Head Coach DeMeco Ryans
On how much he thinks the bye week will help the players to reset
"The much needed rest, it's here and we're going to take advantage of it. We've been going at it for a long time, going back, we were one of the first teams to start training camp with the Hall of Fame game, so it's been a long time going at it and our guys, I feel like they've handled it really well. No excuses, no complaining about our schedule and where our bye week falls. But right now, it's coming at a great time for us and we're excited to get the rest, relaxation and take advantage of it."
On the biggest thing he thinks the team needs to do after the break to finish the season strong
"Right now, we just need to focus on recovering. That's it and then we come back and our focus will be on Miami when that time comes. But right now, want our guys to just get away from it all and that's the main thing and when we hit reset, we'll hit reset and we'll be ready to get back to it."
On the current situation with LB Azeez Al-Shaair
"With the entire Azeez situation, we stand behind Azeez and everything that came from that. Of course, he – unfortunate hit on the quarterback. But it's also – it's twofold, right? I mean a lot of the quarterbacks in this day and age, they try to take advantage of the rule where they slide late and they try to get an extra yard and now you're a defender, a lot of onus is on the defender whether it's on the sideline or whether it's on the quarterback, you don't know what a guy thinking. You don't know if a guy is standing up and he's continuing to run, you don't know and then you get a late slide and you're – you hit the guy. Unfortunate that [Jaguars QB] Trevor [Lawrence] got hurt. Hope Trevor is OK, but it's also, if we're sliding, we have to get down. If we're getting out of bounds, we get out of bounds and that rule is there to protect the quarterbacks and we want our quarterbacks to be safe in the league, so we just have to be safe. If we're sliding, make sure we're keeping our heads down. And the entire thing is Azeez – he hits the guy, but their sideline overreacts and it turns into a melee. It wasn't our guys. It's their team overreacted, pushed our guy, dragging our guy to the sideline, so that's uncalled for on that side. We have to be better on the sidelines, as well, with both teams."
On if he has talked to LB Azeez Al-Shaair today
"Of course, I talk to Azeez every day. Azeez is a great person, exceptional leader for us. And Azeez is a really good player. And he plays the game the right way. His intent is never to hurt anyone as he's playing the game. If anybody that knows Azeez and talks to Azeez, nobody with a bigger heart than Azeez. I mean, this guy is a special guy I've known since 2019. A special young man, love working with him and for any picture that's painted that Azeez is a dirty player or doing something intentional, that's the exact opposite of what Azeez is. People who know Azeez, they know him, they know how he plays the game. Yes, he plays it fast, he plays it physical, but sometimes that physical nature gets misunderstood in today's game."
On the type of person LB Azeez Al-Shaair is
"Azeez, the type of guy he is, he's just a very caring guy. He's an intentional leader, intentional with communicating and making sure that everybody's on the same page. He wants to know more about his players. I remember back in OTAs, just watching him coming in, new to the team and watching how he just interacted with the guys and they would walk around the field after practice and just to see his group continue to grow. Started off with just one or two guys and it ended up being about 15 guys just walking and talking on the field. After workouts were over, just getting to know each other, growing that tight bond as a team and that's what Azeez brings. He brings that – he knows what it's like to be a tight team and he knows the bond that you need to be a great team and that's what he brings to our team. Just a great leader in all aspects, not just defense, offense, he's – everybody. That's a great human being and love working with Azeez."
On how he thinks the league should go about amending quarterback slide rules
"The biggest thing is protecting the quarterback. So, the rule is there to give yourself up. For me, I would say give yourself up to make sure we are protected and if we try to take advantage of it, we put a lot of onus on the defender who's going as fast as possible to make a split-second decision to either jump over top of the guy, or get out of his way, or do you just stop and let the guy keep running? It's a lot of onus on the defender that I think it's difficult if you've ever played the game and you play it fast. There's a lot of split-second decisions that are difficult to make."
On what can be done to amend the outcome of quarterback slides
"I think what can be done is just you have to look at all sides and we don't have to overreact just because I think a guy gets hurt. We're not intentionally trying to hurt anyone. I think there is an overreaction when someone gets hurt, but we just have to look at it all from all perspectives."
On if he thinks the league should look into the retaliation of teams on the sidelines after plays happen on the field
"Just from a football perspective, I mean you see it in the college game and – we all just have to relax and not go to throwing punches and fighting, that's not what the game is about. The game is here for us to have fun playing the game of football, competing. But when it comes to the pushing, the shoving, the fighting, it's a lot of wasted energy that we don't need in our game from the little league levels, all the way up through our level. That's not what the game is about and we need to get that out of the game."
On what RB Joe Mixon's consistent production has meant to the team this season
"Joe continues to do an exceptional job for us running the football and it starts with the offensive line. I really liked the way that they blocked yesterday. Not only – I know I always say a lot the offensive line, but the running game involves many more people and it's on the edge. You look at [WR] Robert Woods and the way he blocks in the run game, that was why we were able to get the first down at the end of the game to seal the game because of how a wide receiver was blocking. The way [TE] Cade [Stover] and [TE] Dalton [Schultz] and [TE] Irv [Smith Jr.] were blocking at the tight end position, it's a collective effort that allows Joe to have the lanes that he has to run in and Joe does a good job of playing physical."
On the focus of bye week as a coach and coming back to finishing the season strong
"As coaches, I think it is important to take that mental break as well. Then to come back and look at the film in a new way, with new eyes, fresh eyes, coming in with new ideas. Also, you look at the self-scout to see the stuff that we have done well and where we need to improve. I think this week is very beneficial for coaches as well. Just to dive into the film and you aren't worried about game planning, but you get to take an internal deep dive to see what we can do different, what do we like that hasn't really been productive for us and where can we make some changes. It is going to be a very beneficial week for our coaches."
On thoughts on CB Derek Stingley Jr. so far this season
"[Derek] Stingley [Jr.] continues to be a productive player for us. Making us plays on the football, that turnover led to points for us so that was a huge play by him. It was a play where it looked like the guy was open, but Stingley just has the closing speed to catch up and also catch the football in a way that a lot of receivers catch the ball. It is really impressive to see him catch those balls, catch those passes, it is very impressive by him, and I am just excited for the season that Stingley is having. He is doing an outstanding job all year, not just in the passing game but in the tackling, improving setting edges and the run game and the screen game. He is becoming a complete player."
On how he evaluates QB C.J. Stroud in his second year
"I am really impressed with C.J. [Stroud] and his operations and to see the way he led us on yesterday. A lot of routes and things that weren't there, but for him to progress and get to the checkdown on certain routes, making relay great decisions with the ball. His connection to Nico [Collins] was very impressive. Then yesterday just with him on third down, getting the ball to Dalton and Dalton converting for a first down of just making those plays, playing on time, playing on schedule and taking what the defense give us. Just seeing him operate in that manner, in that fashion even more just shows how our offense can be more efficient when we are operating in that way. It all starts at the top with C.J. When he is leading and playing the way he is playing, our entire team feeds off of him. I am excited for his second year. I think he is showing a ton of growth, he is in a really great spot for us physically, mentally. I really love where he is and I am excited to see how he comes back after the break."
On if the passes to WR Nico Collins on first down serve as a base to get on rhythm for offense
"With the early down pass it predicated on the defense and what they were doing. I think we took advantage of some of the looks that they were giving us on the first down and that is where we saw Nico in the middle of the field being open, so we executed the play action pass game really well and that is how we were able to stay on track and move the ball on first down."
On the game plan heading into yesterday's game
"For our game plan, I think we just got back to our basics of who we are. When we get back to the basics and we operate, no matter what defense is presented to us we operate the right way. We don't over complicate it from our standpoint as coaches and players, we are all on the same page that allows us to play fast, and we are able to make plays and move the ball down the field. We just got back to the basics if that is anything about the game plan there."
On thoughts on what makes them so successful this year
"We are successful with C.J., it is not about just one person, it is about everyone doing their job and playing collectively, playing complementary football. If we do that, that translates to wins. It doesn't matter who is around, you have guys in, guys are out, you miss guys but if you operate how we are supposed to efficiently on offense, if we execute on defense, special teams, we execute and play the right way that is how you win football games. Sometimes offense is struggling, and defense has to pick us up, defense is struggling, special teams have to make a play. It is about all three phases working together no matter who is out there."
On update on LB Christian Harris
"We will see where Christian [Harris] is. Christian has done a great job progressing and we look forward to seeing him out there pretty soon."
On thoughts on WR Nico Collins this season
"Nico has been everything to our offenses production. He has been our best player on offense. When he is out there teams have to account for him, whether that is putting two guys on him to open up other things underneath. With Nico, even if guys are accounted for, he can still make plays. I am impressed with not only the deep passes but the screen and getting the ball in his hands and seeing how physical he runs the ball, how he finishes. He is always gaining positive yards and he is always doing it with a big smile. He enjoys playing the game of football, his teammates feed off of him, it just brings great energy every single day and I am a huge fan of Nico what he has done. He has been one of the best receivers in the league this year."
On the rookies adapting to the inconsistent game schedule this season
"I am sure it is hard on our rookies coming out of college and right now their season is probably about over. We played a lot of games. People talk about the rookie wall, that they hit, you can see it on their faces and in meetings and everything. You can see them hitting that wall and it is rough on them, but you just have to keep pushing through. I don't give them an out or give them an excuse. We keep pushing through and we find a way. No matter what is presented to us whether it is scheduling or time frame, we have to find a way to get through it. Other guys have been through the same thing. They will bounce back and be just fine but our rookies, I think the have handled it really well. The guys that have played a lot, seen a lot of time. Cade, Kamari [Lassiter] Calen [Bullock], I think those guys have all handled this year really well and they have made a lot of plays for us. They have been important pieces to what we are doing and very vital to our success."
On how important it is to prepare during bye week with a short amount of time to prepare for the next three teams
"For me, we have the same amount of time from Miami and for Kansas City. We will get a short week with the Christmas game versus Baltimore so we will look ahead on the shorter schedule there but for the other two game it will be the same amount of time we have typically had to prepare for. We will hit the ground running but we will have time to prepare and have our guys ready to go."
