BB: Obviously it was a disappointing
game for us yesterday. We went down there hoping for better results, no
question about that. I think at the same time looking at the tape, I have to
take my hat off to Miami. They did a good job. They really executed
some plays very well – dropping those punts down inside the five. Those are big
field position plays. The pass from [Joey] Harrington to [Marty] Booker down
the sideline was probably about as good of a play as we've played all year.
We had a lot of pressure on the quarterback. We had great coverage and it
was a tremendous throw and catch. I have to get Miami credit. They made big
plays and made the ones they needed to make. We didn't make enough of them.
Penalties, field position and lack of execution, we just didn't do a good
enough job against them in any one of the phases of the game. That obviously
accounts for the results. We have to move on and get ready for Houston.
We've already seen the film on that, talked about the things that we need to
do better and do differently and move on. That's the story.
Q: Is it troubling to have a loss like that this late in the season?
BB: A loss like what?
Q: 21-0.
BB: Look, it was a competitive game. They made more plays than we did.
We're not happy about it.
Q: Is it worse to lose in December than it is in October?
BB: There's no good time.
Q: When you looked at the pass rush on film, were there breakdowns or was
it just guys losing individual battles?
BB: I thought for the most part the protection was okay. There were a
couple of times when it wasn't. When you're behind and you're throwing the
ball there in the second half, you definitely have a couple of problems
there. There were a couple of situations where we were holding the ball, I
would say kind of more coverage sacks. But yes, there were times where we
could have blocked them better. There are times when we held the ball.
Overall, I didn't think it was a major problem. Most of that came in the
latter part of the game when it was a one-dimensional game. They can rush
the passer. They have a good front. You get in that situation, that's not
where you want to be. Those kinds of things aren't that unexpected.
Q: When a team blitzes like Miami did yesterday, when they're bringing
five or six guys, does a little more of the onus go on the wide receiver to
get open sooner so the quarterback has more options in that situation?
BB: It's always important for the receivers to get open. Unless you have
a blitz adjustment part of the pattern, which didn't happen very often
yesterday, I think we had maybe two. You can't run a 14-yard route for seven
yards because the quarterback is not ready to throw. He's still going back
in his drop. I don't think getting open quicker at seven is the answer
because the quarterback is not ready to throw. You need to block them long
enough to get the ball out on time and you need to be able to run the route
at the proper depth so that it coordinates with the quarterback's drop. You
can't have the quarterback dropping one depth and the receiver is running
another depth and the pass protection is set for another type of pass. It
all has to be coordinated. Passing is very much a team thing. Everything
needs to go together. If it doesn't, you're going to breakdown somewhere.
Q: Do you feel like you were properly prepared for what Miami did? You
said there were a couple of blitz adjustments you made.
BB: No, I said there were only a couple of plays where we would have had
to break a route off. For the most part they brought five, which is what
they do. They bring five and then they play a lot of split safety coverage
and double up on the receivers. They bring some pressure and play the single
safety and man up. They have different combinations of that. They do a good
job of it. That's what they do. No, there weren't a lot of situations where
there were things that we hadn't seen them do. They always do a lot of
things normally and they disguise them and they kind of look like they're
going to be the same, but they aren't. But that's what they do. They do a
good job of it.
Q: Zach Thomas said yesterday that he's never seen Tom Brady flustered
before and that Tom did get flustered in the second half. Did you see that
at all in his play?
BB: No, actually I thought that Tom handled the looks that Miami gave him
probably as well as any game I've ever seen him play in. They gave him some
really tough looks. In terms of having the protection right and reading
the coverage properly and all that, and looking where he should have been
looking with the ball, I thought he handled a couple of those looks
extremely well. I don't know what exactly…Zach was out on the field and I
wasn't, but I'm just saying looking at the film and looking at the decisions
that Tom made, I'd say that might be one of the best jobs that he's ever
done for us, and he's done a lot of good ones. What Miami does is hard. They
disguise it well and they move guys around. They don't give you the same
look all the time. As far as the execution, I thought that part of it was
good.
Q: How about the ability of this team, whether you win or lose, to put
last week's game behind you?
BB: We have to do that every single week. This week will be another
challenge for us with Houston. They bring a whole different set of problems.
It will be very challenging for us. They're really good on special teams.
They have the AFC's leading receiver. They have some fast, young players.
They're a very fast team. They have some fast, young players on defense, run
down a lot of plays. It will be a whole different challenge this week, but
that's the way it is every week. You have to put that game behind you and
look ahead to the next one. We start getting ready right about now, at this
time of day on Monday is when everybody really starts to kick it into gear.
Players take tapes home and watch them tonight and Tuesday [and then] come
in Wednesday having seen the team. We kind of have all the information in
now from their previous games including yesterday's game against Tennessee.
All of that is really starting to be compiled and analyzed and looked at.
We're rolling on it right now. This is about where it kicks into high gear.
Q: How much did your lack of field position change what you wanted to do
offensively?
BB: It didn't change what we wanted to do, but it was a big factor in the
game. We didn't have the ball outside our 30-yard line to start until the
middle of the fourth quarter. There were several times a week where we took
it from our goal line to midfield. That didn't get us anything, whereas
maybe if we had the ball at midfield and gone 50 yards, we could've gotten
something out of it. Kind of like what happened in the first game against Miami. We had a couple of short drives for a touchdown or points. We were
playing on a long field yesterday and we didn't do anything to really
significantly change that field position. When we had it, they were able to
counter it and when we had it, we weren't really able to change it
especially there in the third quarter where they had a couple of drives to
start there inside the 45-yard line, I forget exactly where it was, but they
were definitely on our side of the 50. They did a good job of that and we
didn't do a good enough job on it. I'm not saying it's anybody's fault, but
that's the way it was. Not many teams have taken the ball the length of the
field against Miami this year and we certainly didn't do it yesterday.
That's not a good situation to be in. That reflects on the defense and the
kicking game. They were great.
Q: Because there's so much carryover from what Denver does to what Houston is going to do and because you see a lot of coaches going from
Denver to Houston, is there a little bit of a concern that because Denver
has had success against you guys that these guys know how to beat us and we
need to do certain things better than we have in the past against the
Broncos?
BB: I'm sure they'll take that approach. I'm sure they'll look at the
thing that Gary [Kubiak] did when he was at Denver and things that they had
success with and I'm sure there will be some elements of that in our game.
There's no question. I'm sure we'll see some of that. They still have a
different team. André Johnson is André Johnson. There are players and
individual matchups and skills and all of that, but I'm sure that scheme
wise there will be carryover anyway, because that's what they do, but there
may be some specific game planning things that will carry over. I think we
certainly have to be prepared for that and look at our Denver games, sure.
Q: Ellis Hobbs said that he feels he's playing very average. Is the
reason that he didn't play very much defensively yesterday because he's not
playing very well in practice or hasn't played up to snuff in recent games?
BB: Ellis and I have a good relationship. We talk quite a bit and we had
a long conversation on Friday. I think Ellis has a clear understanding of
what the situation is. I think it's totally clear across the board. Whatever
he said he said. That's fine. I have no problem with that, but I'm just
saying I think he knows what the situation is. We've talked to him about it
and I think that Ellis works hard. He's very competitive. I think he'll do
everything he can to make the most of it.
Q: How much do you think Ellis has been affected by the wrist injury?
BB: I don't know. I'm sure it affects him. Are you looking for a
percentage? I couldn't give you one.
Q: No, I'm just saying it just seems like he was playing very well and
then he had the surgery and has come back and it doesn't seem like, at least
by his own account, that he's not quite back to the level he was at before.
BB: Well if that's the way he feels, I'm not going to sit here and
dispute that. I'm sure it's affected him some. I'm not saying that. To what
degree, I don't know.
Q: Do you feel like this team is getting better? Your teams have always
kind of hit their stride in November and December. Do you think that's
happening this year?
BB: I think in some respects, yes. Consistency is always what you strive
for. We can be more consistent. I think there are some things that we are
doing better. There are other things that have kind of been up-and-down.
Q: Could you give some examples?
BB: I'm not going to sit here and recap the season. You've seen the
games. It's pretty obvious.
Q: So you think what we see is probably correct?
BB: Well, do you want me to stand here and say, 'Do you think our fourth
down production has been good?' Would you say it has been good? Yes, I'd
say that's been pretty consistent. Has our third down defense been
consistent? No. It was okay yesterday. It wasn't particularly good against Detroit. You can go right down the line and pick out pretty much any area – kickoff returns, punt coverage, field goal
kicking, red area, I think what's happened over 12 games, and maybe over the
last six, or however you want to break it down, I think you can see those
trends as well as I can. I'm not trying to hide anything or put anything out
there. It's pretty clear I think in a lot of those situations,
statistically, I think that's a reflection. Individually, across-the-board.
Some guys have made a lot of improvement in their game. They're getting a
lot better. Their techniques are better. They're reading things better. Does
that always translate into 48-0 wins? No. The guys on the other team are
getting better too. You're competing against other people who are doing the
same thing you are. You should be improving. It's your rate of improvement,
your rate of performance relative to your opponents. That's the way it's
always going to be.
Q: Is it reasonable to expect improvement when you keep losing players to
injury?
BB: It's the NFL. The guys that are playing, they should be getting
better. The guys that aren't able to play are doing everything they can to
get back out there as soon as they can. When that is, we hope it's as soon
as possible for everybody. Realistically, it's probably not the case.
Q: Because Vince [Wilfork] is such a unique athlete, when he's not in
there does it change the way you play defense?
BB: I don't think you want to change
too much. When you start changing ten
people when you change one, it's hard to get much consistency. I'm not
saying it's the same. Each player has his own playing style and techniques
and so forth. I'm not saying there's no difference from one player to the
next, but I think it's hard if you were to make the change with one player
and then to tell everybody else, 'Well, you guys, we're all doing something
different now because we've changed this player.' I don't really think
that's in the best interest of your football team.
Q: There doesn't seem to be another player like him on the roster. That
nose position is so difficult to play. It just seems like his loss, just
because of the type of athlete that he is, might be a little tougher to
replace and maybe the change the way that you guys have to line things up
and stuff. Would that be at all valid?
BB: We'd like to have all of our players out there. Some of them aren't
out there. A lot of them are. That's why we have a 53-man roster. That's
what we have an eight-man practice squad. That's why we've been practicing
guys in multiple positions since July and August. Those are the kinds of
contingencies that if they come up at whatever position they come up in,
you're not totally unprepared for them, whatever they are.
Q: Do you feel like as the coaching staff you've exhausted everything you
can do in regards to the turnovers?
BB: I think that there are certain
things in the game that unfortunately are always going to be a part of the game, but I think
you do everything you can every week to do the things to give yourself the
best opportunity to win. Turnovers are a big part of it. As is red area. As
is third down. As are penalties. All of those things. I don't think there
are any of them that are insignificant. They are all important. You try to
do all you can to push those things in your favor on a weekly basis.
Q: Are strip-sacks in any way different from other kinds of fumbles?
BB: I think it depends on the play and the situation and the
circumstances and all of that. I think you can do everything you can for
everything to be a good play and if it's not, then you look at what you can
do to make it better. Sometimes the turnover is part of that. Sometimes it
isn't.
Q: Was it part of the game plan for Ray Mickens to play as much as he did
yesterday or was part of that dictated by what Miami did?
BB: He was basically in there when the Dolphins went to their three-receiver sets. They used a couple of four a receiver sets, not too many.
Maybe two. It was two or three plays. They use a lot of three receiver sets
and that really had become their number one personnel grouping over the last
four or five weeks. Of course they won a lot of those games, so it wasn't
like they were behind in those games. In most cases they were ahead. That
had become their number one formation grouping and they have very good skill
players as we know. It didn't surprise us to see them in that a lot,
therefore, for the most part, we matched that with a fifth defensive back.
Q: What does it say about Ray that he can come in and basically come in
off the street and play?
BB: Well Ray is a smart guy. He's an experienced guy and he has some
experience in this system. I think some of the terminology and the
techniques and kind of the way we adjust things, he's familiar with. But
still, it's still a big process and he worked awfully hard all week spending
extra time meeting with Joel [Collier] and Dean [Pees] and watching film and
he came in early and stayed late. I think that's the type of player and
person that he is. He works hard. He's very conscientious. He asks a lot of
questions and tries to get things done right and correctly. He really
studies his game plan and studies the opponent. I think he had a good week
of preparation and I thought he did a solid job yesterday.
Q: How are Benjamin [Watson] and Vince doing? Are they looking okay?
BB: It's the same as it always is. It's Monday after the game. Everybody
is sore. Everybody is getting treatment. We'll see where we are on
Wednesday. The crystal ball is a little cloudy today. I'll see if I can
clear it up.
Q: Are you concerned about some of the slow offensive starts to games and
to second halves that you've had this year?
BB: You always want to start fast. You always want to start productively,
get the lead and play from ahead. That's the game plan every week. Each week
is its own battle and you try to figure out the best way to do that and a
way to try to come out and use things that you think will be effective early
in the game and to try to give yourself that advantage and then try to build
on it. It was a typical, hard-fought Miami-New England game. 6-0 at the
half. 3-0 for 29 minutes and 50-something seconds really. 6-0 at the half.
It's a one score game. It was like that pretty deep into the third quarter.
I think we were doing the best we could. They were doing the best they could
and it was a hard-fought game and like I said they made more plays than we
did. That's the bottom line. They took advantage of the opportunities that
they had. They created some opportunities themselves with some outstanding
plays and we weren't able to match them play for play. They won. They
deserved to win.
Q: Was it frustrating to see those penalties, especially going for it on
fourth-and-five?
BB: We try to play penalty-free every game. We never go into a game
saying it's okay to commit them. We don't want to commit any. Again, that's
part of football. There are going to be some. Everybody has them, but you try
to commit as few as possible and focus on concentrating and making good
decisions. Sometimes in the heat of battle, there's a close call. It's a
bang-bang call. Things are going to happen and you have to live with those,
but the ones that are preventable just by concentration or alignment and
things like that, your goal is to never have those happen. Yes, we always
want to keep those to a minimum. Absolutely. |
