Head Coach Todd Monken (8.7.26)
Obviously, there are things we don’t know when it comes to evaluating the quarterbacks. As you look specifically at Shedeur (Sanders) and Deshaun (Watson) individually, what do you feel like they each need to improve on the most?
“Well, I think let’s just start with installs are over, so today and tomorrow, before we take Sunday off, we’ll have a little bit better idea in terms of drilling down at who we want them to be and who they are. There’s a lot of things that go into each one of those players that we’re just going to continue to evaluate.”
Yesterday it seemed like there was a bit of a switch, on a Shedeur first team day, Deshaun looked like he went first in some of the seven-on-seven stuff, was there a reason for that?
“He took one of the one in seven-on-seven and the day before Shedeur did. We kind of switched it to get them at least one rep with the ones on the day they’re not normally going with the ones.”
Now that you’re done with install, how do you feel the guys came out of it, and how do you think they processed it and were able to translate it on the field as you prepare for this first day outside of that phase?
“Fine. I mean, this will help. The only thing that’ll go in, like I said, will be situational football, a few variations of what we do, but we get a chance to repeat concepts we’ve been working on earlier. We just have to continue on both sides of the ball to do the simple things better. It’s really that simple.”
In that inside zone run drill where the quarterback’s just handing off, is he doing other things?
“During the inside period? Are they doing anything but handing the ball off?”
How important is it for the quarterback to conduct that drill? Is it more than just handing off?
“No, not at all. It really is as simple as that. They’re just handing it off. We’re getting the calls; it’s really a drill for your interior players more than anything. We’re not checking plays. They’re really not looking at anything other than, we may be varying the snap count, so maybe from an operational standpoint, but in terms of getting in and out of calls or any of our check plays, no.”
Todd, it seems like with the way the rotation has ended up over these past few days that Shedeur is ending up with more padded practices and Deshaun is not. Is there a reason for that?
“It might be true. That might be true. It’s not on purpose. It was just every other day.”
So, there’s no reason to that?
“No. It really wasn’t that way, they way it turned out, now that you say it, today is not and tomorrow will be. It’s just the way it worked out in terms of the way we alternated the quarterbacks was basically every other day, and the padded practices, shells, or helmets were independent of the rotation.”
Todd, you said the other day that you can’t have an elite offense without elite cadence. Why is that?
“Well, you can go on one all the time and the defensive line jumps the cadence every time and it puts you at a disadvantage against the great edge rushers and tackles you have in this league. That’s part of it. The other is trying to take advantage of being explosive. To be elite on offense, you have to be explosive. So how many times a year can you get them in the neutral zone and get a free shot down the field? That’s part of it. I think the biggest thing is your ability to keep, whether it’s up front, defenders from jumping the count. It’s not always an elongated snap count, but it could be a quick count to force the defense to get aligned quickly, and that gives you a picture of where they’re at and what play you might want to get to.”
Could you explain a little more how you can have up to 10 different cadences?
“It’s actually very simple. You go on the quick, the long, the first color, the second color, one, two, double cadence, double cadence on two. I haven’t even finished and that’s eight.”
Sometimes it’s hard to tell just how successful the run plays are when you’re working on them because you’re not tackling live. What have you seen from the film on Quinshon (Judkins) and Dylan (Sampson) in the run game?
“Dylan’s been nicked up a little bit, so we haven’t seen as much of him. But Quinshon’s just a bull, man. He’s a downhill, powerful man, and it’s fun to watch. He’s hard to bring down, and he’s got something inside of him from a competitive standpoint that’s fun to watch.”
Todd, as you look to make a decision about the starting offensive line, how do you weigh how the five fit together versus just the pure talent of the five?
“Well, it starts with the pure talent, they’ve got to be able to get the job done and then you fit it together. But again, like most camps I’ve been in, it’s hard to get the fit because you’re going to have nicks and bruises where guys are out. So, with Elgton (Jenkins) being nicked up a little bit, and then Teven (Jenkins) and some other guys, you’re just working through it, trying to find the best five. Then once you get there, you’ve got to make it all fit together.”
KC (Concepcion Jr.) talked about how much work he’s put in on catching and securing the ball. In the spring, there were some drops. We haven’t seen any of that at training camp. Do you notice the improvement he’s made?
“You’re going to notice it. I can’t compare the opportunities he’s had. Sure, at the beginning, whether that was focus drops or he was just nervous, you’re a first-round draft pick and you come into camp and you sure as hell don’t want to drop the ball. You want to show your value. But you’re exactly right, I have not seen that, and I’ve seen him make some elite catches and his ability to elevate and go up and catch the ball, which has been fun to watch.”
How important is it for Quinshon’s longevity to develop depth behind him?
“I think with any running back room, you certainly have to have enough depth to where you feel comfortable playing, a lot of those guys take a pounding over the course of 17 weeks. Certainly, he’s capable of taking that pounding, and then you’re trying to determine what skill set you want out of the second, third, fourth back on your roster and what is it that Quinshon has that he’s developing as a player. Maybe there’s a hole there for a matchup back that you like. When we were in Baltimore, we had Derrick (Henry), and then Justice Hill, who was a tremendous third-down back and matchup guy.”
What did you take away from that offensive line, defensive line pass-rush drill that ended practice yesterday?
“My takeaway from it?
Yeah.
“It was the first time we did it. Ultimately, it’s the end of practice. It’s basically to win the game. You’re either going to be ahead, or whatever it is. The time of practice, when you’re on the field, you’re going to have to shut down the opposing offense with pass rush with four downs. If you don’t get to the quarterback, against these quarterbacks in the NFL, they’re going to probably score. So, you’ve got to find a way to get to the quarterback, and if you’re trying to find a way to score to win the game, you’re going to have to be elite at pass protection. So that’s all it is. At the end of the game, after a two-hour practice, what do you got left?”
Someone mentioned you might go the full two and a half hours tomorrow once you’re in pads. What would be the method to finish out these six days with an elongated practice?
“We were supposed to go that yesterday, but we didn’t have enough bodies. We’re short at D-tackle, so you can’t go that long. You just can’t. I don’t know if we’ll go the full tomorrow, maybe 2:20 or something like that, but the idea is just to keep extending the practice, the volume, maybe not all the reps, but being on your feet. You’re getting yourself closer to what it feels like to play in a game as you continue through camp.”
Any update you could give us on Zak Zinter who was carted off yesterday?
“I cannot give you that.”
Over your career you’ve worked with a variety of different schemes, one of those was the air raid. What impressions did you get, and where does it fit into your offensive philosophy?
“Well, there’s more air raid in everybody’s offense than people want to admit. Everybody runs a form of 95 which is Y-cross. Everybody runs a form of Y-cross, how you get to it, whether it’s play action, however you’re tying down a defender, everybody runs a form of Y-cross. A lot of those air raid teams run forms of verticals, so I don’t see it that way. What I would say is back then there was a lot more with the air raid that’s come full circle to where it’s sweep the board, is he open, is he not, which you’re seeing a lot more of today than picking a side, one-high, two-high man concepts. So, there’s a lot more than people want to admit. The difference was back then with the air raid, it really wasn’t the pass game concepts, it was basically running the same concepts over and over, and it was a limited run game. You were basically inside zone, outside zone, and draw. The original was you weren’t even running, there weren’t even gap schemes, at least the way I learned it from Dana Holgorsen when I got to Oklahoma State. But everybody takes it and makes it their own, especially in the run game, and then they tweak the pass game, it’s just a starting point of it. Art Briles went off and went to Baylor and did an unbelievable job there with his version of it, with the wide splits, and Josh Heupel’s kind of taken a step from that too. We haven’t seen that in the NFL, the wide splits, so much open space that they took advantage of Dylan (Sampson)’s skill set.”
Now that the install is complete, do you feel like you’ll be able to utilize the full scope of your offense even early on in the season?
“Oh, yeah. People make too much of that, like, ‘we only have 70% of your offense.’ Really? I mean, when we go to Jacksonville, we’ll have what we want to run. We had the offseason and fall camp — I think that’s just an excuse when you don’t have success.”