Head Coach Todd Monken (11.6.26)

Can you tell us who’s going to start at quarterback?

“Shedeur (Sanders). Shedeur will start at quarterback.”

 

And how has the week gone for Shedeur?

“Been great. Been a really good three days, so.”

 

If Deshaun (Watson) is able to clear protocol tomorrow, would he be the backup?

“Haven’t decided that yet. We’re still, you know, working through that, working through his ability to clear it.”

 

I know you talked about it Wednesday, but is the reason not to go with Deshaun just because he didn’t practice as much this week?

“Exactly.”

 

How much was he able to do today?

“Well, you get to this part in the week, he’s still not able to do any team reps. He can do individual, he can do some routes, been in meetings, but you’re not able to do any of the team reps, which makes it difficult.”

 

Todd, what did you see from Shedeur this week in terms of, you know, kind of jumping back into, you know, being the guy in the huddle?

“I liked his confidence, like the way he operated, looked very comfortable in terms of getting our guys in-and-out of the huddle, getting to the line of scrimmage was going to be half the battle this week, obviously, going there. So. And I thought he threw the ball, you know, extremely well. So again, I do think, as I said before, I do think there are positives to the amount of reps he got during the fall. I think obviously there was a two-month gap there, but I think there was enough there in terms of our system, how we do things. He’s been on every trip; he’s been on the headset during games. He hears every call that we make. So, if a player is diligent like he’s been, then you expect there to be some carryover.”

 

Todd (Monken), with being in a dome and with the new starting quarterback, is it even more of a concern than usual with pre-snap penalties?

“Oh, I mean, it’s a part of it, you know, obviously any place you go that, you know, I mean, Pittsburgh is a tough place to play, all these places, tough place to play. So, we’re going to have to do a great job of handling the noise and obviously playing on the road.”

 

(Harold) Fannin Jr. appeared on the injury report yesterday with the groin, but we saw him out there. Obviously, not much of a concern?

“No. He’ll be fine. Just a little sore.”

 

With Maliek (Collins), is that something that could be long-term?

“I don’t know that. I don’t know yet. I just know it’s something that’s flared up.”

 

Would you expect to bring up Sam (Kamara) again?

“Would expect that, yes.”

 

Would you have to send him to the active roster?

“Yes.”

 

Todd, I know you’ve had losses this year and bounced back to win the next week, but given what was on the line at Pittsburgh, how it went down, how did you see your team respond this week, and how do you think they’re responding?

“Great. No, we had a great week of practice. Our guys are resilient that way. I don’t, I’ve seen them. Obviously, any of the losses you have are disappointing. I don’t care how you, you know, how you look at it. I mean, obviously, whether it was the Jets, the Jags, or this last week, and our guys, like I’ve said since I’ve been here, all they’ve done is just spot the ball and they go to work and they practice. And it was the same this week, just like it was last week, just like it was after every game, our guys bounce back, like to play, like being around each other, and we’re just continuing to try and play clean football in all three aspects, which we really haven’t yet. You know, collectively, we haven’t been able to play. We found ways to win games late by making plays on both sides of the ball, but we certainly – no better time than this weekend, right? No better time than to get it started. And, you know, that’s what we’re aiming to do, is to continue, we’re always under construction, continue to work, continue to build, continue to build confidence in our players, and let it rip on Sunday.”

 

Jared (Verse) said there was pressure this week, he was kind of disappointed after the spear that he took from (Mason) McCormick that some of his teammates didn’t come to his defense. Did he talk to you about that?

“No, I didn’t even see that. I don’t see that from our guys. I mean, our guys love playing with each other, and they obviously didn’t see it, right? I mean, there’s things that happen in a game, I would imagine – again, I don’t really know exactly what you’re talking about, but I’ve seen our guys on multiple occasions pick guys up and love playing with each other. So again, I don’t know where that’s coming from. I know if he said it, but at the end of the day, our guys love playing with each other.”

 

You’ve said you want guys to be themselves, but you also said the other day to let your play do the talking more so than your words. Jared said you guys didn’t have a conversation, but how do you kind of toe that line with the guys, allowing them to express themselves?

“I’m fine. I don’t have to have a conversation with our guys on that. Basically, it’s at the end of the day, whether it’s me, coaches, players, human beings, right? We are what we do, not what we say. That wasn’t completely directed at anyone in general, right? Whatever I say doesn’t matter. It’s what I do, right? Ultimately in life. And that wasn’t targeted with anyone in general. It’s how we practice every day, how we treat people, how we play the game, right? How you play individually, how we live our lives, right? That’s what matters most. I mean, I think we would say that to all of our children, wouldn’t we? Like, it’s not really what we say. It’s what we do, right? It’s what, your actions speak louder than words. Hell, I heard that when I was – how many times my parents tell me that, right? Actions speak louder than words. I mean, not directed at anybody in general. That’s been the history of life. So that’s all I was saying, right? And doesn’t matter what I say. What matters is what product we put on the field, right? That’s what matters as the head coach and then down the line, that’s what we do. So, we didn’t have to have a conversation. I don’t mind guys talking, I don’t mind guys having opinions. I just know that what matters is how we play, right? Individually and then collectively.”

 

Todd going back to Shedeur, just where do you feel like, even with the limited amount of practice time before this week, what do you feel like maybe he’s found ways to improve the most in what he does, whether it’s pre-snap, you know, in the play, in the meeting room, whatever?

“All of the above. And he’s only going to continue to get better. He really is. He’s very diligent, and he likes to play football, has a natural confidence about him. Just like any young player, they’ve got to play, right? Where would Austin Barber be if we weren’t playing him, right? Where would Spencer Fano be if you’re not playing, right? Where are your players going to be without playing, right? We got to go, we got to play, we got to see, right? And this will just be one little piece of it. But where he’s improved is his footwork, his drops, his mechanics, understanding where to go with the ball, sense of urgency, right? In terms of working through his progressions, protections. There were so many things he needed to work on, and he’s done that like any young player. Any young player has a lot to work on, especially at the quarterback position. And you could see that from the moment we got here. And that’s why we opened up the competition and we split the reps, was because of his ascent. That’s what we did. And again, this is just another piece of that. Just like this weekend will be another piece of that.”

 

Todd, with Shedeur, What about his deep ball ability? Because I mean, especially we saw it last year, obviously, but during training camp, especially early, he got so many reps with KC (Concepcion Jr.) and Denzel (Boston) in particular and seemed to be able to hit those. So, how does that stand out to you?

“I think he’s got the arm talent you’re looking for. I think he’s got a nice touch. So again, that’s another area that’s under construction. Not only are guys doing a good job of getting down the field, but our ability to push it down the field.”

 

With Shedeur, you’ve talked about his ascent. Are you comfortable with where he’s at right now as you guys are making this playoff push?

“Oh yeah, I’m fired up. I’m fired up to see him play. I mean, who wouldn’t be? I mean, right? I mean, let’s go. I mean, right? It’s the expectation of the position, correct? Like, right? I mean, this is what he’s wanted, right? He wants to be a starting quarterback in the NFL. Let’s go. Let’s let it rip. Let’s see what we got, right? We’re not holding anything back. I mean, we’re going to try to get after it Sunday and see if we got him at quarterback, and the rest of us and the players got to play well around him. This isn’t a Shedeur thing. This is, at times we have, at times we’ve coached well around our players. At times we’ve not. Times we played well around our quarterbacks. At times we got to play collectively well together and help the quarterback out. And certainly, like I said, I’m excited to see him play. I mean, he’s another one of our young players that we’re looking to see, right? I mean, I think we’ll have seven offensive players that will be in their first or second year starting. That’s pretty cool. That’s pretty cool to see and work on those guys’ development, and they’re going to continue to grow.”

 

Todd, when you said back in August when you had that talk in your office with Shedeur about the long game, is this situation kind of what you alluding to?

Well, I think you have to, with a young player, I think you have to be honest with them, and everybody wants it now. We do, the player does. But I think you have to be honest with them and say, ‘well, what is the long game for you? What is it that you want, an NFL career?’ And that’s not just him, that’s every player. What do you want, right? You want a second contract, right? You want to maximize whatever measurable skill set the good Lord has given you that we help you to achieve. So, what is that? Okay? If you don’t get your dream right now, if it doesn’t happen now, what is our job as coaches, as parents, as mentors to people is, where is it that you want to be, and when, right? You can either go this way and say, ‘I didn’t get my way now’, or you can say, ‘yet’, ‘I’m not there yet’, and I work. And we work collectively together to get there with whatever it is that you want in life. This just happens to be one of those, right? Hey, you really in the long game? Well, let’s go. Let’s keep working. Let’s keep fighting like heck to get better collectively and individually.”

 

Todd, you faced him when you were a coordinator at Baltimore, then you’ve seen him on film this week. Martin Emerson Jr. was here for a couple years. How has he looked? I know he had a big game a couple weeks ago.

“Good. No, he looks good. He’s worked his way. Credit to him. I mean, think about the injury that he had coming back, starting off the year, right? Not, I mean, not a starter for them. And now he’s worked his way into it. So good for him. I’ve only heard great things about him as a player. Heck, I think we went against him when he was at Georgia. I mean, when he was at Mississippi State. Was he Mississippi State, kid? Yeah, we were at Georgia. So, I mean, I’ve got a lot of respect for him, a lot of respect for their coaching staff, and good for him.”

 

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