WFT Quotes 9/24/20: Jack Del Rio

[Boone]

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September 24, 2020

Defensive Coordinator Jack Del Rio

On the defense’s matchup this week:
“Every week is a new set of challenges. Obviously they’re a very talented group—a big, physical line and two
backs that are rushing for a huge average. So, they’ve been very impressive with the way they run the ball.
They’ve got a lot of talent on the perimeter as well. So, we’ve got some challenges and we’re just preparing
ourselves to go compete.”

On being patient with younger players:
“To me, I’m trying to squeeze everything I can out of each and every rep. [Head Coach Ron Rivera] has an eye
on the future; I’ve got an eye on right now. We’re just trying to perform as well as we can each week. Each
week is a new set of challenges, new people, new schemes that you’ve got to learn and understand their
tendencies and their strengths and weaknesses and put a plan together and go attack them. That doesn’t really
change in terms of looking at certain people or competition.”

On what they want to improve on this week:
“We just want to continue to grow. We’re a unit that—I think we’ve got the ability to play at a high level. We
expect to get that done. We just want to see growth. We want to see consistency. We’re getting good effort. We
need to clean up some things and that’s what we’re doing. We’re just teaching and developing and working
with our guys. We just have to do it at a higher level. I’ve got to coach it a little bit better and we’ve got to play
a little bit better. That’s always the way you feel and talk about it. Coming off a loss, I feel the exact same way
coming off a win. There are a lot of things I felt we had to improve off on Week 1. Week 2 is no different.
We’re looking forward to the next chapter.”

On if anything jumped out from the miscommunication in the secondary during the Cardinals game:
“Not really, no. I don’t think it was a lack of communication. I just think we didn’t execute the way we need to.
Obviously, we’re always going to look to be at our best and performing at the highest level and taking care of
business and playing fast and making those plays. There are a couple that weren’t made that have been
addressed and we’ll clean them up and continue to grow. Again, as coaches, we’re wanting to make sure we
continue to teach and develop and create an understanding so our guys can play faster and faster. The reality is
the other team’s going to make some plays from time to time. We’ll tip our hat to them and then move onto the
next play. We’re not going to dwell on negative things. We’re going to correct, teach and move on.”

On how to get the defense back to an aggressive nature:
“Not face [Cardinals QB] Kyler Murray. I think that’s the biggest thing. I just think we were a little tentative.
We understand the need to not let him get out and run around. He still did get out and run around a little bit. I
just thought that we left some things out there in terms of the approach we took and the concern we had and
maybe didn’t cut it loose enough. There’s a responsibility and when you’re dealing with special talents like that.
I told the guys, we had a Barry Sanders rule: ‘You can’t relax until you’re on the bus.’ It’s just part of the deal.
Kyler had some plays that were amazing plays on his part. We’re just looking at it through that we weren’t quite
as aggressive as we needed to be and want to be. Part of that was just maybe understanding what we had to get
done and maybe overcommitting to it, kind of playing cautiously to make sure we had him contained. I thought
there were some opportunities to grow in terms of how we tackled them and how we rushed them.”

On if the defensive transition:
“We’re doing some good things. We’re doing some things we need to do better. Any time there’s a change,
there’s going to be some learning that takes place. I feel good about the way—I think guys are understanding
what we’re looking for. We’re getting closer and closer. It’s an ongoing process. It’s not like you arrive and it’s
perfect or ‘OK, we’ve got that figured out.’ There’s always challenges. I feel like we are getting a very firm
grasp on exactly what we are looking for. I think guys understand it. We pride ourselves on teaching details as a
staff. Ultimately, it’s up to the players to be professionals and go attack it and go put their mark on it. I talk a lot
of times about with our guys, we’re not painting by numbers. It’s not like the ones get red and yellow goes in
the ones with two and number three those get purple. We’re not painting then go outside the lines. To me, it’s a
free-flowing thing. Our guys understand—or are beginning to understand—what we mean in terms of anchor
points and knock back and some of the things we look for in an attacking 4-3 front.”

On if the defensive transition is a concern:
“Not at all. That’s not a major concern at all. It’s a part of the natural growth. It’s a part of what we do. That’s
just a part of the transition from 3-4 to 4-3. It was talked about. That’s why I’m talking about it. I don’t spend a
lot of time talking about it. We do what we do. That’s why we do it and this is what we do and this is what we
expect. Get it done, you’re a professional. If you get it done and do it a lot, we’ll get you on the field. If you
don’t, you’re not going to play as much. It’s pretty simple.”

On signs of progress:
“As a group, we’ve done some really good things. There’s some obvious issues where we want to clean things
up and we’re working to do that. Sometimes people that look at the tape have an opinion and it may not be
exactly what is being taught and what we’re looking for from a scheme standpoint or from a staff standpoint.
We’re looking to have clarity. Our guys understand the issues that we’ve had and how we have the answers to
and how we’re going to play those things. We look to improve as we go through the year and that’s just
teaching and coaching and moving forward. That’s kind of how we address it. I like our group, I like our guys, I
like our defense, I like the people in our room. I think the coaches and players—I think we’ve got a good group.
It’ll start with me. I’ll do some things better and help our guys and everyone will do their part. That’s the way I
approach it.”

On playing in a road game without fans:
“I wouldn’t say it gives you any kind of advantage. I think to me the whole league is working through this
without fans in kind of this setting. I don’t know that anyone is gaining an advantage. I think to me you go out
and you play and you compete. The difference is we don’t have the terrific fan interaction. That’s the part I said
last week. That’s the part I miss a great deal. I hope at some point we’ll be able to get our fans back in the
stadium and have that interaction that I think is so special.”

On eliminating a certain phase of the Browns offense:
“I don’t know that we can quite eliminate people like that. I wish it was that easy. I think they’ve got a good
group. They’ve got talent throughout their roster. They’re running the ball at a really high level. They’ve got
extremely talented receivers and a gifted quarterback. This is a big challenge and we’re looking forward to it.
We’re going to put together a plan and go compete. We recognize their abilities. We also recognize our own.
So, we’re looking forward to matching up and going out there and looking for win number two.”

On what he can do better:
“I prefer to keep our business pretty much in-house. I recognize areas and I’ll discuss that with the team: ‘These
are things that I’ll do better for us going forward.’ That’s how I want the entire group to look at it. I think by
establishing that I’m going to take ownership and showing examples of some things that I can do better. I think
they understand that we all are in it together. It’s not lip service. I’m not sitting back. Our staff isn’t sitting back
and saying, ‘You, you, you’ve got to do this.’ We’re saying we need to do these things. I’m leading the way
saying, ‘I can do these things better right here.’ We all kind of chip in and do our part and be accountable to
each other and then we have a chance to really grow, learn and grow past it.”

On if there have been players that changed his ways of coaching:
“Of course. Over a long career, a lot of different people impact you in different ways. I think on both levels
players and coaches have impacted the way I look at things, the way I coach, the person I am. We spend a lot of
time together. You definitely are impacted in various ways. That would be a long sit-down discussion because
it’s pretty deep. There’s a lot to it. There’s no question that players and coaches impact who you are.”