Opening Statement:
"We'll begin, today with some good news. [G] Sam Cosmi will begin his 21-day window. He got injured in January and he has worked his ass off to get back on the field with his teammates, so it'll be great to have him back at practice. Also said I'd give you an update on [QB] Jayden [Daniels]. He has been medically cleared by the doctors. He'll practice full today. As far as other injuries and practice updates, we'll put out the injury report later today and also wanted to give a big shout out and a welcome to [Washington Nationals President of Baseball Operations] Paul Toboni and the [Washington] Nationals and definitely pulling for those guys as I believe he got started today. So glad to open up to you guys and get rolling."
On what he's seen from Daniels during his recovery:
"Just a steadfast approach to it. First off, to put the work in to say, 'Okay, I got to do all the things to do to get better." And then once you kind of get over the top of that then throw in the movements to go. So that's what we saw in terms of the work to get better."
On WR Terry McLaurin, WR Noah Brown and TE John Bates:
"All are trending up and that's what I was referring to. [We'll] give you some updates on those tonight [with the injury report], but we're making good progress with those guys."
On what he's looking to see from Daniels over the next 24 hours:
"Just real back into the fold of it. He'll get all the reps at practice, so we'll be back at a full speed. The execution, the timing, all of that. That's really what I'm looking for, but he's definitely chomping at the bit to get going. So, just running the offense, being back to himself. That was our discussion today to make sure, man, like all the looks, all the calls and the speed of the practice."
On guiding Daniels through the timeline of recovery:
"We've had, it's good that I've known him for a year and a half now. I think when you're first getting to know somebody, you're feeling that out, but knowing what his best looks like and also having trust in one another to do that. And so, I think that's a big piece of it."
On the benefit of having a day of practice in California:
"We decided that in the spring, that we oftentimes like to take an extended trip when we can. We had done it for a trip last year. We know obviously we're going to Madrid, so we'll do that one as an extended time. I think it's some good spaces for the team to get together. It's also to get acclimated, to get ready. There's a big time change with that. And so, we thought we would make that decision to go out early, get ourselves fully ready to go play at our best."
On working Cosmi back into the offensive line with the changes made throughout the season:
"It is part of it and it's not what you want. Like we'd love for all the guys to play in their spots, but that's just not how it is. I think when we look around the NFL right now, there's a lot of moving parts on all the teams, ours included. And Sam getting back into it is a step in that direction. But he also has to get back into a rhythm and the combinations and all the communication. So we're just pumped that he's put this kind of work in to allow him to be ready to get back in with the group this quickly."
On goals for maintaining high possession on offense:
"We like that and we feel like offensively we're definitely making strides on our run game, on our run actions, the play actions that go with that. A good piece of that is also third down. That's one of the areas we really need to dig into because now your drives are continuing. So those are a big piece of that. So, yeah, it's part of the formula for sure. I still feel like it's early days as we're going and we've got plenty of work that we need to put in, but that is certainly the goal for us."
On if going out to LA early changes the timeline of evaluations for injured players:
"No because we'll go through practice as we get into tomorrow, but no, it doesn't change that timeframe on that."
On signing WR Robbie Chosen and on WR Luke McCaffrey and WR Deebo Samuel playing in the outside receiver spots:
"The silver lining, that's maybe not the right word. Maybe we can think of another name for an added benefit was with Noah and Terry missing some significant time early. I think it ramped up [WR] Jaylin's [Lane] space where he was able to even play outside some in the preseason. We did that with Deebo and Luke had already done some of that. So where at once we weren't as interchangeable. And now that we are, I think that's a good step forward. Robbie – some of the guys had experience with him, coaching with him before [Offensive Coordinator] Kliff [Kingsbury] has, [Personnel Analyst] Wes [Welker] has. So, we had some background with him. Came in, had an excellent workout. And so, one of things I appreciate from [General Manager] Adam [Peters] just always digging in, competing to see is there a spot to go? And sometimes it works out great. Other times we just keep competing and digging, but we're pumped Robbie's here and he's working hard already to learn it and grow, but, and there is some familiarity for him too."
On confidence that the defense will improve:
"A lot of confidence. I thought there's a lot of progress that I thought with the exception of the second half on third down, that's a big piece of how you want to play. I thought in two games the energy and intensity has been what I'd hoped it would be in pass rush and two others, not so much. And so that gives me a good sense of what I know it can look like. Had we not seen that I might feel differently. So, I've got plenty of confidence in how we want to play and what it will look like. And so, I'm very much looking forward to seeing that."
On improving communication with secondary players overall:
"Well, I think first it starts in meeting rooms to make sure, when you make a call, like you're just echoing it's the collaboration that you're working on together. You take that into the walkthrough portions and then onto the field. So, you just emphasize it in every way. It's not going back to walk, crawl, run, but it's just the emphasis of it over and over. Say it again. If you don't hear it, repeat it back. Communication is also sent and acknowledged. So, if I give you a call, you're giving me a signal back. Some's verbal, some's nonverbal. So, like most things, you get what you emphasize and we're certainly going to dig in hard on that."
On knowing when to throw a blitz versus rushing:
"Some of it's based on opponent, some on your matchups and where you want to go. If you can rush with four and affect the QB, obviously that gives you some advantages in some ways because you have another defender that you can use into coverage. Road, home are they going with six-man or seven-man to protect or six or five. So, all of that factors in, you want to have some balance, like most things like an offense that has either all run or all pass. You want the balance to work on both. And I think the same thing on a good defense that you want to have the ability to show a blitz, come out of it, show like you're in coverage, bring the blitz, and be able to get in and out of check. So those are all things that make up a good defense and you need a balance of both."
On maintaining patience throughout the season:
"Yeah, it's a great topic. One for all teams that you're going, you're starting to get your identity set. You really want to dig in on what that looks like at the top. For us, our central theme of the program is competition. And that's not just against the opponent, that's with ourselves. See how good we can get together as a team. I loved, in the game against the [Las Vegas] Raiders, the complementary football this a return to a score to working together. So, the competitive nature of us doing it together, I think that allows you to not look too far down the road, see how good you can get, you work your skills, and we just try not to look down the road. It's about improvement and getting better. And when you can stay in that pocket, you don't have to look too far down the line. There's plenty to work on right in front of you for the matchup for the game. And so that's how we choose to dig in."
On wanting LB Frankie Luvu to have more of a rush or coverage game:
"I think it all depends on how to go to win. Like obviously I want him going forward as often as we can but sometimes the game dictates that too, when he is rushing, when he is blitzing, how we're using him in those spaces. So yeah, we always want to put him in positions to make plays. So, wherever that looks like that's where we're at. But I don't think of him any more or less. I thought honestly last week he played really good and solid and square in the run game, but maybe there might not have been as many pass opportunities for him in that space."
On if he feels like teams have been targeting CB Marshon Lattimore:
"When you play middle field coverage, like both corners, get targeted to where you go, sometimes it's their matchup, sometimes it's ours. I don't feel that's been the case and then the second part can repeat. So I'd say there's, when you play corner and you play offensive tackle, like there's a lot of plays that go good that go unnoticed and there's one that goes up top and it's like there's one or there's a sack and like that's part of living life outside. And what I do know about him, like this is one competitive guy and like he's always down for the challenge and for the fight. And so, I'm looking forward to working with him again this week. And as we get rocking again."
On what he wants to see from the team this month:
"I think the execution, honestly, that's the big thing. I want to make sure the energy at home/road in terms of how we want to play and somebody had brought up starting fast. To me, starting fast doesn't mean a touchdown on the first drive or a three-and-out, it's a speed and intensity and urgency to go. So, I don't want to like confuse what that would look like, but I do want to see the execution really start to dig in. We've had four games together. Roles have now begun to emerge, and so like it's a good month to go really dig in to go get better. And now that some of those roles have emerged that's a big deal for it. Some guys have had to step in, and I've liked what I've seen in some of those instances to see guys step up when the injuries take place, knowing that that's a part of it. And the opportunity came early for some of the players. And so, it's nice to see them deliver and show and express themself, 'Hey man, I can help, I can do these things'. And so, I think that's been a big piece of it."
On adapting to the new players that have to step up due to injuries and on losing DE Javontae Jean-Baptiste:
"Yes, you do want to, not one size fits all into that. So, when you know somebody's featured in a different role or a different spot, it's not just add water and the same result will take place. So, you may have to do things a little bit differently. I think we maybe spoke about that a little bit with [RB] Austin [Ekeler] and what that would look like and then with [S] Will [Harris]. So, with Javontae in his case we signed [DE] Preston [Smith] a few weeks back. And so as he's progressing there would be some snaps that would go his way."
On balancing playing Daniels to his full ability versus trying to avoid re-injury:
"Yeah, I think you can, not necessarily the calling of the game, but maybe I had said it a few weeks ago, the only thing worse than missing games is not taking the lessons from there. And as a scramble goes, when do I get down? When do I get out of bounds? And so, Jayden's still growing too. Like we feel like he's been playing for a while and so he's, as he's into his second year there's still things that he's growing on too. And that's kind of the fun and exciting part that like he hasn't anywhere near the top of what he's going to be. And so that lights me up. But those are some things, where do you grow? When do you take your shot, when do you not? And so, those are the lessons you want somebody to learn at quarterback or at any spot and I certainly fully expect him to do that. That's the type of competitor he is."
