Defensive Coordinator Perry Fewell
December 12, 2013
Q: This is a team that a lot of people have said looks like a Super Bowl team. Offensively, do they look like a Super Bowl team to you?
A: They have all of the elements. They have all of the pieces in place and they’re executing at a high level. The quarterback gives them a lot of confidence. Marshawn Lynch is running the ball extremely well. The offensive line, they work well together as a group. I don’t know if people look at them as big name guys, but they work well together as a group.
Q: What about Russell Wilson? Could you talk about what he does so well? What makes him such a good quarterback?
A: I know it’s only his second year, but he has a lot of poise. He doesn’t seem to panic and has great vision down the field. He can get on the perimeter, he can see the entire field, he can start to escape and run the football and if somebody comes open, he can dump it off. It seems like his eyes are always down the field and he’s always looking to find the open person. If the person is not there, then he has a good enough burst that he can get a good five, six, seven, ten yards or whatever to keep the chains moving. I’m just very impressed with his poise and his ability to see the field.
Q: You guys have played quite a few scrambling running quarterbacks, how does he compare to some of the guys you have gone against?
A: He has a little different style because of his vision down the field. He can scramble, he can do the things that other guys that have played against us, but it seems like the other guys that we play against, if they run, they look to run. Wilson can run right and throw right. He can run left to throw left. That’s unusual. He puts his body in some unusual positions and he’s able to make the throw. He’s very talented.
Q: You’ve played pretty well against a lot of top backs this year. What separates Lynch? What is different about him?
A: I think, as I said earlier, the offensive line gelling together. Marshawn is a hard runner. I was fortunate enough to be with him in Buffalo and he goes into Beast Mode, what he calls, so he’ll take on a linebacker or he’ll take on a safety, or he’ll take on a defensive lineman. He’ll challenge them in the hole and then he has the ability to step in the hole and get out of the hole and accelerate down the field. He has all of the elements of a complete back.
Q: Could you talk about the progress Prince has made for you this year?
A: I think Prince has been steady and consistent throughout the season. Not as up and down as he was in the past. I think he’s grown up a little bit as the season progressed and his career has progressed. We still have things he needs to work on and be better at. I think he’s played at a steady rate for us.
Q: Has he improved his toughness against the run. It seems he has stepped up lately.
A: I think he has. I think it’s always been in Prince to do that and I think he’s done that. Obviously we want him to do that on a more consistent basis. He showed that in college. That was impressive in his college tape, that he would step up and play the run.
Q: Just generally, are there any dangers from a defensive perspective, playing a lot of tight physical coverage at the line like Seattle does? Is there potential to get beat on the back end a little more if you do that?
A: There’s always that possibility that you can get beat on the back end if you play a lot of tight physical coverage. It has a lot to do with your length.
Q: They have a lot of length.
A: They have a lot of length. Those elements involved when you’re playing press man and you have good length and who is that guy back in the middle that can read and go help you and how physical are you. It has a lot to do with the height, weight, size, and speed elements that you possess as a defender.
Q: What does Prince Amukamara have to do to take the next step?
A: I think have another great offseason because this was his first offseason that he practiced without being injured and I think that as he learns and he continues to grow and develop, he’s gaining confidence every day that the game is going to start to slow down for him more and more and he’s just going to get better and better. He just needs to continue to have good offseasons and practice every day.
Q: Can that lead to him being an elite cornerback?
A: That’s up to Prince because some of that, to become that elite cornerback, has a lot to do with your film study and what you do in the offseasons and the notes you take and how diligent you are about studying offenses and acquiring information that you can make that quick decision on the field.
Q: Have you talked about what a victory or playing well against the Seahawks will do for the players? Is the motivation a little bit different this week because you can’t make the playoffs?
A: Not really. We’re competitors. We love to compete and we love to play this game and we work to earn the right to play more football. That’s not in our cards right now. We’re competing and when I walked in the room on Wednesday, their eyes were up, they were attentive… They were looking like, ‘What’s the plan? Let’s go play football.’ And so there was no ‘rah-rah’ or anything like that. I think our guys are pretty resilient. I think they like to compete and they want to go out and play football.
Q: They didn’t like their performance last game.
A: They did not. That was not the level of performance that we were accustomed to and they were all disappointed. We were all disappointed in our level of performance. We weren’t very good on third down, which led to a lot of other problems.
Q: We saw McBride in the first half and then Hosley in that spot in the second half. Do you anticipate Hosley getting a start?
A: We’re going to evaluate again this week at the end of the week. Both guys will probably play. I don’t know exactly. We haven’t decided who is going to start or all that type of thing right now, but both guys are competing for the job and as I said earlier, it’s still McBride’s job to lose, so both guys will play.
Q: What did you see from Damontre Moore?
A: He was in certain packages that we had and again we’re still trying to get Damontre to understand what his role is and how he fits in his role. Some of the things that he did… We had some good plays and some poor plays, and then I personally kind of challenged the guys that, ‘our guys after halftime, the guys that are on the field, let’s stay on the field.’ So that was probably me because I said, ‘Let’s stay on the field and let’s quit running in and out and substituting a whole bunch and let’s play better football in the second half.’ So that was probably a little bit to do with me.
Q: Have the injuries slowed Hosley’s progress?
A: I think so. Any time that you miss a certain amount of time with a hamstring injury and you don’t get a chance to work your craft, yeah. That can slow your progress.
