The Buffalo Bills' coaching staff addresses the media in a Zoom call following the team's win over the Jets on Sunday.
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00evening coach. Evening X. How you doing? You finding yourself today? Well,
00:09thank you. Well, yes, sir. If you're ready, we'll go ahead and get started
00:12with questions. Pat Freeman will have my first question. You're always the
00:16leadoff hitter, man.
00:20Like that. How you doing today, Coach? We're doing well. How are you? I'm good.
00:25How did you come out of the game health wise? Yeah, I think pretty good.
00:29Um, you know, nothing really new to report at this point. Um, so, you know,
00:35still a little bit of evaluation to take place yet on a couple of guys,
00:39but overall pretty good.
00:42Let me ask you this, Coach. I got it in a little bit yesterday. You asked. You
00:47answered a little bit of it. I've really been impressed with the play of
00:50Christian Benford. How significant has his jump to being one of the most
00:56respected corners in the league helped this team this year?
01:00Well, it's been big for us. His play week to week, his ability to continue
01:05to improve. Uh, yeah, it's been important. I mean, you know, the
01:09corners of value position around the NFL and, um, Christian has done a real
01:15nice job for us this season.
01:17And my last question to you, and I have to phrase this the right way. Uh, is
01:23this your best regular season coaching job in your eight years here? Do you
01:31believe this is your best?
01:34I don't know. I mean, you know what? I think our staff, I would say this. I
01:38think our staff has done a phenomenal job. I was asked the question yesterday
01:42after the game. Um, you know how we were questioned, uh, going into the
01:47season and what the bills are gonna be. Is this gonna be a kind of rebuild
01:52year or what have you? And I think I think our coaching staff done a
01:55phenomenal job of developing, getting the players to fit into the systems
02:00and the systems building built around the player strengths and week to week
02:04managing some of the some of the injuries as well. And so I give the
02:09credit to them more so than anything.
02:11All right, Coach. Thank you. And, um, I'd like to say Happy New Year to you
02:16and your family and good luck to you on Sunday. Hey, thanks, Pat. Happy New
02:21Year to you and your family as well. Thank you.
02:25Hey, Coach Ian Mills from Channel 10 Rochester. You mentioned yesterday
02:30after the game, um, the you know, the idea of Hey, you have options next week
02:36in New England against the Patriots on that. You had to talk with Brandon and
02:40Harry. Has there been any kind of further clarity from you going forward
02:44into the Patriots in that kind of rest versus rest versus rust debate, so to
02:49speak?
02:50Yeah, there has. What we're gonna do, um, is you'll see some starters out
02:55there playing and you'll see some, um, other players who we want to take a
03:01good look at. Uh, so it'll be a blend of both. Uh, in Josh's case, one of
03:07the things that we know is very, very important to him is his consecutive
03:13starts streak, if you will, and it's important to him for a great reason. He
03:17wants to be out there with his teammates, and so he will be out there
03:20for a very, very short lived amount of time, and then he'll be off, um, rather
03:29quickly there. So other than that, I could promise you that, um, it's gonna
03:34be a blend of guys who are normally out there and then a mix of some guys
03:38who we want to take a look at as well.
03:45And sorry. Thanks so much on that second question. I'm kind of jumping
03:49off what you just mentioned about that, giving guys options. Um, you know, how
03:54big is that been for a guy like Tyrell Shavers? You know, obviously, you know,
03:58he had a first career catch first career touchdown, but after the game
04:01to hear what Keon and Khalil were talking about, kind of giving him his
04:05flowers, you know, based off all the work he's put in, uh, in the on the
04:10practice squad. Yeah, giving him his flowers. I love that. I love that.
04:14That's a popular saying these days, right? And rightfully so. I mean,
04:18shaves is he's worked his butt off. He's been resilient. You know, earlier
04:23in the year, I think he was up a game or two, and then, um, you know, we
04:27brought up Jalen Virgil a couple games and there and there sat shades and
04:32he didn't mope. He didn't complain. Of course, he just wanted to know why.
04:36And he's done a phenomenal job and just a great example of what a great person
04:42he is, what a great teammate he is. And when you work hard and you're a good
04:46person, good things happen. And that was great to see yesterday. I think
04:50you guys saw the reaction of our of our team when that happened, and it was
04:55just awesome to watch. The last question I got for you is, um, you
05:00mentioned about, you know, obviously getting guys reps. Is that for an
05:04injured secondary or a secondary that struggled with some injuries in the
05:08last couple weeks? Is it important for them to get game reps, you know, this
05:13week ahead of the playoffs? Like we're still obviously played yesterday, but,
05:17you know, him missing a couple games leading up. Is it important for them to
05:21get games live game reps against the Patriots? Or is that not something you
05:24guys really think about?
05:26No, it is. We try and factor in as much as we can into every decision. Um,
05:32uh, you know, tomorrow, hopefully will be coming back. We'll see how that goes
05:36and getting him, um, some run there this week would be important for us.
05:40It's just one one guy, you know, that's been out. And then Curtis Samuel will
05:44see where his situation is this week, and hopefully he can get back and get
05:48some reps as well. So, um, you know, we're looking at everything. All right.
05:52Thanks, John. Yeah.
05:53Hey, Sean. Josh Reed here. Thanks for taking some time for us today. Um,
05:57happy new year. Start off with that. Um, you too, buddy. Any chance we see
06:03Micah Hyde Sunday? No, no, no chance. Okay. I mean, you'll see him. He'll be
06:08on the sideline, though. Next, stand next to me. Okay, very good. That's
06:11that's fair enough. How locking up the two seed and kind of I don't want to
06:17say you're not going to prepare for the Patriots because that's disrespecting
06:20them. But how much does that help your scouting department prepare? Start to
06:25prepare for the postseason now, right? No, it's important. Um, you know, we
06:31want to win this game. There's no doubt, Josh. Um, you know, and and, uh, at
06:36the same time, um, try and get a little bit of rest. That's the obvious. And
06:41then also try and prepare a little bit if we can forecast a little bit who we
06:46might play. So it'll be a it'll be a week that's focused on on New England,
06:52but also moving our team forward as well. Okay. Thanks, Sean. Appreciate
06:56it. You too.
07:01Hey, Sean, how are you?
07:03I'm good, Matt. How are you? I'm good. Um, this might be a better question
07:07for Brandon. But, um, how much did you know about Mac Collins when you guys
07:11were pursuing him in free agency, like the off the field stuff in the
07:16building stuff? Because it seems from the outside looking in, he's kind of
07:20found a way to touch so many people in the building in so many different ways.
07:25I mean, Tyrell Shavers was talking about just the early morning example.
07:29He's been to him getting him in the building weekend and week out every day
07:33work while you wait kind of stuff like it's impressive to see the impact he's
07:38made in the building. How much did you know about him? That part of it when
07:42you guys were pursuing him free agency?
07:44Well, I think we knew some of it, and I don't wanna speak for Brandon.
07:47Like you said, you can ask Brandon. I knew some of it,
07:51but I don't think you ever really know to what extent
07:56how far it really goes, right? Is some of his isms, I'll call them,
08:01right? Some of his things that he does.
08:04And then last time I'm back here in the facility, in the training facility
08:09that is, and there he is in the underwater treadmill,
08:14getting himself cooled down or kind of ramped down. And
08:19he's just such a routine guy and habits, and some of the things you're
08:23talking about with shaves, I know they have a routine in the morning,
08:27early morning hours as well. And
08:34some may call him different, some may call him very process based.
08:39Whatever he does, man, it's... He is passionate about it, and I respect
08:44that. And he has, to your point, Matt, he has
08:48had a huge impact on our team. Let's just say at a minimum
08:53from an energy standpoint, when you watch
08:57the game yesterday, we're first drive, I think we're second 11 plus,
09:02third 11 plus, whatever it was, and who does the ball go to?
09:06But Matt Collins on a great catch. I think he had two key
09:10catches on that drive, in fact. And he's out there cheering on the
09:14defense and special teams, you'll see him play from time to time.
09:17And
09:19just a tremendous teammate, a tremendous
09:25person to have around day in and day out here. And I'm sure
09:29you broke down all of his catches on tape, but did you catch
09:33the train dance or whatever that was after Keon Coleman's touchdown?
09:38No, I didn't see that. You wanna do that for us? No,
09:40I don't wanna do it for you, but I'm pretty sure our buddy
09:42AJ Feldman posted the video, so I'm sure Derek can show you.
09:45Thanks, Sean. Maybe AJ could do that for us. Alright, take care.
09:49Happy New Year. Hey, coach, you guys lead the league right now in
09:53turnover margin at plus 23. If you finish with that or better,
09:57you're gonna be the first team to have a plus 23 or better
10:01turnover margin since the Patriots did it in 2012. That's
10:05more than a decade. Why is that number so important to what you
10:09guys do and how you operate as a team?
10:12Well, we believe
10:15in not beating ourselves, right? So that is important.
10:20And there's very few, if any, stats that correlate more with
10:25winning. And we're losing for that matter. So it's a week to
10:30week thing. Maddie, it really is. We don't take it for
10:32granted. Our offense works on it. Our special teams work on
10:35it. Defensively, the same way. And then, you know, on the
10:38defensive side of the special teams units trying to take the
10:40ball away. And then our players do a great job. It's one thing
10:43to work at, but to carry it from practice into the game with that
10:47type of mindset is, that's what it is. In fact, it's a mindset.
10:50So we've done a phenomenal job of it. Josh has led the effort
10:54on the offensive side of the ball and been very intentional
10:57about making great decisions this year.
11:00When talking about the fact that it's a mindset, is there
11:03anything that's impressed you most about having that type of
11:06mindset through the entire regular season?
11:09Yeah, probably the consistency, really. Because it can kind of
11:15ebb and flow. And we've had a couple, you know, games where it
11:19has done that. But the coaches, that's really where it starts.
11:22Joe Brady, Bobby, Matthew Smiley, have done a great job
11:25of emphasizing it. And that's, that's really the start of it.
11:28Usually, if you're emphasizing it, you got a chance to get it.
11:32Thanks, coach.
11:33Sure.
11:37Coach, Mookie Hawkins, Waffle Sports 1080. Congrats on the
11:41win.
11:42Good to see you, Mookie. Appreciate it, buddy. Happy New
11:44Year.
11:45Happy New Year to you, coach. Man, we were both in high
11:50school when the last time the Bills went undefeated at home. I
11:54mean, how proud as a coach, you know, with the staff that you
11:58have, are you are, you know, going undefeated at home?
12:02Oh, that's huge. I mean, we talk about it as one of our goals. I
12:06think Josh mentioned it yesterday after the game about
12:08we phrase it in the way of defending our dirt. And we kind
12:13of position it as, hey, you know, we put a lot of time and
12:16effort and blood, sweat and tears into practicing in the
12:20spring, training camp, going up to Rochester, coming back here
12:24and training camp. And then, you know, we practice on the game
12:28field. And there's a lot of sacrifices that are made, not
12:31just at the player level, but the staff level. And then, you
12:34know, their families as well. And so we take a lot of pride in
12:37playing at home. And then our fans are phenomenal. The
12:42connection, as I've said before, with this team and our fan base.
12:47I mean, it is unique, it is special. And to be 8-0 in front
12:51of our fans is, it means a lot. It really does for us as a team.
12:57And so, you know, we're looking forward to trying to continue
13:00that as we move through the playoffs here.
13:02Absolutely, Coach. And man, and, you know, it was early in the
13:06season with the chatter and all that saying that the window was
13:08closing, yada, yada, yada. With so much turnover on this roster,
13:12Coach, what has been the key ingredient? I know we can easily
13:15say 17, right? But from a coaching perspective, you know,
13:18what has this team in contention right now?
13:21Well, I think, you know, two things. And both are people
13:25related. One is the players have bought into each other. They,
13:31you know, their DNA that they have, and getting to know one
13:35another, hanging out with one another. I think that's huge.
13:38And that love that they've built with one another and enjoying
13:41being around each other. And then the second thing is, I
13:43think the coaching staff has done a phenomenal job of taking
13:46what they have and developing it or shifting pieces around when
13:50there's been a gap week to week with a player or two out. So I
13:55really applaud them for the work that they've done week in and
13:57week out here.
13:59I thought you was gonna say catapult thunder football. You
14:01know, you keep that in the background a lot. So I probably
14:03thought that was a little bit of an ingredient as well. But, you
14:06know, well said, well said there. But four sacks, two
14:10interceptions, a forced fumble, man. How key was flipping the
14:14field, which led to AJ Epinesa's safety there?
14:17That was huge. When you look at the third quarter, or so of the
14:23game, I mean, there was three, three possessions right there.
14:26Plus that started in there in Jets territory for our offense.
14:30And that's you that was a result of defense, and some of the
14:33takeaways and then the punt return by Brandon and our punt
14:37return unit. And then it was bang, bang, bang, and kind of
14:40floodgates were open there. So offenses are often capitalized.
14:44And you go back to the start of the game, you know, we took the
14:47ball, because we were hearing a lot of the weather was going to
14:51change in the second half. And so we took the ball in the first
14:55half and our offense did a great job going down and possessing
14:58the ball and scoring and getting getting a seven right there. So
15:01that was huge as well.
15:03Absolutely. Coach. Amen. Awesome job. Good luck on Sunday.
15:08Hey, Sean, AJ Feldman here. I would do the Matt Collins
15:11celebration, but I don't have the hair to do it. And I think
15:13that's a key part of it. So I just want to look right.
15:15Don't get a don't don't don't sell yourself short like that.
15:18Come on.
15:20I'll leave it alone. I think everybody on this call wants to
15:22see that.
15:24Well, I'm used to letting people down. So we'll see.
15:29Yeah, yeah. Tyrell shavers. I'm going into this week when so
15:35many guys are going to get an opportunity and get a moment.
15:38How is that maybe an example of putting in the work making the
15:41most of your opportunity when it when it appears?
15:45I mean, that's that just hit the bullseye right there. It really
15:48did. You get one opportunity. And and what he did with it. And
15:52you know, what a great effort, great moment for him for his
15:55family, for our team. And they see I mean, they see these guys
16:00watch, you know, their teammates, they know who who has
16:03been working all season long and who hasn't and you know, who
16:08hasn't moped around when their number wasn't called. And, and,
16:12and so when you saw that reaction after shade scored
16:15that that was genuine, authentic appreciation and love by his
16:18teammates for how he goes about his business on a day in and day
16:22out basis. So I don't think I need to say anymore. Really,
16:25that's, they love him. And they certainly have a higher amount
16:28of respect for him.
16:29And then maybe on the lighter side of things, you've earned
16:32the number two seed for the last five years, right at a
16:35point when the NFL changes format where he didn't get a
16:37buy. I know the answer is probably you can only control
16:41what you control. But do you ever think at a moment like,
16:43man, anytime in the last 40 years, I'd be sitting home that
16:45first playoff week.
16:47Yeah, you kind of think about that just because I was around
16:50back then. Right. But, you know, hey, however, it comes out as a
16:54way supposed to come out and we'll be ready to go.
16:58All right. Best of luck. Thanks, John. Thanks.
17:01Hey, Sean, I was curious what went into the decision to have
17:04Austin Johnson sit out yesterday?
17:06Yeah, you know, Austin's done some really good things for us
17:08just really trying to find our best five of the interior of our
17:12defensive line and having a chance to kind of circle
17:15through those guys and, and just see how it all fits together as
17:19we, you know, move forward here. And, and we'll do some of that
17:21this week as well. And again, taking a look at some guys
17:25inside and seeing again who who can help us and in what roles.
17:30And then I was curious, you mentioned that Josh's
17:31consecutive start streaks is important to him. What was that
17:34conversation kind of like with him? And what does that tell you
17:37about him that like, that sort of streak matters?
17:41Well, you know, it doesn't surprise me knowing Josh.
17:47Playing football and playing next to his teammates is, is
17:52very important to him. And you just, you know, knowing Josh
17:56being around him, you see how he competes, you don't see him,
17:59you know, inside the walls as much, Elena, but you see how he
18:02competes. So you can kind of connect the dots as to why this
18:07type of streak is important to him. And, and I know his
18:13teammates feel the same way about him. So I'm not surprised
18:18by it. The conversation we had, it was rather brief, but it was
18:22the first thing that he shared was that that that was important
18:26to him. And so look, he's going to be well decorated. He's been
18:32well decorated to this point and will continue to be well
18:34decorated as he moves forward and the honors he'll get. And
18:37rightfully so. I think it's pretty cool when, when this type
18:41of stat, if you will, is one of the top things on his mind.
18:47And just one other thing on guys playing on Sunday, someone like
18:50James Cook is only so many yards away from a thousand game,
18:53things like that. Is that something you'll also be keeping
18:55in mind or how do you kind of balance that with like wanting
18:58to keep guys healthy?
19:00Right. It's no, it's a delicate balance. We're, we're trying to,
19:02to be aware of anything and everything under the sun. It is
19:06like, some of these things are important from a, from a team
19:09organizational standpoint. And then also for guys who have
19:13worked so hard to get to, you know, call it, you know, to be
19:16just towing the line on some things at this point. So we're
19:20going to try and be aware of it and do the best we can, but at
19:23the end of the day, it's got to be about the team.
19:26Sure. All we have for you today, coach.
19:28All right. Thanks. Happy New Year to everyone.
19:34Hey, coach, hope your evening is going well. If you're ready,
19:38we'll go ahead and get started with questions. Matt Perino,
19:40we'll have our first question.
19:45Hey, Joe, how are you? Happy New Year. I was talking to Sean
19:51about this. Obviously you, you become very close with Matt
19:55Hollins. Can you just kind of describe what he's meant to this
19:59team? Oh, there we go. Got the shirt on and everything. You
20:02know, talking to Tyrell Shavers, you know, the first thing, one
20:05of the first things out of his mouth after that game was how
20:07much Max meant to him. Can you just kind of put into words, if
20:10you could, what he's meant to this team?
20:13Yeah, I don't really know if he can. You know, I think, I think
20:19you guys asked me, you know, dating back in training camp, I
20:22told you, he was one of my favorite players I've ever
20:24coached, you know, just with his personality, with his work
20:27ethic, his, you know, he's such a selfless player. And, you
20:34know, even think about, think about that play, right? I called
20:36a screen and, you know, you got a vet that very easily, you
20:40know, could have said, you know what, I'm going to go take that
20:42screen, Shaves, you go out there and block for me. And, you
20:44know, he, he just ran the play call, blocked, and he was the
20:47first one celebrating with him. And that's who he is. There's a
20:51reason he was brought here. He's a really good football player,
20:53but he does all the, all the little things that you want in
20:55your locker room. Everybody's embraced him, you know, I have
20:59no shoes on right now. I'm not going to show you that. But, you
21:02know, and everybody kind of loves them. And, you know,
21:06we're, we're in a position we are, because of guys like Matt
21:09Collins, and I'm appreciative of him.
21:11When you guys got down to the goal line, I think it was for
21:14whatever it was, a third or fourth touchdown. Spencer said
21:17that he was screaming at Cromer on the sideline to get the ball
21:21to James Cook. Does that, you know, get you pumped up when you
21:24got guys that are pulling for each other to kind of get their
21:27own get, you know, have everybody eat?
21:30Yeah, it's, it's really cool. You know, just see it, seeing
21:33the guys the night before the game, you know, you know, just
21:36how, how much the guys just really enjoy and just love each
21:39other when we go through openers. And, you know, we
21:41wrap each other up and we talk to each other. And you can see
21:44that this, you know, I'm sure it's on any good team, right?
21:47But it's, it's a, it's a special group of guys that really just
21:51want each other to have success and care way more about the man
21:54next to them success than their own. And, you know, especially
21:58in offense alignment, you know, like Spencer, I'm sure he'd
22:01loved to catch touchdown passes and do that stuff. But he loves
22:04just as much seeing, you know, him finish his guy in the end
22:06zone and Jimbo with the touchdown. So, but no, it's,
22:10it's a, it all starts with 17 with his mindset and his
22:13approach and how he goes about it and everybody else kind of
22:16goes with it. And it allows us to have, you know, the success
22:19that we're having.
22:20Thanks, Joe. Appreciate it. Appreciate you.
22:24Hey, Joe, you guys are the second best off offense in the
22:27league right now, averaging over 30 points per game. And
22:29yesterday you tie an NFL record with 13 players catching a
22:33touchdown pass. When you look back at how, how you wanted this
22:37offense to work, to operate, to look like this season, is this
22:41what you envisioned? And if so, how?
22:45Yeah, it's a loaded question. Um, yeah, you know, when you,
22:50when you put it all together, you're obviously you're trying
22:52to score points, but you're just trying to find ways to, you
22:55know, put your players in position to have success and
22:58they'll take it and kind of run with it. And, you know, we
23:00didn't, we didn't put an offense together saying, Hey, it's, it
23:02was strictly going to be about, Hey, we have to score 30 points.
23:05We have to do this. You know, we felt like we were putting an
23:09offense together that was going to be able to find
23:11different ways to win football games and didn't care about the
23:14outcome other than scoring one more point than them. And so,
23:17um, you know, it's, uh, you know, when you got the best
23:21player in football, you know, at quarterback, he makes, he makes
23:24it all go and makes life go a lot easier. And when you got a
23:26lot of selfless guys around, um, you're able to do those things
23:30and you're allowed, able to have guys, you know, everybody eat
23:32type of mindset. But, um, you know, I, I had high expectations
23:37for this offense. You know, I don't believe anybody rises low
23:39expectations. So I don't want you to think that I didn't think
23:41we were going to be good. Um, but, um, I also know that, you
23:45know, the guys put in a lot of work to get to where they are.
23:47And, um, you know, and, uh, um, it makes it a lot of fun.
23:51Speaking of all that work that this team has put in, what are
23:54you most proud of when you look at your offense?
23:58Um, just seeing, seeing when we score, how the guys are with
24:00each other. I mean, look, look at shaves this touchdown
24:03yesterday. Right. And, um, you know, uh, everyone knows how, I
24:07mean, like he was this close to making our football team and,
24:10you know, and you have to sit in those rooms with guys after on
24:12release day and, you know, let them know that, Hey, look, I
24:16know you're disappointed in, but there's going to come a time
24:17this year, but we're going to need you. And you gotta be able
24:20to stay at that right mindset and that right frame of mind
24:23and a guy like shaves. And, you know, I know sometimes people
24:26think that these games are meaningless, but they're, they're
24:28so meaningful. And a guy like him being able to go out there
24:31and score a touchdown and just watch how everybody, how
24:34important it was, you know, that he scored a touchdown and
24:37seeing Josh is celebrating with them, doing his handshake with
24:40them. And it's, it's, it's, this team is bigger than any one
24:43person and we want everybody to have success. And like, so to
24:46me, when we score and we see that, you know, I watched
24:49touchdowns tapes across the NFL every week. And, um, there's a
24:53lot of touchdowns across the NFL where guys score a touchdown,
24:55they run to the sideline here or other teammates run to the
24:58sideline. And, you know, we, we practice it, we focus on it and
25:01it's intentional, but the guys do it because they love each
25:03other and they celebrate. And sometimes guys like Matt Collins,
25:06I don't know what they're doing. Um, but, uh, in other
25:09cases, you know, it's, it's important because the guys love
25:12each other. And I think that's, that speaks volumes. That's, um,
25:14I care way more about the relationships and the way that
25:17the guys are playing with each other than I do any of the, any
25:20of the results. Thanks, Joe. Thank you.
25:25Okay, Joe, it's, uh, Mark gone here from the Buffalo news.
25:28You're, uh, second in the league right now in red zone
25:31efficiency. I mean, obviously Josh is a huge factor, but you
25:36know, James has been a lot more impactful in the red zone, just
25:39kind of this year compared to last year, uh, you know, just
25:43kind of what stands out to you on your improvement in the red
25:46zone. Um, well, I think the, the most important thing is
25:51protecting the football down there. Right. And, you know,
25:53that's been a big point of emphasis the last couple of
25:55years is, um, you know, when you, when you have, when you
25:58have Josh Allen as your quarterback, you're always
26:00going to have opportunities getting down there and making
26:01sure that we're, um, making great decisions down there. Um,
26:05giving the guys what they know. Um, and, um, I think, I think
26:09you see the way, like, like a guy like Jimbo's running the
26:11football and all our running backs, but, um, there's a
26:14mindset, there's approach. You're always going to be short,
26:16you know, there, there, you can't block everybody down
26:17there. And sometimes there's just a, you know, a will. And,
26:20um, you know, you've seen a guy like James, like you're
26:22saying, you know, there's countless times this year where
26:25there's, there's an unblocked defender there's, um, and he's
26:28finding a way to make a miss or in score. Um, um, but we know
26:31we win football games. You don't win football games. I love
26:33T basket, but you're not winning football games by kicking
26:35field goals. You got to score touchdowns. And, uh, so it's,
26:37it's important when we get in there that we cash in.
26:40And then one, uh, one follow-up, uh, the, the run game
26:44really has displayed a lot of, uh, versatility, you know,
26:48different kinds zone, do all the tackle trap play, et cetera,
26:51et cetera. Just kind of, uh, what do you think about Aaron
26:54Cromer, the way Aaron Cromer has, um, developed, uh, helped
26:59develop the run game?
27:01Yeah. I mean, um, I could be on her all day talking about all
27:04my coaches, especially Chrome and, um, does it such an
27:08incredible job, you know, with the players understanding their
27:10strengths, um, not coaching them to only one specific, you know,
27:14Hey, this is how you have to do it. Um, and, uh, he embodies
27:18everything we kind of look for, you know, in our, in our
27:21coaches and the way that those guys kind of play for him and
27:23play together. And, um, you know, when we're able to do a
27:26lot of these schemes, like that's not easy, um, and, you
27:29know, continuing to grow and change and do things from year
27:31to year in, in season. Um, you know, but he's, there's a
27:35reason he's the best there is. And, um, you know, and, uh, um,
27:40you know, he's not one of the guys that's just like, this is
27:42the only way I've ever done it. So this is all we're going to
27:43do. You know, you see about how different it was when he was in
27:46LA compared to now, and it kind of just speaks to who he is and
27:49um, the type of football coach he is. And, um, I am so
27:52grateful to have him.
27:54All right. Thanks Joe. Thank you.
27:56Hey, Joe. Um, we've talked a few times throughout the season
27:58about just this team being able to limit turnovers this year.
28:01And I was wondering now that you have almost a whole regular
28:04season to look back on, what do you think led most to that?
28:07Like what was the most successful way to approach that
28:10to really limit turnovers?
28:12Yeah, it's, um, I think there's so many things that kind of go
28:16into it. Sometimes it's luck. I'm going to be honest. There's,
28:18there's, you know, in the game of football, there's, there's
28:21dropped interceptions, there's fumbles that go into it. And
28:23like, there's, there's things that collectively, like, you
28:25know, it just happens that way, but, um, it is important to us.
28:29It's important to our guys. Um, you know, we stress all the
28:32time, you know, there's smoke detectors and just because, you
28:35know, uh, we didn't fumble this play, but the ball was in your
28:37inside arm, you know, that's not what we're coaching. We're
28:39going to make sure that we pointed out and address it. And
28:41so, um, making sure that we're not only addressing the things
28:44when the bad happens. And so, um, our guys understand the
28:47style of play that we're looking for in the, in the, in the
28:50guys understand the style of play that we're looking for in
28:53the, the way that we're going about it and, and not always
28:55necessarily being driven by the results and more so with the,
28:57how, and even if Josh makes an incredible throw for a
29:00touchdown, um, if it's a turnover worthy play, we got to
29:03make sure that we correct it and talk through it. And, um, I
29:06think our guys are very intentional about understanding
29:08that when we protect the football, we give her a chance,
29:10you know, where it's hard to lose football games and we
29:11protect it. And, um, I wish I could say it's coaching. It's,
29:15it's, it's the guy with the ball in his hands and it's important
29:17to them and the guy that's making the decisions, um, you
29:20know, making the correct decisions and everything else
29:22takes care of itself.
29:24Awesome. Thanks Joe.
29:30All right. Good afternoon, Joe, George Redney, challenging
29:32community news. How are you doing this afternoon?
29:34No. Well, George, how you doing, bud?
29:36Do a question and play like to Terrell shavers. Does he have
29:40to, can he play all the positions, all the wide receiver
29:43positions, or is he a slot receiver only? Or how does that
29:47work for someone like him? If someone else goes down during
29:51the season, can he step in and play any one of those
29:53positions?
29:55Yeah. Yeah. You know, I'm, I'm one that I, I don't really
30:00believe in positions. Um, I believe in, you know, the,
30:02you're more valuable when you, when you're a position list
30:05player and got to obviously have your strengths and stuff, but
30:08being able to move you around and got to be an intelligent
30:10football player. And that's, that's who shaves is and
30:12shaves, you know, you're dating back to sometime, you know, in
30:14preseason and fall camp, you know, he's having to play every
30:17position and Hey, one day you're the X, one day you're
30:19the Z, Hey, you're doing this, you're moving around inside,
30:22outside. And, um, you know, there's a reason he's here on
30:24our football team. Um, and I was just excited for him to be able
30:27to capitalize on, uh, you know, take, uh, make the most of a
30:30screen. What a great play call. Um, but him take a screen and
30:34take it to the house.
30:35That's exactly, exactly. And last question for you, do what
30:39they're like, for example, they said it was going to be 40 miles
30:41per hour, high winds. And that didn't happen. Do you take that
30:44into consideration during the, during the week when you're
30:46putting together your, uh, game plans that you might be able to
30:49change due to weather conditions?
30:51Yeah. You know, it's one thing I've learned here in Buffalo is
30:54until you, you get to, you can read all the weather reports you
30:57want, but until you show up to the game and honestly, until you
31:00come out before the game, it's going to be completely different,
31:02right? San Francisco game, it was might snow a little bit.
31:05And actually, you know, the second drive, I can't even see
31:06the field. And, um, you know, it was going to be a downpour. It
31:09was going to be windy. Um, you know, you always have a plan of,
31:13Hey, you know, things that you're going to go to, but if
31:15you spend so much time focusing on the weather, um, next, you
31:19know, your game plan could be too big or it's not, you know,
31:21not where it needs to be. And so, um, we'll address it and we
31:24handle it, you know, as it comes, you know, a great
31:26communication down on the sideline with, Hey, how's the
31:28footing? How's the, you know, um, looking up in the lights,
31:31can the guys see, is it coming down too much, all those types
31:33of things. But, you know, I just kind of call it, um, you know,
31:36kind of, we kind of game plan as it's going to be a normal day
31:39until we find out it's going to be a completely different.
31:41All right. Well, thank you very much for your time and good luck
31:45this coming Sunday. Thank you, George. Uh, just one quick one,
31:49uh, to end here, Joe, did you know that Tyrell, even in high
31:53school and college has never run a screen play in a game? Um,
31:58no, I didn't. I'm sure. Uh, I hope I've given them a screen,
32:02uh, in preseason or something, but no, it kind of speaks to who
32:05he is, right? Hey, I might not have ever run the play, but I'm
32:08gonna get to the right split. I'm going to pop back into the
32:10exact depth that we want to be able to ride, you know, uh, take
32:12the blocks where they go. And so, uh, just kind of speaks to
32:15kind of who he is that may, Hey, I've never gotten that rep. I've
32:18never done it. Um, but in, you know, I'm, I might be on the
32:21practice squad, but when Joe's installing, I'm listening, I'm
32:24focusing and when my opportunity comes, I'm gonna make the most
32:26of it. And, um, you know, um, maybe I should give him some
32:29more. Told Khalil, maybe we'll, we'll take that away from Khalil.
32:32We joked. Thanks y'all. Appreciate it. Appreciate you.
32:36So I would have for you today, coach. Thank you for your time.
32:49The wonderful Bobby Babbage. How you doing today?
32:54Oh, I'm great. Awesome. If you're ready, we'll go ahead. Get
32:58started with questions. If you have any questions, please raise
33:00your hand. Uh, Catherine Fitzgerald will have my first
33:02question.
33:06Hey, Bobby. Um, a lot of times when we've talked to players
33:10after having big takeaways at a game after the game, they've
33:13mentioned how you kind of preach it throughout the week. So I was
33:16wondering, can you just kind of take me through what that looks
33:18like? Like when you start talking about takeaways, what
33:21the emphasis is and how that has led to kind of this margin that
33:24y'all have?
33:26Yeah, I think, you know, the biggest thing, it starts at the
33:28very beginning of the week. And, you know, we talk about, um,
33:33constantly just about taking the ball away and opportunities to
33:36do that. And then we emphasize it in practice, we show what we
33:41we show the whole defense when we take it away in practice. You
33:45know, we're just constantly talking about it. It's not just
33:47me, it's, it's the coaching staff, you know, the players.
33:50Funny story is, we're on the road, might have been in Detroit.
33:55And Joe Dana, our DB coach, he was carrying a water bottle in
34:00the training room area waiting for a meeting to start at
34:02Oliver punched it out of his hand, you know, so little things
34:06like that. We're just constantly trying to put it on our players
34:09minds on our coaches minds. And so we talked about a lot.
34:12How did Joe react to that?
34:15He was very excited. He was very excited that that was on Ed's
34:18mind.
34:20Is that something you guys have approached differently this year?
34:23Is there anything that's, you know, it's been such a staple of
34:26this defense in the past. So is there anything that's been
34:28different this season?
34:29I don't know difference the word, you know, different ways
34:33to emphasize things, certainly, you know, and that's, you know,
34:37you try to keep it fresh, you try to keep it new and and try
34:40to find different ways to emphasize those things.
34:43Awesome. Thanks, Bobby. You got
34:49Hey, Bobby, the pass rush really came alive yesterday with four
34:53sacks. What did you see out of that group yesterday? And what
34:56do you want to see going forward out of that group?
34:58Yeah, certainly, you know, we definitely affected the
35:00quarterback. You know, there's certain things that that we also
35:06need to improve on and not waste opportunities to rush and, and,
35:11you know, I just saw a group that was ready to rush a group
35:15that had a plan in mind. You know, and there's some
35:18situational type brushes there too. And, you know, if we
35:22followed the plan, we're usually in pretty good shape.
35:25How did you see Greg Russo set the tone for the defense
35:28yesterday? It started with that huge fourth down stop. And it
35:31wasn't just him and his pass rush technique. I mean, he was
35:35tipping it all goes into being a pass rusher, but he also tips a
35:38pass and has a half sack. I mean, he did multiple things in
35:42yesterday's game.
35:43Yeah, I think Greg, you know, Greg did a great job, you know,
35:47impacted the game in different ways. And that's what good
35:50football players do. You don't just impact the game in one way,
35:53you impact the game in multiple ways. And, and I think that's
35:56what you saw a little bit from Greg yesterday.
35:59Thanks, Bobby.
36:04Hey, Bobby, how are you? Good. How are you? Good. Good. Just to
36:09follow up real quick with with Greg, there was a couple of
36:12plays where he seemed to kind of understand what was happening
36:17before the play happened, or as it developed kind of use the
36:20cerebral side. What have you seen from him in that regard?
36:25Just kind of seeing things so he doesn't have to rely on, you
36:28know, all the talent he has?
36:30Yeah, I mean, I think that's all part of the more you play in the
36:32NFL, the longer the season go, you know, the NFL is trendy,
36:36there's different trends that go on. And, and, you know, I think
36:41guys, if they do their job and, and study tape, like they're
36:45supposed to, and study the opponent you're, you're playing
36:49that week or that day. You know, you should have a sense of what
36:54they're trying to accomplish.
36:57Um, and then, you know, we talked a lot about Josh and his
37:00ability to extend plays and plays never over. Greg's got a
37:04little bit of that in him on the defensive side. He's just, he's
37:09a he really pursues plays, even if the play is away from him. Is
37:14that something you've seen in him from the jump? Or is that
37:16something he's just kind of starting to develop?
37:18No, I mean, that's something we emphasize with our players as
37:20effort. You know, everybody's got a different level of talent.
37:24But, you know, the one thing that everybody can do the same
37:26is give great effort. And that's what we preach here. And certainly
37:29we're striving for that every play from all our players.
37:33And then, you know, Von, Von finally got home yesterday, it
37:36seems like he's been right there for a few weeks now. What do you
37:42tell a guy like that when it's close, and it's just it hasn't
37:45been there yet?
37:46Yeah, it's not, it's not just, it's not just Von, it's
37:49everybody. On our defense that we talked to, all we talked
37:53about is put yourself in position, put yourself in
37:56position. And, you know, don't chase plays, just keep putting
37:59yourself in position. And, you know, the opportunities are
38:03going to show.
38:04When you have a guy like that, who's been historically great at
38:08rushing the passer. And he's in a little bit of a drought, and
38:13he's not used to being in a drought. How do you kind of talk
38:16to him? Do you have to talk to him at all?
38:19I mean, he knows that Von's here to win. Von's here to win.
38:23Certainly he wants sacks. You know, he's gonna wear a gold
38:27jacket. But he wants to win a Super Bowl. That's what's most
38:31important to Von, he's made that clear. And, you know, like I
38:35said before, what I just talked about with don't chase stats,
38:38just, you know, put yourself in position. That's what we talk
38:42about. And then, you know, we're all here to win. That's what
38:45we're here to do. And, and certainly Von, not only Von,
38:49but, you know, all our guys, they're here to win. And that's
38:52what, you know, in their mind, the ultimate goal is.
38:55Thanks.
38:56Yeah.
39:05Good afternoon, Coach George Radney, Challenger Community
39:07News. How you doing today?
39:09Good. How are you?
39:10Great. Just a question for you on Joey Driessen, a linebacker
39:14play. Can you tell us about his, his play from yesterday? He
39:18seems to be a real physical play. He plays larger to me from
39:22that. I say he plays larger than than he is.
39:26Yeah, I mean, Joe did some good things. And there's some things
39:29that he's got to improve on. And he knows that. And, you know, I
39:32tell you, he had a solid outing.
39:36Okay. And overall, on the defensive front yesterday, how
39:38would you rate the defensive lines overall play?
39:42Yeah, I mean, Joey definitely impacted the game. And there's a
39:47lot of things we can continue to work on.
39:50All right. Thanks a lot, Coach. Thanks for your time.
39:52You got it.
39:54Hey, Bobby, John Waro with the AGM. I'm trying to play a little
40:00bit of a devil's advocate here, or actually just trying to
40:03figure out what your defense is capable of, as far as
40:08consistency goes, because it seems the trends are, when you
40:11start fast, and the offense starts fast, you guys are tough
40:15to beat. Slow starts have led to some struggles. How do you get
40:22that consistency factor going? Especially as you're approaching
40:27the playoffs?
40:28Yeah, I think it's just putting the whole thing together. And I
40:31mean, you know, there's there's a lot of different ways you can
40:34look at it. The first two drives yesterday, I think the Jets had
40:37like 100 yards or 110 yards or somewhere around that. And then
40:41they had minus six or six yards total or something like that.
40:46But, you know, I mean, we got to put it all together. And then
40:49you go back two weeks ago, we come out to a fast start, boom,
40:52first, second, third, get, we have positive first down
40:57outcome, positive second down outcome, we don't get off the
41:00field on third down. So, you know, we just got to put it all
41:02together. Because it is, it's important to get off to a fast
41:06start, whether that's a three and out and take or, or take
41:09away, you know, and we're continuing to chip away at that.
41:13Is my concern, I guess, is, is it too late to correct those
41:19things at this point of the season? And how do you go about
41:22correct getting those inconsistencies corrected at
41:27this point of the season? Because we're, you know, you're
41:30obviously 17 games in?
41:31Yeah, it's never too late. It's never too late. There's always
41:34work to be done. And, you know, we go about it in a variety of
41:39different ways, you know, and and you always got to be ready
41:44to adjust and adapt. And I think that's one of the most important
41:47things in this league.
41:49Fair enough, Bobby, thank you.
41:54Hey, Bobby, I was curious what your reaction was to Jordan's
41:57interception yesterday.
41:59I didn't even see it. To be honest. I was more worried
42:02about how what we were adjusting and all those type of
42:06things. I've been looking at the route. So I didn't even see it.
42:10But I was excited about it. I was excited about it once I, you
42:15know, once I heard the roar.
42:18What was your reaction to watching it back on tape then?
42:22Just the importance of getting your hands up in the pass rush
42:26and and turning and running to the ball and being ready when
42:30when your time comes, when your opportunity presents itself.
42:33And then getting Rasul back yesterday, having Matt back out
42:36there. Did you feel like that helped to start getting, you
42:39know, those guys back out there?
42:40And then yeah, I think it Yeah, for sure. I think it definitely
42:43did. And, you know, I mean, the more we can get those guys on
42:46the field together, the better off we are.
42:49Rasul mentioned after the game yesterday that he doesn't think
42:51this defense has peaked yet that like individual guys have, but
42:54as a collective, there's still that peak to be had. Do you
42:58feel like a veteran guy like that, who's going to see a lot
43:00to have that perspective? Like, does that help this unit to be
43:03like, there's still that room to grow?
43:05Yeah, yeah. And I think I think the biggest thing is, you know,
43:11it, as Rasul said, is we're peaking at the right time. And
43:14certainly, we know what time that is.
43:18Thanks, Bobby.
43:19Thank you. That's all we have for you today, coach.
43:22All right. Thank you.