Defensive Line Coach Patrick Graham
October 20, 2017
Q: How much is on DE Avery Moss to step up?
A: A lot. Luckily, he’s been working pretty hard since we got him and studying really hard. Kid’s a smart kid. Smart kid, has a lot of natural ability and what we’ve tried to do as a coaching staff and also himself working with him and even like OV (Olivier Vernon) talked to him. Trying to get him to play to his abilities better and just try to emphasize the things he does right like the explosiveness, the get off. Things of that nature. Being violent with his hands. I mean, he knows that we’re counting on him a lot now. He has to grow up in terms of a football player. I think he’s pretty mature as a person and professional, but I’m looking forward to him getting an expanded role and playing more.
Q: What did you see from him last week?
A: Last week, what you saw from him – you saw the explosiveness, you saw whether it was the violence with the hands, the get off in the pass rush. The thing that was missing probably you would say is just the experience. Like, OK, you need to finish here. Alright, you need to get into your transition quicker. And, all the things he can do is just the process as a young player, like being able to process it and being able to execute out there on the field at a faster pace. But, it’ll come. It’ll come out. That’s why we like him.
Q: Can you tell him just to go out there and play and try not to think about it?
A: No. You have to be careful doing that like you know, you want the game – they play the game out there between the white lines and we coach them. We try to give them some tools, try to cut down the variables for those guys and what we do is we go back and we watch the tape and say, ‘OK, see here you could have transitioned quicker. Alright?’ And just try to bring it to his attention because, again, I can’t control what he sees out there on the field. I can point it out as a coach. You just hope that with time and with reps and practice, more importantly, that the transition speeds up for him, but he’ll be OK. He’ll be OK.
Q: How pleased were you to see the run defense this week with DT Damon Harrison?
A: I’m a D-line coach. If I wasn’t happy with – but, you know, we got a big challenge this week, though, too. But, I mean, I would be lying if I told you that I wasn’t happy with the way we played the run. It’s the same challenge that’s going to come up this week versus Seattle. They got a good O-line. Those guys play very hard. Their O-line coach gets them to play hard. Those guys – they’re executing what their coach wants them to do. They play with a mean streak and I got a lot of respect for those guys and then you put that with the ball carriers that they have that are dynamic with the ball, whether it’s the guys with speed or (Eddie) Lacy with just power. But, the key from last week that we had that we’re trying to carry over to this week – we have to constrict the space on the field. Whatever it is in the run game, you got to just constrict the space so there’s less lanes for them to run through and do a good job of that and I think when we went back and evaluated last week, you know we’re moving on. That’s what happened – the space in there was constricted and we just got to do a better – keep working on doing a better job of that.
Q: How can you contain a guy like Russell Wilson with his ability to extend the play?
A: Man, I remember Russ when I was a coach at the University of Richmond. His brother played for us there and he worked as our ball guy a little bit. He was a little guy. We tried to offer him like in eighth grade. This guy – I mean I couldn’t contain him out there in eighth grade, but we’re going to try our best. I mean, the thing is we got a plan to try to work around that, but he’s an elite player. The guy has been a good player for a long time in this league and he’s dynamic with the ball in his hands whether it’s run or pass. But, we have a plan for it. I’m not going to get into any specifics, but he’s not the only person we have to defend out there on the field, either. We’re going to play our defense, defend the field how we know how to in the situation and see how it plays out.
Q: How unique is Russell Wilson’s drop back?
A: His launch point changes, but unique – like he’s different. He’s definitely a different player, but I hate when a question about unique or the history of the league, I mean, there have been a lot of players like that. Whether it was Randall Cunningham or even when Aaron Rodgers was dropping back, but our plan for Russell is just to try to keep everything in front and just, you know, he’s a challenge. He’s a challenge, but he’s a good player. So, whatever they’re coaching him to do or whatever he’s doing as a player, wherever his launch point is, I mean, we got to adjust to that. It’s tough. He’s a tough guy to defend. That’s the honest truth there.
Q: What gave you the confidence to give DT Dalvin Tomlinson such a big role?
A: Dalvin – I mean, the kid is smart, he’s tough. And then more importantly, the thing that he does that I give him a lot of credit for and he’s just following the role of his leaders – Snacks (Damon Harrison), alright. This guy practices like it’s the most important thing other than the game, which is as a coach what you tell them. Practice is the closest thing to the game, so you have to get that right and that’s what he does every day. Whether it was training camp, whether it was OTAs. Like he had a little spell on OTAs where we had to teach him and even Snacks was. We had to get him like, ‘Hey, this is how you got to practice even though there are no pads on.’ And, I think that transition and seeing how he’s grown there as a practice player gives us as coaches the confidence to put him out there on the field. And then, in the classroom, his work he does. All of them – all the guys are working like that, but just to be on it. Whether it’s the tendencies. Whether it’s the techniques that guys are using against him. Noticing different things with different players. I mean, that’s what makes him smart, tough and then he executes it out on the field. But, I would say (Jay) Bromley, Rob Thomas – all those guys have improved in that aspect. That answers your question, hopefully.
Q: When DE Jason Pierre-Paul has the type of game he just had, what kind of an impact does that have on the other guys?
A: When JPP – when his juice is energy, it fuels the team, I think. Especially on the defensive side of the ball. He’s a pleasure to be around because when that energy comes, like, it’s contagious. Me personally, I’m a nerd and a D-line coach, like I’m usually in a bad mood. It just is what it is. I mean, I go home, I have to take a few minutes to get out of my bad mood. I’m miserable most of the time. Not in a bad way, but it’s not like I have everything wrong with the court. Just that’s my mood. His energy when he has the juice, it’s just contagious and guys get excited. I mean, we were joking on the sideline. I said, ‘Can you please get another sack? Get it up to three.’ He’s like, ‘Coach, it’s already at three.’ I was like, ‘Whatever man. Get four then.’ You know? His juice is always a positive, man. Guys will feed off that, but we need it to be every week. He needs to be consistent and he knows that and he’s working towards that and I think last week were some steps in practice, especially, in practice, that are going to help transfer onto the field.
Q: Did you have to get into DE Jason Pierre-Paul’s ear last week about getting back on track?
A: You would have to ask him specifically about that, but I’m always in their ear. I mean, he did three sacks – I’m still in his ear. That’s what he would tell you, like, ‘Pat’s always in my ear.’
Q: Did you have to change your approach at all though?
A: No. I told you. I’m always miserable. Nothing is good enough for me. They know that. They know their coach. I’ve been like that since day one. They’re like, ‘What’s wrong with this guy?’ But, that’s me. I don’t know what to tell them. I don’t do that with my wife though. That would be stupid.
Q: Do you do more with LB Devon Kennard now that you’re down a couple healthy defensive ends?
A: I’m not going to get into the specifics, but you guys are at the field. Sometimes DK is talking to me. Most of the time, DK is talking with Bill (McGovern). Spags (Steve Spagnuolo) has DK sometimes. We as coaches – I do what the head coach, Spags has me do and then whoever I need to talk to, to talk about whatever the part of the things that happened on the field that I have to help them with. That’s what I do. But, DK makes his rounds, whether it’s with the linebackers coach, D-line coach, coordinator. I mean, he makes the rounds, so that’s what he does.
Q: How do you think LB Devon Kennard has done when he’s doing things on your side of the ball?
A: I think that DK is one of the more consistent players I’ve ever been around in my career. So, in terms of just the way he approaches the game and again, as he spends more time with us in the room just in terms of what we’re teaching and how we go about our weekly process, I’ve seen him grow in that because he has the linebacker element. Then he has the defensive line element. So, it’s a different process how we go about it. How we prepare for the week. You know, big picture as we narrow down specifically to the people by the end of the week. OK, this is what they run. But, how’s he running this? How does he do this? So, we go through that with him and I’ve seen him grow and mature with that process and it’s a process I learned from older veteran players I’ve coached before.
