Josh Boyer – November 8, 2021
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Monday, November 8, 2021
Defensive Coordinator Josh Boyer
(I wanted to ask you about a couple of plays sequence at the end of the first half with DE Emmanuel Ogbah and LB Jaelen Phillips. You get a sack from Ogbah and then a pick from LB Jerome Baker. They lined up on the same side of the formation there and ran a couple of games. I was just curious to get your perspective on how that really helps get more pressure on the quarterback with those guys rushing off the same side like that?) – “I think both of them executed well on the play. I think we got a number of guys that we can lineup next to each other. Obviously, we always try to put guys in positions where we feel they can succeed. They executed very well on the play and that’s a credit to Emmanuel and a credit to Jaelen on that play. Obviously, ‘Bake’ (Jerome Baker) was able to finish the play for us on one of those. It’s really a credit to the players. They executed very well.”
(I just wanted to hear from you on the challenge of preparing for someone like QB Lamar Jackson on a short week?) – “In fact, they just pulled me out of a meeting. It slipped my mind that I had media today. We’re working hard on that right now and it’s a tremendous challenge. They do a lot offensively. Greg Roman does a great job with those guys. Obviously, Lamar Jackson is an exceptional talent. They’ve got multiple guys that they can go to whether it’s (Marquise) Brown or (Mark) Andrews. They’re heavily targeted guys that have made big plays. We definitely got our work cut out for us and we’re trying to make every minute of every hour count here for our preparation.”
(I’ll stay on that same topic. QB Lamar Jackson just broke the record for 100-yard rushing games for a quarterback. I know we talk sometimes about rushing quarterbacks whether it be Buffalo QB Josh Allen or different guys. I’m curious what makes Lamar’s style of running different than other guys you might defend?) – “I would say one thing that you can see on film there’s sometimes where he should not really keep the ball but he keeps it anyways because guys are in position and he beats them. He’s very elusive, even when you have guys in good position. You have to have real good eye discipline. You have to have the ability to get him on the ground. I would say obviously he’s an exceptional player and at any point in time in the game, whether you have it covered or not, whether you have guys in position or guys out of position, he can make explosive runs. He’s done that over the past couple years, really.”
(Is there anybody you’ve faced in your coaching career that kind of has a skillset like him?) – “I’m trying to think. I’m trying to think, when was (Michael) Vick’s last year?”
(Maybe like 2012?) – “Yeah. I know I’ve seen him on film, I’m not sure we’ve ever played him but I know he was an exceptional runner. Each week you see – I think Kyler Murray is a good runner. I think there’s a lot of guys that are good runners. Josh Allen is a good runner. He’s a different type of runner. Tyrod Taylor, he’s a good runner. Where they all rank, I’m not real sure. Aaron Rodgers, when he first came in league, he was a really good runner. I know his scrambling ability was something that we were always worried about. I think Lamar is an exceptional player and I think, obviously, all the yards he’s accumulated over the past couple of years, you’ll see some really special plays in there. He’s a very good player. We’ve got our hands full this week but we’re looking forward to the challenge.”
(I’ll stick on the QB Lamar Jackson questions but not really asking so much about his run ability but what have you seen in the passing game and how much do the run fakes and play actions, what are the teaching points and how much does that stress you on the defense?) – “Well, I think first of all they do a great job with their scheme marrying their play actions with their run game, which is vey extensive, their run game. Obviously, Lamar does a good job of being able to extend plays whether he makes a guy miss or just kind of gets out of the pocket a little bit. He’s able to keep his eyes down the field, he’s got a strong arm, makes good throws and then like I said, there’s been guys that they’ve had there for him that have made some good catches and good plays. It’s not that you’re just defending him in the run. You’ve got to defend their run game, him in the run, you’ve got to defend their pass game and then him in the pass. They make it extremely hard on opponents and like I said, it’s a big challenge for us.”
(What is it about Baltimore’s offensive scheme that’s allowed them to essentially plug and play guys in the backfield? It’s been almost a comedy of errors that the injuries that they’ve dealt with week after week and yet that rushing output still remains the same.) – “I would say – again I’m not in their building so I don’t know what their philosophy is, but what you can see on film is they have tough, physical guys that block well. They have a very good scheme and I think when they get guys in there, and I think there’s a certain type of guy that they’re looking for in that running back position. I think they just kind of fit right into the system, learn it, go and are able to be productive.”
(I wanted to point out you played QB Michael Vick in 2011 and he actually played in that game. So 2011 – I know you’re a historian but it took me a while to look this up – a 38-20 win for the Patriots. To answer your question, with LB Jerome Baker playing injured and coming back, how would you assess his performance? Obviously an interception, but where were you guys in terms of defense, run stopping and things of that nature?) – “I think the first thing that we look at is our guys played hard for 60 minutes and I think we were able to apply some pressure. We’re building on some things. I think we’re getting better at some things. There’s still some things that we need to correct that we’re working hard to do that. It’s always good when we have our players available to us. We would like to play them as much as we can but obviously there is nothing more important than the health of our players. Sometimes you don’t have them available to you but when we do, we try to put those guys in a position that we feel like can help us succeed.”
(If I can follow that up with the safeties and the work that S Brandon Jones and S Jevon Holland are putting in, how much does their specific skillsets open up the playbook or help you become a little bit more creative as a play caller?) – “Yeah, I think both of those guys are both athletic, they’re both physical. I think they got a good instinct for the game. I think they work extremely hard at it and I think the more experience they gain, the better that they are getting. I don’t think anything substitutes experience and I think those guys are doing a good job for us and we’ll ask them to do more, we’ll ask them to continue to get better.”
