Read the full transcript from General Manager Chris Grier and Head Coach Mike McDaniel's press conference on Monday, Jan. 16, 2023.
Chris Grier:
(Obviously it's unfortunate that CB Byron Jones couldn't help you this year. There's not a lot of cap relief by cutting him until after June 1. Does he intend to keep playing and also is there any desire to try to salvage that perhaps with a restructured deal or do you think basically both parties will be moving on from each other at this point?) – "Byron (Jones) worked hard trying to get back. Unfortunately it didn't work out. He did his best. Training, doctors, everybody worked hard. The season just ended. We're not there yet. We're still – after the tough loss yesterday, we're kind of licking our wounds and just going about our process and we'll meet with the coaching staff here, trainers and doctors to talk about every player on the roster. So we're just not there right now to deal with it, but Byron did everything he could to try and play so no qualms with that at all."
(Did you consider this a successful season and if so, why?) – "I would say successful, but at the end of the day, every team's looking – all 32 teams are trying to get to that ultimate goal. But it was successful. I would say not satisfied. I think to watch the guys compete yesterday, knowing the injuries we had – we've played that team three times, Buffalo – and what Coach McDermott, Brandon Beane and those guys have done is tremendous. I have great respect for them and told them that after the game. For our guys to go out there in that environment and most of that roster hadn't been in a playoff environment before, and go down 17 and not blink and come back and fight and get into it, and have a chance late in the game to tie it up or potentially win; very excited. We're disappointed we lost, but very excited, so I would say yes, it was a successful season."
(Yesterday, we asked Head Coach Mike McDaniel about QB Tua Tagovailoa's standing with the team and he essentially said yes, we intend to welcome him back as a starter and leader of our team next season. Now with that being said, I was wondering if you could kind of elaborate on that and in terms of the offseason. Do you plan to exercise his fifth-year option? In terms of a long-term view, where are you with that?) – "Yeah, I would say with Tua (Tagovailoa), he's our starting quarterback. I don't know how we could say it any more clearly. We've been that way through this season and what he's done and what Mike (McDaniel) and Tua, (Darrell) Bevell, Chandler (Henley), the coaching staff have all done; they've all worked tremendously hard, all of them together. So Tua – we anticipate him, worked with and talking with the doctors and consultants and everyone we dealt with, we fully expect him back next year 100 percent ready to go and then we'll get through all those decisions like I said, just like we talk about every player on the roster. Obviously I understand because it's Tua and that's why the question is being asked. We'll go through our process but he is our starting quarterback and will be next season."
Mike McDaniel:
(If I could follow up on General Manager Chris Grier's response there, is it just a process that QB Tua Tagovailoa has to go through to ensure that he's healthy coming into at least OTAs …?) – "Yeah, absolutely. That's something that's driven by the doctors. Those are the things that – they're the experts in those fields – and when they tell us that he's ready to play and as we expect, when they tell us that he's ready to play coming in the spring or whatever, then we'll press forward in that direction."
Chris Grier:
(With concussions – again, I'm a few credits short of my MD – but what I've read is that if you have a couple, you might be susceptible to getting more easily. Is that a concern with QB Tua Tagovailoa and what confidence do you have that this won't be a recurring issue for him?) – "I think from what our doctors and the consultants we've talked to through the NFLPA, that is not a true statement. So for us, I don't think he's any more prone than anyone else. So for us, we're just going through and letting the doctors and the medical staff and the people in that field, like you said that know a lot more – but from everything we've been told, that is not a concern."
Mike McDaniel:
"Yes, specifically, these are the doctors that are working with him directly and individually as opposed to a generalization."
(The two concussions were when he hit his head from the back. Is there anything you can do for his helmet or anything? Are you guys looking into that? Are you looking into something like that?) – "What's interesting is his helmet is one of the higher-rated helmets. It's in the top two or three, I think, from the NFL rating. I believe it was, I think No. 3 or No. 2 … but it's in the top for helmet safety. I think with every player, that's a choice that they make. They all like the comfort, feel and whatever, but I think those will be discussions that he'll have with all of us – equipment, doctors and stuff. But it is a very safe helmet in terms of how the NFL has rated helmets."
Mike McDaniel:
"And with regard to – our plan is to kind of approach it like you do a young quarterback who's not used to sliding. We have ideas and thoughts of how to help him because that is a consistency that we've noticed as well, is that they're ground-induced. So like everything else, we'll do everything in our power to help coach them and that's a new way to attempt to coach."
(What are your thoughts on the job that Josh Boyer did as defensive coordinator this season?) – "I was very, very proud of the defense, the coaching staff and the players – specifically the very end of the season. I think the last three regular season games, in a place of adversity, they found their best self, I think. And then I couldn't be prouder of yesterday, specifically with – you're talking about seven sacks and turnovers and just really aggressive play. So I'm very, very proud of the way the defense finished the season."
(Have any changes on the coaching staff been conversed about?) – "It's pretty early. I think 24 hours ago, we might have had a lead, maybe. One of the things that I've found from my experience in the National Football League is that it's very long. It's very emotional. And you're not always – you can lend yourself to living with regret if you make any sort of decisions emotionally. So we're going to go through the process and you've got to kind of let things simmer for just really the entire coaching staff, just like you do with players, and have communication. But it's going to take a minute and we're just out of it. I'm just getting my feeling back in my in my hands from the cold winter Buffalo skies."
Chris Grier:
(How extensive will your research be this offseason, getting ready to find those diamond top players in the draft?) – "Yeah, I think it's the same process we've always had. It doesn't matter how many picks we have or what. You have to go through it because you have to be ready for every scenario. So our guys were out at all-star games last week. They're out at all-star games now – all of them from all divisions, HBCUs. They've been at the all-star games. So our guys are in the middle of that process right now and then I'll jump into it here the next couple of weeks coming up with the East-West (Shrine Bowl) and Senior Bowl and stuff."
Mike McDaniel:
"That's the only way that you have – you don't plan on having injuries. You just plan on going through the process like they do and the coaching staff will join eventually. And when you go about it with that diligence and that intent, you wind up with players like Kader (Kohou). We didn't go out trying to find a corner that would start for us, but he ended up starting because you're doing your due diligence."
Chris Grier:
(What are your early leanings on TE Mike Gesicki after watching one season of the marriage between him and this offense?) – "I think Mike (Gesicki) did a good job this year. I think we had a great individual conversation with him probably a couple hours ago. I told Mike I was proud of him. He did a nice job and made some plays yesterday for us, got us back in the game. He worked through it all this year. We'll see what the future holds. He's earned the right to be a free agent, but we're happy for him and he did a nice job. I know his teammates are happy for him, as you saw when he scored the touchdown yesterday."
(There obviously was hope that OL Liam Eichenberg would thrive at left guard and T Austin Jackson at right tackle. Unfortunately, both got hurt. Liam ended up playing more. Do you have any initial instincts whether you want to continue down that course with those positions, with those players, to allow them to win starting jobs next year or if you need to address those two positions elsewhere this offseason?) – "I think at every position we'll always keep – but they're two young players and again, this would be the first offense they will be in for two years in a row. Liam (Eichenberg) showed some really good signs of playing well for stretches after adjusting to the system and being asked to do stuff he had never done before. We actually joked before one of our games when he got hurt, a coach and a GM of another team came over and was like, 'Man, losing Eichenberg hurt, because he said he'd been playing really well for you.' So it's encouraging to hear that from others and to see work that Mike (McDaniel) and (Offensive Coordinator) Frank (Smith) and (Offensive Line Coach) Matt (Applebaum) and the offensive staff put in with him, and his hard work as well. Then Austin (Jackson) was playing really good. He was the one we were talking about all preseason and then he gets hurt Week 1 on kind of a fluke thing. Then he comes back and (has the) same injury, which is a one in a million thing. Again, he's still young, a lot of upside, needs to keep developing and continue, but he's still – they're both part of the plan, and we'll give them opportunities to grow and compete here."
Mike McDaniel:
(I know the season just ended, but what were some of your biggest takeaways or lessons learned from your rookie season as a head coach?) – "There's a lot to learn each and every game, just each and every experience. I didn't really realize how rewarding a lot of things would be. I didn't realize how certain things not going your way would keep you up quite as late at night. I think all in all, I think that's kind of the nature of how I've learned to try to attack each and every year in anything you do is find more to learn from than the Average Joe. So that doesn't change in this seat by any stretch – there's new things that happen every day. I'm excited to have a little experience with handling each and every one of them. Although I've thought about it, it's a different thing to really attack it. You learn that you are only as good as everyone you work with. I think I thought about that going into it. That was a principle and philosophy of mine, but truly living it, you just rely on a lot of people deciding to go in one direction. It's a humbling experience, but it's also very validating and reinforces what the position truly is – that you are a service to a lot of people that are trying all to do the same thing. Trying to orchestrate that is not easy, but it sure is worth it."
Chris Grier:
(How do you approach QB Tua Tagovailoa's contract coming up with the fifth-year option and if possible, an extension?) – "Like I said, we'll have discussions and talk through it, just like we'll have discussions with Christian Wilkins and all these other guys that are coming up here."
(Are you open to taking the fifth-year option with QB Tua Tagovailoa?) – "I think everything is on the table for us."
(You mentioned DT Christian Wilkins, who is eligible for an extension. How big of a priority is getting that done after the type of year that he's had?) – "Yeah, Christian (Wilkins) has had back-to-back really good years for us. Everything he's done on and off the field. Last week, it was a Wednesday or Thursday?"
Mike McDaniel:
"Thursday, I'll never forget it."
Chris Grier:
"(laughter) (Mike McDaniel) is in my office talking and it's about 6:45 (p.m.) and all of a sudden, he goes, 'What is that?' And it's dark and the lights are on the field. We see someone working out. 'Who is it?' So he flashed the laser pointer on him and he looks up and it was Christian (Wilkins) out there by himself at 6:45 (p.m.) in the dark doing drills to work. So that's just the type of person he is and how much he loves this game and the leadership role that Mike (McDaniel) and the players have empowered him in. So for us, yeah, it'll be important to talk to him and work with him and keep him here, because he's been a big part. He was one of the first guys here through this, and we talked about that after the Jets game. We hugged after he does his usual jump trying to knock me over and hurt my ACL. (laughter) But we talked about that – he'd been through a lot of stuff and how happy he was to get a chance to go to the playoffs."
Mike McDaniel:
(Can you talk about yesterday coming close but also the last few minutes and time management and all that? You probably thought about it. What went wrong? What can you correct?) – "I always think about – so I think about it this way. So there's, I think, in the regular season offensively, there was 1,084 plays. It's like kind of a baseball player. A lot of them don't work with every one (of them) intending to work. So there's a lot of constructive criticism that I put on myself, first and foremost. The bottom line is in the biggest moment, we weren't able to execute. There was compounding variables to that, things that you can't really change in hindsight. There are some things that, as I mentioned before, that I need to work out with the staff. The bottom line is I need to work it out with the staff. So if it became a problem in crunch time, that's ultimately my responsibility. It wasn't necessarily for a lack of direction. It was more just really working on the nuances of communication, which starts with me. That being said, I think that's the most important thing that I took from it. I don't think it helped the situation to have the rookie quarterback in a (third) start with a new starting running back, a new starting left guard, a new right guard and a new starting right tackle. All those things hurt communication, probably. The way I look at things is in hindsight, you learn that (with) that many new players in one game, you have to be mindful of that when you're building a plan with a lot of communication. So (like) all things, you learn from it. I was proud of the guys, really proud of the entire team, for allowing us to be in that situation. And because of that, there's a lot of young players that really can understand the gravity of how you operate in the spring (and) how you operate in training camp. All of it matters because you're building for those moments where you don't want a time issue to be the reason why you're having to watch the rest of the postseason from your home."
(Has QB Skylar Thompson earned the privilege to be the No. 2 quarterback behind QB Tua Tagovailoa or will there be competition in training camp?) – "Man, if I had an answer to that, it would be bittersweet for you because it would be cool to have an answer to write about but then how much work am I really doing? (laughter) I think his teammates were very pumped about how he rose to the occasion. I think he was the second seventh-round rookie to start a playoff game. He was just a day late and a dollar short and he could have been the first. (laughter) Not only that but on top of that, it's easy to forget that he started a game, got injured and then was out. So he came back from injury. One of the reasons why it's so impressive is an NFL season is a grind for college players. All rookies involved in that know exactly what I'm talking about. It's like 'Whoa, we're still playing football.' He was relentless about the season. Really, the veterans all trusted him with the season on the line. That's a huge ringing endorsement from his teammates. We'll see what ole Chris (Grier) has up his sleeve. You never know. He's got long sleeves. (laughter)"
Chris Grier:
(From watching this defense, do you believe that upgrades are needed at inside linebacker? And with you guys up against the cap, is there money for any real impact outside signing at any position?) – "Yeah, we always have flexibility. We've done a lot of work to make sure we maintain that. What it is right now is not what it will be at the start of the season. For us, like I said, we're going to keep going through our process here of evaluating everything. I think guys, especially the defense in the second half of the year, played really well. We were just talking about when Bradley (Chubb) came on, our analytics ran steady for us and we moved into like the top 10 or top eight of six of our 12 metrics we evaluate for defense. Just his impact coming in. And that's run and pass. In the exit meetings today, some of the defensive guys were talking about how cool he was, what a good guy, work ethic, toughness, leadership. I think with all of that, we look at it all. Elandon Roberts did a nice job showing leadership. (Jerome) Baker, Duke (Riley), all of those guys. Channing (Tindall), we're excited for his future in terms of developing, which we kind of expected that this year, that he would be more of a special teams guy. Sam (Eguavoen) did a nice job on special teams. I don't want to leave anyone out. But that position – I know you're asking because there are a lot of free agents at that position – but we'll just keep doing our work and filling in the holes like we always do."
(Considering all of the injuries this team had, will you be placing greater emphasis on a player's injury history in roster decisions going forward?) – "I think you can't be scared with stuff. Talk about Terron (Armstead). He's a Pro Bowl left tackle and the impact he had with us in terms of leadership and what he did on the field for us. Raheem (Mostert) is another guy people talked about being hurt and had a career year and everything he had done in terms of leadership and stuff again. If you're scared – like Bradley (Chubb) again. He's another one that people said was a good player and the right type of person that you bring into the building for a young team to help impact. It's (more) far-reaching than if they miss a game or two here. You never hope they do but injuries happen. It's football. As I told you guys before, my dad drafted Curtis Martin. Curtis Martin never finished a (season) in his college career and everyone said it was a mistake. And then he (hardly) ever missed a game in his (NFL) career."
Mike McDaniel:
"I wouldn't want to be the GM that took Frank Gore off my board."
(Earlier you kind of alluded to OL Liam Eichenberg and OL Austin Jackson playing in the same offense for the second year in a row. What are some of the tangible impacts of that continuity coming into Year 2 next year for the offense to take another step forward?) – "It is really the nuts and bolts of execution and understanding the foundational movement and prioritizing every single inch that you approach how you block people. Those things – the game of inches – is a cliché for a reason. Part of the philosophy of the offense is very specific in how you attack and try to enter into your blocks on the other side of the line of scrimmage. That is also in conflict to a lot of things that have been deliberately trained for an extended period of time. The bottom line is to undo that, it's one thing in practice. I think they did a phenomenal job of that and more often than not, it was applied to the game. But there were times when you just go to muscle memory of sorts, that you can play out of your drill work, that reverts to things you've done in the past. And that type of disconnect, if you have two linemen on different levels, I'll tell you one thing; a d-lineman or a linebacker is not getting blocked. So you have to be in concert. It's extremely important and very beneficial in this type of system in Year 2, specifically, to really have that Year 1 groundwork prove great dividends in Year 2."
Chris Grier:
(Is 9-9 a fair reflection of this season?) – "That's a good question. You know me, I started with Bill Parcells and he says you are what you are. (laughter) It is what it is. We had a year – we haven't had injuries like this since probably 2017 maybe was the last time we were this ravaged by injuries. We finished where we were but we got to the playoffs and had a chance to win a playoff game versus one of the best teams in football. That's what it is."
