Quarterbacks Coach Bill Musgrave (9.12.25)
How do you feel about how Joe (Flacco) played? And then, of course, this is going to be a big emotional game for him. And just what do you feel like? What do you feel like the outlook is for him on Sunday in Baltimore?
“I think it will be an emotional day for Joe (Flacco). I know he’s looking forward to it. We are as a team, too, to get going here in week two and get a better outcome than we did last Sunday.”
What did you think of the picks? Obviously, they went off the receiver’s hands, but is he making an effort to throw low to avoid interceptions, or I know he was under siege on the first one, anyways, how did you see those picks?
“Well, I saw both of them. I think we all did in the quarterback room. The consensus that those throws could have been more precise. We always feel like when something goes awry, we always look at ourselves first and how can we improve. And so having those throws be more precise probably alleviates the end result on both of them.”
You obviously had a lot, a number of young guys out there. With a guy like Joe (Flacco), how important was it just his ability to kind of calming, the calming way he could be with the rest of the guys in the huddle and kind of make sure guys get it in the right plays based on what he’s, you know, been through his experience.
“Yeah, I think that’s a crucial component, that was very crucial, especially for an opener where there’s more butterflies than a normal game once you’ve been out there a little bit. But for those young guys, in an opener, Battle of Ohio, there was a lot going on and I think Joe’s (Flacco) calming influence helped our younger players perform at that high level that we saw.”
I know Joe’s (Flacco) a storyteller. How many Baltimore stories have you got this week?
“Well, he does have a lot of stories. They’re great ones. He’s got fond feelings, I think, for his time there, clearly, and so he’s looking forward to being back in that stadium. I know his family’s going to drive down from south Jersey and be there, and it’s going to be a great day for he and his family.”
Obviously, he’s been doing this forever. Is there any concern or you have to talk to him about managing those emotions that he’s going to be feeling?
“I think he’s going to be good at that. He’s managed them from playing in Super Bowl, winning the Super Bowl, just starting a bunch of openers, and I think he’s been through a bunch of football seasons in high school, college and pro that he’s going to be good to go, you know, in that department.”
Bill, what about the chemistry between Joe (Flacco) and Jerry Jeudy, how have you kind of seen that coming along?
“It is coming along. Joe (Flacco) didn’t get as many turns, we’ll say in the spring and summer, just because were repping a bunch of various quarterbacks at that time. So, I think he and Jerry (Jeudy), their best days are ahead of them and they’re gaining more familiarity with each other, and the rapport is definitely being enhanced on a daily basis here as we enter week two.”
Bill how have your young guys in that room, Dillon (Gabriel) and Shedeur (Sanders), kind of handled that transition to something they’re not familiar with, which is not getting the reps maybe they’d be used to.
“That is so true what you said. Neither of these guys have ever not been the guy, and that happens a lot with guys who enter the NFL. They’ve been the starters their whole lives. And so, there’s a transition there. And for the first week they did a nice job. They immersed themselves, both of them in the game plan, did a lot of drill work on the side both before and after practice. And then they get some scout team reps so they can get some balls airborne and make sure that they’re staying in sync. Of course, because really Dillon (Gabriel) being one play away and Shedeur (Sanders) being two plays away.”
Bill, I wanted to ask you specifically about that continued quarterback development because Kevin (Stefanski) even said development doesn’t stop even though you might not be a starter. What does the development look like during the week in the building where again you said you talked about the stuff you’re doing before and after practice on the field, but during the week, how are you ensuring that these guys are still learning the playbook? They’re really immersing themselves in understanding and it’s still progressing when maybe you don’t get the on-field kind of validation.
“Yeah, there’s challenges there because you’re not getting the time on task and getting the actual rep. So, the drill work is crucial. The studying – I call them simulations where we do almost stand-up meetings or walkthroughs, both in the meeting room and perhaps out on the grass or even in on the carpet where we have more space. So, there’s ways that we are trying to be creative, and it happens with each quarterback room in the whole league at all levels of football. The guys that have to be ready to play, but also, they’re young. And so, we want them to develop and keep working on their craft at the same time.”
Bill, how much off of that, just how much does the added time, these guys are coming from college where the time restriction exists, allegedly, but I mean, this is a full, you know, eight hours, you know, whatever, you know, however long. How much can that immerse? That amount of extra time now they’re allowed to spend, they can spend on it, maybe accelerate the process a little bit, even if, you know, they’re not necessarily like you say, you know, getting time tasks on hand?
“Yeah, it definitely helps to have a full day. You know, they’re in here on Tuesdays, even when it’s supposed to be a player’s day off. These guys are all in. So, the entire quarterback room, we have Bailey Zappe back. And so, Deshaun (Watson) being in there with his experiences and sharing them with these young guys – Bailey (Zappe), being 25, 26 years old, we’ve got really three young guys in there that are eager beavers, you know, to figure this whole thing out and get good at it. It’s really a joy to work with all of them.”
I asked Kevin (Stefanski) last week who was running the scout team, and he said all of them. And so, my question about that is, how beneficial is it for those young guys to go up against the first team defense and all of them having a chance to run the scout?
“Oh, it’s all good. It’s all good. At times the concepts resemble what we would run here with the Browns, and at times it’s completely foreign. But the fact that they’re out there and having to make decisions and process and then deliver throws accurately, all that is really good. And we try to engineer it or orchestrate it where certain concepts almost meet our quarterbacks. So, I’d say last week Bailey (Zappe) did some really good things that tried to replicate Joe Burrow. We’re doing some things, of course, to replicate Baltimore’s quarterback, Lamar (Jackson) this week with all three guys to really give the defense a good look, because being a scout team quarterback, you’re working on your own craft, but really it’s an art form to replicate the opponent so the defense can be ready to do their thing on Sunday.”
Bill, I had a quick follow up to that. Normally, like, for teams, would it only be like one specific quarterback week-to-week that handles scout team, or are you maybe approaching this differently because we have so many young quarterbacks that are in that backup role?
“Yeah, I’d say it’s a little bit different and it’s exciting because those guys do take pride in getting the defense ready. They want to do a good job of replicating the opponent’s offense, and at the same time, they want to try to relate any play that they get to our game plan for that week, too, so they can feel like they can get a little double duty there.”
Did you have, like, maybe a receiver handling the mobility aspect of Lamar (Jackson) this week, or was it just the quarterbacks that…
“Well, the quarterbacks. Quarterbacks are trying to do their best, as we know. Tough to replicate that character. Yeah, I think every team that plays Baltimore is in the same boat. You just got to brace for impact on game day.”
I know there’s a desire to get that run game operating the way you guys want for a quarterback, specifically Joe (Flacco), you guys are able to get things going. So there’s Quinshon (Judkins) back in the mix. How does that open things up for the quarterback? How does that then accentuate the offense that you guys want to put out there on the field?
“Yeah, I think in theory, the better a team runs the ball, the more that the defense probably plays more single safety coverage, which is much more fun to throw for a quarterback. The seams are open for business. It’s one on the outside. Guys can enter the secondary unencumbered. The run game does a lot for the passing game and vice versa. So we’re hoping to be a complimentary offense and be balanced. I think running the ball will be crucial to that. I know we did a nice job at times the other day, and like Kevin (Stefanski) has said, looking for more of that going forward.”
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