SPECIAL TEAMS COORDINATOR CHRIS HORTON
Opening Statement: "It's good to see you guys today. I hope all you guys are doing well. Just a little quick little recap from last game. I thought our guys went out [and] tried to be as detailed as they can in our plan. But there are obviously some things we need to get fixed, some things we need to work on, and that's what we came out this week [and did], and that's what we're looking forward to doing when we go out and face this Houston team. Questions?"
CB T.J. Tampa Jr., he's tied with LB Jake Hummel for the lead in special teams tackles. He might get an opportunity on defense this week, but as it pertains to you coaching up T.J., what makes him an enjoyable player to coach, and what are some attributes he brings to the room and the field? (Josh Tolentino) "That's a great question. I think the more a guy plays – and we talk about young guys, as a second-year guy, [T.J. Tampa Jr.] is a guy who has a lot of length. [He has] speed, and he's a physical player. So, when you put all those things together on the different phases, they start to show up. He's very detailed. He's gotten so much better at just being detailed in his study and things like that, which has allowed him to go out and play faster and not think. He's making plays, and it's showing up on tape. So, given that he might get more opportunities [on defense], I think we'll still have a role for him [on special teams], and we'll find a way to keep him playing and making sure that he's still living up to being able to have success on both phases."
When there's a team that's really banged up, with a bunch of injuries ... How much does it affect you, in particular, when there are so many questions about guys and it could impact who you have available or who you don't? (Jeff Zrebiec) "It's like a trickle-down effect. But I think now, I've been in this situation for a long time now, and these things show up. To me, the message is, it's very simple. You get a lot of guys that ask for opportunities. You get a lot of guys that want to play, right? Well, here's your moment; here's your opportunity. So, it's really, it's football. The next guy is up. The next guy has to be ready, and he has to have prepared himself so he can go out there and have success. They look forward, and I don't worry about who I have, [or] who I don't have, because I know that every guy that's in that room is putting in the same amount of work. They might have played less snaps, but it's still football. You go out there, [and] you execute. We should be fine."
Is there anything in particular you've seen with the kick coverage that you wanted to get fixed? (Jeff Zrebiec) "Of course. Just thinking about that [area of the] game, I think that's one of the areas that I'm talking about that just really needs to improve. I think our kickoff team is really good, and we've got some guys out there. We've just got to understand that there are lanes, and there are leverages that we need to make sure that we hone in on, and we don't give up our space. And we've got to tackle. You look at a couple of those plays – the return on the 47-yarder – the guy bounced off a tackle and got loose. But again, if we're where we're supposed to be, that tackle is probably made somewhere around the 28- or 30-yard line. So, those are the things that I'm talking about. I don't think these are big problems. These are things that I know we can get fixed, and we should get them fixed this weekend."
Do you feel like you have a better feel for what constitutes success and failure in this new kickoff world? (Childs Walker) "Yes, I think when you really look at it, for us, it's like, 'Hey, we want to keep every ball inside the 25-yard line.' To us, that's that old school mentality. Those are tackles inside the 20-yard line. Then, if a ball gets to the 35-yard line, we tell our guys, 'Man, if we're going to allow the ball to get to the 35-yard line, we might as well hit the touchbacks.' So, anything from that 20- to that 30-yard line, those are kind of wins for you, right? Because that's five yards of field position. So, that's kind of how we think about it. We want to be as stingy as possible. We still can get tackles inside the 20-[yard line]. Those things still do exist, but we've got to work a little bit harder, and we've got to be on point, and we've got to be detailed about it."
OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR TODD MONKEN
Obviously, if QB Lamar Jackson is unable to play, QB Cooper Rush would get the start. What stands out to you on how he's handled this? (*Jamison Hensley)* "Preparation. [Cooper Rush] is the consummate pro. From the moment he got here ... He was here the whole offseason, and you can see why he has been successful. He's played a lot of football in this league. You forget his record as a starter. It's outstanding. He did a great job. Everybody that you spoke to in Dallas, [their comments were] glowing about [him], and the guys that went – [Garrett] Nussmeier went to the Saints and Kellen Moore, they loved him. He's been as good as advertised."
On Monday, head coach John Harbaugh was quite openly critical of the offensive approach, the play calling and all of that. How do you respond? (*Bo Smolka)* "Well, first off, there's not one thing John [Harbaugh] said that we didn't already talk about. Not one thing. So, there was nothing about it that I hadn't already heard or that he didn't already feel. One thing I've done throughout my career is that you've got to look at what you do, and that's what I've done my whole career is, 'OK, how did we scheme it? How did we coach it? How did we execute it? How was our plan?' [I look at] all of those things when you go into it. When it's below the line, you have to own it and fix it, and that's what you do. That's what we do as human beings. That's what I've always done my whole career. It's how I got to where I'm here now. There wasn't anything he said that we hadn't already talked about; so that's what you do. You look at it, and you say, 'OK, was that good enough?' The expectation here is to be elite, and we've been elite. We're going to continue to be elite, but I have to do it better. We have to do it better, and we'll continue to do it better."
Head coach John Harbaugh said you guys didn't follow through on your plans to deal with the pressure. From your perspective, what happened? (*Childs Walker)* "Well, like I said, I already really addressed it. [John Harbaugh] already talked about it. We didn't execute the way we'd planned."
When you look at the ground game, the numbers are odd. You're leading the league in yards per carry, but success rate and some of those stats aren't as good. In your mind, and understanding there's always nuance, down and distance and all that. What needs to happen for this running game to be more prominent, consistent like let's say Week 1 and all of last year? (*Luke Jones)* "Well, it can start by calling it more often and stacking plays; I'm going to start with calling it more often. That's a part of it. And stacking plays – you guys hit it over the weeks that I've gotten up here before, which is we're either getting to the point where we're scoring pretty fast, or we're getting off the field fast, and that's not a great recipe, because you can't stack plays. The idea of being able to run the ball, stay ahead of the chains, that's a part of it. That's not deflecting. We need to be able to run it better and need to call it more often, because we have really good players back there, but we have really good players at a lot of spots. So, the bottom line is we've had games where we've had some explosive runs and some where we haven't been nearly up to the level that we expect, but it's early, and I expect us to really get back on track."
Have you felt like you guys have been able to get into the right plays in terms of changing the play at the line of scrimmage? Do you feel like you've gotten into the right plays versus certain looks? (*Cordell Woodland)* "Sure. I think with any offense, you're not going to be a hundred percent. We know that. I think our quarterbacks have done a really good job of getting us into plays against the looks that we're trying to get – that we practice against. Is every play in that category? No, it is not. But I think our quarterbacks have done a good job. I think our guys have done a good job of understanding the plan when we've gone into the week of how we plan to attack people."
There's been a lot of criticism about how it doesn't look like a Ravens – particularly on offense. I'm sure that has something to do with the run. Would you say you are still searching a little bit for an identity offensively? (*Jeff Zrebiec)* "Well, each game, to me, every game is a game within itself. After Game 1, no one said that. After Game 2, we played a really good defense, and we struggled a little bit to run the ball and really gain some traction. Against Detroit, we had some self-inflicted [issues] on a couple of series – we had, twice, second-and-3, and we went three-and-out. That's not going to get you on track. And then this last game, [we] started fast, [but] just didn't capitalize on the road. So, I wouldn't say it is a trend. Certainly, we have to be able to run the ball better. Certainly, we have to be able to stack drives together and plays together, that's for sure."
Just curious, when you step back from it and look at it after the fact, does it surprise you that you haven't run it as much as you have? (*Brian Wacker)* "Some of it, some of it's that way. First of all, I'm not going to get away with – we have to be able to run it more often and better. OK, let's start with that, but staying away from getting back on track because when you're second-and-long, it really puts you at a tough spot. You're more often going to be at least more balanced, maybe a little more [trying to] throw. Then stacking drives, the [low] number of plays we have after four games is staggering. The few of what we've had, I mean that's a fact and some of that is self-inflicted. We just haven't stacked enough drives together, because that's where you're going to accumulate more first downs [and] more opportunities to run it. When we start doing that, then I think you'll see – well, I shouldn't say – you're going to see it go up when we are able to stack drives and put it together."
I know RB Justice Hill is a valuable player on this team, but are there certain situations, particularly short yardage maybe where you'd like to see RB Derrick Henry on the field more when he's maybe not been part of the package before? (*Jeff Zrebiec)* "Well, the thing is this year – again, it's year-to-year. So, [for] short yardage, [it] depends on what we're calling [on] short-yardage [plays]. Up until this last game, we really didn't have a lot of short yardages. I think we had three third-and-1's. One of them happened to be on the 1-yard line where we tossed it to Derrick [Henry]. So, he's a big part of our short-yardage package. Against Detroit, the first drive we're third-and-1, and we handed it to him. Some of them maybe on the books are third-and-1, but to me, they were third-and-2. We're using Justice [Hill] in the pass game, and he's a part of that; that comes into play. It came into play last year. Derrick is a huge part of our short-yardage package. We just haven't really had enough of them, and we have to get to the short-yardage package where he's a big part of that for sure."
I know it's 'Next Man Up,' and you deal with the players you have, but how much is not having FB Patrick Ricard impacted some of those play designs called? (*Brian Wacker)* "I'm not going to put it on that. I mean, we love 'Pat' [Patrick Ricard]. Pat's a tremendous player, but Zaire [Mitchell-Paden] has done a great job. He's filled in admirably. There's certain things that you may do with Pat out there, but that's not an excuse. The bottom line is we've had all the other pieces."
I think some of the stats sites last year had you guys among the best in the NFL at limiting unblocked pressures. Seems like that has crept up. I think Kansas City Chiefs LB Nick Bolton got through a couple times on Sunday. With the continuity of the offensive line, is that a surprise for that uptick? (*Jonas Shaffer)* "I didn't even know that there was a stat for that. I shouldn't say that. I know there's a stat for it. I guess I'll say I wasn't aware of that. Obviously, every game, each team poses a different element in terms of scheming up your pressures, in terms of challenging you. What will help us is if we run the ball better and more often, if we stay ahead of the chains. If we stack plays together, we'll stay out of those exotic looks. That's really where you get it; you're not going to have those issues when you're in base looks because you're staying ahead of the chains, you're running the ball well, and then you'll stay out of some of those [situations] where you'll get it. When we've gotten behind the chains, or when we've gotten behind in games, that's when you're going to see all that. That's when the pressures and the sacks occur. They're going to challenge us. We certainly can be better there. We certainly can be better scheming it; that's a part of it, too, us putting our guys in the right position. So, we're certainly going to, again, like everything that we feel like we can get better at, we're going to fight like hell to fix it. I mean, that's all you can do. I promise you, that's what we're doing every single day is to fight to fix it, and that's how we've gotten to where we're at today. And to me, we can either end up as if this were a speed bump or a much higher mountain, which it's not going to be that. I can promise you that. We're going to fight to fix it, get back on track, and I know we have the people to do it."
Does not having QB Lamar Jackson take certain run plays off the table for your offense? How much does it affect your game-planning that way? (Childs Walker) "Obviously, as athletic as 'Coop' [Cooper Rush] is, some of those things are not going to look the same as [when] Lamar [does it], but that doesn't mean you can't still be effective and efficient. It's just a different way of approaching certain aspects of your game. That's obvious, but our staff and myself have enough background and history with guys that we can still play winning football. Otherwise, we wouldn't have signed Cooper. We wouldn't have put ourselves in that position, if we weren't confident enough to be able to build a gameplan that would allow us to score and be really efficient."
Throughout the game, how much feedback does head coach John Harbaugh give you? (Jamison Hensley) "[John Harbaugh] gives me feedback. Sure, he does. Our coaching staff does, always. I think people are a little bit surprised that the feedback is constant, the feedback during the week is constant, the feedback after games is constant, [both] good and bad. That's part of what you do. Hopefully in any relationship or any job, you're getting immediate feedback and [advice on] what we can do better and how we're seeing the game. And that's throughout the game, that's before the game and that's after the game. That's what you do. To me, that's winning football. That's what I love about Coach Harbaugh, and one thing he is going to confront is anything that gets in the way of winning football. That's a fact. And everybody needs that, whether it's football – my wife does that to me. She confronts anything that gets in the way of us having a great relationship, and then what do you do? You fight like hell to fix it, and that's what you do when it's damn important."
DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR ZACH ORR
How much do these injuries on the defensive side – how much does that create a challenge, as far as what you do in terms of the defensive gameplan? (Jamison Hensley) "It definitely creates a challenge. Obviously, you want to be able to do what the guys can go out here and feel comfortable executing. Obviously, we have a lot of young guys who are going to go out there and play football for us, but I think the preparation throughout the week can help handle that. And all these guys have been here with us throughout the spring, so a lot of the playbook, they already know that. We work the mess out of the rookies, within the rules, and we tell them this is for a reason like this. You never know when you'll have to be out there, and that time is now. So, we're excited about it, and we're going to still be able to get to a lot of things, because like I said, it's a good rookie class. I've been impressed with them. They've been a mature group. I think they'll be able to handle what we have in the gameplan and be able to go out there and execute it."
When you guys first got together and met after this last game, what was your overall message, and what was your sense of how the players were feeling? What were you getting back from them? (Childs Walker) "Obviously, we were disappointed. We were disappointed. We went into that game fully expecting to play better and win that game [against the Kansas City Chiefs], but obviously it didn't [happen that way]. And the message really was ... I can't remember the guy who said the quote, but it was, 'Adversity causes some men to break, and it causes some other men to break records. So, let's go break records.' There's nothing that man can say or write that should be able to change your mood, if you know that you're going about your business the right way, and you always trying to grind and get better. So, that's the approach we're having. We know we have to get better. We have to, it's a must. That's what we're focusing on, and that's what we're doing. Nobody can hang their head and feel sorry for themselves. We're in the position that we're in. We're 1-3. We haven't been playing good football, specifically on defense. There's nothing we can change about that, [because it's] already happened. We can just change [things] about how we're going forward. So, that's all we're focused on doing."
One of the criticisms about this defense, currently, beyond the numbers, is that this doesn't look like a typical Ravens defense. Are you seeing the physicality and the pushback that you'd like to see from the defensive standard here? (Jeff Zrebiec) "I think we are a physical team, but we have to take it up a notch. And I talked to the guys about that. We have to really take it up a notch to another standard. It hasn't been where we want it to be at. Are guys playing hard? Yes. Are guys striking blocks? Yes. But we have to take it up to a whole other level. That fixes a lot of things, from a defensive perspective. And that starts up front in the trenches. So, we're challenging our guys in the trenches; we need to dominate going forward. No matter who the opponent is, we have to start putting people in the ground, putting people in the dirt. That's what we have to do. I know it sounds good up here, me saying it, but we have to go do it on Sunday."
To that, are you surprised that tackling has been as big of an issue as it has been? (Cordell Woodland) "Yes. Tackling is something that we work on. That's what have to improve on. That was one of the improvements that we talked about, coming out of these first couple of games. It's like, you never know – you play however many plays, 60 [or] 70 plays throughout a game, right? And you never know which plays are going to affect it. And in reality, all of them affect it. So, I just think of situations we had in the game last week where it's like, it's second-and-10, we have a guy tackled, [and] now it's going to be third-and-8 where percentages for us to get to stop [and get] off the field are going to be high. Now we miss it. It's third-and-2 [or] third-and-3. Or it's first-and-10, [and] we get a guy surrounded, it's going to be second-and-9, right? We miss a tackle, and now the ball goes for 15 [or] 17 yards. So, I think we look at it [in] two ways. It's something we definitely have to improve [upon] and get better at. We work at it [and] we have good people who can tackle. We do that, look at how much better we're going to be on defense by just simply doing the small fundamental things."
I know you can't say who will play and won't play, but we noticed ILB Roquan Smith and S Kyle Hamilton were both not on the field today. How do you go about deciding who wears that green dot helmet if you're short-handed? (Bo Smolka) "The good thing about it is, at practice, we're allowed to have multiple guys with the green dot. We've had that since the spring time. So, I personally feel comfortable with all of the different options that we have going into a game. Preseason, we got good work with that. Kyle Hamilton and Roquan Smith didn't play in the preseason. So, we'll have guys ... It won't be anybody's first time doing it, if they have to do it."
I know it's only been four games, but if you had to put your finger on why you guys aren't generating turnovers, what would you say, and how do you fix it? (Cliff Brown) "I think it starts by going back to what Jeff [Zrebiec] was talking about. I think we have to hit people harder. Let's start knocking the ball loose. Guys are going for the football. I think fundamentally, we're being intentional about attacking the ball, getting our hands up in throwing lanes, and we can't lose sight of that. It goes back to saying, I think our process has been real good. Can it get better? Yes. So, we'll continue to chase those details on the practice field, in the meeting room [and] on gameday. But, sometimes you can do things the right way and approach things the right way, and it doesn't go your way immediately. So, are we going to sit and sulk and stop doing the things the right way just because in the first four games it hasn't turned out the way we wanted it to? No. We're going to keep on doing it, keep on finding ways to get better. When that well breaks, it's going to break. So, you can't just say, 'Oh, I'm not getting tipped passes, or I'm not getting interceptions because getting my hands in the window, and the ball is missing my finger by this amount, and I'm just going to stop putting my hands up.' No. So, I'm going to keep doing it, and one of those balls is going to tip our way, and we'll be off and running."
How tough is it when you talk a lot about wanting to turn it up a notch on defense, having to prepare throughout the week, when a lot of the guys you might normally look for to be the ones to turn it up a notch, you don't even know if they're going to be able to play? How tough is it to prepare a team throughout the week like that? (Sam Cohn) "It's not tough at all, man. Everybody in that building, at one point, whether they said it publicly, or whether they say it to themselves or to their friends or family at home, [has said], 'I'm that dude, I'm ready. I'm a dog.' It's time to go do that. Here goes your opportunity. Just the way we roll here is – the expectation is, whoever goes out there on Sunday with that black helmet and that purple jersey on, the expectation is to go out there, go be great and to go play dominant. So, it's not tough at all. I'm confident in the group that we have, whoever goes out there on Sunday, because you are here for a reason. Now it's time to go show it."
It was right around this time last year that former senior defensive advisor Dean Pees joined the staff. I'm not suggesting bringing in an outsider or anything like that, but how much dialogue and discussion has there been amongst the defensive coaching staff in terms of changing up responsibilities, maybe just fresh eyes on a different part of the defense? How much dialogue has there been in that regard? (Luke Jones) "As a staff, we always talk ... We have a great staff. I honestly believe that. And we have a selfless staff. I always preach – I personally do not care how it gets done or which way we do it – I care about the end result. And whatever is going to help us go play dominant defense and help our team win games, I'm down for doing it. So, we definitely have those discussions constantly."
How much have you leaned on senior defensive assistant/defensive backs coach Chuck Pagano, just with his experience as a coordinator, with trying to sift through everything? (Luke Jones) "First and foremost, happy birthday to [Chuck Pagano]. So, if y'all see him, y'all have to tell him happy birthday. I'm not going to put his age out there." (Laughter) "But I lean on him a lot. He's [always] coming into my office, [and] we're talking one on one. He brings up great ideas and great thoughts. [He brings] great perspective in the staff room, to the defense [and] to the team room [as a whole]. And I go to him and ask him [for] advice, about football and just how to navigate being in this position. So, he's been helpful. And he actually, like I said with his birthday [being today], coach [John Harbaugh] does his thing where he lets people speak 'Wise Words' on their birthday. I thought his message was great. He was like, 'Hey, we're not in a position that we want to be in, but this is a test. And in life, you're going to get tested. You are either going to step up, or you are going to turn it down. And we don't have those type of people here in this building [that would turn it down].' Those were his wise words. That's just a little sneak peek of the perspective that he brings to us."
Relative to the rest of the league, you guys are pretty static when it comes to stunts, twists and pass rush games. Is that just personnel? Is it strategy? Is it situational? What goes through that process? (Jonas Shaffer) "Yes, I think it's a mix of that. I think it's a mix of that. So, I'm excited to see what we've got going coming up [on] Sunday and going forward, but it's a mix of strategy, situation and personnel. I think, honestly, we've got to get teams into more third-and-long situations. Right now, besides the Cleveland game [when] there were a lot of third-and-longs, [and] we had a couple versus Detroit, but [if] we're living in third-and-4, third-and-3 and third-and-5, and you can run all the games you want to – the ball is going to be out in those situations. So, I think it's a combination of all those things."
Is CB Jaire Alexander getting closer to being the Jaire Alexander you thought he might be? (Sam Cohn) "[Jaire Alexander] is getting close. He's getting close. I'm saying that he's getting close. I think he's stacked a good couple weeks of practice. You can see that he's getting his swagger back, like I said last week, and that's continued to trend upwards. So, when he's fully ready, he'll know. And they'll let us know, and we'll be ready for him, and he'll play great football for us."
Does having played in the NFL help you with the public-facing part of your job when things aren't going well? (Childs Walker) "Yes, for sure, definitely. I think that's definitely something that I learned from watching when I first got to this level as a player, and it was crazy. Coming into the [NFL] and in college, I saw how professional athletes [were] talked about and debated, and it's [the media's] jobs to talk [about the game], you know what I mean? But, I honestly thought when I got up here, I was like, 'Oh, they don't pay attention to that. They don't listen to that. They don't see it. They got other stuff they're doing.' And I came in here, I'm like, 'Dang, the TV is on ESPN, and everybody is on their phone.' I'm like, 'Are they seeing it?' But I saw how they handled that, and people are going to talk. That's what we signed up for. So, what are we going to do about it? And if you let that distract you – it's always a distraction – whether it's good or bad. If you let that distract you and take your eyes off of the prize of getting better and being the best player, coach or whatever your job description is, then you're wrong. You're not going to be able to reach the level that you're supposed to reach. So, that definitely helped me navigate the public perception, for sure."
RB DERRICK HENRY
On the mindset of the team with a 1-3 record and dealing with all the injuries: "We still have to go play the game. The mindset is [to] go win a football game. It doesn't change."
On how important it is to get the run game going the way the team knows they can: "I'm just focused on doing my job better than I have during the last four weeks, and it starts off there. Just keep focusing on that and let it translate to the game. It takes all of us for the run game. I'm sure everybody else is focused on that, and we need to go out there and make it happen."
On what the team needs to do to execute in the run game the way they want to: "Like I said after the game on Sunday, dominate the line of scrimmage [and] execution are the big things. Every man doing their job the way that they know how, and then going out there and putting it all together so we have success."
On if QB Cooper Rush being the starter would change his job at all: "No, my job is the same."
RB JUSTICE HILL
On if he expects the offense to look different if QB Lamar Jackson isn't able to play: "Yes, obviously Lamar [Jackson] is one-of-a-kind talent, and it's always going to be tough to replace him, but Cooper [Rush] is a great quarterback, and he's well prepared for these moments. I've been in these moments plenty of times before, so we trust in him, and we know he's going to go out there and do his thing."
On how the potential of not having QB Lamar Jackson impacts the running game: "We always want to perform. No matter if Lamar [Jackson] is there or not, we still want to do our job and do our part, so this week, we are going to do the same."
On if consistently running the football can be an easy fix to get the offense going: "I believe so. [It comes down to] us consistently executing overall, regardless of what play is called, run or pass. I think if we do that, we'll be just fine."
On the overall vibe of the team right now: "Obviously, nobody wants to be 1-3, but I think the vibe of this team, I think we're all built for it. We know adversity is going to come with greatness, honestly, and so we're just going to face it head on and deal with what we have to deal with and go out there and get a win on Sunday."
On the importance for players to stay ready and being ready when your name is called: "Yes, you said it right there, just always staying ready. No matter if you're on a practice squad, inactive or anything, you never know when your name is going to be called, and when your name is called and the opportunity is there, you've got to be ready to take advantage of it. So, we've got a lot of guys being in [this] position for the first time, and so at first, it's probably exciting for them and exciting for me to watch because I've seen everybody work, and I know everybody's more than deserving of being here and playing. So, it's going to be a fun, great opportunity for us."
On what QB Cooper Rush is like as a person: "[Cooper Rush] is a chill guy, honestly. [He's a] really chill guy, but he loves football, and he's been around [football] for a long time, and he knows how to win games. So, just hearing him [lead], how he dissects plays and how he thinks about [the game], he's ready for these moments. So, it's going to be fun to see."
