Mangini Monday Press Conference

[Vegasdogg]

If, and a big IF, this guy can get the players to buy into his pitch, the Browns can make this year a good year. He isn't saying anything I disagree with. Maybe add some fire? I don't know. But I like his approach to the game and to the good/bad. Much different than RAC.

 

Browns Head Coach Eric Mangini press conference 9-14-09

 

(Opening statement)- “Good afternoon. Talking to the team this morning, I reiterated what I talked to them about yesterday after the game. As you look at the tape it was two totally different halves. When you play a team like Minnesota, who’s as talented as they are and who’s as explosive as they are, there really isn’t a margin for error. We are trying to eliminate errors regardless of who we play. Those errors get heightened when you play a team that’s as explosive as they are. That was the case in the second half. We had two turnovers offensively. We had six penalties as a group. We didn’t maintain the leverage that you need to maintain on a returner like Percy Harvin. You don’t consistently set the edge on Adrian Peterson, which I thought we did a good job of in the first half. It makes it really hard. The better the opponent, the harder it makes it. I think we saw the positive things that we can do when we play complementary football, when we play smart football. We saw the results when you do it the other way.

 

 

“The important thing about any Monday is how you approach it, because we can’t now control what happened yesterday. What you can control after a loss is what you take away from it. There’s a tendency after a loss to sometimes over analyze, be overly critical, all of those sorts of things and that can be counterproductive. On the flip side, after a win you can gloss over really glaring weaknesses or glaring things that have to be improved on and that can be counterproductive. The important thing for us, as a group, is to come in to get the corrections, to embrace those things and to really look at what, individually, each person can improve. What, collectively, we can improve. There were plenty of areas to do that. There are things that I could have done better. Obviously, I didn’t communicate effectively enough at halftime the importance of what we had to maintain. There were times in the game where I thought we could have done some things differently in terms of stopping the run, which would have helped us. I should have gotten that done quicker than I did. Also, the decision on the goal line to run the play the second time, that was my decision. At that point, I thought it would work. I thought it be successful and it wasn’t. Those are all things that I can look at and say, ‘How would I do it differently moving forward?’ That’s the value, that’s what I ask the coaches, that’s what I ask the players. That’s what I do throughout this process and it will be the same thing in a win. It will be the same exact thing in a win. Otherwise, you have no chance to get better the next week unless you really understand how you can get better the next week. I expressed to the guys today what my expectations were, in terms of the corrections, and then between today and tomorrow I expect them to get started on the Broncos and be ready to come in Wednesday to work on all the areas we’ve identified.”

 

(On what he hopes Brady Quinn takes from the loss)- “There’s a lot of things that I think, as you get more experience, you are going to do a better job with. There were a lot of things that Brady did that I liked. I thought some of the check with me plays that we had gave us a good opportunity in terms of the numbers we had at the point of attack and that’s not an easy team to run the football on. At times, yesterday, I thought we did that really effectively. In terms of the passing game, I thought there were some throws that I really liked, I’m sure he really liked, and some that I think we can continue to improve on. There was a good example where he had something that was a really smart check coming out of the run, trying to get the slant, but the foot work was a little bit wider than it could have been and that affected the throw a little bit. It’s correctable. That’s one example of multiple examples and, not just with him but with the group, but those things are things you can look at and see why it wasn’t as effective as you wanted it to, go out and work on it and next time come back and do it better.”

 

(On if Quinn was poised)- “Yes I did. I thought that anytime you are in a situation like he is, being a young player and he really is. I know he has been in the league more than one season, but in terms of experience and starts, it’s a young career. As you grow and experience things and do all of those things, that continues to get better. For an opening game, I thought he showed a lot of poise. I thought there were times where he gave us a chance on some plays that maybe we wouldn’t have had a chance on. He made some adjustments that showed not only a lot of poise, but a lot of awareness.”

 

(On if he is thinking about changing quarterbacks after the first game)- “What I am looking for is what I’m looking for from the group, is for him to be able to identify those areas that need to be improved. Going out, working on it and seeing that improvement. Anytime you have younger players, there are going to be some things that you have to work through and keep improving. The same thing is true with Alex Mack. There were some really good things in the game and some things that we are going to get corrected but he will grow. Brady will continue to grow. The important thing is their growth will be dictated by how well they continue to work. I expect both of those guys to work extremely hard at it.”

 

(On if Quinn is evaluated differently because of the defense he faced)- “No, I don’t really look at it that way. I honestly don’t because we are going to face whatever defense each week. There’s going to be some things we want to get done based on what they are doing defensively. Were we able to get those things done? If not, why not? If we were, how can we build on it the next time we see a defense similar to that? It wasn’t an easy challenge by any stretch, they are a really good team. They are a really good team in all three phases.”

 

(On what happened in the second half with the run defense)- “With Adrian Peterson, the key thing is to be able to set an edge on him, not let him get to the perimeter of the defense. When you say that, the edge can move. You can start in one spot and, even though you have an outside position on that offensive player, if you get extended as he extends, you may always have that outside leverage position but it’s not really an edge. You are trying to set a distinct boundary of you cannot run past this point. You need everybody to flow and make sure that each one of those spots, to where he could cut back, is handled. With him, he is like water. If there’s a crack, he finds it. I thought for the most part in the first half, it was sound. In the second half there were times where they were able to get some of those edges, even on the long run where he bounced it out, there was enough extension between the outside player and the inside player, where that edge had widened. It wasn’t a huge crack, but he was able to hit it. Once he gets into the secondary, you have to create a new edge and a new funnel, with the corner, the backside safety and the point. We didn’t do good enough on either level. He’s that type of guy, one slight miscue and it’s 64 yards.”

 

(On if he was referring to himself in the opening when he talked about not adjusting quickly enough)- “What I’m saying is, I think there are things that I could have done better, in terms of getting a more consistent fit on the front side. That’s always going to be my job, is to make sure that as these things come, and it was addressed. At different points, it worked with different levels of success. You’re constantly going through the game saying, ‘How does this work? If this doesn’t work, go to plan B if this isn’t working.’ You’re constantly trying to adjust. There are some things that I thought we did well in the second half, in terms of adjustments and some things that we can improve. It’s important. As I talked to the players, I explained the same thing, because it’s never going to be a function of player versus coach or offense versus defense or special teams. It’s all of us being able to objectively take a step back and say, ‘What can I get better at?’ That’s something I’m going to ask of them each week. That’s something I’m going to ask the coaching staff each week. It’s something I’m going to ask myself each week. It’s important that we do that.”

 

(On if Brady Quinn was trying to do too much on the play where the ball fluttered out)- “No. I’m not sure if it was Steve (Heiden), there was someone who kind of had come open. I saw what he saw. I think he just tried to cock it and throw it. Sometimes, that happens. He had a guy that had created a void. We ask that of receivers, as the quarterback gets on the move, we have certain scramble rules to provide windows for the quarterback to give him that run-pass option. I see what he was looking at. It could have just been one of those things where you bring it up a little too quickly and it skirts out.”

 

(On if Minnesota’s wide receivers being held to two catches is due to the secondary playing well or Brett Favre not going to them as much)- “I don’t know exactly what their plan was going into the game. I think that in the second half, they had some success early running the football. Often times, you stay with something if it’s working well. I did think, though, that the secondary did some really nice things in terms of their coverage. There are some things in the secondary, just like with all of us, that can improve. I thought the rush that we had was pretty good throughout the course of the day. I know we talk in here a lot about who the pass rusher is. This game is a good sort of indication of what I look for, in terms of pressure on the quarterback. We had four different guys get sacks. A lot of that is based off of what’s the protection? How can we beat the protection? Everybody being sound when you’re executing those plays. It doesn’t matter who gets it, whether it’s Brodney (Pool), or Abe (Elam) or Big Baby (Shaun Roger) or Kam (Kamerion Wimbley) or whoever. We’re all happy when he gets there.”

 

(On using the WildDawg formation twice on the goal line)- “In the first one we picked up, I think, five yards. They had kept the same personnel group in, four or five yards, and lining up quickly, it was a timing type play where you have to get it and hit it in the right spot. It looked like that was going to get the same front, the same call that we’d gotten the play before. I thought there was an opportunity to maximize that.”

 

(On if Brady Quinn not getting the ball to the receivers as much is a product of breakdowns in protection)- “There were some plays where they were able to get pressure. There were some plays where the throw could have been better. There were some plays where, really, the route could have been better. That’s a pretty formidable group, in terms of pass rushers, with Jared Allen and Kevin Williams, Pat Williams, Ray Edwards. They brought a couple different blitz looks. As we talked about in here, going into the first game there’s always going to be some things that get dialed up that aren’t on the radar screen. I thought Joe Thomas did a nice job throughout the course of the day. He drew a pretty tough assignment the first rail out of the box.”

 

(On if he had more input on the play calling than he normally would since it was Brian Daboll’s first game calling plays)-“No, I didn’t really treat Brian any differently than the relationship I have with all the coordinators. We talked throughout the course of the week, went through the plan, right on down the line. We talked about it prior to the play. He was thinking about coming back to that, I was thinking about another play. We were talking through it and we went with that decision.”

 

(On the type of conversation that goes on when they have long yardage to gain and are in field goal range)- “Some of that just depends, because where are you in terms of Phil’s (Dawson) range? What’s the weather like? What’s the score in the game? All those things factor in. What you always want to do is give yourself an opportunity to get the first down if you can, if it’s something that’s manageable. If not, make sure that you secure the points.”

 

(On if he gave up some of the vertical game to gain more overall by selecting Brady Quinn as the quarterback)- “I really thought that he made a nice throw, I thought Braylon (Edwards) made a nice catch on the one that ended up getting called back. I thought there was another pretty good throw down the sideline there late to Braylon that was close. The middle read that he had to Robert Royal for the touchdown, I thought that was a pretty good throw. I thought that was a pretty good route. It was kind of over the linebacker, in between the safeties. I thought there were some other ones that we had a shot on. I don’t look at it as us being limited in any way by what we can call offensively by any stretch.”

 

(On having more passes targeted at the tight ends than at the starting wide receivers)- “Sometimes, based on the way that they’re playing coverage, if they’re rolled up over both the receivers, there’s going to be more opportunity inside. You do that same equation, defensively, all the time. If you’re going to roll up over one guy, well you know the other guy’s probably going to get more coverage. If you’re going to isolate the tight ends more in man-to-man coverage without much help, you anticipate those guys getting a few more balls. What you’re trying to do is mix it enough, and disguise it enough, so pre-snap, the quarterback doesn’t know, ‘Okay, they’re rolled up over here,’ or pre-snap, doesn’t know that, ‘Hey, I’ve got a real opportunity with the tight end.’ Then you have to go back, post-snap, and see where is the coverage rolled? Where are those opportunities? Ideally, you go to the open guy or to the singled-up guy or to the best match up.”

 

(On if it is easier for the offense to make adjustments at halftime than it is for the defense)- “It’s different in the sense, Jeff (Schudel), that, yes I’d say that you’re right on there. You go in and you look at what’s happened defensively. You look at what’s happened and you say, ‘Okay, well if we get these situations again, these plays hurt us. This is how we want to handle it.’ Offensively, it can be a function of, ‘Okay, well these plays have been very successful. These plays haven’t based on the coverage.’ We can still run that second set of plays if we want to, but we’re going to adjust the routes. Maybe they’re playing more of cover four versus cover two. If that’s the case, you want to convert the route a different way, even though the core concept is the same. Offensively, maybe you’re getting a lot of a certain type of blitz. Well, if they’re going to bring this blitz again, let’s audible to this, some of that stuff. Some of it, offensively, is reacting to, this what they’ve done. How are we going to handle that? Some of it is, let’s give them more of X, Y and Z. More empty, more 22 big people. Defensively, you don’t get to control what goes out there. You can only react to what they put out there.”

 

(On how tough it is to make defensive adjustments on the fly)- “It’s really a collaborative effort, because the players have to come off and you have to talk to them. You have to look at the pictures. What you never want to do is look at a picture, and I’m not saying this happened, you never want to look at a picture, have a defense called and you can’t really see quite where the crease was. You say to a guy, ‘Hey, were you in your gap?’ He says, ‘Yes, I was in my gap.’ You think, ‘How are they getting this done?’ You want the feedback from the player. You want to understand where the weakness was. Then, you turn the tape on Monday and the guy wasn’t in his gap. You may have thrown out a perfectly good defense that could have been successful. Honesty is really important on the sideline. All the games are taped. We’re going to figure out where you were. It’s not about assigning blame ever on the sideline. It’s about, ‘Okay, where’s the problem? How can we fix the problem?’ Is it a problem with the scheme or is it a problem with how we execute the scheme? You don’t want to throw out a good scheme because you executed it poorly. You would much rather say, ‘Okay, against this block you have to play it this way or that way.’”

 

(On if he was disturbed by the penalties)- “Mary Kay (Cabot), I think it goes back to first half versus second half. First half we had two penalties and I thought we did a good job. The second half, we had six. First half we didn’t have any turnovers, second half we had two. First half we did a better job with the core things we indentified defensively. In the second half, we didn’t do quite as good a job with that. Like I said, when it’s Adrian Peterson or someone like that, it doesn’t take a lot of daylight to produce a big play. I said the same thing on special teams. There were some really good things, in terms of our leverage, the way we covered kicks and punts in the first half. That wasn’t as good in the second half. I thought we did a nice job in the return game when we had some of their core guys blocked up like we designed it. Josh (Cribbs) was able to do what he does.”

 

(On the false start penalties during the no huddle)- “Really, with as much work on the no huddle as we do, we’ve been working on that since day one, and those things are so inherently controllable. You’re told the snap count before you go out. You’re not reacting to anything. You’re told what it is. Now, you may come up and change it, which I understand. We’re also at home. It’s not like the crowd noise was an issue. There were things like that that come down to finishing, focusing throughout the whole game. Believe me, that’s one thing in many areas where we can improve.”

 

(On if Brady Quinn handled the two-minute drive like he wanted)- “You guys remember in the preseason, we were playing somebody, turned the ball over late, ended up kicking a field goal? I forget who it was. At that point, the score where it was, not going great on first down, it really wasn’t the risk-reward at that point. I’ve seen a lot of situations where the Minnesota pass rush, in that situation, has forced a fumble. Minnesota gets quick points at the end of a half. Based on where we were on the first play, based on where we were on the field, based on the fact that they had three timeouts, based on all those things, we weren’t looking to give them the ball back at that point.”

 

(On if he got to spend time with his family on Sunday)- “That’s the best thing about having kids, and young kids, is I saw Jake after the game and he said, ‘Who won?’ I said, ‘Weren’t you there?’ It just puts it in perspective and that’s good.”

 

(On what kind of team he thinks he has)- “I know that I may sound repetitive here, but I really believe in the fact that it’s this moment, right now, this team, how we work, how we do things, how we prepare, how we improve. That will determine what the season is. There is nothing you can do about what happened yesterday. There is nothing anybody in here can do about the things that took place yesterday. Those are there. What you can do, is you can learn from those things and you can improve the next time you have the opportunity to make those same decisions, or you’re faced with the same scenario. I don’t know what’s going to happen 10 weeks from now. None of us do. I know after this meeting, I’m going up and I’m going to work on Denver. That’s what I’m going to do. I’m going to focus on that preparation. After that, whatever the next thing is. I’m going to try to do the best job I can at that. Like Dan O’Brien says, it’s the five second rule. You can let things linger and affect your preparation for the next contest, or you can learn from it and move on.”

 

(On if he talked to Josh McDaniels last night)- “No, I figured we’d be talking a lot about Josh this week. Sometimes that ball really bounces in a way that’s just great. I’m happy for him. He’s a good guy. He’s a smart guy. He’s a hard working guy. He’s a good person. I’m happy that he was able to get the win that he did. I haven’t seen the game yet. I don’t know exactly how it unfolds. I just saw that one clip that I’m sure we all saw. Sometimes it just bounces the right way.”

[OconRecon]

... Maybe add some fire? I don't know...

 

I've often thought of this. I like the Gruden's and Cowher's of this world. But then they're balanced with the Dungy's and Belicheck's.

A HUGE difference between his insight and RAC's "we're trying to get better and do some things" responses.

 

Mangini seems to be unflappable and focuses his energy on things he can impact - efficient. I like it. As many of us know, the best decisions are made when emotion isn't part of the equation.

[razor1414]

Your right shep, before people start talking about switching out players after one game. These guys need time to gel as a unit. Its a whole new crew out there. Timing and Consistency on offense take time.

[DeadWombat]

Wow, talk about a cerebral approach to the game, and having accountability.

 

Yes, definitely much better than Romeo's mind numbing pressers where we get treats like "I don't know what happened" and "We're gonna try harder next week" and "I flipped the coin and that decided it"

 

 

I still don't like how he dodges questions and talks his way around what should be direct answers... but yes, nearly anything is better than listening to Crennel. I'm so glad those days are over.

[Brownshirt]

Wow, talk about a cerebral approach to the game, and having accountability.

 

Yes, definitely much better than Romeo's mind numbing pressers where we get treats like "I don't know what happened" and "We're gonna try harder next week" and "I flipped the coin and that decided it"

 

 

Hey Bud, you forgot the pregnant pauses............. and..................a....................we...didn't make many plays..............( drooling out of

 

the corners of his mouth, anticipating the orgy of food to soothe the agony of yet another defeat) and.............. a.................we'll get back

 

at it and...................... blah...............blah..................BLOB

[Vegasdogg]

I'm a Gruden/Tomlin/Cowher/Levy/Lombardi kind of guy - in your face bad AND good.

 

Paul Brown/Bill Walsh/Bill Belichick are more "this is the situation, this is how we attack" kind of coaches.

 

Both work.

 

(I think Dick Jauron missed a situation last night in not reminding his KR 'take a fooking knee" - i.e. 'this is the situation.....'

 

Anyway, I like more fire, but as I said if the players can buy into the message, I am hopeful.

 

Because this kind of presser can get old, just like the message.

 

Results is all that matter. We'll see, said the Zen master.

[Lumbergh]

(On if he is thinking about changing quarterbacks after the first game)- “What I am looking for is what I’m looking for from the group, is for him to be able to identify those areas that need to be improved. Going out, working on it and seeing that improvement. Anytime you have younger players, there are going to be some things that you have to work through and keep improving. The same thing is true with Alex Mack. There were some really good things in the game and some things that we are going to get corrected but he will grow. Brady will continue to grow. The important thing is their growth will be dictated by how well they continue to work. I expect both of those guys to work extremely hard at it.”

 

hmmmmm, didn't answer the question.....

 

you betcha he's thinking about it.

 

[Guest AdaM]

hmmmmm, didn't answer the question.....

 

you betcha he's thinking about it.

 

 

Wishful -whatever it is that you call thinking-

[Guest mz.]

hmmmmm, didn't answer the question.....

 

Mangini is, after all, well-known for his forthrightness with the media.

 

[kshutchins]

I was encouraged by the first half. I honestly expected the entire game to look like the second half.

What I hope to see this season is growth.... and growing excitement as the season progresses.

[ballpeen]

I still don't like how he dodges questions and talks his way around what should be direct answers... but yes, nearly anything is better than listening to Crennel. I'm so glad those days are over.

 

Any examples??

 

Not that he doesn't do it, but one thing we have to remember, he is talking about his players.

 

If a guy has a bad game, it may be discussed in private, but it isn't going to be discussed in the open.

 

Just understand, many times the questions we or reporters may have are questions that can't be answered.

 

As the coach, you are still trying to motivate players and at minimum retain their respect by not throwing them under a bus the first time they make a mistake or are clearly over matched.

 

Even the players who weren't in that boat this week don't appreciate that.

 

I think Mangini is straight forward, is well prepared, and doesn't crumble.

 

I think any evasiveness in his answers is simply a signal the question is on that won't be answered and the reporter needs to move on...especially when it is one asking for direct comment on this player or that player.

 

 

 

[Brownshirt]

I was encouraged by the first half. I honestly expected the entire game to look like the second half.

What I hope to see this season is growth.... and growing excitement as the season progresses.

 

 

Even if we lose, it would be nice to see a consistent 4 quarters of football. I think until we can show an even effort for a game, we aren't

 

going to see any appreciable progress. I watched 2 underdogs play their heart & soul out last nite only to watch their efforts get wasted

 

because they lost focus. No offense to anyone especially 'kshutchins' but enuff of this prck teasing.

[NW Ohio Brownie]

Look, guys. We're not a Super Bowl contender that just lost a game they should have won.

 

We are a team that just had a major overhaul in personnel, and the guys in charge are still trying to work with who's there and figure out who the keepers are.

 

My point is that Mangini's answers show his focus is in the right area: getting better and eliminating the unnecessary mistakes. He still wants to win, too, just like we all do. But he knows, and we should know, too, that this organization isn't going anywhere until he takes care of the details first.

 

Oh, and whoever asked that question about the QB change should lose his/her press credential. Are you insane? Do you realize what pulling a guy after one game is going to do to his psyche, the backup's psyche, and the team's psyche? No one will have any confidence in anything they do and the QBs will constantly be tentative and/or pressing to do too much. Unreal.

 

Also, I was pleasantly surprised at the way Jamal ran the ball Sunday. If he keeps that up and Quinn continues to develop we'll be okay.

 

Minnesota is actually better than I thought they were, especially on defense. Their back seven is sick. They could conceivably win thirteen games as long as Childress realizes who his meal ticket is on offense.

[Gips]

hmmmmm, didn't answer the question.....

 

you betcha he's thinking about it.

Sorry lums try again...

Heres your answer..

Source of answer

Despite the loss and at times shaky performance by Quinn, Mangini said he hasn't even thought about replacing him with Derek Anderson the way Romeo Crennel did with Charlie Frye midway through the 2007 opener against Pittsburgh.

"No, no," said Mangini. "What I'm looking for is for [Quinn] to be able to identify those areas that need to be improved and then going out, working on it and seeing that improvement. Anytime you have younger players, there are going to be some things you have to work through and keep improving.

[Lumbergh]

Yeah Mangini had this huge long drawn out QB battle at the end of which he decides Quinn is the starter, he's then going to, after ONLY 1 GAME flip flop on that decision go back to Anderson?

 

yeah that would never happen.......

 

hey have you ever heard of a guy named Charlie Frye?

[damajuki]

Wow. What a great read. This guy is articulate as hell. Refreshing is not strong enough a word for this.

 

What really strikes me is his focus on accountability, across the board, INCLUDING for himself and the coaches, the focus on learning from mistakes and using it to get better. The stuff about being honest on the sideline is just fantastic, about not assigning blame but just focusing on getting better, about fixing the issue. GREAT stuff.

 

If he's really practicing that and the players see it and see the results, he WILL be successful if given the time and the right people. He's doing a lot of the right things in terms of leadership, in terms of how he is setting stuff up.

 

Anyone who has ever done any actual organization-building, whether small or large scale, should recognize the method to his madness, the way he does things and the way he talks about things. The guy really does seem to get it. The question now is: can he teach it?

[Vegasdogg]

yeah that would never happen.......

 

hey have you ever heard of a guy named Charlie Frye?

Wow you're here posting after a Browns loss. I'm honestly shocked!! Usually when the Browns lose and the starting QB plays poorly you're off somewhere hiding, nowhere to be found. You've never faced the music after a poor performance by Derek, yet here you are all day everyday after a Browns loss. I wonder why you never had the stones to sack up and explain Dereks piss poor performances.

[lemosley01]

I don't think I've ever seen Lumbergh or osusev this 'cheerful' after a Browns loss.

[BrownIndian]

He was god at giving interviews of this caliber even when he was with the Jets.

[OconRecon]

Listening to Pluto's podcast...

 

- He feels the 2-minute drill was killed by penalties more than anything else. Braylon, Thomas, Davis, and St. Clair x 2. It totally kills the concept of keeping the D on their heals. He says Mangini was "clearly fuming" about these penalties during the presser.

 

- Says we need the WR's more involved.

 

- Quinn's numbers seem about right for this type of start against Minnesota. Didn't like the silly fumble. B - grade.

 

- Says we'll really know about Quinn after week 4 since its a nice mix of games

 

- Would like to see Cribbs throw or run the option out of the WildDawg formation. Otherwise, teams will quickly hone in between the guard and the tackle

 

- Denver's D and Minnesota's D aren't even in the same league and our O-line should de very well this week.

[Vegasdogg]

(Opening statement)- “Good morning everybody. How are we doing? In terms of the leagues’ decision yesterday, I’ll just reiterate what I said in my statement. I worked with the league in the matter. I consider it closed and our focus is on Denver.

 

 

“In preparation today, what we’re going to be doing is, as I talked about yesterday, following the typical pattern that we follow during a week of preparation. Today ends up being, mainly, the emphasis is more on third down. We’ll work on some two-minute specific stuff. We’ll review the things that we put in yesterday. I thought that yesterday, we had a good day of practice. I was happy with the way that the guys worked, the way the guys took the information from the classroom to the field. One of the things that I continue to stress with them is there’s a routine. There’s the routine that you go through here. That’s something that you have to maximize. Then, there’s your personal routine, whether it’s how much tape you study, how you study that tape. Do you study it alone? Do you work with your group? How you prepare physically. It’s especially important for young guys as they learn about the NFL as they go through this process, to figure out what works for them the best. I always ask the guys to look at it, identify some things that are weaknesses, whether it’s preparation or performance, have a plan to work on those weaknesses and then evaluate the plan, and that’s ongoing. I’m looking forward to practice today.”

 

(On if he is worried about facing additional scrutiny due to the injury report probe in New York)- “What I always look to do is do the best job I can possibly do and make the best decisions possible for the organization. That’s what drives any decision that we make and any decision that I make. You always go through a process, just like talking to players, make sure that they look at the things that they’ve done, the things they’ve done well and the things that they can improve on. Then, figure out the best way to improve on them. That’s a constant process for them, for me, for all the coaches. It doesn’t matter whether it’s the preparation, or any of the other things, that’s something I’m always looking to do.”

 

(On if the league has a double standard regarding injury reports)- “I understand the question, and I respect it, but in terms of other teams, or the leagues’ decisions, I can only relate to the one that I’ve been involved in. It’s closed at this point and the focus is on Denver.”

 

(On Jerome Harrison)- “He’s made great strides over the week. He had a pretty good week last week. We just thought it was better to give it another week. I liked the way that he worked yesterday. I’m looking forward to see how he does today and tomorrow, but I’m encouraged by his continual progress. He’s worked hard at it. I’m excited about it.”

 

(On the type of role Harrison will have)- “It really depends. As we had last week, there will be different guys in different packages. Jamal (Lewis) is going to have to know the packages that the other running backs run and vice versa. You want to have that flexibility. You may start out designing it one way and the game may dictate that you don’t go to that very much. Maybe you’re not in 11 personnel very much, where that could be a bigger role for him, or 12, 22. You don’t know how big it’s going to be, or how small it’s going to be, until you get into the flow and see what happens and where the game takes you.”

 

(On if Champ Bailey is one of the best corners in the NFL)- “He’s really good. Antoine (Winfield), last week, he’s pretty good too. I think Darrelle Revis is a young guy that that’s made a lot of progress and has potential to be really good for a long time. Nnamdi (Asomugha) in Oakland. There are a lot of guys that are really talented, talented guys and good players. The one thing I think, working with, I believe, good cornerbacks over the years, Ty Law, players like that, is the best ones keep working at it every day. The best ones keep going out. No matter how much success they’ve had, they keep going out the same way, trying to work on weaknesses, trying to understand where they can improve, really studying the receivers that they’re playing against. That’s something that Darrelle and I used to always talk about. I’d tell him, ‘It doesn’t matter how good you get, I’m going to stay on you to be the same guy every day. It doesn’t matter how old you get. It doesn’t matter how many Pro Bowls, whatever that is.’ The important thing is to keep improving. Darrelle was great about that. He worked each day to get better. He was a really talented young guy.”

 

(On what Bailey does in games that makes him so good)- “He can cover really well in man-to-man coverage and plays well in off coverage. He tackles well. He’s aggressive in his run support. He has good ball skills. He has good speed. He has excellent short area quickness. He’s savvy. There are a lot of plusses.”

 

(On if Brandon Marshall and Eddie Royal are match-ups that concern him)- “They had big games against a lot of people. I think those are two guys that can hurt you in multiple ways. Royal, he can take a reverse for a long way. He can hurt you on punt and kick return. He can take a slant and go for a long way. Then, he can beat you on a nine. He has that ability. Marshall, 104 catches, 105 catches, something like that. That’s a lot of balls. People knew where he was. He didn’t sneak up on people, and he still had that many catches. It’s tough. When you add the other guys into the mix as well, (Brandon) Stokley can do things that are difficult to cover. The backs out of the backfield create some problems. They have a lot of different ways that they can hurt you. I think both tight ends can do different things that can stretch a defense.”

 

(On if Randy Lerner came to the game on Sunday and their relationship)- “He came to the game. I talk to him pretty much every day he comes out. He came out on Tuesday. He comes out quite frequently during the offseason, during the in season, we spend time together. He has been great. He has been outstanding. One of the best things for me, with this job, is developing that relationship and getting his insight. The things that he has done with Aston Villa have been impressive. Sharing some of those experiences, there is cross over between professional teams, whether it’s baseball, soccer, basketball. There’s a lot of insight from that perspective. He’s committed to the team, to the city, to winning. He cares deeply about it and I feel that passion every time I meet with him.”

 

(On Kyle Orton)- “In his first game he had a 100 quarterback rating, 60 percent completion. He did a nice job in terms of running the offense, getting the different things lined up, assessing the defense. Any time your quarterback has a 100 quarterback rating and 60 percent completion, that’s usually a pretty good day, a pretty efficient day. Whether the numbers are higher or lower, or whatever the case may be, those are usually two pretty good numbers.”

 

(On if the quarterback rating is an accurate statistic to judge a quarterback’s game)- “I think it’s one element of judging a quarterback’s day. It’s different, too, if you’re judging your quarterback or you’re during somebody else’s quarterback. When you’re looking at your quarterback you know what the reads were, what the progression was, what the thought process was. You can look at it a little bit deeper. You don’t know what those things are based on your opponents reads and things like that. I think it’s one element to it. I think you’re always going to look at how it was managed, situational awareness, turnovers, reads. There are quite a few other things that come into play.”

 

(On if Josh Cribbs need to be put back on the punt and kick return coverage units)-“Like with run defense and in the coverage units, it’s about the group, it’s about leveraging the player and understanding how they’re going to block you and being able to recognize those blocks and being able to beat those blocks and get to where you’re supposed to get to. You can’t have missed tackles. You can’t have people vacating their responsibility. You have to cover the whole field. You have to be able to cover it quickly. You have to be able to read the scheme. There are some things that you can do to help your partner as you run down, to disrupt their blocking scheme. There are a lot of things that come into play. Josh is a very good cover player, but I feel like we have good cover players in addition to Josh.”

 

(On if he feels confident enough in Mohamed Massaquoi and Brian Robiskie to use them more)- “I feel confident with all of our receivers. I think George McDonald’s done a really good job with that group. I’ve liked a lot of things that they’ve done from OTAs through training camp, in the preseason games. It’s still going to be a growth process with those two specific players, being younger guys. There’s a growth process with Josh as well, getting the type of time that he’s getting. There’s also of learning involved there. As a group, I really like the way that they work. I like the things that I’ve seen here early, with plenty of room to continue to improve.”

 

(On if the statistic that wide receivers generally do not have a strong rookie season applies to Massaquoi and Robiskie)- “I don’t know what those numbers are, statistically. I’m not really sure. I look at it more in terms of, in the plays that they played, how well did they do. How well were they able to operate? How well were they able to execute the things we’re asking them to do, as opposed to the 1,000 yards or that criteria. You’d love it, but I think you can still have a very good, productive season and help the team win games without hitting just one landmark.”

 

(On if it rookie wide receivers are like rookie quarterbacks in that it is hard for them to master a complicated passing game)- “It’s been different over the years. I don’t know what Peyton Manning’s rookie numbers were like. I don’t know what Tom Brady’s rookie numbers were like. Do you look at his season as the first year he was with the Patriots, or do you look at it as the first year that he started? I’m just saying that any position, there’s two really good quarterbacks that have had great careers. There are some young quarterbacks that came in last year that I think did a nice job with the opportunities that they had. Really different rookie seasons for that group, but it doesn’t necessarily predict how it’s going to go. I think the same thing is true with wide outs.”

 

(On Brandon McDonald)- “I’ve liked the way that Brandon’s approached the mental side, in terms of studying his opponents, learning the scheme, things like that. The times that he’s had to answer questions on the opponent, I think that’s been good. I like the way he works in practice. He’s an aggressive player. The important thing with the cornerback spot is short memory. You can’t be bothered by the things that happened in the past. A lot of times that means the not so distant past. You may go out and get smoked for 80 and come back in and they’re probably going to throw it on you again. If you’re worried about that last play, you could end up giving another play. I know I’ve said this 1,000 times, but Otis Smith, he had the shortest memory of anybody that I’ve met, which is great. It was like that movie 50 First Dates, he can move on to the next play and it was new.”

 

(On McDonald’s interference call)- “With that situation, he was in phase with the receiver, which meant he had an equal position with the guy. When the receiver slows down, you know one thing, the ball is in the air. At that point, you want to turn, look for the ball, work into the receiver and then actually jump into the receiver, as opposed to jump out for the ball. If you jump out for the ball, most receivers push you, which extends it. You want to counter your natural tendency to jump forward. You want to jump back up and in to close his space. There are different phases that you have as a DB. If you’re out of phase, it means you’re beat. Don’t look back, run, just run. If you’re in phase, you have to play it that way. You can be out of phase, and you’re beat, and then suddenly you’re back to in phase, because the guy slows down. That’s a totally different read, because he’s slowing down, because the ball is there that minute. You could be running full speed, suddenly get back in phase, now you have to play the ball. It’s a totally different set of reactions. You work on all three. The other one is, you could be, actually, high on the receiver and he’s going to run a fade-stop and then you have to run back into him. That’s probably too much information.”

 

(On Eric Wright in coverage)- “I think one of the things that we continually practice, we’ll do it again today, is we practice tackling. Whether it’s Eric or Brodney (Pool), or Abe (Elam), or B-Mac (Brandon McDonald) or Hank (Poteat), any of those guys, most of the time they’re going to be in an open-field tackling situation. That’s the one that we do, the straight ahead tackling drill that we do, or they’re going to be leveraging out of the sideline. That’s the angle tackling drill we do. There’s a lot of space out there and you really need to understand what angle you have to take. You need to understand how to play those things. It’s something that’s a skill, like anything else, that you have to keep practicing. I know a lot of people say, ‘You’re in the NFL, you should know how to tackle.’ It’s not a question of knowing how to tackle, it’s a question of continuing to work at that skill set, so it’s always sharp.”

 

(On Wright’s coverage on Bernard Berrian)- “What he did a nice job on there was continue to widen the receiver to the sideline. Keep the cushion between him and the receiver really tight. Ty Law was the best I’ve ever coached at that. He could get beat at the line of scrimmage and then catch up with the guy. His strength, his natural body strength, would widen the guy to the sideline. That becomes a harder and harder catch to make, because there’s little room to fade away. I really liked that part of it. He’s done some other good things with that, as well. We’ll keep working at it, because each one of those skills, and just in press man coverage, there are so many different elements to it. There’s at the line of scrimmage. There’s the stem of the route. There’s the break point. There’s the deep ball. Each one of them there are specific things that you have to do well.”

 

(On why he decided to wear brown pants on the road)- “I thought that it looked good. In talking to the guys, they felt the same way. That was really the bulk of the decision.”

 

(On if he decided to wear brown pants to try to give the team a new look)- “They had used them before. No, it was no bigger part to that decision.”

[Vegasdogg]

Transcript: Eric Mangini, 9/21 - Mon, Sep 21 2009 at 10:35 pm

(Opening statement)- “Good afternoon everybody. In talking to the team this morning, the first thing I pointed out is really the situation we had in the third quarter. It’s about 1:30 left in the third quarter. We’re on the plus 44. It’s first-and-10. It’s 13-6. We don’t get much done with that drive, end up punting the ball. Start of the fourth quarter, the ball’s on the minus 29, their side of the field. It’s 13-6. It’s about inherently winnable a game, or as competitive a game as you’re going to see most weeks. When we did have the pressure that didn’t get home and they end up scoring the touchdown, that happens. That’s a chance you take and they score. At that point, just like in games that are coming up, it’s adversity. We’re going to have to deal with adversity and we’re going to have to be able to respond to adversity. Even a two-score game, with over 12 minutes left in the fourth quarter, that’s not something that’s, by any means, out of reach. I showed not too long ago, the Indianapolis game, where they were down by four scores late in the fourth quarter. It was Indy, Tampa. It happens week in and week out. The important thing is to be able to face adversity, deal with adversity, respond to it and do that effectively and not let one thing that happens turn into a series of things, to where the game does, essentially, get to a point where, at that point they’re running out the clock.

 

 

“What we did today is, we looked at the film, like we do each Monday, like we’ll do each Monday and talked about what needs to get fixed, how we need to fix it and what the plan is to do that. These things are correctable. They’re controllable. It’s just a function of taking control of them and making sure that we do get those items addressed.”

 

(On Brady Quinn seeming indecisive at times against Denver)- “I thought there were times that he made some really good decisions. There was one point, I forget which quarter it was in, but they brought a corner blitz off of our sideline. He hit Braylon (Edwards) on the sideline. He recognized the blitz coming was able to step up, sort of avoid the corners, the head on contact and get the ball out to Braylon. I thought that the two plays before we had the fumbled exchange, when we were backed up, he threw a nice ball on the in-cut. There were some other nice balls, as well. Then there were some plays where I felt like he could have done a better job with the read. He knows that and it’s been pointed out and those are things that we need to see a little bit better the next time was face it.”

 

(On if Quinn is facing typical growing pains of a young quarterback)- “Yes, I think there are a lot of things, offensively, as we continue to work against opponents and work together against opponents that we’re going to have to adjust to and improve on. With a team like Denver, that is game plan specific, you can go in and plan and anticipate, but there’s always going to be stuff that wasn’t on the list. You need to come off to the sideline, see those things, correct those things and hopefully pick them up and capitalize next time you see it.”

 

(On if a quarterback can think too much)- “I think that what you try to do, as much as possible, is gather pre-snap information. You try to understand what you’re going to get, formationally. If we’re in this formation, typically they’re in post safety; typically they’re in split safety. Sometimes when you play a game plan specific team, and I talked to the offense about this a little bit last week, it’s not necessarily what they do, and it’s what they won’t do. Ted Marchibroda taught me that a long time ago. He said, ‘Look Eric, sometimes you’re not going to know exactly what they’re going to do, but you’re going to know what they don’t do.’ Just by eliminating that set of choices, it narrows the scope of what you have to deal with. I always thought that he was fantastic at that, especially with quarterbacks, of identifying, ‘Okay, always or never. Always or never.’ It helped limit the amount of things that they had to choose from, as they dropped back and made their decisions.”

 

(On how much the struggles going on around Brady Quinn are affecting his play)- “As we talked about after the game Mary Kay (Cabot), it starts with the quarterback. Usually that’s what everybody looks at. Typically, they get a lion’s share of the credit and a lion’s share of the blame, but as you watch any play, it comes down to everybody doing what they’re supposed to do on that spot. You might be looking downfield to anticipate the in-cut breaking open or come back, or whatever it is, knowing that your check down is going to be in a certain spot. When you come back and that check down’s not where it’s supposed to be, that might be the difference between a sack and not a sack. They bring a corner pressure and the back is supposed to check front side, and then come back side, you have to trust that that’s being taken care of. Sometimes you can get sacked and the protection should have had it picked up. It may look like you moved into that sack, but that’s not necessarily the case. Same thing with routes, sometimes it looks like the throw’s way off and in reality, the adjustment wasn’t what it was supposed to be. It’s really relying on everybody doing what they’re supposed to do.”

 

(On if he plans to maintain the status quo and move forward)- “I know as you look at the tape, the items that we’re dealing with, a lot of those things were just things that, again, with a better decision, or with a quicker reaction can be fixed. You make better decisions and you react quicker as you continue to prepare at a very high level and consistently prepare at a high level.”

 

(On how he would categorize where Brady Quinn is at in his development)- “It’s hard to say, because some guys develop through playing and some guys can really develop quicker, not quicker, but develop still at a good pace, as they observe others. All the guys I’ve been around have been a little bit different that way.”

 

(On if Quinn learns from physical or mental reps)- “The one thing about him is, he does work at it. Even when he wasn’t playing, I’m sure he was working at it the same way. This system is different than what he’s been in since he started, but there is some carry over from some of the things that he did in college. Even though it’s different, there are some things that he can draw on from that point. He works at it, which is the most important thing. Collectively, we all need to continue to progress.”

 

(On when in the season he would start thinking about making changes in the starting lineup)- “As we go through each week, you’re always looking at the different combinations of people. One of the important things to me is how guys work, how guys practice. I’m not talking specifically about the quarterback position. I’m talking about all those positions. If guys prove that they deserve some more play time, then you give them that. If they practice better, or perform better during the course of the week, or they do something that flashes during the game, then you want to give them the opportunity. You want guys to know that they can continue to create play time for themselves. That competition is important. It’s important for all of us to continue to maximize our opportunities each week.”

 

(On why Brian Robiskie was not active at Denver)- “It was another good return that we faced this week, another good special teams group that we faced this week. It comes down to those decisions between a guy like Bubba (Ray Ventrone) or it could be Gerard (Lawson). There’s a bunch of different of guys that, sort of, are role players in their area. You look at the spots they play on teams and the depth that you have at that position, in terms of how many players you’re bringing to the game. It’s just a function of we went with a different combination this week. He has a great opportunity again this week to be active. I can’t stress the importance of special teams enough for everybody who wants to, either gain more playing time, or get to the 45 or even practice squad guys that want to get to the 53.”

 

(On if he plans to stay with Brady Quinn at quarterback right now)- “Yes, that’s exactly right.”

 

(On if the Browns have the talent to go out and be competitive each week)- “Yes, and I think we’ve shown that. I think we’ve shown that through different points in each game and through different periods in each game, but you have to be consistent. You don’t win the games at halftime. You don’t win the games until it’s finalized. You have to be able to play at the same level throughout the course of the whole game. Things are going to ebb and flow and you have to adjust and deal with it and react to the situation you’re in.”

 

(On the offensive line)- “I thought there were some rushes that they brought that we did a really nice job with, because they were things that we hadn’t seen before. I think that anytime you get in a situation where you’re behind by a lot of points, everybody in the stadium pretty much knows what you have to do. At that point it’s a function of, can you get open? Can you protect the passer and can the passer get the ball to the receiver, because there’s not a lot of disguising what you’re doing at that point. There are things that we can, obviously, improve with our protection and some things that we’ll continue to do with scheme, route adjustments, and things like that.”

 

(On if there is concern about Alex Mack’s snaps)- “It’s something that he’s going to work on. He’s going to work on it a lot. I had the same experience with Nick Mangold early on, where you’re getting adjusted to the speed of the game, volume of calls, and the different levels of protection. What you always have to remind yourself is first things first, and that’s snap count, getting the ball delivered to the right place and then getting your assignment. It’s no different than a receiver, and you see it all the time, where they start to run before they catch the ball. You have to look the ball into the tuck before you run and that’s where a lot of drops happen. You can’t get ahead of yourself. You have to take care of the first step before you can move to the third step.”

 

(On what the team needs to do to cut down on short plays turning into long plays)- “We talked a lot about that during training camp and just the concept of coordinated defense, where you may have a screen that goes for 70 yards and it shows up as 70 yards of passing. The reality is that it should have probably gone for about five or six, if you had then been able to leverage the ball carrier and get the guy down. We had an opportunity on the long run to make the tackle in the secondary and we didn’t get that done. Once the ball breaks through the line of scrimmage, you have to be able to create that second funnel with the corners and safeties and not allow the 15-yard run to be 60, because it will kill you. If that does become a problem, then you have to limit what you call defensively to make sure that you have enough guys back to compensate for that. You don’t ever want to be in that position, because now you’re playing left handed.”

 

(On if there are plans to mix things up at wide receiver since Josh Cribbs is still learning the position)- “Mohamed (Massaquoi) has worked in quite a bit, and so has Mike (Furrey). They’ll continue to work in. Josh has done some good things. This week there’s obviously some things that he could have done better. I anticipate that he’ll come back on Wednesday with a renewed determination to improve, because that’s how he’s wired.”

 

(On the reports that a player was fined $1,700 for a bottle of water)- “I won’t talk about the specifics of the fines or who’s involved, but I will say that I don’t like taking player’s money. The rules are in place because we have a very diverse group of people. The rules are set up to make sure that we can operate as effectively as possible. They’re clearly laid out. They’re clearly explained. Expectations are explained. I don’t ask anybody to do anything that anybody else in society isn’t asked to do, that normal, mature people aren’t asked to do. When we go to hotels, we have to pay incidentals. We don’t park in handicapped spots. We don’t park in fire lanes. We don’t park in somebody else’s spot. I mean, I don’t think anybody here does. I don’t think that the equipment guy deserves any less respect, or the secretary deserves any less respect than anybody else in the organization. They may not play on the field, but they have every right to be respected the same way. I believe in that. I believe that people should be mature and approach things in a responsible way. I believe that people in the organization should have that respect from everybody. I’m going to keep believing in that and I’m going to keep demanding that we have mature, responsible people as part of the Browns. I make no apologies for that.”

 

(On if it bothers him that players may not want to play for him because of his rules)- “No. I understand things can be presented in a lot of different ways. I’ve clearly articulated to the players why we have rules and regulations. It’s spelled out. There’s a grievance system. If they want to grieve it, they have every right to do that, but I also believe that everybody deserves the same respect. Everybody should be responsible, just like every other person in society is. They should operate the same way. I wouldn’t want my mother or my sister to come to a place where they were treated any differently and I believe in that. Like I said, I’m not looking for anybody’s money. I make no apologies for demanding a high level of personal conduct.”

[PlaygroundLegend]

Looks like Mangini was saying that Quinns poor play was mostly on the recievers and O-line

 

THOUGHT SO!

 

Brady Quinn will redeem himself when the rest of the squad stops playing like shit

[Greythan]

An interesting angle on Quinn winning the competition may simply have been related to his work ethic. No, this isn't a shot at DA. My point here is that reading Mangini's comments its not hard to imagine a guy like Mangini putting a lot of stock in guys putting in overtime.

 

We'd better hope that if the work ethic was a factor in Quinn's favor for Mangini, that it wasn't over weighted when it comes to actual game time execution. (i.e., sorta what the first two weeks have looked like) On the positive side, hard work often pays off so it may be simply a question of reps/time. (i.e., Quinn starts showing improvement)

[Vegasdogg]

My point here is that reading Mangini's comments its not hard to imagine a guy like Mangini putting a lot of stock in guys putting in overtime.

I am quite confident DA put in a lot of time as well. DA is a good kid, and we let one asshole on this board turn us against him. I still like DA as a QB. I am never going to be convinced he is a starter in this league or for this team, BUT, until Quinn starts making some plays his fawcet of good will has been shut off. Make some plays and throw a better ball. Grow a pair. The Ravens are going to expose you if you don't.

[Kosar_For_President]

Timing and Consistency on offense take time.

 

I don't think anyone told that to Mark Sanchez and Joe Flaco.

[MoonlitKnight]

Looks like Mangini was saying that Quinns poor play was mostly on the recievers and O-line

 

THOUGHT SO!

 

Brady Quinn will redeem himself when the rest of the squad stops playing like shit

anything to support your world view...did MANGINI actually say"quinns poor play was due to poor play by the receivers and o line?" Nope..he did not nor would he,as far as quinn "redeeming" himself..I won't hold my breath...perhaps you should take a look around and see what impartial writers around the country are saying about our Browns and your boy... you might have your perspective altered...and if you think the Ravens aren't waiting anxiously to feast on some quinn you are sadly mistaken

[Vegasdogg]

I don't think anyone told that to Mark Sanchez and Joe Flaco.

Long season my friend. Lets not go comparing what they do to what we have here. Put Flacco or Sanchez on this team - with no Running game and a bottom of the league D - and call me then. Flacco wasn't asked to do a whole lot, and Sanchez is two games into the league. I love them both as QB's so far. But that is crazy to compare where they're at and the D/Run game they have.

[Guest Masters]

I don't think anyone told that to Mark Sanchez and Joe Flaco.

 

Flacco last season was far from spectacular when looking at his individual play. Having a year to be the starting QB w/ that D and running game helped him greatly coming into this year.

 

Sanchez is two games in. He also came on to a team that if not for a bad Favre arm was poised to be the AFC East champs. So he didn't exactly go to a bottom talent team there.

[MoonlitKnight]

You mean those same impartial writers from around the country that said in 2007 we would suck? or in 2008 we would be good?

 

Yeah I take a lot of stock in what they say.

Unless you reside under a rock you should know that every year teams percolate to the top of the NFL cauldron that the season before were bottom feeders, and writers have been and will be wrong, but gradually a concensus builds, but do as you like..doesn't matter to me. I just find it amazing that some fans,despite evidence they see with their own eyes still look for excuses to mitigate their favorite players mistakes,and poor play.