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Tuesday Media Transcript: Head Coach Pat Shurmur

Eric from BBI : Admin : 5/29/2018 1:53 pm
Head Coach Pat Shurmur
May 29, 2018
 
Opening Statement: OTA 4, you got to watch it, it was a good day for us. Coming off a four-day weekend, we had little bit of heat to it. We promised OV [defensive end Olivier Vernon] this was going to feel like Miami, and it did, finally. It’s always good when you add the elements to it. I told the players that we want to build a gritty team that can overcome the environment, and this is the first they had a little bit of heat and I think it was good, they pushed through it. So, again, just one more step closer to being a good football team. The guys competed well and we’ll get a chance to have two more of these this week. So, with that being said, I’ll take your questions.
 
Q: Is safety Landon Collins ahead of schedule?
A: I don’t know what his schedule was, but yeah, he was out there competing in a limited basis and he’s trying to do everything he can as he finishes up his rehab.
 
Q: Do you expect Collins to be cleared in time for training camp?
A: I’m hopeful. There’s a break, right? So, as it heals up and he gets back to where he’s 100 percent, then we’ll get him out there.
 
Q: Is wide receiver Odell Beckham, Jr. healthy?
A: Yeah, he’s healthy. And he wasn’t out there.
 
Q: Do you know where Beckham is?
A: I do.
 
Q: You knew that Beckham and cornerback Janoris Jenkins weren’t going to be here today?
A: Yes. I talked to them.
 
Q: Is this defensive tackle Damon Harrison’s first OTA?
A: Yeah, Damon was here today and he did a good job.
 
Q: Have you discussed as a team yet the league’s new national anthem policy and how to handle it?
A: We have not discussed it as a team. We’re going to sort of let it settle for a little bit here. It’s like any new rule, this is a new policy and I certainly trust that our players are going to do the right thing. I think that we just let it settle for a minute. At some point, we’ll discuss it, but we just haven’t done it yet. I know certainly for me, it’s very easy. I’m going to face the flag and take my cap off and listen to the Anthem and be thankful that my family and I live in the greatest country in the world and be able to kind of reflect on and be thankful for all the sacrifice that a lot of people have gone to, to help protect and secure our freedom. So, that’s what it means to me. And again, I think at some point, we’ll talk about it as a team and I trust that our team will do the right thing.
 
Q: How much have you been involved in the personnel side of things, and what is your role involving extending player contracts?
A: Well, I’m involved, really, in any facet of what’s going on with our team. Certainly when we go through the draft process, [General Manager] Dave [Gettleman] runs all that, and we talk about free agents and changing the roster. Obviously, Dave’s the point man on that, but we have discussions. We talk about what adding a player means to our roster and how we would use him. Talk about evaluations of players. So, I am involved.
 
Q: Is your involvement any different than places you previously coached?
A: Very similar. Very similar to the other places I’ve been.
 
Q: How is tackle Ereck Flowers doing with his move to the right side of the line?
A: He’s actually done a really good job. He’s an excellent athlete and he’s handling the move pretty seamlessly. 
 
Q: Can you see improvements to Flowers’ game already?
A: Yes, I can. Through the first two weeks of his training, I think he’s made improvements.
 
Q: What have you noticed about Flowers’ attitude and approach since he came back to the team?
A: He’s been great. He’s been communicating well, he looks like he’s having fun playing out there, he’s worked in with the offensive line and he’s done everything we’ve asked and I anticipate that will continue.
 
Q: Did Flowers ever convey to you that he was unhappy?
A: I don’t worry about it because it wasn’t – this is a voluntary setup. So, he’s here, we’re glad he’s here and he’s making improvements each day.
 
Q: You said you spoke to him? Was there anything from his end that said he was unhappy?
A: That’s all water under the bridge and it really doesn’t matter. 
 
Q: Does a ‘clean slate’ also translate over to players with a history of injuries?
A: To answer your question, yes. It’s a clean slate all the way around, so the guys that were injured a year ago are fighting their way back to get healthy again and some of those injuries are not things they’re going to repeat. And it’s usually on a case-to-case basis.
 
Q: Do you sense anything with B.J. Goodson?
A: I think he has been doing really well out here.
 
Q: What are your thoughts about the way Eli Apple was able to own what he did last year and move forward?
A: I think that it speaks to maturity and it speaks to owning successes and failures. We have to be willing to, okay, if a mistake happened, in order to move forward from a mistake or something that went wrong, we have to admit that it happened and that we were involved in it. What you do is you find a solution, you make the correction and you move on past. That is really what we do play to play. As professionals in this business, we do this probably game to game and season to season. I think whatever happened a year ago and whatever he is talking about, I am sure that is just a mature guy that is reflecting.
 
Q: Has what you’ve seen backed that up?
A: Again, what I have seen on the field has been terrific.
 
Q: When you signed Michael Thomas, was there a conversation with him about his decision to kneel during the national anthem last season?
A: Not with me.
 
Q: Regarding Odell, is there an expectation that he may play or you guys want him to play on this fifth-year option and do you worry that taking longer to negotiate with him will create an issue?
A: No. Dave said it already. Contracts will get done when they get done. We are not worried about that. My experience with Odell has been that he wants to play football and he has been looking forward to getting out here. He isn’t quite finished with his rehab yet, so he can’t do everything totally. With regard to the rest of your question, we will cross that bridge when we get there.
 
Q: How close is he?
A: Pretty close.
 
Q: How is Eli Manning doing?
A: He looks great. He’s doing great. I mentioned already, he is a joy to coach. A quarterback that is engaged at the level that he is is a lot of fun. Things are constantly changing. Plays change on the move, adjustments are being made. Within a practice, you might see something that you didn’t think you would see. He is able to make an adjustment. He has been a lot of fun.  
 
Q: In regards to Saquon Barkley, what has he been able to achieve so far in just a small amount of time?
A: He hasn’t disappointed us one bit. We have high expectations for all of our rookies, especially Saquon. He has been out there running the ball well and is catching it well. He did a nice job today in pass protection. He is doing all the things now that we need to see him do to trust him out on the field next fall. He has done a good job.
 
Q: Is the new kickoff rule going to change the way you formulate things in terms of your players?
A: I don’t know that yet. We have to think about that a little more. The new kickoff rule is designed to make our game safer and to keep that play in the game and keep it exciting. We are going to need big, athletic guys that can cover, regardless if they are kicks or punts. Probably not.
 
Q: When does the foundation of running the ball start?
A: You need to run the football for your offense, obviously, but also for your team. We practice runs as much as we practice passing the ball. You just can’t do it in the physical setting that you do when you have pads on. You practice it because it is part of your DNA. Whatever you plan to do on Sundays in the fall, you have to practice. We practice running the football and how we are going to run the ball. We practice it all the time. 
I gotta tell ya,  
Photoguy : 5/29/2018 6:15 pm : link
I'm liking Shurmur a lot.
Oddly quiet on the cut flowers front.  
Ten Ton Hammer : 5/29/2018 7:35 pm : link
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