Jarvis Landry – September 27, 2017
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Wednesday, September 27, 2017
WR Jarvis Landry
(There are a lot of gifted playmakers on this offense and it’s struggled so much – one touchdown in each of the first two games. Does that surprise you? Is it frustrating? How do you feel?) – “It’s definitely frustrating when you can’t put points on the board. I think the biggest thing for us, and we talked about it – Coach (Adam) Gase talked about it, we talked about it as an offense – is just finding a way to put points on the board, even if it’s 3 points. Eventually those add up and before you know it, we score a touchdown or two, and then that 3-point lead turns into 12, 15, and that’s the plan. So for us, just getting to the red zone is one step closer to getting points on the board.”
(How surprised were you that your offense was so off? It hasn’t been like that for a while.) – “I think there’s just things that we need to correct. I think there’s things we need to fix. We’re in the process of continuing to get guys in the right spot to make the plays that we need to make to allow this offense to go. It’s taken a little longer than expected, but I know that it’s on the way.”
(As crazy as the season’s been, with everything that’s happened, now you’ve got to go all the way to London. What’s it been like and mentally, has it been taxing?) – “Yes. One thing about us, we’re going to embrace whatever it is. It was unfortunate that we couldn’t control the weather and we were able to have a bye in the first week of the season, and the last three weeks have been on the road. It’s just something that we’ve got to do and we understand. We’re looking forward to the challenge.”
(Every position group obviously makes their own corrections. For you, WR Kenny Stills and WR DeVante Parker, what’s been the emphasis on where you guys need to be better than Sunday? In what areas?) – “Just continue to make plays. When the ball’s thrown our way, regardless (of anything else), make plays. (We’ve got to) find a way to continue to try to get open for Jay (Cutler) and win our 1-on-1 matchups.”
(How about extending drives? You were 1-for-12 on third down? It’s bad for the offense but also the defense, having to get back on the field very early.) – “It doesn’t help when we’re in third-and-long on a lot of those possessions. I think eight out of the 12, we were in third-and-long. That’s tough (for) any team, any offense. It’s tough, but we’ve got to find a way to get better plays on first and second down to allow us to be in the position to convert on third (down).”
(How long does it take a quarterback and receivers to get familiar with each other, because we know QB Jay Cutler hasn’t been here for that long.) – “We’ve probably thrown about 50,000 balls now together. He’s a guy that anticipates well, so that helps us both and the (whole) receiving corps. Not only that, but he’s been making plays with his feet, scrambling. It’s definitely an adjustment, but he’s done a great job, thus far, finding a way to connect with all of us.”
(Obviously the goal is to win but how excited are the players to get RB Jay Ajayi going in this particular game?) – “It’s huge. I think our biggest thing is sometimes it may be the run game first. Sometimes it may be the pass game first. So understanding that it’s going to take a balance to do the things that we need to do to be a special offense (is important), but just as much as we need to throw the ball, we definitely have got to get Jay going.”
(It’s been only two games of course, but it’s been a 12 points per game offense so far. With the talent in this group, should it be a 20 points per game, 25 points per game offense do you think?) – “I don’t want to put a number on it. I think we’re capable of scoring a lot of points and we haven’t lived up to that so far. For us, we just want to score more points than the opponent, even if it’s 2 points. You know, 2-0, we’ll take it. A win is a win, and for us, that’s our goal.”
(I know Head Coach Adam Gase likes to get input from you guys during games. What are some of the things that you’ve been expressing when you talk to him. What do you prefer in certain situations?) – “It just depends on the team. The first week, we got a lot of zone coverage. Then we ended up playing the Jets this week and they did a good job of playing zone, making their zone look like man, so it was tough to get a beat on what they were really going to do. First and second down, they played pretty much zone, so we were trying to find ways to get the ball in our hands as fast as possible somewhere in between the holes, and make plays from there. We just weren’t able to do it fast enough.”
(As a player, do you like that kind of communication because you can probably see things that the coaches can’t from the sidelines?) – “Absolutely. It helps when you have a coach that’s that transparent, that’s willing to be open to suggestions, willing to be open to the things that we see out there. It is very good to have (Head Coach) Adam (Gase) being so transparent and all of the other coaches as well.”
(I know the players are frustrated so far about the offensive production. How frustrated does Head Coach Adam Gase seem to you?) – “I wouldn’t say that we’re frustrated. I think we’re just in a position that we know where we have to go. This is our floor and we haven’t really been playing up to our potential, and that’s not just on Adam, it’s on us as well, going out there and trying to execute these plays. For us, we’ve got a find a way to do a better job, to do our job.”
Jay Ajayi – September 27, 2017
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Wednesday, September 27, 2017
Running Back Jay Ajayi
(Why did you decide to a knee on Sunday?) – “I think it was something that was on my heart. I’ve been thinking about it for a little bit and I think it was just … First, what the President said kind of sparked it a little bit and then, I think, I thought it was the right time for me personally. That’s what I want to say.”
(You’re coming from a unique perspective on this. You are not a U.S. citizen, correct?) – “Yes.”
(So as part your decision process, how does that play into it) – “One I’m not into the whole citizen thing. It is what it is.”
(So you’re not into it?) – “No. I’m saying I’m not into the whole ‘You’re not American but you’re kneeling for the flag’ or whatever; but my thing was that … I think it was … I wanted to send a message for my brothers and sisters, to be honest. They live here. They were all three born here and I kind of wanted to be an example to them – being the oldest in my family as well – being an example for my brothers and sisters to show them that even though you have skies and people that are portraying hatred and division, I kind of wanted to be an example for my family, and be a symbol that we’re unified and I’m for unity, and I’m for people being respected. I felt like our respect was taken a little bit and I wanted to be an example to my family that you can be a symbol of unity, and that’s what I wanted to do.”
(Did you have any interest in becoming an U.S. Citizen at some point?) – “That’s something for down the road, maybe; but just on that Sunday, last Sunday – and looking to the future I’m going to decide – but I definitely, for that Sunday, wanted to be an example for my brothers and sisters and be that symbol for them.”
(And do you plan to kneel again Sunday?) – “I’m not sure yet, but I think I will. I’m not sure yet.”
(A couple of football questions. When you looked at the tape of the Jets game, it had to frustrating. What did you see?) – “They were stumping us. Physicality. They brought it and we didn’t.”
(And what can you do this week? What’s the motivation? What’s the mindset heading into this week?) – “The mindset is to scrap what we did last week. That was last game. We’re moving forward now. We’ve got the Saints. We need to come back and be more physical, have a nice tone starting off the game, and we need to execute better. Third downs, we were not good. We didn’t execute. We kept the defense out on the field too long. Across the board offensively, we didn’t do what we needed to and so coming back this week, I think we need to get back on track.”
(As a follow up, does it need to start with you? Do you look at that as ‘If I could establish that physical presence, if I can gain some yards, early it opens things up for everyone else?’) – “I think that for sure, the run game helps everything. I think that when we are on schedule and moving people off the ball and running hard, that we’re able to set a lot of things up in our offense. I think that also, sometimes, it’s not going to go that way. You are going to get stopped on the ground and that’s when we need our other guys to step up, and I think that we just all need to make plays for each other, so that on offense they can’t stop … If they stop one thing, the other thing is clicking and then they have to try and stop that, and then we go back to the run. So I think we all just need to be able to work together better and execute.”
(Two years ago you were an injured rookie and spectator in this London game. How special is it for you to actually be on the field and how unique is this opportunity?) – “It’s exciting. I’m getting to go home. My whole family is flying out. It’s a special thing and I think it will be even more special when I get there and it’s about to kickoff and all of that. I think that will be a great moment for me and for my family as well because I’m bringing everyone. So I think everyone is excited for it.”
(How many tickets have you had to come up with?) – “I’m at like 30 to 40 right now. It’s going to be a good support system at the game.”
(Can you give us a sense for how big your name is out there – especially after last year’s breakout year – maybe compared to before?) – “It’s all about the play on the field. I was able to do good and I was able to do well last year and have some success. Obviously, my name was able to grow more. Being featured and being a good player and being from London, being the only skill player right now as well, has kind of made me the face, almost, a little bit of NFL UK. So that has been a blessing in itself. I’m just trying to further the game over there. I’ve done some things (like) go back, work with the kids and try to use my platform as well to inspire. I’m doing some things there. I’ve got a little event I’m doing on Friday as well, for my own little platform and brand. I’m just trying to continue to build my brand and build my name over there as well as over here.”
(You didn’t go to the Seattle game last year. At some point you had to face those teammates. How tough was that for you? How tough do you think that was for LB Lawrence Timmons to do also?) – “It’s always tough not being with the team. When it’s something that almost is in your control, it’s even worse. But at that time, it’s about moving past it, and that’s what I was able to do. I know that know we’ve got ‘L.T.’ (Lawrence Timmons) back with us and he’s here practicing. When he’s here, he’s here. That’s our teammate. We’ve accepted him back and know he’s going to ball for us on Sundays.”
(Have you heard an explanation either from him or anybody else as to what exactly happened?) – “No. Don’t need one.”
(Can you give more details about what that event is on Friday?) – “I have my lifestyle brand that I’m launching in London. It’s called YURP. It stands for Your Unlocked Raw Power. Basically it’s my platform that I’ve been working on – myself and my YURP team – for over a year and a half now. It’s going to be exciting to launch in London. That’s where the roots are from; that’s where my roots are from. It all made sense (with) this whole weekend, getting to come back and being able to set it up. I’m excited for it to finally come to fruition on Friday.”
(I know it’s a quick business trip, but will you be able to catch a soccer game while you’re over there?) – “I think they had a game for us on Saturday to go watch; but it’s not Arsenal, so I’m not going to go. I’m not going to go. (laughter)”
(Head Coach Adam Gase was very frustrated when he talked to the media on Monday referring to the offense. This year and last year, the word he used was ‘garbage.’ You guys have scored one touchdown in each of the first two games. How frustrating is that? How surprising is that?) – “It’s very frustrating for myself, the running back room and the offense itself. One touchdown (in each game), I don’t think tells the story about what kind of offense we believe we are. I think that that’s a very talented offense that’s got a lot of weapons. For us to not put it in the end zone at this point in time is frustrating, but we know that it’s time. If there’s a time to get it done, it’s now. We got knocked on our asses last week, basically. (We) played (an) okay game the first week, got knocked on our asses (last) week. Now it’s Week 3, what are we going to do? It’s about stepping up and showcasing what we really can do this Sunday, executing all of the details and coming out and playing ball like we know how to.”
(I saw you working on the side. Any concerns?) – “No. I’m just going through the same protocol that me and (Head) Coach (Adam) Gase and the trainers have for the season.”
(You mentioned being the first skill player from London. I know former NFL DE Osi Umenyiora and a few other guys have made it to the NFL. Do you hope to inspire the next generation of getting more players over?) – “Definitely. Just from my perspective of going back this summer, I got to go meet the London Blitz football team and see everything that they’ve got going on over there. (It) was exciting for me. It was almost like gratifying because I remember growing up not too far from the park they were practicing at and thinking, ‘Wow, they’re really out here now and they’re working at their craft.’ They’re chasing their dream and looking at me as a role model almost. It’s inspiring and it’s also exciting to know that they’re taking American football serious and some of them really are striving to work their way up there, maybe fly over to the states and work their way through high school or college and make it to the NFL.”
(What are your thoughts on a potential NFL team in London?) – “I think it’s definitely possible. The infrastructure I think is there for London. I think it’s going to be interesting to see how they set it up with an American team and Americans having to go over there and be on a London team and all of that stuff. I definitely think the city of London, they’re all ready for it, and they’re excited for American football. You can tell. All the games sold out. I think it’ll be interesting to see what happens down the line.”
Ndamukong Suh – September 27, 2017
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Wednesday, September 27, 2017
DT Ndamukong Suh
(I added it up and you guys are traveling more in these three weeks than half the teams in the NFL for the entire season.) – “Correct.”
(Are you road weary?) – “No, I love it. I love being on the road. It’s fun. Honestly, it’s a great situation to be in, something to embrace. Just like coming into the league; embrace it, enjoy it, have fun with it and make the most of it. And to make the most of it, we need to go out there and win.”
(Is it hard to put the Jets game behind you?) – “It’s already behind us. We had to get over it on Sunday night, and really Monday morning as well. I watched the film. I was fortunate enough to watch it on the plane, so I’m over and done with it.”
(Did you have any conversations with LB Lawrence Timmons today, and if so how did they go?) – “I did, but (it was a) normal day – nothing special, more or less, to answer your question.”
(Is LB Lawrence Timmons welcomed back fully?) – “Yes, without question. I don’t see why he wouldn’t be. He’s part of this team. He works hard, plays hard and that’s what we expect from him.”
(Did LB Lawrence Timmons apologize to the group today about missing the game?) – “I think, like we said, it just went back to normal business. I don’t think there’s necessarily an apology needed, at this particular point in time, in my personal opinion. Like I said, we just expect for him to continue to play hard and practice hard like he does. He was out there flying around like he normally is, making plays and being a big part of this defense.”
Jay Cutler – September 27, 2017
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Wednesday, September 27, 2017
QB Jay Cutler
(Does the team feel more complete now that LB Lawrence Timmons is back?) – “Yes, I guess so. He’s well liked in the locker room, so guys are happy to see him back out there.”
(Did LB Lawrence Timmons talk to you guys after coming back?) – “We haven’t had any formal talks yet, no.”
(How is it welcoming a guy back that did what LB Lawrence Timmons did? What’s it going to take? Is there a certain level of trust that needs to be rebuilt?) – “I think he’s got to come back in and do his job. It’s not hard. I think (Head Coach) Adam (Gase) said it a couple of weeks ago, there’s not a lot of rules here: play hard and be on time. ‘L.T.’ knows that and he’s going to come in and he’s going to do everything we ask him to do.”
(Do you think the team is convinced that this LB Lawrence Timmons situation is a one-time thing that won’t be repeated?) – “I mean if it’s not, it’s going to be dealt with. I don’t think it’s anything that we’re going to worry about or concern ourselves with. He’s back, we’re happy to have him back and I think we expect him to fall in line like everybody else.”
(When you broke down the Jets game, what stood out?) – “It was all around. Myself, we had a few breakdowns up front, we had some stuff outside, everyone kind of took their turn (making mistakes). As a whole, offensively, we’ve just got to play better. That starts with me, so I’ve got to get back to work and help everyone stay on time and be efficient offensively.”
(Head Coach Adam Gase, when he talked to us on Monday and again today, he had some pretty pointed words about how the offense played, I think he used the word garbage…) – “Strong word. (laughter)”
(Did he use those same words with you?) – “I think he probably went a little stronger for us, which is fine. He’s a passionate guy. He believes in this offense and so do we. There’s a lot of talent in that room and we feel like we should do better and hopefully we will.”
(One-for-twelve on third down, how do you fix that?) – “Well, we’ve got to get more yards and move the chains. There’s a lot of different things that go into it, so we’ve just got to fix a lot of things.”
(When you first came aboard here, Head Coach Adam Gase talked about how he had a plan for keeping you fresh and keeping your arm fresh. How are you feeling at this point in time after going through preseason and the first couple of games?) – “I feel like I’ve only played two games. I feel good. I took a few shots this past game, but my body feels fresh. Being off for OTAs and stuff, I feel good.”
(Do you even think about the shoulder anymore?) – “No.”
(How important is it for this team to be able to set up the run with the pass, as opposed to only setting up the pass with the run?) – “(For) anybody in the league, I think it’s hard to set up the run with the pass, or whichever way you said it, I forget. (laughter) But it’s hard to start passing a bunch and then say, ‘Hey, now we’re going to run it.’ That’s just an uphill battle to do that, especially in this league with defensive lines and safeties and really good athletes out there. You’ve got to be able to run the ball and have some play action and try to soften some things up a little bit. We’ve had success doing that, but that game (against the Jets), I think things got out of hand a little bit for us. We got into a one-dimensional (offense) and then when it was late third quarter, late fourth quarter, we had to throw the ball. If we do our jobs in that first quarter, early second quarter, hopefully we can stay out of those situations.”
(I added up the numbers and you guys are flying more in these three weeks than half the teams in the league are doing this entire this season?) – “That’s fun. Frequent flyer miles will add up, huh? (Laughter).”
(Are you road weary?) – “No. I feel good, I think the guys feel good. (Head Coach) Adam (Gase) does a good job of taking care of us, giving us off days, keeping pads off, cutting down practices, and this team’s just got to be smart. On our flight over, we’ve got to get some rest. We’ve got to go to sleep because when we get there it’s eight or nine in the morning. We’re going to have a walk-through and we’re going to get going. We’ve just got to be professionals about it and make sure that we’re doing everything that we need to do so that Sunday we are fresh, because they’re not changing the schedule. We’re not playing this one at home, they’re not moving the site, so it is what it is.
(I know that offensively, you want to play your best every week, but realistically, you haven’t been here for very long. How long do you think it will take this offense to hit its stride?) – “It could be this week. It could be next week. I don’t know. We’ve got the guys in the room. We’ve just got to make sure that everybody’s doing their job each and every play. Offense is a little bit tricky, because it’s going to take eight, nine or 10 guys each play for the offense to really go off, and that’s consistently throughout the whole game. We’ve got some young guys and we’ve just got to make sure we get everybody on board and everybody understanding that.”
Adam Gase – September 27, 2017
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Wednesday, September 27, 2017
Head Coach Adam Gase
(You said last week that guys can be brought back into the fold if the right steps are taken. What right steps were taken by LB Lawrence Timmons?) – “I mean that’s just … that’s something I’m just keeping in-house right now. We just worked through a couple of things. ‘L.T.’ (Lawrence Timmons) handled the business he needed to handle and I’m glad he’s back.”
(Do you have any concern about how the locker room will accept LB Lawrence Timmons back?) – “No.”
(Is the trust restored between you and LB Lawrence Timmons or does that take time?) – “Yes.”
(Has LB Lawrence Timmons or will he talk to the team? Have you addressed that?) – “Anything like that will stay in-house as far as what goes (on) with our team. I don’t know. I’m sure you guys will talk to him at some point.”
(What assurances, if any, did LB Lawrence Timmons give you that this will not happen again?) – “Once again, I’m just going to keep our conversations … I’m going to keep those private.”
(Do you see LB Lawrence Timmons playing on Sunday?) – “(It’s a) possibility.”
(Was it a tough decision to reinstate LB Lawrence Timmons right now?) – “No.”
(Why not?) – “I felt good about where we were at with him.”
(Did this decision have anything to do with wins and losses as far as …?) – “No.”
(Do you think this might be the week that LB Rey Maualuga gets out there?) – “We’ve got him practicing this week, so that’s a positive step and we’ll just kind of see how that goes. I’m trying to make sure … If it was up to him, he’d be like ‘throw me in there and let’s go,’ but I just don’t want to have a setback. We’ve come a long way in a short period of time and I just want to make sure he’s healthy, ready to go and can help us.”
(S Nate Allen left the game on Sunday. Do you have any concerns with him?) – “We’re going to see how he feels today. I think he could have went back in the game if we needed him to. We’ll kind of go day-to-day right now.”
(Where do you stand with any possible changes in your starting lineup?) – “I’m not going to sit here and give any kind of game plan away. We’re going to go through a week of practice and see how it goes and just kind of see what the best fit for us is this week.”
(Without giving anything with the game plan away, did you, after thinking about things the last 48 hours, do you feel just minor tweaking is needed or do you feel like something more significant is needed?) – “I think we need to play better on offense. I know that. The defense did a great job. They kept us in the game as long as they could. The time of possession was way off base. We just can’t do that to those guys and we’re wasting snaps with our defense because they’re getting off the field. Their third down was good. For us to just keep throwing them back out there … it’s going to, like last year, it just eventually catches up to you. Then at the end of the year, we kind of started turning it on, on offense, and then all of a sudden our defense is exhausted because they were going 75, 80 plays a game. That’s why we need to be … If we can be balanced and stay on the field and figure out a way to convert some third downs, that’s going to give us our best chance because when our defense is fresh, they can do some damage.”
(Is time of possession the most important stat to you?) – “Well, when it gets to 37 minutes, 36 minutes, that’s just way off. I just know we’re better than that and we just haven’t done it yet.”
(With regard to LB Rey Maualuga, are you guys still working on conditioning issues with him or do you …?) – “No, it’s more of just his health. His conditioning has gotten better. He’s pretty used to down here now and we just have to … He hadn’t done anything in so long. We get him in here and we’re just trying to get him adapted to how you have to practice down here. He’s a big guy. He’s always been a big guy. You can say ‘Get down to this weight, get down to this weight,’ but that’s what makes him a little different than everybody else because that’s a big man in the middle that can move around pretty good and hit guys.”
(When you expressed your frustration with how the offense looked the other day, is part of it that you’d like to be a little more creative with it? Do you not see enough creativity in what you’ve been doing?) – “Sometimes you feel that way. Really, when we get into too many mental errors or it’s not being executed the way we think it should be, and we’re not in a good rhythm – whether it be a series of bad play calls or we screw some things up – just some kind of consistency, just overall, the whole big picture of everything. We just haven’t had that. The first week, I thought it was okay; but if we hit a couple deals in the red zone, maybe we feel better about it. Last game was just a disaster. It just wasn’t very good. We’re all taking part of the blame. None of us were good. We just have to be better.”
(Along those lines, how would you evaluate your play calling the first couple games?) – “The first game, I was mad that I couldn’t find that one or two things in the first half to really get us going. I was trying to get one with Jarvis (Landry) and felt good about it – we felt good about it all week – and we didn’t get it, get what we wanted. When you get the opportunities and you miss it, it’s hard to get the second one. It’s hard to come back the next play and be like, ‘Alright, now we’re going to score a touchdown,’ because you put yourself behind. All of a sudden now it’s second-and-10 and then you’re third-and-8. There’s not a lot of great play calls third-and-8 from the 15. The defense has a good advantage there. Last week it was third down was a disaster. That’s obvious. It’s embarrassing. It was always something, whether it was play call, execution, we don’t finish the play. Whatever it is, the whole thing was a mess.”
(Do you have a better feel now for how LB Stephone Anthony fits in and do you anticipate him getting some work this Sunday?) – “We’ll see how it plays out this week. We’ve got a better feel now. We’ll see kind of how it works out.”
(It’s hard to evaluate guys after two games. Are you getting what you need from TE Julius Thomas?) – “We haven’t got the coverages that make him a difference maker. It might be part of the reasons why we’re not getting it. When you flex him out and you put a safety or linebacker on him, that’s an advantage for us. We really haven’t seen that. We’ve seen a lot of zone coverage. If we’re more efficient in the passing game, maybe we start seeing some things where it’s too high and now we can get Jay (Ajayi) going. It seems like a lot of times we’re still running against an eight-man box or seven-man box, depending on the personnel. We just have to do a great job. We’ve got to win our one-on-one matchups and find some ways to pop some guys free and try to find some consistency.”
(What do you need to do to have success against Saints QB Drew Brees?) – “If I had the answer to that, a lot of people would be coming to me for that one. You do the best you can. You want to keep everything in front of you. You want to make sure that you put as much pressure on them as you can and try to collapse the pocket, make it tough for him. Just watching that last game, (he) looks one way, resets and then throws just an absolute dime 48 yards down the field for a touchdown. His ability to throw the ball is still as good as it has ever been. You just really have to try to disrupt his timing and cover up those first progressions and give the d-line a chance to get there. He’s a tough matchup.”
(You mentioned all that zone you see. How do you break that?) – “You have to beat it. You have to be able to move the ball, whether it be in the run or the pass. When you do get your opportunities in man coverage, you’ve got to try to really have some good plays. Any time you get (the) middle of the field open and you’ve got two safeties back there and you run it, that’s where you’ve really got to have those 6-, 8-, 10-yard carries. You’ve got to get everybody covered up and take advantage of it.”
(When you hit a point at which you’re frustrated with how the offense is going, how much do you look for player input on that, like from QB Jay Cutler, or the receivers or anybody?) – “All the time. I’m trying to get their perspective too. Even during the last game, I grabbed all three receivers and said, ‘Give me what you like, so we can see if we can get something going.’ The good thing is, those guys can communicate well, and right away they’ll give you two or three things that they like for them, and we try to get to those. You might not always get exactly what you want from the defensive side, but at least it’s kind of them. They’re playing the game and they kind of have a better (feel for it). We’re watching, but they’re doing it. They have a little better feel of how guys are playing them, and for them to be able to give that kind of input helps a lot.”
(Is that typically your first instinct in that situation is the receivers, to find out from them what’s going on?) – “Yes, I do.”
(As opposed to anyone else because…?) – “Well the ball, if we’re throwing it, the majority of the time it’s going (to one of the receivers), especially when I know some of the coverages they’re running and it’s not really applying to the tight ends. When you talk to Jay Ajayi, he’s very good at saying, ‘I like this scheme over this one,’ and he can narrow it down for you to how he’s feeling (and how) things are fitting up for him. He’s always been really good about that with, in game, what he’s feeling and what he likes.”
(If you talk to them in-game, even though you’re right on the sideline, can they see subtle things that maybe you wouldn’t even pick up on that closely?) – “Yes, because they’re doing it. The thing that we try to tell our guys is, ‘Tell us the right stuff.’ To me, that’s an advantage when guys can. I’ve been around some guys, in the past, that were really good at relaying the information back. I’ve been around a few guys that tell you the wrong stuff and it kind of throws everything off, but I feel like our guys do a pretty good job. They’ve been right. When they’ve suggested things, when they’ve told us stuff, they’ve been right.”
(Some described QB Jay Cutler as looking rusty on Sunday against the Jets. He had such a long layoff this summer. Is he still behind?) – “I don’t think he’s behind. He got hit early a couple of times. I think he was trying to get out of the pocket a few times, maybe instead of pushing up, he started to escape. A couple balls didn’t come out as good as he wants. The first play of the game, that was really on me. I should have had him set up sooner and we would have been in good shape and he would have been able to throw a better ball. The guy was coming right at him and he kind of threw it off his back foot. Some of it is just timing. We’ve just got to keep getting better and keep working on stuff. I felt good going into the game with what we were doing passing game-wise and how we were throwing the ball around. Even though Jarvis (Landry) and DeVante (Parker) missed some time in practice, I still felt good about it; but we just weren’t crisp. We weren’t clicking.”
(There was a red zone play where WR Jarvis Landry was open in the middle and the ball kind of went to nobody. What happened on that play?) – “You want me to go over the progression of the route?”
(I’m just curious as to what happened.) – “(QB Jay Cutler) didn’t see him. It happens. I might have not have told him to look there. I don’t know.”
(When you first brought QB Jay Cutler aboard, you guys said that you had planned on keeping him as fresh as possible. Do you feel like you guys have done everything possible to adhere to that and how’s it going at this point?) – “Yes, there’s a lot of communication that goes on there. He’ll tell me if he feels like something’s up, where his arm’s fatiguing or anything (like that); but I’ve yet to have that day happen, so I don’t see any issues. Plus, the amount of throwing he actually does, it’s not a lot.”
(Did C Mike Pouncey come out of the game again good physically?) – “Yes. He played well. He might have been one of the few guys (that played well).”
(Are you almost at a point where C Mike Pouncey’s injury is not even an issue anymore?) – “We’re always going to be smart in practice and we’re always going to go day-to-day and see how he feels. Some days might be better than others; but the way he is, he’s such a competitor. He wants to be out there all the time. We probably look at it like we’re protecting him from himself.”
(Are you optimistic about DT Jordan Phillips’ availability for Sunday?) – “We’ll just see how this week progresses. Any time we can get a guy that was a starter for us to start the season back out there – and he was playing well – it’d be great. I just don’t know.”
Adam Gase – September 25, 2017
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Monday, September 25, 2017
Head Coach Adam Gase
(After looking at the film, what did you see about your defense yesterday? Because statistically it didn’t look that bad) – “I thought the defense did what they were supposed to do. They fought as long as they could to keep us in the game. We had … (their) longest run wasn’t even that long. (It wasn’t like they) had a bunch of explosive runs. There’s a couple of things that we want to clean up. I mean for the most part, guys were doing what they were supposed to do.”
(How do you think DT Davon Godchaux did in his first start?) – “He did well. I mean it wasn’t … He didn’t blow the doors off or anything; but, he did his job for the most part. You know he’s still … There will be some times where we have the neutral zone infractions and some of these guys feel veteran quarterbacks have some ways of getting young guys to jump. Josh (McCown) has been around for a long time. He kind of, when he sees a weakness, he’ll keep trying to expose it as many times as possible. That’s just one of those things you’re going to learn over time, when you’re a defensive linemen, of how to kind of hang in there and don’t get too engrossed in the cadence. You’ve got to stick with what you’re being coached (to do).”
(There was a report that LB Lawrence Timmons went to a Pittsburgh Steelers practice. Is that report accurate and if so, how much did that factor into the suspension?) – “That’s nothing I can really comment on right now.”
(Is there any change in LB Lawrence Timmons’ status with the team?) – “I don’t have an update for you on that.”
(What’s your diagnosis on the offense after looking at the film?) – “The only game I can think of that was as bad as that was the Tennessee game (last year). We’ll make the proper adjustments. We’re probably going to make some changes. We’ll figure out what we’ve got to do to get that thing rolling. I’ve been watching it for two years. It hadn’t worked, so we’re going to figure some things out and make some adjustments.”
(Very much a collective situation you think?) – “Just a lot of bad football. We had more mental errors than we’ve had in the last two years. We’ll just make some … I’ll find the guys that want to do it right and those are the guys that will play.”
(So personnel changes? That’s what you’re…) – “Possibly.”
(What was one thing that just vexed you yesterday that you, again and again, the same issue came up? Or is it something different every time?) – “It’s just surprising some of the stuff that we don’t do right. We’ve basically skimmed it back as much as we could over the last year and try to make it to where we can play fast and win one-on-one matchups. We’re not doing it, so we’ll figure out a way to make adjustments.”
(What was it about the Jets defensive front in the run game that made it a little bit tough sledding there?) – “I mean they’re good. Over the last two games really, there’s like four runs (against them) that were not very good, against the other two teams they played. Everybody got hung up on stats because of a couple of bad runs. We knew that was going to be a challenge. We weren’t buying into the hype of they weren’t a very good run defense. We played them twice last year. They penetrated and caused issues, made Jay (Ajayi) stop his feet which, the whole thing that makes him very successful is getting his shoulders squared downhill, and getting guys that have tackle him on the side, because they can’t. We just didn’t really create much for him.
(What on the film, if anything, did you like?) – “Nothing.”
(You mentioned the hurry up offense. Is that something you want to scale back now?) – “We’ll see. I don’t know. I’ve got some ideas, but it’s not really a hurry up offense when we snap the ball at two seconds every time.”
(How did QB Jay Cutler play on film?) – “Not as well as I’d like him to. He took a couple of vicious shots early. When you’re 34, it’s a little different than when you’re 25.”
(WR Kenny Stills left with I believe his right hand wrapped. Is he ok? Will he be okay for this week?) – “Yes, as far as I know. I think we’re day-to-day right now. With practice, I’m not really sure yet. I haven’t got that far yet.”
(It’s only a two game sample size, but the defense is allowing 3.1 yards per carry. It’s a big improvement from a year ago. What’s going right in that area?) – “I think guys are doing their job. We’re having less missed tackles. We had more yesterday than obviously we had the first game. I think we had nine yesterday; we had two the first game, somewhere around there. That’s really the biggest improvement we’ve had. Even last game, we felt like if we can get that (average at) 5 (yards) or under, that’s really what we want to be at. I think the guys are taking a lot of pride in it. I think the d-line is doing a great job trying to … They are eating up so many double teams with the tackles. We just have to make sure we fit everything right and then when we have them stopped for 2 (yards), let’s make it two. We can’t have a good play and we’re hitting a guy for 1 or 2 yards and then they’re still gaining 4 of 5. There were a couple of times where (Defensive Coordinator) Matt (Burke) called some really good defenses that we should have negative plays on and we’ve got to make sure we make that count.”
(How did LB Chase Allen do yesterday?) – “He did alright. It’s hard to say anybody really stood out on any phase. Any time you get a younger guy in there, it’s a learning experience. Every week you play, the schemes changes dramatically – run scheme wise most of the time – when you’re on the defensive side. One week you’re playing a team that’s outside zone, inside zone or gap scheme – it depends on what their flavor is – and then the next week you see something completely different. It takes time to get used to.”
(What did you think about what happened before the game? The Dolphins owner, Mr. Ross, came out and joined in solidarity with players to support their rights to protest. Did you have any thoughts about all of that?) – “No. I was focused on the game. That’s where my focus is.”
(Do you feel like President Trump’s comments were appropriate?) – “I’m not going to comment about any of that stuff because I’m a football coach. I just worry about trying to win games on Sunday.”
(It seems like you’re most upset with how the line of scrimmage was for you guys on offense. The offensive line didn’t…?) – “I’m upset about the way our offense played. I’m just tired of watching it for two years, just garbage. We’re going to figure something out.”
(I know you’re not interested in excuses, but the reality is you guys have been gone a lot the last couple of weeks. Now you have to get on a plane and fly to Europe. What can you do to keep these guys fresh both mentally and physically?) – “Well, for the most part, we scheduled everything we thought the right way. We feel like this week’s schedule is the same way. We’ve talked to the right people as far as how we want to sleep, nutrition, what we need to do to combat flying as much as we have so far. It’s really about following what everybody is advising our players to do. It’s just whether or not guys want to do it that way. You can’t hold everybody’s hand. At some point you have to be a man and do it right and be a pro athlete. Guys that want to do it right are usually the ones that have success. The guys that don’t, don’t end up lasting very long.”
(I think RB Jay Ajayi may have sat out the whole fourth quarter or something like that. Was that an effort to get him some rest in light of the way the game was going?) – “Any time we can get Kenyan (Drake) in there to take reps in a game situation … We were going to be throwing the ball more at that point. Jay had already taken, even though he didn’t have a ton of carries, he took some pretty good shots. I told (Running Backs Coach) Danny (Barrett) just keep him out unless we have to put him back. We just thought it was the best decision at the time.”
Reshad Jones – September 25, 2017
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Monday, September 25, 2017
S Reshad Jones
(So when you guys looked at the tape today what did it show?) – “We didn’t watch film today.”
(You didn’t watch it?) – “Yes.”
(Any thoughts on what may have gone wrong yesterday?) – “They just outplayed us. All three phases of the game – offense, special teams, defense – they just outplayed us.”
(How do you kind of just flush that one out and say we know we’re not this team? Can you just move past that?) – “I mean it’s a tough league to win in. It’s a division opponent at (their) home. Like I said, they just found a way to win the game and we didn’t.”
(Do you think this team is road weary?) – “Not at all. We just need to go back to doing us, playing our style of football, and I think we’ll be fine.”
(So the idea of getting on a plane going to London this week?) – “No. No matter where you line the ball up, I think we’ll be ready to play.”
(Did you guys meet with the head coach yet today?) – “No.”
(Do you think that President Trump’s comments brought you guys closer together? Is it a unifying factor to have a statement like that made and directed at you guys?) – “I’m really not worried about the President’s commenting and all that’s going on right now. I’m here to play football and help the Miami Dolphins win football games.”
(Statistically, the defense didn’t look that it did that badly. How do you square that with what happened out there yesterday?) – “We did do bad. We didn’t win the game. We didn’t do enough to win a football game, so anytime we lose, there’s no moral victories. We’ve got to find a way to re-group and get better.”
(By and large, are you pleased with how you’ve played coming back from the shoulder and all that?) – “I think I’m playing solid, but I’ve got to do more. We’ve got to continue to win football games. It’s about winning around here and I think I’ve just got to do more.”
(Did you have to get a few hits into it before you felt normal again?) – “Not really. I’m not thinking about it, so it’s cool.”
Adam Gase – September 24, 2017 (Postgame)
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Sunday, September 24, 2017
Postgame – New York Jets
Dolphins Head Coach Adam Gase (transcribed by the New York Jets)
On how he evaluates the game…
They just beat the (heck) out of us. That’s the best way to put it. We didn’t show up, didn’t play physical, the defense did the best they could with 40 minutes of time of possession. The offense was just three-and-out. We just didn’t have anything going.
On what made the offense out of sync…
Just not enough positive yards and they’re teeing off on us on third-and-long. We were third-and-six-plus the whole game. If we’re going to do that then Todd (Bowles) is always going to have a good package for us and that’s what he did. They just put too much pressure on us where we couldn’t get open fast enough.
On Jay Cutler’s struggles…
It’s hard for me to tell when you’re watching it and you just see an incompletion. It’s hard to tell exactly what’s going on, whether he was pressured or just wasn’t aligned right, feet weren’t right, or had good throwing mechanics. I’ve got to look at it on tape before I say anything like that.
On what he can say to his team after the loss…
There’s nothing to say. Look at the scoreboard.
On if he sensed this week during practice that there was a chance for today’s poor performance…
Nope.
On Jay Ajayi’s game…
You watched the game. He couldn’t get through anything. Guys were in the backfield so fast.
On if there was poor communication at the end of the game…
No. We got the result we wanted. We’re not going to score 20 points in 30 seconds. Just trying to get good plays, just making sure our guys were good.
On why he decided to run a fake punt…
Try to get something going. Figured we could complete a ball on the punt team.
On if the hurricane or travel affected their performance…
No idea. All I know is we’re going to line up on Sunday and play. So if somebody has an issue with that, they better check their profession.
On how they can jumpstart the offense earlier…
Score points. Get a first down. Might be a start for us to get a first down.
