Anthony Weaver – November 21, 2024
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Thursday, November 21, 2024
Defensive Coordinator Anthony Weaver
(I’m kind of torn on whether or not “Weave” should be “Weave” or “Weav.” So what’s your preference?) – “So it’s funny you say that, because I do go back and forth. It’s more based on who I think I’m writing the email to and probably how close we are. (laughter) But yeah, I don’t know what the right way is. Most of the time, I add the ‘e.’”
(So you have two very competent backup safeties obviously with S Marcus Maye and DB Elijah Campbell. You’ve told us not to sleep on Elijah. So do you feel like at this point S Jordan Poyer playing every snap alongside S Jevón Holland gives you the best chance to win or is that a decision that you’ve revisited this week?) – “I think each and every week, whether it’s players or coaches, we’re all earning the right to be where we’re at. Like nothing is given – the same reason my nameplate slides out by my office. So I have the utmost faith in Jordan (Poyer) and Jevón (Holland), the way they work together, their connectivity. So at this point they’re certainly our starters, but I love Elijah (Campbell), I love Marcus Maye and I know if called upon, they’ll be ready to come out there and execute their job at a high level.”
(What would S Jordan Poyer have to do to sort of improve from a coverage standpoint?) – “It’s interesting because I don’t know exactly what his numbers are or where in the narrative that he’s failing in terms of coverage because there’s so many other things that he does in terms of just getting people in the right positions that he doesn’t get credited for. So there is a cerebral part of the game particularly at that position which is incredibly important and he has graduate level honors in that.”
(I’ve got a philosophical question that was debated during the game in the press box. So S Jevón Holland when Raiders QB Gardner Minshew runs and he sticks the ball out and gets the first down, looked like Jevón had a shot at Gardner Minshew, could take a hit. There were some people saying he should have taken that hit to prevent the first down, others were saying, no, he’s a quarterback, he would’ve gotten a flag. What should he have done in that situation and do you think that through to that level?) – “It’s certainly always a bang-bang play when you’re in that predicament and we understand the precautions that are taken to protect the quarterbacks. As a defensive guy, I always err on the side of aggression, so in my mind, take the hit. (laughter)”
(When you took this job, this offense was the most electric downfield passing offense scoring 30-plus points in every game. Now they have this new approach of sustained drives, 15-, 16-play drives every game it seems like. Does that change the way you call a new defense compared to an offense that would be an explosive one we saw last year?) – “No, I don’t think so. I think however our offense is playing the game, as long as the ball continues to end up in the end zone, we’re happy regardless of how it gets there. And ultimately whether we’re playing a 40-play game or a 65- to 70-play game, the goal is the same; it’s to keep them out and limit their points to as little as possible.”
(What are some points of emphasis for CB Cam Smith to at some point fulfill his potential?) – “I think the points of emphasis for him are just mastering your technique and fundamentals while you’re continuing to learn the intricate details of the defense. As a young player, like I said this before with him, when he’s had his lapses, it’s been because of technique and fundamental flaws. It’ll never be an ability, because he’s disadvantaged from a physical attribute standpoint with him. He can run. He has length and he is smart. He’s a smart kid, so all he needs is just reps. He needs reps at all these things where he’s making mistakes, learns from those mistakes and doesn’t repeat those mistakes. So for him, it’s just a matter of getting him on the field as much as possible.”
(You didn’t face Patriots QB Drake Maye in the first game against New England. He’s kind of defining who he is his first year. What do you see from him that’s not only – he’s not backing off running the ball obviously. What do you see from him?) – “The thing you see on tape is just he doesn’t lack confidence. He trusts his ability; he trusts his arm. And the thing with all these new crops of young quarterbacks is when plays break down, they have ability to create extended plays and run both outside of the pocket and down the field and then run to throw it, too, so we’ve got to be cognizant of that. Again, this is not me saying he’s Josh Allen, but you’ve kind of got to approach him like Josh Allen a little bit where you’re trying to funnel him certain directions and try to contain his rush ability as much as you can.”
(Yesterday when we were talking with RB De’Von Achane, he was describing how effective he’s been catching balls out of the backfield, and he expressed some surprise that defenses haven’t clamped down on that more than they have. I’m wondering from a defensive coordinator’s perspective, when a back comes out of the backfield and has that kind of space, is that more a product often of blown assignment or defense is focusing on the guys on the outside?) – “I think particularly when you’re talking about our offense, you devote so much attention to those guys on the outside and the speed they have. So what that requires you to do is obviously play with some air, and you’re willing to give up some of those underneath routes. Oftentimes that’s a check down at the back. When that check down is to a guy that runs a 4.3 or whatever De’Von (Achane) runs, then that’s problematic. So you’ve got to concede something, right? There is no perfect defensive call. There is no perfect defense, and if you’re facing the athletic skill set that we have on our offensive side of the ball, then usually that’s the one you’re going to give up.”
(Some recent struggles covering top tight ends. The Patriots are another team with a good one in Hunter Henry. Have you given any consideration to using CB Jalen Ramsey on tight ends especially maybe against a team that don’t have a top-ranked receiver on the outside?) – “Yeah, of course, of course. That was certainly discussed last week. I think where we fell short last week was when they had the change in coordinator, really they changed philosophically some of the things they were doing with him. So when those discussions came up, well, prior to the previous coordinator with (Luke) Getsy on third down in particular, Brock (Bowers) was chipping a lot. So the one thing you’d hate to do is you’d have Ramsey on Brock Bowers and he’s chipping and going to the flat or something like that. That changed. In game, you’d like to do some things, but there’s multiple pieces that have to move in order to make some of those changes, usually not just that easy. So we’re certainly accounting for Hunter Henry. We know the athlete he is. We’ve played against them. We feel comfortable with our matchups and we know that there’s a comfort level there with the Drake Maye kid and we have to account for that.”
(DT Benito Jones seemed to be a lot more of a factor in the pass rush last Sunday…) – “It’s funny you say that because early in the season, when we were having some of our run issues, I told Benito (Jones) like, ‘I don’t care if you get zero sacks on the season, I need you to grind these run blocks out.’ And now he’s turned into Warren Sapp all of a sudden. So I don’t know if he’s just not listening to me. (laughter) No, I joke around. But I think Benito, just like all of our guys, the challenge is just to get better weekly and I think that’s what you’re seeing out of him. There’s ability there to both impact the game in the run and the pass game, and it was pretty cool last week to kind of see those flashes. Now we’ve just got to turn it into actual sacks and not pressures.”
(LB Chop Robinson seems to be chopping up offensive tackles. The last two weeks he’s abusing some guys. What’s the difference for him?) – “It’s just reps and confidence, right? I think Coach (Ryan) Crow and Coach (Sean) Ryan are doing tremendous job with him and as well as just the players, too. I mean, he’s always talking to Calais (Campbell), Bradley Chubb, I’d see talking to him all the time. When Jaelan (Phillips) was out – with Jaelan back, Jaelan has been helping him, too. So there’s been a collective effort in trying to impart as much wisdom in a very short, short period of time with this kid. And to his credit, he’s just taking it all in and he’s going out and attacking that on the football field and I think you’re starting to see the residuals of all that now.”
(In terms of last year, you had opportunity to talk to a team about a head coaching opening. What did you learn from that experience and how did it help you to grow and to become the defensive coordinator that you are now?) – “I learned from that experience, one, that it was certainly nothing to be nervous about or have any anxiety about. Ultimately, I’m just going to be myself and whether or not they want me as their head coach, that’s up to them. In terms of how has it prepared me for this, I don’t necessarily know that it has. I am so entrenched in doing what’s necessary for the Miami Dolphins to win and whatever happens as a result of that, it happens. I’m not worried about it whatsoever. I just want to do right by these players and do everything we can try to make a run and try to find a way into the show.”
(I’ve got a pass rush question. Last week – I don’t know if I’m making too much of this – I thought I saw some really good pass rush, keeping the quarterback contained. I thought on LB Emmanuel Ogbah’s sack, he’s coming at the right tackle spot, DT Calais Campbell is at the left tackle spot, DT Zach Sieler is in the middle taking on a double team and then kind of LB Jordyn Brooks comes in and helps clean up; but am I seeing that right? Did you guys have a few rushes where you kind of bracketed people, the quarterback? And will that help with Patriots QB Drake Maye?) – “Our rush plan – who we charge Coach (Austin) Clark and Coach (Ryan) Crow and myself, it’s a collaborative effort week-in and week-out and how we want to attack just the space and what they’re trying to do from a protection standpoint and who the quarterback is. So when you have a guy like Drake Maye obviously who’s going to go through his progression and he’s going to be quick to run, we’re always trying to make sure that we can funnel him places he doesn’t necessarily want to go to. I think there’s times in the season where we’ve been successful in doing that. I think the second time we played the Bills, we were much better against Josh Allen than we were in Game 1. There were times I thought we fell short; I didn’t think we did a good enough job versus Kyler Murray. So it’s certainly a point of emphasis this week against this guy and who he is, but it’s certainly something we spend a lot of time working on.”
(Now that he’s been here for a week and not just a new arrival, are you anticipating using LB Tyrel Dodson on defense at all a bit or is the plan still to go with LB Jordyn Brooks and LB Anthony Walker Jr.?) – “I love ‘TD’ (Tyrel Dodson). I love what he brings to this defense and obviously, just the experience he has. Unfortunately, you can only play two, maybe three backers at a time, and I feel real confident in the guys we have out there playing right now. But if he’s called upon, the one thing I know is he’s ready. He’s ready to go in and he’ll play at a high level for us.”
(With LB Anthony Walker Jr., is it – there’s been a shift or change in this defense, I wouldn’t necessarily credit it all to him, but is it partly just a communication standpoint or the assignment that has helped you guys take that next level especially from a run stopping standpoint?) – “You think of ‘Walk’ (Anthony Walker Jr.), even prior to the season, I think he was – him and David (Long), he was nipping at David’s heels the entire time. And then he got hurt in training camp and that kind of set him back a little bit. So I love that he’s out there. He’s a very calming influence on the defense and the guys around him, and from the Mike backer position, that is invaluable. He can help put out some fires that are sometimes created out there by guys that don’t necessarily know what to do in that particular moment. So I think that and obviously he’s played a bunch of meaningful snaps, like he instinctively knows what offenses are trying to do and how they’re trying to attack us. So his FBI (football intelligence) and obviously his overall just confidence in the defense and schematics just helps us all.”
(Does he ever ask you DC pointers to you as in his role with the high school?) – “Yeah, you know what’s funny is I talk to him obviously a lot about the Xs and Os. Jalen Ramsey is another guy who I think at one point whenever his time is done would like to coach high school football, so I talk a lot of Xs and Os with him, too. I love those guys just because the more you know about the game, you can start to figure out when you can take your chances because you know big picture what’s happening around you and how offenses are trying to attack. And it allows you to – if you can make one or two extra plays a game, I mean, that could be the difference between winning and losing.”
(That third quarter stop you guys made on the Raiders’ first possession, I’m wondering how big that was. It was 10-6, they had that field goal. Do you guys talk about that first possession and how big was that stop? Your offense goes down 97 yards and scores, how big was that stop?) – “Yeah, huge. We’ve talked every week about starting fast and finishing stronger. So whether that’s the beginning of the game, end of half, start of the second half, end of game; to me, all those times are critical points for an offense and for a defense. So it’s funny because all the time, it’s like, who’s starting, who’s starting, who’s starting? Like I don’t care who starts. Who’s finishing? That’s what I want to know. Who’s finishing plays, who’s finishing tackles, like that ultimately is what’s most important to me.”
