2022
Quarterbacks Coach Darrell Bevell
(How did QB Skylar Thompson look last week and what differences do you expect to see this week with full preparation?) – “I thought Skylar (Thompson) did a really nice job for us coming in in kind of an unforeseen situation, particularly obviously that early in the game. But I thought he did a nice job for himself. There’s always going to be some plays we’re going to look back on and what could we have done better or done different? We’ve focused on those. And then this week, just an opportunity for him to have full preparation and the whole game plan – the game plan is a little bit tailored to him as well. So I’m just excited to see what he’s going to do this week.”
(How much of a difference does that make for a quarterback having the full week of prep as the starter?) – “You guys have been around long enough to know as you as you watch practice, I mean the starter gets every rep. So for the backup guy, he’s getting whatever crumbs are left – the individual periods, the scout team reps. So it’s always big and important for them to get a full week of work. There’s so much involved in just nuances of the footwork game that we do, and so to have that preparation and have all that time, it’s going to be a big bonus to him.”
(There’s been a little bit of talk about the fact that QB Skylar Thompson had to go through the game without being able to lean on QB Tua Tagovailoa and QB Teddy Bridgewater, having them on the sideline to talk to. How does that affect how you handled last weekend and even this week, in terms of, are you talking to him that much more or trying to build his confidence? What’s happening there?) – “Yeah, last week there was a lot going on, and the two veteran guys weren’t there and then the next guy – even Reid (Sinnett) wasn’t dressed; he was on the sideline. So I just felt a little bit more urgency to stay with him, to communicate even more and just try to be the veteran presence that he would need. On a week like this, I can still give him the information, but then when I walk away, I don’t have to worry about what’s going through his mind, because you’ll have those two veterans that will be able to stand there with him and give him some of the insights that they have.”
(Has QB Tua Tagovailoa been in most quarterback meetings the last week and a half, some of them?) – “He’s been in some of them. Yeah, and more this week. Last week was no, so it’s just kind of been a progression.”
(What has he been like through the whole process of coming back?) – “Tua? He’s been great. He’s been outstanding. I mean, he’s chomping at the bit. I think anytime that something’s taken away from you in any way, I think there’s sometimes a more heightened awareness of how much you appreciate something, and I think Tua is going through that a little bit.”
(Looking at the film from last game, QB Skylar Thompson’s feet not being aligned on some of the plays, just how did you see that when you were you reviewing the film and how did it maybe kind of throw off some plays?) – “Well, we speak about our feet all the time, and we let our feet take us through our progressions, our reads and kind of speak to us. So when your feet are not correct, when you’re not taking the either the correct drop, or the timing for the play – because sometimes you can speed up your feet too fast, it’s telling you to move on. And so, those were some of the things that happened. With a full week of preparation this week and the different nuances that we have, he’ll get more reps of those in live situations and so I think he’ll be even more improved on that.”
(Is there a way to quantify how much two-high safety looks that you guys have seen, like, more than you thought or about what you thought and what do you do in the passing game to have success against that?) – “I think, to answer the first part is, we have an extremely fast team. So I think it’s not something that surprises us that we will get two-high safety looks. I think the next part of that is, what do you do against it? Well, I think the answer is always take what the defense gives you. So there’s still opportunities for explosive plays. There’s still opportunities for throws down the field, but there’s going to be throws underneath as well, just like there is if it’s a single high safety. You just have to be able to understand the progressions, the read, the timing and take what they give you.”
(It’s possible that QB Teddy Bridgewater without a concussion is able to play on Sunday and get cleared, but he can’t practice fully yet. So what goes into the decisions, those conversations, you, Head Coach Mike McDaniel, Offensive Coordinator Frank Smith have over deciding QB Skylar Thompson early in the week over Teddy without too much practice?) – “The head coach ends up ultimately making that decision, but obviously you want to weigh the situation and any time you’re in the protocols, you don’t know how the protocol is going to end up, so the guy could end up clearing on Sunday. So we thought it was advantageous for us to be able to get the guy that’s going to get all the reps in practice and not miss any days to be able to be the guy that’s going to get the start in the game.”
(What was your initial thoughts the first time you saw QB Skylar Thompson on the field? I think it was probably back in spring. What struck you the most?) – “I was really fired up just with his presence and how he was handling things. I know he’s a little bit older guy, but it wasn’t overwhelming to him, I think is the first thing that stood out to me. And then I think the second thing was just how well he prepared himself to be ready for the moments that he was going to be put into, and every time that we’ve had a critical moment, he’s answered the bell, and he’s done a great job with it. And there’s little steps along the way that just situations that he got put in, where it’s like, ‘okay, he passed that, what’s he going to do if this happens.’ And then that happened, and he passed that. So I’m just really excited about the progression that he’s made.”
(I can’t think a seventh-round, rookie quarterback coming into the NFL first time on a field like that. Probably could be overwhelming, couldn’t it?) – “It totally could be. But like I said, any time you’re prepared, that eases some of your anxiety. But still, once you get on the field, it’s a whole other level and sometimes I think it’s good to be thrust in the moment where you don’t have a lot of time to think about it. But he handled himself really well and he’s only going to get better from that.”
