Adam Gase – September 6, 2016
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Tuesday, September 6, 2016
Head Coach Adam Gase
(On how he feels about RB Arian Foster and DE Cameron Wake physically and mentally approaching the season opener) – “Feel good physically. Just watching those two guys work the way they do. How quickly obviously ‘Cam’ (Cameron Wake) came back. I wasn’t with Arian (Foster) until the summer but just seeing how those guys try to take care of their body, the way they practice, the way they really try to push themselves. I feel really good as far as going into Game 1 and kind of the plan that we had moving forward. So we can make sure that we have those guys for the duration. Having two guys like that that have been through a lot, have seen a lot of things, it’s always comforting as a coach to have guys like that on both sides of the ball because when things get tough, and they will because that’s the nature of this business, you know those guys are always going to be the ones leading the charge.”
(On what makes QB Russell Wilson different) – “I think his ability to push the ball down the field. I mean it just hasn’t changed since he came out of college. That was the one thing when he came out it was really a staggering completion percentage for throwing the ball down the field compared to everybody else. And his ability to keep plays alive. You can really have a massive breakdown and he’ll make something happen. He’s been that way since he’s gotten in the league from probably the first day, when he started playing in the preseason, and it just seems like he’s just been growing ever since.”
(On how much did he look at QB Russell Wilson and QB Ryan Tannehill coming out of college) – “It was probably more Russell (Wilson) then Ryan (Tannehill) because we were not thinking quarterback in that area that we were feeling (Tannehill) he was going. I know Russell (Wilson) is right in the conversation with a lot of the guys that we were looking at. I remember we had him in. I think we were really impressed with his football intelligence. It kind of jumped off with us right away. We were in a unique situation because Peyton (Manning) was coming off of all his things, as far as the neck and trying to figure out a new team and a new system. So we were trying to figure out what was the right fit for us. I think if (Wilson) would have been there that would have been interesting to see, as far as what would have happened there. Peyton (Manning) went on to play four more years after that. Russell (Wilson) got drafted by a great organization then had the opportunity to compete right out the gate, which obviously he was ready for.”
(On if CB Bryon Maxwell defending him three years in practice can help) – “Probably a little bit but sometimes that can hurt you too because you start overanalyzing everything. Then you start getting all, ‘Well, look out for this and then if he does this and you start…’ It goes overboard. Sometimes players being able to study guys on their own, coming to their own conclusion, that’s sometimes a better way to go about it because you just don’t want to put things in your head and then all of sudden it’s not what you thought.”
(On the decision to fly out to Seattle on Thursday) — “We just thought since it was the first game of the year, it would give us some more time out there to just get … That’s a long trip. The closest experience I think I had to it was when we flew out there for the Super Bowl this year and it just felt like you were on the plane for like a day. So we felt like getting out there, kind of getting our guys accustomed to the sleep patterns going on and finishing up the week out there. We just thought it was best and gave us the best chance to win, as far as getting our guys ready to go. We just want to feel as good as we can going into that game. We’ll see what the results are.”
(On if it goes well if he would consider doing that for the Los Angeles trip) – “I mean we’re going to kind of see. We’ve got an initial plan right now but we’re going to kind of see how everything goes on this trip. Obviously everything is day to day. We’ll see how it goes and then if we need to make some changes, then we’ll make them.”
(On if he thinks back to Super Bowl XLVIII and scheming up against the defense and what went wrong) – “Never… (Laughter). Yes! You lose the Super Bowl, 43-8, you try to figure out what went wrong. We got a chance to play them the third game of the season the next year and saw them in the first preseason game. Yes, you think about what went wrong.”
(On whether the Super Bowl XLVIII experience helped at all) – “Absolutely. When we went into that game, I think a lot of us felt like we were rolling at that time. Really, it was as close to a shutout as you can get. We got one (touchdown) late. (I) went back … You have to do a lot of soul searching at that point and reevaluate what you were doing and what went wrong and how you could’ve changed things.”
(On what he would have done differently in Super Bowl XLVIII) – “The one thing that we did that went against what we had done all season where, we went in with a game plan, we got down, and I think we started to press a little bit, and then it cost us because I called a couple plays in that game that forced Peyton (Manning) to have to push the ball down the field and our protection was … They got through, and he got hit a couple times. The ball popped up I know on the one (turnover). You get a pick-six (on you) the other way. It changes the whole momentum. We needed something good to happen, and it was like an avalanche for us.”
(On talking to CB Byron Maxwell about Super Bowl XLVIII) – “He talks about it a little bit, but he’ll remind me occasionally.”
(On whether CB Byron Maxwell is kind when mentioning Super Bowl XLVIII) – “No.” (laughter)
(On if he has a policy on players needing to practice by a certain time before being eligible to play in a game) – “For us to feel good, absolutely you’d love to be able to say, ‘We’d like to see you at practice one day.’ I think this is a little bit of an unusual week. We’re going to be able to push this thing all the way to the end. I think every situation is a little different. I think sometimes experience plays into that, to where you might be able to say, ‘We’re not going to have anything all week,’ and then he’s going to show up on Sunday and be able to do his job. I think every situation, it’ll present itself and you have to make the best decision for the team at the time.”
(On who the backup offensive tackles are) – “It just depends. I feel like you’re wishing something is going to happen to somebody. (laughter) We’ve repped them all. Basically, I think ‘B.A.’ (Branden Albert) is the only one we haven’t done anything – and Tunsil – as far as right tackle. But I feel like we got four guys that can play left tackle. We got a plan as far as if something happened at the backup right tackle, and we feel good about how we can swing some things on the inside.”
(On whether RB Kenyan Drake is an option on offense yet) – “He could be. I think once we get close to the game we’ll decide what way we’re going to go, who’s going to be on special teams, how many backs we want up. When you’re this early in the week, you have an idea, but you don’t want to … It’s in pencil. Once we get closer to the game, then we’ll have a better idea as far as, ‘These are the guys we’re going to go with.’”
(On his comfort level with the starting offensive line) – “I feel pretty good about it. I feel like they’re getting a good feel as far as the tempo of what we’re doing, how Ryan (Tannehill) is doing some things at the line of scrimmage and making changes and the way that we handle protections in run game and things like that. The nice thing … Really, (Larmey) Tunsil is the guy that’s trying to get caught up the quickest. Obviously, the rest of those guys have been practicing a lot more than him. (Jermon) Busrod being in the offense before, it’s just a different position for him not really necessarily terminology, not necessarily understanding why we do stuff. He knows that, it’s just at a different spot. As far as them knowing what to do, I feel really good about it. It’s (about) playing off of each other and understanding when the center does something, the guard is going to be able to play off of them. Same thing with the tackles with the guards. There is something to say about chemistry amongst those guys up front. I’ve seen it change midseason, and it worked as well. The longer guys can play together, obviously, the better they’re going to do when they work together.”
(On his comfort level with C/G Anthony Steen making protection calls) – “He has been great. He’s a sharp guy. He picked things up quick. For a guy that … When you get thrown in there and all of a sudden you’re the guy, that’s a lot on your plate. I haven’t seen him really change his demeanor from the day he arrived here, at least with us. He has been really good as far as dictating what we’re doing up front.”
(On whether DT Earl Mitchell can jump right back into playing after missing some time) – “I think he can jump right back into it. Obviously, we’re going to be somewhat smart with how many snaps he gets. I wouldn’t want him to run out there and play 65 snaps or anything like that. We’re going to be smart as far as how many snaps he actually gets in the game. Hopefully when he comes out of this, we keep moving on as far as increasing those numbers as the season goes on.”
(On whether he addresses an underdog) – “I guess it’s hard to really focus on that. We have so many other things going on. I’m sure me bringing that up … These guys aren’t going to … That’s not something they focus on. You never really hear players talk about, ‘We’re big-time underdogs,’ or ‘We’re big-time favorites.’ That’s so far back. We have so many other things to worry about than that.”
