COURTESY OF TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS MEDIA RELATIONS DEPARTMENT
(On the defensive performance in Sunday’s practice)
“[The] defense made the plays all day. I don’t know if the offense made any plays. [They] might have been reading their press clippings that they’re so good, because they didn’t show up today.”
(On what stood out from the defense in Friday’s scrimmage)
“I thought the defense gave up a play or two, but then they came right back and stopped them. We gave up the one long pass when Carlton [Davis] slipped and then we held them to three [points]. It was not like anything was going bad against them. I thought they did a good job – they probably had a couple sacks I didn’t call. Overall, I was really, really pleased with the way they showed up today.”
(On how rookie T Tristan Wirfs performed in his first scrimmage on Friday)
“He was fine. The noise didn’t bother him – it didn’t seem like much, but it gave me a hell of a headache – just the non-stop [noise]. But it was good for us.”
(On if he is concerned with the pass protection)
“[I’m] really not. If you showed up today – it was 11 guys that stunk. It wasn’t just them. It hasn’t been a problem until today. The red shirts (defense) had so much more energy in that practice than the white shirts (offense). I think the white shirts thought they were something good after Friday, and they didn’t show up today.”
(On the team bringing in free agent kickers for a workout)
“Yeah, we’ll see if they don’t sign somewhere else. We’ll see.”
(On players competing for roster spots who stood out in Friday’s scrimmage)
“Special teams wise, I thought [Javon] Hagan had a nice coverage on a kickoff, then the heat got him. Cam Gill looks like he’s heavy-handed and has a good pass-rush, too. [Quinton] Bell, he was flying around pretty good. The normal guys that we’ve had – Dare [Ogunbowale], Kevin [Minter], [Anthony] Auclair and some of those guys – they were all fine. Of the young guys, those three guys. [Chappelle] Russell needs to step up a little bit.”
(On CB Carlton Davis’ status following his injury in Friday’s scrimmage)
“He’ll be fine.”
(On G Aaron Stinnie)
“He finished up the season last year real well. I’d like to see him be a little more consistent – he’s been a little up and down for me. He’s not a natural center [and] I think that’s taken away from some of his guard play. We’re trying to force him into being a center just in case, and I think that’s hurt him a little bit.”
(On how the team discipline has been throughout training camp and if it was a penalty that caused him to send G Alex Cappa off the field on Sunday)
“That was the dumbest one of all. We just stood there and said we’re going to use a hard count – we always use a hard count coming off the 1-[yard line]. That just showed where their minds were on offense, because Cap’s usually very dependable. The penalties themselves have been very, very low. I don’t know who reported that there was a penalty on the kickoff, but that was one of the yellow hats they were wearing. Nobody threw any flags on the scrimmage Friday and we had very, very few penalties in that scrimmage.”
(On if two-tight end sets will remain their base offense)
“It’s been our base offense, probably, for 15 years. It’s where we always start. As we progress, whether we use two or three [tight ends], we have quality people there. We also have really quality receivers, so it’s all about finding the right mismatches.”
(On what he is looking for from the kickers)
“I’m looking for consistency on the ‘gimmes’. We can’t miss extra points. We can’t give away easy points. Kicks inside the 30-yard line should be automatic. If you can make a 56 yarder, that’s great. But, when we drive the ball down to the 10[-yard line] and miss a field goal, there’s nothing that tears a team more apart on offense than, ‘Hey, we just took the ball down the field and we didn’t get any points.’ So, the ‘gimmes’ – who’s the most consistent? If you can do that and still kick 56, 57[-yard field goals], now you’re All-Pro.”
