Chan Gailey – December 29, 2020
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Tuesday, December 29, 2020
Offensive Coordinator Chan Gailey
(I wanted to ask you about the dynamic of the two quarterbacks that played on Saturday. To our eyes, and you can tell me us we’re wrong, there seemed to be more of a vertical passing game when QB Ryan Fitzpatrick was in the game. If that wasn’t correct, were there throws that QB Tua Tagovailoa were missing? If that was accurate, what was the thinking of opening it up with Fitzpatrick under center?) – “Well, the situation of the game has a lot to do with it. If you end up getting behind and needing to get down the field and to score points quickly, that has a lot to do with it. We’ve been a team that has tried to be 9, 10, 11, 12 play drives, run the football, play-action pass, control the time on the clock. That’s the situation that we found with Tua in the ball game. Plus you’re missing some receivers from time to time and that has something to do with it. A lot of that goes into decision-making about how the game is being called and what kind of plays we run.”
(How much of a lift was it to get RB Myles Gaskin back on offense this week? What did you see from him on tape that led to that big night for him?) – “He had a good week of practice, which that always means a lot. If a guy has a good week of practice, you have a lot of confidence going into the game. Salvon (Ahmed) had done extremely well obviously the week before so he got the start. Then all of a sudden, Myles started running the football and getting some creases and making some plays, so he got the hot hand. That’s how we’ve been doing it this year – whoever gets the hot hand, we let them go.”
(Just following up about the difference when QB Ryan Fitzpatrick comes in. Is there something about maybe his comfort with the offense that he may feel more comfortable throwing those deep passes? Or is it just simply the play calling? How do you view those situations in those fourth quarters when Fitzpatrick comes in?) – “He does have a little more experience with a few of the receivers. You notice he threw it to ’Zay’ (Isaiah Ford) a couple of times and to Mike (Gesicki) a couple of times – guys he has a comfort level with and he knows how they’re going to react in certain situations. Having played with those guys last year and the first part of this year, he’s very comfortable. He has an idea of where they’re going to be and how they’re going to react in those situations. I think that part of it allows him to put the ball in some certain spots. It worked out for us.”
(I’m still trying to learn a lot about the RPO and that style of offense. How important is the run part of it? I know it’s the first letter that comes in it, but how important is it to that style of game in terms of, I guess – is it much like play-action?) – “That’s not an easy question to answer by the way. Play-action pass means that you are faking a run, but the linemen are not actually blocking downfield like they would go after linebackers and go down the field. The RPOs (run-pass options) have to be thrown much quicker. Play-actions can be – you can fake the run, but you know your linemen aren’t going down the field so you can throw deeper routes. The RPO has to be thrown quickly because if you don’t throw it quickly, your linemen, if you don’t throw it quickly – as we’ve been called a couple of times this year – we had a linemen downfield on RPOs because we held it just a little bit too long. The run part of it is huge. You’ve got to sell the run and you’ve got to be willing to hand it off if they give you the look you want to run the football.”
(How has your experience coming back from retirement been this season and do you think you’ll be back next season with the team?) – “This has been an unusual year to say the least. The experience has been like no other I’ve ever had, that’s for sure. I think somebody – maybe it was you – asked me about this last week. I’m thinking about how to go up and beat Buffalo. That’s what I’m thinking about. I’m not thinking about anything else right now. How can I help this football team go beat Buffalo.”
(Obviously your connections with Buffalo go back, and I’m sorry for the convoluted question because there are a couple of things I wanted to address. How much does the sting of 2015, and how the season ended with the Jets with that loss in Buffalo, still resonate with you and QB Ryan Fitzpatrick? If you’d reflect back to your teary-eyed departure you said ‘this will probably be the first place that’s ever fired me that I’ll pull for.’ Just how have things come back, and whether it’s what you said after you got dismissed or the 2015 season, just any recollection, or perspective on that?) – “You make a lot of statements when you’re young that you wish you had back. That one has not held true, that I said. I love the people there. They’re great people. I really do. But I want to beat their butt this weekend. The loss we had up there, it still sticks in my craw. That was a tough one. That one sticks with me for sure.”
(I just want to clarify, we’ve asked you the question twiceobviously trying to do our job. You keep bringing up how different this year has been because of the pandemic. Is that a factor in your decision in terms of safety and things of that nature, about whether you want to continue to coach?) – “No. I was just saying – somebody asked me how the experience was this year. It was just the most unusual experience I’ve ever been through.”
(There has been some criticism on the outside that you might not call the same plays for QB Tua Tagovailoa as you do for QB Ryan Fitzpatrick, that there might not be the same level of trust. I imagine you’re going to push back on that narrative, I wanted to give you the chance to respond.) – “Yeah. You have the game plan set up that you go into it with, and you’re in a different mode when you get to the end there. You’re in a totally different mode. It is different because of the situations, not because of players.”
