Defensive Coordinator Jim Schwartz (1.1.25)
Considering the circumstances and everything, you’re going to have some young guys out there; Isaiah (McGuire), Mike (Hall Jr.). Is this maybe the best situation for them to get kind of a true, going into the offseason evaluation, you’re not facing the (Baltimore) Ravens backups. They’re going to have to defend against a two-time MVP (Lamar Jackson), Derrick Henry, all of that. Do you kind of look at that as, I don’t want to say best case scenario, but in terms of big picture, long term…
“I don’t know if I’d go with that because Isaiah’s played a lot of football against a lot of people this year and Mike has played when he’s been healthy or not suspended, so he’s been out. This is just a continuation for them. It’s not like, ‘Oh wow, this is an audition.’ We’re going to do everything we can to win the game and in spots those guys have played good football for us this year. So, they’re going to have their work cut out for them. It’s a really good running attack and you have a quarterback component to it and then you got to chase the most elusive quarterback in the NFL that can extend plays and also can throw on time. There are a lot of challenges, and not just Mike or Zay (Isaiah McGuire), but we need our whole defensive line and the whole coordinated coverage to be able to play well. It puts a lot of stress on your defensive. If you’re in zone coverage, then he can buy time and then you’re trying to plaster receivers that are running playgroundish routes trying to get open. But then, if you leave the quarterback alone, he can go rush for a first down or make a big play. We’ve seen that a lot, too. And then if you’re in man-to-man a lot of times, it gets empty, and he’s got a lot of room. So, we’re going to have to be disciplined in our rushes, be disciplined in our coverage, and we’re going to have to do a good job of stopping the run because that’s where it all starts and keep Derrick Henry from going north-south.”
Myles (Garrett), I think after last game he spoke about the kind of future of this defense and saying that it’s clear that there’s talent to work with. In terms of maybe the young talent, especially on the defensive line, do you kind of leave this season thinking that you do have a young core that’s ready to step into bigger roles and more full-time opportunities?
“We’re trying not to be so much in the evaluation mode right now. We respect this game too much and we got a game to go out there and win. So, we’ll leave the evaluation stuff until the end of the season and those kinds of things. But I think we have seen some improvement from some guys, we talked about a couple. But Jowon Briggs has really been an improving player for us. Every time he’s gone out, he’s played better; he’s been powerful, he’s been active, he’s assignment sound. He started the year inactive-practice squad and then moved up and had some rough spots early. But his arrow has definitely been up. Sam Kamara, sort of the same way, started off on the practice squad, has given us some good reps in there. So, there’s some good things from some young guys in there.”
This is Rodney McLeod’s last game. So, what has he meant to your defense and how will he be missed?
“Yeah, I mean, he’s meant a lot to this organization, to the city, he’s meant a lot to me personally. I’ve coached Rod seven years now. Seven of his 13 or 14, whatever it’s been for him. He’s a guy that everybody in the locker room looks up to because he’s a consummate pro, but he also backs that up with quality play on the field. I know, like our safeties coaches have put together a lot of teach tape kind of things for off season and training camp and things like that. And Rod is at the middle of a lot of those because his technique is so good. And when you’re 14 years in the league, it’s father time and eventually your physical skills are going to go decline a little bit, but Rod has really offset that by his competitiveness and his outstanding technique. He’s been an inspiration for a lot of people, but he’s been a great example for the young guys on our team and we owe it to Rod to be able to come out and make his last game a successful one, come out with a win. That would be a big thing for us to win on the road at Baltimore.”
Do you think it’s easy to look at, I know we might not get to talk to you anymore, but last year, the defense at the top? Kevin talked about that turnover ratio and to be, I mean, they still give up 32 turnovers, but the defense hasn’t had any takeaways. I know you stress it, but does that give hope that the ball doesn’t always bounce that way and that you’re not that far off?
“Yeah, I mean, sometimes that happens. I think that statistically, the fumbles lost for an offense has a tendency to get, for lack of a better term, random. It can go high; it can go low. I’d like to come down with a few more interceptions and that’s a combination of rush and coverage. You get good pressure, and the quarterback goes off his back foot and balls sail. We’ve had a chance to make, like the first game we played these guys, we had the ball in our hands I think four times in that game, and we came down with zero of them. We still won the game, but we came down with none. And our guys are trying really hard, but obviously turnovers are the lifeblood of your team offensively and defensively. And we certainly haven’t done enough of that this year and that’ll be a big point of emphasis. It’s always a point of emphasis, but it’ll be a big point of emphasis from personnel acquisition, scheme and also technique.”
Last year, Myles won Defensive Player of the Year. This year, he’s tied for the league lead in sacks with the same number he had last year. How would you compare the two seasons that he’s had?
“Yeah, I mean, our team was better last year, but it’s hard to say that Myles isn’t better this year. I mean, he’s leading the NFL and sacks or tied. He’s leading the league and tackles for losses. And you guys know, like, with me, it’s like, hey, you sacked a guy for four yards, or you get a tackle for a loss for four yards. As a coach, it’s second and 14, right? So, I don’t look at those a lot different but leading the league in both of those categories and sees more double teams than anybody in the league. They don’t just double him on third down. I mean, part of having that is heavy as the head that wears the crown. They know he wears number 95. You see guys identify wherever he lines up. We move them all over the place but he’s pretty easy to find and he fights through doubles, not just on third down, but first and second down, also. And I think I’ve said this before, but it reminds me a lot of when I had Calvin Johnson in 2012 and in Detroit and Calvin set the all-time single season receiving record. And we had a bunch of injuries, we couldn’t run the ball, we’d had some injuries at wideout, didn’t have enough other guys. He faced doubles every single time, never got one-on-ones and he was able to set the all-time receiving record that still stands. In my mind, Myles’ season is a little bit like that. We haven’t had a chance to rush a lot. We haven’t had a lead a lot of times and a lot of times those sacks and turnovers in that regard come when you do have a lead and the offense has to be risky, or they have to try to make a throw or they have to throw more than they want to, they get predictable. It’s just where we’ve been this year, we haven’t had a lot of those opportunities for Myles or other guys to be able to rush. So across, his metrics have been better or the same as last year when he won Player of the Year. It’s just that the team hasn’t been as successful around him. But I think that sometimes when you have a season like we’ve had, you can lose individual accomplishment. He also did it fighting some injuries early in the season, too. So, he’s been able to stay focused. I mean it’s hard like when you go out and you get doubled every single play. But he still battles, and he still found a way to be successful, still has a high win percentage, still has the pressure, still has a really good pressure rate and sacks. I’ve been really proud of his effort this year.”
What about Martin Emerson Jr.? What do you feel like the upside is for him in terms of kind of bouncing back from what seems to be a little bit of a down season for him?
“Yeah, the biggest thing has just been finishing at the ball. There’s a lot of metrics that his coverage has been just as tight this year as last year, but there’s a little better finish at the ball, so that’s got to be a point of emphasis. I would say this about MJ (Martin Emerson Jr.), is he has really, really improved this year as a tackler, particularly over the last few games. And that was a big point of emphasis. And he’s a tall guy, sometimes it’s hard for those guys, high center of gravity, tall and long. It’s hard in the open field. But I’ve been really impressed number one, with his commitment to doing it and working at it and also putting it on film the way that he has. So, he’s found a way to improve part of his game. And like I said, some of it also is just finishing at the ball and some of it can also be a little bit what I talked about before with offenses don’t really feel the need to attempt too many throws just from the way the season has gone or the way the scores in the games have been. So, all those things affect the corner. They affect your interceptions and your sacks and things like that. But I have been proud of his commitment and his improvement in the tackling game because to be a complete corner, you need to be able to do those things.”
You mentioned some of the things that Rodney McLeod brings to the locker room, I know he’s not alone in that. As a coach, how much have you leaned on the players that are leading their respective position groups through the ups and downs of this season?
“Yeah, coaches have a role in your team, and I’ve said this as part of my thing for years and I was proud when Rodney said the same thing because it’s something that I preach. But I’ve been around a lot of really good teams that were coach-led leadership. I’ve never been around a great team that wasn’t player-led leadership and Rodney just exemplifies that. But we’ve gotten some really good leadership from some other guys, too. I’d point to Jordan Hicks that way, Dalvin Tomlinson, you know those player-led leaders that have been around, that have seen highs and lows in this league, they know how to be resilient, they found a way to be productive in multiple schemes. Those guys are incredible resources for young guys and they’re valuable members of a franchise and valuable to their teammates.”
Jason Tarver said on Friday that he’s a hard grader, but Jordan Hicks always gets good grades from him. How well has Jordan played for you this year?
“Yeah, I mean that’s another one that’s sort of fallen in the way the wayside. He’s just always in the right spot. The play that he made on Snoop (Tyler Huntley) last week when he triggered on the scramble, knocked the stiff arm down, forced him to throw it away. That’s another teach tape kind of play. That’s exactly the way you want it done. His angle, his technique, everything. He’s had to play a couple different positions just because of the injuries that we’ve had. He started off as the full time Mike, but then when we lost Jeremiah (Owusu-Koramoah), he sort of moved into Jeremiah’s role a little bit more on first and second down but still had to play the Mike at different times. He’s certainly been a good player for us, and we look forward to him doing a lot more for us, too.”
Do you expect JOK (Jeremiah Owusu-Koramoah) back next year?
“I’ll leave that to Kevin (Stefanski) and AB (Andrew Berry). It’s never my thing to talk about, who’s coming back or even to talk about injuries. So, I’ll just leave that there.”
Closing Statement:
“Hey, Happy New Year, also. I know this has been a tough year for the Browns, it’s been a tough year for you guys and everything else, and part of your job is you have to be critical at times and you have to ask some tough questions. But you guys have always managed to do that with respect and professionalism, and I really appreciate that. I hope that I’ve done the same for you guys, so Happy New Year.”