Brian Flores – December 21, 2020
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Monday, December 21, 2020
Head Coach Brian Flores
(I wanted to ask you about the job the offensive line did yesterday. It kind of got lost in the mix a little bit, but certainly down two starters in the fourth quarter, they were impressive. Your thoughts when you watched the tape?) – “I thought offensively, I thought (Offensive Coordinator) Chan (Gailey) called a really nice game. I thought our staff did a good job of getting those guys prepared and then they went out and executed across the board – o-line, tight ends, receivers, the backs ran hard and we executed.”
(To what extent is a running performance like that something to build on the rest of the way?) – “I think we want to build on execution. That’s kind of been what we’ve talked about on a week-to-week basis. Every week is a different challenge, so it’s nice to have some success, but it doesn’t really mean anything in the next game. We have to prepare and execute in whatever element of the game we’re talking about – kickoff return, punt return, kickoff, field goal, field goal block, run game, pass game, drop-back, screens, run defense. It’s about execution.”
(I wanted to get some clarity and I hope that – I’m sure you can provide it. On the two special teams plays that you guys had called back the last two weeks, were the players supposed to declare themselves as eligible and doesn’t that negate the fact that it’s a trick play? What were you supposed to do?) – “Yeah, they were supposed to have reported as eligible to the referee or umpire. We didn’t. Those are the things pre-snap we have to do a better job of. Did we report, did we not report; it’s one of those things where we have to do a better job coaching that. Obviously that starts with me and we’ve got to execute it better. Does that answer your question?”
(It does. So every time somebody’s on the end of a special teams line, they have to declare themselves?) – “If you have an ineligible number, you have to report as eligible. If you have an eligible number, you don’t. That’s just kind of – rules.”
(You’ve been an advocate for diversity on many fronts in the past, whether it be for matters within your team or advocating for other minority coaches in the NFL. What do you think of the potential matchup between QB Tua Tagovailoa and Raiders QB Marcus Mariota – both Polynesian quarterbacks – and regardless of who starts for Vegas on Saturday – I know there’s some questions there – how do you think both of these quarterbacks have represented their homes and made the most of their opportunities to reach the highest level?) – “I think they’re both very talented. They’ve had a lot of success throughout their careers, lives. From what I know about Marcus (Mariota) – I’ve never met him, but what I’ve heard just in talking to people, this is somebody who embodies a lot of the characteristics that we’re looking for in a football player. Tough, smart, team-first. Obviously Tua is that same way. So a lot of respect for Mariota as well as Derek Carr and that entire team and organization. This will certainly be a challenge this week.”
(Yesterday you had mentioned that the injured guys came close to being able to play yesterday and I’m wondering in the case of TE Mike Gesicki, when he went down, it looked at least to my eyes, it looked like it might be a serious injury, so I’m wondering was the injury just not as bad as maybe it originally appeared or is this a credit to his toughness that he is on the brink of returning so quickly?) – “Mike (Gesicki) is a very tough guy and again, I think for those of us who don’t have medical degrees, it’s hard to say it looked like – we just don’t know. We’re not looking at the X-rays and MRIs and things like that. So we leave that to the doctors and that combined with Mike and his willingness of wanting to get out there and fight through some things. He, along with a lot of our other players, are really trying to fight through and get out there as quickly as they can. Obviously we wouldn’t put them there or even practice them if we didn’t feel like they could withstand a practice or a game. Their health is first. He’s fighting through it.”
(I’m just trying to find out what the prep schedule is for this week with a game one day earlier.) – “We’ll walk through tomorrow. We’re still talking through the rest of the week as far as how we’re going to handle that.”
(There was a third-and-8 play at the end of the third quarter where you had a RB Patrick Laird run for 12 yards and a first down. I’m curious, is that something where QB Tua Tagovailoa has the autonomy at the line to check to that call? Is it something that comes into the headset? I’m just wondering how you got into a running situation on a play where traditionally it’s more of a passing situation?) – “Key word: traditionally. It’s a good call by Chan (Gailey). I think it’s honestly one of my favorite plays in the game. They play some multiple fronts there. Let’s call it dime, 7- and 8-DB packages. Chan felt like there was an opportunity to stick a run in there and we got it. We blocked it up well. (Michael) Deiter came around and pulled on the safety, who was in a linebacker-kind-of-position. Laird made a real good run and picked up a first down there. I thought it was a really, really nice call by Chan.”
(I just wanted to get an update on G Solomon Kindley’s situation and also, are you guys planning to leave after Christmas morning after everybody gets to spend a little time with the family or are you guys leaving before Christmas?) – “We’re going to leave on Christmas Day. Obviously the game is on the 26th, so we’ll leave on Christmas Day. Solomon, he’s still being evaluated. He was in here this morning. He’s going to do everything he can to get out there. He’s a tough kid. We’ll see where this is. We’ve still got to kind of do some more tests. Obviously he’s treating and things of that nature, but we’ve got to run a few more tests here.”
(We know well your laser focus. What would your reaction be or what is your reaction if you overhear a couple of your players talking about the playoffs?) – “I don’t have a problem with people talking about whatever they want to talk about, but our playoffs are this week against the Raiders. That’s my – let’s call it the playoffs, this week against the Raiders. Let’s call it that. It’s one game at a time. That’s kind of where my focus is. That’s where we’ll try to direct their focus. If they’re talking about anything else, it’s about the Raiders. It’s one game. It’s a one game season. Let’s call it a one game playoff season.”
(I wanted to piggyback on that. You have the second youngest team in the NFL. I think your average age is like 25 years old. This month, it’s experiences that a lot of these guys have never had before. How invaluable is it, not just for this year but what you’re building, to be in a playoff race, to make the playoffs and to make some noise?) – “We’re in a one game season. That’s kind of – I think it’s hard to play in this league. Whether it’s September – obviously in December, when you’re playing in meaningful games, there’s a little bit of added anxiety or stress, if you want to call it that; but it’s good to kind of go through that and realize you’re just still playing football. But yeah, it’s a one game season for us.”
