Brian Flores – September 24, 2020 (Postgame)
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Thursday, September 24, 2020
Postgame – Jacksonville
Head Coach Brian Flores (transcribed by Jacksonville Jaguars)
(On the play of Ryan Fitzpatrick) – “I thought Fitz played well. We moved the ball efficiently in the first half. It could have been better in the second half. I thought he made good decisions. I thought he ran it when he needed to run it. I thought he had good command of the offense tonight. It wasn’t just Fitz. There are 11 guys on each snap, so the O-line played well. We got contributions from a lot of different guys – the offensive line, the backs, tight ends, receivers – everyone contributed and that is what you need to win in this league.”
(On how he saw the team build off the early lead) – “We got off to a good start. It’s something we have been talking about. I think our staff did a good job offensively, defensively and in the kicking game in a short week of getting the guys ready to go. [Offensive Coordinator] Chan [Gailey], [Defensive Coordinator] Josh [Boyer], [Special Teams Coordinator] Danny [Crossman] – a lot of credit goes to them for the work they did this week. The credit also goes to the players because they put the work in. They did a good job with the communication, the fundamentals and the techniques. They made plays out there, but it was a total team effort in the offense, defense and special teams.”
(On how satisfied he was with the pass rush tonight) – “It’s something we have been working on. Every team wants to get pressure on the quarterback. We were able to do that tonight. There were instances where we could have done better, but definitely improved from previous weeks. They have a good O-line. They have a good quarterback. They have good skill guys, so it was a tough test for us. Our guys came ready to play tonight. They played fast. They played physical, there was a lot of energy on the field and I am sure you guys could see that. They were fired up. It was a short week but put a lot of time in as a team and they did a lot of extra work this week. It was important for them and they saw the fruits of their labor.”
(On how this win reinforces what he has been teaching and building) – “It is always important to work hard on something and see the fruits of your labor like I just mentioned. It’s a good thing and definitely builds confidence. We have to continue to work the way we have been working and continue to grow as a team and as a staff. It feels good to win. That definitely feels good to win. I am proud of these guys and I am happy for them. I am happy for our staff because these guys work tirelessly, and I am excited for them. As far as what we are trying to build, we are trying to win games every week and they work hard for that.”
(On what happened on Kamu Grugier-Hill’s fourth down sack play) – “[Defensive Coordinator] Josh [Boyer] made a real good call on that. He blitzed them. Grugier-Hill came free and it is fourth down. It was a good play there because they had a little bit of momentum there at the half. We stopped them. It was a good play by Grugier-Hill. I thought he played well defensively. We called his number there and in the second half, he stepped up, made tackles and played fast. He along with a lot of other guys defensively – whether it was [Kyle] Van Noy, coaching, [Zach] Sieler. Obliviously X [Xavien Howard] had the play at the end. It was a total team effort. We continue to build, to work as a team or a unit. We had contributions from different guys. We are not a one-man show here – no team is. We need contributions from everyone. Hopefully we can continue to improve and get better.”
(On if the lack of preseason games is affecting the team) – “Anytime you can go through experiences as a group, it helps. Again, we are not going to make any excuses or point fingers for what preseason we did or didn’t have. We are going to try to move on day-to-day and get better. These guys know what it takes to improve and get better and win in this league. It’s not easy. It is about coming in on a daily basis and working on whatever it is where it is a fundamental as simple as throwing and catching or doing a complex scheme offensively or defensively or in the kicking game. Our guys work for that. When you do that, you put yourself in a position to have some success and that is what our guys have done.”
(On Kyle Van Noy’s strip-sack, fumble recovery and play this week) – “Complementary football is how you win in this league. We have to back them up or win the field position battle. Win the time of possession battle by getting first downs offensively. Turn the ball over defensively. That is how you win in this league. That was a good play by Kyle. It wasn’t just Kyle. It’s never just one person I feel like. I am not sure who else because I haven’t watched it yet, but I am sure someone else had a really good rush that might have pulled somebody in and bounced off of Kyle and popped in there. It was a good individual play and what we need on every snap is 11 really good individual plays with some guys trying to match up. If we get that consecutively, we get good results. Normally, you get good results. Sometimes, you don’t. When you don’t, you move onto the next play. You believe getting 11 guys on the correct page in the right direction with good communication, good fundamentals and technique. If we do that, we will have good plays so it’s important for them to do that not only for themselves but also for the guy next to them.”
(On the offensive line) – “I know a lot of the focus in on the rookies, but we take Ereck Flowers, Jesse [Davis], those guys, all of them, I think these guys are competitive. There are tough and smart and it’s important to them. I think there is a lot of leadership in that room. The young guys just follow their lead. I think they understand that. That is a unit, not individuals but one unit and we try to play that way. We had some success early in the game – I wish we could have run it better from the second quarter on. It’s something we will take about and try to get improved tomorrow and this week. I like what I saw out of the group. I haven’t watched the tape yet so I am sure there is something we can coach and correct. By no means, was it a perfect game – I saw a couple of penalties which we will try to get those corrected. Hopefully, we are heading in the right direction.”
