Brian Flores – November 29, 2020 (Postgame)
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Sunday, November 29, 2020
Postgame – N.Y. Jets
Head Coach Brian Flores (transcribed by N.Y. Jets)
(On grading the game defensively) – “I thought we played well defensively. We got some turnovers. Josh (Boyer) called a great game really throughout. We had some sudden change situations with some turnovers. We were able to get ourselves off the field. We got a big stop on the fourth-and-one in the red zone. Obviously, keeping them out of the end zone is always a great accomplishment in this league. We had some turnovers, a big stop on fourth-and-one. I thought Josh called a great game. He’s done a great job really the entire year. I think often times you give me too much credit. Josh has done a great job the entire year.”
(On how he’d assess how Ryan Fitzpatrick played) – “I thought Ryan played well. He made enough plays to helps us win the game. He spread the ball around to a number of different receivers. Obviously, there are always things he can do better and we can do better as an offense, as a defense, as a special teams, as coaches, but he made enough plays to help us win.”
(On where their quarterback situation stands moving forward) – “Obviously, Tua (Tagovailoa) was downgraded to out. We’ll see how he does in practice over the course of the week. He’s a tough kid. It was very close to him being able to go, but we have to make good decisions for him as well. We’ll see how he does over the course of this week in practice.”
(On DeVante Parker) – “I think we had some matchups that we like out there. DeVante is a good player. We tried to give him some opportunities. There was a young corner out there. I thought he made some plays as well. I was pretty impressed with Bryce Hall. We gave DeVante some opportunities and he made some plays. But again, it’s not just a two-man show. We got some protection from our offensive line. They were giving us some different looks, some pretty difficult looks. Gregg (Williams) does a great job from that standpoint. They got some pressure on us, so we had to make some plays and Fitz hit DeVante multiple times who made a few plays for us.”
(On if Tua will start if he’s healthy) – “Yeah, if he’s healthy, he’s the guy. I don’t know how many different ways we have to continue to say that. You keep asking, I’ll keep answering the same way. Again, he’s dealing with something with the hand. We’ll take it day-to-day. He’s a tough kid. He wants to be out there. Thankfully, we have other guys who stepped up. We can talk about Tua, but we had 52 other guys who went out there and played their butts off today in all three phases. We were able to get a division win on the road. We’re excited to win. We’ll enjoy the win and then turn the page and move on to the next opponent, the Bengals.”
(On how Fitzpatrick approaches the game that allows him to create longer passing plays) – “He’s a very experienced player. He’s seen pretty much every coverage, every disguise, every defensive structure, every front. I think he could see the matchups that he likes based on the coverage that they are giving us. When you can see all those things, it gives you the opportunity to make the right decisions. I thought he made some good ones today. We needed it. It’s good to have Fitz. He’s obviously a leader on this team. He’s been that throughout and he’ll continue to be that for this team.”
(On how he manages the attempt to make a playoff run and give Tua the rookie experience) – “You probably know the answer to this already. We’re going to take this one day at a time and try to improve and get better on a daily basis from meetings, to walkthrough, to practice. I just try to prepare and get better. Honestly, I’m actually saying that very sincerely. That’s about as authentic and genuine as I can be. To get into a playoff this or that, I’m not really into all that. I’m into let’s get better tomorrow. Let’s make the corrections from the game today. Let’s prepare for the next opponent. What are the things they do well? What are the things we think we can take advantage of? Let’s give the players that information and then try to prepare for the next opponent. We’ll go through our Monday routine and our Tuesday routine and our Wednesday routing and our Thursday routine and so on and so forth. Then, let the chips fall where they fall. If we prepare the right way, then you’re probably going to know the next thing I’m going to say. The results hopefully take care of themselves. I don’t know any other way of approaching it. I don’t think about weeks from now. I’m focused on hopping in the shower, getting on the bus, getting on the plane, getting home. I’ll watch the film on the plane and take it from there.”
(On DeAndre Washington) – “Those fourth quarter first downs, fourth quarter rushing yards, fourth quarter time of possession, those are all things we talk about and are very important. If we can get those done and finish all games like today, that’s always good. I though (Washington) ran the ball effectively. We need that. Especially when we’re trying to close out a game. He had a run there in the fourth quarter that sprung the final drive that put us up 17. We’ve had a lot of different guys back there, I thought (Matt) Breida ran the ball effectively. I thought (Patrick) Laird had a good run prior to fumbling. We’re getting there, we just have to keep working at it.”
Christian Wilkins – November 27, 2020
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Friday, November 27, 2020
DT Christian Wilkins
(You missed two games on the COVID list. Are you willing to share with us if you had any symptoms and how you felt through the process?) – “The only symptom I got was ‘lack of football-itis.’ That was tough missing two games. I’ve never had to miss a game for anything in my football career. That was unfortunate for me, but now I’m more excited to be back than ever. I’m just happy to be back with the guys.”
(We’re in this pandemic and everybody is dealing with it. How was your mindset during that time when you were away? Obviously you wanted to get back on the field, but you’re dealing with some health stuff as well?) – “I was just getting a little antsy because I wanted to be back out there with my guys. Missing ball is not something I’m used to. I was able to just shift my mindset a little bit, think a lot about just life, more about football and how blessed I am to play this game. I just took time to do that and pick up a few more extra hobbies to keep me busy in my lots of free time.”
(We spoke to CB Byron Jones in the past and he talked about the same thing you did, not missing any games. But he said that was a chance for him to learn how to prepare more mentally for the game. Did you have a chance to step back and look at more film side of things and get yourself more mentally prepared?) – “Yeah, even though I knew I wasn’t going to play or anything, or with the potential of not being able to play, I still studied and tried to prepare each week like I was playing, just to stay sharp. Then just like I said, I just had more time to think about the game, and about the great opportunity I have to play the game every day.”
(Earlier at practice during stretch, what did QB Ryan Fitzpatrick tell you when the soundtrack came on?) – “That was our thing. I’ll keep that between me and ‘Fitz.’ That’s a little bit of an inside joke but ‘Fitz’ also, he’s not quite as an intense Hamilton fan as me. He knows the songs a little bit, we’ll talk about it a little bit; but I’ll keep that between me and ‘Fitz.’”
(Earlier you mentioned hobbies. Can you elaborate on what they might be? And secondly, social media was speculating whether your celebration had anything to do with WR Preston Williams’ injury. What can you tell us about that? Are we maybe going to see you dial back your celebrations or are you still going to be the same electric guy you’ve always been?) – “To answer your first question, I’m not going to share exactly what those hobbies are. Just stay tuned because when I share it with the world, I’m sure you’ll – I’ve got to perfect my craft. But when I share it with the world, that’s when you guys will all see it. I’ll keep that kind of to myself for a little bit. But it’s good. It’s good. It’s definitely a good hobby – a way to challenge my mind. But I’ll share that maybe at a later date once I get a little better. Then also, to answer your second question, I’m still going to bring the same energy each and every day on the field, play with the same excitement, play with the same joy and get as excited as I do for my teammates because I love this game. Maybe I can be a little smarter about it. It’s just the speculation. I don’t know. I’m probably going to be even more energetic because I’ve got to make up for two weeks of energy and excitement. We’ll see how it goes.”
(Last year you developed and grew in your own way. What’s it like working alongside and seeing DT Raekwon Davis? He’s popped up here on film the past couple of weeks. He’s had some good performances.) – “It’s been definitely good to kind of see him grow and develop. I feel like every rookie goes through those growing pains. It’s an adjustment from college to the pros, regardless of how good you are or how highly drafted you are. It’s an adjustment for everybody. Luckily for him, he’s been able to improve each day in practice and each week. He’s learning how to become more of a pro, so that’s good to see and it’s good to play – now that I’m getting back, it’s going to be fun to play around him. Just seeing him improve, hopefully I’ll keep being a leader and a mentor for him.”
Eric Rowe – November 27, 2020
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Friday, November 27, 2020
S Eric Rowe
(Obviously we saw DT Christian Wilkins back at practice. What kind of energy does he bring being back there for the defense?) – “He brings a lot of energy. He’s obviously a key piece of our defense and on the d-line. So kind of without him, it hurts because you don’t want to lose your good players; but we’re always glad now that we got him back.”
(We heard a report today that the Jets will start Sam Darnold on Sunday at quarterback. I’m curious how that changes the way you guys go about things going from possibly Jets QB Joe Flacco to Jets QB Sam Darnold on Sunday?) – “We were preparing for both because obviously it doesn’t really change our mindset because both QBs are – they’re talented. They’re good. Obviously we all know Flacco – even though it’s been a while – he didn’t win the Super Bowl MVP for no reason, and (Sam) Darnold, we all know his potential. The fact that now that we kind of know who’s playing, it does give us a better game plan of some sort; but we were ready for both of them.”
Brandon Jones – November 27, 2020
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Friday, November 27, 2020
S Brandon Jones
(In the earlier meeting this season, WR Denzel Mims was not available for the Jets. You played against him in the Big 12 at Texas and Baylor. I’m curious to get your thoughts on what Denzel Mims brings to that Jets offense?) – “I think (Denzel) Mims is just an overall playmaker. Obviously playing him in college, he has a lot of speed, he has very good body control and he just at the end of the day makes plays. Playing with him throughout college, he’s the same player. He’s definitely gotten a lot better, just more comfortable just making plays in the league, just making that transition from college to the NFL.”
(I’m asking about DT Christian Wilkins. What’s it been like having him back at practice? Is it a little louder now that he’s back there and just the energy that he’s bringing?) – “Oh yeah, Christian’s going to bring the juice no matter what every single day, and it’s always good just to have him on the field. Obviously not only the type of player he is, but just the type of guy he is off the field as well. Just his personality and just the juice that he brings really carries the team a long way.”
Brian Flores – November 27, 2020
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Friday, November 27, 2020
Head Coach Brian Flores
(Will QB Tua Tagovailoa be playing on Sunday and will two of your running backs – RB Salvon Ahmed and RB Myles Gaskin be playing Sunday?) – ”(Salvon) Ahmed will be out. We’ll list him as out. Myles – we’ll watch the film and make a decision. He was out there today. Same thing with Tua (Tagovailoa). We’ve got to watch the film, see what it looks like and then we’ll make a decision.”
(Last year, your team made significant improvement later in the year as opposed to earlier. Do you think this group can make a similar jump and have you seen signs that that could be coming?) – “Last year was last year. I think we just take things one day at a time and try to just make improvements. I think we’ve seen some of that over the course of the year; but again even what happened last week or two weeks ago or the first 10 games of the season, that doesn’t matter either. We’ve just got to try to get better on a daily basis. That’s the message every day for everyone here – players, coaches, support staff. And I think if we just try to do that and we focus on that, then the results hopefully take care of themselves.”
(What’s it been like having DT Christian Wilkins back and if he’s ready to go Sunday, what type of impact do you think he’ll have on the line?) – “It’s good to have him back. It’s always good to get anyone back from injury … we’re excited to have him back. He’s full of energy. He brings juice and energy every day, so we’re excited to have him back and everyone’s excited to have him back. It’s always good to have guys back in the lineup.”
(G Solomon Kindley – what’s his status for? You did not give an update for him.) – “Solomon (Kindley) will be out this week. So before you guys get – (Salvon) Ahmed is out, Solomon Kindley is out. Jakeem (Grant) and Tua (Tagovailoa) are questionable.”
(You mentioned QB Tua Tagovailoa being questionable and having to watch the film. Has anything changed or is there any chance he doesn’t play? You kind of mentioned that you weren’t worried earlier this week about that thumb.) – “Any time there’s anything, you’ve got to make a declaration. So we have to watch the film and see what it looks like, but we just figured ‘questionable’ was the best declaration for him as well as Jakeem.”
(Sometimes when quarterbacks have an issue with their thumb, you hear about them having difficulty gripping the ball. I’m wondering is it more on that level or is it just his ability to deliver a pass where he wants it to go that might be a concern, if any concern is there?) – “Any time you have an injury to any body part – whether it’s foot, hand, shoulder – any hindrance is a hindrance is a hindrance. I think we just try to work through it, treat it. And that’s what Tua’s doing like any other player. As far as – and everyone’s a little bit different – so some guys, it’s their legs that if they don’t have any legs under them, then that’s what’s a hindrance. Some other guys, it’s a shoulder. So I can’t say specifically for Tua or really any other player as far as what exactly what they can play through or not play through. I know he’s a tough, tough kid. He wants to play and we’ll see how this goes.”
Brian Flores – November 26, 2020
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Thursday, November 26, 2020
Head Coach Brian Flores
(Opening statement) – “I just want to send condolences to the Cowboys (and) Markus Paul’s family. (It was a) really sad day yesterday and throughout the league. Markus Paul, he was just a fantastic human being. I just hope his family takes comfort in knowing that he impacted a lot of people in a very positive way – players, coaches, just people in general. This was as kind-hearted and genuine a person as I’ve been around. He certainly had an impact on me and it’s a big loss for the league, so condolences to his family and the Cowboys. I just pray for comfort for his family.”
(I was curious, QB Tua Tagovailoa showed up on the injury report yesterday with that throwing hand injury. It was reported that it was something minor that happened in practice. Is that report accurate?) – “He got banged up a little bit. He’s a tough kid. He’s going to do everything he can from a treatment standpoint, so we’ll see. I don’t think this is something that we’re too, too worried about. I think we’re just going to continue to treat it. As far as how accurate the report is, yeah, he got dinged up in practice. He’s getting treatment and it’s better today, so we’ll see how it goes.”
(My question is I wanted to know what G/T Robert Hunt’s development in terms of when he plays, how much has it sped up his development?) – “I think any time you get experience in-game, you develop. That’s everyone. That’s players, it’s coaches, it’s officials, it’s chain crew, it’s everybody. So I think playing, that’s the best way to really improve. You get experience of it and feel the speed and the aggressiveness of a defensive lineman in his case, seeing secondary pressures – different pressures than he maybe sees from us – corners coming, safeties coming. So I think he’s definitely improved as a well as a lot of our young players offensively, defensively and in the kicking game. Playing helps for sure.”
(Linebackers Coach Anthony Campanile seems to be one of the most enthusiastic coaches on your staff. I don’t know if you’ve followed along, but I’ve been asking him a bunch of food questions and questions about himself throughout the season. Just what can you say about his energy and what he’s brought to coaching staff, especially with taking on a bigger role in the last couple weeks since when you guys were out with those coaches in the COVID protocol?) – “Yeah, ‘Camp’ (Anthony Campanile) is a good young coach. We’ve got a lot of good young coaches on this team, and yeah, he brings a lot of juice and enthusiasm. I think any time you can bring energy to the team, that’s always a good thing. It’s a tough sport. It’s demanding. We ask a lot of the players, so we try to tell the coaches if there’s any way you can make it fun, then feel free. ‘Camp’ does a good job and we’re happy to have him on the staff, as well as everyone on the staff. I think all of these guys work hard. It’s important to them and they do their best to try to put the players in positions to have success. I think we’re no different than the players. This is his first year in the National Football League, so to the previous question, every game is experience for him and other guys who haven’t coached in this league. A lot of our guys have college experience. Honestly, hearing some of those things that they did, whether it was at Michigan with ‘Camp’ or Cal with ‘G.A.’ (Gerald Alexander) or West Virginia with Robby Brown; just hearing some of the things they did when they were in college, I’m open to all of those suggestions so it’s been good.”
(I wanted to ask you about leadership. I’m writing a story about leadership for this weekend and obviously it’s something that’s very important in coaching. I guess as much as you can sum it up, why can a leader be the difference between a good franchise and a bad franchise?) – “Can you say that question again? I didn’t catch all of it.”
(I’m just curious why can a good leader at the top of the organization be the difference between a successful franchise and one that’s not successful?) – “I don’t think it’s ever about one person, not in football at least. I think it’s about a collection of people – ownership, head coach, GM, assistant coaches, players, equipment. It’s a team game on the field. Honestly I think it’s a team game from an organizational standpoint, as well, so I think we need leadership from everybody. I can’t begin to tell you what goes on in the equipment room, what goes on from a field crew standpoint; but I do know that if we don’t have leadership from a grounds crew standpoint, we can’t go out there and practice because we won’t have lines and numbers and things of that nature. I think you need leadership across the board. I think (Chairman of the Board and Managing General Partner) Steve Ross and (Vice Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer) Tom Garfinkel and (General Manager) Chris (Grier); I think we – myself – we try to as much as we can, encourage leadership and let guys do their jobs across the board. I’m not going to sit here and tell (Equipment Manager) Joe Cimino how we should set up locker rooms on the road. I wouldn’t know the first thing about that. I could probably come up with some ideas, but they’d probably be wrong because I’ve never done it. So to answer your question, I don’t ever think it’s about one person. I think once you start going down the ‘one person is the end-all be-all,’ you just can’t. One person can’t do everything in a football organization. There’s just too many things going on from personnel to equipment to training to nutrition to medical. What we can do is encourage leadership and let everyone be, let’s call it the head coach in their area. So (Wide Receivers Coach) Josh Grizzard is the head coach of the receivers and (Head Athletic Trainer) Kyle Johnston is the head coach of the training room and medical department and so on and so forth. And we try to encourage that leadership and let those guys lead in their respective realms and trust that they’re going to do a good job, and I think our job and the job from an ownership standpoint is to have a vision for how we want things done and express that vision and then trust that guys will try to put that vision in action. Long-winded answer to – I’m not sure if that gets to what you were looking for.”
(I wanted to ask you the issues you were having on the offensive line. I know you’ve got G/T Jesse Davis in the protocol, and G Solomon Kindley with the foot. Your philosophy has always been to start the top five and figure out how to make that chemistry work. How much has the C/G Michael Deiter and the T Julién Davenport and T Adam Pankey been cross-trained to play every position, and how comfortable are you with them I guess filling in on the right side, considering Deiter was last year’s left guard?) – “The good news is that those guys have played. They’ve played together, so from a communications standpoint, the only thing we are missing is really game snaps with that group. But there’s been plenty of practice snaps between Deiter, Davenport and Pankey and (Ted) Karras and (Ereck) Flowers and Austin (Jackson) and (Robert) Hunt. There is plenty of – let’s call it practice snaps between that group. Obviously Deiter and Davenport have experience starting games in this league. They started a lot of games last year. Again, you’re right, we are going to put the best five out there. I also have confidence in those guys that because of the way they’ve prepared, the way they’ve practiced and the experience they have, if we put them in, I have confidence that the wheels won’t fall off. It’s a hard-working group; but at the end of the day, we play a tough opponent this week. They play good defense and we have to execute. That’s everybody. Obviously the offensive line is a big part of that. That’s where our focus is. It’s on the Jets, and this week’s preparation and trying to be at our best on Sunday on offense, defense and special teams.”
(Is there a concern at this particular time that QB Tua Tagovailoa might not be available for the Jets game?) – “I don’t think we’re at that point yet. He’s getting treatment, he’s rehabbing. We’ll see how this goes. It’s sore but he’s a tough kid. He’s played through some things before. We’re not at that point yet. We’re just going to take this one day at a time, which is how we deal with all injuries, situations, COVID. We just take it one day at a time. It’s 2020. I think I’ve said this time and time again, I think we all have to be ready to adjust and be flexible, and have contingency plans ready if this happens, if that happens. This is just part of that. We’re not at that point. We’ll take this one day at a time, he’ll rehab and if he can go he’ll go. We’ll see how he feels today. We’ll see how he practices today. We’ll have a better feel this afternoon. You guys will be eating turkey and you’ll ask me about it tomorrow. (laughter)”
Robert Hunt – November 25, 2020
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Wednesday, November 25, 2020
G/T Robert Hunt
(What are some of the sort of points of emphasis from the coaching staff for the offensive line this week?) – “There’s nothing specific. We all came in the building trying to get better this week and I think that’s as a whole, as a team. So we all just came in and we’re trying to work better this week. We’re trying to work harder and we’re trying to improve in everything.”
(It looked like last week the Broncos had a lot of stunts and twists that may have gave you guys a little bit of trouble. I guess for us who may not know a little bit more of the ins and outs that you guys work on, what is it about maybe those plays that cause a little bit of confusion sometimes?) – “It’s just a part of the game. I feel like everybody has stunts and twists. We’ve just got to be better and we’ve been better at it. Sometimes it doesn’t happen the way you want it to happen. So we’ve just got to improve and keep working at it.”
(I’m curious, do you remember meeting with Head Coach Brian Flores pre-draft? Did you have a chance to chat with him and if so, did you get an idea then of the kind of coach you’d end up getting?) – “Yeah, I did meet with him. I do remember meeting with him pre-draft. I met with him at the Senior Bowl. Serious guy and he’s been that way; so yeah, pretty much I had an idea. I had an idea.”
(What’s the feedback you get from Offensive Line Coach Steve Marshall about how you’ve played?) – “I don’t really get feedback (about how I’ve played). We don’t really get feedback. We just – when we win, we look at what we can fix and improve on and when we lose, we look at what we can fix and improve on. So me personally, I just come in and I don’t really look for him to tell me what I can do better because I feel like I already know, so I just come and try to improve and work my tail off each day.”
(Regarding Head Coach Brian Flores, what has impressed you about him since you’ve started playing for him?) – “Everything. Good man. I think that’s the start of it all, when you’ve got a guy leading you that acts like a good man that can lead by example, I think that means a lot. It speaks volumes. He wants to win – we all want to win – and I think he’s done a great job with the team. We’re all excited for the future and right now.”
(Obviously you guys got a little bit of uncertainty this week with G Solomon Kindley’s injury and G/T Jesse Davis on the COVID list. How is that for you not really knowing who’s going to be beside you maybe how you guys flow on the right side?) – “It is what it is. I’m just going to compete and wherever they need me to play, wherever they need anybody else play, they’ll play there. Wherever they need me, I’m just going to stick in and do whatever I can to play well and compete.”
Tua Tagovailoa – November 25, 2020
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Wednesday, November 25, 2020
QB Tua Tagovailoa
(I’m wondering your opinion of how you think you’re doing getting through your progressions – maybe through to the third read, say – and what has to happen to improve on that?) – “I think the way I feel about my performance is there’s always things that I can continue to get better at and I think that’s day-in and day-out every day of the week. And how you do that is you continue to get the reps that you need in practice, more games under your belt and just being able to play in these tough games and whatnot. That’s really how you can get better at those things.”
(One of the most interesting things we thought you said after the game on Sunday was that when you were observing those final couple drives and seeing that receivers, if they might not be open that they’re open still. Since Sunday, obviously have you had conversations with some of your receivers just to – I know you talk to them every day – but since then just about kind of creating more space and knowing when you get the ball to them?) – “I would say to your question, what we try to do in our routes versus air is we just try to work on a lot of timing. I think the biggest thing for me is I need to be better at if it’s not there, trying to extend plays and our guys trying to get open and try to find holes to where we can get better with our scramble drills, if that makes sense.”
(I’m curious, when you were at Alabama, obviously you had a lot of speedy receivers who kind of would streak open at times and now you have a lot of bigger receivers who may be more jump-ball specialists? How does that kind of transition for you having different type of receivers and having to adjust to that?) – “Exactly what you said at the end. I think that’s what it is. It’s all about adjusting. We have a fast guy – I think all of our guys are fast. The thing is, we really have one really, really fast guy and that’s Jakeem and I think for me, it’s just finding who I’m throwing to, knowing the timing with those guys, understanding who’s running that route and things like that. It’s really just all about adjusting. That’s why we have practice and I’ve got to continue to be better on giving these guys opportunities to have good run after catches.”
(You probably experienced this past week what we, who have been covering Head Coach Brian Flores for the last couple years have known, that he is an in-the-moment win-the-game type of coach. I’m curious, when you first met him, you built the relationship with him six, seven, eight months ago or whenever it was – what were your first initial thoughts about him as a coach and I guess how have they evolved in the time since?) – “Coach Flores is a very passionate – he’s very passionate as a coach and he’s very disciplined as a person with the things he does. I would say as a team, the more success we have, in a way the guys start to kind of lay back a little; but that has never been the case while I’ve been here with ‘Flo’ (Head Coach Brian Flores). We never change anything and the recipe to success is how we go out and practice every day. With his philosophy, you’ve got to work hard to go out and be successful.”
(You often point to QB Ryan Fitzpatrick’s tutelage as a big help to your game and since you’re playing a team you’ve already seen this year and how the tape where he went out and played against this defense you’re going to see on Sunday, how does that kind of help benefit your preparation this week?) – “I would say it helps tremendously. ‘Fitz’ (Ryan Fitzpatrick) has been out there and he’s seen this defense. He’s played against them. I’ve only had about like three snaps against them the last game we played, and just hearing his thoughts on where he would go with the ball, how to manipulate guys in the back end and also where we want to attack these guys; but I think a big deal with this, too, is I have to take ownership on being disciplined with seeing things for myself as far as the film, looks that they give and whatnot. To me, it goes back to discipline, kind of like what Coach Saban (University of Alabama Head Coach Nick Saban) actually said: ‘you either suffer from the pain of discipline or you suffer from the pain of defeat.’”
(One of the things that has been talked about quite a bit in the past several days is sort of a concern about if you pull a quarterback, you could be messing with his confidence and we asked Head Coach Brian Flores about that the other day and he said, “hey, Tua’s a confident guy, I’m not worried about that at all.” You know yourself better than anybody, so where is your confidence level now and are you avoiding any temptation to look over your shoulder during a game?) – “I would say my confidence level as a person, it never varies. It stays the same to me. And like I said, with whatever happened in the Broncos game, it was really for the benefit of the team. And the conversations that we kind of had, too, in a way leading up to it, are in-house and I don’t know – it just can’t be explained, if that makes sense. But for me, there’s no looking behind me or to the left or to the right. It’s what I can do to help our guys be successful and we have another week, another opportunity to do that.”
(Going back to the tight windows and not being able to take the completions out there like QB Ryan Fitzpatrick had told you, are you kind of afraid to make some mistakes out here? Is that something that’s kind of playing a factor into maybe some of your timidness as a passer?) – “I would say to that question, it’s not me playing like I’m scared or anything. It’s me trusting what I see. If I don’t see the guy open, I’m not going to throw it and that’s really how it’s been in the games and also in practice, too. It’s one of those things where you’ve just got to practice. You see it, you practice, get throws with guys in tight coverages and tight windows and then you kind of dictate how you felt through that and if you didn’t like it, then it won’t happen in the game. So that’s kind of how I see it.”
