Brian Flores – June 5, 2019
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Wednesday, June 5, 2019
Head Coach Brian Flores
(On one of the undrafted kids from Miami, LB Terrill Hanks, what has he shown you at linebacker? And have any of the other undrafted kids flashed you? We’ve see WR Preston Williams obviously but some of the kids maybe we can’t see closely, the lineman, etc. Has anyone else flashed among the undrafted rookies?) – “Terrill Hanks, I think he’s working hard. I think he’s got a good amount of ability. I think he’s smart. I think he’s young. He’s learning. He’s working to get better. I think he’s moving in the right direction. I think he’s eager to learn. He’s very coachable. I enjoy working with him. I think he’s got some talent and hopefully he continues to progress the way he has in almost four weeks. Hopefully we’ve got something, but it’s still very early.”
(And beyond WR Preston Williams, any of the undrafted kids? We can’t judge the T Aaron Monteiros and the G Shaq Calhouns on the line. DE Dewayne Hendrix, DE Jonathan Ledbetter on the other side. Have any of those kids at all particularly flashed to you?) – “On the offensive and defensive line, it’s hard until we put pads on but all four of those guys and really I would say all of the undrafted kids, they’re really doing a good (job). They’re all working hard. They’re all very eager to learn (and) to do extra on the practice field (and) in the meetings. They stay late, they’re in early, they’re lifting. I would say – they were way, way behind. When every rookie comes in, they’re so far behind. But I think this class, really as a whole – draft picks and undrafted guys – have closed the gap to a degree. I think they’re all doing a good job. Again, there’s a long way to go. Hopefully we continue on the progression that they’re on and we keep it going.”
(On QB Ryan Fitzpatrick, everyone compliments his leadership skills. Can you think of an example of something you’ve seen him do or say that really shows his leadership style?) – “I think it’s, the first thing I think of is his command of the huddle. I think how he works with players – older players, younger players – and his rapport with defensive guys, offensive guys and guys in the kicking game, I think that shows his leadership in a big way. I think whoever he is in there with, he’s trying to help and improve and get better. I’ve been very pleased with him.”
(How can QB Josh Rosen make up some of that experience that QB Ryan Fitzpatrick doing some of those things that you just mentioned if he hopes to win this job?) – “I think he has an opportunity to learn from ‘Fitz’ in some ways, but I think he has to be himself. I think Josh is smart. I’ve had a lot of really good conversations with him. He’s personable. He’s built some relationships on the team as well. I think it’s really for everyone. I think you have to be yourself. I think you have to work at those relationships and then, at the same time, you’re working on your fundamentals, your technique and the football aspect of it. But from a leadership standpoint, I think they’re both moving in a good direction.”
(Since we’re on this topic, we’ve obviously seen QB Ryan Fitzpatrick out there getting the first-team reps each of the last four practices we’ve attended. Is that a fair representation of where this competition currently stands?) – “I mean it’s so early that until we really get into the nitty-gritty of training camp and the preseason, it’s just too early to say ‘This guy is a starter,’ or ‘That guy is a starter.’ That’s my opinion on it. I think both guys are working. First team, second team, I think I don’t put too much stock into that. Everybody is working. The install is the install so we’re working everybody on the same plays, the same defense and the same stuff in the kicking game. It’s about execution. It’s about fundamentals, technique and if you do those things and you progress, then we’ll see where guys fall.”
(Do you put the most weight then into the preseason games when you make the decision on who will be the starting quarterback?) – “Everything counts. So today counts, tomorrow counts, training camp counts, preseason counts. Everything counts. The most weight, that’s a hard one to kind of (answer). No, I don’t put it all into the preseason games. I think practice counts for a lot of it. Production at practice, production in games, meetings, walkthroughs, I think all of it counts.”
(Wouldn’t it benefit QB Josh Rosen and you and the staff if he worked with the starting line and starting receivers? I know you don’t necessarily have starters yet but you do have guys like WR Kenny Stills and WR DeVante Parker. Wouldn’t it benefit him to get more of those reps?) – “I think I would say there are guys working in both groups. Receivers, backs and linemen are moving around. That has been the case. I don’t know if you guys have noticed that, but that has been the case. I think he’s working, I think a lot of guys are working. We’re moving guys around a lot. I think, again, with Rosen, I think he’s doing a good job. I think he’s progressing. I think he’s moving in the right direction. I think he’s very talented and we’ll see where this goes.”
(Throughout these OTAs and minicamp and so forth, are there any aspects of the work you’ve seen where you would say the team is either ahead of where you might have expected or behind where you might have expected?) – “That’s a good question. I have high expectations so I’m always going to say we’re behind. I guess that’s my thought process. There’s always two, three, four, eight things I feel like we could have done better. I do see some improvement. I see a lot of progress. Practice looks the way I want it to look like just from an operational standpoint and from a tempo standpoint. But yeah, I want to be at a higher level at everything. So no, we’re not where I want to be.”
(What have you learned about T Laremy Tunsil over these past two months?) – “He’s a very talented player. I think from a leadership standpoint, that’s something that he’s developed and we’re looking for that leadership from him. I think he works hard. I think he’s smart. I think he’s got a chance to be a good player, a very good player in this league. We’ll just keep progressing and try to demand that out of him.”
(Have you seen strides in TE Mike Gesicki’s game?) – “Mike is another guy (that is) very talented. He’s working very, very hard. He’s catching the ball decently but again, I talked to him about this this morning that one drop is one too many. One penalty is one too many. One missed assignment is one too many. That’s kind of the standard, that’s the approach we’re taking. I’m hard on Mike because I see a lot of potential in him and I think he’s working towards that. These guys are dealing with a lot from me right now. They’ve all responded well.”
(When you are to name a starting QB, how much will General Manager Chris Grier be a part of that evaluation and that process or will it ultimately just be up to you?) – “No, Chris is – this is a collaborative effort. I talk to Chris on a daily basis. We talk about the team, the roster, how practice went, individual players. We talk a lot. So those will be collaborative decisions between myself, Chris, the personnel staff and the coaching staff.
(I want to ask you about your first NFL job. Have you learned lessons from that job that you use today?) – “As a scouting assistant in New England?”
(Yes.) – “Yeah, (I learned) a lot of lessons. It’s hard to play in this league. I was the ‘grim reaper’ so I went around and when guys were getting released, I walked around and had to let guys know (to bring) the playbook and the whole (thing). That was my job. It was a tough job. That’s where I learned early that this is a tough league to play in. It’s a privilege to play in this league and not a lot of guys get that opportunity. From my perspective, I try to impart that on the players not to take it for granted, that every day counts and that you want to make the most of those opportunities because it’s a privilege to play in this league.”
(How many years were you the ‘grim reaper?’) – “Two. Two full seasons.”
(Toughest call up was what?) – “I’m going to keep those between myself and those players. It has been awhile.”
(If that was a tough job, what is it like for you when you’re on the other side of the desk, having to be the guy to tell a player you’re sorry that it just isn’t working?) – “It is hard. I think we form relationships with players and it’s one of those things where you never want to do it but it’s part of this league. It’s part of, I don’t want to call it a life lesson, but there’s instances where you do everything right and you work hard and things don’t work out. That’s part of life and it ends up being life lessons for some guys. Whether they make it or don’t make it, I think it’s something that people need to know and understand: things don’t always work out. I think that’s part of my job as a teacher, as an educator, as a leader, that adversity is going to be a part of everyone’s journey. When one door closes, another one is going to open up. Those are the conversations I try to have with guys. It’s hard, but that’s this league.”
(I’ve heard some coaches call it the worst part of their job. Would you agree?) – “I would agree.”
(You all parted ways with three defensive linemen. I know free agency and money factored into it but the one older guy you kept – the only older guy on the defensive line you kept – was DT Akeem Spence. What made him appealing to you guys to retain?) – “He’s athletic. He’s strong. He’s a hard-worker. This guy works as hard as anyone we have on this team. He’s obviously had some success in this league. We want to keep good players around.”
(I want to ask you about WR Kenny Stills. He didn’t practice this week. Is this something that’s just rest time or something that can linger into training camp a month from now?) – “I think Kenny will be just fine. He’ll be just fine.”
(And WR Brice Butler got injured yesterday. Is he going to be returning for the minicamp?) – “I think he’ll be fine. He’ll be fine, too.”
(Will WR Brice Butler return to minicamp?) – “I think he’s going to give it a shot. This is one of those things where we’re going to see what it looks like today. I think at the end of the day, he’ll be fine. I don’t know if that’s today. Hopefully (it is), but he’s a tough kid and he’s kind of battled through some things already. I think he’ll be out there.”
(You obviously like T Laremy Tunsil but you’re kind of measured when you talk about him. Do you see him as a cornerstone guy that’s going to be around for a long time?) – “I think I’m measured when I talk about everyone. (laughter) It’s not specific to Laremy. He’s a really good player. I’m looking forward to working with him. I try not to put labels on players. That’s where I’m at with him. That’s where I’m at with everyone.”
