Q: Your thoughts on last Sunday and just the way you executed with a bunch of different looks. Is that about as complete a performance as you guys have had?
A: It was a good performance by us. I thought the guys were ready. It was one of those situations where our kids were locked in, they were focused and you want them to do that every week. If we can capture that in a bottle, that would be great.
Q: You used Mathias Kiwanuka a lot on the defensive line, is that something you guys will do moving forward?
A: That was a specific game plan situation. We felt like we were going out on the west coast and we had to have a good rotation because we did a couple of things different with JPP and so it was a specific game plan situation for us.
Q: How would you say Mathias played on the line?
A: We thought he performed extremely well. He played about 40 snaps and there were very few minuses in there and I was very pleased with his performance.
Q: Adrian Tracy played a lot at linebacker. What was your thinking on that and what did you think of his performance?
A: He came here originally as a linebacker and you keep seeing this big body in the meeting room and you say you've got to use the talent that you have in your room and we just thought that if we created this role for him, in this game specifically in last week's game, that we thought we could we could gain some mileage. So he dropped a little bit, he rushed a little bit. He gave us some quality snaps. I think it was maybe 12 to 15 quality snaps and so we would like to do some things like that with him going forward. It was good to see him perform like that.
Q: When you face a mobile quarterback like Griffin, how does that change the responsibilities for the guys up front on the defensive line?
A: It really doesn't change the responsibilities. You have to be aware of the quarterback. You're always aware of him, but with guys that are mobile quarterbacks, you become more aware. Your senses arise a lot more. They can take off at any time and so it takes a lot of discipline in your rush lanes. It takes a lot of discipline in your run lanes and so that's the main thing is that you're more aware that this guy can take off and go on you at any point in time.
Q: Does it help that you guys have faced two option attacks?
A: It does help a little bit. I believe that Robert Griffin is a lot different than the guys that we have played at this point. He is an extremely, not that those guys are not good athletes, but he is an extremely gifted athlete and he can go from 0-60 right now. When you put the ball in his hands and obviously they do, they expect him to win. So you have to win your matchups against him.
Q: If you compare what Carolina did, what percentage of option did they use versus what percentage of option…
A: I couldn't tell you those percentages. I'm so focused on what Washington is doing right now and trying to understand that offense that I haven't even gone back to the Carolina game.
Q: How much does Washington use the option?
A: It shows up in every game. I can't give you a percentage because if I gave you a percentage and they'll look at it and say he doesn't know what he's talking about, which I probably don't, but I know they run it in each ball game. So any time you use an offense like that, it's different than the normal pro-style offense. You have to be aware of it. It takes a large percentage of our time to focus on that because we don't see it everyday.
Q: It's a different offense, but do you worry about what happened in Philadelphia as far as your containment? Do you have to contain Griffin?
A: No doubt.
Q: Is it similar like that?
A: The offense isn't similar, but he is that type of player that he can get outside your containment. He can definitely stress the edges of your defense, so you definitely have to be aware of that.
Q: Do you harp on the Philadelphia game with these guys?
A: We kind of put that one to bed, but we learned from those mistakes and hopefully we learned from those mistakes and we can move on and be a better defense.
Q: Is it possible to get after the quarterback that much against an option offense?
A: I want to say yes, but they've had really good success in protecting him on third down. I don't think he's been sacked, if I'm not mistaken, on third down in the games we have scouted. So I'm going to say yes. I'm not going to say that we're not going to try to get after the guy. You have to be competitive and challenge your defense.
Q: How has David Carr been helpful as someone who has worked with Kyle Shanahan before?
A: Very valuable, especially in practice with the looks and then scrambling and throwing the football. He has those traits. He is not as gifted, but he has those traits. So it really helps you as far your look is concerned for the defense.
Q: What have you thought of RG3 on film?
A: I'm impressed with him as a rookie. He has great command out there. They put a lot on his shoulders and obviously he's up to the challenge to go out and make the offense work. If you look in the red zone, I think they're 12 for 12 in the red zone. They have some staggering numbers. Offensively, they are in the top five, top 10 in the league. So for a young rookie quarterback to come in and carry that much on his shoulders, he's a special guy.
Q: If you had to pick your poison, do you want him passing?
A: I want him on the bench. That's what I would pick.
Q: How much do you miss Jacquian in a week like this?
A: It's a blow to our defense not to have him because we like his speed, we like his aggressiveness and I thought he performed well for us last week also. So we felt like the more he's starting to come, there are things that we see of the old Jacquian Williams that played for us last year that we can carry on from week to week. So now he's out and it sets you back just a little bit.
Q: Are you surprised how effective option offenses have been in this league?
A: Well they have a pretty fast quarterback, so I think that the speed of that quarterback meets the speed of the defenses that he's facing and obviously it's successful. It's a top five offense. So it's a new style of option offense that's taken place and it has its place. Hopefully we can, as defensive coordinators and people around the league, have some answers to the offense, but it's been successful so far.
