Skins Quotes 11/15/18: Gruden, Manusky

November 15, 2018

Head Coach Jay Gruden

On injuries:
"Did not participate were [Jamison] Crowder, ankle; [Quinton] Dunbar, shin, [Dustin] Hopkins, groin; [Chris] Thompson, rib and [Trent] Williams, thumb. Limited were [Morgan] Moses, knee; [Ty] Nsekhe, ankle; [Daron] Payne, shoulder; [Samaje] Perine, calf; [Montae] Nicholson, illness."

On how K Dustin Hopkins is progressing:
"I don't know, tomorrow is the day he kicks, so we're going to see how he does tomorrow. Tomorrow is a telling day for us with 'Hop'."

On bringing in a specialist for kickoffs:
"I think the days of Tress [Way] kicking off are over, hopefully. So, we'll have somebody be a kicker, kickoff and kick field goals and extra points if Hop can't go but we're still optimistic."

On ways to get TE Jordan Reed open:
"I think a lot of times we try to make him the primary, based on the play and sometimes the coverage might dictate the ball going somewhere else and sometimes he's not the primary, where he does get the ball. Everything is coverage related. Obviously you get man-to-man and you're going to work the man matchups, the best matchups. Sometimes that's Jordan, sometimes that's [Josh] Doctson, sometimes it's our slot, and sometimes it's our Z or our halfback. It's all play dependent but obviously being one of our best route runners and most productive guys, he tends to get more looks than the average guy.

If there is chemistry growing between Reed and QB Alex Smith:
"Yeah, I think so. I think it's going to continue to grow. During a lot of the six games that we've won, we didn't have a lot of passes in those games. I think we threw for under 200 yards in four of them, maybe, that might be the fact. When you're not throwing the ball 45 times and having 30 completions, statistically you're not going to get the numbers. I think his numbers will come, hopefully."

On if he had a snowball fight today:
"No, no [Laughter]."

On if WR Trey Quinn can contribute on Sunday:
"Yeah, I think so. We'll make sure he's good to go. We haven't made a decision on if he'll be up or not but there's a good chance that if he does play, he'll be our slot guy and return to punt return and put [Greg] Stroman back in other categories in the punt return game, so that's good."

On RB Chris Thompson:
"Yeah he is, talked to him this morning and this afternoon and he is feeling better. I think the previous rib injury has healed, which is good. Now, the other side that was injured is coming along. We'll take it day by day. I said he's probably going to be out, but you never know. We'll get a look at him tomorrow and if he feels good there is a chance but I think the most important thing with that injury is time and only he can really tell us because there are X-rays and all that. But, he's the one that's got to deal with the pain and when he feels like he's ready to go, he'll go."

On WR Jamison Crowder and if there was a setback:
"I don't think it's a setback. I just think he came out there and when you have an injury like that, it's important to go out there and test it when you feel like you can and he did all the stuff with the trainers and the strength staff. They felt like it was a green light for him to try and go practice and see what he can do. It just didn't quite feel right for him making those full speed cuts, so we kept him out again today and we'll see where he is tomorrow."

On the importance of the turnover margin:
"Yeah, that's the reason why we won six games, really. The turnover margin and we've done a great job of protecting the football with a few exceptions. Our defense is getting the ball out and getting the ball back for our offense. I think that's one telling stat usually that you can look at and say, that's a successful team, they're plus-11, they're minus-16, this is a team that's struggling. So yeah, it's a very important stat, it's one of the most important stats, that, third-down, red zone obviously very, very important."

On why S Ha Ha Clinton-Dix has fit in so well:
"I don't know, I think it's just the type of guy he is. I think he's just a great football player number one and he demands respect because he's been a playmaker and been to the Pro Bowl. But, he also comes in and is willing to learn, willing to work. When you go out and get somebody like that, with the ability that he has and the Pro Bowls, sometimes you're not sure. Is he better than… does he think he's better than everyone else out here? But that's not the case at all, he fits right in, he's been a great leader, an upbeat guy, learned and played well last week and we anticipate him getting better and better once he gets a full grasp of the defense, which I think he already has."

On Houston Texans WR Demaryius Thomas:
"Yeah, Demaryius has plenty of film so those guys could watch with the computers that we have now. We can take all his route targets from Denver and just watch him run routes. But, you're right he is going to fit in a different system, with a possible different route tree. The play passes, the big play ability that they have, with obviously 'Hop' [DeAndre Hopkins] and him together is pretty dangerous. A great addition for that football team but we have to make sure we're well aware of another team with great receivers. This is another week, every team seems like they have them and we just have to go out and do the best we can and compete."


Defensive Coordinator Greg Manusky


On his assessment of the defense's pass rush against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last week:
"It was good at times. I think the quarterback did a great job of scrambling out of the pocket, you know. He did a great job. 'Fitzy' [Ryan Fitzpatrick] is known to scramble out of a tight compartment at times, just like this guy [Deshaun Watson] that we are playing this week. We had pressure. We had opportunities to get sacks. We just didn't make them at times. We had a couple at the end, so it was alright."

On CB Josh Norman lining up on different receivers:
"It depends from week to week and who you are playing and stuff. I think this week, we just go at it with the know-about that we are probably going to put him on the best receiver that they have because he's a good cover guy. Last week, he did a good job on number 13 [Mike Evans], so this week we will see what happens."

On Norman being versatile in matchups:
"It gives you an opportunity to play different coverages of what you want to play. You can single them up and put a little more pressure on the quarterback. Usually, that's what it is."

On comparing Houston Texans QB Deshaun Watson to other quarterbacks that the defense has faced:
"He does a great job. He reads coverages pretty good. I know it's his second year but he just feels the pressure. That's the best thing that I think this quarterback does, is he feels pressure up the gut, he feels it on the edge, he does a great job of scrambling, getting out of situations where he knows that he'll get pinned in. Overall, he does a great job of keeping his head up the field and seeing the routes that he has in front of him. So overall, he does a good job."

On analyzing a game where you gave up 500 yards and just three points:
"That's the best [Laughter]. I'd rather give up three points than 29 points or 30 points. From our standpoint, we knew they were a good offense. They led the National Football League, so from our standpoint, we weren't going to give up any big plays and from our standpoint we didn't do that per say. I know we gave up 500 yards, I know it was in two-minute situations as well, but overall I think the guys played hard. They played physical. We stopped the run and we didn't give up the big plays. When you do that in this league and you play good red zone [defense], good things happen."

On the home field advantage at FedExField:
"To me, I think it's huge. Those road trips… sometimes when you are taking the road trips and you've got to fly on the plane, you have the hotel, you're there and you see your brothers, which I did down in Tampa – wasn't a good idea, but anyway [Laughter]. Sorry Frank. Overall, I think it's just distractions and stuff. I think when you are at home, you're at peace and you understand it. You know everything about the locker room, the training, all this, the chiropractors, and all that kind of stuff. Then you go out there with the home crowd, you're excited and play. D.J. [Swearinger] was saying, it was so loud sometimes it's hard from a communication standpoint for our defense but the offense has got to do it on the road. From our standpoint, that's a good thing for us and it was great seeing a lot of guys down in Tampa. The Redskins fans down there were awesome. There were a lot of them down there."




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