Glenn Ordway: Back here on The Big Show live from Gillette Stadium. I'm Glenn Ordway, Steve DeOssie's in the house, Freddy Smerlas is in the house, Pete Sheppard is in the house, and it's time for Coffee With the Coach all brought to you by Dunkin' Donuts. America runs on Dunkin' Donuts. Bill Belichick is on the phone line with us today. Hey, Bill?
Bill Belichick: How are you doing, Glenn?
GO: How are you?
BB: How are you doing, Steve, Fred? Pete, how's it going?
[Crosstalk]
BB: We're just doing a lot of running around today. I apologize for not being there.
Steve DeOssie: You have a big gala event tonight, the big Kickoff Gala event?
BB: Oh yeah.
[Laughter]
BB: We just got off the field and we're just scrambling around. Trying to gameplan, see how we can stop Zak DeOssie.
[Laughter and crosstalk]
GO: We've got a couple things coming that are going on down here, but let's start with the game on Friday. How did you feel about it? And let's start with the offensive line, that seemed to be an issue the week before. You got great protection in that game Friday. Did that take a step forward with your offensive line, Bill?
BB: I thought overall we played better offensively. We still missed some chances down in the red area and on the goal-line, but we played more consistently as an overall offensive unit, and that was everybody – all the skill players, the offensive line. Scored more points, moved the ball, had more advantageous situations. We still have a long way to go. There are a lot of things we need to work on, but at times we…when you put together a 17-play drive and a couple other long drives where you can move the ball the length of the field without having negative plays in there and screwing it up, that's a step in the right direction.
Fred Smerlas: How much against the Titans was the offensive line protection just things they hadn't seen – because you're not preparing for that team and sometimes they'll throw in a stunt in there, or a blitz, that you really haven't worked on – as opposed to making the big mistake. Like the next week you played a little bit better; you might break down the film a little bit more. But you go into those games and people critique the game as if you had gameplanned the whole time.
BB: As I've said, I think in all three of the games there were a number of things that we just have to do better. There were breakdowns on the offensive line, there were breakdowns in the pass routes…there were things we could have done better in a lot of different places. And you're right, we could have gameplanned differently and worked on some stuff that they hit us with, but the bottom line is that we just didn't play as efficiently or coach as consistently as what we need to do. It was a little better last week and hopefully we can keep moving in that direction.
SD: It looks like Laurence Maroney is well-recovered from his surgery and I'm sure you were pleased with his effort on Friday night.
BB: Laurence has practiced the entire camp and he got an opportunity to have some live-action last week, but in terms of getting banged around in practice and doing blitz-pickup and stuff like that, he's been involved on that more and more, from the beginning of training camp on until last week. I thought that he showed some confidence in the game, had contact, ran hard. I think he's overall had a good camp.
Pete Sheppard: I want to get back to the offensive line once again. It seemed, at least in that first quarter, that five-yard run from [Sammy] Morris on fourth-and-one absolutely seemed you were trying to send a statement to your offensive line like, 'Time to get it together, boys.' Is that fair to say?
BB: I think there are going to be times in the season when we're going to have to make a yard, and people know we're going to have to make a yard, and we just have to find a way to make it. We kind of created that situation in the game the other night – it was fourth-and-one, we were deep in our own territory and we needed to pick it up. We needed that from everybody on the field. And they came through and that's good. But that's going to happen during the season. We're going to have to make a yard, we're going to have to stop somebody from making a yard.
GO: We all have a tendency to characterize a certain player a certain way. I'm wondering how you'd describe Sammy Morris, because he has not been described by anybody as a guy that's going to be the short-yardage guy and yet he looks like he can be that guy for you. How do you describe him, Bill? What type of runner is he?
BB: He's a pretty versatile player. He's played for us on third down, as he did in Miami. Third down, first and second down, fourth down. He's been involved in the kicking game and passing situations, goal-line. So he does a lot of things well. He's got some power, he's got some quickness, he can get away from people. He's got enough playing strength to be able to bang out a tough yard or two there. So I think he has a lot of things going for him. He's done a good job. He's had a good camp for us.
GO: Asante Samuel showed up at camp, so therefore we can talk about him now. I wonder, for a guy that has missed this much of camp, what can you expect from him going forward here, especially in that first game in the regular season?
BB: We'll just have to see. We'll take it day-by-day just like we do with everybody else, and we'll just have to see how it goes. We'll do something one day and then maybe do more the next, or maybe not. Just see how it goes.
FS: Vince Wilfork looks like he's maturing into even a better player. His hands look quicker, his movement into the center. Is he improving at the level it looks like? He just looks a little bit quicker, a little bit more sure of himself. I mean, he was a very good player last year but, you know, taking the next step.
BB: I do think Vince is improving. He's a good player. Just like you said, he had a good year. He's had a couple good years for us. He works hard, he gets better technically in terms of his fundamentals and his technique, reading things a little bit quicker – draws, screens, misdirection blocks by the line, stuff like that. So he's continuing to improve and he works hard. I think he's playing well. He's having a good camp for us.
FS: He dropped a little weight, too. Right?
BB: Vince ran the conditioning run extremely well. Really, he hasn't had any problems at all in camp with any conditioning issues or anything like that. I think he's in good shape. I think he's ready to go.
SD: Will we see Randy Moss before the season opener?
BB: Randy's day-to-day. He's working hard and I think he's pretty close. We'll just have to see, but he's close.
GO: How do you determine who you use here in the final preseason game? I take it you won't be using everybody in the final game, or maybe you will, I don't know.
BB: As I said last week, I think that we tried to get a significant amount of playing time to a certain group of players last week and we'll probably see more of the players who didn't play as much last week – probably see them play a more extended time this week. But the exact breakdown on all that, we'll decide that player-by-player and talk about that a little bit here later on in the week. It's just Monday. We have a couple more days of preparation before we really figure out all the exact…how we're going to handle that.
PS: How much gameplanning will you do this week for your season opener against the Jets, and have you seen the Jets a lot thus far in the preseason?
BB: Sure, we've got all the games. We've seen them in preseason and I thought they did a good job against the Giants last week. The Giants are a good football team. The Jets played well in the red area and kept them out of there, and had a couple plays in the third quarter to kind of break the game open. But both teams are solid teams. The Giants showed they can move the ball and play good defense, too. So, we're certainly keeping our eye on breaking down the Jets and staying on top of what they're doing, as we are with some of the other early season opponents, but the Jets moreso because they're the first one. I'm sure they're holding some things back like they did last year at the start of the season and we'll have to be ready for those. But we're definitely keeping an eye on them.
FS: We hear a lot about different players. Is there any rook that jumped out at you that we didn't think was going to have a chance, that played well on special teams and done things above and beyond?
BB: Anybody that we should induct in Canton this week?
[Laughter]
BB: I think it's a little early for that. It's hard on those guys, because some guys improve…they start slow and then they pickup speed, other guys start faster at a higher level and then don't improve at quite the same rate, some guys can catch or pass other people, and so forth. A lot of those guys didn't get a chance to play a whole lot in the game the other night, and they'll probably see a little more time against the Giants and that will be an important part of their evaluation. Everybody improves from game to game so we'll try to get as much information as we can and get one more look at them.
SD: How did Adalius Thomas look on the outside on Friday night?
BB: Adalius has been a versatile guy for us all through camp. He's done a good job. I think he's, with each practice and each game, just becoming more familiar with our system and with working with the guys who have been there before – Junior [Seau] and [Tedy] Bruschi and Mike Vrabel and Rosie [Colvin] and the defensive line and all. That group has communicated well, they're interacting well and we just have to continue to work on our fundamentals. There are a lot of things you have to stop on defense and we've seen a few of them and some of them we've handled better than others. We just have to tighten everything up now.
SD: Have you ever been around a more versatile, athletic and talented linebacker group besides that 1990 [New York Giants] Super Bowl champ…
[Crosstalk]
BB: No. That's right, not since [Steve] DeOssie, [Pepper] Johnson, [Gary] Reasons, [Carl] Banks, [Lawrence] Taylor…
[Laughter and crosstalk]
SD: That's my once-a-year gratuitous plug…
[Laughter and crosstalk]
GO: Let me ask you about not only the linebacking corps but your defensive secondary and the versatility that you have in that guys can play different positions. Does that allow you, during the course of the season, of changing up your personnel doing some different things that you couldn't do if you didn't have that type of versatility?
BB: I think it's possible, but you're asking a question about gameplanning for the future and that's hard to say, how important or what percentage you're going to use it going forward. I think that building the versatility on your team, number one, gives you some depth so that if you lose a player you can shuffle guys around and they're not starting all over again – 'OK, this week you're going to play a position that you haven't played before' – that they have some experience with it. Then there may be times during a particular game where you want to change guys up and get a different matchup or a different look on a play and shuffle them around. So I think it applies to both. How much it will be one or the other…and in all honesty, sometimes it's neither. Sometimes you work on something with a guy in camp and those situations never come up during the season, and you and the player look back on it at a later point in time and say 'We kind of worked on that and we were ready to go, but it just never came up or we never really needed it.' It was kind of like when we played Troy Brown over on defense in camp. We didn't know if that was going to ever need to happen or not, but it did and retrospectively I'm glad we did it. But it's just hard to predict on that stuff. I think you just do it as a matter of practice so that you have some versatility built into your team in case you do need it.
PS: Carolina has a lot of talented players on offense. I know you don't like to boast about your team, but you had to be somewhat impressed that half of their possessions against your defensive first unit were three-and-outs.
BB: Like I said, I think defensively we played competitively. I don't think it's the best game they've ever played. They dropped some balls and there are some things that I'm sure they wish they had back, but there's nothing we can do about that. But I thought we played competitively and tackled fairly well, were able to, other than the last play before the half, keep most of the game short. I think we could have played better on third down and a couple times we could have rushed the passer better. So there are still a lot of things we need to work on. Even on some of the good plays there were still some areas that we can tighten up on that we might not be able to get away with the next time it happens.
FS: How is [Brandon] Meriweather adjusting a little bit at cornerback?
BB: Brandon's played several different positions for us. He has some versatility. We've asked him to do a lot in terms of assignments and techniques and reads and adjustments and so forth. It's not perfect and he has a long way to go, but I think he's working at it and he's making some strides. Hopefully we'll be able to get to a point sometime where, after we've covered all the bases, that we can zero-in on him and be a little bit more specific. We'll just have to see how that goes in the next few weeks.
GO: Alright, Coach, I know you have to go to the Gala. Now, do you wear a tie with that gray sweatshirt or do you actually wear like a tuxedo?
BB: Come on, Glenn.
[Laughter and crosstalk]
BB: Hey, look, I'm not exactly talking to the GQ gallery there.
[Laughter]
GO: Hey, you're amongst friends here.
BB: I mean really, I feel right at home there with you guys.
[Laughter]
BB: I can't believe you're coming down on my wardrobe.
[Laughter and crosstalk]
BB: Well I look forward to seeing Zak [DeOssie] this Thursday night. It'll be fun seeing him in the NFL after watching him at Andover [Phillips Academy] and Brown [University] and all that. I'm telling you, that'll be great.
SD: Alright. Well, you be nice to my little baby.
[Laughter]
BB: Yeah. OK.
GO: Alright, Bill. We'll talk to you.
BB: Alright. Talk to you next week.
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