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Tuesday Media Transcript: Head Coach Pat Shurmur

Eric from BBI : Admin : 5/28/2019 3:25 pm
Head Coach Pat Shurmur -- May 28, 2019

Opening Statement: Week two of the OTAs. We practiced today, we are going to practice tomorrow. Do a phase two day on Thursday and then finish up on Friday. Another good day of work. We keep working on situations. You saw we did two-minute, which we are doing every day. I think the guys are making good progress. I’ll take your questions.

Q: How’s Corey Ballentine?
A: He was out there today. He is doing what he can do. Last week he did a little bit more of individual work and today he got his first reps in team work. I will have to go back in and watch, but he looked good moving around. He is getting better each day.

Q: What is your sense of the attitude and morale of the whole group?
A: We are working hard. They have a good focus and have all established their ‘whys’ and what they are trying to get done here in the offseason. I am pleased with the team building and the amount of work we are getting done within the rules that are provided to us. These can’t be very physical in terms of the pounding upfront, but there is a lot to be learned going through the situational stuff, which is good. This is really the time of year where wideouts and quarterbacks are throwing to one another. These are all the things that we can do. I feel good about that. From a defensive standpoint, all the communication that goes into it, making sure that we provide enough looks for them on offense, which we do so that they can communicate well. We are making progress. We have a long way to go, but in terms of morale, they are working hard, competing and having fun doing it.

Q: Janoris Jenkins wasn’t out there today. How valuable is it to see extended reps for the young guys on defense?
A: That is the advantage this time of year. You practice two and three groups. It is very important that guys get reps. This is that time of year where young players can, so it is good.

Q: Did you know Janoris wasn’t going to be here?
A: Yes, I talked to him. He had a graduation in the family.

Q: What have you seen from Chad Wheeler since you have added some people to his position?
A: Chad just has to approach his work and get better every day, like he has been. He just needs to get better with every rep he is presented with. I think he has done that. It is more pass protection and less hardcore run blocking. Linemen and guys in the front can’t do all the things they need to do until training camp, but we like his focus and his attention to detail. He is doing everything he can to get better.

Q: How would you assess the quarterbacks today, and having to deal with some rain?
A: I thought they threw the ball fine. A few balls might have gotten away from them. We played in the rain a lot last year. It is important. I thought they threw the ball really well today.

Q: What have you seen from Daniel Jones?
A: I think he is competing and getting better every day. He is like every player on the team. They are getting ready to play week one. If they are in there, great. If not, they will keep working and continuing to get better. I think Daniel’s approach, he is here all the time just like all the other quarterbacks. He is doing everything in his power to get right.

Q: Do you have benchmarks for him?
A: I think when he is in there, it needs to look like football. He needs to execute well, get completions, drive the ball down the field and make the proper run checks. All the things that are fundamental for a quarterback. Fine tune them and the details of each play. I see him getting better every day. I see a guy that is getting himself right.

Q: Do you see Eli’s impact on him?
A: I think it is a healthy quarterback room. There is a lot of conversation with regard to that. Yes, I see a good room and all the guys working well together and trying to help each other.

Q: What was Daniel Jones’ starting point? Was it where you expected?
A: Yes. He obviously has a great foundation for playing the position. We gave him a small group of plays the first day of rookie minicamp. Then, we gave him another group and another group. We kept piling on. I think he is doing a good job sorting through it and learning the details of the position. You never totally know where a player is when you get him. He was ready to compete when he got here. It was just a matter of him learning how we do it here.

Q: How much do you give the quarterbacks when you set up practice? Do you schedule the reps on a day by day or week by week basis to make sure everybody is getting the work they need?
A: It depends on the drills. When we have the drills, the different types of drills scheduled out. You noticed that Dan is getting some reps with the twos. We have a plan for that. It is scheduled out through the spring. Once we get to training camp, we will do the same thing there.

Q: How about the development with the safties?
A: They are doing a good job. You saw Antoine (Bethea) had an interception today. They communicate extremely well. They are very strong guys. Typically, one guy takes the lead on that, but they both can do it. When I watch, they are getting us in the right coverages and pressures. They are in the right spots and trying to play the techniques within the defenses that are called. That is the thing that you can work on this time of year defensively. All the communication. We are really pleased with where they are. It is only going to get better.

Q: What is it about Golden Tate’s skillset that allows him to accumulate so many yards after the catch?
A: You can see that he has the ability to break tackles. He is nifty. Obviously, before the ball is thrown and then once he catches it, he has a way of breaking tackles or making them miss. I can see that is going to be a part of his game already.

Q: Has Jabrill Peppers assumed a leadership role? He is vocal out there.
A: I think really good players thrust themselves into those roles just by the nature of being a good player. He is very vocal. Sometimes you don’t have to be very vocal and you can be a leader. You can look to him and see that he has that about him. He has a great presence. If you are around him on a day to day basis, you can see that he will quickly become one of the guys where you say, ‘OK, he’s got it.’ He loves playing football and has a lot of fun doing it and a lot of fun competing. I think that is part of his charm and what makes him special. He is so darn competitive. It shows up naturally.

Q: Have you seen ways in which Daniel has had an impact on Eli or vice versa?
A: That is hard to day. I think they have all gone out and had good days. Sometimes a throw here or a throw there may not indicate that they are having a good day, but they have both have had good days up until this point. I think they are both getting better.

Q: Are they similar?
A: There is a lot of similarity in their stature and how they handle themselves. Personality-wise, I would say in some ways they are similar as we get to know Daniel and his personality more. They are very calm in their approach. They are very fiery under the covers. I don’t think you want to misrepresent either one of them. They are both very fiery of making sure things are done properly. They demand it of themselves and the people around them.

Q: What are you doing with the guys that aren’t getting that many reps?
A: We are trying to get everyone reps. Unfortunately, some of the guys that are two’s and three’s don’t get as many as the ones, but everything they do is evaluated. We try and coach them in everything they do. The mental reps are very important. You have to learn that way. I feel like at least to this point, the guys are doing that.
RE: Chad Wheeler  
kelsto811 : 5/28/2019 5:05 pm : link
This guy should be going 1 on 1 pass rush for hours at a time during his personal down time.

Anyone who has the opportunity to be a starting T honestly. Negate the pass rush and you're as valuable as they come.
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