Head Coach Todd Monken (8.20.26)
Overall, what did you think? Was that a lot of fun to compete against someone else?
“God, was that a lot of fun? Holy s***. It’s fun to compete against someone else. Their guys, our guys, I’ve got a lot of respect for the (Buffalo) Bills. It got a little edgy, but not over the top. And that’s exactly what you’re looking for. Guys want to compete, right? They’ve got a lot of pride in the way they perform. I thought our guys – I can only speak to one side, obviously the field I was in, but it was awesome. Commend the Bills and our guys for taking it to the line but not going over the line.”
Alex Wright, do you have any updates?
“I do not at this time.”
Can you tell us why Quinshon (Judkins) wasn’t out here today?
“A little something nagging. Nothing big, we just held him out.”
So, it’s not related to anything that happened the other day?
“No, nothing related to that. No.”
Overall, it looked like your running game was productive on the field.
“We weren’t getting double-teamed every other snap, and we were prepared. We prepared for this practice, what we thought we’d see. I’ll have to see the tape. It felt like we played more physical, felt like we were at the point of attack, more aggressive.”
How did everyone do with, especially the two-minute, the cadence and getting lined up and then set?
“It was fine. I screwed up the one I took a timeout on. I screwed that up. Shedeur (Sanders) did not, I did. I had to take a timeout, I got the wrong call and that’s on me. Everything else was good.”
What do you think of the quarterbacks? Deshaun (Watson) and Shedeur, overall, operationally?
“It was fine. Do I like to turn it over in the red zone? No. Do I like to miss an open touchdown? No. But we got a lot of good work against someone different, different looks, so that was really good. I’ll have to watch the film. The one thing I would say, maybe it was just me, it didn’t look like we were out of place. It looked like we belong. That’s all we wanted to see: do we belong? Does our first eleven give us a chance to move the ball and score? I felt that way today.”
Considering the line, the injuries and everything, how do you feel like they performed as a group today?
“Good. It was fine. There were some mistakes there, but we made some plays. Over the course of whatever amount of snaps, you wanted to see us be able to run it. We hit a few balls down the field. We hit some short third downs, So, you wanted to see it all. I may feel different in two or three hours, but as of right now, I left the field going, ‘We’ve got some guys to work with.’”
Was there a breakdown on the long touchdown by the tight end, defensively?
“God, I’d hope so. I mean, right? It’s got to be a breakdown. There’s no chance that’s not a breakdown. We didn’t have a headset, so I wasn’t listening to the call. I was actually looking at my call sheet trying to figure out the next drive, so I don’t know where it went wrong.”
The excitement of what you’re describing the practice sounds like you think the ones got some good work, so do you think we’ll see them Saturday?
“I don’t anticipate seeing our older ones with that. I do see some of our younger players. I anticipate our younger players playing Saturday night.”
So (KC) Concepcion (Jr.) and (Denzel) Boston-
“I’ll just say I anticipate some of our younger players playing Saturday night.”
How did you think overall Shedeur handled his two-minute drill at the end?
“He did great. He started off a little slow the first few reps he had in team, but that’s to be understood. I mean, he didn’t start the drill out. It’s kind of awkward. We wanted to make sure we got them reps, but right in the middle of the ones, you sub in the quarterback, and that’s not always easy. But screw it, spot the ball. Make a damn play. That’s part of it too.”
And then you gave him two reps with the twos after?
“What we had to do to even it was when it was 10-7 how do we make sure Deshaun and Shedeur got, say it was, I don’t know, with the two-minute and everything else, let’s say they got about 30 reps apiece. Where Dillon (Gabriel) would get like 15 and where we’d get Taylen (Green) say about six or seven. That’s what we were kind of thinking. So that means that they had to get with some of the twos. No, it’s not easy, all of a sudden you’re in with the twos, but I’d rather have the reps and live with the disruption.”
What questions do you still need to have answered before you can make that quarterback decision?
“I haven’t looked at the tape from today, and we haven’t played Saturday, so that’s all still part of it. Just like every day is.”
You talk so much about what you guys do well, and I want to lean into those things. I understand you haven’t watched the tapes back yet and you haven’t played the game yet, but how much did today help you figure out some of the things you guys do well?
“I don’t know that yet. I’ll have a better idea come Monday, after this and Saturday, to kind of say from one to 53, or one to whatever, 68 or whatever’s on the practice squad of who we are. They rotated guys, it wasn’t all just the ones. We certainly have our work cut out for us, but I’m really proud of our guys the way they competed on offense. I’ll get a chance to watch the defense. Really proud of the way the guys got after it a little bit, and we had some of our skill guys make some plays and so did our quarterbacks. There’s a few things that obviously we can be better at, starting with me.”
KC looked really involved and looked confident out there too, going against the Bills. What does that say about him as a rookie, coming out here with that confidence?
“That’s just who he is. I go all the way back to when we first met him; unfortunately, he’s got a bit of a stuttering problem. When you meet him, he doesn’t blink. It doesn’t faze him. He never apologizes. He just gathers himself and speaks. It’s pretty freaking cool, man. Says a lot about him. He’s not embarrassed; he doesn’t blink. He just loves playing football. You can see it. That’s why he’s a first-round pick.”
It looked like (Harold) Fannin Jr. got blown up a little under the blocking. Considering your depth problems at tight end, how big a concern is that position group right now?
“Oh, it’s a concern. With all the injuries we’ve had trying to develop some guys, it’s a concern. I don’t think where we are now is where we’ll be when we start the season, but I’ve been really pleased with Harold and Blake (Whiteheart), and Carsen’s (Ryan) come a long way. I think we get Mike (Michael Burton) back at fullback here in a week, and I think that’ll help.”
Todd, you talked about things getting edgy but not going over the top. Is there a sense of relief that you got all the work in without anything erupting?
“Yeah. But you’re only on one field, right? I was just hoping if it erupted, it would’ve been on my field. I didn’t want to have to run all the way over there and all the way back. That’s a credit to them and to us. They talked. Our guys talked, went right up to the line, and that’s what it should look like. If anybody wants to know what a joint practice should look like, I can’t speak to the other side, that’s what it ought to look like. We were competing. We were on the ground at times, every now and them. Guys were talking and competing, but there was restraint.”
Todd, similar question to the tight ends, I know you don’t have an answer on Alex (Wright) yet, but with all the injuries up and down the line, how have guys adjusted, and how concerned are you these last few weeks?
“I really haven’t been that concerned, because we haven’t had anything long-term. We’ve had to let some guys go because we needed bodies, but they weren’t going to be long-term. We’ll see what happens with Alex, but it’s the nature of the game. We’ve been pretty well calloused, and we came out clean today, especially on offense. We had our O-line together. We didn’t have Q (Quinshon Judkins) out there. Had our quarterbacks, had the rest of our backs and wideouts were out there. We’re actually pretty healthy right now on offense, and we’ll get some of the other guys back on defense.”
How much of a disappointment is it that Q wasn’t able to participate in this? He’s a mainstay in your offense.
“He is, but he’s been out there all the time until now. I’d be more frustrated if it had been two weeks. Out of precaution, I think he was smart with where he was at.”
Deshaun (Watson) went first and you split the reps pretty evenly. Do you feel like there’s a world in which one of those two guys was able to gain significant ground on a day like today?
“Hard to say without watching it, because you’re living with the results, did we get the ball out, were our eyes in the right spot? Again, I made the mistake on the two-minute drill. Before I see it, I won’t comment, but I’ve been pleased with both of them, and I was pleased with both of them today. We’re not where we want to be, and we don’t have to be. We’ve got a couple more weeks.
Is the plan for Deshaun still play in the third quarter on Saturday?
“Deshaun will come in the third quarter. Shedeur will play the first half. Dillon (Gabriel) will play the fourth quarter, within reason. If Deshaun takes a drive into the fourth quarter, he’ll continue.”
Did Rudy (Mike Rutenberg) give you any kind of preliminary report on how the defense was?
“We didn’t have time to talk. I got to speak with some people I know from the Bills, some of the ex-Georgia players. So, haven’t had a chance to talk to him yet.”
What did you see from Taylen Green in his limited reps today?
“First of all, he’s so damn smart. That dude is smart as heck to go out there and function, we hardly give him any reps. I love that dude. It’s just hard. We have four guys, it’s hard to give them all reps. We got him on the perimeter one time, which is what you’ve got to do down there in the red zone, but all he does is work, always has a smile on his face. I’m happy we got him. But it’s hard to fit him in with the reps and rep count we have.
Josh Allen was talking over there about how sacks are a quarterback stat. What’s your take on sacks as a quarterback stat?
“I don’t know, it’s a stat. Hell, I don’t know. If the back misses a protection, is that on the quarterback? No, it’s the back. If we make the wrong call up front and turn a D-lineman loose, is that a quarterback sack? No. But are there quarterback sacks? Damn right, there are. Everybody owns that. Sometimes you hold the ball too long. I know this with a guy like Josh Allen, and with our guys, they’re going to take a sack now and then. But guess what they’re going to do? Make a ton of plays. When they get on the move, that’s part of it. Then they’ll say it’s a quarterback sack. Well, then you know what? When they move around and make a play, that’s a quarterback play too, and you’re going to own that part of it as well.”
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