Jerome Baker – December 9, 2020
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Wednesday, December 9, 2020
LB Jerome Baker
(I wanted to ask you about WR Tyreek Hill and the crossing routes that he often runs. How much are you going to have to keep an eye on him or keep an eye on whoever is on the slot, to slow them down as they are running across the field and maybe in your path?) – “It’s a constant communication thing as far as we just have to communicate it throughout the whole defense of whose where, do they have the potential to do a crossing route or whatever it is. It’s on a lot of us. We all have to alert each other and really hear each other and communicate well, and go from there really.”
(What was it like in the second half when CB Noah Igbinoghene got in the huddle more, filling in for CB Xavien Howard, and how happy were you of a teammate to see that he was able to pretty much hold it down, especially considering that he had some early struggles earlier in the season.) – “Yeah, we were definitely happy. At practice, he makes plays. He does the right things. He finally got his shot and we don’t expect a drop off. We definitely was all happy for him and we know he definitely can get the job done. We’re definitely happy that he got in and did what he had to do.”
(I don’t know if you can be a fan of players, but are you a fan of anything that Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes does?) – “Yeah, I’m definitely a fan. One thing that I’m a fan of is he’s unorthodox. He throws the ball different ways and he gets it out however he has to get it out. There’s no set way with him. He just gets the job done. He’s definitely fun to watch and I’m definitely excited for this Sunday to go up against him and basically have that challenge of slowing him down and slowing all the guys they have down. I’m definitely excited.”
(You guys have been successful being aggressive all year with your blitzes and whatnot. Can you still be that sort of defense against a quarterback like Patrick Mahomes, and with all the skill guys they have on the other side?) – “I think that’s the challenge we’re going up against. You still want to be aggressive, but you can’t be too aggressive. That’s just the main challenge we have. We’re definitely going to see how everything shakes out. Ultimately, our defense is built on being aggressive, so we’re just going to wait until Sunday and see how it works out.”
(Looking back over some recent weeks, you guys have done a good job of limiting the opposing team’s leading receiver pretty much every week going back for several weeks now. What’s the key to taking away the offense’s best option?) –“Are you talking about in general or this week?”
(Let’s go with this week.) – “This week it’s all about playing team defense. We can’t rely on one person or two guys or whatever it is. You can’t just double somebody or do things like that. You also have to play together. You have to alert guys across the field. You have to communicate and play together as a defense. The d-Line has to go along with the coverage. It truly has to be a team defensive game. That’s the challenge we have and the one thing about us is we’re always excited for the challenge. We’re definitely excited to go out there and play together, and everything should work out.”
(What gives you that confidence knowing that your defense can go out and perform this Sunday? Where does it come from?) – “The work we put in this whole year. Whatever it is, if it’s Zoom meetings, if it’s on the field – if we put the work in, we truly believe in the guys we have. I think that’s the confidence we have. Our preparation and how we go about doing things, it gives us the confidence. We definitely should be fine. We just have to play together and it all should work out.”
(Going up against QB Tua Tagovailoa, whenever you guys have the hurry-up offense in practice, how do you think that’s going to help you guys prepare for the Chiefs? They have that as a big aspect of their game as well.) – “It’s definitely going to help. We’ve been practicing that quite a few times throughout the year. It’s definitely going to help us; but the main thing is we have to communicate, get ready, get set fast. You can’t just mosey around and just think everything is going to happen. You really have be intentional with what you have to do, communicate fast and ultimately get the job done. We’ve been doing it all year. We have a little experience doing it, so we should be all right.”
(You get a little bit of tight end work too – not a lot, but a little bit. How confident are you guys in what S Eric Rowe has done and contributed this year in terms of tight end coverage?) – “We’re very confident. He’s been proving it week in and week out. We’re definitely confident in him. We’re going to ask him to do a number of things. We’re definitely excited. We definitely believe in him. Ultimately it’s going to be a great challenge for him Sunday.”
(You mentioned challenge. I guess since Week 5, the Chiefs have had the No. 1 scoring offense, and you guys have had the No. 1 scoring defense. It’s sort of good against good. Do you guys look at this as some sort of respect game? A way to show that you guys are for real against the reigning champs?) – “I think the one thing unique about us is this game is a great challenge in the sense of we’re going to see – we’re going to play our best football and they are going to play their best football. Two good teams are going to go at it and truly just go at it with each other. They are coming down to us. We pride ourselves on protecting our home. Ultimately, it’s going to be a great, great game. The atmosphere is going to be there. It’s just a chance for us to go out and play some meaningful football. I think that’s the main thing for us. We’re just excited to go out there and play some games that truly mean something and go out there and have fun with each other.”
