Vance Joseph – October 24, 2016
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Monday, October 24, 2016
Defensive Coordinator Vance Joseph
(How much of a difference has DE Cameron Wake made out there, both against the run and against the pass, where it seems like he’s getting closer and closer to the Cam of a few years ago?) – “He makes a lot of difference (with) the energy he brings in the run and pass game alike. He puts so much pressure on the tackles – again, in both phases of the game – where it condenses the run game and (in) the pass game, he’s obviously pressuring the quarterback. Even with (Andre) Branch on the right side, those guys make a difference, because of the energy they bring to the game.”
(With DE Mario Williams, what went behind the decision to move him inside at parts of the game?) – “Just bodies. We want to get our best four rushers on the field at one time. Sometimes we have to play Mario inside to keep Branch at the right end. It’s having your four best guys on the field at one time.”
(So it’s just in obvious passing situations getting your four best pass rushers?) – “Absolutely.”
(Would you say yesterday was DE Mario Williams’ best performance of the year?) – “I would say the effort … He played with great intensity yesterday. He had two TFLs (tackles for loss). He had two quarterback hits, four QB pressures. He played well. Obviously, that was his old team, so I think inside he wanted to play well. He didn’t say it all week, but he wanted to play well against Buffalo.”
(How would you assess the safety play yesterday?) – “Okay. Obviously losing ‘20’ (Reshad Jones) was going to be … That’s a huge deal for us. But I thought Isa (Abdul-Quddus) played well. Isa is a smart player. He’s always in good spots to make plays. He tackled well. I thought Mike Thomas, for the most part, played solid. He had one issue with the long pass. It was Cover 2 defense, and he was too far off the hash. Outside of that, those two kids played solid. They won’t ever be what ‘20’ would be in a football game. That’s not fair, but they can play solid for us and those guys help us win.”
(How much did you know about DE Andre Branch before you got here and what do you really like about him?) – “We watched Andre on tape in the spring. You can watch an entire game on Andre and say, ‘He’s just okay,’ but you can pick 15 plays and say, ‘Boy, he’s special.’ We weren’t sure what he was going to be. But obviously, he’s talented enough to be a special guy. Right now, he’s focused. It’s a chance to be a starter; that’s huge. He’s in a contract year; that’s huge for him. So, I’m not surprised by what he’s doing as far as the talent perspective. He’s a gifted guy. He’s tall. He can run. He’s aggressive. It has been good for us.”
(The last two weeks have seen the defense play at a very high level. Can you point to one reason why the first four, five weeks it wasn’t that?) – “I think having Cam (Wake) out there full time, Andre (Branch) playing more snaps – that has helped. That has been different for us as far as the ends having more energy out there. The back end guys have been really solid. (Byron) Maxwell has played better and better each week, the last two weeks. That has helped also. But I think the energy that Cam brought and Andre brought, that has been the biggest difference in my opinion.”
(Have you done anything schematically?) – “Every game is different. The game plan changes each week going through who you’re playing, so that’s no difference. It’s different every week.”
(You’ve haven’t gone to like a 3-4 team?) – “No.”
(Are you noticing a big difference physically now in DE Cameron Wake from the start of the regular season?) – “Absolutely. Cam, he has come a long way. The first three weeks, he wasn’t Cam. Now he’s back to being Cam. If he’s one on one with most tackles, he’s going to win a majority of the snaps. So, he’s back to being what Cam was in the past.”
(I know that when players aren’t playing to your standards, you tell them. Do you think it affects them more when you let everybody know? Like here?) – “We don’t hide much on defense. If they’re not playing well, we’re all going to know it. Every player is going to know it, every coach is going to know it. If you ask me the question, I’ll tell you. If you don’t ask me, I won’t tell you. But our players trust us enough to know that if I’m saying it publicly, it has already been said in private. They trust us. It’s just an honest way of doing business here. ”
(Is it gratifying that players that have been – I don’t want to say called out – but that you’ve told are not playing up to snuff, that they’ve brought their level of play up a little?) – “Absolutely. With Mario (Williams), he has definitely come back the last two weeks and played harder. Once he played harder, he was going to play better. We all knew that. (Byron) Maxwell has played better also. So, I guess it’s gratifying to know that they’re hearing you. If you ask them to play better, you hope they’ll play better, and that has happened in those two cases.”
(You all did a pretty solid job of bottling up QB Tyrod Taylor as well, not allowing him to break free and escape. How were you able to contain him?) – “The front four. We had a hell of a rush plan this week. They pushed the pocket inside and crushed the can on the outside. When he escaped, he escaped out the back door, which that’s what you want. You don’t want him to step through and escape vertically. That’s huge gains. We knew he was going to escape some, but for the most part, the front four did a great job.”
(What the defense has done the last couple of weeks – the pass rushers getting after the quarterback, producing turnovers and sacks – is this sustainable or are these outlier performances do you think?) – “No, that’s who we can be. In my opinion, every game we’ve played, we’ve shown that kind of ability to play that way. From Seattle to even Tennessee, we’ve had some moments where we can be a special group. It’s just about being consistent, everybody doing their job and playing hard all the time. I’m not surprised that we’re playing well the last two weeks. That’s what we’re expecting. Our front four should be a good unit. That’s why they’re here. I’m not surprised that Cam (Wake) and Andre (Branch) and Mario (Williams) are playing good. And obviously (Ndamukong) Suh has played well all year. So, that’s expected.
(How can you get better defensive tackle play?) – “Hopefully, (Leon) Orr … He has been here for only two weeks. That’s tough. Chris Jones is a guy that does things right. The bottom line is Jordan (Phillips) has got to play better overall. Out of 35 plays, Jordan is playing a solid 25 plays very solidly. He’s having four or five plays where it’s not very good. I think Suh is playing well. I think Suh gets doubled a lot, but I think Jordan could play better. Obviously, getting Earl (Mitchell) back in a couple weeks, that’s going to help us there. Losing Earl was a big deal for us inside, because now you’ve got probably three inside starters. Getting Earl back in two weeks, that’s going to help us a lot.”
(How disruptive was DT Ndamukong Suh yesterday?) – “Very. He’s a three technique, so he’s doubled by a lineman every play, but he is disruptive in there, especially on pass downs. He can push the pocket. His sack, he was a decoy on that sack. He clubbed his guy and made a play. He can be special. But obviously, every play he has got two guys on him most of the time. It’s tough to be special every play being doubled.”
(With CB Byron Maxwell, what particularly has contributed to his improved play or the level of cleanliness of is play?) – “I think just doing it right. Byron came from a system in Seattle that did play Cover 3 every down. For a corner, that’s simple. That’s more physical than it is mental. Here, it’s a multiple-coverage scheme, so he has got to play a certain way every down. Early on, he wasn’t doing that. Now he’s doing that better. It looks better for Byron. He’s jamming receivers. He’s on top of vertical routes. It looks better when you’re doing it right in this system, but it’s also … It can be cornerback friendly if you do it right. He’s figuring it out. If you do it right – play your proper leverage – you can play in this system and play well.”
(With the linebacker play, everything seems to have improved in terms of gap integrity. Was that players getting comfortable in the scheme? Was it the addition of LB Donald Butler? Is it a rotation between LB Neville Hewitt and Butler?) – “I think it’s overall. I think the front guys are fitting their gaps better, staying square on blocks and playing blocks better. I think the linebackers are playing better fitting their gaps. Kiko (Alonso) has been solid all year. I think Butler has been here now for, what, four games I think? So, he’s getting better in his assignments. I think Neville is playing better and better each week. Neville is a young player, but he has played better and better each week. And Jelani (Jenkins) is playing more dime than he is base down. So, it’s just overall, everyone fitting their gaps better. Everyone is staying in their gaps. That has been a big difference in the run game the last two weeks.”
(You’re encouraged that S Isa Abdul-Quddus will be available in two weeks?) – “Absolutely.”
