David Long Jr. – September 9, 2024
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Monday, September 9, 2024
LB David Long Jr.
(I wanted to ask you, given what happened and how weird thing were before the game yesterday. can you give us a picture of how you guys were able to come together and focus on the game after you found out what had happened?) – “It really wasn’t that tough for us to stay focused on the task at hand. We knew with the challenge we had in front of us that was a good team across from us. We knew we couldn’t go out there and play around and focus on things that were out of our control. We talked about it and locked back in and ended up going out there and handling business.”
(What were the key changes do you feel in the second half that lead to the difference in performance in the first and second half?) – “I think people just woke up. We went in there, we realized that we were not playing ourselves on the defensive side of the ball. We went in there and got each other right. As far as the coaches coming in there and announcing the things we were messing up on and holding each other accountable. We know we have too many elite players on that side of the ball for things to be going the way they were. It didn’t take much for us to have some self-reflect and go out there and hold each other accountable at halftime. We went out there and handled business.”
(You’ve had at least a couple occasions where you’ve gotten to play against QB Josh Allen. What are some of the keys to stopping him in your estimation?) – “Discipline football and tackling. Strong quarterback that can make things happen with his feet, so you know how you have to be discipline. He can make you pay when you’re not. I’ve played against him many times, and this team has as well, so we know what we got on Thursday.”
(I know this isn’t a question specifically about how your defense performed. I want to talk about the mentality that it takes on those third-and-shorts situations, those fourth-and-1 situations. You’re a physical linebacker. What type of mentality do you have to have to keep the offense from converting on that play?) – “I feel like that’s where you can a find out a lot about your team on those tough downs. That’s where the great football is played because it only takes an inch, either to stop them or to get the first down. We made key stops a couple of times yesterday. It’s just to attest to who we are. We know it’s not easy to win in this league. It usually comes down to one or two plays and you got to take advantage when the opportunity presents itself. I was actually happy we were in those positions because especially early, you get an idea to see who is going to bow up and then who’s not. I think we all showed that some adversity is nothing to us. Actually, we like being in those positions and it shows a lot about us.”
(How’s the hand, by the way?) – “It’s straight, man. I’m cool, ain’t going to put too much on it.”
(I wanted to ask you about your impression on how Defensive Coordinator Anthony Weaver called his first game with you guys? Do you have any good stories form the sideline or was he up in the box?) – “He was on the sideline. I think it was great. I think he called some plays to get some people to show their strengths, especially at the end of the game. Guys just making plays. It wasn’t just like extra effort, especially with ‘JP’ (Jaelan Phillips), ‘O’ (Emmanuel Ogbah). We just wanted it more. I think it showed. I think he called plays to just let guys play their game which is important, especially to the elite players on this side of the ball that got to show their strengths. It was good. Looking to build on it throughout the season.”
(What are your impressions on how LB Jaelan Phillips did his first game back?) – “Man, listen – we literally just left film. I don’t know if y’all watched it but that boy has a motor. That man has motor and it shows. It shows that he was just eager to get back out there with the guys. It’s going to be a long season for these tackles, not going to lie.”
(So much is made by fans and some media about how players from former teams can help their current team. Is there anything that S Jordan Poyer can offer you guys, without saying what it is, is there anything strategically, or even nuances of Buffalo’s offense you think can help you this week? Or is all of that totally overstated and you know enough just from having played them a lot?) – “I would just say just that – you answered the question. We know them enough. ‘JP’ (Jordan Poyer), even with him being over there I don’t think it’s much. Even if they did, they would probably know, so any calls, any pre-snaps, they would probably change it, of course. It’s not like, ‘JP, give us a blueprint.’ Just go out there and we know we have a plan when we get it, and play to that. But no, I’m not worried about that.”
(I wanted to go back to the question about the incident involving WR Tyreek Hill before the game. I’m wondering if you were able to see any of the social media videos about what happened, and for you personally, what was it like seeing a teammate going through that? Was it scary? What have you been able to reflect about what happened?) – “I wouldn’t say it’s scary. It’s something that I’m used to seeing. But it was just wild that like – I saw the video, but I didn’t see the caption or anything at first, but then I saw it. It’s crazy that mentally he could lock back in and go out there and finish the game that he did, because that could’ve threw him off his game. He probably could’ve had a bad game and just let that mess with his mental. But he didn’t. He went out there, got past it at that time and made stuff happen. It was a good attest to him and his focus and discipline.”
(I wanted to know about the run defense. You guys allowed 128 yards on 26 carries. But the biggest play of the game, S Jevón Holland’s strip, came in the run game. How do you balance that? How did you guys do overall against the run?) – “I think we did OK. I know I could’ve done better, but as a whole, as a defense, we we’re just meeting. We know we have some things to harp on a little bit, but all in all, we feel like we have the tools to make stuff happen and we just want to be great. To us, that was too much, but big plays here and there, they weren’t consistently running. They had a couple of plays where they were just big gains, but it’s easy fixes especially with the leaders on this side of the ball. It’s an easy fix.”
