WEBVTT - Jets 2024 Training Camp Preview with Defensive Coordinator Jeff Ulbrich (7/16) 0:00:04.800 --> 0:00:07.720 When the schedule was released, what were your thoughts they 0:00:07.800 --> 0:00:11.240 considering your background the Jets opening up Monday night football 0:00:11.560 --> 0:00:12.480 against the forty. 0:00:12.320 --> 0:00:13.280 Nine ers, I love it. 0:00:13.400 --> 0:00:17.040 You know, what a great opportunity to play one of 0:00:17.079 --> 0:00:19.919 the best, if not the best team in football right now, 0:00:20.520 --> 0:00:23.079 one of the historic franchises and then obviously one that 0:00:23.120 --> 0:00:26.599 I played at for ten years and I was raised 0:00:26.600 --> 0:00:29.880 in that area, so it was a lifelong forty nine 0:00:29.920 --> 0:00:30.400 fan as well. 0:00:31.440 --> 0:00:32.599 Could not be more excited. 0:00:32.720 --> 0:00:34.600 You know, to be the best, you want to play 0:00:34.600 --> 0:00:36.800 the best, you want to beat the best, and what 0:00:36.920 --> 0:00:38.000 a great test early on. 0:00:38.200 --> 0:00:40.839 So when you think about your career in San Francisco, 0:00:40.960 --> 0:00:41.800 what stands out. 0:00:42.960 --> 0:00:45.839 Oh, just the teammates more than anything. You know, just 0:00:45.880 --> 0:00:49.360 had an amazing group of teammates and friends and created 0:00:49.479 --> 0:00:53.920 lifelong relationships there. And also to be part of such 0:00:53.920 --> 0:00:57.360 a historic franchise was it was a great honor. You know, 0:00:57.400 --> 0:01:00.000 when you walk in that building every day, there's five 0:01:00.120 --> 0:01:03.880 Super Bowl trophies that wait for you and and there's 0:01:03.920 --> 0:01:06.880 a high level expectation, and that's a great thing when 0:01:06.959 --> 0:01:10.000 you when you play there, and something we're trying to 0:01:10.000 --> 0:01:10.440 build here. 0:01:11.319 --> 0:01:13.400 You've always downplayed it, but give me a scout and 0:01:13.440 --> 0:01:16.039 report on what Brick was like as a player after 0:01:16.080 --> 0:01:17.559 in the league and then in the back half. 0:01:17.720 --> 0:01:21.759 Yeah, I was a two d and fifty pound first 0:01:21.800 --> 0:01:28.320 and second down linebacker, decent physicality, decent instinct. Was willing 0:01:28.360 --> 0:01:31.199 to play hard and prepare harder than most, I think, 0:01:32.200 --> 0:01:35.000 And it was funny as my as my my journey 0:01:35.040 --> 0:01:38.360 transitioned later in my career. We drafted Patrick Willis towards 0:01:38.400 --> 0:01:40.400 the back end of my career, so I went from 0:01:40.440 --> 0:01:42.560 this big first and second down linebacker to a guy 0:01:42.600 --> 0:01:44.880 that was had to play special teams. And to play 0:01:44.880 --> 0:01:47.000 special teams, I needed to lose a bunch of weight, 0:01:47.960 --> 0:01:49.680 you know, so I could just run. And plus I 0:01:49.680 --> 0:01:51.920 was older at that time, and you don't get faster 0:01:52.000 --> 0:01:56.120 with age, I found, you know, And you know, so 0:01:56.160 --> 0:01:58.280 I became a special team player and more of like 0:01:58.320 --> 0:02:00.840 a third down coverage linebacker at the end of my career. 0:02:00.840 --> 0:02:01.160 So it was. 0:02:02.080 --> 0:02:04.200 Interesting that I got to do a little bit of 0:02:04.320 --> 0:02:07.920 all of it and really fortunate for that, you know, 0:02:07.960 --> 0:02:11.440 and really gained an appreciation for not only. 0:02:11.280 --> 0:02:12.680 Defense, but special teams. 0:02:12.680 --> 0:02:15.960 And I think sometimes guys don't always gain that same 0:02:16.000 --> 0:02:18.160 appreciation unless they've really played it. 0:02:18.240 --> 0:02:19.919 What the funds of systems were you planning? 0:02:20.560 --> 0:02:21.080 Shoot? 0:02:20.919 --> 0:02:23.680 I started with Jim Mora, which was kind of the 0:02:23.720 --> 0:02:26.959 classic forty nine or system back with even the Bill 0:02:27.000 --> 0:02:27.560 Walsh days. 0:02:27.560 --> 0:02:29.360 It was a playbook that had been there a long time. 0:02:29.760 --> 0:02:32.360 I remember the first time I got there and they 0:02:32.400 --> 0:02:36.000 had me the playbook and no exaggeration, the playbook was 0:02:36.200 --> 0:02:39.200 that big and there was a million adjustments. And you 0:02:39.440 --> 0:02:41.960 can only imagine over the course of twenty years how 0:02:41.960 --> 0:02:44.840 many things had been built in that now many. There 0:02:44.840 --> 0:02:46.720 were so many reasons why there were so many checks, 0:02:46.720 --> 0:02:48.400 and when you played in it, you knew that. And 0:02:48.880 --> 0:02:51.560 I remember my first mini camp out there and I 0:02:51.600 --> 0:02:54.160 was backing up Ken Norton Junior. He was the starter 0:02:54.240 --> 0:02:58.240 at linebacker, and I remember, first of all, like there's 0:02:58.280 --> 0:03:00.160 all this communication to start with, and then there is 0:03:00.200 --> 0:03:03.200 the emotion and there's seventeen more communications and I'm and 0:03:03.240 --> 0:03:05.360 I'm looking around like I. 0:03:05.240 --> 0:03:06.040 Got to do that. 0:03:06.880 --> 0:03:08.960 I'm remember to call my wife after one of our 0:03:08.960 --> 0:03:12.280 first practices, like this, this, uh, this journey is going 0:03:12.360 --> 0:03:14.160 to be a short one, I think for real, Yeah 0:03:14.200 --> 0:03:14.560 I did. 0:03:15.200 --> 0:03:17.120 I did. But then, as with anything. 0:03:16.800 --> 0:03:19.840 You work hard at it and you really, uh you 0:03:19.919 --> 0:03:22.040 grind and you and you study, and you and you 0:03:22.080 --> 0:03:23.880 put the time in and things start to slow down. 0:03:23.919 --> 0:03:25.800 It becomes, you know, the game that you always loved. 0:03:26.520 --> 0:03:29.800 Do you think Jeff Albrick two hundred and fifty pounds 0:03:30.120 --> 0:03:34.280 first and second down specialty could be playing it Today's. 0:03:34.040 --> 0:03:38.240 Oh absolutely not, no way. The game has gotten so 0:03:39.720 --> 0:03:41.800 wide open. There's just something I want. 0:03:41.640 --> 0:03:44.320 To talk to you about as far as how what 0:03:44.400 --> 0:03:48.360 you grew up in from a philosophical standpoint and now 0:03:48.360 --> 0:03:50.840 where we are today and how that has had an 0:03:50.880 --> 0:03:51.800 impact on your coachure. 0:03:51.800 --> 0:03:54.320 Oh yeah, this this, uh, the league has evolved in 0:03:54.360 --> 0:03:57.880 so many ways. The biggest part of that evolution is 0:03:58.000 --> 0:04:00.640 the fact that this game has become wide open, and 0:04:00.360 --> 0:04:04.360 it's so based upon speed and creating space, and from 0:04:04.400 --> 0:04:06.920 a defensive perspective, you need guys that can play within 0:04:06.920 --> 0:04:10.040 that space, which takes a lot of speed, a lot 0:04:10.040 --> 0:04:14.000 of range, a lot of athleticism, which was not the 0:04:15.120 --> 0:04:19.240 it was not my forte to say the least. But yeah, 0:04:19.279 --> 0:04:22.480 it's changed a lot in that way, and it's reflected 0:04:22.480 --> 0:04:24.800 in the players that we have. We have a lot 0:04:24.839 --> 0:04:29.520 of really good, cool athletes, you know, and you've also 0:04:29.560 --> 0:04:31.359 seen I think especially the guys on the second and 0:04:31.360 --> 0:04:35.240 third level linebackers, safeties, corners from a defensive perspective, gotten 0:04:35.560 --> 0:04:37.240 smaller in a lot of ways too, you know, so 0:04:37.279 --> 0:04:38.760 they could be faster and more athletic. 0:04:40.040 --> 0:04:42.839 Throughout your coaching career in the National Football League coaching 0:04:42.880 --> 0:04:48.440 college as well, we know that how has that even 0:04:48.600 --> 0:04:52.400 changed as well, not just from your playing career back 0:04:52.520 --> 0:04:55.240 with the Niners in the early two thousands, but maybe 0:04:55.279 --> 0:04:56.360 from your days in Atlanta. 0:04:56.839 --> 0:05:00.279 Yeah, Like it was interesting the fact that I got 0:05:00.279 --> 0:05:03.159 to go to college very early on in my coaching career. 0:05:03.400 --> 0:05:07.000 I think it really helped me because college always is 0:05:07.080 --> 0:05:09.080 kind of a preview of where the NFL is going, 0:05:09.320 --> 0:05:12.960 you know, and to be at UCLA those three years 0:05:13.000 --> 0:05:15.120 and really to see that brand of football that was 0:05:15.920 --> 0:05:19.039 it was all four open, five open, you know, these 0:05:19.360 --> 0:05:21.719 big open sets where they create a lot of space 0:05:21.760 --> 0:05:24.599 and there's obviously a huge emphasis in the passing game 0:05:24.680 --> 0:05:27.280 and maybe a little bit less emphasis in the run game. 0:05:27.839 --> 0:05:30.560 It really gave me a preview into what I was 0:05:30.560 --> 0:05:33.440 about to face coming back into the NFL and as 0:05:33.480 --> 0:05:38.240 this game evolves into something similar to that. So definitely 0:05:38.279 --> 0:05:40.680 help from that that that perspective. 0:05:42.360 --> 0:05:47.000 How much is this defense predicated on we do what 0:05:47.040 --> 0:05:50.919 we do as opposed to Okay, you're gonna line up, 0:05:51.000 --> 0:05:54.120 we're making adjustments off the way you're coming at us schematically. 0:05:54.960 --> 0:05:56.960 I would I would say the foundation of who we 0:05:57.000 --> 0:05:59.400 are is we're going to do what we do. We 0:05:59.560 --> 0:06:02.520 take great pride in the fact that we got a 0:06:02.520 --> 0:06:07.240 great coaching staff that really instills technique and based fundamentals 0:06:07.400 --> 0:06:09.560 and principles that we can lean on and that we 0:06:09.640 --> 0:06:13.560 can really rely on to play the brand of defense 0:06:13.600 --> 0:06:17.360 we want to play. The beauty of that is when 0:06:17.400 --> 0:06:19.520 I get to address the group, I'm not sitting there 0:06:19.560 --> 0:06:23.760 talking about seventeen thousand different schematic things. I'm talking about finish, 0:06:23.839 --> 0:06:26.400 I'm talking about toughness, I'm talking about technique. I'm talking about, 0:06:27.000 --> 0:06:28.919 to me, the real essence of football, you know. And 0:06:28.960 --> 0:06:31.520 I think that that's what makes us a little different 0:06:31.520 --> 0:06:34.039 than most. But at the same time, I'd say that 0:06:34.760 --> 0:06:38.520 we're not so stubborn as coaches that we don't provide 0:06:38.960 --> 0:06:40.919 a few wrinkles here and there to keep the offense 0:06:40.960 --> 0:06:42.960 off balance, you know. And I think that we've really 0:06:43.040 --> 0:06:46.680 pushed ourselves this offseason to grow from a schematic standpoint, 0:06:46.760 --> 0:06:50.320 so we'll never lose our essence, and that's being based 0:06:50.360 --> 0:06:55.160 in great technique, great strain, great finish, great toughness, great violence. 0:06:55.240 --> 0:06:56.159 Will never lose that. 0:06:57.320 --> 0:06:59.839 But at the same time, I think our guys have 0:07:00.040 --> 0:07:02.760 really gotten to the point because there is a level 0:07:02.760 --> 0:07:04.640 of mastery that's been gained at this point, being that 0:07:04.680 --> 0:07:07.160 it's the fourth year within the system, that we can 0:07:07.240 --> 0:07:09.680 challenge a little bit more from a schematic standpoint without 0:07:10.120 --> 0:07:11.480 compromising the other stuff. 0:07:11.560 --> 0:07:14.760 How has that playbook changed the one that you've got 0:07:14.760 --> 0:07:18.400 in two thousand now, a playbook that you give a rookie. 0:07:18.360 --> 0:07:22.200 Right before it's first of all, it's digital. There is 0:07:22.280 --> 0:07:27.920 no more paper, it's just it at least ours, and 0:07:27.960 --> 0:07:30.800 this is not necessarily a reflection of the entire league. 0:07:30.880 --> 0:07:35.040 It's definitely smaller, you know. And I think what we've 0:07:35.080 --> 0:07:37.600 done a better job here than most places that I've 0:07:37.640 --> 0:07:40.720 been is especially for the younger guys, you know, speaking 0:07:40.720 --> 0:07:42.640 on that, when we hand them that playbook, we make 0:07:42.680 --> 0:07:45.960 sure it's very simple from the beginning. We want to 0:07:45.960 --> 0:07:48.320 give these guys a great opportunity to really demonstrate who 0:07:48.360 --> 0:07:52.320 they are as players, as humans, as teammates, and sometimes 0:07:52.360 --> 0:07:54.480 when you bog them down with a ton you know, 0:07:54.600 --> 0:07:57.520 especially from a schematic standpoint, you lose the essence of 0:07:57.760 --> 0:08:00.360 who these players really are and you don't gain a 0:08:00.400 --> 0:08:03.280 true evaluation of them. So I think we do a 0:08:03.280 --> 0:08:05.960 better job of you know, that first iPad that we 0:08:06.040 --> 0:08:08.560 give them. It's it's very it's very small as far 0:08:08.560 --> 0:08:09.760 as what we're asking them to learn. 0:08:10.120 --> 0:08:13.240 But the continuity here you mentioned going into year four 0:08:13.280 --> 0:08:17.160 in the defense, I think you guys are so player 0:08:17.240 --> 0:08:20.560 centric that you're about giving these guys credit for what 0:08:20.600 --> 0:08:24.240 happens on the field, where you don't give yourself enough credit. 0:08:24.360 --> 0:08:26.720 That's not the way you go about your business. That's 0:08:26.760 --> 0:08:30.520 not your personality. But like, there's some things that we 0:08:30.560 --> 0:08:34.840 have done in here telestration wise, what Bart's got breaking 0:08:34.920 --> 0:08:39.840 down coverages and the pass offs between the defenders where 0:08:40.280 --> 0:08:43.280 everybody's got to be on a string, and you guys 0:08:43.440 --> 0:08:45.400 have just got it down to a team. 0:08:45.440 --> 0:08:45.520 Now. 0:08:45.920 --> 0:08:49.800 Yeah, that is the essence of having success in the 0:08:50.440 --> 0:08:53.560 in the NFL, in my opinion, is continuity. And it's 0:08:53.720 --> 0:08:56.400 unfortunate that a lot of organizations they don't understand that, 0:08:56.480 --> 0:09:01.400 you know, like to play championship level football, it takes 0:09:01.400 --> 0:09:04.000 great players, number one, and it will never be any 0:09:04.040 --> 0:09:06.640 different than that great players. 0:09:06.240 --> 0:09:06.800 And then. 0:09:08.160 --> 0:09:10.960 On top of that, you need these great players to 0:09:11.000 --> 0:09:13.920 hear the same things over and over and over again 0:09:15.240 --> 0:09:17.240 to the point where it becomes just part of their DNA, 0:09:17.520 --> 0:09:22.080 and unconscious competence kicks in and guys are just reacting. 0:09:22.120 --> 0:09:26.000 They're not thinking anymore. And we're starting to flirt with 0:09:26.040 --> 0:09:29.000 that now in year four with this with this group. 0:09:29.120 --> 0:09:32.800 So it's a it's exciting. We've come a long way, 0:09:33.000 --> 0:09:34.720 but we still got a long way to go, and 0:09:34.760 --> 0:09:37.600 we've got the players that are that are capable of 0:09:37.640 --> 0:09:39.080 taking us to a whole nother space. 0:09:39.480 --> 0:09:43.400 Personal personnel is completely different. But go back to your 0:09:43.480 --> 0:09:48.920 days and Seattle Repete. I think people saw the evolution 0:09:49.120 --> 0:09:52.720 there with the Seahawks and said, well, they're Cover three, 0:09:52.920 --> 0:09:53.960 they're lining up, that's. 0:09:53.800 --> 0:09:54.960 What they're going to do in the back end. 0:09:55.880 --> 0:09:59.199 Can you talk about how you guys approach it in 0:09:59.240 --> 0:10:02.960 the back end compared to maybe what a version of 0:10:03.000 --> 0:10:06.439 this defense wash it when it's started. 0:10:06.280 --> 0:10:10.280 Right, But so yeah, Pete started with the cover three 0:10:10.440 --> 0:10:13.800 and that was what we ran there, and it was 0:10:15.040 --> 0:10:17.200 for all intensive purposes all we ran there, you know, 0:10:17.280 --> 0:10:21.520 and and it was the belief system was we're going 0:10:21.600 --> 0:10:25.640 to give these guys great fundamentals, tools, techniques, and we're 0:10:25.679 --> 0:10:29.240 going to let them make the playbook come to life. 0:10:29.240 --> 0:10:30.880 We're going to really just get out of their way. 0:10:31.440 --> 0:10:35.360 And that has not changed here at all. What we 0:10:35.440 --> 0:10:40.960 play is is much different. But the essence of giving 0:10:41.000 --> 0:10:43.280 these players, these really good players, that we have the 0:10:43.320 --> 0:10:45.600 tools necessary to be successful in getting out of their way, 0:10:45.679 --> 0:10:46.520 that has not changed. 0:10:47.040 --> 0:10:50.680 One thing that Robert has always stressed to me is that, hey, 0:10:50.720 --> 0:10:52.800 if you are defensive back, you got to win and 0:10:52.880 --> 0:10:55.520 mann situations on third down. Can you elaborate on that. 0:10:55.760 --> 0:10:59.080 Yeah, So at the end of the day, like first 0:10:59.120 --> 0:11:02.400 down is important, second's important, We get that. And you 0:11:02.400 --> 0:11:05.000 don't play good ball on those the early downs, you're 0:11:05.040 --> 0:11:08.640 not going to play good overall defense. But when it's 0:11:08.679 --> 0:11:10.280 all said and done, you're going to get them to 0:11:10.320 --> 0:11:12.160 third and two to six more times than not. 0:11:12.480 --> 0:11:12.640 Yep. 0:11:12.920 --> 0:11:15.080 That's that's where this game is won. It's where this 0:11:15.160 --> 0:11:18.880 game is lost. And in those moments, yeah, you can 0:11:18.920 --> 0:11:21.640 throw curve balls and throw a zone in here or there, 0:11:22.000 --> 0:11:24.839 but it's going to come down to your ability to 0:11:25.160 --> 0:11:28.960 win the one on one matchup period and third and 0:11:28.960 --> 0:11:31.960 two to six when it's for all the marbles. 0:11:32.040 --> 0:11:33.120 They know we're playing man. 0:11:33.240 --> 0:11:36.800 We know we're playing man who can win, and to 0:11:36.840 --> 0:11:39.000 do that in those situations, you better have the right 0:11:39.080 --> 0:11:41.080 human beings. You better have the right guys that are 0:11:41.080 --> 0:11:42.559 capable of getting that accomplished. 0:11:42.559 --> 0:11:45.560 And we have that here percentage wise. I don't have 0:11:45.600 --> 0:11:48.079 the numbers in front of me. I know you probably 0:11:48.160 --> 0:11:50.320 have them at the top of your head. More Man 0:11:50.440 --> 0:11:52.880 than twenty three, a lot more Man in twenty three 0:11:52.920 --> 0:11:55.520 than twenty one. Yeah, when this thing was started. 0:11:55.600 --> 0:11:57.800 Yeah, absolutely, yeah, yeah, I'd agree with that. 0:11:59.640 --> 0:12:02.840 I think we've provided a few more wrinkles that we 0:12:02.880 --> 0:12:05.000 had than twenty one, which is just I think that's 0:12:05.040 --> 0:12:09.000 the nature of you know, have been continuity. But yeah, 0:12:09.200 --> 0:12:12.880 like our ability to play Man in those windows has 0:12:12.920 --> 0:12:15.400 definitely gone up because of the human beings that we have. 0:12:15.840 --> 0:12:20.640 We have, in my opinion, the best trio of corners, 0:12:20.720 --> 0:12:23.440 you know, with Michael Carter and DJ Reid and Sauce 0:12:23.480 --> 0:12:27.480 obviously like those three I'll put against anybody in this league. 0:12:27.520 --> 0:12:30.000 And then we have a guy and Tony Adams that 0:12:30.080 --> 0:12:32.839 when he's got a play man to man, has a 0:12:33.360 --> 0:12:36.680 has a corner skill set, you know, so great confidence 0:12:36.720 --> 0:12:38.320 is hit in his ability to do it as well. 0:12:38.360 --> 0:12:41.680 So in those winning moments, those are the guys that 0:12:41.720 --> 0:12:43.520 we lean on, and those are the guys that they 0:12:43.600 --> 0:12:45.400 win more than they lose, and those are the guys 0:12:45.400 --> 0:12:47.520 that are gonna help us become a championship level defense 0:12:47.559 --> 0:12:47.880 this year. 0:12:48.000 --> 0:12:50.360 You can make the argument that Sauce Garner is the 0:12:50.360 --> 0:12:53.440 best cornerback in the National Football League after two years. 0:12:54.679 --> 0:12:59.120 Robert has discussed or described him as being a weapon, 0:12:59.480 --> 0:13:02.320 that he is a defensive weapon. Can you speak to 0:13:03.600 --> 0:13:07.880 hey potentially him traveling more in twenty four because Roberts said, 0:13:07.960 --> 0:13:09.920 you guys have done that in the past, and you've 0:13:09.920 --> 0:13:13.160 talked about it as well, but maybe we could see 0:13:13.160 --> 0:13:17.080 it more this year. But you have that luxury because 0:13:17.120 --> 0:13:19.760 you do have these other guys you have a lot 0:13:19.800 --> 0:13:21.120 of confidence in starting. 0:13:20.840 --> 0:13:22.000 With DJ Absolutely. 0:13:22.160 --> 0:13:24.760 Yeah, Like had we not had DJ Reid, we didn't 0:13:24.800 --> 0:13:28.960 have Michael Carter, even Brandon Echles and and Stickers, the 0:13:29.000 --> 0:13:32.080 young guys and all the guys that we got, which 0:13:32.080 --> 0:13:34.480 we have great confidence in all of them. You know, 0:13:35.840 --> 0:13:41.000 Sauce has some he has some very unique qualities. You know, 0:13:41.200 --> 0:13:44.560 he's he's a guy that's obviously he's super long, and 0:13:44.559 --> 0:13:47.440 he's big, and he's bigger than most corners, but his 0:13:47.520 --> 0:13:50.840 transitions is for quickness. His speed is just so unique 0:13:50.880 --> 0:13:53.440 for a guy so high cut and long legged. It 0:13:53.480 --> 0:13:55.640 doesn't make like physical sense to me most of the 0:13:55.679 --> 0:13:57.360 time when I really watch him, especially the line of 0:13:57.400 --> 0:13:59.880 scrimmage stuff and matching guys in and out of breaks. 0:14:00.840 --> 0:14:05.160 The matching stuff. It's a powerful tool, and it's, like 0:14:05.160 --> 0:14:09.000 you said, we've utilized it, you know, that we need 0:14:09.000 --> 0:14:11.360 to utilize, in my opinion, a little bit more, you know, 0:14:11.480 --> 0:14:14.520 just from the standpoint of like I think him and 0:14:14.600 --> 0:14:18.400 DJ are very comfortable corners, both excellent, both world class 0:14:18.400 --> 0:14:21.560 and what they do. The thing with Sauce is he's 0:14:21.600 --> 0:14:25.280 also got a little bit of a reputation too across 0:14:25.280 --> 0:14:28.440 the league, and I really believe that that gets into 0:14:28.480 --> 0:14:31.800 quarterbacks minds at times, you know. So, no doubt, matching 0:14:31.960 --> 0:14:36.040 is as much about eliminating a great player on offense 0:14:36.520 --> 0:14:39.440 as it is steering the ball somewhere else where you 0:14:39.480 --> 0:14:44.160 want it, you know. So the beauty of our situation is, Okay, 0:14:44.200 --> 0:14:48.120 we'll match Sauce at times on their guy, and we'll 0:14:48.120 --> 0:14:50.360 steer the ball exactly where we want it. We want 0:14:50.400 --> 0:14:52.040 them to throw the DJ. We want to throw them 0:14:52.080 --> 0:14:54.240 to Michael Carter. We want them to throw to Tony Adams, 0:14:54.240 --> 0:14:57.440 and we have great confidence and belief that look at 0:14:57.440 --> 0:14:58.000 the job done. 0:14:58.120 --> 0:15:01.200 It's interesting over the years, isn't it how people have 0:15:01.320 --> 0:15:06.000 viewed the cornerback position, because I was afforded the opportunity 0:15:06.000 --> 0:15:08.600 to cover Revis when he was here, and you always 0:15:08.600 --> 0:15:11.840 had the option of, yeah, you can stick Revis on Megatron, 0:15:12.120 --> 0:15:14.560 or you can put him on the second receiver and 0:15:14.600 --> 0:15:15.840 you can double Megatron. 0:15:16.000 --> 0:15:18.480 Absolutely, yeah, yeah, I think you always have that option, 0:15:18.640 --> 0:15:21.880 you know, like, and there's I think there's value to 0:15:21.920 --> 0:15:24.440 both of those mindsets. And I think at the end 0:15:24.480 --> 0:15:26.280 of the day, they always never boxes. You got to 0:15:26.360 --> 0:15:28.080 check and you got to make sure that at times 0:15:28.080 --> 0:15:30.280 you're doing that, but at times you're putting your best 0:15:30.320 --> 0:15:30.840 on their best. 0:15:31.760 --> 0:15:34.560 What do you sense differently from Sauce here heading into 0:15:34.640 --> 0:15:36.480 year three? I can't even believe we're saying that he's 0:15:36.520 --> 0:15:39.640 head into year three. I knew you were high on him, 0:15:40.520 --> 0:15:43.240 but did you think he'd be to this level at 0:15:43.280 --> 0:15:44.480 this point so early? 0:15:44.840 --> 0:15:47.920 I don't think anybody can ever really say that, you know, 0:15:48.040 --> 0:15:51.080 I think we can all hope and we definitely were 0:15:51.160 --> 0:15:54.520 super excited about the potential that we saw on him. 0:15:54.640 --> 0:15:56.920 But to say that he was going to become an 0:15:57.480 --> 0:16:01.800 all pro immediately and have such success so early on, 0:16:02.120 --> 0:16:04.280 I think it's it's just it's so rare, and it's 0:16:04.400 --> 0:16:06.880 it's a testament to the not just the player and 0:16:06.920 --> 0:16:07.880 the athlete. 0:16:07.480 --> 0:16:09.000 That he is, but the human that he is. 0:16:09.120 --> 0:16:13.000 Like he he is grounded in this mindset that the 0:16:13.040 --> 0:16:16.040 only way I get better is working and and and 0:16:17.720 --> 0:16:20.320 putting a time that's necessary. And he's committed to that, 0:16:20.440 --> 0:16:23.520 and that's the reason he's had the success. Aside from 0:16:23.600 --> 0:16:26.080 his physical talent, aside from all the stuff that God 0:16:26.080 --> 0:16:29.520 has given him, he puts the work in. This year, 0:16:29.720 --> 0:16:33.320 I've really felt a concerted effort to to be the 0:16:33.440 --> 0:16:37.840 leader that he's becoming. Like I've heard his voice way 0:16:37.880 --> 0:16:40.520 more vocal on and off the field in the meeting rooms. 0:16:40.560 --> 0:16:43.600 I mean there is there was a unit meeting a 0:16:43.640 --> 0:16:47.320 couple of weeks ago where like he for all intensive point, 0:16:47.360 --> 0:16:49.840 he took the meeting over, you know, and and had 0:16:49.880 --> 0:16:53.480 a lot of feedback and and he was creating dialogue 0:16:53.520 --> 0:16:55.960 with the safeties, creating dialogues with the other corners, creating 0:16:56.000 --> 0:16:59.840 dialogue with the with the linebackers, and it's one of 0:16:59.880 --> 0:17:03.840 the was like just really proud moments as a coach, 0:17:03.920 --> 0:17:06.760 because you know, as we all know, the best defenses 0:17:06.800 --> 0:17:08.720 are our player run, they really are. Those are the 0:17:08.760 --> 0:17:10.359 guys across the white line. Those are the guys in 0:17:10.400 --> 0:17:13.480 critical moments that got to win. And he's starting to 0:17:13.520 --> 0:17:16.240 emerge as that leader that's necessary for great defense. 0:17:16.320 --> 0:17:18.159 That's such a cool group. Like you said, you'll take 0:17:18.240 --> 0:17:21.800 him against anybody. And then Tony Odin heading up the cornerbacks. 0:17:22.320 --> 0:17:27.280 He such a quality coach in person. Let's talk about 0:17:27.320 --> 0:17:33.240 safety position. Robert has stressed competition there. Chuck Clark. We 0:17:33.280 --> 0:17:36.480 didn't have the opportunity to see him last year. What's 0:17:36.520 --> 0:17:39.040 it been like just having him back on the field 0:17:39.080 --> 0:17:39.960 during OTAs. 0:17:40.240 --> 0:17:41.480 Yeah, it's been awesome. 0:17:42.000 --> 0:17:43.960 A guy that's obviously got a ton of experience, played 0:17:44.000 --> 0:17:48.200 high level football in this league. I just it broke 0:17:48.240 --> 0:17:51.440 my heart last year, not just for us because obviously 0:17:51.480 --> 0:17:54.600 we were relying on him and we all thought he'd 0:17:54.600 --> 0:17:57.040 played a big role in our defense, but for the 0:17:57.560 --> 0:17:59.439 leader and the man that he is. He just stands 0:17:59.440 --> 0:18:02.520 for everything that that we covered in this building. Toughness 0:18:02.520 --> 0:18:06.200 and love for this game and to be a great teammate, 0:18:06.240 --> 0:18:09.440 to be accountable, reliable's he's all of that, and he's 0:18:09.480 --> 0:18:12.400 got a level of maturity to him that's just so unique. 0:18:13.119 --> 0:18:16.680 Last year, he tears his acl and heartbreaking for himself. 0:18:17.119 --> 0:18:19.880 Most guys in those situations they go home, they spend 0:18:19.960 --> 0:18:22.720 time with their family, they rehabit at a local place 0:18:23.640 --> 0:18:28.000 near their family. Chuck, other than a few weeks here 0:18:28.080 --> 0:18:30.800 or there, he stayed with us the entire season, which 0:18:30.840 --> 0:18:33.400 is so rare in this business. Stayed with us because 0:18:34.520 --> 0:18:36.320 although he had never played a game with us, he'd 0:18:36.320 --> 0:18:40.040 built this such strong connection with the players on our 0:18:40.080 --> 0:18:43.280 defense and especially within that secondary, especially within that safety room, 0:18:43.760 --> 0:18:46.240 and just wanted to be a part of it, wanted 0:18:46.280 --> 0:18:49.840 to be around it, and also had great respect and 0:18:49.880 --> 0:18:52.240 trust in our training staff and our in our in 0:18:52.280 --> 0:18:55.359 our weight room guys that that he this was the 0:18:55.400 --> 0:18:57.879 best place that he could be to get better and 0:18:58.000 --> 0:19:00.399 become the player that we all know that he can be. 0:19:00.520 --> 0:19:03.280 So I'm just so excited for him to be with 0:19:03.400 --> 0:19:06.399 us this year. And there's a lot of competition in 0:19:06.440 --> 0:19:10.240 that room, and you know, we'll see who the two 0:19:10.240 --> 0:19:12.920 that emerged, But regardless of who emerges as the two starters, 0:19:12.920 --> 0:19:14.960 they're all have a significant role in our defense. 0:19:15.080 --> 0:19:20.800 You mentioned as athleticism, and what impressed me last year 0:19:21.320 --> 0:19:24.640 in the summer was that he just played with the spark. 0:19:24.960 --> 0:19:28.159 He had this this there's this energy about him. We 0:19:28.240 --> 0:19:32.480 saw him progress last year on the field. What's his 0:19:32.560 --> 0:19:33.119 next step? 0:19:34.440 --> 0:19:37.000 Yeah, that's not to be discounted. And I probably shouldn't 0:19:37.000 --> 0:19:39.439 have mentioned that first and foremost, that he is the 0:19:39.520 --> 0:19:42.600 ultimate energy giver that I've ever been around. Like really, oh, 0:19:42.680 --> 0:19:45.399 he's just his love for this game, his love for 0:19:45.440 --> 0:19:47.240 his teammates, it's just infectious. 0:19:47.440 --> 0:19:49.720 It's every day. He never turns it off. 0:19:52.240 --> 0:19:55.119 The edge he plays with, you know, the stuff he 0:19:55.160 --> 0:19:57.680 says to the offense on a daily basis, it's very entertaining. 0:19:57.800 --> 0:20:00.760