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Redskins Park: Quotes - Head Coach Mike Shanahan, Defensive Coordinator Jim Haslett and Offensive Coordinator Kyle Shanahan
October 1, 2010
Redskins Park
Executive Vice President/Head Coach Mike Shanahan
On tackle Trent Williams:
“Trent will be a game-time decision if he can play. He felt much better today and made some strides. You really don’t know. [In] 48 hours we’ll get a better feel.”
On Trent Williams’ movement during practice:
“Pretty good, pretty good, knee is feeling good. Toe is a little bit sore. Not a hundred percent pushing off but probably in the 90-95 percentile. That’s why we will wait and see where he is in 48 hours.”
On if you take the same approach to every player or do you think more long term when determining if Trent Williams is ready to play on Sunday:
“First of all, if a guy can’t play, if he’s not healthy enough to play, he’s not going to play. When he is able to go out there and do drills, go through some teamwork and do those types of things, you feel like that he is getting better. A week ago, I didn’t feel like go but he thought there was a chance and obviously there wasn’t. The toe is a little bit sorer than we thought earlier in the week. It’s pretty close right now. We’ll give it 48 hours and see where he is at.”
On if Trent Williams is trying to convince him that is ready to play on Sunday:
“Oh yeah, he’s out there always making the case. I used to fall into the trap to believe most of those guys. I got to see with my eyes.”
On if defensive lineman Anthony Bryant was cleared to practice today:
“I was kind of surprised myself when he was out there. I gave him the old [concussion] test and he passed it so he went out there and did pretty good. He did practice today. He was cleared.”
On if Anthony Bryant will be inactive for Sunday:
“He’s out for Sunday.”
On how he prevents quarterback Donovan McNabb from getting too excited for Sunday’s game:
“I think he’s the type of guy that can keep everything pretty cool, calm and collective. That’s his personality to start with. I think if you have been around Donovan, it’s not hard to tell, he is pretty relaxed. I am sure he’s looking forward to going back there and hopefully playing well.”
Defensive Coordinator Jim Haslett
On how he thinks Michael Vick looks:
“I think he looks the same way he did in Atlanta. I think it took him a little while to get back into the football playing speed and I think he looks awesome. I played him enough times in New Orleans to know that he’s a special player. He’s one of those guys that you change your whole game plan around. He’s a special player.”
On if he thinks about stopping the run first or the pass first when it comes to Michael Vick:
“Well, with this offense, they’ve got a lot of great players. They’ve got their two receivers, they’ve got a heck of a running back, they’ve got a good offensive line and they’ve got a quarterback that, right now, is about as good as anybody in the league. So, there are a lot of different issues that you have to deal with. Your game plan has to be around who is number one, who is number two, who is number three and then go from there.”
On if he takes anything he did against Michael Vick with the Saints and uses it against the new Michael Vick:
“It’s a little bit different because the receivers that they have in Philly, Michael never had receivers of that caliber so it’s a little bit different. And they have a great running back.”
On using LaRon Landry as a spy and not being able to have a double coverage:
“I don’t know where you got that. LaRon does so many different things for us. He can do that if he wanted, but you’ve got a lot of other issues. You’ve got the back end, you’ve got receivers, they’ve got a good tight end and they’ve got a good running game. There are a lot if issues you have to deal with with this team.”
On what the key is to slowing down a duel threat guy:
“Well, trying not to let him get out of the pocket, first of all. If he does, you’ve got to make sure you plaster him and when he takes off, you’ve got to be able to tackle him. He’s got such great speed and illusiveness and really good awareness and then he’s got a strong arm. So, he’s got a number of different issues.”
On if he feels he’s not putting as much pressure on the quarterback as he’d like:
In certain situations, yeah. And in some, no. Obviously there are areas we can improve on and that’s one of them.
On if he is using less 3-4 defense and more of a four-man front:
“It depends on what personal group you get. The 3-4, notoriously, you play about 50 percent of the time and the rest of it is a four-man line based off what personnel you get. We run a lot of four-man lines. The [Steven Jackson 42-yard] run actually was a four-man line last week. If they’re going to put five wides [receivers] in the game, you’re not going to stay a regular defense.
On what he likes about Lorenzo Alexander at linebacker:
“I think that’s a guy that deserves an opportunity to play just because of what you see on the film. He has done a good job when we put him in there and he’ll have more and more of a chance when we go along.”
On if he considered making changes to the starting lineup this week:
“That’s not everything because first of all, if it wasn’t for the defense, we wouldn’t have won that first game because they played well enough to win. We are playing some pretty good offenses. We had an overtime game, you [allow extra] yardage. The Houston game was a bad game. We gave up too many big plays in the passing game and it’s hard to come out of the hole when you get in that. I think we’re doing a good job in the running game but there are a lot of areas we’d like to improve on. We need to get more opportunity to get turnovers, too. There are a lot of issues we’re dealing with and we’ve got to correct them as we go here.”
On making changes to the base defense:
“You’re always looking to put the best players out there. You’ll consider anything to make you better.”
On how much Michael Vick is going to test his depth up front:
“You’ve got to be ready to play a lot of guys against him. He’s doing a great job. For a guy that was gone that long out of football and came back and to play at the level he’s playing is unbelievable that somebody can do that.”
On how hard it is to rush a guy like Michael Vick:
“I told that in New Orleans the first time we played him. I said, ‘Make sure you contain him.’ And I had guys going half speed looking at him. So, I think there’s a fine line between going to get him and being smart and not. One thing the defensive linemen have to know is that they can never lose him in their eyesight. If they lose him in their eyesight then you’re wrong and you need to get back into eyesight with him. Whether you up the field, you’re spinning or whatever, you’ve got to make sure you have him in your eyesight all the time.”
On what stats he focuses on to point out to players:
“Turnovers are number one. We’ve got to get more turnovers. I think we have four right now and in this day and age, you have to have more to win games. We need to have more opportunities for our offense to score points. We’ve had some chances and we just haven’t come up with them. When those chances come up, you have to take advantage of them.”
On what the biggest problem is with his coverage right now:
“It’s a little bit of everything. The technique, we had some missed tackles that turned into big plays. Last week we had two or three missed tackles that turned into 30-yard gains. That stuff can’t happen. You’re at third and 30 and miss a tackle and they get a first down, those things can’t happen. That’s just man-on-man. Someone’s got to make a tackle.”
On if he is pleased with his defense’s overall coverage:
“Obviously not. We gave up too many pass yards. There are different reasons; technique, responsibility, missed tackles. There are a lot of things. We actually did self-scouting and it’s kind of all over the place. It’s a new defense and there are a lot of different things to it and we’re going to have to learn all the little things as we go along here.”
On how his game plan has changed for this game:
“We changed everything on this one. This isn’t one we worked on in the offseason. We did a lot of different things for it and when they changed the quarterback, obviously everything changes.”
On Carlos Rogers saying they need to do a better job in the zone matching men:
“That’s part of it because you get different combinations. These guys were swat-dropped for most of the last couple of years and now we’re matching up in the zone. So, it’s a little bit different for them.”
Offensive Coordinator Kyle Shanahan
On if the Eagles are more predictable on their blitz packages then their pass components:
“No I don’t think so. I mean they know what they are doing. They know what protections you are in and they know how to attack you. You just have to be ready to adjust.”
On struggling on third downs:
“Yes. It is extremely frustrating when you struggle on third downs, especially with some of the success we are having on other downs. If you are not good on third downs it can be tough to be real good. We know that is the area we got to get better in.”
On if he feels a sense of consistency on first downs:
“Yeah, I think we are obviously doing a lot better on first downs. You are always guaranteed to get a first down every time you get out there, but you are not always quite guaranteed to get a third down. I think we have a little more options on first down, you can mix it up a little more and we definitely have to continue to get better on all the other downs.”
On why he passes so much on the first down:
“I really don’t see it as it works to throw on first down, I think what works is the best way to attack the defense. I don’t look at our stats all the time, but I think we have been doing that more on first down. That is usually where we see the hole is and the best way to play the defense. So far we have been right on that down.”
On if it is hard to shuffle between running backs Clinton Portis and Ryan Torain:
“No. I don’t think so. I think we always expect guys to get carries. Your first guy is usually always going to get more but if something dictates in the game you always have to be ready to switch it up and go with what is hot.”
On how he felt Stephon Heyer played against St. Louis:
“I think he held his own. I think he did good as far as playing, I wish I can just lower some of the penalties he had.”
On what running back Ryan Torain did to impress the coaching staff:
“We have always liked Ryan. Ryan is a good runner and we knew he could help us. We went into the game not thinking he would play as much as he did. But, Clinton’s hand was bothering him a little so once that happened Ryan’s role stepped up and he did what we expected him to do.”
On if he thinks Torain’s role will increase this season:
“No, it is always game to game. You can never predict it. You always go in with your first back and you never know what happens with an injury because then the next guy is going to have to be ready to step up. Regardless to what happens, you always expect them all to get some carries.”
On Keiland Williams carrying the ball:
“It all depends on how it plays out. There is a pecking order and he was behind the other guys. A lot of stuff has to happen for him to get a carry, not as much as the second guy going to get to carry or the first guy. Things happen and you never know. You can lose the first two guys in the first two plays and then you will be getting a lot more carries.”
On his decision to move Ryan Torian above Keiland Williams on the depth chart:
“We always really liked Ryan especially in the runner role. We wanted to give him a chance at carries and Keiland specialized more in protections and we knew he could do it all. We have never had a guy who could do just one thing. But, you know we think they are both better in certain areas and we try to get them in those positions.”
On the comparisons and contrasts between Clinton Portis and Ryan Torain:
“I don’t think you can really compare and contrast them. I think they are both very good running backs and they’re both guys that we feel we can win with.”
On if he has noticed anything different with Donovan McNabb this week compared to other weeks:
“Not really. Donovan is a veteran. He’s a professional, he knows how to act. It would be real hard for anyone to see a big difference in him. But we know deep down that it is a big deal to him just like it would be to anyone else. But the way Donovan works and goes about his business, he stays pretty even kill.”
On if defenses are doing anything different to them in the red zone:
“No, not at all.”
On what he thinks are the offense’s struggles in the red zone:
“We haven’t scored touchdowns. We haven’t got it done down there, we definitely have to get better. It’s always harder when you get to the red zone, the field gets smaller and the wholes aren’t as big. We haven’t been good in that area but we definitely need to get better.”
On if unfamiliarity in the offense shows up more in red zone situations:
“I think that it shows up in every area but we’re struggling more in that area. We have had some bad penalties down [in the red zone], some costly ones that when you are in a good situation it has gotten us into a bad situation. I think earlier in the year we have had a couple drops down there. It’s just a couple of times here and there and it only ends up being five plays, but they’re five big plays. That’s the difference between being great and being bad.”
On how concerned he is about tempo and play clock issues:
“I’m real concerned. We have to get a lot better at it. I think we really struggled with that against Dallas. I think it did get a lot better versus Houston and then I felt like we took a step back last week. Whenever you’re pushed and struggling to get out of the huddle and struggling to get to the line of scrimmage, I think it makes everyone a little more panicked and struggles with assignment penalties and that is something that we have to get fixed.”
On if Trent Williams returning to lineup changes his play calling:
“No. I try not to worry about that stuff. I try to call what I think is the best way to attack the defense. If you have to call stuff based on what players are in then you probably have to get different players. You can’t think that way and I try not to change my mindset.”
On what is preventing Joey Galloway from getting more involved in the offense:
“Well, the only time we went to him down the field I thought he got [pass interfered], definitely on that play, a couple times. All of our receivers have been playing well. Coverage dictates who gets the ball. I think our receivers have done very well and I’m not disappointed in any of them.”
On if Santana Moss is getting open more than the other receivers:
“Santana is a guy we target a little bit more. He’s definitely our lead guy. We go to him a lot but when coverage’s take him away we are going to the next guy. Some of the stuff we put Joey on aren’t as high of a percentage of throws, but when he is there we let it go. He’s done what we have brought him here to do.”
On what things at practice are holding Devin Thomas back:
“I think Devin is continuing to get better. He’s working at it every week, I know he is trying his hardest and I see progress.”
On using two tight end formations:
“We felt that is the best way to attack them, best way to use your personnel that week and really never know how it’s going to go and you have to plan each week and see how it goes.”
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Originally Posted by Mark The Homer
