Mike McDaniel – December 4, 2024
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Wednesday, December 4, 2024
Head Coach Mike McDaniel
(Last month the running game is at 2.96 yards per carry. Are you at the point where you’re considering personnel changes either potentially at guard or giving more carries to RB Raheem Mostert or maybe carries to RB Jeff Wilson Jr. who obviously has the toughness which every team likes? Are you considering any of those personnel changes?) – “I’m considering not telling you and the Jets our game plan, but yeah, I think rest assured there is never anything that, first and foremost, that I don’t take on personal responsibility for. That’s the job and your job is to try to problem solve, find solutions for players, scheme and results. And so there’s a lot of things at bay. This is the same conversation in ways that we were having prior to I think the New England game and much of the NFL season is finding solution, not necessarily overreacting to result; but taking result very seriously as it should and trying to benefit your team with some solutions in personnel, schematic. Those are very much all on the table always in situations that you don’t have the results you want.”
(What do you think of facing Jets QB Aaron Rodgers as a Jet for the first time ever? It feels like that move happened so long ago.) – “You’re pumped as a competitor to go against greatness for sure. Outside of that, I think there’s challenges that each and every team present and those challenges are specific to scheme and players and one of the best to ever – like a lot of people throw footballs in general and when you’re top tier of those who have ever done it, it presents its own challenges, but you attack that with a collective effort, tonality. For him, you’re talking about how we defend pass routes, how pass rush is, how run defense is because he’s a very, very difficult quarterback to go against when it’s run pass even. When you don’t know if it’s run or pass and have to defend both, he’s an elite ball thrower. So I think it’s kind of weird that it did happen so long ago and it’s the first time just based upon where the season is at and where the schedule fell, but looking forward to the challenge and very much focused on that.”
(Do you want your guys looking at social media right now knowing that things could be negative? Do you want them to use that as fuel or do you want them to totally ignore that?) – “I think I’m fortunate enough to be – I think I was in college when the iPod came out and the first Nokia cellphone and when Facebook started. So I acknowledge how ever-present (social media is). Like it would be if I’m asking them to not be on social media, maybe I feel better, but I’m more so like I’m trying to be in front of expectations of what things occur. Like literally it’s like clockwork each and every year. Your expectations need to be settled when results aren’t what you want. Listen, there’s a lot of people, fans that really want to see you do well. And I know one thing: when something doesn’t go your way and you have no control over it, it’s maddening. So stuff is going to be said. What I talked to the team about is yeah, expect it and – I think it’s kind of ironic – to expect something else would be… you’re entitled to something that other people don’t get. This is a big boy business. The people that don’t know your situation will have a lot of comments on what you’re doing and how you’re doing it, but you can’t on one side of your mouth get mad about that and then accept the cheering and the praise. It’s one of those things that right, wrong or indifferent; in this generation, it is noisy either way. So I’m either coaching, managing expectations through success, trying to keep people levelheaded or trying to not have people worried about the wrong stuff when stuff that they can’t control in terms of what people say after a result that our team can control – we lose a game and as a head coach, I expect it. I’m not looking to be above and beyond and I think the more that you can talk to players about understanding the why, I think the better off you are. But to be absolved of the noise is impossible unless you are extremely antisocial for a lot of these guys.”
(The idea of toughness has been talked about this team a lot. Do you think that toughness is something that comes from the players or it has to come top down? Like can you instill a tough attitude in this team or is it if the players don’t have it, they don’t have it?) – “I think again, I expect any and all things to be on the table when we don’t fulfill first and foremost our own expectations which we haven’t hid from and fallen short. I think you have to be – as a coach, I try not to focus on anything but factual things that can improve players and teams. So if I have an example of weakmindedness or situations where a guy is turning something down or how he’s loafing because of a result; those are things I can coach. And I think you bring to attention – I think holding people accountable is part of how as a coach you can impact toughness. I think overall it’s a violent, competitive sport that when things don’t go your way, a lot of things get thrown out there. Who’s to say who’s right or wrong. If you disagree with that sentiment, to me, there’s only one emotional reaction and that’s the focus on proving that wrong. But to sit here and debate ‘tough, not tough’ – all I know is dudes are aggressively tackling each other, taking on hits and I assess the tape because that to me is fact. You could hypothesize innumerable amounts of things whether it’s player, coach, all that and in situations where if you’re worried about the toughness of your team, to me, you study the effort, intentionality and how people are playing when things are tough, when things are down. So to answer your question, I’m very aware that the narrative exists and with absolute certainty I know the narrative will exist unless it changes; there’s one way to change it and that’s winning a game against the New York Jets and you know what? People still might not call you tough. Cool. I’m very much – I take it very serious that as a head coach, to be responsible for things that can help, to be accountable and to bring forth information that’s actually helpful, not finger pointing. Accountability is first and foremost for me and then players, you can’t hide in this league game after game, so we’ll either have people talking about our toughness or we won’t.”
(Were there a few turn downs or loafs on defense that angered you?) – “I am alive, I have ears and eyes and I hear the stuff after the game. So the coach in me is very like, ‘turn the page’ and I’m like a hawk eye. I’m looking at each player and not only what they’re doing but as a coach you have like a filing system of like, ‘I’ve seen this player in this situation multiple times’ and I saw strain, I saw technique and fundamentals that fell short as the game progressed; but it wasn’t turning down. For me the tackling – if you go and look at it – every missed tackle you have a defender whose feet are stopped at the point of attack. I understand in the heat of the moment and the frustration especially when you put so much into it. I can understand right after a game, players feeling X, Y or Z. So I think it’s important as the head coach that I have factual evidence and then we go as a team and assess it. And it would have been ugly if there were guys loafing or turning it down from a team perspective, but that’s why you do things as a team, because however motivating I am, it’s not as motivating as that locker room and peer-to-peer accountability. For me we have enough leaders that it’s important to that if that gets on the radar, I’ll have four or five players demanding that they’re not on the field with a guy and that’s what you want.”
(I know there’s a lot to be gleaned from the next couple days in terms of how LB Bradley Chubb and LB Cameron Goode look in practice since we haven’t seen them in a long time, but given that it’s very rare for you to open a window and have that player play that Sunday, can you rule out that either or both might play or where do you stand with that?) – “To me it’s really easy with guys that have – their window is opened because of them. I think there’s nothing more difficult as a player than getting injured at the end of a season, having to rehab through the offseason and start the season in that same regard. So you want to talk about having to be intentional and deliberate with your daily activities and mentally strong; so them having their window opened is something they earned and I don’t discount what you’re saying at all. I think you’re dead-on, I think it is rare; however I wouldn’t take an opportunity away from someone that was ready for it especially when they dive so deep to get the opportunity. So that’s why I kind of just let it play out literally not for any sort of competitive advantage or whatever; I’m going to let the players play, watch the film of themselves, go back to practice again with pads on, do the same thing again. And then right, wrong or indifferent; if a guy feels 100 percent ready to play that has done what they’ve done in front of their teammates – the walkthrough today, it was really cool to see the response of teammates when those guys got reps. And when they’re ready, which I’m also not trying to – like my expectation is that that takes time. It is the first football practice in a year. So I’m not expecting anything, but you don’t rule it out just because. Bottom line is want them and their earned opportunity when they feel ready to execute what’s asked of them and that they’re able to play, and fortunately with those two guys, such a great relationship with them and I trust them that I won’t have to – we’ll be able to talk through it and be responsible because they’re competitors but they also understand that they want to be right, too, for the team.”
(What type of work are you expecting them to get? Are they going to get looks work or base defense work this week?) – “Both. You’re understanding that their window is open, but time will tell if they’re playing. You can’t shortchange the people that are playing right now to not be ready for the game. They also can’t take every rep, so you get them involved and in the process, but you can’t overdo it. But their game has to be right so how do you make it up? You make it up on look teams as well, so you try to balance it that way so that everyone is afforded the appropriate opportunity for this Sunday.”
(I think last week LB Anthony Walker Jr. shouldn’t miss extensive time. How is he doing and how did LB Tyrel Dodson also do with his opportunity?) – “So ‘Walk’ (Anthony Walker Jr.) is doing well, intentionally not practicing today, but if I know ‘Walk’ I’m expecting to see him tomorrow and we’ll be prudent with that. ‘TD’ (Tyrel Dodson), like I can’t say enough good things about him. Coming in here and being a Mike linebacker and assimilating with his teammates and earning their respect; for me as a head coach, I can observe from a mile away when players earn the respect of their teammates simply by how they interact and how they celebrate or how they communicate and I think it just says a lot about him how the confidence of the defense didn’t waver with a guy communicating calls to each and every one of them that they just heard his voice for the first time a couple weeks ago. So I think he did a phenomenal job being ready to play starting-caliber football in this defense and doing so with a game plan on a short week, so really, really happy with him on the team and he did a great job.”
