Pass Game Specialist/Tight Ends Coach Tommy Rees (12.6.24)
How much, I guess, I don’t know if fun is the right word, but how great is it for you to have Jameis (Winston) just distributing the ball to so many different guys to the point where Blake (Whiteheart) can get the ball, or anybody is getting the ball out there and those guys are all thriving?
“Yeah, I mean, I think the buy in becomes really critical when you see that everybody’s contributed in different ways. Our guys in the tight end room have been involved the last couple weeks. But it’s the importance of when the ball is being distributed, like, be in the right spot, be there on time, know what you have. I think the more we do things right, the more you build trust from the quarterback to those guys, and that’s always the emphasis. Even when we’re not getting the ball, showing that you’re winning versus man or showing that you know what to do and where you’re supposed to be, the quarterbacks see that on film, and one of our goals is to always build trust from the quarterback that he knows that they can count on us when our time is ready to go. And for a guy like Blake and Jordan (Akins) to make some plays here the last couple weeks in critical moments continues to build that and the buy in around everybody. So, continue to try to strive to do that this week.”
With David (Njoku), it looks like he’s making some really difficult catches, but then there’s some routine ones that he hasn’t been able to pull in. So, what do you see when you watch that and how do you, I guess, address that?
“Yeah, there’s always like catching fundamentals that you try to focus on, ‘Hey, you don’t need to jump for this one,’ or ‘What is our hand placement?’ Guys have drops periodically for different reasons and we have a lot of trust and faith that Dave’s going to make the catches when his number’s called and, you know, he’s shown that. He’s obviously shown the miraculous catches and just making sure that fundamentally we’re always doing the things that we need to make sure that we’re shorthanded.”
When it comes to the depth of your group, Mary Kay (Cabot) mentioned Blake and we’ve seen guys who aren’t David or aren’t Jordan making plays, but what does that kind of say about that entire group?
“It’s been a really fun group to coach. The guys that kind of on the back end of the group really bring a lot of value to the to the room. You look at Geoff (Swaim) a couple weeks ago, and Blake as he’s progressed, and I think those guys are working their tails off to prepare and make sure that when their number is called that they’re ready to go. And we saw it earlier this season when Dave got injured that you could be a play away from your snaps going from 12 to 35. So those guys have worked extremely well on making sure that they know what they’re supposed to do for their role, but also how that can transpire into a deeper role. And like I said earlier, the more opportunities we have to make a play or show up where we’re supposed to, that continues to buy trust with the rest of the guys in the locker room.”
Jordan, I think over the last, like, five or so games, he’s gotten the most consistent targets. He’s gotten, I think, in his time here. Just how have you seen him develop a chemistry with Jameis? Because obviously he and Deshaun (Waston) had that before either of them were in Cleveland.
“Yeah, I don’t remember what week it was, but talking with Jordan, he’s earned that. He’s earned those targets. He’s a guy that’s won versus man coverage here pretty consistently and has shown up in some zone targets. But the work he’s put in and he’s, again, he’s another guy that’s worked really hard to mentally be on top of everything. And he has very natural ball skills, his ability to win in coverage. So that comes pretty well for him and really proud of and excited for Jordan and the season he’s had in terms of continuing to be a consistent guy for us out there and somebody that, again, the quarterbacks can trust.”
Patrick Queen, just in coverage, I know he got matched up a lot on both Jordan and David the first time around. How is he in coverage? I mean, what do you see? Obviously, he’s a great run stopper, but as a pass defender…
“Yeah, I mean, he’s a good player who’s played for a long time, so you see the instincts there and how he matches pattern recognition and things like that. And he’s a physical, strong player. So, I think the tight end position is unique because you can get matched up with the DB, you can get matched up with a linebacker, and how you win versus different body types always differs based on who’s covering you. Pat’s been, again, a really good player for a lot of years. A guy that our guys are used to going against, obviously. And so, I think he does a nice job of being able to recognize and read things and then we got to know what our advantages and those matchups to be able to go win.”
Is David a little bit bigger this season, and if so, was there a concerted effort for him to get bigger?
“Yeah, I mean, obviously it’s my first year, but we talked to Dave about his size and all those things. He’s slightly bigger. It kind of goes up and down, obviously with the injury goes up and down. So, we like where he’s at right now. And Dave, you see all the catches, but Dave’s one of the premier blocking tight ends in the NFL. I mean, that’s been a strength of his and so he feels confident with where he’s at in his weight and how he’s using it right now.”
Is that why you guys wanted him to maybe bulk up a little bit, to even improve the blocking realm?
“Yeah, I think whatever him and our strength and nutrition staff kind of decide on, ‘Hey, this is where we feel comfortable with,’ and it allows him to still have the flex of doing both.”
With those (Pittsburgh) Steelers outside backers, and I think they’re getting (Alex) Highsmith back. Obviously, you guys are involved in protection and the run game. How good are they and especially now that they have looks like three guys that are playing at a high level?
“Yeah, all three of them are. I mean, obviously, (T.J.) Watt garners a lot of attention, deservingly so, and (Nick) Herbig is a kid that’s come in and played well for them, and now getting Highsmith back. I mean, that’s a really good group of three outside backers. They all have an intensity, and physicality and effort that they play with. So, if you’re not ready to match that or have them match yours, you can be exposed pretty quick. They all have a fastball and then a counter off of that, great with their hands. So, that’s always a challenge when you play these 3-4 teams as a tight end is being matched up on some premier players and a lot of the reason why they’ve been so good in the over for some long years now is because of those edge players. We look forward to that challenge every time we get to play these guys and obviously Dave’s had these battles for a long time, but it’s definitely something that is a key focus for us when we go into these games.”
One of those guys is (Minkah) Fitzpatrick. How does he compare to where he was even a couple of years ago?
“Yeah, I mean, Minkah, he’s all over the field. I would say he’s playing a little bit more as kind of that free safety range player now than he was maybe in years past where he was in the box a little bit more. And you see the impact in coverage, you see the impact in run support, being able to run alleys and I mean he’s again, a great player in this league and has been for quite some time and he has some freedom to use his instinct and football intelligence to make a lot of plays for them.”