Torry McTyer – August 30, 2018 (Postgame)
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August 30, 2018
Postgame – Atlanta Falcons
CB Torry McTyer (transcribed by Atlanta Falcons)
On his near-interception:
“It’s always good that somebody else makes the play. I still want to make the play, too, but I’m not selfish. We got off the field.”
On his prospects of winning a job:
“I’m not focused on that right now. I’m just focused on whatever I can do to help the team win.”
On the key to his two pass breakups today:
“Proper technique, just trusting in my technique.”
Brock Osweiler – August 30, 2018 (Postgame)
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August 30, 2018
Postgame – Atlanta Falcons
QB Brock Osweiler (transcribed by Atlanta Falcons)
On the backup quarterback job:
“That’s been a question for Coach Gase and those guys. My job tonight was just to go out there, play as hard as I can, lead the offense and try to put up points on the board and fortunately that is what we were able to do.”
On the team’s overall performance:
“Football is the ultimate team sport. It takes all 11 guys to be on the same exact page every single play to go out there and have success. That’s what makes this the greatest game in the world. Tonight, we were able to do that. I think we played with a great tempo. We were playing really fast. Calls were coming in fast from the coordinator and we had a lot of fun. It was a lot of fun.”
On his touchdown on the first drive:
“We were just able to get into a rhythm. Football is a rhythm game. Like I said, coach did a tremendous job of putting the players in position tonight to have tremendous success and then ultimately, it was just players executing and doing their job.”
On his capabilities as a quarterback:
“I think I’ve started enough games in this league to be able to see what I’m capable of doing, you know what I mean? I don’t think the coaches are going to look at just one game, but you’d have to ask them what they’re really trying to look for.”
On the progress of the team through the preseason:
“Just for a team, it’s a lot of fun. This team has worked so hard throughout training camp, OTAs, minicamp. To come out here tonight in the fourth preseason game with a group of guys, that’ll never be there again, to have success like this ultimately is a lot of fun and you’re right, it’s a big reward.”
On his leadership capabilities:
“I’ve always taken great pride in my leadership. I try to be the best teammate I can be every single day. Always trying to put the team first. I take a lot of pride in my leadership. I just love this game and tonight was a lot of fun.”
On how he feels after his performance tonight:
“Happy. This was a lot of fun. Anytime you get the opportunity to play football in the National Football League, you have to be appreciative. There’s a sense of gratitude there because you never know when it’s going to be your last play or your last game. For
Adam Gase – August 30, 2018 (Postgame)
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Thursday, August 30, 2018
Postgame – Atlanta Falcons
Head Coach Adam Gase (transcribed by Atlanta Falcons)
On his thoughts on QB Brock Osweiler tonight:
“I thought he did a good job. He controlled the tempo of the game. I thought he was good with his accuracy. Some of those guys … We had a bunch of different guys going in and out and I thought he did a good job of just handling a lot of the changes.”
On if QB Brock Osweiler convinced him he belongs on the team:
“We’ll look at all of this stuff when we get back. The guys will watch the film on the plane tonight and then we’ll have a discussion over the next couple of days.”
On what he liked from the defense today:
“I thought they did a good job. There some really short drives, a lot of three and outs. We got turnovers. The guys were doing a good job of stripping at the ball and just trying to make sure we were making it tough on their ball carriers. It was good to see guys were flying around. (There was) a lot of pressure, it felt like from just that front four.”
On the team’s efficiency and execution:
“I thought it was pretty good. I’m sure when we go back and look at it, there will be some mistakes that we can easily clean up. For the most part, it seemed like things went pretty smooth.”
On what they wanted to get out of LB Jerome Baker playing today:
“We wanted him to get a few more reps and make sure that he is ready to go for the beginning of the season. I think sometimes with the rookies, we just have to kind of make a decision of who we want to play and who we don’t. We felt like … He didn’t start off where he was at the beginning of camp, so he was a little behind on some of the reps. We thought it would be good to just get a couple of series.”
On what LB Jerome Baker has done to win him over:
“His consistency has gotten better. As we’ve gone along, I think guys are able to rely on him, knowing that he’s going to be in the right spots. I think his speed really can trump a lot of things. It can trump a lot of mistakes. If somebody has some kind of error up front, he can make up for it by chasing the ball-carrier down.”
On David Fales’ performance:
“He got stroked pretty good early. That wasn’t really how we wanted to start it off. I thought he had some good balls. He did a good job on third down of converting when they had everybody covered. He scrambled for one (first down). When we go back and watch it, we’ll kind of see where we had some mistakes there. I feel like there were a bunch of good plays and probably some plays that he would want back; but for the most part, I thought he did a good job of doing what we asked him to do.”
On if he feels any differently about the backup quarterback situation after tonight:
“I’ll say the same thing: it’s going to be one of those two guys.”
On how many decisions were cemented tonight:
“We are going to have that discussion in the next couple of days.”
On RB Kalen Ballage’s performance:
“I was excited. A couple of us were talking on the sideline before the game because we were trying to gauge where he was at, and he looked very focused. I think you could tell from that first play of the game that he could’ve easily stepped out of bounds. He leaned back in and he had good contact there and got going a little bit. That was good to see. I think he came out here with a purpose to get better and I think he did that.”
On how he feels about this part of the job this weekend:
“This is the worst part because we’ve been together since April. We’re not a team that really changes out a lot of guys as we go. We try to give everybody the duration of training camp and the four preseason games to prove to us one way or another. Now it’s probably the least fun a part of the job.”
On T Zach Sterup and T Eric Smith and their games tonight:
“No. You already answered your question. (laughter)”
On his confidence level going into the season:
“I think it’s the same it’s been since we put this team together. I like this group. I like the way they work. I like the way they handle everything that we do from the start of the day to the end of the day. I think we’re putting a team together that basically, in the NFL, you’re going to run into adversity. I think this group will handle it. They’re solution-based. They’re going to find a way to get things done the right way.”
On whether there is enough depth at cornerback:
“Yes. We’ll look at this the next couple days to see where it is and see how these guys played this game. I know we’re young, but I like the way that we’re competing, so when we look at the numbers, we’ll be able to say. When you get down to it, you’re talking about are you keeping four or are you keeping five? And really, that’s where it gets thin anyways. You don’t have a lot of options because three of those guys are probably playing anyways, so you’ve got two backups.”
On WR Isaiah Ford:
“I thought he had some good production tonight. He had some good catches. He did a good job of making guys miss, so we’ll kind of see how that shakes out. We haven’t spent too much time worrying about that. We’ll get together when we’ve got a couple days to do it here.”
On whether WR Isaiah Ford would be a tough guy to let go:
“Yes I think there’s a lot of guys in that category. That’s why this part of the job isn’t very fun.”
On CB Tony Lippett’s performance:
“It’s hard for me to say right now. I have to watch it (on tape).”
Adam Gase – August 30, 2018 (Halftime)
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Thursday, August 30, 2018
Halftime – Atlanta Falcons
Head Coach Adam Gase (Halftime)
(Offensively, the first couple of drives looked really good. You got the running game going with RB Kalen Ballage and RB Buddy Howell and QB Brock Osweiler was pretty sharp back there.) – “Yes, it was good. They had a good tempo going. They took advantage of some of the calls versus the coverages they ran. They got some explosive plays. It was good to see.”
(Defensively, you got some pressure and a three-and-out to start. A pressure led to an interception. You saw some other pressure early on.) – “Yes, the front is doing a good job. They’re applying pressure on four-man rushes. (Defensive Coordinator) Matt (Burke) isn’t really calling any blitzes. That’s really been the strong point for us is that four-man rush.”
(How will you go with the quarterbacks in the second half?) – “Brock (Osweiler) will start the second half and then David (Fales) will come back in.”
(You have Offensive Coordinator Dowell Loggains calling the plays? You chose him to do that in this game?) – “Yes. The fourth preseason game, we did it last year – we had a bunch of guys taking different sections.”
Adam Gase – August 28, 2018
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Tuesday, August 28, 2018
Head Coach Adam Gase
(What do you like from CB Jalen Davis at kickoff returner?) – “We’re always looking for guys that can – whether it be kickoff return, punt return – it’s one of those jobs you have to have a different mindset. When you have 10 guys running at you, you count on guys to get on blocks and you’re going to have to make a lot of guys miss in the open field, usually unblocked. It takes probably a little more than just courage to be able to stick it up in there. When you find guys that have that mindset and are willing to do it and can hit the hole hard, that’s a starting point, and when they actually have vision, that’s even better. I think he’s done a good job when we put him in there of creating a little bit. At the same time, we still have a ways to go because the more he does it, the better he’ll get at it.”
(Are you considering with WR Jakeem Grant for that job?) – “We’re going to kind of see how everything plays out.”
(What’s the biggest thing that S Reshad Jones brings to the defense?) – “His experience. He’s seen a lot of football. He’s been in multiple defensive schemes. I think the longer he’s played, you make it sound like it’s easier for him, but it becomes easier because you can react more and you’re not thinking as much. I think he’s seen a lot of ball over time and it allows him to be more aggressive, it allows him to take chances because he has an idea of what’s going on sometimes just before some guys understand it. He’ll see a route concept developing, he’s able to maybe take a better angle and get his hands on the ball.”
(We noticed DE William Hayes was working out in pads after practice today. Where does he stand?) – “He’s still working through that. I think he feels like he’s ready to go, but I think we’re good where we’re at right now, we just have to make sure that he’s healthy for Week 1.”
(Do you anticipate having him on track for Week 1?) – “I’m hoping so, unless we have any kind of setbacks.”
(What’s your feeling on linebacker depth? Obviously LB Chase Allen has certainly played well. Do you feel that you have enough there or do you need more clarity on Thursday?) – “We’ll kind of see how this plays out. We haven’t really gotten too deep as far as what we’re doing after this game. We’re focused on this one right here. Once this game is over then we’ll move on to the next step.”
(Are there any position groups or players you’re particularly keen on for this last game?) – “Really, both sides of the ball. They didn’t have a great outing last week and we have to make sure that we play better. It’s really both sides of the ball. It’s hard to say this group or one side of the ball. I think both sides need to show a lot of improvement. We need some guys to make more plays when they’re given the opportunity. We have guys that we’ve seen actually do it, and we just didn’t have a very good game last week. In the second half, we need these guys to play better.”
(How has DL Kendall Langford played in his first two weeks here?) – “I’ve been impressed with his ability to come in … He hadn’t practiced and to be able to go in and play against Carolina and then last week getting a full week’s work and then playing in the game. The longer we’ve gone, it’s just going to be a steady climb. Him coming in late, it’s a lot to pick up really fast.”
(I’m doing something on tall football players, 6-foot-7 and over. It occurs to me that half the game is cut off to you. It’s like being a left-handed baseball player where you can’t catch, you can’t play second base, you can’t play shortstop. Is that true?) – “(laughter) That’s a tough one to answer. I don’t know. I have no clue. I’ve been around Brock (Osweiler), who’s close. Zach (Sterup), he seems taller than 6-foot-7. I feel like a little kid next to him. I just know at that size, when you’re playing offensive line, I’m sure it can get interesting sometimes when you get those speed rushers. Those guys are getting so low. You guys watch Robert Quinn every day; the guy is so low to the ground, it just puts a guy like that at a disadvantage.”
(Are there advantages or disadvantages?) – “I think the length, when they get their hands on you. That was the first thing that most of the d-linemen told me when Zach (Sterup) got here was, when he gets your hands on you, it’s just so hard to get your hands anywhere near the frame of his body. Maybe that’s an advantage.”
(How much has T Zach Sterup progressed since he started that 2017 season finale?) – “I think he’s definitely improved as far as his knowledge of the system. It’s not sitting there trying to think through, ‘Okay, what do I have to do? What are my rules?’ Because there’s a lot of things the defense can do where it kind of changes what your technique is. His comfort level there has improved. I think he’s been very consistent. That’s like every other position. You’re just looking for those guys that just day in and day out are the same guy. I think he’s been one of those guys.”
(C/G Ted Larsen went down today.) – “I’m still waiting for them to come back and tell me whatever the evaluation was. I’ll know later today.”
(You’re going to play a lot of young guys, a couple of linebackers, tight end, S Minkah Fitzpatrick obviously. What do they bring and what do you – I don’t know if concern is the right word – but until they get into a game, what can’t they learn?) – “I think this group of young guys, it’s a different class to me. These guys come in with a different kind of maturity almost. Their football IQ is higher than probably a lot of the groups that I’ve been around in the past. (General Manager) Chris (Grier) did a great job putting this draft class together to where these guys, they’re getting thrown in there and they’re executing, they’re doing things well and they’re being impactful. They’re bringing great energy to the group too. You see Minkah makes a couple of plays and gets the defense juiced up. I know guys are anxious for Mike (Gesicki) to get involved in the passing game when we get going during the season because they’ve seen him do a lot of things in practice that gets those guys excited. They know that opens up other things for other players. These guys don’t feel like rookies to me.”
(Going back to S Reshad Jones, what one skill does he have above all others that makes him Reshad?) – “His tackling is probably unique as far as how consistent he is and how evolved he is. He really has a knack for the ball. I will say when I have seen him … thinking back to before we even got here, some of the interceptions that he’s made in the past have been very impressive. And some of the ones I’ve seen in practice, his ball skills are way above normal for that position. He can do things. He can do some good stuff with the ball in his hands. You’re in a Catch-22 with him because you want him near the line of scrimmage; but at the same time, you’d love for him to get kind of caught in a zone where he has a chance to pick a ball off.”
(You have some minor injuries to some wide receiver. Will that affect at all the roster make-up for Week 1?) – “I don’t know. I’ll find out next week.”
(What has impressed you guys about CB Torry McTyer, where clearly he’s more than just a special teams player at this point?) – “He’s covering guys. He’s not afraid to challenge guys. He mixes it up. He’s not the biggest guy, but he doesn’t care. He does everything he can to make the plays when they come in front of him. He doesn’t back down from any receivers. He finds a way to stay as tight as he can. In practice, he makes a lot of plays and when we get in the games, he’s close. That’s just experience. He’ll turn the corner and practice will start translating to the games.”
(Is your sense with CB Tony Lippett that he needs more time to be the same guy as he was before, or is something more significant wrong?) – “I think the more he plays, the more comfortable he’s getting. We’ve got this game coming up, which will be good. We’ll try to give him as many snaps as possible. I know in practice we’re trying to do the same thing and just keep him … encouraging him to challenge receivers, use his length, do all the things that he’s done in the past. Really, this game will be a great test for him to really go out there and challenge and play as many snaps as we can get him in there. Hopefully it’s a high number so when we get out of this game we have a really good sense where he’s at.”
(Was CB Tony Lippett playing a lot of off coverage last game?) – “Yes, he got caught in a couple of situations where we were off. Sometimes it’s situational. Sometimes it could be we’re playing zone instead of a middle to a close where he’s matched up. There’s a lot of different reasons that can happen. When we call certain coverages where we’re saying, ‘Hey, we’re pressing on this,’ he goes up and does it. I know that it felt like they were in the red zone where a lot of times you’re not going to see those type of coverages because those are higher percentage of plays for the offense to take a shot in the back of the end zone.”
Brock Osweiler – August 28, 2018
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Tuesday, August 28, 2018
QB Brock Osweiler
(How much do you think your experience will play a factor in what happens in terms of decisions made?) – “You would have to ask the coaching staff that question. It’s not really up to me to make that decision of where I sit on the depth chart. It’s just up to me to each day compete on the practice field, to work hard in the meeting rooms and really just be the best quarterback and teammate I can be.”
(Where do you feel like you’ve made the most improvement so far?) – “I think understanding what (Head) Coach (Adam) Gase is trying to accomplish with certain play calls. Now after having OTAs, minicamp, training camp and three preseason games … A lot about having success in this league is understanding your play-caller’s intent. And now at the end of training camp, I feel very comfortable with why Coach Gase is calling certain plays and where he wants that football to go.”
Jerome Baker – August 28, 2018
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Tuesday, August 28, 2018
LB Jerome Baker
(On the differences between playing linebacker in college and the NFL.) – “In the NFL, you have to know what you’re doing. There’s no more getting away with speed. Sometimes you have to actually know what you are doing.”
(But you could do that in college?) – “In college, yes. You can get away with it sometimes. But in the NFL, everybody is fast, so if you’re not there, your speed is not going to do anything.”
(What’s the challenge for you that you’ve found in this camp and now we’re going through preseason and just getting to where you want to be.) – “The challenge is coming in and learning the whole playbook – all of the checks, all of the different reads, all of the different formations they’re trying to do. The older guys, Kiko (Alonso) especially, pretty much after practice, we just sit down and go over everything. If I don’t understand something, he pretty much goes one-on-one with me and teaches me through it. It’s really just a credit to the older guys. So many of those guys just help me. If I have a question, I’m not afraid to ask questions (to them). I just give all of the credit to them.”
(Like questions on if they line up here, what do I do?) – “Yes. So if they line up this, what’s the read or the check? Are we doing this or are we doing that? Stuff like that. Little tips. If they run (a certain way), somebody has to come over. Just little things like that. It’s a constant process of just learning. I credit all of the vets for that.”
(Are you pleased with how you’ve done in pass coverage so far?) – “Yes. I did pretty good. I still have to stay square on some things but as far as overall, I think I’m moving in the right direction.”
Chase Allen – August 28, 2018
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Tuesday, August 28, 2018
LB Chase Allen
(How has it been moving around to different positions?) – “Just knowing the playbook. It helps you, I feel like, know the details and the ins and outs of what everyone’s job is. I think it’s helped me as a player.”
(Has any position been more difficult for you?) – “It’s just adjusting from … You have to be able to flip your mind from knowing Mike (and) knowing what your coverage is or whatever to moving to Sam. You just have to be able to flip that mindset and be able to know what you are on that play and focus in.”
(How is this year different than your first year coming here as an undrafted free agent?) – “I’m just much more comfortable with the defense. I know what to expect now rather than coming in and being an undrafted rookie and just running around and trying to impress somebody. This year I’m much more comfortable and more relaxed.”
(What do you tell to some of the other guys that are also in your situation a year ago?) – “You just have to work. You have to … When the opportunity comes, you have to prove it. That’s how this league is.”
(Just the competition at the linebacker spot, how has that been?) – “Great. I think the competition has been huge. I feel like we have a lot of guys that can play multiple positions, so that creates more competition.”
(Going into this fourth game, it’s crunch time for a lot of guys out here. How do you handle it, how do you approach it being kind of in that mix?) – “You just have to treat it like any other game. (You have to) come out and do your job and make some plays. I’m just focusing on my job and whatever position they ask me to play, and just do the best I can at that position.”
(Is your comfort level higher this year compared to last year?) – “Yes, 100 percent. I feel like everyone who goes through a rookie year, their second year they’re much more comfortable and they know what to expect and they can just play faster because of that.”
