We Have to do a Better Job Doing the Little Things Right | Press Conference

We Have to do a Better Job Doing the Little Things Right | Press Conference

Um, yeah, this is, uh, you know, disappointing obviously. Uh, just didn’t really do anything, you know, probably well enough over the course of the game and in any phase to put ourselves in position to win. Um, I think the the early pick six was was not good. That’s that’s put you in a hole that early. Um, we didn’t tackle well. We didn’t rush well. Um, at the end of the day, didn’t do enough good things to to put ourselves in any position to to win the game. So, um, don’t really have much to add. You guys go ahead. Realistically, Brian, how many more opportunities do you think you guys are going to get to to get this thing right given how difficult it’s been? I don’t really worry about that, Buck, to be honest. I I my focus is on trying to make sure our football team is in as good a place as possible. Um, and and the rest of that stuff is what it is. I I I don’t think about those things. And um, you really can’t. I mean, this this is hard enough as it is to to put those other things and think about that. Doesn’t do anybody any good. So, uh, I just go to work and and work as hard as I can. I put as much effort as I can into this and um you know that is what it is. What happened attempt to delay a game before? Yeah. Um we went back I was going back and forth but we were talking about going for it or kicking it and that’s a kick that Sly made and a chance to make it a 17 to9 game in that moment. Um you know it’s a hindsight thing. If you go for it and get it great. If you go for it and don’t you know then you’re you’re in the same spot. And thought we had a chance to get points there. You know Sly’s been really reliable from from deep. It’s he’s a bit of a weapon uh for us and he’s been that way thus far in this season. Um and then we we went to kick it and they were waiting for um some operational things to to uncover and you know just like to go faster. Obviously had no intention to take a delay a game there. Um didn’t want that to happen. Obviously looks really bad at the end of the day and and that was not um not the intention to do that. So wanted to be able to kick it. What you call timeout there? I mean don’t you know what you’re doing? Shouldn’t you have your personnel on the field? Yeah. Um certainly we we were going back and forth and wanted a minute to think about it. I was going back and forth between a fourth down call and a field goal and um decided to go take points in that particular situation and um you know the operational part of it to to kick it on time didn’t happen. What’s the benefit of having your offensive personnel on the field after the timeout because I hadn’t decided yet at the moment what we’re going to do. I mean how how could you have their timeout your timeout and still not have decided? Uh, like I said, we were having a couple different conversations um about it and and ultimately that was a decision we made. What kind of message though you think that sends like not going forward on fourth and not long not going for it, you know, what message that send to to your team? Uh, I don’t know. I don’t know what message that sends. I was trying to take points and make it a 17 to9 game at the half. That was my intent. Um, so I don’t know. what I guess the same thing that happened when we missed the field goal, you know, the get the ball back and pretty good field position and uh not too far away from getting points and that’s exactly what happened. So again, hindsight, if it doesn’t work, we don’t make the field goal. We don’t have to kick it off and um and and we don’t get a chance to go for it. So we don’t know if we get it or not. And and ultimately, if it doesn’t work, you’re in the same place. And the same conversation applies on the flip side is that if we go for it and don’t get it and the question is going to be why why didn’t you why didn’t you try Sly there from from that distance. He’s been good from there. So it’s a hindsight thing. We didn’t make the kick and and and we don’t look we don’t look good for it. But um I thought that was the right thing was to try to take points in that moment and make it a one possession game. What happened? It seemed several times that the they would use the little roll out where they would and they would just flip it out into the flat over and Finny kind of got caught in no man’s land several times. What was going on there? that wasn’t that was happening that wasn’t supposed to happen. Yeah, it’s it’s a team, you know, they’ve run the ball well so far the course of the season. We did a lot of the same things offensively. We had a few of those exact same type of plays. Uh they’re compliments to your run game and they’ve run the ball well and and when you’re trying to stop the run, um you you are susceptible to some of those boot actions and and naked actions. And again, they’re they’re not usually explosive plays, but they keep them efficient, you know, and that those are the things when you’re you’re trying to fit and play the pass, those are the conflict you get put in. And that’s that’s just that’s the NFL. that’s playing, you know, first and second down defense, trying to stop the run and and play the boot action. So, again, we we had similar plays offensively. Um, we got to do a better job containing those things for sure. Um, but but just frustrating overall at the at the inability to to get stops when we needed to on defense. Why not defer? Um, I’ll I’ll leave the the reasons for that. I’m going to go too far into detail, but at the end of the day, um, try to take the ball, see if we could get off to a fast start. Um, see if we couldn’t get going offensively. U, put it in our in our offense’s hands and go try to do something. Obviously, that did not work. Um, but that was the intent was to try to see if we could get a lead on a team that that wanted to run the ball and see if we could swing in our favor. What happened on game’s pick? And I guess I guess after that, how did you feel like he sort of returned from that? Yeah, he bounced back. Um, that’s one of the things he does well and he doesn’t flinch when those things happen. Uh, you know, it was the third play of the game. There’s a lot of football left at that point. So, uh, just the decision- making, it was just he’s going to try to check the ball down, you know, and he’s got to see the defender sitting there and and I don’t know. I have to ask him exactly how he saw it. But it’s one of those things where you you put the ball in harm’s way like that. It’s an easy easy interception on a checkdown. Sometimes it’s better to throw it at his feet and and and eat it uh or punt it so you can punt it. Um but yeah, those are those are those are decisions. You know, he hasn’t had a lot of those. Um but but that one got him. When you stop relying on Calvin based on how the degree to which he’s hurting the team, uh I’m not going to stop relying on him. He’s he’s got to help us. He’s got to do his part. I’m gonna we’re gonna keep throwing the ball to him. who’s going to keep putting in position to make plays. You know, it’s it’s the same thing when a guy doesn’t doesn’t perform his best. Um, they got to find a way to to pull themselves out of it and we got to find a way to help him. And at the end of the day, you know, he’s still a really good player and we’re still going to need him. And if we’re going to we’re going to claw our way out of the spot that we’re in. We’re going to need everybody in there to do it. And Calvin’s going to be a big part of that and and we got to he’s got to find a way to get his confidence back up and perform. Um, but but certainly never going to shy away. He’s he’s a big part of of our offense and we need him. from your side of things, how how do you help Calvin? You know, I think you just got to you got to keep coming to them. You got to keep throwing the ball. Um, you know, the hard part is that these things don’t they don’t show up, you know, sometimes in practice and and all of a sudden in the game it’s it’s a problem. So, uh, you got to keep working. It’s it’s like a hitter in a slump. You know, he’s in a bit of one right now and he’s got to find a way to get out of it. And, you know, whatever that is, extra time after practice, um, whether it’s it’s making sure he’s catching balls on the jugs, all those things are all a part of it. And um a lot of times it’s an individual effort, you know, but the I still believe in Calvin and and that’s part of it too. He’s got to feel that the the guys believe in him, the quarterback believes in him, and you got to keep keep working to go back to him and and he’s got to come do his part. Your disappointment maybe in a lot of different aspects, had better moments in the first couple of games. How come you think that was today? Oh, you know, it’s Indy’s playing really well on offense and um they’re moving the ball at a pretty rapid rate and and we you know, every time we had an opportunity, whether it was on offense to answer or on defense to answer, we could never never get ourselves back into the swing. Um and we couldn’t make the we couldn’t make the answer that we needed on either phase and it got away from us. And they’re playing well. I thought we had opportunities and was confident going into the game. Um but we just we still can’t we haven’t done enough good things. uh in all in any phase, you know, the the penalties are still continue to be a problem. Um you you turn the ball over for a touchdown, we miss tackles. Um we haven’t got the quarterback on the ground enough. All those things factor in and um you know, you got the result that we had today. What are some of the ways that you can clean up some of the procedural and like penalty issues that have played the team the first? Well, some of the things we got to do a better job uh understanding, you know, motions and formations and being set. I think we got called twice for illegal motion and and we weren’t set. Um we got to do a better job doing that. um that’s an easy thing that shouldn’t be a problem. But when you know you’re checking a protection or you’re moving the back and then there’s emotion involved. It’s some of that stuff are things that Cam’s understanding too, you know, when you got a lot of moving parts in a third down um that you have to have in this league to be able to to go against the defenses you got to play against. So, um that’s part of it and then part of it is is we got to do a better job just doing the little things right and and we haven’t done that enough and that’s disappointing for the you know again for the amount of amount of time we emphasize and talk about it. We had three struggles with the struggles that you’ve had in all phases of the game. Do you feel like there’s still the confidence and the buy in that coming from everybody in the locker room? Yeah, I don’t think I mean our the one thing I know about our guys is they fight and they work and and we fought in that game. We fought as hard as we could and and ultimately didn’t play well enough to win. But I don’t I don’t have any questions about guys buy in. I I know how they perform and I know what they are in the building. I know how they work. Um, and we just got to find a way to play better on Sundays at the end of the day. And that’s everybody. It’s that we got to coach better. We got to play better. All that stuff matters. But, um, I I’m I don’t have any doubts about what these guys do and think at this moment. Three veterans miss tackles on the longest Taylor run. How hard is it to survive that? What’s your message to them? Well, and we’ve missed too many tackles through three weeks to begin with. You know, I think we’ve we’ve had moments of really good defense. Um we’ve had moments of really good tackling and at the end of the day it’s you got to do it for the entirety of a game and um having guys miss tackles is not something that uh that that we expect and again Jonathan Taylor’s a good back. I give a little bit of credit to him as a player but we got to do a better job getting him on the ground and and we didn’t do that. Um well I told the running back the wrong route first and then when I got to him I I threw it and then right when I threw it I seen him. Uh so you know I knew bad plays there. Um, but I mean end day I I knew the time was going to come out through an interception. Uh, just how we responded from it and we did. How tough a day like was this for you in your mind just as a team and and how do you how do you get through it? I mean you just got to keep working honestly. Um, we put ourselves in the hole. Um, starting off on three something that we got to climb oursel out of. Um, but it’s all it’s all learning stuff especially from my standpoint. um the offense standpoint as a whole and then on the defensive side of the ball after timeouts but before the delay a game with the field goal scenario before halftime you urging the call from the sideline there were there’s some indecision that caused you the delay there what what were you thinking as that whole thing was unfolding um I’m just thinking if you call a play I’m going to call it in the huddle um and so u just really um just trying to wait to see what we’re going to do um end up kicking a field goal in guard way. Um, but end day, Joey get the opportunity again, he’ll make it. But did you see the clock was ticking? Did you know you guys were were kind of in trouble against the clock there? You saying on the on the delay part? Uh, yeah. Um, but I mean, he’s made that field goal in practice, so, you know, I wasn’t really tripping about on sideline. Um, but, you know, he he’ll make it next time. Cam, it looked like you, Tyler, and Calvin were all kind of talking in midfield near the end of the game. just curious what what that conversation was and you know if it was at all about trying to get out of this hole that you’ve now put yourself in. Um just really us coming closer together. Um and that’s just every day throughout the process. We got to continue to stick to it. We got to continue to to be around each other. Um we got to continue to hold each other accountable. Um and that’s just really us three taking a moment right there just talking about just what all of us have to do better. um from our situation, both us three talking then just as a whole how we feel we got to get better as and um coach Ken Khan he addressed that in the locker room. So you know we just you know going to watch the film flush and then we got to try to get a win against a good team. You talked really positively about the relationship you have with Kahan through three weeks. Has it been what you expected in the onfield relationship? Yeah, it’s been it’s been what I expected the whole time. Um he he’s cool guy. He doesn’t get too high too low on the sideline like me. Um, but I think the the biggest thing is just us just executing. U, we we haven’t done that at a high enough level to win football games. What do you say to him, you know, when you have these drops? Like what you I know you say, “Hey, look, like I I’ll make a bad throw, but that conversation like what’s that like between after the drops? I I know in the past you said that, you know, you you’ve told whoever that you’ll you’ll make a bad play, so don’t worry about it.” But is that consistently what what the conversation is? Uh yeah. Um and then he he knows he has to be better. I know I have to be better. I can’t put us down 70 at the start of the game. So, you know, I put us behind the eightball and we have to the whole game we have to climb oursel back until not win the football game. So, it it was kind of just really on my standpoint. Then on his like everybody wants to play back every game. um whether it was that play for him um it’s a couple plays I want back in this game but uh we can’t get him back at the end day we just got to not make the same mistake next week for going for it there on the fourth one um delay the delay a game I’m always trying to go for it on fourth down that’s that’s really my mindset u but at the end of the day that that’s coach like he’s going to put us in the best situation Joey he’s made that kick before so you know he’s going to get another opportunity this season he’ll make it seems like from about the scene passes. Seems like there’s a little heat on them sometimes through the first three weeks. Is that something that you’re working on like with tape study or is it something that you’re going to have to like take some of the heat off of those passes so your receiver can come down with those? Um, it’s not even that. It’s just us just working them more in practice. Um, and then especially the one ch I put it too high for him. He had to make a he had to make a crazy catch. I shouldn’t have had to put him in that situation to make that catch. So, it’s really all, you know, depend on my accuracy. I had to be more accurate the football and I mean they’re there. We just haven’t connected with them from my from my side and the receiver side. But you know we just got to continue working it. Cam, this is your adopted now hometown team. To hear booms come down from fans, how does that make you feel? I play football, so um I’m always going to have my opinion. I’m not really too worried about that. And I’m trying to score points. We ain’t do that enough to win the game today. Um but I mean if I was them I wouldn’t be mad. I’d be mad, too. you know, I’m trying to win football games the same as theirs. So, you know, if that’s what they going to do, you know, we got to lock in as a group in the locker room and continue to motivate each other, push each other, and try to get a win. What would you say is the uh confidence level of the offense and just the team overall through three games? Confidence is high. Um, we know we have a legit football team to make a run. Um, it’s really just us beating ourselves from technique to, I would say, offensively just staying above the sticks. And at the end of the day, just come down to to us just continuously trying to fight adversity. Um we we can’t put oursel in that situation a lot of times. And the biggest thing just penalties. We got to, you know, be least penalized. Kim, you look at the sacks and the pressures that that you’re you’re under. When you look at some of the other younger QBs in the past, like that has quote unquote ruined them. What is it about you that will keep you from going down that same path? Um a lot a lot of the sacks are on me. I think that’s the biggest thing especially one at the end just not getting the ball out. You see him throwing the ball. So it’s just something that you know I got to continuously remind myself to just help him out get the ball out. Then at times where I need to hold on to the ball with this third down or so um then we all just got to continue to play together. But you know half half of the sacks are on me. Um the end of the day offensive line is going to get beat like they they playing get some good comp out there. So, you know, I just got to help them out getting the ball out and not letting them, you know, set not not taking a bad drop, but then making the angle easier for the DM. So, you would say self accountability, self-awareness, that’s what would keep you from, you know, going down a path of maybe a David Carr, a Josh Freeman where early they had those type of struggles as far as getting sacked all the time and ruin their career. I I’ll say that. And then just continuously motivating guys. um you know they they motivated me a lot especially after the pitch today just knowing that we got you and then just helping those guys out by getting the ball out. How important have you found decisiveness to be and are you doing better when you make a clear decision and and go with it and as opposed to to the plays where you might hesitate a little bit. Um I think I get better at that every week. Um and I I would say like Coach B and Cali and Coach Nick, they they’ve all just let me know what I need to do better to help the offense out. Um cuz there’s times a day where we’re moving the ball eventually. Um but that’s what we have to do throughout the whole season. We can’t have highs and lows. We have to be more consistent. When you were moving the ball, was that were you having the most success when you were being the most decisive? Um yes. Um even when we weren’t moving the ball, when I was being decisive, it’s all about, you know, us just trying not to stay trying not to be in long situations, trying to stay out of them. I was just going to say how how difficult is to keep moving the chain when you’re facing third and eight, third and 10, third and seven on a regular basis. Um, well, I mean third and 10 better being like third and 20. So, you know, I’ll take that all day, but we have to consistently try and live in a third and five world, third and short world cuz the the top offense in the league when they live in that world, they’re just more efficient on first, second down. So, you know, that that’s what we got to do. We did it at times today, but we just got to do it consistent next week.

Titans HC Brian Callahan and QB Cam Ward address reporters at Nissan Stadium after Week 3 vs. the Indianapolis Colts.

00:00 – 09:24 – HC Brian Callahan
09:25 – 17:04 – QB Cam Ward

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