Q. When you're talking about a quarterback's decision-making, what all does that entail?
A. Specifically regarding the passing game post-snap it's progression reads, where his eyes go through the eligibles in an effort to distribute the ball. But there are a lot of components to quarterback decision-making. It could be pre-snap. You could have pass-pass opportunities, run-pass opportunities, run-run opportunities. In an effort to get to an optimum play, oftentimes the quarterback has a latitude based on what he sees between two options. So there's some pre-snap decision-making that comes with the position from play selection in today's game. There's some post-snap decision-making that's primarily done in the passing game, but in cases such as RPO football like we're playing against this week, there are some post-snap run-pass options that fall on the shoulders of that position as well.
Q. At the NFL level, how does a coach work with a quarterback to improve his decision-making?
A. I think you can continually improve that. First of all, it's the physical reps, the in-helmet perspective. Week in and week out the visual keys are ever-changing, because depending on who you play, the coverages and so forth are changing. So you could be repeatedly doing the same things or repeatedly the same concepts, but the coverage emphasis of the week might take you to a different progression. And so it is continual work. You're always working to put eight pounds in a five-pound bag, as we say, from a progression growth perspective.
Q. Do you sit down with a guy, and then is it a show-him process or a talk-to-him process?
A. It's all the teaching and learning tools. It starts first and foremost in the classroom. Then it goes to the walk-through stage and then into the running stage that occurs in the practice setting. As teachers particularly at this level, we have to be ready to use all the levels of teaching and learning, from the classroom to walk-through to practice, and we really reflect that in all three phases in terms of the things that we do.
Q. It seems to me that you could certainly judge this simply by how a certain play turns out, but when it comes to decision-making, what's the difference between throwing the ball to a receiver to give him a chance to make a combat catch, as opposed to forcing the ball into coverage?
A. It depends on the outcome of the play, and the perspective of who's commentating. (Laughs) You know, there's a thing that we refer to as "pro open." And a lot of these plays that are combat catch plays, are whether you want the quarterback to put the ball on the right nipple of the receiver's chest as opposed to the left nipple (of the receiver's chest). It's cut that fine from time to time, and that just speaks to the competitive nature of the game at this level.
Q. So if you're sitting there watching today's game, is the difference in the decision-making, whether it was a good decision or a bad decision, simply the outcome of the play?
A. The perception of the decision-making. If you're looking at it from the outside-in and you don't know the inner workings of the concept, or the correct progression, then you're making some of those assumptions. But for those of us who are on the inside, who know the component of prep, there certainly is a progression, whether it can be described as open or combat-catch or otherwise. There are more definitive answers when you are a component of the process.
Q. Looking at the significance of today's game against the Colts, would you refer to it as a must-win?
A. I know what you mean, but man, I have that mind-set every week. I do. I've just been in it so long. I know the urgency of the 17 weekends and the opportunities. I understand exactly what you mean. There are direct ramifications in terms of who walks out of his bowl successful and who doesn't. But just from a mind-set standpoint, I think those of us who have been in this business for any length of time carry that urgency week in and week out.
Q. The concept of a team playing complementary football during a game or through a season is important to success in the NFL. How much of a team's ability to play complementary football comes from mental toughness?
A. It's mental toughness, but that's just a component of it. It's teeing those circumstances up, and a collective awareness regarding when those moments are and how significant they are. And so, we train our units in a lot of ways to do that. Offenses strike when the defense provides them a short field or the special teams unit provides them a short field. Miles Killebrew blocked the punt last week, we push the ball in for a touchdown. Our inability to do so on Mykal Walker's interception, for example, is oftentimes the difference in a football game. And so you've got to seize opportunity, you've got to build upon momentum. You've got to put fires out from a defensive perspective. Our inability to hold them to a field goal after Jabrill Peppers' interception is another example. If we hold them to a field goal on that short field possession as opposed to allowing them to score a touchdown in that instance, that's the difference in the game. You know in the National Football League week in and week out that oftentimes the outcome of the games come down to a sequence of plays or a small number of plays that you can identify. Many times those plays are in and around and after sudden-change.
Q. When you were asked whether it was a problem that George Pickens has openly voiced his frustration on the sideline during games, you said, "it's a problem because it's not solution-oriented." How can you get him to a place where those things are more solution-oriented?
A. Education. He and I had a great meeting this week. We were just talking about the New England agenda. I'm familiar with the agenda because I've just been a component of it in the past. When you have a dynamic player, oftentimes from a game playing perspective, you'll pick a block of time or block of plays where you're just going to deny that guy the ball and make others beat you. And the agenda is to keep the ball out of the hands of a significant player, but also if it's a significant player it's to create angst within him and within that unit. The quarterback feels pressure to get him the ball and have him included. The player feels pressure because he wants his talents to be a part of moving the football.
And I've been a part of that because I was a secondary coach in the NFL Central – known as the Black-and-Blue Division back in the day – when we played Randy Moss, and from time to time we'd say, "First quarter, anybody gets it but Randy," or "Fourth quarter, anybody gets it but Randy." I've just been a part of that. Obviously, that mentality has grown over the years, and you see people employ it all the time. A couple years ago when we played the L.A. Rams, we said, "Anybody but Cooper Kupp," for example. And so there's an education component that comes with it in terms of managing frustration. Certainly it's easy to say, "Be mature. Don't get frustrated. It's part of the game." But he needs to understand it is an agenda. It is a game plan. It is something that's constructed to break him and the unit down. And that's why it's so important that he manages the frustration component of it.
(Antonio Brown) saw a lot of it. I used to say to AB, "Man, the second quarter is a big quarter." Because in the first quarter of the game, people are not going to allow him, a known entity, to be significant. It's a tactic that's employed often when you're talking about significant players, or guys with unique talent in one-on-one circumstances. You can do that for a block of time, but it is very difficult to keep it up over the course of 60 minutes. And that's the educational component that you talk to a player about. You let frustration win, then you're not there for the final 15 minutes that might be the significant ones where you catch 3 for 90 yards and a touchdown. And so it's an education component to it as well.
Q. You have no in-stadium experience with Gardner Minshew, who starts at quarterback for the Colts today. What has your video study revealed about him as a quarterback?
A. Moxie. That intangible quality. And not just the tape, but the number of cities he's had success in, how his teammates feel about him, how he's been able to endear himself to people in a variety of circumstances. That coaching staff's desire to take him from Philadelphia to Indianapolis, it all speaks to intangible quality and moxie. Things that are beyond the measurables. It's leadership, it's football intellect, it's improv ability. Some of those things show up on tape, but I can imagine that all of those things are components of his profile. That's why he's had the success he's had in a variety of places.
Q. So as an opponent today, how do you combat that?
A. You just respect it. You understand that he's an anticipatory thrower. You've got to be disciplined. We've got to mix things up. But more than anything, you've just got to go in knowing that there's an intangible quality to him, and it's to be respected.
Q. Minkah Fitzpatrick is a talented and versatile component of your secondary. With someone like him, is he more valuable as a piece used consistently to minimize a specific aspect of the opponent's passing game, or as a guy who lines up in different spots and is used all over, which might make him more difficult for the offense to avoid?
A. Both, to be quite honest with you. Sometimes, it's exclusively your issues and related to you. You've an A-player doing A-things, so you allow him to do it. Or sometimes you want to create angst and post-snap reads for the quarterback, and you do interchangeable parts, and you move a player that your opponent might be concerned about around where they don't know where he is. Sometimes it's very opponent specific. He's got some talents. You want to match him up on certain people in man-to-man circumstances. You can take him and do that. You want him in the middle of the field, or in half-field in zone circumstances. And so based on things that your opponent might do, there are a lot of variables in the discussion. Some of the variables are exclusively self-related or team-related. Some are exclusively opponent-related. Usually it's a combination of those that dictate what lane you're in, week in and week out.
Q. He's got to be a pretty special individual to be able to handle all that, right?
A. And not only him, but who plays with him. It was a component of the unique relationship with Troy Polamalu and Ryan Clark. Ryan Clark had a unique skill-set, because he played with special guys like Troy and Sean Taylor, and his versatility and intellect provided the versatility that allowed those guys to move around. If you've got one guy moving there's somebody else who's versatile and allows that to happen. Cam Sutton was very versatile for us when he was here. That's why it was important to get a veteran guy like Pat Peterson, who's got really good football intellect to provide that same versatility so that we can be interchangeable parts at times to highlight the skill-set of a guy like Minkah.
Q. How would you describe Zack Moss' style and his strengths as a running back?
A. First of all, he's got a really good base. His feet are never together. What does that mean? it means that he gets yards after contact, and he's not an easy tackle. He's got a really good base about him. He's built like a running back. Secondarily, he's got good vision and patience. He's patient enough to allow holes to develop. He doesn't miss a lot of holes. We're pretty familiar with him, because we've seen a lot of him when he was in Buffalo.
