Tight ends coach T.C. McCartney (12.22.23)

 

It seems like every time you’re in here, we’re asking you about David (Njoku) and the growth he’s made. Can you quantify just, I mean, how drastic a difference there has been in David, not just on the field, but off the field, this season? I mean now that you have sort of a fuller picture of the whole season. 

“Yeah, I mean, you guys know every time I come in here, I’ve been building Dave up. I think this has been coming for a while. I think now, the past couple of weeks, he’s got the production to match, but the way he’s played really over the course of the last two years, picking guys up, obviously that made some news with the pickup trucks and all that, but he’s been doing that for two years. This didn’t just happen two weeks ago. He’s been doing this. And now with the production to match, that always feels good. But this has been building for a long time. Two years of him playing really, really high level in all three phases and just him as a teammate, same thing. Since I’ve been here in the tight end room, this is who he’s been. He’s always been a really good teammate. His teammates love him. His teammates respond to him well. He’s very positive on game day. You can see that on the sideline. No matter what [when] things are good, things are bad. So, this has been building for two years. So, I’m glad that he’s finally getting the production to match and some recognition for it.”

 

Is it as simple as because of the winning, it’s sort of amplifying outside of the locker room, what you guys are seeing inside of it?

“For sure. I think you have the touchdowns he’s had the last couple of weeks, the catch he had – what, ten for 100 something and a touchdown and the big plays he’s made. So that puts a spotlight on him, and that puts a spotlight on the things he’s been doing, which is good because he’s been a really good teammate for two years. Again, I’m just commenting on the last two years because that’s when I was in the room, but he’s been that, and this has been building and so it’s been good to see.”

 

Kind of along those lines, I mean, this level of production, statistically hasn’t been there. So I guess has anything changed, or is it just kind of fruits of the labor sort of thing? Why do you think the production now is starting to match up? 

“I can’t tell you exactly why it is now. I’m glad it is. I don’t know exactly why the production comes when it comes, but I think there’s definitely an emphasis on getting him the ball. I think everyone who see him catch the ball and run in open space, we all see it too. We want to get him those balls in open space and let him run because it’s fun to watch. So, I think there’s been some emphasis on getting him the ball, but there’s been emphasis before. Just sometimes it falls your way, sometimes it doesn’t and it has [the] last couple of weeks.”

 

He talked yesterday about just, I guess, the growth he’s made in his seven years. You’ve only been around the last couple. But have you guys had that discussion just how far he’s come as a person as well as the player? 

“Yeah, he’s mentioned that a couple of times. Again, we’ve talked about in here, he was so young when he came into the league. Just growing up as a person had to happen. And again, the last two years, he’s really been the same every day to me since he’s been here. So, I’m glad people are finally seeing him like this – he’s a leader on our team, on the field, off the field, all that. But I think, yeah, he had some struggles early on, some maturity issues – things he’s talked about it, he’s addressed.”

 

Last year it seemed like he was starting to, statistically he had that stretch there middle of the season, like right before the bye where it looked like things were really trending upwards. And then he gets injured in Baltimore and misses some time. Were we starting to see a year ago kind of that on field breakthrough? And how much did those injuries last year sort of maybe stunt some of that a little? 

“For sure. At the beginning of the year last year, we all saw. The Pittsburgh game and then he was starting to catch a lot of balls. And then obviously that high ankle, he’s out for a few games, and then even when he came back, he wasn’t exactly the same. It took him a few weeks, then our offense was in transition, the quarterback situation, and so there were a lot of things working against his statistics at the back end of last year. But yeah, like I said, this has been building. We’ve seen this in our building for a while that this is coming, and so I’m glad it’s here.”

 

I think there are a lot of organizations or coaching staff, so when it’s rocky with a guy early, they might just give up on a guy, I guess. What’s different about this place, this culture, like how you guys kind of approach a situation like that? 

“Yeah, I think if you have talented players, you don’t want to let them go. Especially a guy like Dave who may have been frustrated, but he’s a really good person, he’s a really good teammate, he’s a really good player. I don’t think anybody in this organization wants to let guys like that out of here. So yeah, there’s going to be times where you’re frustrated, things aren’t going your way, but with guys like that, you want to keep them around because eventually it’ll end up like this. If you believe in the person and the player.”

What’s it been like in your room with since you brought up the issue of quarterback, changes at quarterback? Since Joe’s (Flacco) been here, the offense is different than it has been, right? So has it been like a shift back for you guys to kind of what you were doing at the beginning of 2022 with Jacoby (Brissett) more, the multiple tight ends and a lot of that from you guys? 

“Yeah, I think just obviously you try and build around the skill sets of the guys who are in there. And with Joe, that probably matches up a little bit more with what Jacoby was good at. And so, it probably does look similar, but we try and run those types of concepts, the same types of plays and just format them differently for whoever. So, it doesn’t feel that different, I don’t think to the tight end room necessarily. Now we always like being on the field more, so the more 12 and 13 we can get personnel-wise. I think the tight end room would be excited.”

 

Better catch, the one against Tampa Bay or the one Sunday against Chicago?

“I think you got to give it to Tampa Bay. The stakes that were on that catch, fourth and ten, but both of them, unbelievable. It’s the first time…Dave’s had a few where he lets his feet get out of bounds, so I was happy to see that one get inbounds.”

 

 

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