Frank Smith – November 3, 2022
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Wednesday, November 3, 2022
Offensive Coordinator Frank Smith
(RB Jeff Wilson Jr., what does what does he bring to the table. Talk about his skill set a little bit.) – “I think he brings physicality as a runner. Like his speed, like his vision. I think he’s a great complement for us. Obviously his experience in the system will be extremely helpful. Just when the opportunity presented itself, it was something that with Mike’s (McDaniel) history with him and all the guys in San Francisco; it just seemed like it was an option that we just had to take action on.”
(As a coach and particularly an offensive coordinator who’s involved in the game planning, how do you go about working RB Jeff Wilson Jr. in? I mean, Head Coach Mike McDaniel said that he would play but how much he plays on Sunday is to be determined, but midweek, making the trade, how you go about kind of incorporating him into the game plan, knowing his skillset and making sure that he’s ready to go?) – “I think that we just use the practice time – Wednesday, Thursday, Friday – to dictate his familiarity with what we’re going to ask him to do, make sure that whether it’s a package of plays or on a rotational basis, I think that we use the practice time to really dictate that. Obviously, he has help coming from being in the system. The terminology is going to be the same, so we’re hoping that the evolution for him to make it to the field will be very quick and smooth.”
(On Sunday, I think the offense kind of broke out in a way that we haven’t seen since Week 2 against Baltimore particularly on third down. There were a lot of times where you face third-and-7, third-and-8, even longer, and you were able to convert and QB Tua Tagovailoa specifically has been really, really good on third down. What would you attribute that to? Because it seems like in a league where teams are building defenses more to stop the deep passing and stop the long passes, it seems like you guys are executing that and doing what you want.) – “Well, I think between the time of early in the season to now we’ve had a three-game stretch where we were working through some, we had injury issues, guys in and out of the lineup. And obviously the second week, back with Tua (Tagovailoa) and the guys working together who honestly have the whole offseason worked together; I think that allows you to build on certain things that you had done earlier in the season. And then obviously with the Pittsburgh game, work into, I mean in reality, it’s like Tua’s first game and second against Baltimore. First game’s back against the Steelers, the next game back is versus the Lions. So honestly, I just think that guys working together, familiarity is the No. 1 thing that helps. And then I just think that the collaboration between the staff and the players and making sure they have a clear vision of what we’re trying to execute on was excellent last week. And I think that’s just like everything, it’s a constantly work in progress. We’re trying to challenge ourselves to maintain that standard and with the Bears this week, that’ll be another challenge.”
(We always hear familiarity and continuity is very important with offensive line. I think last week was the third time this year, you guys made a mid-game change – T Terron Armstead, OL Austin Jackson and OL Liam Eichenberg. But anyway, what is the big challenge there when a guy comes in mid game? Is it communication? Or what is the big challenge?) – “Yeah, communication, and then also getting into the flow of the game. I mean, once you’ve played for a while, you kind of get a feel to how your guy’s playing blocks, how he’s playing his rush plan. So I think that just making sure that – how do you help a player who comes in mid-game? You have good communication on the sideline throughout to make sure that they’re hearing and seeing what’s occurring. So that way when they come in, they kind of already understand the way the flow of the game is going, how the blocks are being played out. All right, what the pass rush plan is. We think ultimately that’s the best way is that overall we’re communicating as a staff to the players and that the players are also communicating with each other. So when we’re on the sideline, they’re talking to each other, making sure they’re communicating what they’re seeing, and they’re also communicating with the guys who are on the sideline from what they’re seeing, because sometimes the vantage point is different. So I think overall, like you said, communication in the huddle, on the line of scrimmage and also if we’re having good communication on the sideline through the players; that you’re hoping it’s going to be a seamless transition.”
(What are some of the OL Robert Jones plusses that he has going for him?) – “Rob (Jones) has done a great job for us. I mean, young in his career. Learning really the techniques we’re trying to do. He has great strength, has really good upper body strength, physicality. Really like his anchor. I mean, there’s a lot of stuff with him that you just feel like the physical skills are really there to be a really strong blocker. And this will be a great chance for him all right, as we’re working through things, to really take a next step in his game. And then I think ultimately all the guys, as they get opportunities to play, that’s where you got to take what you’ve done on the practice field, all the investment in the offseason. It’s your opportunity to show your advancement in our techniques and our stuff. So we like what Rob has done so far and ultimately our guys that have been coming off of the backup role have had to really step up this year. And I think that, ultimately, that’s the best thing that as coaches we can ask for, is the guys that have to come up in the middle of a game or have to step up the next game are prepared and ready to go and execute.”
(I’d like to ask you about a problem that you’ll never have. And that is I’m curious about an offensive coordinator’s perspective if you’re going against a team, as I’m sure you do several times this year, with the quality of edge rushers that this team has now with LB Jaelan Phillips and LB Bradley Chubb, especially. When you’re in such a situation and you’re putting together a game plan, what are some of the first questions you ask yourself to sort of plot out a point of attack, a plan of attack rather?) – “Yeah, that’s a great question. I think it goes back to – like when you said that, I thought back to my first couple years in Oakland where it was Von (Miller) and Bradley (Chubb) in Denver – two good edge rushers. Or a couple years ago in Chicago, where it was Khalil (Mack) and Leonard (Floyd) on the edge. I think ultimately your first thought process too is like, okay, what are the pressures that you’re seeing? How are you going to have to handle the pressures? Then after that you’re looking at, alright, how do they deploy the rushers? How do we try to minimize their strengths? Are you getting guys on the line of scrimmage to affect their speed rush? Are you getting guys coming out of the backfield that chip as they go? What do they do well and how do they affect it? And is that going to be a challenge for you? So like last year, I mean, I can remember specifically, we’re playing Cleveland. Rashawn Slater, he’s blocking Myles Garrett. He didn’t want to chip. He said, ‘No, I don’t want to do that, like you’re screwing me up.’ Like he said, ‘get all the way so I can see where he is so I can block him.’ And then at that point, you’re going, ‘okay.’ And I think because ultimately the last element is your guys. So how do they feel about where they’re going to be spatially and how they feel in their matchup? Like Rashawn being a rookie is one of those where you’re like, ‘Okay, bro, whatever you say, man.’ (laughter) ‘Whatever you want.’ Because he had that confidence in himself and he was prepared, like he’d been in the NFL for five years. So I think ultimately, you look at it, you go, okay, what are the schematic elements that are going to be a challenge that are not going to allow you to be able to assist? How can you assist to take away what they want to do well in their rush? And then ultimately, how do your guys feel about how they want to set the guy and how can you help them? I think it’s a combination of things between the coaches, the players to be basically work to contain the elite rushers in the NFL.”
(QB Tua Tagovailoa said yesterday that sometimes Head Coach Mike McDaniel is so overly positive that he has to step away and find someone else who will be real with him, and he pointed out QBs/Passing Game Coordinator Darrell Bevell as somebody who does that for him. Have you seen him do that? Or have you seen sort of interaction of Tua trying to be positive and McDaniel being positive to him and him maybe needing more of that toughness?) – “I think that Darrell Bevell is the perfect complement to what we’re doing with the quarterbacks. I mean, he is so just methodical in his approach. On the little details of all the things, I mean, he’s just always so locked in on making sure that the quarterbacks are fundamentally sound, understanding the execution of each play, the timing of each play, understanding the nuances of what we’re trying to do. And I think it’s a perfect complement for us because with his experience of being a coordinator in this league for so long, and then with Mike’s personality, a lot of our personalities and Tua’s personality, it’s just a great offset because as you get through the league, you don’t want to have a staff full of everyone with the same personality type, everyone of the same mindset. Otherwise, you just sit there and it’s either you’re going to get a ton accomplished or you’re going to get nothing accomplished. But having guys with different personalities, viewpoints, vantage points; that allows you to have one, creative thought; two, challenging perspectives because I think that’s ultimately in life, you want to surround yourself with people with different perspectives and different viewpoints to things. That’s why you challenge yourself and I think that’s why Darrell (Bevell) coming from outside the system has been such a great offset and then just who he is as a guy is a perfect fit for Tua and Mike.”
(And how would you describe Head Coach Mike McDaniel’s coaching style and personality compared to previous head coaches that you’ve worked under?) – “If you go through my gauntlet, okay … Jon (Gruden) has an unbridled love of football that you can feel it every day. And so does Mike (McDaniel). John Fox had an unbelievable, like energy for each day. And (Brandon) Staley, just with the one year with him, I mean, he had a positive outlook to things. And then Sean Payton, he had a great feel towards what was needed at the day. He was a great communicator of the vision for the week and each day’s daily needs with the players and the staff. But Mike overall, I mean, the greatest thing about Mike is who he is. And as a person, what you see is what you get. He’s so genuine. The positive nature is just, he never believes he’s out of the fight. It’s always there’s a way, we can find a way if we just stay towards the mission and we don’t distract ourselves with any negative emotion or negative thought. It’s really a joy to work for a guy like Mike, just because the way he sees football and then he adds that energy to it. I mean, it just – when your boss brings that kind of energy and positivity to what you do, I mean, it’s infectious. I think it’s especially infectious here as you’re starting off on a new staff, you’re really trying to set the tone and then when the leader of the football team has that unwavering positivity every day, you just feel like, ‘man, what’s going to happen today?’ You just feel like you got to match it or exceed it, so hopefully, that’s what you guys feel when we’re out of practice. You don’t think it’s a bunch of people just standing there with their heads down. It’s like you have an energy and passion for your day because it starts with your leadership, and I think that when the leadership sets the tone that way, it’s easy for all of us to set the vision and be able to follow.”
(With QB Tua Tagovailoa, we in here have seen him show more of his personality, like throwing jabs at critics and whatnot. Since you’ve gotten here, is that the Tua you’ve always seen or have you seen that kind of grow on him coming out of his shell?) – “You saw signs of it. That’s kind of who he is, though. He has a lot of fun, great energy and passion towards what he’s been doing. I think that it’s always been there and then the hard thing is, when you come into a new staff is that players, they’re trying to feel you out a little bit and trying to figure out where are we going to be, you know, in relationship? Is it going to be – are you going to be up and down? I think that when you said – I mean, it goes back to the last question of when the culture and the standard and the communication patterns are set and it’s based in positivity and energy, it makes it easy to just be yourself because you’re not worried about the consequences of, you know, necessarily, like you’re getting every play, you’re getting whatever. You just worry about being your best and I think that’s where you can see with Tua, his concentration with ‘Bev’ (Darrell Bevell) has been to be fundamentally sound, understand what we’re trying to accomplish in our plays, and then now, with the success comes out your personality. So yes, as I circled all the way back around, (laughter) yeah, this is kind of the guy that we kind of saw. We saw the glimmers of, because you see it in your interactions with him kind of when you first met him. And now I mean, it’s just really exciting, because now we’re hitting essentially the middle of the season and then as we talked about in here, we’re starting to really feel what this football team is. And now we just got to keep executing and playing upon the good things we’re doing. And it’s a constant challenge to improve on the things that each week presents a new challenge that we have to clean up to get better for the next week.”
(Along those lines kind of going on the field, if there’s one thing – yesterday QB Tua Tagovailoa joked with us when we asked what have you most improved, and he said the deep balls, you know, obviously kind of as a slight at the critics. On the field, if there’s one thing you can pinpoint that he’s grown at whether it’s the footwork, seeing the fields, like manipulating defenders; what is the one thing we say, okay, he’s really operating at a higher level than earlier in the year, maybe last year’s film, previous film that you’ve seen?) – “I think ultimately, you would say that he has a great understanding of the timing of each play and where everyone’s supposed to be. And also, that in turn, is because the guys around him understand where they need to be in the time of each play. So I think that his understanding of what the offense is trying to do and working with the guys to be where they need to be, allows you now to take the next step of working aspects of the coverage, manipulating defenders more. So I think that would probably be the biggest thing outside of the fundamentals that he’s really, I mean, he already kind of naturally had. Like you could see it. And now you can see now the timing of each play and the consistency. I think that’s where he’s made the most growth.”
