Todd Bowles & Kacy Rodgers On Chiefs Game Being Down the Wire | Bucs Total Access

Reporter Casey Phillips sits down with Tampa Bay Buccaneers Head Coach Todd Bowles and Defensive Line & Run Game Coordinator Kacy Rodgers after Week 9’s game against the Kansas City Chiefs. They discuss the tight-knit duo between DL Calijah Kancey & NT Vita Vea, the determination of the young secondary group and the preparations for next week.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:01):
What's not three three?

Speaker 2 (00:05):
This is Buccaneers Total Access with head coach Todd Bowles.

Speaker 3 (00:10):
The hell the job going back? Here's mate, feel shotgun.

Speaker 2 (00:17):
Look looks right, I'm about to let those twarters left
court Ball Evans.

Speaker 4 (00:20):
At the five another three two? What touchdouts have a bait?

Speaker 2 (00:23):
There you go, Fire the Cannons, Bike.

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Speaker 1 (00:41):
Fire the Cannons.

Speaker 2 (00:43):
Now your host Bocks Team reporter Casey Phillips and head
coach Todd Bowles.

Speaker 5 (00:48):
Welcome into Buccaneers Total Access. Later on in the show
we're gonna have head coach Todd Bowles, but now I
am so excited to be joined by defensive line and
run game coordinator Casey Rogers. Coach, thank you so much
for being with us. Thank you for Yeah, I'm sure
we were just talking about before this you were running
on no sleep, So you get all the brownie points
for still coming on here and talking with us after
especially also, I know, a tough loss emotionally for everybody,

(01:10):
But what did it feel like in the locker room afterward?
And kind of the message you guys had for the
guys where I mean fought till the very end, played
in a lot of ways really well in certain areas
of the game. What was kind of the feeling afterward
and the message you had.

Speaker 6 (01:23):
Well, the thing is, like you said earlier, you always
hate not coming away with the win, but the encouraging
part was probably one of the better games that we
played as a whole.

Speaker 1 (01:34):
You know, we played as a team.

Speaker 6 (01:36):
Then you look at us from the defensive perspective, we
had a lot of young guys stepping up and guys
were making plays and flying around, and that was a
very good team we played last night.

Speaker 1 (01:45):
So that's what that's the stuff the bill don going forward.

Speaker 5 (01:49):
And I know, especially in this area of what you
especially are are kind of in charge of here. Looking
at the specially the defensive line. The Chiefs had only
given up twelve sacks in seven games coming in. They
were just one of the NFL low But you guys
got some homes for four sacks, which is the most
they've allowed in a single game. What do you feel
like you guys were able to do to help get
to them more than any other team had been able

(02:09):
to this year.

Speaker 6 (02:10):
Well, the think guys went out and tried to execute
the game plan to the deal. And then for just
coaching the defensive line and been around those guys, we
go into each game kind of knowing if we make plays,
we kind of a catalyst because we said starts up front,
so we feel like if we make plays, everybody feeds
off of us.

Speaker 1 (02:27):
And that's kind of what happened the other night.

Speaker 5 (02:29):
I mean, mant Vita, what a what a game from him?

Speaker 3 (02:32):
Uh?

Speaker 5 (02:33):
He extends his team lead to five sacks this season
and his career total to twenty eight and a half.
Take us first through his two different sacks in the game.

Speaker 6 (02:41):
Well though, first when we came and we were running
a pressure that we were kind of with a little
pick stump between him and Bonte on the inside, it
kind of got jacked up a little bit because they
slid the protection to where we were stunning. So they
just kind of kept working and kept working, and eventually
the pick we wanted to showed up and he came
around and got him on the ground.

Speaker 1 (03:02):
It was good.

Speaker 6 (03:02):
It really was good cause it was good coverage downfield
cause he held it for longer than he should have
and we were able to get there.

Speaker 5 (03:09):
Interesting, and then what about the uh, the other one.

Speaker 6 (03:11):
The other one was like it was a four man rush,
really good coverage on the back end, and they really
with Yah yah and Joe and them on the edges,
did a good job all night long.

Speaker 1 (03:18):
Collapse in the pocket.

Speaker 6 (03:20):
And then it forced him to step up where Vita
was and that's where he was on that So they
were did a good job of working together. You know,
you hear the old adjective rushing coverage works together. And
really that's what happened last night. You know, it's really
cause one it's you're scared to death with my home
cause he's dangerous in the pocket, but he's even more
dangerous when he's out of the pocket. So a point

(03:41):
of emphasis going into the game was to kind of
make sure we keep him in the pocket. And then
I thought they did a good job for trying to
execute that.

Speaker 5 (03:48):
Uh. Yeah. He also had a career high ten tackles
and three quarterback hits, so we we saw the sacks.
Of course, but take us through the rest of his
game and what really stood out to you and thoughts
about just where this game even ranks for him career.

Speaker 6 (04:00):
Well, since I've been around, and I would say this
is definitely one of his most productive all the way around.

Speaker 1 (04:06):
You know.

Speaker 6 (04:06):
You see, in the past, Vita dominated in the run
or Vita had a couple. This time he had sacks
and stops in the run game. And that's kind of
what we felt going into the year. You know, we
didn't want Vida just to be a good player. We
want him to keep trying to strive to be a
great player, you know, and in a game like that
against arguably one of the best teams in the league,

(04:27):
he really stepped up.

Speaker 5 (04:28):
I know that he has double the sacks of any
other player at his position in the league. What makes
him so effective at getting to the quarterback? And explain
to us how impressive it is, particularly at that position
to have the kind of sack numbers he does.

Speaker 6 (04:42):
Well, the thing is, going into my twenty second year
in this league, and if you look back through the
history of the league, somebody Vita size, as usually the
NFL is very down specific. You know, usually have guys
that play first and second down, run off the field
on third and guy that don't play first and second
they'll run on the field. But Vita is that unique

(05:04):
talent that he has the ability to play first, second,
and third down. And if you go back through the
history of the league, how many players over three hundred
and forty pounds play third down?

Speaker 1 (05:15):
So that's just in the history of the league.

Speaker 6 (05:17):
You know, you have some three tens, but no three
forty plus guys over So that's a credit to him.
And conditioning because rushing the passages, you know, is one
of the most tiring, excreciating things you can do because
you want the physical exertion that you're putting out each Now,
it's just tremendous. Then to be as heavy as he is,
it's just credit to him.

Speaker 5 (05:38):
I'm talking to defensive line coach Casey Rogers. Now, how
about Elijah also, you guys, you're your little duo in
they're each providing a parasas. Take us through Colijah's two sacks.

Speaker 1 (05:48):
Well, it's funny how you say little.

Speaker 6 (05:49):
Duoah, do you just talk about the big guy? Now,
let's talk about the little guy. Let's talk about the
little guy now. But one thing about Elijah. He is
so explosive. The thing is if when his first step
quickness is as quick as a lot of defensive ends
in this league. And his first one came on another

(06:09):
one or that was a four man rush, and that
the quarterback stepped up and he was right where he
should have been in the pocket, and it that rushing coverage.

Speaker 1 (06:18):
Worked well together.

Speaker 6 (06:19):
His second one was to me the most impressive because
as you know, going watching Mahomes or whatever from a
game plan, so that you don't really want him to
escape to our left his right because he's doubly dangerous
with the run and passing. He was escaping to our right.
We were in a little pressure where Jordan was coming
free up the middle and flushed him out and Calijah

(06:39):
had to get out for containing and he did. And
the thing is, that's an interesting matchup. You got Mahomes
against a two hundred and eighty five pound defensive lineman.
Then Elaja got him on the ground in the open space.
That's what's impressive.

Speaker 5 (06:51):
Yeah, that is impressive. How about your your line overall?
Looking at the whole game. We've talked about some of
these specific plays and especially some of the pressure on
the quarterback. But game overall, I know you typically I
don't know, maybe give a grade to your guys. What
what kind of stands out about them overall?

Speaker 1 (07:03):
Well, matter of fact, I told you right far. I
came out.

Speaker 6 (07:05):
I just had just met with him and we went
through the game, and the thing was everybody kind of contributed.

Speaker 1 (07:11):
That's the thing I liked about it.

Speaker 6 (07:13):
You know, they didn't have his big as stats as
psy Calijah and Vita, but Logan on the double teams,
will on the tick getting the TfL. L Earned didn't
have a stat, but he was right where he needed
to be. And CJ stepped in and played with Greg
ben down and he was where he's That's the thing
we like about it.

Speaker 1 (07:31):
You know, everybody contributed.

Speaker 5 (07:33):
And I know you're also the run game coordinator, so
run defense in this game. What stood out to you
about the.

Speaker 6 (07:37):
Team's performance, Well, the the thing that you liked best
is what they posed so many matchups. We've always in
the past been a team that wanted to outnumber you
in the box. We were saying you're not running, We're
gonna load up in the box and putting so much
pressure on our secondary. Right now, we got some youth
in our secondary, so we had to take that defender away.
So we're said, we're gonna be a little short, but
we got a rally to the run and they thought

(07:59):
they did a good job. They had a lot of carries.
I think they ended up with three point five a
carry with as much split safety coverage as we've played
last night.

Speaker 1 (08:07):
That's you'll you'll live with.

Speaker 5 (08:08):
It, yeah for sure. And I know we talked about,
you know how big Vita is, but he did lose
weight this offseason question, which I love how big he is,
that he can lose weight and still be people big.
Tell me about that process this off season of when
you learned this was happening, how you guys had talked
about it, how that was going to affect things about
you know, what you thought about his play this year.

(08:29):
Can just kind of take us through all of that
this off season of what you learned about it and
how you were going to implement things differently.

Speaker 6 (08:35):
Well, Vita of right for the off season started when
we broke and had our one on one fo he
left for the off season, had told me that he
was going to make it, wanted to make some changes
just in his overall condition, and whatever. And if you
remember from the past, we had a gentleman here about
the name of the Dumblakan Sue and they are still
really good friends. And if you know anything about Sue,

(08:57):
he has always kept himself in the ultimate physical shape.
So this offseason, Vita got with him, just said we're
gonna get away and just made a total commitment to
fitness and eden right and everything. And now you're it's
the fruits of his labor is paying off because we're
in the middle of the season and a lot of
people be happy with five sacks all year.

Speaker 1 (09:18):
You at the halfway, you know what I'm saying.

Speaker 6 (09:20):
For an interior guy the size that he is, So
that's the that's the thing. But it's really a credit
to him making a decision to make the sacrifice for
the team because so goes him sometimes so goes the team.

Speaker 5 (09:32):
Because yeah, for sure, And how have you seen it
affect his play? Have you have there been moments that
you've been like, ah, I see that. That's the difference
maybe for him.

Speaker 6 (09:41):
Well, the stamina, I think, if I'm not mistaken, I'm
trying to remember, I think he played fifty eight sixty
snaps last night. And that's a lot of a lot
of snaps for guy his size, and we do it,
try to do a good job of rotating, but the
way I think we end up playing eighty something overall
on defense. So he played the majority of him and
couldn't have did that last year cause they the stamina.

Speaker 5 (10:01):
Wouldn't do So, how have you seen this season compared
to other years with him overall? With his play areas
that you've seen growth in or just kind of as
you look back at the years of of this year's VITA,
what stands out.

Speaker 6 (10:13):
Well, havn't been with him now for about five six seasons.
From year one to year six, you just see the
growth really in all areas of his game. As far
as technically, he's gotten better r uh against Iran, He's
getting better in the rush. But now also add the
fact that people don't realize he's a jokester this and that,

(10:34):
but he's an extremely intelligent player. If we have a
bead on something going into the game, while this formation
they gonna do this, he in practice alway, He's already
on it. Oh watched her come to power, her come
to sweep, he come. He's a very heady and he
does a great job of talking to the guys, and
he's been excellent for Elijah who's still a very young player,

(10:55):
Logan who's still a young player. To have him out
there with them two young guys, you can.

Speaker 1 (10:59):
See the growth in.

Speaker 5 (11:01):
That's great. And yeah, I mean you see him as
a vet now that it's it's so wild to think that. Yeah,
he is one of the kind of elder statesmen of
the area. And I mean there have been some incredible
leaders on this defense end team overall in recent years.
How have you seen him step into that leadership role
and what kind of a leader we hear about, Oh,
vocal leaders, lead by example, guys you know, like the
Levante's who maybe aren't going to say a whole lot,

(11:22):
but are still a leader. How have you seen him
Like you said, he can be a jokester and then
he's also out there being it sounds like pretty vocal
on the field. What are the ways you would define
him as a leader and some of the maybe tangible
ways you've seen in affect those other guys you.

Speaker 6 (11:35):
Mentioned, Well, he's you just hit the nail on the head. Actually,
when I first got he wouldn't hardly say a word
you say, he would go do it and do his.

Speaker 1 (11:44):
Job, no problem.

Speaker 6 (11:46):
But now for us losing certain guys and he's becoming,
like you said, one of the elder statesmen. He had
to be more than just watch me do it. He
had to be vocal and call the team up and lead,
to break the huddles down, and really just knowing him
that it is not his natural comfort zone. He just
kind of always wanted to be a soldier. Now he's

(12:07):
taking the general rowa. I got to be a leader
out front, and I got to set the example of
the way we want them to follow. And that's the
biggest step I've seen in him from that aspect.

Speaker 5 (12:18):
I think anyone who follows him on Instagram has seen
the relationship he has with Tom Moore and that maybe
that has given a window into the joking. It is,
so tell us a little bit about that side of Vita.

Speaker 1 (12:28):
Like you said, the jokes joked.

Speaker 6 (12:30):
Anytime we have a team eating for they rip each other.
Him and Coach Moore. They constantly on it. But I'm
just saying it's just and it's genuine. You know one,
Coach Moore is one of the most respected guys in
the building on our side, and to see him and
Vita go at it and crack jokes, it's just but
that just shows Vida's personality. And because I think it's

(12:51):
popped up on my feet, I'm like, Vita got coach moron.
But that's just what But that's Vita in a nutshell one.
This guy's joking on social media, doing this and that,
and then hearing about an hour he's gonna go battle,
usually two defenders at one time, So that's six hundred
plus pounds he's gonna take on every snap, And it's

(13:13):
just that we're lucky to happen.

Speaker 5 (13:16):
That's awesome. And then so what are the biggest things
you feel like you're still working on with him? A
guy that is so talented, where does he still have
room for growth?

Speaker 1 (13:23):
Consistency you know what I'm saying.

Speaker 6 (13:25):
Like you saw a two SAT game here, you want
to see a two cat game in two weeks from that.

Speaker 1 (13:30):
You see what I'm saying.

Speaker 6 (13:31):
Just for him being consistent and when he gets in trouble,
we feel like he can really be a dominant player,
but he gets in trouble if it lets his techniques laugh.
I'm always constantly on I just got on it in
our Meetia Room for not using his hands uncertainty, because
when he uses his hands, he's a dominant and anyone
in the league.

Speaker 5 (13:47):
All Right, we're gonna take a quick break here on
Buccaneers Total Access. Again later in the show, we're gonna
have head coach Todd Bowles. We're talking right now with
defensive line and runna give coordinator Casey Rogers. Brought to
you by avent Help. This is Buccaneers Radio.

Speaker 2 (13:59):
Buccaneers Total Laccess, brought to you by Advent Health. Shotgun
look Jared Goff Bell high snap, There comes a pressure
Peace sacked to the back, Beeld the thirty one yard line.

Speaker 4 (14:08):
Levonte David shoots like a rocket bull and got it.
Bell high at the thropping. Now more with Bucks team
reporter Casey Phillips.

Speaker 5 (14:15):
Welcome back into Buccaneers Total Access. We're talking a defensive
line coach and run game coordinator Casey Rogers, and we
talk a lot about Vita that last Segmentico that we
probably could talk about him the entire always O. But
let's get a little bit more into Calijah's well. First,
let's talk about the way they influence each other on
the field of the way they're able to play off
of each other and what it makes offenses do, but

(14:36):
then also their impact on each other from a personality
standpoint and off the field.

Speaker 6 (14:40):
Well, I think it's the best way to win those
two us to hit it from the star. We drafted
Colajah two years ago, the number one first round pick
in that draft. And sometimes when you have a first
round picks, you know, they think they know it all
or they come in that they are just the hots thing.
But from the first day Elijah walked in our room,

(15:02):
he walked in just a humble young man and willing
to learn and just naturally gravitated to Vita. And you know,
from the first day Colija walked in, we put him
in the start. He didn't ease his way in first
group up. You go out there, so and Vita, the
type person he is and everything, he bought him along,
you know what I'm saying. You know, and they are

(15:24):
two peas in a pot. It's fun and they feed
off each other. Sometimes it be in the situation, hey Claus,
you got to get the rush, I'm an hold down
the run. You know, they just kind of play off
of each other and they excellent communication on and off
the field, which I think is good because they have
a you know, sometimes you have a professional relationship with
your teammates, you have worked together this and that, but

(15:45):
they have a private relationship off the field as well.
You know, they text each other, they custantly in communication,
and that all helps.

Speaker 5 (15:52):
And then I know that Collijah now both years, like
you said, hey, he got thrown into the fire of
you we're going to be starting right away. But now
both years he's had to deal with injury's, especially early
in the season. How have you seen him handle that?
And just speak to how hard that is to do,
especially as a rookie and early in the season, and
then to come back in and be able to make
an impact still right after that.

Speaker 6 (16:11):
Well, the thing is, Collijah, even the dealing with the injury.
Sometimes guys come in, they get injured or whatever, and
you lose track them for three or four weeks. But
he stayed in us with the meetings between getting his
treatment schedule, standing.

Speaker 1 (16:24):
Involved in the meetings, this and that.

Speaker 6 (16:26):
And you know, Ellijah embraces his draft status. You know,
he feels like they took a chance on me, They
gave made me their first round pick, and I want
to give him that money's worth, so he embraces it.
So he wants to be good. He's striving to be
good and to be a young player. He has a
lot of ideas and he's kind of a quiet guy,

(16:47):
but he will open up in the meeting room. Hey, maybe, coach,
can we do it this way? Can we do it that?
He is constantly involved in active and between him and Vita,
it becomes a good mess.

Speaker 5 (16:57):
What are the biggest ways you've seen him since his.

Speaker 6 (17:00):
Rookie year, Uh, just more of a student of the
game technically. You know, he came from a system where
all they did was jump off the ball, which fits
right in his alley. Now he's come into our system
where our guys being defensive lineman, you get to jump
off the ball, but now you gotta squeeze these blocked
then by the way, we.

Speaker 1 (17:18):
Might have a call, well you got to cover the
back down the middle.

Speaker 6 (17:20):
A we kind of multifaceted defense, so there's more jobs
you have to But he's embraced at and he's highly intelligent,
and he doesn't make a lot of minimal mistakes. And
we have a complex defense, so he is constantly evolving
with that, and you know he takes the challenge what
we ask him to do.

Speaker 5 (17:38):
I had wanted to ask about that of always hearing
that a Todd Bowles defense is no joke to learn B.
He asks a lot of each position group in sort
of unique different ways that maybe they wouldn't always have
to do in other defenses. How does that apply to
defensive line specifically, of the ways that being a defensive
lineman in Todd Bowles defense versus others, what that might

(17:58):
make you have to learn or grow?

Speaker 6 (18:00):
Well, you could go some teams. You could say it's
thirty two NFL teams and there is sixteen plus teams
that never ask a defensive lineman to go backwards m
so to speak. Yeah, they are always going forward. They
ain't coverage is abs option that they don't mean nothing
to them. Yeah, And our system depends on certain calls.
Uh One we could have to have s cover somebody

(18:23):
man the man that's kind of something defensive line. We're
zone droppers and a couple of calls if they the
s the formation dictates that we are a zone dropper.
Then then you noticed two weeks ago against Atlanta, the
first third down we go after Vonte comes free, Callijah
was running in the middle. He was covering the tight
end coming across the middle perfectly. So that's what I'm saying.

(18:45):
We are just we ask a lot of 'em, which
helps with the complexity and the disguise and you forcing
the quarterback. We got a free runner running at your head.
You think somebody gonna be there, and we fill in
that vacated zone with a defensive line.

Speaker 5 (18:59):
That's amazing. Yeah, and I know we've talked now about
his ability to rush the passer and even drop in
coverage when necessary. The run game, I know was an
area that you guys had wondered what his abilities might
be in it. Oh question, Yeah, I was. We had
wondered how that was going to look. Thankfully you had
Vita to take up the whole line just a case,
but how has Calijah maybe outperformed his expectations even when

(19:23):
it comes to the run game.

Speaker 6 (19:24):
Well, the beauty about the defense Todd runs here is
we don't want to handcuff the player with Calija. We
look at his skills set and say, he probably not
going to play this block the way some of the
bigger guys we had the wheels gonna play it or
soue played it or a keen but former guys we've
had probably not gonna play the way Logan plays it.
But so here we kind of created a niche that

(19:46):
fits him. You know, I'm saying, we still got to
stop the run, but we've got to do something that
he's able to do with his quickness and with his explosiveness,
and it works for works for us.

Speaker 5 (19:57):
Yeah, we're talking to defensive line coach and run game
coordinator Casey. What is typically the jump you see of
first year to second year for defensive linemen? What are
the things that coming in as a rookie are really
challenging and then are they able to to typically kind
of grow in or get more used to by the
second year?

Speaker 6 (20:13):
Well, year two one, you get the scheduled down, you
know for these young guys coming out, because they may
play twelve games. We played twelve. We played twelve if
you include the preseason.

Speaker 5 (20:23):
Yeah, already we're already there.

Speaker 6 (20:24):
We got another nine more and then you hope to
still playing for the playoffs.

Speaker 5 (20:27):
Yeah, it's almost like two whole seasons.

Speaker 6 (20:29):
So getting past the rookie wall, your body, taking care
of your body, and then all the information you're getting
because each you know, each game if you've never been
in this league, every week is an adventure. So going
into year two, you kind of know what to expect,
and if you play common opponents, you know you kind
of know what you're getting into.

Speaker 1 (20:48):
You're one, everything is new.

Speaker 5 (20:50):
So yeah, how about Logan Hall? What have you seen?
I feel like sometimes with guys like Vita and Elijah
making some big splash plays, he doesn't always get as
much attention. But I felt, especially earlier this season, coach
had said that it was he'd seen some of his
best games that he's played as a buccaneer so far.
So tell us what do we not always notice or
see about a guy like Logan Hank?

Speaker 6 (21:09):
Well, that's the Logan is the one I say. You know,
we give a what you mentioned. It doesn't get a
lot of attention. In other word, but Logan has kind
of been a starter since he walked in here as well,
and he's been on the defense that's won the division
back to back, and he started a lot of those games.

Speaker 1 (21:25):
But you don't haven't seen him because when we.

Speaker 6 (21:28):
Go Nickel in more of our pass rushing situations, who
you want on the field, you want Collijah Vita Colijah
log It's.

Speaker 1 (21:34):
Such a fine line.

Speaker 6 (21:36):
And last night we played a lot of nickels, so
we only had two defensive linemen out of there. So
now Logan loses snaps. But you know, earlier when Calijah
was out, Logan was stepping up and had what two
to three sacks against Atlanta. You know, he's really coming on.
So that's a kind of a juggling match for me
to not lose him because he's making good strides, but

(21:57):
happy to have Callajah back and don't want to take
off the field. So it's a juggling act really really
with it all. But the things that he've done, he
does everything. Yes, And then also we know Logan missed
a game earlier in the year with a injury, but
he came back, not wasn't one hundred percent, but he

(22:18):
came back early and really helped us cause we were short,
really short, and he stepped up. And that's you know,
right there, he earned my ultimate respect because me looking
at him and like you saying you okay, but me
watching you and seeing you, I don't know that you
are one hundred percent okay. But that's life in the
NFL sometimes. But you know, he is a guy that

(22:41):
really is a catalyst for a lot of stuff we do.
Because some of the things that you see Collajah get
in the sack, but Logan forced them to it or
stuff like that, so they get lost in the shuffle
because they don't really write a lot of stories about
the guy who forced it. They write stories about the guy.

Speaker 1 (22:56):
Who finished it.

Speaker 6 (22:57):
So it all works together. But right now those three
are Geordia have and.

Speaker 5 (23:01):
Then c J. Brewer talking about someone who's had to
step up at times. This guy all of a sudden, man,
I mean, I think about his game against the Falcons
last week and made some really big key plays and
he's had to play some really important snaps for us.
So maybe a lot of Bucks fans are not as
familiar with him. So tell us a bit about him
and what he's brought to the d line.

Speaker 6 (23:19):
Well, CJ is a player we got a couple of
years ago from the USFL and you know, he came
in as a long shot to make the team, but
he's just done so much. We call him like our
Swiss Army knife because of the three positions and base
he kind of can play a little bit of them all.
So that helps when you have when you need roster
flexibility and very coachabal and just stepped up. And I'm

(23:43):
sitting here, like, you know, we lose Greg for a
week and to stick CJ in there, and then not
only do you stick CJ and there you get two sacks,
So you know, but that's a credit to him because
he'd done it all offseason and in the preseason.

Speaker 1 (23:56):
We used to just say, wow, CJ.

Speaker 6 (23:58):
Sometimes we were watching film, CJ got two sacks and
then we look at the tape and they done turned
him loose twice. But for whatever reason, CJ just finds
the ball and makes place.

Speaker 3 (24:09):
I like it.

Speaker 5 (24:09):
All right, We're gonna take another quick break here on
Buccaneers Total Access. We're talking to defensive line coach and
run game coordinator Casey Rogers. Brought to you by Advan Hell.
This is Buccaneers Radio.

Speaker 2 (24:19):
You were listening to Buccaneers Total Access with head coach
Todd Bowles and Bucks team reporter Casey Phillips.

Speaker 4 (24:25):
Brought to you by ad Van Help.

Speaker 5 (24:27):
Welcome back into Buccaneers Total Access. We're talking to defensive
line coach and run game coordinator Casey Rogers. Later on
we'll have head coach Todd Bowles. We were talking about
some of your other guys on the defensive line right
before the break, and Greg Gaines is another one who
has come in and had to play some pretty important
and meaningful snaps, but again doesn't always get the attention
of your other guys. So tell us what he has

(24:47):
come to meet to this line.

Speaker 6 (24:49):
But once we got Greg, you know, we evaluate him
in free.

Speaker 1 (24:52):
Agency and a flask.

Speaker 6 (24:54):
Or whatever, and honestly, coming in, I was like, well,
I won the hard show.

Speaker 1 (24:58):
You're gonna fit.

Speaker 6 (25:00):
Greg is sneaky, athletic, He's highly intelligent and really kind
of like Vita. We said, you know, beauty about him
as a guy that size that can play all three downs,
and Greg is kind of like that too. And it's
tough hair usually when you're in free agency. We signed Greg.
Greg was a starter at the nose position from the Rams,

(25:20):
so we got it. Now you come in here, we
have a nose, you know, so that we kind of
pretty good at it, and we kind of like and
he comes in and from a guy who's used to
being on the field all the time, fell into a
role as r rolling in with Vita and didn't miss
a beat a good job adding creating depth force.

Speaker 5 (25:41):
Yeah, and then Will Golston, I feel like this guy,
I love it. Yeah, just the smile on the shake
of the head. I feel like that just about sums
it up. Will. Will is a fan favorite for a
lot of different reasons, and just amazing that after you
know as many years at at his position and how
long he's played, and that position is not an easy
one to play this long in the league, So tell us,

(26:03):
just longevity wise, what he's meant to this franchise. But
then even at this point this year, when he again
does not necessarily get the starting kind of reps or
numbers of reps he used to, what is he still
meant to this defensive line in meeting rooms, on the field,
and even just as a personality.

Speaker 6 (26:20):
Well, first of all, you said it right, it's a
credit to him to play that position and been playing
as long as he's had and still be playing on
a high level because Father Time is undefeated when it
comes to football player. But the thing is, it's like
it's a lot of different ways to make a football team,
a lot of different ways to find a role. When
you say what is Will's role for us? As I

(26:43):
have some talented players in the D line position. But
one thing that you always know you're gonna get with
will this, and that is still might be the toughest guy,
just straight tough, nasty that we have at the position.
We have some more that might run faster, we have
some that might rush faster, run, but just downright toughness

(27:05):
that you need at that position.

Speaker 1 (27:07):
It probably hands down here.

Speaker 5 (27:09):
Yeah, what is it he does jiu jitsu? I always
get that. That alone should tell you this man is
nothing to be trifled with.

Speaker 6 (27:16):
And he got a bad temperament sometimes which helps, which.

Speaker 1 (27:19):
Really helps it.

Speaker 5 (27:21):
As long as the directed there we.

Speaker 1 (27:23):
Go, keep it that way, keep it that direction. But
that that helps as well.

Speaker 5 (27:27):
That's so interesting. And then again, where you're also the
run game coordinator, so outside of just even your defensive line.
Take us through this whole year, the run defense as
a whole, all the different units that are a part
of that, and where you guys feel like you're at
it the sort of midway point.

Speaker 6 (27:40):
Well the thing right now first running looking at it
as a whole, we're still working to work on the
consistency when we where we need to be statistically, and
everything is usually it's very consistent.

Speaker 1 (27:52):
Right now, we're good. We're good.

Speaker 6 (27:54):
Then we give up a big play, good, good deal,
we give it. We got to eliminate those because however
they come, they hurt you statistically. You know, a couple
of weeks ago, is Waston you give up an eighty
yard run. Do you know how many plays you gotta
play well to knock down an eighty yard run? Right,
you've got one play for eighty yards. Do you know
what it takes to get that average?

Speaker 5 (28:14):
You basically have to get for lost?

Speaker 6 (28:16):
Well, there you go. So now you see where we're going.
So we got to just keep working on a consistency
because if you know, most good defense, you want to
be under four yards or less if you can. If
you can hold people under four yards to carry, you
kind of did. But if you give up a twenty
six yard run, an eighteen yard scramble or eighty, that's
gonna hurt. So that's what I say is and rush

(28:37):
defenses everything from quarterback scrambles to jet sweeps to the
inside run outside, So it's it's.

Speaker 1 (28:43):
All that encompassing.

Speaker 6 (28:44):
So right now for us, it's just figure out working
out the kings to become more consistent, because we're gonna
have to be good against the run if we want
to get to where we want to go the rest
of the season.

Speaker 5 (28:54):
And what are some of the things you guys do,
whether it be in film rooms or practices, to do
something exact like coach Balls usually uses the terms that
it's communication and it's misfit run. So those are kind
of the two things that but of course that can
mean a lot of different things. And what do you
guys do mid season to try to help some of
those things happen?

Speaker 6 (29:11):
Well, the good thing about being heading towards the mid
season mark, you've kind of the players by this part,
because it's always transitioned with new players, old players leaving
old some players returning. You've kind of figured out who
you are, you know, so we kind of know what
we can do and what we can't do. And from
our part as a coach is like, say, we're good
at this, win, good at that, Let's stay away from that,

(29:32):
Let's clean this up, and this is the best we
got and go with it going forward.

Speaker 5 (29:36):
And then how about the inside linebacker group and the
way they've contributed against just like well, Levante, this guy
that is just seems like he is defeating Father Time
in so many ways. And then I know there's been
a platoon situation sometimes with kJ and earlier with Servasier
and now JJ Russell as well, And so how have
you seen those guys and the way you guys have
tried to work on that with the platoon stuff, especially

(29:58):
when it comes to the run game.

Speaker 6 (30:00):
Well, that's another group. You take your hat off because
of the way the plan was, like you do these jobs,
Voss does this job. Then all of a sudden you
lose Voss. Now this guy got to take on these jobs.

Speaker 1 (30:10):
And that's but that's life in the NFL.

Speaker 6 (30:12):
So the juggling around and the one constant, as you say,
ben Levante, who's a really good leader for that position.
But I'm saying, as you look at it, but it
also goes from our standpoint, well we like this stunt,
but he ain't real good at it, or what is
he good at that we can marry with these guys.
So it's a constant struggle to figure out when you
are having injuries and your rearranging and putting some guys

(30:37):
here and there is to like just because he plays
linebacker doesn't mean he's gonna play this like that. You know,
this guy's a better run stop for this guy's a
better pass cover, this guy's a little of both. This
guy's a better blitzer, you know. So it's a constant
juggling act from that standpoint. But right now at the
halfway mark, you can still kind of figure out, well,
you kind of know your people by now.

Speaker 5 (30:56):
Yeah, and how about the outside linebacker group again, of
course mostly they get talked about when it comes to
the pass rush, but key members of your run defense
as well, what have you seen in that part of
their game from that position.

Speaker 6 (31:07):
Group, Well, those guys really are probably the most have
to be the most dynamic, because you want them to
set the edge on the run. You want them to
rush the quarterback. You want them to do this, and
then we stun pressure. So we bringing them inside. You know,
you've got smaller guys that you bringing inside to where
some of the heavy lifting is going on. So it's
a credit to them. But they play such a critical

(31:30):
role because if we're trying to stop the run from
this direction, they got to make sure we have an
edge set.

Speaker 1 (31:36):
On the opposite direction.

Speaker 6 (31:37):
So the things we ask those guys to do is
a credit to them, and we have some talented guys we're.

Speaker 5 (31:44):
Talking to defensive line coach and run game coordinator Casey Rogers,
And quite a task ahead of you this next week
on a short week too, don't you love that? And also,
of course Christian McCaffrey's practice window opened, so we don't
know exactly when and how he's going to be available,
But tell me when you look at the team with
and without Christian McCaffrey, the kind of difference that can

(32:04):
make on what you guys are having to look at
and the way they've been able to do it without him. Also,
Deebo Samuel, just kind of the versatility they have and
their offense and what that's gonna be like for you
guys to prepare for.

Speaker 6 (32:15):
Well, this will be a huge challenge just because you're
talking about the such a multifaceted team, and you know,
to start with Debo, he could be anywhere. He could
be at the backfield, it could be the slot, it
could be out at number one, it could be motion,
it could be Jett. And then with possibly maybe having
McCaffrey back, and the mentality of the team, they are
run first team and very hard headed about it and

(32:36):
they don't really care what you're in.

Speaker 1 (32:38):
They're gonna believe.

Speaker 6 (32:39):
They can run against any front anything, which then opens
up their play action pass. So what party does a
great job executing. And it's just like they are one
of the most more difficult teams we have to prepare
for each year. So this will be a big task
forwards coming up this week.

Speaker 5 (32:56):
And what stands out about their offensive line and then
brock Purty is well of the two things you guys
are going to have to focus about taking them on.

Speaker 6 (33:02):
Well, the thing you notice about them are most good
teams in this league do what they do, and they
do it well, and this personifies what they are. They're
going to be hard to hit about the run. They're
will give you a lot of jets and motions and
shifts and this and to get to where they wanted

(33:23):
to go where leverage is very advantageous for them. So
that poses because you have no idea once you get
there on Sunday, what's their plan for you? You know
what plays you're get, you just don't know how you
got to get them.

Speaker 5 (33:35):
Yeah, that's very true. Well, coach, thank you as always
so much for coming on. We really do appreciate the time.
And again we just talked about what a tough test
you got on a short week, So again we're just
so appreciative of you taking time out of your data
to come and.

Speaker 3 (33:46):
Talk to us.

Speaker 1 (33:46):
Thank you for having me.

Speaker 5 (33:47):
All right, well, coach, thanks again and thanks to all
of you guys for listening to this first half. But
we're gonna have more coming up here with head coach
Todd Bowles right after the break on Buccaneers Total Access,
brought to you by Advan Health.

Speaker 2 (33:57):
This is Buccaneers Radio Buccaneers Total with head Coach Todd Bowles.

Speaker 4 (34:02):
Now continues brought to you by Advan Health.

Speaker 5 (34:05):
Welcome into the Todd Bowles show casey Philpier with head
coach Todd Bowles. You know, to take the undefeated, defending
champs to overtime on the road in prime time without
your top two weapons, what did this say to you
about the team and the way you guys were able
to take it absolutely down to the wire.

Speaker 3 (34:21):
I mean, we're always tough, We're gonna fight no matter what,
but we're trying to win the ball game. We didn't
go there to try to play them tough down for
the while. We went to win the ball game. They
made one more play than we did.

Speaker 5 (34:32):
Baker twenty three to thirty one, two hundred yards, two touchdowns.
Take us through what stood out about his performance.

Speaker 3 (34:38):
The best thing is no turnovers. You know, he threw
the ball where it's supposed to be thrown. He played
very smart football. He played very accurate football, and I
was proud as away play.

Speaker 5 (34:47):
He is now leading the league in passing touchdowns. He
is second in passing yards, fourth and completion percentage. What
do you feel like those stats say about not only him,
but the offense overall, and especially again with missing a
few weapon in some of those stats.

Speaker 3 (35:02):
I mean, as you're getting production out of everybody. They're
spreading the ball around. The offensive line is playing well,
the running backs are doing the great job, and the
receivers no matter who's in there, they're getting open liam
and the offense is doing a good job scheming open plays.
And you know we're moving the football consistently.

Speaker 5 (35:18):
I know, four touchdowns now in the last four games
for Kate Otton matches his total amount of touchdowns for
all of last year. Can you take us through his
touchdown first?

Speaker 3 (35:27):
Okay, does a great job. Kate has become probably our
third or fourth wide out, as you first say, as
you put him out there, because he can move very well.
His speed is underestimated, his patterns are underestimated, and he
has outstanding hands. So anytime you put the ball in
his area, he's probably gonna come down with it.

Speaker 5 (35:44):
And I know he also now has tied for the
second longest streak of games with at least eight receptions
in seventy five receiving yards by tight end and NFL history,
trailing only Travis Kelce. And he had at least seventy
receiving yards only twice in his first forty two games
of the Bucks. Now he's done in three straight. What
seems like it has changed or grown, either in his
game or the way Liam's found to use him. That

(36:06):
has gone from him having these stats just every single
game that he only had a few games last year.

Speaker 3 (36:12):
I think it's gone from how Liam's trying to use him.
He's expanded his role, especially since Mike and Chris went
down and we needed options from some places. He had
to step up. He stepped up, He's made big plays.
It looks easy for him, even though it isn't. And
he's continued to be a good block of for us.

Speaker 5 (36:30):
And he's also taking some huge hits while making those catches.
Is there something that he's doing that is making him
really good at being able to absorb those and still
come away with it and also pop back up.

Speaker 3 (36:39):
Every time he's tough. He's a football player, come from
a football family.

Speaker 5 (36:44):
And then I know Rashad got a touchdown in his hometown,
first rushing touchdown of the year. He became one of
just nine players in the last twenty four years to
have at least eight rushing and receiving touchdowns through their
first three seasons. Only two other NFL players have eight
rushing and receiving touchdowns since he entered the league, which
is him, Christian McCaffrey and Deebo Samuel. Not bad company

(37:06):
and also a nice little teaser for the team we
got coming up this next week. So take us through
his touchdown and just those stats and what they say
to you about his ability to get in the end zone.

Speaker 3 (37:16):
I thought he did a good job setting up his blocks.
You know, he went in, he dipped out, he went
back inside, he extended the blocks, He got the guys
out of position, let the offensive line catch up with
him shout out a very patient runner. He can be
a very tough runner, but he's a very elusive runner
as well. And to have those stats with that type
of company, I mean, that's saying something.

Speaker 5 (37:35):
Now. No Bucky now has the second highest season scrimmage
yards in the league and the most yards per carry
of any rookie running back. What stood out about his.

Speaker 3 (37:44):
Game this his toughness. He continues week in and week
out to make the tough runs up the middle. He
had a good kickoff return for us as well. He
can catch the ball out of the backfield. He has
vision and the stop and start that you just can't teach.

Speaker 5 (37:58):
And what has it been like now to watch multiple
game where Rashad, Bucky, even getting Sean Tucker in there
in the way this attempt to use all three of
them in their own unique ways. How that's progressing now
having a few more games under their belt like that,
It's still evolving.

Speaker 3 (38:11):
I think all three are getting comfortable. You know, they
understand what their roles are, and the offense understands what
they're good at and what we try to run when
they're in there. And I think it's evolving. It'll change
each week and it's continued to evolve, so I think
it's taping up pretty good.

Speaker 5 (38:26):
I know Bucky also had a season long forty six
yard kickoff return. What stood out to you about that
return in particular, and then just overall his contributions to
special teams.

Speaker 3 (38:36):
He can make people missing space and special teams and
kickoff return it's a lot of space, so he made
a lot of people miss. He made some great returns.
He's soff He's to do it all back. He tries
to do everything. He wants to be out there. He
just loves playing football.

Speaker 5 (38:49):
I know, until the final drive of regulation, wide receivers
on the team only had a couple catches total. What
had really contributed to that? Was it about other guys
stepping up and making those players or was there some
they not working with some of the wide receivers early on?

Speaker 3 (39:03):
It's about other guys stepping up. The way the scheme
was being, the way they were playing us kind of
gave him the tight ends in the back. Some plays
open there and then we just had some throws out
there that would cover. But you know it opened up
toward the end. Those guys worked at as Shep made
some tough catches. Rock had a tough catch in there
as well, and Miller had some catches, so it opened
up towards the end.

Speaker 5 (39:23):
Yeah, what did you see on that final drive in regulation,
where as you mentioned, all three of those guys got involved,
what either changed and then specifically what each of those
guys did to really make that drive happen.

Speaker 3 (39:33):
We executed, you know, they ran their routes, Baker through
to the open guy. We gave him some time and
they executed all the way down the field.

Speaker 5 (39:40):
And Sterling Sheppard man, I mean season high sixty nine
yards from scrimmage. He had forty eight receiving, twenty one rushing,
including one incredible catch on that last drive that felt
like he just stretched out of the stadium to snag
that one. What have you seen of his chemistry with
Baker and now how important that has become in recent weeks.

Speaker 3 (39:58):
He's a gamer, I mean, come pete. He competes, He
has a lot of energy when he's out there. He's
always trying to get open. He's always excited to play.
He competes at the highest level, whether it's blocking or
going after the football. And he just love his energy
out there.

Speaker 5 (40:11):
And then Ryan Miller with the touchdown to send us
to overtime, and just tell me about that play, and
then why you guys felt like Ryan Miller had earned
the trust of Baker and Liam Cohen at this point
after spending so much time on the practice squad.

Speaker 3 (40:24):
We got to be careful because they're not covering him
right now because they don't know him.

Speaker 5 (40:29):
So in the we should not mention Ryan Miller. Nothing.
You saw nothing.

Speaker 3 (40:33):
Ryan's very solid. He knows all three positions at the
receiver spot. He can block, he can catch the ball.
He's gonna be where he's supposed to be, and he's
a tough player. He's worked hard to earn his spot
and he's taken advantage of it.

Speaker 5 (40:44):
And then take us through the decision after that touchdown
to go for the to not go for two, to
go for the kick, and what all factors into decisions
like that in that moment.

Speaker 3 (40:52):
A ton of things that factor into that. We thought
the offense moved the ball pretty good, and the way
the defense has been holding up lately, we thought we
can get in the old time and get a stop
at the very worst. If we didn't get the ball
at the very worst, they got three and we got
the ball back to score a touchdown, or we win
the toss and get a touchdown.

Speaker 1 (41:07):
We knew.

Speaker 5 (41:08):
We talked about how tough the defensive front was for
the Chiefs going into this game, and what Steve Spagnall
has done with that unit. How did you feel like
the offensive line in particular handled that front and both
the run in pass game.

Speaker 3 (41:19):
I thought they did a good job. I mean, it's
a tough group. Those guys, for the most part, played
very well down there. They fought in the run game,
they gave Baker time in the pass game, and.

Speaker 5 (41:27):
They gave us a chance and then I'd ended up
being six penalties for fifty yards. What stood out about
those and the messages to the team about those this week.

Speaker 3 (41:34):
They happened while we were in scoring territory pretty much,
and they kind of backed us up before the half.
They got us out of position. They got us out
a position at another time too, So it's getting three
points in those positions. We know that can happen. We
harp on it all week and we talked about it.
It's playing with more composure and we got to eliminate that.

Speaker 5 (41:52):
Cacy Philips here with head coach Todd Bowles. So the
Chiefs before this had only given up twelve sacks in
seven games off. He went off the NFL low, but
we were able to get some homes for four different sacks.
What did you see that let our defense be able
to get to him more than any other team had
in a single game this year.

Speaker 3 (42:09):
The interior push, I mean between Vita and Kansi pushing
up the middle, us holding the edge on the outside
so we can't run and getting push up the middle.
I think that helped out a lot.

Speaker 5 (42:18):
Yeah, Vita extends his team lead to five sacks this season,
career total to twenty eight and a half. Take us
through each of his two sacks and what he did so.

Speaker 3 (42:26):
Well, it is powerful. He's going to push the pocket
as he always does, and since they don't let him
out of the pocket, he can reach around and he
grabbed them. One time, I know he got a good sack.
And then one time we ran the game and he
came around the edge and he was on the back
in the line and let him go and he came
through and he kind of got a clean shot on
my homes.

Speaker 5 (42:42):
And I know he also had a career high ten
tackles and three quarterback hits, So of course the sacks
get a lot of the attention, but he was doing
a lot of things outside of that. Where do you
feel like he stood on this being, you know, one
of his better games in a while, and just take
us through the rest of the game, the ways he
was impacting it.

Speaker 3 (42:57):
It was one of the best games I've seen him
play since I've been here. He's tough. He took on
and they got a very good interior line. He took
the challenge on, He played Creed, he played all those
guys very tough, and he made plays from tackle to tackle.

Speaker 5 (43:11):
He has double the sacks of anyone else this year
at his position. What makes it so impressive not just
that he is rushing the quarterback the way he is,
but from his position, with his body type, all of
the different factors that go into why at that position
he is really just excelling in a way that few
others can.

Speaker 3 (43:28):
It's tough because that's not an athletic position. First say,
where you're using your speed to get around all the time.
You got to use power, you got to use technique,
you got to use fundamentals, and then you need everybody
else to help out as well to keep the quarterback
in the pocket. And he's pushing it well and he's
using his hands more. When he uses his hands, he's unstoppable.

Speaker 5 (43:47):
And like you mentioned, Elijah also got in on the action.
Two sacks for him as well. Take us through those two.

Speaker 3 (43:53):
The best one was when he got my homes outside
the pocket. That's very hard to do. A lot of
people go for the pump fake with the ball. Elijah
ran through and he's very fast, so he's gonna make
some plays for him to come up with that one's outstanding.

Speaker 5 (44:04):
And then I know, after missing some time this year,
where do you feel like he's at now in terms
of his level of play, what you've seen from him
in recent weeks and he and vited together of where
they stand as the expectations of what those two can
be together.

Speaker 3 (44:16):
I think they're back and you're starting to see the
results of that.

Speaker 5 (44:19):
And then I know, after we held them to their
second fewest points in first half all year, what do
you feel like worked well defensively especially in that first
half to get those stats.

Speaker 3 (44:29):
We're getting them on the ground. You know, there weren't
many Yak yards. We were keeping them in the pocket.
He wasn't getting out too many times, you know, only
got out about once or twice, and we were keeping
them in the pocket, so everything was getting checked down
and we were tackling them where the ball was caught.

Speaker 5 (44:42):
And Tyke Smith returning from concussion protocol, which I know
was a great thing for the defense overall. Just tell
us a little bit about what it meant to have
him out there and what he's come to mean to
this defense. Already as a rookie.

Speaker 3 (44:53):
He's one of our best ball players over there when
he comes back. I mean, he's always around the ball,
and he always gets the ball out. I mean he
calls one fumbles and he got another PBu at the
same time, he makes a bunch of tackles. He's one
of our best edge setters, which usually goes to the
outside linebackers of defensive ends, but he's strong enough to
take tight ends on at the point, and he's very

(45:13):
valuable for us.

Speaker 5 (45:14):
I know. Also now he has forced three fumbles this year,
which is tied for the third most in the NFL
and the most among rookies. He also punched one out
that ended up just up being an incomplete pass. But
what have you seen of how good he's become at
this stat It feels like he's kind of the new
Levonte David. Also that we have here of specifically being
so good at the punching.

Speaker 3 (45:32):
Out he doesn't in practice. He doesn't in practice it
translates to the game. He practices just like he plays.
He practices like that all the time.

Speaker 5 (45:39):
And I know, yeah, Ya ended up having a nice
tackle for loss of ten on the league's fastest player
out in space. Take us through that play and just
kind of what it said about Yay on his abilities.

Speaker 3 (45:49):
He plays south, He has a knack for playing reverses.
He made one or two of those plays last year
as well. He can recognize things, and people don't understand
how fast he is. He's a four or five guy
and he can get out and run. It doesn't look
like it because of its size, but he can get
out and run and he can make up some ground
and he made it up on that play.

Speaker 5 (46:06):
And we talked about how the interior was getting so
much pressure of the defensive line getting a lot of
push up the middle. What have you seen from the
outside linebackers and the way they're playing both pass game
and run game. And what maybe having Veda and Collidjra
performing like that is going to do for them.

Speaker 3 (46:21):
And this game was critical for us to not let
mahomes out to his right and for us to just
bowl once we got back there, because if you run
past them or you try to go up and under,
he sees that so fast he gets out the pocket.
So we're kind of controlling the left end, so those
guys can get push up the middle and the right
and could go free long as he didn't go past
the quarterback. But they creating opportunities for him. We just

(46:43):
have to take advantage of him.

Speaker 5 (46:44):
I know you, guys. And the Chiefs came into the
game as the top two third down offenses and the
Chiefs ended up going twelve of eighteen on third down?
What is so challenging about stopping them in those situations?
And particularly third and long It was huge.

Speaker 3 (46:57):
Because they had nine of them were under third and
five I think five of them were third and ones.
Then they had two third and two's and one third
and three. So when you get that kind of yardage
with a scrambling quarterback and running team and guys that
can make things happen, it makes it awfully tough. We
did a good job early on getting them in third
and longer yards, but later on they gotten so much

(47:17):
third and short those are easy, kind of easy to
kind of get first downs on.

Speaker 5 (47:21):
I know, since Jamal Dean has been out, you've used
Tyree Funderberg's some Josh Hayes. Josh Hayes ended up getting
the start in the game. Tell Us went into that
decision and then just what you saw from his play.

Speaker 3 (47:32):
Overall, well, he had finished up a week ago pretty good,
so we started him going into the game. Josh is
a very tough corner. He plays these feisties, gonna be
aggressive for the most part, just have to end up
wrapping up sometimes when the ball gets outside. He's got
to just remember to wrap up.

Speaker 5 (47:48):
What are the challenges of covering DeAndre Hopkins at any point,
but then especially with so little footage of him as
a chief and what that was going to look like
and how they'd use him.

Speaker 3 (47:57):
Oh, we kind of knew how they use them and
what it would look like. But he's a has such
a big catch radius and he's very competitive and physical
at the point of attack that even when you got
him covered, he's not covered because he has strong hands.
He's been doing this for quite a while. He's a
great player. But we got to stay close to him
and we got to make those plays.

Speaker 5 (48:15):
And does that kind of speak to what happened on
that thirty five yard catch between Winfield and Hayes for
him that sometimes he just is able to catch radius wise,
go up there and get it.

Speaker 3 (48:23):
No, win just waited on the ball. He's got to
go up and get it. He had the pick, he
thought it was overthrown more than it was, so he
thought he was going to basket catch it. He goes
up and get the ball. That's not a play.

Speaker 5 (48:34):
I know you had been sort of platooning Servasier Dennis
with kJ brid at times, and then once Servasier got hurt,
kJ had been handling most of it. But then we
saw JJ Russell come in some in this last game.
Tell us about the decision to use him and what
you saw from each of those guys and how you
felt their usage worked.

Speaker 3 (48:51):
JJ has become in practice a very good zone awareness guy,
especially in the passing game. So we started using them
some in the game yesterday, and he played very well.
kJ played downhill and he did a lot of things
that he was very good at you. He went back
to doing those things well. And even by Jones got
in for a few plays. But JJ did a good job.

Speaker 5 (49:10):
I know Antoine and Jordan combined for twenty one tackles.
What did you see from those two guys at safety, Well.

Speaker 3 (49:16):
I think I'll make some tackles. They were coming down
and they were playing physical football. They were tackling and
run game. Haunt's not a needsy guy to get down.
Kelsey's not easy to get down. But those guys were
coming in and they were making plays. They didn't miss
too many of them.

Speaker 5 (49:28):
And how about Zion's coverage. We know there was not
only DeAndre Hopkins, but fastest guy in the league and worthy.
And what did you see about how Zion handled his
different coverage assignments.

Speaker 3 (49:36):
Zion played well. I think they stayed away from him.
They went more to Hayes' side than zion side. So
we got to get him in a little more action.

Speaker 5 (49:43):
Let's look a little bit into the matchup against the
forty nine ers. Let's start with brock Perty and how
he has grown and progressed over his time now as
their starting quarterback, and what it's like to face him
and the unique challenges he brings very accurate.

Speaker 3 (49:57):
I can throw very good football. It's very good with
his feet and pocket, getting in and out of the pocket.
So if you think he can't run, you better think again.
So we gotta have eyes on him at all times.
He can make plays with his feet and with his arm.
So it's gonna be a tough matchup.

Speaker 5 (50:10):
And at the time of a shooting this we don't
know for sure about if Christian McCaffrey will be playing
or not. How convenient to activate him, you know this
week leading into the game with and without him, Tell
me how much that can change their offense and the
way you guys are able to play them on defense.
Just with the fact that he can do so.

Speaker 3 (50:26):
Many things with him, it changes a lot. It changes
their offense and gives them multi dimensional players at every position.
Without him, they got de Bo doing a lot of
things that he can do with that limits the guy
wide out that goes in for de Bow. With him,
you got a two headed monster back there that can
do a lot of things along with Kittles along with
everybody else, and they have very threatened offense.

Speaker 5 (50:49):
Yeah, and take us through a little bit more about
Deebo Samuel and the ways you've seen him get used
and just how that can be complicated to game plan against.

Speaker 3 (50:56):
Well, since McCaffrey got hurt, I mean, Deebo's been playing tailback,
he's been playing slotted, he's been playing wide out. He
does a lot of things for him. He can catch
it out of the backfield, He runs like a half back,
he can take hits, he can go down the field
and make deep catches. He can get on linebackers and
kind of Jimmy get away from m that way, and
so it it makes him multi dimensional.

Speaker 5 (51:19):
And then George Kittle you mentioned earlier, definitely one of
the top tight ends in the league. What is challenging
about facing a guy like him?

Speaker 3 (51:25):
Very physical tight end, very physical in the run game,
in the past game, you can be on him and
the contact point, he's gonna separate, He's gonna make some plays.
He plays with his hair on fire, and we gotta
make sure we get him down.

Speaker 5 (51:36):
How is he similar or different to some of the
other tight ends that you guys have faced lately.

Speaker 3 (51:41):
He's probably a better blocker. I would say he's a
better blocker, and he's going full speed all the time.
The other ones may have be maybe better receivers, but
he can do it all.

Speaker 5 (51:51):
And how about their offensive line, what do they bring
to the table?

Speaker 3 (51:54):
Huge and they get off the ball and they can
run and they block. Led by Trent Williams, they can
get on you and they can embarrass you if you're
not playing technique.

Speaker 5 (52:01):
And Kyle Shanahan led team, tell me what you know
about him typically and what he likes to do with
his offense.

Speaker 3 (52:07):
Extremely smart. We'll give you a bunch of different things
out of the same person that we're grouping. And Debo
can be the running back, Christian can be the wide out,
Kittles can be back there. They'll all move around and
take each other's positions, so they kind of keep you
off balanced.

Speaker 5 (52:23):
And on the other side of things, Leonard Floyd and
Nick Bosa out on the ends, tell us what stands
out about those guys to you.

Speaker 3 (52:29):
It'll be a chalent for Tristan and Loop. Those guys
can come off the ball and rust the pass us.
So we got to be on our p's and q's.

Speaker 5 (52:35):
And then Fred Warner, I feel like the way that
we talk about Levonte, I feel like in a lot
of ways you can say the same thing about Fred Warner.

Speaker 3 (52:42):
He's been playing well a year in and year out.
He's a great player. He can read where the ball's
going at the snap of a hat, and he plays
full speed, so we got to know where he is
at all times.

Speaker 5 (52:52):
Well, coach, thank you so much for taking the time
to talk to us. I know it's a crazy week
and a short week coming off that game, so we
appreciate it.

Speaker 3 (52:57):
Thank you.