HEAD COACH JOHN HARBAUGH
Opening statement: "It's good to see everyone. I appreciate you all being here. We are excited for the opportunity. We have been working all morning talking to different coaches and players and preparing for the Bengals game. We have an opportunity to win the division, and that's what we're going to be focusing on and focusing on the next game, which is the most important game. What questions do you have?"
I'm sure you looked and watched the TE Isaiah Likely overturned touchdown since then. Are you OK, comfortable with the call, or after watching it, do you feel there needs to be more clarification on what is a catch? (Jamison Hensley) "Well, that's a complicated kind of a question there. Am I comfortable? No. Do I think there needs more clarification? Yes, it's about as clear as mud right now. That's how I feel about it."
Does it make sense to you that when a guy gets two feet in on the sidelines, that's a catch. You hit the pylon with the football, that's a touchdown. You break the plane, that's a touchdown, but somehow that's not ruled a touchdown yesterday? (Jerry Coleman) "Yes, there's a lot to it, and it's a conversation. We had a conversation with the league office. They were gracious enough to spend a lot of time on the phone with myself and [executive vice president and general manager] Eric [DeCosta] and [officiating liaison] Tony Michalek, and we appreciate that. It didn't clear anything up. It didn't make it any easier to understand in either one of the two calls. They're very hard to understand how they get overturned, but they did, and that's where it stands."
Do you think that cost you the game? (Jerry Coleman) "You never know what costs you the game."
You said the two calls – did you discuss with them the DL Travis Jones call or do you go by a different process because that one didn't go through? (Bo Smolka) "We did discuss the Travis Jones call as well; the Travis Jones call, they told me, and they told me I had permission to state this, that it was a wrong call. It should not have been called."
They told you that? (Bo Smolka) "Yes."
Is that kind of saying it has to be forcible contact with the head and neck area, right? (Jeff Zrebiec) "Correct. That's the rule – it is not forcible contact to a defenseless player. It's not whether you run a player over trying to block a field goal – that has nothing to do with it. It's forcible contact to the head and neck area."
Do you have an update on RB Keaton Mitchell? (Bo Smolka) "It's day to day. That's the update, day to day. We got good news, so we'll see where we're at tomorrow and Wednesday. I am looking forward to that."
On the TE Isaiah Likely touchdown or the one that was called not a touchdown, were you fine with how he caught it? Is that how you guys want him to catch the ball in that situation trying to keep the ball out considering the defender is right there behind him? (Cordell Woodland) "No."
Did you look at, just going back to the Pittsburgh Steelers QB Aaron Rodgers' play, the ILB Teddye Buchanan [play] overturned there, did you sort of look at that as well? How is TE Isaiah Likely's play not a catch in that is a catch? Was that your view? (Brian Wacker) "That's part of the conversation. Sure. That was weaved into the conversation."
What was the explanation? (Brian Wacker) "No, we can get into it all. Do we really want to get into the depth of all that kind of conversation? You're going to the ground, you have to have control of the football, [and] you have to survive the ground when you make a catch. That's what a catch is. You can't say the time element's like that, and he satisfies the time element when you're going to the ground, [but] the time element doesn't apply to going to the ground. So, it's pretty clear cut."
You discussed it a little bit at the end of when you go back and watch the last possession, the two-minute possession at the end, it didn't seem smooth. You mentioned that yesterday. What do you think broke down? What happened there? (Bo Smolka) "It wasn't good enough. I'll just leave it at that. Suffice to say that we have to be better in those situations. We weren't in the right spot all the time. It took us ... We had to flip a formation one time, basically, the one time that the clock was running on us; we had to change the side that we were aligned on. That's what came up on that one play you're talking about in the two-minute drive."
Can you explain what you saw? There was a fourth-down play where it looked like QB Lamar Jackson was looking for WR DeAndre Hopkins, but TE Mark Andrews came through and tipped the ball. Was that ball intended for DeAndre? (Jerry Coleman) "I don't know. I don't know. In the heat of battle, I [haven't] had a chance to talk to Lamar [Jackson] about that yet. I'm not sure who he was intending to throw to. I don't know."
Did you see on film from it? (Jerry Coleman) "I don't who [Lamar Jackson] was intending to throw to. I mean, it could have been maybe caught by Mark [Andrews]; it maybe could have been caught by 'Hop' [DeAndre Hopkins] if it hadn't been tipped. I don't know."
You were sitting and talking to QB Lamar Jackson when we came in the locker room yesterday. Was that you reacting to any sort of distress or frustration that you saw from him? Was it just a normal conversation to sort of lift his spirits? Why was that? (Childs Walker) "It was probably all of it. You guys are in the locker room like less than 10 minutes after the game's over in that deal. And then that was a little longer, because that was after [my] press conference, I think, right? So, I happened to walk back, and I see Lamar. He's still in his uniform at his locker, and it felt like the right thing to do to sit down and have a conversation. I don't think either one of us really processed that you guys were all in there, but you are in there. That's normal, so, we're used to that. We just had a conversation about stuff and how we're feeling and a lot of different things. We have a great relationship and a friendship, and we were processing it at that point in time."
We didn't see G/T Emery Jones Jr. at all. Was it just a weekly thing, or were you kind of reevaluating when he will play? (Jeff Zrebiec) "Well yes, [Emery Jones Jr.] played OK in the [Bengals] game. It wasn't better than either one of the other two guys in [his] first game – he didn't outplay those guys. So, you go into the game with your best guys that you feel are playing the best, you have to meet players where they're at. That's not to say he couldn't get more time this week, based on what happens in practice or how guys are doing health-wise and those sort of things, but that's where it was at. Emery's doing great. He's in a great place; I love where he is at. I think if he went out there, he'd compete like crazy, and I think he'd play great. I would trust him to go play great. But, based on that performance, you couldn't say it was better or even the same."
You mentioned the swing-pass touchdown to Pittsburgh Steelers RB Jaylen Warren, you said that was one of your worst plays, a lot of things broke down. If you go back and watch it again now, what was it that led that whole half of the field basically to be open for it? (Bo Smolka) "[There were] just two missed assignments; two guys not covering the correct guy. That was pretty straightforward. It doesn't happen very often. We haven't had many of those all year, I think maybe two total all year, which I'm kind of proud of. But it came up there – and it's a head scratcher – but it happened."
Going forward with the offensive line, we've asked you a lot about changes. Were you pleased with how that group played as a whole on Sunday? I know there's been a lot of talk about G Daniel Faalele's play and how he got beat on a couple occasions. What did you see when you evaluated him and as you continue to evaluate him? (Jeff Zrebiec) "Yes, I just talked to [offensive line coach] George Warhop about it. All in all, I thought the offensive line played well all in all. I thought the two tackles [Ronnie Stanley and Roger Rosengarten] played two of their best games [this season]. Roger overset one time [and] got beat inside on a certain type of a pass protection. Tyler [Linderbaum] played really well. I thought the guards [Daniel Faalele and Andrew Vorhees] played exceptionally well in the run game. They were moving people; they were wearing people out. So, that was good to see. I thought they were mostly good in the pass game, but too inconsistent, probably. There were two or three, each of them had, probably; Daniel had a couple in the pass game, and Andrew might've had one or two in the run game that he wants back. But every player has plays they want back. I can think of one where Daniel was hard-setting, like a hard-play action where it was more of a drop-back pass type of protection, he got overextended and got beat like that. That really shouldn't happen. He should be setting a different way there; he knows that. So, that was a mistake, [but] lots of other times, it was good. We got beat towards the end on a two-man inside game that we could have done a better job on to keep the Lamar [Jackson] clean right at the end of the game there. So, [there were] things like that, that needed to be better from the interior guys."
You talked about it a little bit after the game in press fades, that the Steelers were able to throw deep shots. There was a lot of talk – outside talk, anyway – about how little they had pushed the ball down the field over the last month. How much of a talking point was that during the week, that they might try that. Were you guys surprised that they took those shots? I guess, just looking at those plays, anything that stood out about how they were able to be so successful? (Luke Jones) "No, they were – they were good throws and good catches. They were right there, and they were all covered. We might've had the one on the left sideline [where] there was a step of separation there. We felt good about – we didn't play press the whole game, by any stretch, but whenever we were in press – that was one of their checks in press, to go get it. So, you'd probably go back and re-think that a little bit in those situations. But, we played press a lot of times where it took away a lot of routes, too. So, we felt like we would – we know we're good at that. We do a good job of jamming people at the line and covering people. We've been exceptional in man coverage, but those plays were made, and it was really all they had. That, and then, [Aaron Rodgers] was able to get out a couple of times. I think of the play right to start the second half where he got out; it was crazy that he got out there and hit that scramble play for a big chunk that got them a field goal, I believe. So, those two things, the fades – I think there were four of them – and the scramble play are really the four plays that you'd say, 'Hey, you know what?' Those are the plays that kind of – that was the core of their whole offensive production, really the whole game. All the other things, things like the run game, we took it away. The run-after-the-catch game, we took it away. I was proud of that. [And on] the underneath routes, we drove, and we tackled really well. So, those were all points of emphasis as well."
I think it was a third-and-2 right before the fourth-and-5. What broke down there? (Jeff Zrebiec) "As you look back on it, it's crazy that that happened. I don't think we had an understanding between the [coaches]' box and the field, in terms of what we wanted to do there, and that's [a] communication [issue]. We have to take responsibility for that on the coaching side, so I'll take responsibility for that one. It shouldn't happen. We thought we were going to be OK with the formation, and it didn't turn out [that] we were, so if I had to do it again, I definitely would've called timeout if I'd known that [and] felt that way."
When you guys added WR DeAndre Hopkins in the offseason, what were your expectations for his role, and how has that compared to how you guys have used him so far? (Giana Han) "I'd like to be using DeAndre [Hopkins] more. He had a couple throws [to him]. Sometimes, it's just with the way the game goes a little bit, but he's not out there all the time. I don't think he's at the stage of his career where he is going to play every play. When he's out there, you really want to – and we've talked a lot about this – [we're] trying to be intentional about him being out there for specific purposes and to do the things that he does well, which we all kind of know what those things are. I will say that if you go back, and you watch the game, you're going to see him playing his tail off. He's running routes, he's fighting to get open, he's blocking, he's competing, he's doing everything he can, and that's what I admire about him and love about him. He's just become one of my favorite, favorite players ever. We are going to be friends for a long time, and he and I have had a lot of these conversations, but yes, this next game, and these next four games and into the playoffs, let's get him involved more. We really need to try to do that. We have been trying to do it; we can do it. It hasn't fallen for us, but I still believe he's going to make plays for us that are going to matter."
With the holding call on the special teams play, do you think that was a legitimate call? What did you see on that play? (Jeff Zrebiec) "I think [the Steelers player] went to the ground. What caused him to go to the ground? I couldn't tell. That will be one [penalty] that we'll send in and ask [the league] about."
I'm sure you're probably aware of the fact that the official at the far end threw the flag, not the guys that were closest to it. (Jeff Zrebiec) "Yes, I don't know. Who knows why they call stuff sometimes."
How do you guys formulate QB Lamar Jackson's practice plan? He said last week that Wednesday would maybe be a rest day, and he practiced. He was stepped on and missed Thursday's practice. How important is modulating everything? (Jonas Shaffer) "There's no science to it. You want to have everybody practicing every day; that's your goal as a coach, but it's a long season. These guys go through a lot; Lamar [Jackson] as much as anybody. He has the ball in his hand every play; he is making plays; he's doing what he does; he's competing like crazy. So, there are going to be times when he is just not going to be up for practice. It's just not going to be the best way to go about doing it, and that's a conversation between Lamar [and] the trainers. We're involved in that to some degree, but what's best for him to be ready to play his best on Sunday, that's really what matters. So sure, you'd rather have everybody practicing all the time, but if it's not the best thing to practice, because you want to get your body right, I think you have to respect that as a coach. I know you have to respect that as a coach, so I respect Lamar and his judgment, and I thought he played very well. I thought he played very well in the game."
And I guess with how long QB Lamar Jackson has been in this offense under offensive coordinator Todd Monken, it's not like missing practice means anything is off the table for this offense? (Jonas Shaffer) "Absolutely, absolutely. [Lamar Jackson] knows the offense, and I think if you look at the game, you would have to say he looked good physically. He was moving well, so [we] consider that. He was moving around pretty darn good, and that's a positive, and I was happy to see it."
The Steelers got some good starting field position off of your kickoffs yesterday. What is K Tyler Loop's target on most of those? Is he trying to get it to the five-yard line, and sometimes it holds up at the 10-yard line? What is the goal on the kickoff? (Childs Walker) "Yes, do we want the short kicks or the ones that are coming out past the 30- or 35-yard line? It's that simple. So no, we don't want the short kicks. We're not trying to kick the ball to the 10- or 15-yard line. Those are really tough to cover. It's hard. If you catch the ball to 15-[yard line], how far do you have to run? So, those are too short. And [Tyler Loop] is a young guy; he's a rookie, and so he's working on it. He's not consistent at this point. We need him to be more consistent. We'd like to have the ball inside the five. If it leaks into the end zone, it leaks into the end zone sometimes. So that's kind of where we're at with it."
Is it a technique thing? Is it a reacting to the conditions thing? (Childs Walker) "It's a lot of things. It's a lot of things. You are out there, and you're trying to put that ball down the field, you're trying to kick it right, and sometimes you don't hit it right. And it's probably more like golf than anything else. Do you play golf?" [Reporter: "Not in any definable way."] (laughter) "So, you probably come up short on your chip shots quite a bit. He's coming up short on those, and Tyler [Loop], I love you. He knows; we've had the conversation. So, we want those balls kicked deeper."
You mentioned you'd send the play to the league on the punt holding penalty. If I can go back to the conversation you had about the replay play and the NT Travis Jones play – was that call you guys initiated this morning and is that unusual for you to do? (Bo Smolka) "Yes and yes. I think I've done it one other time this year so far. I'll say this, [NFL senior vice president of officiating administration] Perry Fewell and [NFL officiating rules analyst] Walt [Anderson] are great. Those are the two guys that interact with the coaches directly. We don't get to interact with anybody else, whoever else there is back there behind the scenes. But those two guys are the guys that relate to the coaches, and anytime I've ever called those guys – I've known those guys for close to 28 years, both those guys – and they're excellent, and they're honest. And sometimes it's tough on them to explain it, so I understand that, too.
What's it like in the room when you guys hang up the phone and the referees tell you that they got something wrong but there's nothing they can do about it now? (Jerry Coleman) "Yes, we move on. We move on, just like our team does. It's our job to make it right. You're not going to expect everything to go your way. There's a great passage in the second Corinthians, it talks about these kind of things [with] trials and tribulations and things like that – they create an enduring toughness and hope, and you [have to] look at it that way. We understand the good that can come from these challenges, and if we become the type of team that can overcome these types of things, then you become the type of team that can go far. And I think that's true for football. It's also true for life, for your family, for your kids, when you talk to your kids, all these things. These are enduring self-evident principles that we try to talk to our guys about. So, let's apply them to our football team right now, and yes, OK, those calls were trials and tribulations; we'll put it that way. And you know what, let's overcome them. Let's beat them."
We've asked about the red zone a lot this year. You were 2-for-6 again yesterday. At this point in the season, does it feel like you are running out of options in ways to try to fix that situation? (Cordell Woodland) "No, because we don't run out of hope. I'm not a hopeless person, so we don't run out of options. We keep working, and we keep developing, and we keep coming back and keep fighting. We don't throw up our hands and say we're out of options. We don't do that. So, the answer to that is a firm 'No.'"
We haven't asked you about it in a while, has there been any clarity about DL Nnamdi Madubuike's situation? Do you know any more about it that you can share? "No, not that I can share. There's a lot going on there with Nnamdi [Madubuike]. I'd love to share some stuff, but I can't share it right now."
