TRANSCRIPT: Falcons Head Coach Dan Quinn – Conference Call – 1/2/18
| January 02, 2018 02:49PM |
Falcons Head Coach Dan Quinn – Conference Call – January 2, 2018
(On what he has seen from QB Jared Goff from last year to this year)
“I think like a lot of players, when you go from year one to year two, you can make a big jump. We’ve had some guys in that program too as for us, (Falcons L
Deion Jones, (Falcons OL De'Vondre Campbell and (Falcons S) Keanu Neal I thought have made a big jump. One of the things I thought that has really been strong and not surprised with (Rams Offensive Coordinator) Matt LaFleur there is his ability to take care of the ball, really good decisions, so I think that to me is – I knew he had arm talent, that was pretty clear, but now you see with 28 touchdowns and seven interceptions, it’s the decision-making, where to go, when to give it out to somebody else. Those are the things that I’ve noticed and I’ve been certainly impressed by.”
(On how amazed he is at the turnaround that the Rams have made in only one season)
“Certainly anybody who is a fan of ball can recognize the terrific job starting from (General Manager) Les (Snead) and (Head Coach) Sean (McVay) and all the way through – the identity of the team, the ability to feature the guys in a terrific way. I’ve been most impressed by (R Todd Gurley (II) this year, not just in the run game, but his ability to catch and convert that way. Then on the defensive side, I’m sure you guys may discuss a bit, but one thing for sure has caught our attention is the ability for this team to create turnovers and forcing fumbles, fumble recoveries – that part of their game is really intact and I think it goes to show the leadership from (Rams Defensive Coordinator) Coach (Wade) Phillips and the rest of the crew. All three phases are hitting at a high note.”
(On how he feels his team is different from last year’s Super Bowl team)
“I think one thing that for sure is different for us – I love the resiliency and the toughness of this team. When you’ve been through some of the fire together and you come out the other side stronger as a brotherhood – we’re certainly improved on the defensive side, our tackling is better, we’re playing better in the red zone and on third downs, so that’s probably the biggest change that we’ve had. We still love featuring the guys that we do, but I would say, from our team from last year to this year, every year is different in terms of how you play. One of the guys asked about from year one to year two and some of our guys who are now going into year one to two or two to three, they’re really kind of coming into their own and playing well.”
(On how much different his team is with Steve Sarkisian at offensive coordinator compared to how they were with Kyle Shanahan)
“Well, I think we’re more similar than different and the reason that I say that is from a philosophy standpoint, we’re really committed to how we want to play and that starts for us in the run game. That’s all 11 (players), the way we want to run wide zones and then the play-action that comes off of that. That’s kind of our calling card and we really are committed to that. We love the run and the play-action and the (quarterback) keepers that come with it, so I would say that part is really familiar. Every year you utilize the guys in a good way. This year you see some new wrinkles with (Falcons RBs Devonta) Freeman and (Tevin) Coleman in together and how does that factor in, so I would say the core of what we do is really intact. The run game, the play-action and then on third down all the unique ways that we try to feature the guys – that part’s really similar and my hope is that it would always be and that’s part of (Falcons General Manager) Thomas (Dimitroff) and my pact, is making sure that we’re really consistent in how we play so we’re not changing year-to-year or scheme-to-scheme based on a coordinator, but really in the style that we play. We’re fortunate to have ‘Sark’ (Sarkisian) here, coming in and adding his own things to it, but we’re very fortunate to have him here.”
(On his red zone defense being a point of emphasis and how they improved that in the offseason)
“You know what, we had to do quite a bit against our offense and even at the start of our season we weren’t quite where we wanted to be. So, what we ended up doing was just designing some time during practice to really emphasize third downs – it was probably, I don’t know, not quite halfway through where we emphasized, we were just going to go good-on-good, third down, not related to the opponent a day and then we were also going to do that down in the red zone a day. In other words, just put the ball down there and let’s play it out. So, we tried to create more time to emphasize it and then in-season we just ended up going against one another more. I thought that, to me was really one of the factors in our improvement in that way, kind of like when you have an issue, you want to shine the light on it to improve. Defensively, that for sure was a topic for us. It was really defensively down in the red zone and third down is an area we wanted to really attack offensively, so we tried to make it a major priority and give it it's attention.”
(On what kind of a logistical challenge it is to fly across the country on a short week and face a team that rested some of their starters in Week 17)
“We really don’t rely on anybody else that’s fresh or not. We’re in the same boat – both teams have the same amount of time to prepare. We’re accustomed to traveling, we’re familiar with that. We really stay committed to our routine. Usually, when we travel out to the West Coast, or sometimes even to the Midwest, we make it a two-day trip. We practice here in Atlanta and then fly out to wherever it’s going. This year alone, we’ve been Northwest, Midwest, Northeast – we’ve done a number of the two-day trips. But we really try to stay committed to the process of getting ready – whether it’s out there or here. It’s a real big process that we enjoy the buildup that it goes through and no real change in our routine.”
(On what has been his impression of DT Aaron Donald this season and how difficult of a challenge is Donald given the injuries to the interior of their offensive line)
“No change from us from an interior standpoint, but what I can say is – we really value his quickness. My background is in defensive line, so why I think he’s so unique is he’s got the get-off of a defensive end. If he was just playing defensive end, he’d probably do just fine because he’s got that kind of quickness to get off the ball and get on the edge of a blocker. Then, when you add that kind of quickness inside – I think that’s what makes him so unique. He’s really well trained with his hands. You even saw that coming out of Pitt. He was almost like he was ready back then. Coming out of college he had that kind of quickness, that kind of hand use. You could say he was really well trained there. Here’s what I see in his game right now – the ability not just to play up field, the stunts that go with it. I think he’s in the right scheme for him, because of his ability to go up the field. As far as rushers go – that’s a challenge every week and certainly the Rams have their share of them. But we don’t play drop back all the time. In terms of the run game, the play-action, that’s a big part of what we do as well, but man is he having a hell of a year and definitely somebody that’s earned our respect. I know the defensive line watches a lot of sacks around the league each week just in terms of training and staying ready and Aaron’s been on that tape quite a bit.”
(On if he sees any of Matt LaFleur’s imprint on the Rams offense)
“Yeah, you certainly do. It’s really a good scheme. It’s the three-level routes that can happen. I think one of the hallmarks even going back to (49ers Head Coach) Kyle (Shanahan) and his time at Washington. I know (Rams Head Coach) Sean (McVay) and Matt – they’re all kind of connected in some way. What I’ve been most impressed by is the ability that you have to defend the entire field. And then like our offense, they’re a team that’s really committed to the run game. When you have a team that has the run, has the play-action, the quarterback boot and stuff – it makes it really difficult and challenging to defend. I’ve been impressed and I’ve definitely seen Matt’s influence along with Sean’s on there. Both guys are really sharp, really equipped. (Quarterbacks Coach) Greg Olson is another coach there, they’ve got terrific experience on their staff just naming the guys they have. The Quarterback play, the technique, so they’re really getting trained well at the position and you can see the offense coming to life. Yeah, but there is carryover for sure, in my opinion.”
(On what he has seen from QB Jared Goff from last year to this year)
“I think like a lot of players, when you go from year one to year two, you can make a big jump. We’ve had some guys in that program too as for us, (Falcons L
Deion Jones, (Falcons OL De'Vondre Campbell and (Falcons S) Keanu Neal I thought have made a big jump. One of the things I thought that has really been strong and not surprised with (Rams Offensive Coordinator) Matt LaFleur there is his ability to take care of the ball, really good decisions, so I think that to me is – I knew he had arm talent, that was pretty clear, but now you see with 28 touchdowns and seven interceptions, it’s the decision-making, where to go, when to give it out to somebody else. Those are the things that I’ve noticed and I’ve been certainly impressed by.”(On how amazed he is at the turnaround that the Rams have made in only one season)
“Certainly anybody who is a fan of ball can recognize the terrific job starting from (General Manager) Les (Snead) and (Head Coach) Sean (McVay) and all the way through – the identity of the team, the ability to feature the guys in a terrific way. I’ve been most impressed by (R
Todd Gurley (II) this year, not just in the run game, but his ability to catch and convert that way. Then on the defensive side, I’m sure you guys may discuss a bit, but one thing for sure has caught our attention is the ability for this team to create turnovers and forcing fumbles, fumble recoveries – that part of their game is really intact and I think it goes to show the leadership from (Rams Defensive Coordinator) Coach (Wade) Phillips and the rest of the crew. All three phases are hitting at a high note.”(On how he feels his team is different from last year’s Super Bowl team)
“I think one thing that for sure is different for us – I love the resiliency and the toughness of this team. When you’ve been through some of the fire together and you come out the other side stronger as a brotherhood – we’re certainly improved on the defensive side, our tackling is better, we’re playing better in the red zone and on third downs, so that’s probably the biggest change that we’ve had. We still love featuring the guys that we do, but I would say, from our team from last year to this year, every year is different in terms of how you play. One of the guys asked about from year one to year two and some of our guys who are now going into year one to two or two to three, they’re really kind of coming into their own and playing well.”
(On how much different his team is with Steve Sarkisian at offensive coordinator compared to how they were with Kyle Shanahan)
“Well, I think we’re more similar than different and the reason that I say that is from a philosophy standpoint, we’re really committed to how we want to play and that starts for us in the run game. That’s all 11 (players), the way we want to run wide zones and then the play-action that comes off of that. That’s kind of our calling card and we really are committed to that. We love the run and the play-action and the (quarterback) keepers that come with it, so I would say that part is really familiar. Every year you utilize the guys in a good way. This year you see some new wrinkles with (Falcons RBs Devonta) Freeman and (Tevin) Coleman in together and how does that factor in, so I would say the core of what we do is really intact. The run game, the play-action and then on third down all the unique ways that we try to feature the guys – that part’s really similar and my hope is that it would always be and that’s part of (Falcons General Manager) Thomas (Dimitroff) and my pact, is making sure that we’re really consistent in how we play so we’re not changing year-to-year or scheme-to-scheme based on a coordinator, but really in the style that we play. We’re fortunate to have ‘Sark’ (Sarkisian) here, coming in and adding his own things to it, but we’re very fortunate to have him here.”
(On his red zone defense being a point of emphasis and how they improved that in the offseason)
“You know what, we had to do quite a bit against our offense and even at the start of our season we weren’t quite where we wanted to be. So, what we ended up doing was just designing some time during practice to really emphasize third downs – it was probably, I don’t know, not quite halfway through where we emphasized, we were just going to go good-on-good, third down, not related to the opponent a day and then we were also going to do that down in the red zone a day. In other words, just put the ball down there and let’s play it out. So, we tried to create more time to emphasize it and then in-season we just ended up going against one another more. I thought that, to me was really one of the factors in our improvement in that way, kind of like when you have an issue, you want to shine the light on it to improve. Defensively, that for sure was a topic for us. It was really defensively down in the red zone and third down is an area we wanted to really attack offensively, so we tried to make it a major priority and give it it's attention.”
(On what kind of a logistical challenge it is to fly across the country on a short week and face a team that rested some of their starters in Week 17)
“We really don’t rely on anybody else that’s fresh or not. We’re in the same boat – both teams have the same amount of time to prepare. We’re accustomed to traveling, we’re familiar with that. We really stay committed to our routine. Usually, when we travel out to the West Coast, or sometimes even to the Midwest, we make it a two-day trip. We practice here in Atlanta and then fly out to wherever it’s going. This year alone, we’ve been Northwest, Midwest, Northeast – we’ve done a number of the two-day trips. But we really try to stay committed to the process of getting ready – whether it’s out there or here. It’s a real big process that we enjoy the buildup that it goes through and no real change in our routine.”
(On what has been his impression of DT Aaron Donald this season and how difficult of a challenge is Donald given the injuries to the interior of their offensive line)
“No change from us from an interior standpoint, but what I can say is – we really value his quickness. My background is in defensive line, so why I think he’s so unique is he’s got the get-off of a defensive end. If he was just playing defensive end, he’d probably do just fine because he’s got that kind of quickness to get off the ball and get on the edge of a blocker. Then, when you add that kind of quickness inside – I think that’s what makes him so unique. He’s really well trained with his hands. You even saw that coming out of Pitt. He was almost like he was ready back then. Coming out of college he had that kind of quickness, that kind of hand use. You could say he was really well trained there. Here’s what I see in his game right now – the ability not just to play up field, the stunts that go with it. I think he’s in the right scheme for him, because of his ability to go up the field. As far as rushers go – that’s a challenge every week and certainly the Rams have their share of them. But we don’t play drop back all the time. In terms of the run game, the play-action, that’s a big part of what we do as well, but man is he having a hell of a year and definitely somebody that’s earned our respect. I know the defensive line watches a lot of sacks around the league each week just in terms of training and staying ready and Aaron’s been on that tape quite a bit.”
(On if he sees any of Matt LaFleur’s imprint on the Rams offense)
“Yeah, you certainly do. It’s really a good scheme. It’s the three-level routes that can happen. I think one of the hallmarks even going back to (49ers Head Coach) Kyle (Shanahan) and his time at Washington. I know (Rams Head Coach) Sean (McVay) and Matt – they’re all kind of connected in some way. What I’ve been most impressed by is the ability that you have to defend the entire field. And then like our offense, they’re a team that’s really committed to the run game. When you have a team that has the run, has the play-action, the quarterback boot and stuff – it makes it really difficult and challenging to defend. I’ve been impressed and I’ve definitely seen Matt’s influence along with Sean’s on there. Both guys are really sharp, really equipped. (Quarterbacks Coach) Greg Olson is another coach there, they’ve got terrific experience on their staff just naming the guys they have. The Quarterback play, the technique, so they’re really getting trained well at the position and you can see the offense coming to life. Yeah, but there is carryover for sure, in my opinion.”
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