Q. All these joint practices, what kind of an impact do you think it's going to have on them, especially your young players?
NICK SIRIANNI: I think it's a great time to interact with each others are even more so when you're staying in the hotel together. They are doing that in Philadelphia as well but being together in a different city, I always think that's a good thing. We felt that last year in New York when went to go against the Jets, and we're just trying to duplicate that, and the guys, when it's time to work, it's time to work. When it's time to relax and be with the guys, it's time to do that, and they are doing a good job working at both of those things.
Q. How is Miles's hamstring?
NICK SIRIANNI: You know I'll never get into how long or anything like that or how bad. I'm not a doctor; I'm not a trainer. We are just being pre cautious with him. He had some tightness and soreness in it. Just being pre-cautious with him and see how it goes.
Q. Any added level of concern with him given the injury history?
NICK SIRIANNI: I'm trying not to think about that as far as working to get him healthy every single day, trying to get him a little bit more healthy every day and you know, he'll be ready to go when he gets back in.
Q. Is he getting better?
NICK SIRIANNI: Yeah, I think with all that stuff, we've got great doctor staff. We've got a great medical staff, a great athletic training, strength and conditioning, so they are working and he's working to get himself healthy.
Q. How do you think that the team looked yesterday? Who won, I guess?
NICK SIRIANNI: Yeah, I don't think that's -- I don't think you look at it like who won inner squad practice like that. It's did we get work done and did we get better at what we wanted to get better at that day, and I think we did. When you're going against a team like the Browns have, it poses challenges and different schemes for our defenses, different schemes our offense has to go against. It was good for us to be able to go against different guys. They have got a lot of good players over there and to be able to go against different guys at different skill positions and interior linemen and all different guys that they have, it was good work, and I think we both got -- I know -- I won't speak for Coach but I feel like we got better yesterday.
Q. What did you see from Jalen?
NICK SIRIANNI: I thought he had a good day, I really did. Again, just continue to see him progress every day and so yesterday, I thought did he a really nice job. He had a good practice. He's been sharp all camp, and I thought he had a great practice yesterday.
Q. What's your evaluation of how he's done when the first read is taken away or two-man route concept is taken away?
NICK SIRIANNI: You guys love this question, coming out-of-the-pocket too early, it's a common question.
Q. It's not even about the pocket --
NICK SIRIANNI: I think he's doing great. I think he's doing out standing. Again, like I said to you guys the other day, it's not always like when the pocket breaks down when he escapes. It's also, right, nobody is open on this play, right, because if he dropped back the pass and nobody was open on a play and he just stood there, eventually he's going to get sacked, right. Eventually he's going to get sacked, so he's got to escape and make a play out of that, and I thought -- I think he's done a good job with that.
Q. Seeing targets go his way; that a concerted effort to get him involved?
NICK SIRIANNI: You want to get all your play-makers involved. Devonta is a great playmaker, fantastic route runner and has a great feel about things. There are some concepts we are running with him that we feel like he's going to do a great job of this year and he did a great job of last year. We are trying to get all our play-makers the ball and the ball has been finding him as of late.
Q. Did that have anything to do with the different center --
NICK SIRIANNI: No. We just -- those -- those are going to happen. You don't want those to happen, the pre-snap penalties drive me crazy and we'll work to get better at it but it had nothing to do with that in my opinion. Again, it's always, you know, you want to use a snap count to identify some things on defense to be able to keep them honest, and we've got to be more disciplined on those pre-snap penalties so we can use that as a weapon, as opposed to it hurting us.
Q. Have you seen Devonta get better as a route runner in the NFL since last season?
NICK SIRIANNI: I've said this about Devonta before, when he came in, he was very polished, a credit to his coaches obviously over at Alabama and Devonta himself. But yeah, he's one of those guys that loves football and is going to soak everything up and he's going to see things and naturally he's just going to get better. So he's gotten bigger, he's gotten stronger, he feels like he's running faster out there, and then just everything with his game has gotten better because that's just the way Devonta works.
Q. What makes somebody a really good route runner?
NICK SIRIANNI: Knowing -- you've got to really be able to look at the picture and see what coverage it is and then how you're going to attack, right. So we talk a lot about that like, all right, here is what we want to do versus this leverage, here is what we want to do versus this leverage versus press this leverage and off this letter rage and here is what we have to do with Cover 2 and here is what we have to do to change it up.
It's identifying the looks that you're getting and how you want attack that, right. So there's certain rules to each play that, like, okay, on this one, I can't get pushed into this side, right. I have to break it in here. And then there's this art to, okay, when does he need -- when does the defensive back need a little bit of a change up based off what I've been giving him. To me it's identifying those things and knowing how to attack and then, you know, always, always, always about route running is identifying the stint of how you want to go but how you get in and out of breaks, the quickness of how you separate in and out of the breaks at the top and as a matter of fact the quickness of how you separate at the line of scrimmage when you get pressed man-to-man.
Those are just things he has great feel for. Sure glad he's on our team.
Q. What are your expectations from Kenny in his second year and based upon also what you've seen in camp?
NICK SIRIANNI: I'm really, really excited about him. He's a guy that in these joint practices in a physical practice and the pads are on, you notice him and you feel him. Yesterday you see him and we really felt this last year against the Jets and said, oh, man, this guy, he's tough, physical, strong, great, glad he's on our team and you're noticing the same things yesterday with how he struck a guy that was blitzing it and they did some good blitz packages yesterday. He did a good job of identifying what it was, and striking it.
So we look -- I know, we all think of Kenny as like, okay, he's our third down guy, we want to get him touches in the pass game. But if you can't protect and you're one-dimensional in the third down and you're always in a five man out protection, the defense is going to sort that out real quick, so these guys that are really good scap back, I think and I don't think Kenny is that but guys that are third down backs in the NFL, they have to be able to protect, too and that's something that was really noticeable yesterday.
Q. So many players looks like you're being cautious about whether it's Sanders, Javon, Bradbury, are they in danger of missing Week 1?
NICK SIRIANNI: I'm never going to put a timetable on that and taking it day-by-day and seeing how they get better every day.
Q. Did I see Grant with a helmet? Is he going to do some work today?
NICK SIRIANNI: Yeah, he's got a little bit of work coming today, so look forward to having him back out there after his hamstring injury.
Q. He's missed a lot of time, how far behind is he? Do you throw everything at him at once or how does that work?
NICK SIRIANNI: You have to ease him back into it, and he was on a good trajectory before he got hurt and so again, we're excited to have him back and get working and I'd be crazy to say that it didn't put him behind. Of course it put him behind. He's missed a lot of time but that's why we are out here today to get him back up to speed and you know, it's not going to all happen in one day. It's going to be a little bit each day.
Q. Expect him back any time soon --
NICK SIRIANNI: I don't have an update on that right now. You guys can get that.
Q. You know Jacoby better than we do.
NICK SIRIANNI: He's the best. My kids still ask, how is Jacoby doing. My wife still asks about him. He's just a great leader and great guy to be around. I always thought this about Jacoby -- I don't really want to talk about other people's teams but Jacoby and I are close and Jacoby is special to me so I don't mind doing this with him. I just always thought of him as such a good leader, such a good teammate, such a great guy to be around every day.
Really those are the things that really stick out for me and then his play, I don't mind saying this, like I just always thought, this is a strong, strong man the way he's able -- I just close my eyes and think about a play he made against Denver in 2019. We're in a two-minute drive to win the football game, and Von Miller comes through on a stunt three, and we're backed up. We're in about the four-yard line and Jacoby just, Von Miller is one of the best players of all time. Jacoby gets off him, scrambles to his right and throws a tightrope 40 yard down the hill to Ty hill which helped us win the football game in that sense. I just can't say enough about things about Jacoby per 70, I love the man.
Q. Do you think they are in good hands?
NICK SIRIANNI: You got what you got out of me (Laughter).
Q. What's the plan for Sunday?
NICK SIRIANNI: That's your third question, keep coming back to it -- fourth.
We don't have to make that decision yet. We'll see how today goes.
Q. If today is good enough, they have starters?
NICK SIRIANNI: We'll see. I don't want to make that decision quite yet. I don't need to yet.
Q. Will we be seeing Devonta in any preseason games?
NICK SIRIANNI: Again I have to see how today goes, and you take each day, day-by-day, I don't want to say necessary or unnecessary. We'll figure out from there.
Q. Is there anything you learned about your team in this setting that you need on the road in a practice setting that you learned watching the team or being on field?
NICK SIRIANNI: Again, when you come out here, you're just trying to make steady improvements and that's what we are trying to do. It's good to come out and get competition against another team. I wouldn't say we learned anything or anything like that. Just like, hey, here is what we needed to correct from yesterday. It's just like any other practice setting. Here is what we did well, here is what we need to correct and you have the same meeting that you do after practice.
Q. How would you assess that group this summer?
NICK SIRIANNI: I think we have good competition in that group, led by Marcus and then you have some good pieces to work with. I'm excited. We have been getting these guys in with different groups, sometimes with the ones and sometimes with the twos and it's exciting to watch them play with different groups and it's always good to see them when it's physical out here and a joint practice.
Q. When Jacoby was asked about you, he had a story about you earlier, he had a story, you fighting fans, what's your take on that?
NICK SIRIANNI: He's teasing and making that up a little bit (Laughter).
I appreciate -- I think one thing that, to a fault, maybe, even with me is like is -- and I've been this way since I was a little kid with my brothers, we're a family. My brothers and my dad and my mom were a family and I'm the youngest. One brother is nine years older than me and one is six years older than me. When we would have a bad game about them or say something bad about them or talk bad about them I was quick to be defensive because I love them.
Now as a coach, I have that, I feel like I had that as a teammate I would like to think and as a coach, I definitely know I have that, like, protective -- like I know these guys are the biggest, strongest men in the world and they can protect themselves but I love these guys. That's just an instinct that you have. That's how I was raised and I was like, this is our family, and I just have that protective instinct to defend, and to defend them, and that's been like that with every team I've ever coached.
I'm flattered that Jacoby said that.
Q. Have you had a chance to catch up with --
NICK SIRIANNI: My brother's team, Washington and Jefferson, is joint practicing against Mount Union tomorrow at Mount Union. If I have some time I might drive up with my mom and my dad. I haven't been back to Mount Union in 15 years or so, so will be good to see that scrimmage and that joint practice. But Coach Kehres is a guy that I keep contact with, yeah, because I've learned so many valuable things. He's done so much for my career, so I look forward to, if I do get the time tomorrow, getting up there and seeing him.
Q. Best behavior?
NICK SIRIANNI: Always.
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