Sean McDermott Talks Preparing For The New Orleans Saints | Buffalo Bills

Sean McDermott Talks Preparing For The New Orleans Saints | Buffalo Bills

Okay. Uh, good afternoon. I’m going to give you the, uh, injury report. Uh, what I know right now, what we’ve got for practice today. So, these three players will not practice. Ed Oliver, Matt Milano, Spencer Brown. Spencer is dealing with a calf. Uh, all are improving and headed in the right direction. It’s just a matter of taking it uh, one day at a time. We’ll see where it goes this week. With that, I’ll turn it over to you. Come out of the game with Brown. Yes. Y Sean, we talked about rookies having been drinking the fire hose, per se, early in the year. The way Jackson Haw has played as well as he’s played. I’m going to assume that he’s doing a better job with that than most. How impressed have you been by the way he has digested what he’s had to digest as well. Yeah, I think they’re all doing a good job, you know, generally speaking, as it as it comes to first year players. Jackson um probably seeing what you’re seeing is more action than some of the other guys and and he’s made the most of the opportunities and I think he’s got great leadership at that position in his room with with coach Boris to start with and then um the veterans that are in that room and and and and that helps and it appears to me that uh he has a great amount of respect for those guys and and they’re teaching him as well kind of the way and then he’s performed uh an admirable way up to this point as well. So, um, like all of the first year players, we continue to try and get them on boarded and getting to understand how this league works and then how we work and how we do things. Sean, staying in that room, Dalton has produced here through the first three games seemingly in the way that that you guys had hoped he would. Um, how rewarding has that been for you to see knowing the work that he put in this offseason? Yeah, I mean it’s when whenever you get the results and you work hard before that, it’s uh it’s a great reinforcer of habits and and that’s not at all to suggest he didn’t work hard prior to last season. All I can focus on and all he should be focused on is what he did this year to get himself ready to go and and he put in the work as you mentioned. Sean, I know you’ve been you’ve talked about the third down struggles on defense, but is it more frustrating because you’ve been pretty good on first and second down? I mean, you’ve gotten teams into third and difficult and and that it hasn’t always gone your way. Has that been kind of frustrating, too? Well, I believe one of the best signs, one it’s a good sign that we’re playing some good football on first and second down. You’re talking about gap integrity. We’re we’re beginning to understand the importance of gap integrity on early downs. We’re beginning to understand the importance of rushing coverage working together. Um and we’re getting ourselves into some some good third down situations. Uh when but then there’s another level of the mentality that you’ve got to take into those third down windows and situations and then the execution that has to has to unfold in those as well. So, um, you know, we continue to grow just as a football team and then in this case as a defense, um, in those in those areas as well. Everything that happened blocks over the weekend, maybe the extra time that you had to take a look at it, was there anything that you’ve done in terms of last couple days to say, “All right, we need to really take a look at this, why this is happening.” We talked about it. Tabes and I actually shared a text over the weekend when we were watching it like everybody else was. and definitely um I’ll say unique. I don’t know if those data but it seemed unique at least and jumped out. So um you know I know Tes we talked about it Monday when we got back in and Taves is going through it and studying it and that’s what you do regardless of offense, defense, special teams when you see something like that you’re always wanting to get back in and look at the tape and and see how you can learn from it. When do you work on the field goal block and field goal and field goal defense when you uh you’ll see some of that out there today. Uh sometime it’s it’s really it really goes with when the kicker likes to kick. So, um you’ll see some of it today. Um and then there’ll be, you know, some kickers like to go Wednesday, Friday, some Wednesday, Thursday. It really that’s really how it kind of es and flows. trying to the execution earlier when when looking at your pass rush, particularly on third down, it seems like the the pressure has been there at times, but the finishing the the sack numbers haven’t necessarily followed. Have have you noticed that? And is that maybe what you were referring to about, you know, making the play when it when it’s there? Um, not just generally speaking, we can be better not just rushing the passer, but working together to impact the play or affect the quarterback better. those two is you guys know I’ve said it over and over again have to work in concert with one another. Um so that’s that’s really generally speaking um the answer for you is it it overall just needs to be better. Um to say it’s just the rush or just the coverage or just this or just that wouldn’t be fair because there has been some times when the coverage was really good or the rush was really good and and but they have to work together. Um, and so the the level of execution, us putting him in the situation. I know Bobby mentioned that the other day. Um, that that all has to come together, you know, on any play, let alone third down. Your perspective on just the home field success this team has enjoyed aside from the playoffs. I haven’t lost regular season games since that Denver uh game, which I didn’t bring up, but what has been the key to that? And what game was that? You said the Denver the Denver lost in mid November 23 uh where the two met on the beautiful thing. So you won 12 straight and you’re three away from a team franchise. The secret to that success in knowing knowing that you emphasize home. Yeah. Um we take a lot of pride in defending defending our dirt. Um there’s no other way to really say it. Um, and these guys put a lot of time and blood, sweat, and tears into their jobs every day. their family sacrifice and playing well at home is a big part of that is um you know defending what we take a lot of pride in which is our fan base and how hard we work and and so um and let’s also be honest our fans create an environment that 12th man is real and we’ll need them again this week. Um, this offense we’re going to play runs a lot of no huddle and um, you know, I just watch them try and get that done against Seattle and uh, I know our fans are the best in the NFL for a reason. As a followup, I know there’s a lot of internal motivations that happen here over the course of the season. Is there an internal motivation, internal drive to finish this knowing that this is the last year of the route to finish the season out perfectly? Uh that would be that would be awesome. It really would. Um it’d be a great way for for uh for us to to send this thing off the right way. Um that said though, it’s really about one game right now. And that’s I know you’re going to get like, “Oh, here he goes again.” But it is it for performers, it’s got to be about one I know there in terms of like what your plan might be as you kind of potentially ramp up today’s working day or weekend training camp. So all the the physical part, yes, but also all the the mental part, the playbook and those things. So right now it’s I think lowering expectations and managing them and and just taking them one day at a time and seeing when if he can come back. Hey Sean, you’ve been um you have a follow that was me. Um you’ve been a it’s been a while since you were a first year coach and you did not have an 0 and3 start fortunate for you. How difficult do you think it is for Kellen Moore in the situation they’re in? Um you know starting 0 and3 his first year with a team that’s kind of in a rebuilding mode right now. Can you kind of just address that maybe a little bit? I was just at the dentist yesterday. I kind of felt like I was back at the dentist office again. Um, yeah, I was I think it was about Kell and and and being a first year head coach and yeah, I think he’s I think he’s doing a really good job. I really do. You can see his personality and his team and the way they play. Um, first two games in particular, you you know, this last game got away from him overall. The first two games, it’s it’s a one possession game. They’ve got the ball and a chance to win the game. So, I think he’s off to a great start. seems to uh be well prepared for the job. Where do you see his personality on the team? Well, I mean, just, you know, you look at his career as a player, one um and then what he’s been able to do as a coach, been very successful in both in both um aspects of of his, you know, postcol life and um you’re seeing them the way that they play on all three phases. you’re seeing them um fight until the end and and uh come back from more than one score down which is which is hard to do in this league and and so um yeah tip my cap to what he’s been able to do in such a short amount of time there. You have to prepare any different for Sunday 1:00 games. I mean it used to be so common Sunday 1:00 games when you got here the other games were outliers. Now the Sunday 1:00 games in order to carpet the outlier. Do you have to prepare your team any differently for that because it just doesn’t happen very often? Well, we got we have to be intentional about it because it um it’s uh a normal part of our life now and uh and so, you know, we’ve had a one:00 game, but it’s been away. Having a one o’clock game at home is a slightly slightly different routine or it takes a slightly different routine. So, I’ll mention that to the players when the time is right so that so that they’re aware and intentional of all right, what does my routine look like for a one o’clock home game in this case compared to the one:00, you know, away game we had a couple weeks ago. Sean, we go back to third down. Maybe it’s this bigger picture thing, but with the increase in the amount of teams that go for it on fourth down and really almost anywhere, has that changed the mindset of how you play defense on third down in terms of it used to be you get to fourth and pretty much the balls get kicked. And does it change the mindset? A little bit. Yeah, a little bit. That’s how the NFL has evolved over the years. Um how managing games has evolved and strategy and whatnot. So it it definitely factors into things uh more than it used to. For sure. Yeah. Well, you just I’m not I don’t want to, you know, cast doubt on the situation, but you just still never know until a player’s back what it’s somewhat of a unique injury a little bit. So, we’re still the information I’m getting is it’s we’re still taking it one day at a time. And you just don’t know what it’s what you know when a player’s missed this amount of time, you don’t know. You want to manage the expectations and say, “Hey, you know, is he going to come back and is he going to come back and be able to play and help us?” Because there’s a lot of ground still to cover physically and mentally at this point. But yes, the hope is yes, he’s able to do that. There’s no new report medically at all. Tyler Bass knowing that, you know, he could be without Yeah. Um, again, moving in the right direction, but don’t know at this point. Is it going to be next week? Will it be two weeks, three weeks? We’ll see. Sean, we talked a lot about Cole Bishop time on task when he was out. He’s the only DB that’s now played 100% of the snaps through three games. How much has that helped him? Uh both the communication aspect and seeing the reps and where do you see him after three weeks? Uh Cole, you mentioned Bishop. Yeah, I think he’s I think like I mentioned before, um the reps have been invaluable for him and his style of play, uh the detail that he’s now bringing to the to his play. Uh Joe Dana and him have done a really good job, him being Cole. um because he’s had to take ownership in that and then adding Jordan Puyer to that those conversations those hey here’s how you know the playbook says this but it’s really hey here’s how I think you can look at this and um that you know having someone like that in the room also helps you mentioned the mental side of it with Max I guess how have you seen him like obviously not being able to be out on the field like handle things in meetings and like keep that mental side Yeah, Jamal um our corner’s coach has done a really good job of of keeping him involved as much as he can. Um and you know, you do the best that you can. It it’s it’s up to the player to be doing what he can as well. And and so Max has done a good job of that for the most part. And um again, it’s just like anything else, there’s a lot of unknowns, right? And that’s really where we’re at, but we’re really trying to control what we can. And I know he is as well. You mentioned last mentioned the Saints playing a lot of what’s the biggest in game adjustment coaches. Yeah, I I just think you know making sure our players are aware of it and ready for it. Um you know they they’ve used it pretty much in all three games. Um and it’s a big part of their offense. So us, you know, it had because of that, it has to be a piece of our defense this week and um, you know, the things that come from it are multiple. So, uh, I know our guys are are doing a good job with that as they prepare. Good. All right. Thank you guys.

Bills Head Coach Sean McDermott addressed the media before practice on Wednesday September 24th. Topics include: TE Jackson Hawes playing in his rookie season, third down defenses, the importance of gap integrity, the league trend of blocked field goals and an injury update.

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