Assistant head coach/offensive coordinator Mike Kafka
Q: Before we get to your offense, how much work did you do with (Bears quarterback) Caleb (Williams) coming out the year before? It was pretty clear he was going to go number one, but I know you guys were all into the quarterbacks that year.
KAFKA: We did a lot of research on all those guys in the early part of the draft.
Q: What did you think of him?
KAFKA: He's a really impressive quarterback. I know this was a couple years ago, but I enjoyed watching the explosives, the running around, the playmaking. It was cool to watch. It was fun to watch. It was good tape.
Q: He went through some struggles as a rookie. I'm sure a lot of quarterbacks do. How much do you think that can benefit guys in the long term? I know you'd rather have success early, but if you do have struggles, to be able to sort of learn from that, does that then apply to (quarterback) Jaxson (Dart) here?
KAFKA: I really haven't watched a ton of stuff on Caleb just over the course of the last couple years. But, yeah, really I think as a football player, you go through those struggles, those down periods, those are the best times for growth. Those are the best periods for growth because you get to learn, and then you learn from those experiences, you learn from those things that happen, and then you allow yourself to get better and become a better football player. Anytime you go through those ups and downs, as long as you approach it the right way mentally, you can take it and use it as an advantage.
Q: (Wide receiver) Darius Slayton has had some really good seasons here. Why do you think it hasn't come together since (wide receiver) Malik (Nabers) went out? It seemed like, oh, he'll step in, he'll get a lot of targets, he'll go back to being Darius Slayton, the guy who led the team in receiving yards for five years or whatever. Why has it not clicked in the, whatever, five weeks it's been?
KAFKA: I have a ton of confidence in Slay and all the stuff that he does in the pass game, in the run game, who he is as a leader, the captain of the team, how he is in the meeting rooms. Listen, we're right in the middle of it in the season, and there's a lot of season left. So, we're excited. We're putting together a great third-down plan today. Slay and the receiving group is going to be involved in that, so we've got to make sure we have a great day today.
Q: He had such a great connection with (Colts quarterback) Daniel (Jones) for so many years. Do you think there's just a part of it of learning a new quarterback?
KAFKA: Sure. I mean, we spend a lot of time together in the offseason and throughout training camp too. You guys are out here watching the RVAs and all those details. We spend hours and hours in the meeting rooms talking about the routes and stuff like that. So, sure, is it a new quarterback throwing the football, yes. But we've spent a lot of work, and these guys are pros. This is what they do. So, they communicate a lot. They talk about a lot of these routes and just get on the same page.
Q: With (wide receiver) Ray-Ray (McCloud), I'm curious, for someone who knows this offense a little bit with (head coach Brian) Daboll, how is it integrating him in? Is it more seamless, or is there still a little bit of an adjustment period for somebody even though they are familiar with this offense?
KAFKA: There is some level of familiarity with it. It's been a couple years since then, but he's jumping into what we're doing with some of this stuff offensively, whether it's code words, formationally, putting him in different spots. But he's done a great job. I was really impressed by how he handled the workload the last couple weeks.
Q: Then Sunday, that was obviously his debut. He got a lot of reps. How would you assess what he did with those reps? He had one catch, but just overall, what did you see from him on the game film?
KAFKA: It was great. I thought he did a really nice job. He was great on the sideline in terms of communicating, and any adjustments we needed to make, it was easy for him just to go in there and adjust. But I thought he did a really nice job. Again, for a guy stepping in and playing 50-something plays, whatever it was, he did a nice job.
Q: I know not all drops are the same and not all players are the same, but (tight end) Theo (Johnson) has had a couple plays this year where I'm sure he wishes he had back. How do you work that with a younger player who you want to be a big part of the offense and you've had situations where there have been a couple that have gotten away from him in key situations?
KAFKA: I think Theo knows how much trust we have in him, how much belief we have in him, and we know he's going to make a big play. He's been doing it since he's been here. He's going to get more opportunities to do it, and I have full confidence that he'll go and capitalize on it.
Q: Would you rather see Jaxson push the ball down the field or get back to pushing the ball down the field more? It felt like the Niners were taking that away. He was taking what they were giving him, but a lot of the third downs were kind of, let's say it's a third-and-eight, it's a four-yard gain, punt. Are you satisfied with him taking what's underneath and it ends up losing possession, or would you rather see him test into coverage?
KAFKA: I think there's a fine line there, and I think Jaxson's playing pretty fast in terms of decision making, which is really good. What it allows for is it allows for those underneath receivers to kind of get some catch and run, right? So, sometimes when you're designing plays on third down or first, second down, there are shots down the field where if they have it, they're going to shoot it, and Jaxson's giving those guys opportunities. If it's not, and if a certain defender, whether you're reading a flat defender or high-lowing a certain defender, if that guy gets depth, you check it down fast and now we've got to catch it and rely on catch and run. Sometimes you get it, sometimes you're close and maybe we go for it on fourth down. That's the part of playing quarterback that I think Jaxson's doing a really good job with. You balance that and understand, all right, where are we at in the game? There are going to be opportunities where we're going to have to push it past the sticks regardless of where we're at based on the time on the clock, the score, all those types of things. But I think early in the game when you're playing the game and you're playing the position, all right, I'm using my movement keys, my read keys, I'm playing fast, get the ball out. We've seen (wide receiver) Wan'Dale (Robinson) make those conversions underneath when you're short of the sticks and you've got to go knife it, or in screen situations where it's third-and-extra-long when you go catch it. (Tight end Daniel Bellinger) Belly, same thing. So, there have been guys that have done that, and that's part of the National Football League. You're not just going to be able to sit back there and hang back all day long and shoot the sticks. But if you play on time and on schedule, that gives our guys the opportunity to work in space.
Q: Back to the question about Theo. Are drops something you just expect over time, concentration, more experience to get better? Or are drops something where some guys just don't have great hands?
KAFKA: I certainly don't expect any of our guys to drop it. We practice it, we take great pride in being able to catch the football. So, if those things happen, this is football. It's not a game of perfect. It never is. I think you just go back to your fundamentals, your concentration, and look into those things. Again, it's never just one person on those types of things. It could be a number of people that have it that affect the play, whether it's the protection, whether it's the route depth, whether it's the ball placement, whether it's the play call into a certain coverage. Everyone's really a part of those type of things. Of course, the one result is going to affect one person, but at the end of the day, we're focused on the fundamentals and working through those things.
Q: What did you think of the play he made for the touchdown where he stiff armed the guy?
KAFKA: To me it was a flat route. He broke a great tackle, made a great play on the sideline. To start the way that we've been starting in the games, that was a good drive, we capped it off with a nice aggressive finish.
Q: Simplistically, the way you've started games has been outstanding with the offense. Are there any common threads that you guys are trying to bring towards the rest of the game? I know that sounds simplistic, but what can you take from the starts and apply for the rest of the game? Is it as simple as scripted plays versus adjustments? How do you deal with that?
KAFKA: I think it just goes back to the players just executing. They've been doing a great job early in the game, executing, playing with great tempo and great urgency, communication. So, we've just got to continue to do that throughout the game, throughout the drives. I think the one thing that we've been emphasizing is just the pre-snap stuff. The pre-snap penalties have hurt us over the course of the last few weeks in terms of stalling out on the second and third drives. We've got to do a good job of staying ahead and staying in front of the chains and staying on track early in the down.
Q: I think the expectation based off last year was that (running back) Tyrone (Tracy Jr.) was going to handle the majority of the running back snaps. It ended up being close to about 50-50. How much of that was pre-planned game script and is that kind of what you'd like to see going forward here with those two guys?
KAFKA: Tracy's going to be the starter, and he's done a really good job with his opportunities. I think when you get into the flow of the game sometimes and when you're playing fast, it's hard to kind of keep track of the number count because you're on the ball, you're on the ball, you're on the ball, and then maybe one guy might tap and we get another guy in there. I think it's easier to kind of track those each quarter, each half, one of those types of things. When you're in the flow of the game and guys are running the ball well, you're feeding a certain guy and our o-line's playing well. So, I think it's a little bit more difficult to track when you're playing with tempo versus when you can huddle up every single play and get the right guy in every single run. That's just probably the biggest difference over the last few years, I'd say.
Q: What does (Bears head coach) Ben Johnson do really well as a play caller?
KAFKA: I haven't studied him besides for maybe just a couple cut-ups that we've crossed over on it, but I know they've had a lot of production in terms of points, in terms of explosives and stuff like that, so they're obviously doing something really well on that side of it. I haven't studied that offense specifically. You look across the league at what teams are doing generally, but I haven't had an opportunity to really study a singular offense.
Q: What have you seen from the Bears' defense?
KAFKA: They're doing a heck of a job with getting turnovers, they tackle the football. (Bears defensive back Kevin) Byard (III), I mean, their skill guys are doing a great job in terms of tracking the football down and getting interceptions. They're leading the league in interceptions, they're sixth in fumbles, so this is a high turnover defense and we've got to make sure we have great ball security this week.
Defensive coordinator Shane Bowen
BOWEN: Obviously not good enough on Sunday, really these past three weeks. Got to be better, we're working hard at it. The run defense last week I think was one thing that we have to continue to work at. We've looked at some different things we can try to do to help our guys from a technique standpoint, from a scheme standpoint. Finding answers for them, put them in the best positions to be able to do what we need to do to stop the run and improve this red zone defense. We had some opportunities in the red zone, got them to third down and weren't able to get some stops there. But again, I'm confident in the group, I'm confident in the guys, confident in our staff. We're working, putting our head down, and hopefully we can get some better results here going forward.
Q: Last week, after the previous game you said it was probably your worst tackling performance. Where was the tackling last week versus that?
BOWEN: Yeah, I thought there were some improvements in the tackling. There were some misses obviously that showed up. Something we've got to continue to work at, we're drilling, finding different ways to drill it. It's different for different positions. Everybody kind of approaches the ball carrier in different ways. Something we've got to continue to work at and drill every single day and continue to improve.
Q: When you look at their group, what do you see out of (Chicago Bears running back Kyle) Monangai from what he did last week?
BOWEN: Yeah, both those guys, really, really good runners. I think they're really good up front. They do a really good job in the run game, good scheme. They have their wrinkles off of it. They get downhill. It's going to be a really big challenge for us.
Q: Do you think teams are running the ball at your corners, your DBs? The run defense numbers, when you break them down, it's like eight, nine yards a carry outside and three or four in the middle.
BOWEN: Yeah, we've seen some more perimeter stuff here these past couple weeks. I think even some of those downhill runs that they run, where they come in, everybody's kind of coming inside to block the most inside threat to try to get that thing to potentially bounce out there. But, yeah, we have seen a little bit of an uptick here these past couple weeks in the perimeter runs.
Q: Were you good with the effort at the end? It looked like there were some plays where...
BOWEN: Yeah, I felt like they battled. I mean, there's a couple plays here and there, a couple guys here and there that we point out. But overall, I did. I felt like they battled. Again, we've got to start faster. I felt like we got our footing there in the middle of the game and then just the ability to finish late, right? The ability to finish late. They ran the ball, I don't even know how many times in a row, there late in the game. Just got to find ways to get it stopped.
Q: Obviously, with the tackle attempt by (cornerback) Deonte (Banks) at the end was kind of highlighted. It leads to a touchdown. What do you say to him about that? How do you make sure that that doesn't happen again for him?
BOWEN: Yeah, I think it started with just the angle to where he had to fit, right? And then he got caught kind of moving backwards to make it right. Again, we've just got to make sure that we're wrapping up, bringing our feet, and try to eliminate these solo tackles. I know they come, but we've got to make sure we're getting hats to the ball and try to eliminate some of those as well.
Q: From a scheme standpoint, how much can you adjust other than just putting more bodies in the box? You talked about technique and scheme adjustments. How much adjustment can you make with that?
BOWEN: Yeah, I think obviously you have different numbers. The way you want to pressure potentially could change. Again, it can go both ways. You can pressure behind some things and get caught, and they can burn you. But different things front-wise that we can do, maybe changing up the front, what techniques we're playing, the different fronts, whether it's four down, whether it's five down, and then the technique we're playing with at each position. It can kind of vary. All things we looked at on Monday, we're trying to give our guys the best chance to get out there and be successful, whatever that is, scheme, technique, whatever we've got to do.
Q: With (outside linebacker Brain) Burns, he just seems to show up every week with an impact play. Can you speak to the season he's having at this point?
BOWEN: Yeah, I think it started in the offseason. I do. He's been a total pro since he's been here, but had a really good offseason, had a really good training camp, and it's translated for him. He continues to make the most of his opportunities. He's got a knack for getting to the quarterback right now, finding the football. Hopefully that continues for us because he's been a big impact player for us.
Q: When you say a guy has a good offseason, specifically, we're not seeing what these guys do in the offseason. We're just seeing the practice and stuff like that.
BOWEN: Yeah, I just think the intention of which they go about their business day to day, how they show up, the extra time they put in. We only have them so much during the offseason, so the extra time they put in. I think the lead by example from him showed up a lot for us, just in terms of effort and the way he practices. All that stuff translates. You can't discount how you practice and then expect to go perform in a game. Obviously, it's showing up for him.
Q: For everything he's done this league, Carolina and here so far, he has not been rewarded with the results, so to speak, right? I mean, team results. What does it say about a guy who goes that relentlessly constantly, and just had the offseason you spoke about when you're not winning?
BOWEN: You can't say enough good things about him. Ultimate teammate, ultimate team guy. He wants to win more than anybody, I can assure you that. He's doing everything he can to get us over this hump.
Q: Your pressure rate last week was the lowest it's been, I'm talking about blitzing, all year. How much of that was you thought you could win up front against that 49ers team being banged up on the line? How much are you also trying to balance protecting your back end? Obviously, you're shorthanded.
BOWEN: I mean, I think every week you kind of go in looking at what you're going to have to play against. I think there's multiple things that kind of come into play on first, second down with that. Just in terms of where you're sending guys, how they're attacking. Again, a unique offense who changes the picture a lot pre-snap. They try to create angles. They try to create numbers with all the stuff they do pre-snap. So, there's a lot of adjustments that become involved with that, and it gets a little bit more when you start adding guys in the mix in terms of pressure. But it's something we look at every week and just feel like what we're able to do, run game, pass game, all things that are complementary to both.
Q: Will you be able to do more if you get (cornerback Cor'Dale) Flott back? Potentially (safety Jevón) Holland back. Does it allow you as a defensive coordinator to do more?
BOWEN: I would say yes. I mean, I think that comes into play. I do.
Q: I don't think we asked you this, but what did you think of (former football player) Carl Banks saying that (defensive lineman) Dexter (Lawrence) needed to play better, and how do you think Dexter handled it?
BOWEN: Dexter does a lot for us. He does. He puts his body on the line every week. He takes on a lot of double teams. I think he's doing everything he can to get out there and make plays for us. I mean, he's one of our leaders. I think the guys look to him. He's a battler. Again, I wish he had more production as well, and it's going to come. It is. But he's dealing with a lot of hands every single snap. I think it's just based on where he lines up, and naturally at that position, just the ability to get hands on him is a little bit easier than some of these other guys. So, I mean, I love Dex. I'm glad he's here. I'm glad he's one of us. Again, he's trying to lead us out of this as well.
Q: Big picture, not just who you guys have right now, but you guys are invested a lot in the safety position. Obviously, Jevón 's missed a couple games, but what are you seeing out of those two guys? Because it feels like they should be playmakers for you guys.
BOWEN: Yeah, I mean, we got to get Jevón back out here. We'll see where he's at as the week goes. I mean, that's the league, right?
Q: But, I mean, from a season perspective.
BOWEN: Yeah, I think they've done some good things. I do. I think they both have done some good things for us. I think (safety) Dane's (Belton) done a really good job since he's been in there. Obviously, transitioning, taking what he's done in special teams and bringing it over to defense. So, again, we want all those guys to be able to make plays back there. We got to create some situations where we can have the opportunity to make some plays back there.
Special teams coordinator Michael Ghobrial
GHOBRIAL: Just wanted to start off by saying heartfelt condolences to (Cowboys defensive end) Marshawn Kneeland's family, the Dallas Cowboys. Tragic loss, feel for that community, everybody involved. Football is a very tight-knit community in general, a young man gone too soon. So, prayers and lots of thoughts with the Cowboys, that family and all them.
Q: It feels kind of weird to ask about football.
GHOBRIAL: No, I'm sorry. I felt like it was fitting - that's tough. Although I didn't know Marshawn, you obviously see the football player. You just interact with these players so much you feel for that loss. It's tough. Sorry to make it about that, but I did think that's prevalent to say.
Q: Do you know who your kicker is going to be?
GHOBRIAL: We're going to explore every option. We'll take it to the very end of the week and fortunately we have guys on the roster for any situation that arises, all guys that we'd be confident going into Sunday with.
Q: If it's not (kicker) Graham (Gano), is it (kicker) Jude (McAtamney), is it (kicker Younghoe) Koo, or is that still a competition? Obviously it's Graham if Graham's healthy, but do you know who option two is?
GHOBRIAL: I think obviously Jude kicking for a few games was important getting used to the operation. I think Koo's done a nice job. At the end of the day, we will still exhaust every ounce of the week to make certain that we're making the right decision. I think both guys will be ready. I know Koo has kicked really well, so I would have ultimate confidence with him going out there.
Q: Is this something with Graham that came out of the game?
GHOBRIAL: All injury questions will go to (head coach Brian Daboll) Dabs on that.
Q: What happened on his miss?
GHOBRIAL: Coming out of half, the wind patterns were telling us that the ball was going left and he took a line that was saying the wind was going to basically push it left. It kind of stayed true to his line, so in essence, he pulled it left. We've just got to hone in and tighten his line a little bit more inside. Obviously got to make those kicks.
Q: What do you think of the job (wide receiver Jalin) Hyatt did (on kickoffs)?
GHOBRIAL: He did a nice job. Number one rule of all returners is ball handling, ball security, and that was something that he did a great job of. He was very efficient with his returns. And again, it was cool to see the excitement building up to this for him and for his teammates, wanted him to do well. Those guys blocked their tails off for him and he showed that he does have the skill set to do it. He's been working at it this whole season and he's consistently developed. We had confidence in putting him out there and it was cool to see him have success.
Q: What did you see in him that made him kind of have those skills, because he told us he hadn't really returned kicks since high school?
GHOBRIAL: Number one is the undeniable speed. He is consistently one of the top GPS runners, not only on our team, but in the National Football League. He has the ability to get downfield in a hurry. So, when you have that skill set, you're like, okay, what else translates? The number one thing, like I said, is the ball security, which he showed the catch mechanics. It was just effortless. As receivers, I think they're used to being able to key the ball, understand where it's going even though it's a different trajectory of how it's coming to you. But he's done a nice job in practice of showing his skill set of catching that ball forward, tucking it away. So, I was like, okay, he's got the catch mechanics, he's got the top-end speed, now he's just got to kind of learn the tracks, how to take care of the ball in terms of that certain zone where a lot of hits are happening, and he's done that. He did a nice job and again, it was really cool to see him have success on that.
Q: How has Koo performed in practice?
GHOBRIAL: Really well. I think there's a lot of comfort with him, (punter) Jamie (Gillan), (long snapper) Casey (Kreiter). He has done a great job being outdoors, obviously kicking outdoors a lot now. And again, he has the experience of being in a lot of NFL stadiums, but coming here, understanding the operation, getting his specific hold the exact way that he wants it, I think was important. He's done a nice job, he really has. When we do these field goal periods, we kind of paint the field. We don't necessarily always go front to back and just keep taking them as far back as he can. It's mixing it up like a game would. Sometimes it's a PAT, sometimes it's a 50-yard field goal, then it's coming up on a bunny field goal from the nine-yard line. Then it's this, then it's that. He's done a good job of making it one snap and clear every time.
Q: How much have you tinkered with his approach and mechanics, if at all?
GHOBRIAL: I think it's just unifying the three pieces together. So, it's understanding what tilt he wanted with the ball, understanding how the snap has to come out, what rotation Casey has to hit it with to make sure that he's giving Jamie the right ball to put down. Then what part of his body he's actually hitting. It's very detailed in that regard. In terms of his exact mechanics, again, he's done it at a high level for a long time, so, he's kind of honed into this technique. Now it was just putting himself in that position with the timing of when to start his kicks. It's been very rhythmic and it's been replicated over and over again to where it's consistent now. So, if it's him, excited to see what he can do. Obviously, what he's done in his career has been really good. He's a great teammate and I know he's a true pro and he'd be ready for the opportunity if it comes to him.
Q: It's supposed to be pretty blustery and cold Sunday. How much of a factor is that when you're looking at which guy you might want to bring out there? Is one guy better than the other?
GHOBRIAL: The fortunate thing for us being in the Northeast, we have the opportunity to kick in cold weather and windy weather. Although it is projected to be probably one of the coldest days this year that we've played in, we've actually fortunately had some cold days and some really windy days. That's what's kind of cool about where we kick on these practice fields is it's as difficult as it gets. I mean, I'm just looking over there right now and I'm seeing the flags blow directly across and I'm like, okay, this is a great day. As much as we can replicate that, those reps are invaluable to those guys. Kicking indoors doesn't necessarily help us for some of the stadiums we play in, especially in ours. I truly believe any kicker we put out there is going to be ready for that because of how many reps they've had out here.
Q: What do you do to replicate precipitation, because there's a chance of snow?
GHOBRIAL: That's obviously a little bit more difficult to do because, is it going to be heavy rainfall, is it going to be snow, is it going to be sprinkling? Certainly a lot of us special teams coaches across the league do this thing called a wet ball drill, where they'll literally wet the ball. Even if it's not raining outside with a water bottle, they'll dunk it into a bucket of water. They'll put soap on it to make it a little bit more slick. Little things like that, you can kind of get that ball a little bit more damp. Obviously, sometimes it gets overused because that ball starts to get waterlogged and now it's soaking up and you're not able to dry it. But those are things being up here, with how much rain games we've had, we do that every week. We start in September on that to prepare for those opportunities because we don't know when that rain game is going to come, we've just got to be ready when it does. So, those situations are critical for us to be ready for.
Q: Is there any difference with the K-balls? Are you able to protect them more when they're not in the game versus years past?
GHOBRIAL: I think the ball handling in the game is the same, with how we get it out to them. It's not necessarily protected more with a towel or anything. It's just the fact that you have the ball a lot earlier than you used to. So, you get a ball ready, but at the same time, if it gets waterlogged, that ball can get destroyed throughout the game and then it's probably not a ball that you'd want to reuse. You're able to reuse a ball, I believe, up to three times, three games. If the ball gets destroyed in one weather game, then you're not necessarily going to go with that. With a lot of K-balls, you just pick the next man up and you're ready to go with that.
Kicker Graham Gano
Q: What happened?
GANO: So, I started having some discomfort last week in my neck. I just thought it was normal, like you slept on it wrong. Then after I came in on Monday, lifted, I felt like it was pretty intense pain. Had some nerve stuff going on. Then went to the doctor and he said it was a herniated disc in my neck. It's pressing up against the spinal cord. But it was probably beginning to happen, and then just after lifting, you know, kind of let go. Nothing that I could really stop. It's the same type of stuff I've been doing lift-wise. Super frustrating. But I had an injection yesterday on my spine. Hopefully that will start helping out.
Q: That doesn't sound day-to-day, Graham. Is that?
GANO: Yeah, that's normal. That's normal. I'm hoping to kick tomorrow. But we'll see how I'm progressing.
Q: Is it painful to kick? Or does it hinder your kicking?
GANO: I haven't kicked yet.
Q: Well, when you were dealing with it on Sunday.
GANO: No, I mean it's just like when you sleep on your neck wrong, it bothers you a little bit. I've done that. I've had that happen multiple times in my career. It's fine.
Q: If this was just for you, an isolated incident the last week, I'm sure you'd be frustrated enough. But given what you said a couple of weeks ago coming back, can you describe what you're going through right now? The emotions here?
GANO: It's unbelievably frustrating. I mean, obviously all I want to do is play football. I can't control the injuries that have happened. It's not like I've done something that is out of the ordinary, like outside the building to hurt myself or anything. So, I think that's frustrating. I hear everyone else's frustration, media, fans. I mean, shoot, ever since sports betting started happening, I get people telling me to kill myself every week. You know, because I'll hit a kick that loses them money. I'll miss a kick, and it loses them money. It was the other day somebody told me to get cancer and die. I mean, that stuff's part of it. But just playing this long, that stuff, you're used to it by now. But with that being said, I see everyone's frustration, and I'm frustrated too. I just want to play ball. I think that just constantly not being able to is tough. I'm doing everything I can to try and come back and play, and that's my hope.
Q: That stuff crosses a line that's unacceptable. I mean, you're also an NFL player. How do you deal with that? How do you not respond to that? How do you put that out of your mind?
GANO: I really don't respond. I mean, I try not to see as much as I can. Then if I start seeing that stuff, I just shut it off. Unfortunately, that's part of the game. A lot of people just send you stuff. Like, I'll get letters. I'll get fans telling it to my face. Game days, the DMs. I hear a lot of it from other guys on the team too. It's tough. I think especially nowadays when you talk about mental health, it's tough. I've gotten thick skin over the years. I think early on it really bothered you a lot. But, I mean, nobody wants to hear that stuff. I think everybody in the locker room knows that if you have something going on to talk to somebody about it. I hope that everybody in here would. Nobody wants to hear stuff like that. I just want to make the fans happy, I want to help the team win games, so not being able to do that is hard.
Q: Have you talked to people about this whole situation, like for yourself? I mean, you said there are people to talk to about or have you kept it to yourself?
GANO: I kind of keep it to myself. I mean, I'll talk to teammates if I'm struggling. But, I mean, that's what I'm saying over the years. I've been playing ball since before social media. So, I've gotten to see the whole gamut of it. I think it's tough for a lot of the younger guys, you know, if you really look at that stuff. But during the season, I normally shut those things off anyways. It doesn't stop people from seeing you in public and saying things to your face. But, I mean, I get it too. People are passionate. A lot of it I understand. But, I just want to do my best. I'm proud to be a Giant. I wish there was something I could do to not be hurt. At the end of the day, I want people to know I care. I want to play. I want to be the best I can. I want to make every kick. I want to be the best teammate I can. It's something I care about. I wouldn't be playing this long if I didn't care about it.
Q: How does that affect the people who love you the most? Like your wife, your kids, stuff like that. They must hear that too. As you know, the NFL is dealing with a mental health tragedy right now in Dallas.
GANO: We were talking about it this morning, guys on the team, I hated hearing that news. You never want to hear anything like that from anybody. I think the biggest thing, I mean, it's not just football. It's everybody. If you have anybody that is on your mind to reach out to, do it. You never know. It could be the difference. Check on your people. I think we have great guys in this locker room. I love every player on this team. I hope that every single person would feel comfortable coming to me with something difficult. Everybody in everyday life goes through things that are hard. That's the sad reality of life. But I think it's important to have people that you can lean on. It's definitely, it's really awful what happened down there.
Q: Which day did you find out about the herniated disk?
GANO: It was early in the week. I've been doing all kinds of stuff. I'm not sure, like just medical stuff. But I can't remember what day.
Q: Monday?
GANO: I think it was one of those days early in the week. What's today? Thursday...
Q: Yeah, Thursday.
GANO: Spent a lot of time in the doctor's offices. But, yeah, I'm doing the right things to get back. Definitely feeling improvement since early in the week. So it's a positive.
Q: Do you think you could kick on Sunday?
GANO: I'm hoping. The plan is if I'm feeling well to try and kick tomorrow. My legs feel great. It's not something I'm dealing with, lower body. Just an unfortunate neck injury.
Q: I don't know much about a hernia; I'm not a doctor. Can you injure that further if you need to kick?
GANO: I'm not sure. It's beginning to feel better. So that's more of a doctor question. I'm not sure about it.
Q: Any sense that it happens, like did you change your mechanics at all after the groin injury or anything like that?
GANO: Oh, that would have affected my neck?
Q: Yeah, I'm saying anything that's related to the other…
GANO: No, from talking to the doctor, he said it was just something that was probably happening, you know, over time. And that was just the time. I wish it would have happened in off season or after the season. I can only control what I can. Once again, I understand people's frustration. I'm frustrated, too. I care about the game and hopefully I'll be back playing soon.
Q: Can you understand if they were to just put you on IR because there have been a lot of injuries with you?
GANO: I mean, that's out of my control. That's not something I've talked about yet. I find those things out after the fact. But I hope not. I want to play. I don't think anybody on this team really wants to go on IR ever. So hopefully that doesn't happen and I'm playing soon.
Q: Given the sensitivity of the nature of the injury, any thought across your mind about it might not be worth it to play football until I feel more confident in how that feels or what I would be risking?
GANO: I think as long as the doctors and our trainers give me good information, I trust them. I truly believe we have one of the best medical staffs in the league. I've been around a lot of places. This place is great. I trust in them fully. Whatever they say, I'm going to go by.
Kicker Younghoe Koo
Q: How ready do you feel to kick if you're called upon? (Head coach Brian) Daboll said they're getting you ready to kick this week. How ready do you feel after all the time here on the practice squad?
KOO: Very ready. I'm ready to go.
Q: (Special teams coordinator Michael Ghobrial) Ghobi made it seem like it took some time for you to get comfortable with the operation. He made it seem like you have a very specific way of getting your operation down that maybe is a little different than everybody else's. Can you talk about that a little bit?
KOO: I think every kicker has a different thing, so it's not really like I'm coming in here and it's like, 'oh, I want it this way.' Everybody has a different way of doing things, and I had enough time to get it ready with the guys. So, I feel ready to go if I'm up.
Q: What's it been like for you to be here? You came here for an opportunity, and now you've been here. First time really on a practice squad to deal with it. What's it been like? What have the challenges been? Has it been good for you in a sense to be able to focus on yourself a little bit? What's it been like?
KOO: Yeah, it's been great. How I feel, I'm grateful for the opportunity. I've been making it count every week, week in and week out, just staying ready for an opportunity.
Q: Is it strange, to have kicked in this league for as long as you have? I mean, guys talk about veterans, when they're on the practice squad, it's a different world. For a kicker, I would imagine it's even more challenging because you're not kicking every day. What has that been like?
KOO: At the end of the day, I get an opportunity to be on a team and just work on my craft, so I'm grateful for that opportunity to be here.
Q: I don't think we talked to you when it happened. The last time (kicker) Graham (Gano) got hurt, they went with (kicker) Jude (McAtamney). Did you feel slighted by that at all, given your resume and all? Did you feel like that should have been you?
KOO: No. I mean, as a competitor, sure, you want to see the field. But at the same time, Jude's been here, he was kicking well in practice, that's not my decision. All I can do is come in and just kick well week in and week out, day in and day out, and just see where that takes me.
Q: You've kicked in this league for a long time, but if you get the chance, will it be a little different kicking for the team that's 10 minutes from where you grew up?
KOO: Sure. I mean, I grew up right by. It is, but at the same time, field and football, uprights, none of that changes, right? So, you've just got to get the job done.
Q: What's it like with the environment for kickers? Obviously, in Atlanta, you were indoors mainly, but when you're kicking outside, what is that challenge like for you as a kicker?
KOO: Kicking indoors, sure, but in Atlanta, too, we practiced outside, we had outdoor games, we played in Chicago, we played in different places, so you know how to deal with the elements. You've just got to see what the wind and stuff is like on game day, and then just adjust from there.
Q: You mentioned playing in Chicago. What is it like when the wind is going up there? What's that like for you as a kicker to try to prepare for that?
KOO: The good thing is out here, you get the same wind. Different kind of wind patterns out here. You get all kinds of elements, so you get to work on that. So, trusting in the preparation, and then pregame, you kind of go through what the wind is doing and make adjustments from there.
Q: Are you eager to reprove yourself or whatever, or have a chip on your shoulder at all after getting cut by Atlanta and now you get a chance to show that, hey, I can still do it?
KOO: Sure. As a competitor, that's there. Definitely want to get on the field and prove that I know I can do and just show what I can do.
Q: How have you fed that need for that competitive edge? For you, you were always a competitor. When you're not in the games on the weekends, how do you find a way to kind of satisfy that?
KOO: I just go back to the routine, just the process of it. So, kicking on Wednesday, Friday, Sunday, if it's an away game, home game, I'll come up here and kick. Try to stay in the routine so that I'm ready to go if my name's called.
