Ryan Fitzpatrick – October 14, 2020
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Wednesday, October 14, 2020
QB Ryan Fitzpatrick
(We’re asking a couple guys this week about what it’s like playing with you and a couple guys mentioned that you’re their favorite teammate that they’ve ever had. I guess, what do you think about the impact you’ve seem to make on so many particularly young players that they feel like you’re their favorite?) – “It’s probably a better question for them than me, but I know that my experience helps – just the road that I’ve traveled to get here and all the different teams and different teammates and different situations I’ve been in. I think all of that probably helps, but I don’t know. Probably a better question for all of them.”
(I was wondering if you knew that right now you rank fifth in the QBR statistic. I don’t know if you know what that is – a lot of people don’t – or if you give any credence to it, but do you think that’s a fair representation of how you’ve played in 2020?) – “I think you don’t really pay too much attention to any of that stuff, but I think that one’s probably a better metric of overall quarterback play than just the regular QB rating. That one, to me, matters more than the blanket quarterback rating one.”
(I saw a breakdown the other day. It was from Brian Baldinger. It was your 32-yard touchdown pass to WR Preston Williams and he talked a lot about you throwing to a spot under the face of pressure and kind of the trust you have in your eyes. Last year in training camp, you talked about how you felt you were playing some of the best ball of your career and I was just curious if those two things are intertwined and how you get to that point in your career where you really trust what you see fully?) – “A lot of it is experience and film study and just kind of years of accumulating this catalog in the back of mind of things that I really like and I’m comfortable with versus certain looks; and then the other end of that is getting the guys that you’re playing with to understand how I’m seeing it and where I want them to be and that was a huge play in the game, and that was a huge play for me just in terms of my confidence in Preston (Williams). For us to be on the same page and for me to be able to throw that ball knowing exactly where he was going to be and for him to make the right read and the right decision there, that kind of thing goes a long way in building confidence with guys. That one was a fun play because the set up and the way everything went, but also just because it was a pretty meaningful play in the second half.”
(I wanted to follow up on this whole QBR versus passer rating debate. I am a passer rating guy personally. Tell me why, in your mind, because considering you are the expert, you feel QBR is better?) – “I’m definitely not an expert, but I think if you throw an interception down three touchdowns in the fourth quarter, it probably shouldn’t weigh as much as throwing an interception up a score or in the first quarter with the game on the line. All the stats that you can kind of accumulate when you’re behind – some meaningless stats – I think being able to avoid negative plays, sacks and those type of things are important for a quarterback. I think it’s a – even just the running and the scrambles and things like that – there are just a lot of things that it takes into account that aren’t necessarily, that either don’t show up on a stat sheet or they weight stats based on how important it is in the game. I think that is a lot of the reason for me as to why that one carries much greater weight for me.”
(I have one and a half questions for you. The half question is related to something TE Mike Gesicki said the other day where he hopes he can play 15 years with you. So I want to find out how you’re going to be playing quarterback at age 52. But the real question is what one thing do you think you’re doing better this year than maybe you have ever before, or just that you feel so good about in your play?) – “I just think as the years have gone on for me, I’ve become more accurate. I’ve become a better decision-maker, but more accurate in the way that I’m throwing the football, and I think that’s shown up a little bit this year. I don’t know. Also for me, it’s not necessarily about the physical anymore. I mean I think I could still make all the throws, but it’s never really been about that for me; so feeling comfortable in this system, feeling comfortable with the guys I’m playing with and right now, just spreading the ball around. There’s been other years and seasons where we haven’t either had as much talent or we’ve had one superstar where he’s getting force-fed a lot of the time. I think with the group right now, we’ve got a lot of really talented guys that have different skillsets. And we’ve said that in the past, but I think with the ball being spread out more, that’s also helped with my efficiency and accuracy a little bit.”
(Just coming off your best performance so far this season, how big is the emphasis to just not get complacent, get off to another fast start, especially with a division opponent coming to town, even if they are winless?) – “I think we can always – I mean we’re 2-3 – so we can always point to that and just point to the fact that we still don’t have a winning record. There’s a fine line for us between carrying some of that momentum over and being excited about the way that we played and trying to build on it; and like you said, the word ‘complacent’ or patting yourself on the back and being happy with last week and not focusing on what we need to focus on this week. So we’ve made this week a lot about us and getting better on the practice field and continuing to take those next steps to just get better as an offensive unit, defensive unit and obviously as a team. So I think we had a good start today in practice. There was good focus, and guys are out there really running and trying to get better.”
(There are obviously a lot of ways to measure efficiency of offensive lines; but not giving up sacks is the big deal. Has it occurred to you that T Austin Jackson before his injury, G Solomon Kindley, G/T Robert Hunt – none of those rookies has allowed a sack? Has it pleasantly surprised you? Does it make you feel like they’ve got really good futures?) – “Yeah, I think the future is bright for all three of those guys and just like the previous question – they can be happy with how they started; but every single week, you’ve got to bring it and as soon as they show some cracks or weaknesses, they’re going to be exploited. So we have to continue to get better every week. Those guys are not any different than everybody else; but as far as being three knucklehead rookies, they’ve played pretty well. We just have to continue to make sure we’re on that upward trend and they improve every week.”
(I like how you termed the rookies, but building off of the question, I just wanted to ask specifically about G/T Rob Hunt. He didn’t get the benefit of those three or four games prior to this past Sunday’s game and he stepped right in there with no game experience. When you think about his situation specifically, I know week in and week out, they have to come ready to perform, but what did it mean to see him come in and really not lose a beat from what you had the first few games?) – “It’s nice – even just being in the huddle and not having the nervousness and those guys looking like they don’t belong in the huddle. All three of those guys have the right look in their eye. For me, I truly don’t pay attention to that stuff because I can’t. I’ve got too many other things I have to think about, so for me not to notice him in the game, I always take that as a good thing. But sometimes that’s stuff I can’t even really concern myself with because of all the other things I have to think about during a game.”
(I guess there was a visual we saw in the last game where after you threw that touchdown to I believe WR Preston Williams, QB Tua Tagovailoa is jumping up into your arms I guess in celebration. We talked about the dynamic in that QB room before, but I guess what does that show that you guys seem to genuinely support each other through everything?) – “I think it says a lot about him and just the fact that he’s enjoying the success of the team when we have it. And like I said last week, he’s a guy that is always upbeat and happy and that positive energy is really important in the good times when he’s jumping up after a touchdown, and the not-so-good times when we’re coming off a bad week or a tough loss. To be able to stay the same guy and bring that youthful exuberance, that’s good. And I guess you guys got to catch a glimpse of it there, but he definitely, he’s like that all the time in terms of his energy and how excited he is to be doing what he’s doing.”
(The Jets have not had a winning season since 2015 so the question I have for you is this: did they make a mistake in letting you go?) – “Well, we had a losing season in 2016 when I was there, so that one ended the way it did for a reason. But 2015 was a fun year.”
