Q. Do you have any kind of update on the injured guys, A.J.?
NICK SIRIANNI: You know, the guys that are obviously in the concussion protocol, I won't comment on that. They are working hard to get back the other guys. You guys will have an injury report later today.
We'll see how that goes. We're doing a walk-through today. You know, just with how we came out of the game, and you know, just what's best for these guys bodies at this particular point and we'll have a good, tough practice tomorrow.
Q. Q on the outside -- what's he look like in your opinion?
NICK SIRIANNI: You know, we'll see. Obviously we have the ability to be flexible with the different pieces that we have back there. So you never know. As far as just how he's done, and I think he's done a nice job. I think he's made some good plays on the football. I think we told you guys from the beginning, you know, very confident and not fazed by anything, and he gets to go against two really good receivers, our entire receiving core, actually, every day at practice.
So I think that's really prepared him. And then, you know, those deep balls he's been getting hands on, those are obviously big plays. They count for -- but they catch those, those are explosive plays for the offense, so those are huge plays. He's done a really nice job, a double move on the third down that he made the play on 22 on the last game.
So he's done a nice job, and again, the moment's not too big for him. I think that speaks a lot to the character of Q that he's just same guy every day, just working to get better and not over -- doesn't make a big deal about the moment. He's just in the moment of where he is.
Q. Talking about the collaborative process was nothing new to him. You've been an offensive coordinator and head coaching spot. What have you learned as a head coach leading the collaborative process?
NICK SIRIANNI: In football, I talk about football being the ultimate team game a lot and how much my passion for football is because it takes everybody, and I talk about that a lot in the sense of how games go with the players on the field. Well, that's the same thing as organizations and coaching staffs. It's the greatest team sport there is because it not just take the players and the coaches; it takes the front office; it takes everybody in the building; it takes everybody.
And that's no different in a coaching staff. It takes everybody. There's different guys that have different assignments that you give them throughout each week. You know, Kellen has a couple different ways that he does some things as far as how he splits up who has red zone, who has third down, who has this.
But it's just that's what's so cool about football is the collaborative effort, and that it is a true team game and that you cannot be great without the greatness of others. Again, that holds true never aspect of football, not just on the field but also on the coaching staff.
Q. An important of a coach's job is to figure out how guys respond to different kinds of coaching, like who responds to hard coaching. This year, what have you learned about Jalen Carter?
NICK SIRIANNI: I think every bit of coaching starts with, you know, first and foremost, that you can help the player get better. You know, and so that's important that you hire coaches that you feel like can get the players better, and you as the coach, whether the coordinator or the head coach can help the player get better.
And then, it's building that relationship from that and having the relationship. I think when you have a relationship with somebody, you can coach them hard. You can coach them -- you can coach them not as hard, I guess to say. But I think there's always a feel in that for coaching. Like when to put the, I don't know, when to go hard, I'll say the gas, when to put your foot on the gas and when to tap it or whatever -- that's not a great analogy, I'm sorry.
But there's different ways you handle it. But I think it all first and foremost starts with the relationship. Jalen, what I'm really proud of Jalen, is that he had adversity the week before, and he responded from that adversity. And they were different styles of coaching and sometimes it's, hey, you be the bad cop; this time I'll be the good cop.
So I just think that, again, it starts with that relationship and the fact that you can get them better, and then you know, once they know that, then it's just always about how do you get the player better, and that's just been my experience as a coach.
But again, every guy is treated different. Every guy, let me say it this way. The standard is what it is and everybody is held to that standard, but you might not -- there's different ways of how you get different guys to the standard and there's different situations of how you handle different guys playing to the standard.
Q. When it comes to offensive play calling, philosophically speaking, do you favor having plays called, dictated on what the defense is doing, or you dictating to the defense to respond to what you are doing?
NICK SIRIANNI: There's a little bit of both of that. I think that's a good question. You know, sometimes you warrant to dictate to the defense to try to get them in certain things. You know, doing different things as far as -- I'm not going to get into that.
But then there's also times where you have to react. I think that's the thing about playing quarterback. You have to react to what the defense does. You're trying to dictate to them but you have to throw it to the open guy. Different things like that, the offensive line has to react to the set, the look that they give you to know what type of blocking scheme you're doing.
And so I think it's a little bit of both. Because again, if you're just saying, I'm just going to dictate to them, and then you don't run the appropriate blocking scheme -- I think this is the easiest way to say it. If you don't run the appropriate blocking scheme, you won't pick up whatever it is, the rush by the front or the blitz.
So I think it's definitely a both/and.
Q. The passing yards across the league through three weeks are down, the lowest they have been since at least 2000, the rushing yards are on the way up. Anything that you have seen that speaks to the why of that?
NICK SIRIANNI: You know, it's still early with the sample size. Obviously our numbers reflect that a little bit as well. Our rushing numbers are up. Now we've been high in the rushing over the past couple years. But again, yeah, I just think it's an early -- it's too early to say that quite yet because we've definitely looked at that and studied that. Because you spend all your time focusing on the next opponent but we have actually broke it off and said, what is happening across the league, and I just think right now, the sample size is just not high enough.
But it is -- it is something that we looked into because it is -- it is noticeable and it is a really big difference. But we'll continue to monitor that, and what we are trying to do, though, is you know, be efficient on offense. Hit your explosive plays. Take care of the football. Those things will never change. You know, not give up sacks. Those things will never change of what we are trying to do as far as explosives, taking care of the football and not giving up sacks.
Q. What's surprised you about Saquon since you've seen him in person the last couple months?
NICK SIRIANNI: Man, there's so many different things, when you see a cut in person, when he's on your team, for whatever reason, when he's on your team, I don't know, I can't tell you how many times I've just really shook my head like, man, that was an unbelievable cut and it's like he's making these cuts at 230 pounds. Oh, on top of that, he's making these cuts at 4.3 speed. Who is like him, you know what I mean? So you're saying -- it's just really cool to see him. And again, I will always go back to -- you see the plays he makes but what a teammate he is. He works his butt off. He's a great teammate and I can't say enough good things about him. I think those are the things that you really see is, again, his elusiveness, first and foremost, but then the size and the speed at when he's making those cuts is what makes it so impressive.
Q. The passing game is built around A.J. and DeVonta?
NICK SIRIANNI:
Q. And Dallas. If they are down is it functionally a different offense or is it reasonable to in a next man up?
NICK SIRIANNI: You're always going to say next man up but you don't say next man up, you have to do this. That's just not good coaching, right. You can't -- like next man up, but you have to do exactly what this guy does.
Again, that's just -- that's not feasible. Like it's not -- everyone has their strengths and everybody has their weaknesses you try to help these guys as much as you possibly can play to their strengths.
And so there are -- and so again, it's a both/and, right. It's, hey, I know you do this really well, and you know, A.J. does this really well, so you can take this, or, you know and sometimes I've told you guys before, too, if it's, hey, we are going to try to run this particular route, it's by committee. It might be Dallas or Jahan or Smitty on this one. I'm speaking to when A.J. has been out because he's been out for two weeks.
That's kind of how that goes. Again, our job is to help put the players in positions to succeed against the defense they are running against, but also first and foremost, about what they do well. I think that when you think about what plays you're going to run, you always think about what your players do well first, and you get into, you know what you're playing against, does it fit and then you try to do some different things to hide it with formations, personnel groupings, motion, etc.
Q. Do you think the offense is in a better spot to be able to handle the blitz better?
NICK SIRIANNI: Say that one more time.
Q. As you get ready to face the Buccaneers again, the defense, do you think your offense is in a better position?
NICK SIRIANNI: We've worked really hard at this for the past year and we've done a good job so far. But you're only as good as your next game.
So we're excited about the challenge. I know Jalen has really played well against the blitz these last couple games and he's work his butt off on it. And just excited about the challenge but we know there's going to be challenges against a Todd Bowles' coached defense. Again we have done a nice job so far but you're only as good as your next game.
Q. What do you view as his strengths --
NICK SIRIANNI: I think he's got great hands. I think when you go back, and even look at when we look at all our stuff, everything, you watch all the stuff, you go back and look at your notes of what you thought of him coming out and I think that's the big thing I wrote the most is like, man, he catches everything. He catches everything. He catches everything.
And then he's just got this great ability to get in and out of breaks. I think DeVonta has this great ability to get in and out of breaks. They remind me of each other as far as at the top of the route how they can transition from full speed back down the stem or changing directions. And so those are the things that really pop up and as I see with John, just his unbelievable ability to catch the ball wherever it is and we've seen that in practice. And then also just the shiftiness.
Q. The Atlanta game, I don't think anybody was happy, especially defensively at the end of the game. Is there one or two things you can give us unique about Vic coming out of that game and being able to turn that thing around so quickly?
NICK SIRIANNI: Well, again, it's just not an accident when you're a top-tier defensive coordinator for decades of the NFL, 21 years, I think, is that what it is?
Sometimes it's like a quarterback that's played 15 years. They have seen everything. They know what the answers are to get to and the different things, the different buttons to push against different looks and so you know, again, I just -- I've got so much faith in him and the defensive staff, he calls a great game. And so I think that's what you see is just that knowledge of all the different things that he's seen throughout the years.
Again, I've said this before, like his experience, this is the first time as a head coach that I've had the experience of Vic. Jonathan was a first-year coordinator. And so was Sean. So the first time I've had that experience that Vic brings and so he's just seen so much football.
Q. Talking about the collaborative process earlier, staking a step back in the offensive game planning is probably what you wanted to improve about the collaboration. What did you learn in the past year about when to pick your spots with offensive coordinators?
NICK SIRIANNI: Yeah, I'm still in there and still I think in the past, it's been kind of going through the game plan and saying, hey, we are going to do this, this and this, and in these scenarios. Sitting in there listening a little bit more, not running the ship as far as, like, hey, I'm driving, we're going to talk about this and I'll lead the direction of the conversation.
It's more now, I'm sitting in the passenger seat, listening to the conversation, adding my information -- again, I'm not going to be shy to say hey, here is what I think in this scenario or here is what I think in that scenario but it is more, I'm letting Kellen run -- drive the car and just like my life will say to me, hey, make sure you take a right here, take a left here. She's giving me directions, and same thing in these scenarios. It's just chiming in when I have something to chime in. Being able to step out when I need to step out and letting everybody else be able to participate -- not participate because everybody's participating. That's not the right way to say it.
But it is just, you know, just not having to put all the tapes together, all those different things like that, which has freed me up to do other things but still be able to say, hey, take a look at what we did. That was a conversation last week. Take a look at we did in 2020 against Houston in this game on this game in this particular look, how do we think that looks against this.
Again, the same deal. Kevin has a ton of experience. I have a ton of experience. Kellen has a ton of experience. That, again, is the great thing about football and that's really the great thing about life is that you don't have to go through this by yourself, and you tote good to get together. One person coming up with one thing can't do what four, five, six people do together. That's what makes it a great team game and you lean on everybody. I've talked to you about how I've learned a lot from Kellen, and I'm sure Kellen has learned a lot from us as well, and that's how you grow as a coach. That's how you grow as a person is other people, none of us have all the answers. None of us.
And I think that's what's the cool part about football.
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