Interview with Lebeau

[UCMehayward]

http://blog.steelers.com/

Re: Throwing more at the defense as the game goes on:
I think that’s a pretty accurate statement. You never know what the other guy is going to do. You can look at the video but it can be pretty different. We try not to let our guys get too surprised early. Then we talk to them on the sidelines a little bit and tell them what’s coming. Hopefully, as they get accustomed to the formations and tendencies, they’ll be able to expand the package a little bit. The first objective is to get everybody lined up, and I think that’s a pretty accurate statement. We start slow early than we finish.

What i got from this...? GRUDEN, you HAVE to switch up your formations and plays dude. Do not come out there and think you just gonna out throw, catch and run on this defense. This is a BIG game for you too buddy, not just Dalton!

[UCMehayward]

Here is the full interview

Defensive Coordinator **** LeBeau

Is there anything different Bengals QB Andy Dalton is doing?
Not really. He hasn’t changed from his first year. He threw the ball quickly and made some good decisions. He’s got a lot of really good offensive people around him. He does a very good job of managing the game. He’s a more veteran quarterback, and it’s harder to confuse him. It’s what you expect in a young and talented quarterback. He’s going to just get better.

Does CB Keenan Lewis need to have a good game against WR A.J. Green to take him to the next level?
We’re looking for our cornerbacks to play well every week. For Keenan, it’s a natural growth process. He’s taken Ike Taylor’s role in matching their best, and the better he plays the better chance our defense will have to keep them lower on the scoreboard. I wouldn’t put everything on Keenan as to how we play. He’s got to play well but so do the other 10 people out there.

Is the short passing attack that teams use against you limiting your chances of getting turnovers?
You can talk about a lot of statistics. I think leading the league in yardage yielded, that’s an important one. That’s the one I would choose to talk about. Also, the points yielded. Whatever they’re doing, however they’re trying to move the ball, we’re up there and have been in the top-10 in points yielded. Not quite what we have been in the past, I think it was a different year. There are plenty of areas that we need to do better in. But when I’m conducting the interview, I’m going to talk about the good things. There are a lot of good things to talk about, too. Do we need more interceptions? Sure, we need more turnovers. I’ll leave that up to you guys as to why it’s not happening. We’re just trying to, every week, keep our football team in the game, and keep that score in a manageable position. That’s our goal every week.

Are there some games where it’s more important to get the quarterback on the ground, or is just consistently pressuring them good enough?
It’s important to get the guy on the ground every game. People know that we are a pressure defense, and the league has gone to a very quick release passing game. They don’t hold the ball very much. I have said this many times. If you look at the passing numbers that we have, there’s got to be pressure on the quarterback. You’re not going to put those types of numbers up. Each week is a different week. If you’ve done something for 10 weeks or four weeks or whatever, it doesn’t mean anything. It’s what you do this week. Our pressure has been consistent. Do we need more sacks? Absolutely, but let’s face it, passing yardage allowed is a team statistic. You’re not going to get that without good coverage and pressure. There are plenty of negatives. But that is definitely a positive.

Re: S Robert Golden:
He caught our eye because he was a free agent football player and made the football team, and he has played a significant amount of time, most of it last week and on special teams. I thought he did a good job of going in there and actually playing a corner position. Robert is a safety who can play corner, and that’s one of the things we value in him. I think Coach Tomlin’s judgment was definitely reinforced in that game, and he gave us great depth, particularly at the end of the game when we had a couple of other defensive backs go out. It’s good to have a guy who can play both positions like Robert. I’m looking forward to his growth.

Can S Will Allen play nickel?
He can play nickel, and we have considered it. He, again, gives you good depth.

If you had to come up with a plan to slow down TE Heath Miller, what would you focus on?
He’s a wonderful player. I’m just glad that he’s not my problem and is somebody else’s problem. I just enjoy every play that he makes. I think he’s a tremendous player.

The cornerbacks have been pretty good in not allowing deep plays, making tackles and limiting yards after the catch.
I think up until last week that was an accurate statement. We missed some tackles in that game. We’re always looking to get better and not go the other direction. I thought for the situation our players were in, they competed. That was our first objective, to go compete and to play for 60 minutes. Some of those guys were taking an awful lot of snaps with the special teams and everything, so I was proud of the way we competed. We need to play and we need to play better this week. That’s our goal.

Are you pleased with the decisions the cornerbacks are making? Lewis has a lot of passes defensed and a lot of tackles.
Keenan is having a really fine year. I thought he played well last year. He wasn’t a starting corner but he came in on third-down and played really well. I think he took a very significant step this year in taking every snap. I think Keenan is going to be a good interceptor as we go on through his career. He’s still very much in a growth situation in his career but I think for the amount of experience he has and years in the league, I think he’s doing a very good job. We’re glad we have him.

Re: Throwing more at the defense as the game goes on:
I think that’s a pretty accurate statement. You never know what the other guy is going to do. You can look at the video but it can be pretty different. We try not to let our guys get too surprised early. Then we talk to them on the sidelines a little bit and tell them what’s coming. Hopefully, as they get accustomed to the formations and tendencies, they’ll be able to expand the package a little bit. The first objective is to get everybody lined up, and I think that’s a pretty accurate statement. We start slow early than we finish.

Did you figure out how to cover WR A.J. Green with the success you had against him earlier this season?
I think a lot of that was Ike. He’s a great defender, and he’s played the best in the league year-in and year-out. He usually delivers. I think that’s where the credit goes for that. He caught the one slant for a touchdown, and if I’m not mistaken that might have been the only ball he did catch. A little bit of that is luck too, because you’re not going to hold Green to one catch. We’ll let them matchup with him and certainly keep him from controlling the game, or we’re not going to be successful. For that game that you’re talking about, I think you have Ike to thank for that.

Re: Lewis taking on the challenge of defending the top receiver:
I think it’s a step in his maturation, and it’s a role that I can foresee him growing into. He’s getting some real on the job training. He’s getting a lot of snaps with that, and I think it’s good for him.

Re: The turnover issues:
Well, we’re trying to punch it loose. We’re trying to get interceptions. We don’t have enough of them. That’s about all I can say. We’re going to keep trying.

How do you explain it? What do you see?
I don’t explain it. I just said that we need more. That’s my explanation

[Carlos Spicyweiner]

Originally Posted by UCMehayward

http://blog.steelers.com/

Re: Throwing more at the defense as the game goes on:
I think that’s a pretty accurate statement. You never know what the other guy is going to do. You can look at the video but it can be pretty different. We try not to let our guys get too surprised early. Then we talk to them on the sidelines a little bit and tell them what’s coming. Hopefully, as they get accustomed to the formations and tendencies, they’ll be able to expand the package a little bit. The first objective is to get everybody lined up, and I think that’s a pretty accurate statement. We start slow early than we finish.

What i got from this...? GRUDEN, you HAVE to switch up your formations and plays dude. Do not come out there and think you just gonna out throw, catch and run on this defense. This is a BIG game for you too buddy, not just Dalton!

So true!
You can have the best talent in the whole NFL, but if the gameplan doesn't match, then it doesn't really matter.

[ibengals]

This is something Gruden needs to improve on. I keep hearing that he has a ton of plays and formations he hasn't used yet, but it's always the same things game after game. It seems that when they're down, he won't run anything explosive. They're going to be blitzing quite often I would say, because the corners won't hold up long in coverage.

I'm going to lose my mind if this is another case of our OC not being able to keep up with Lebeau.

[Rrobo9]

Originally Posted by ibengals

This is something Gruden needs to improve on. I keep hearing that he has a ton of plays and formations he hasn't used yet, but it's always the same things game after game. It seems that when they're down, he won't run anything explosive. They're going to be blitzing quite often I would say, because the corners won't hold up long in coverage.

I'm going to lose my mind if this is another case of our OC not being able to keep up with Lebeau.

i would have to disagree. when the bengals have had weapons together this year for a game, Gruden has done a good job with different formations etc... also if it is not broke no need to fix it..they have been running the ball great.. keep up with that type of play calling and formations...