HEAD COACH ROD MARINELLI -- JULY 27, 2007
>> On the morning’s practice
“I really liked the energy this morning. And one of my emphasis, again, like I told you the other day, is that last minute stamina. I really want to see it pick up, especially that last period, I just want to keep building, and that’s kind of relating back to the games we lost in the last two minutes of last year. So we’ve got to find a way to execute, and it’s not conditioning; it’s part of conditioning, but it’s a mental conditioning. It’s a mental toughness, and details, and believing, and trust themselves. The big thing is that I just like the energy so far. We’ve just got to go day-by-day. The only minor injury we had today I think was Dewayne White, he just got sore in his groin, and we took him out early. More precautionary than anything else. But, other than that, and I know Simeon (Rice)’s name is out there right now, and people are talking about Sim, and I have great respect for him. But I feel very good, so you understand, and I’ve said this from day one, this is a good, young front. And I think Kalimba (Edwards) has been humming, and Dewayne White we brought in, obviously. And we’ve got some good young players. So, I’m excited about this front right now, very excited. So we’re just going to keep working, I like the chemistry of the front, and I’ll just kind of leave it at that.”
>> On if they won’t bring in Rice for a physical
“Right now, that’s not something we’ve really had a chance to talk through a lot in terms of our front office, but you’ve always got to know where people’s statuses are. What they’re at health-wise, throughout the league. With any player, we do that, so we know where they’re at and what the situation is. But right now, I feel very good but I have also great respect for him.”
>> On whether Rice could add to a team
“What he brings is that he’s a rusher. A pass rusher. And that’s been his forte.”
>> On if there would be a downside to bringing Rice in
“I don’t think – there are no downsides. I’m just saying, there’re a lot of things to look at. Salary caps, all those things. There are a lot of things to look at. So, a lot of things play into it.”
>> On whether he is ‘not ruling out bringing him, you’re just saying that’s not at the top of your priority list right now’
“That’s a great way to phrase it.”
>> On whether they have enough information on Rice
“Oh, no, we don’t have enough information. Just kind of like we’ve done that (bringing them in) with a lot of players. We always, guys that there could be some interest or some value, we always want to make a check, see where they are physically.”
>> On whether they would consider bringing Rice in for a physical
“We haven’t sat down and said, ‘This is what we want to do,’ and all those things yet. But, obviously, I’m aware of him and I know what he can do.”
>> On what the players’ offseason commitment means to him
“In football, and I said it the other night, really it’s not the most talented team. Really, it’s the team that will play together. It takes talent to play this game, but it takes a team to win in this game. Part of that commitment, coming in here, I think we’ve got nice competition at a lot of positions. So, that’s a motivation to come in in shape. They understand our tempo from last year, and so they know how much running we do, how much emphasis we have on speed and conditioning. So I think that puts an emphasis, if they want to make this team, they’ve got to come in here in shape. Guys getting pulls and stuff, this system is famous for pulls, because of how much running we do. They come in in shape, and so far, so good. But it sends a strong message. It’s important.”
>> On how the carries will be split up between the backs
“I just think, that gets kind of too far down the road. Right now we’re just installing the packages. That’s, ‘Let’s see who can do it, who can be consistent, day-in and day-out.’ We’re throwing stuff at them, a tremendous amount of material each day, so I think that’s kind of down the road right now. It’s day-to-day work right now of developing this team, number one.”
>> On Tatum Bell’s speed and pass catching abilities
“Oh, my goodness. Yeah, he’s great. He really understands how to run the ball, too. He’s a downhill runner, and he’ll make those cuts and get downhill fast. And he’s a proven runner in this league, as is Kevin (Jones), as is T.J. (Duckett). And we’ve got a young (Brian) Calhoun right now showing his speed, and he can catch the ball very well also. So it’s awesome. We’re excited about it.”
>> On how Bell looks when split out
“Yeah, there’re some things he’ll learn in the system: that’s what I’m talking about, we’re learning this system as he goes on. But boy, he brings some real special skills for us right now. You’ve seen him, you can see it. Boy, all of a sudden you start getting people spread out with a four wide receiver set, and he breaks something. Ouch. I mean, the speed is good. We’ve just got to keep working at it, and you can see the vision down the road, but part of it right now is just the action we take every day.”
>> On if he assumes Jones will not be back
“No. No, you can’t assume anything. We just, every day he’s working, the trainers are pleased, he’s working hard. So I go with that everybody is going to be there and ready to go. That’s the perfect picture. And then daily, you’re working on scenarios and developing the depth at every position. That’s something I said the other day: that’s how you combat injuries in the NFL is develop your depth. And we’ve got good teachers on this staff. I just want to keep developing our players.”
>> On how hungry the team is
“All I can gauge it is how that was an explosive run drill today. Especially, you start after two or three days your body gets sore, they came in and it was a explosive, very physical. See I like energy and chatter, when it is turned towards them, not out. Taunting, I just don’t enjoy it. But when guys are making plays and they’re going to their teammates and are excited with their teammates, that’s positive energy. When there’s taunting: bad feelings, injuries. So the way they’re practicing right now, and I told them, I appreciate their efforts, how they’re working. This afternoon we’re going to go in helmets and shorts, because they’ve earned it.”
>> On if he had to pull the team back because they were ‘frisky’
“No, as long as we understand the etiquette, practice etiquette. And I’m a broken record, I say it every night, how we’re going to practice. We want to be violent, we want to be physical, we want to have skill, technique, but there’re certain things we have to take care of: we can’t dive for a loose ball because there are legs around us, we’ve got to stay away from the quarterback, we can’t search out a receiver, there’s no cutting, you’ve got to know when to pull off on defense. You’ve just got to; when we have a blitz period, how fast we come, but they can learn to go explosively fast and then kind of pull off and not hit our quarterback. And not bull-rush a back: make a move on a back, because a back in a game is going to cut you, you can’t do it out here. So those certain etiquettes you have for practice, and then I get comfortable that we can really go fast that way. And they’re very aware of it because each man out here, he owns somebody else’s career with his decisions. He holds a man’s entire career with the decisions he makes during practice. And I constantly talk to them about that, because I want to have an explosive practice like this and a smart practice. When they do that, then you’re humming, because you can work on skill: the pad level, the feet, all the things that I like.”
>> On former defensive coordinator Donnie Henderson and defensive coordinator Joe Barry
“First of all, I will talk about Donnie: he’s a special person to me and goes way back, when I coached him. Anything that went wrong was my fault, not his. And Joe comes in, and I’ve worked with Joe. The thing that’s been really good, he’s had Tony Dungy influence him, he’s the guy that hired him to Tampa. Him and Mike Tomlin both came in together. So they really understood it with coach Dungy, and then you’re with Monte Kiffin, both those guys for five years or whatever it was. Five years in that system. So he knows this system. The key is he believes in it, and he knows all the nuances. And when it’s done right, you can see our speed come alive out there. Right now, we’re fast. And we have a fast defense, but when you really know what you’re doing, you’re really fast. And now that speed is coming alive.”
>> On if they have a chance to do something special this year, as Mr. Ford talked about
“As I’ve talked to Mr. Ford, the thing I always explain to him is why I’m excited. I just don’t say, ‘Hey, I’m excited, it’s kind of neat,’ or, ‘We’re going to be good.’ I try to sit down and say, ‘These are the things I think we really have a chance to be good in, because of this acquisition, because of character here, the effort, the energy in practices. But with that, I also make statements about the areas we have to improve in: our two minute drill. We’ve got to get better there, at the end of the game. We’ve got to develop our depth better. And we’re attacking these areas, but the energy, and I just believe in team. I just always have. A team, if these guys will play together, the really good teams: the New England (Patriots), they play as teams. That (Indianapolis) Colt team, that’s a team. If we can just zero it in on team. And we’re going to have things that go wrong: we’re going to have adversity, we’re going to have injuries, we’re going to have that. But if the center of the team is strong, we’re going to have a chance to withstand that.”
>> On if they’re getting closer to a deal with Calvin Johnson
“I just talked to Tom (Lewand) this morning. Like, it’s close and then it’s not close. Tom feels it’s going to get done, I’m saying pretty soon, whatever that means. When they get it done, they’ll get it done. It’s the NFL, I understand.”
>> On if he’d be surprised if it went beyond the weekend
“Kind of, the way Tom was talking. He has a pretty good feel right now. So, hopefully it gets done.”
>> On if Damien Woody has established trust
“Yeah. When somebody says, ‘This is what I’m going to do,’ and they do it, that’s how you develop trust. It’s me, if I say I’m going to do this, and I attempt to do it and get it done, then he’s a man of his word or he’s trying to be a man of his word. If I don’t even come close, then you lose trust. He’s come in, and he’s moving well, and he’s blocking, he’s got a nice look to him.”
>> On how Woody establishing trust can affect the rest of the team
“It’s all about team building. It’s all team building. Guys come in, and they trust each other. That’s how we get better at the end of the game: trust. Trust your coaching, trust your skills, trust the defense, trust the offense, and that’s what we’ve got to be able to do.”
>> On statistics regarding turnover differential
“I couldn’t give you it (off the top of my head), but it’s dramatic in this league. If you go -3, -2, -1, +1, +2, +3, it’s staggering. I did a research project on it to show the value of what we’re talking about. I mean, this is winning and losing games, which we all know, but when you see these numbers, you go, ‘Man, that’s staggering.’ And it was an interesting thing, in the three games that we won last year, we were, I think we were +6 in that area. So it just comes down to if we can get those things done, do it right, and we’ll have a chance. And the defense is, every day, they’re stripping (the ball), they’re going after every ball, so they’re locking it in. So I can never be happy at the end of the day, right? If we turn it over, it’s, ‘ah,’ and if we don’t get them, it’s, ‘ah.’”
>> On whether creating turnovers has become more of an emphasis for the defense in practice
“It’s something we used to do in Tampa a ton. We really got after that part of it. The energy is there; the players are having fun with it.
>> On when he researched the effect of turnovers
“Before the OTAs and the mini-camps. I’ll present it one way, then I doctor it – so I’m constantly presenting it and saying the (same) information in different ways.”
>> On whether his message to the players has changed from last year
“No, (it’s the) same.”
>> On why his message is still the same
“Fundamentals – it’s a base. You have a foundation and you believe in the foundation that you have. If your foundation changes all the time, your house falls down; because you don’t have a belief in anything. I have a belief in the certain ways we do things; I have a certain belief in our offense, defense and special teams – certainly how we coach and prepare. (I have) a great belief in fundamentals, technique and skill development; a great belief in that 20-25 minute individual period everyday. I sell that. I believe in how we tackle and how we finish blocks. It’s cut and dry and that’s what I’ll do forever.”
>> On whether he can see if his message is sinking in with the players when he looks into their eyes
“It’s sinking in. You can tell when you go out and win games – that’s when it sinks in. Right now, they understand what I want and they’re going after (it). You can see a little bit of tempo and how we’re trying to do things. Once you start changing your message, you don’t have a message.”
>> On whether he changes the approach of the message
“You change the delivery of the message to make it interesting. The delivery – that’s what teaching is; that how you teach. You don’t teach in monotone and (give) the same information; you change your information but (maintain) the same value and the same meaning. You show a film of it; you doctor a film up; you show grids; you show energy. Then your coaches also repeat it in different ways; different voice inflections, different teachers, same message. “
>> On whether adding RB Tatum Bell and RB T.J. Duckett allows them to open up the running game
“No – it’s the same things. We’ve just got to do them and do them better. We have a feeling that with a good veteran offensive line and the acquisition of some of these backs that we’ve got a chance to run the ball we feel. A big part of that plays into our defense; how well we’re slamming the run; if we’re getting some turnovers; having an opportunity to get a lead; having good trust in our defense – the playcalling changes off of that.”
>> On whether he envisions RB T.J. Duckett as being mostly a short-yardage back
“He’s a physical guy and we know that but right now we just want to just teach everybody so we haven’t even gotten into goal-line (drills) yet. It’s all the basic parts of it right now.”
>> On whether he ever uses negative results and examples to project his message to the players
“You show that –but I always kind of emphasize the positive: ‘this is what we can accomplish if we do this.’ I like going that way. But there’s times where you have to show: ‘this is not what I want.’ But I always emphasize a positive approach to how we teach – but then you’ve got to call it out when it’s not right. I’ll zero that in too. I like being a positive teach.”
>> On DT Shaun Cody’s unnaturally blonde hair
“He’s got a different look every year. I’ll tell you, he had the Mohawk in the spring coming in here and I said: ‘whoa!’ Like I’ve said, I like our tackles. He’s a good player and he’s a guy that can play the ####-nose (tackle) and he can also play the under-tackle. That’s hard to do – to play both of those – because the skills are completely different.”
>> On whether he would discourage Cody from standing out individually with the hair
“I never even thought about it – believe me, I’ve been around that my whole career. I would never even give that a second-thought. Just play your gap, spring to the football and be a good team guy.”
>> On getting through the first couple of practices without any injuries
“Yeah – we have. We took (Dewayne White) out early; it was more precautionary. He started feeling (his groin) a little bit so we took him out.”
>> On what they have done to help integrate the rookies into this team
“I think the offseason was really good for that. I always have, maybe once every two-weeks or so, I have a rookie meeting and we just talk. Especially right now with what they have to go through; it’s not just learning the systems and all of that. They’re sitting there counting numbers, thinking: ‘whoa, how am I going to make this team.’ They can’t do that. You’ve just got to go in and work day-to-day-to- day-to-day and try to produce as good of film as you can. So you talk about it; you’ve got to be on them hard because their habits are off. They don’t have the habits you’re looking for; they haven’t been around it enough. So you’ve got to stay on them and by staying on them you see if the guys are thin-skinned and then you get a feel of how you need to coach them. You’ve got to coach these guys very hard initially and be very demanding on them.”
>> On the linebackers having been together as a unit for a year
“We were talking the other day, that with the (middle) linebacker position, you’ve got Teddy (Lehman) and Paris (Lenon) in there – probably one of the biggest things is trust. They’ve got to set this defense right; close it right, adjust it right. If you’re (a middle linebacker) playing cover-2 in our system – boy. You can be fast as all get out with that run-through; if you play run-first in a seven-man front, you’ve got problems. Because you’re beat; you’re lost three steps. So for Paris and Teddy, the trust, that they’re going to read their keys – those safeties are hoping that guy is there, running right through the middle of the field when he’s supposed to be.
“The thing that’s good with Joe (Barry) is that he played that position when he played and he’s coached it for seven years in this system and he’s had different types of guys playing that spot. It still comes down to trust. Phil (Snow), he’s really on top of it right now – I feel good about that.”
Last year he threw 22/23 with Detroit.He had years of 23/16 in Seattle and 26/15 in Cincy.With 20% more attempts then he had in thos two stops, 27-30 TDs seems oh-so likely.
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