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New Orleans Saints Head Coach Sean Payton press conference transcript
Written by Dave Lawrence (New Orleans Saints) | Monday, 14 December 2009 14:22 | Saints News

New Orleans Saints Head Coach Sean Payton

Monday, December 14, 2009


Opening Statement: “We’re going to have a little bit different of a schedule since we’re playing on Saturday now rather than Sunday. It really shouldn’t alter our workdays. Our plan is to go Wednesday as usual with practices Thursday and Friday. We’ll just have to be a little smarter on Friday’s practice. Like I mentioned yesterday, I was pleased to get the win. There will be a number of things we can work on with our players when they get back, including some of the mistakes from yesterday. Again, we knew it would be a tight game on the road against a team that needed a win. Right now our focus is going to shift very quickly to Dallas.”



Is the play of Jason Campbell and Chris Redman against your defense the last two weeks of big concern?


“They’ve done a good job. Jason played well again yesterday and you credit the team you’re playing and you continue to work on cleaning up some of the mistakes and we’ll continue to do that ourselves, but we made some good plays yesterday.”



Do you weather the storm with Tracy Porter and Jabari Greer being out?


“The key is to win and come up with big plays. We’ve been able to do that. We came up with the turnovers we needed yesterday and the stops defensively, just as we did a week ago. Certainly there are things as you watch the game tape that you’re going to correct and improve on. Gradually you hope to get your players back one by one, but it’s something everybody’s got to deal with, the injuries.”



Have teams neutralized your pass rush by getting the ball out quicker?


“It varies. When you looked at some clips yesterday, the ball comes out, yet we’re getting a hand in his (Redman’s) face too. Vilma’s interception was a big one, so we just keep working and working to improve on the little things so that we can play better the next week.”



Do you envision making any changes at the starting cornerback position?


“We’re going to continue to work all those guys in, get them a lot of reps and we’ll see where the other guys are by the end of the week.”



Is there a chance that either Greer or Porter could play this week?


“We’ll see.”



Were you pretty convinced you wouldn’t see Matt Ryan or Michael Turner yesterday?


“Yes. I didn’t know as much about the running back Turner, but we felt it was going to be tough for Matt to play based on the injury and reports we had heard.”



Can you talk about how, not necessarily specific to Reggie Bush, but that different weapons emerge each week?


“I think to his credit, we got him back in in Washington. He had a handful of snaps. He had played well prior to getting hurt at St. Louis and yesterday he came up with some big plays. Those were some third down plays. The little out route that he scores on was a big play, a touchdown for us. The screen on third-and-long was another big play. Later in the game, he had a catch on their sideline, had some good runs. It was good to see him back to the way he’s moving to the way we’re used to it. He had one punt return, which was close. Anyway, he’s part of a good offense. I think that each week, you don’t know how that thing’s going to spread around. Drew (Brees) does such a good job of locating it and finding the right guys that he’s a threat in the backfield. Certainly he’s a threat as a receiver coming out of the backfield as well.”



Do you know how the ball will be spread around each week before you get into the game?


“There are certain plays that you would say there is a primary receiver, so when a play is called, you might think this is going to go to (Jeremy) Shockey, but it might go down to Pierre Thomas because the coverage dropped or there’s a certain play that’s going to go to Devery (Henderson) and it goes to (Marques) Colston. That’s very common, but obviously when you call a screen play, it’s a third down play that he scores on, that’s a halfback option route. That’s kind of going to him. To answer your question, no. Guys just keep trusting in the system and Drew does a good job of reading the defense and taking the proper receiver, back, tight end.”



Can people appreciate the difference in Reggie Bush from when he is sore and nicked up and when he’s healthy?


“I think that it’s challenging, the length of the season when you look at the injury lists. You see the guys that are playing with certain injuries. Sedrick Ellis came off for a brief time yesterday with a bruised knee. That’s why the depth, when you bring the final gameday roster of 46 to the field, those guys have to be ready to play. It’s much different than in college.”



Would it be fair to say you screened more yesterday than usual?


“I think we screened more than usual last week against Washington. Yesterday, we probably had two or three. We wanted to slow the rush up. I thought they were getting up the field pretty good, (John) Abraham and those guys. I think it’s a team that rushes the passer well. The big screen was one of course we caught them in a max blitz, no one peeled on Reggie and he ended up in a lot of space and made a good play. All in all I think we had three, maybe four. There was a little bubble screen we had to (Robert) Meachem early, but Drew Brees threw it to (Jeremy) Shockey, which was part of kind of an outlet read if we get a certain coverage. I think we continue to look at that to slow down some of the teams that are really trying to change the pocket on Drew and try to change things up a little bit if you will.”



Will it be tough to integrate Lance Moore back into the offense because of the time he’s missed?


“I think the good news is that he’s been practicing with us. Last week he practiced. He dressed for this game as the third quarterback, so he got pregame work done. He’s further along in regards to his route running shape than you might think. It was good to see him out last week to get him the work. We’ll see where he’s at this week and try to find a role if he’s going to be ready this week and bring him back like other guys.”


You talked about cleaning things up on defense. Is that harder to do on a short week?


“What I said earlier is that we need to clean things up offensively, defensively and in the kicking game. We gave up a fairly good sized return; we still have to work on our return units. Offensively, I thought we got hurried a little bit and then defensively there are some things that I’m sure we’ll look at. To answer your question, the hard thing with a shorter week is that you get to this point of the season and often times it’s mental. You can set up the drills to help with your message, but you have to limit the contact. That’s the challenge.”



Are you troubled by Garrett Hartley’s missed PAT?


“The way he has been kicking in practice has been real good. Last week he was solid for us and he’ll come back and be strong.”



Will a point of emphasis this week to be limiting penalties?


“What did we have, six yesterday? The personal foul is the one that bothered me. That cost us 15 yards. That was the one that stuck out. We just have to pay attention to that and not let that be the reason we end up losing a game. That’s something we’ll point out certainly.”



Were the plays that Jonathan Vilma made at the end of the game a part of the defense that was called or more of him being a playmaker?


“It was a combination. They were good defenses called. The interception he had was significant. He did a good job of getting depth in his drop, caught it in his hands and then secured it. The fourth down call was real good by the players and coaches. It was a play that they had run earlier in the game on third down, a little four-way bunch where the back goes the same direction as the bunch and it forces you to sort through your pick-ups in coverage. Jon recognized it and broke on it well and there was no leaky yardage and as soon as he tackled him, everyone saw that it was going to end up well short.”



Are you glad that unlike Indianapolis you’re still being pushed for the #1 seed?


“I don’t know that I would say that I’m glad that we haven’t secured the one-seed. I would’ve preferred to have secured the one-seed in week two. The point I’m making is that that’s what we’re playing for right now. Last week as we approached the Atlanta game, the only thing we could do was with a win vs. Atlanta was to secure a first round bye. That’s what was on the table to be accomplished. Right now, our focus is strictly on Dallas and no one else. This is a good team that’s coming in off of a couple of tough losses; a team that needs to win; a team that is very talented. So our focus is strictly on this game and in a short week preparing to play this game. All the other scenarios and everything else that will be written and talked about for the upcoming weeks is fine, but I just know where our focus will be.”



Having a lot of connections to Dallas, what are your thoughts on seeing them struggling in December again?


“There are enough fires in house that we have to put out to worry about anyone else’s.”



What would be the mindset of this Dallas team coming off of those two losses?


“It’s of no concern really. My focus and our staff’s focus is more concerned with the mindset of the New Orleans Saints.”



Between Thomas Morstead and Michael Koenen yesterday they had seven touchbacks on kickoffs. Do you think the league will possibly push the kickoff line back to the 25-yard line?


“I think where it’s at now is a good spot. I think those guys are the exception to the rule. I wouldn’t say that that would never happen, but where it’s at now is fine.”



Did you think Morstead had this kickoff ability when you drafted him?


“We knew he had leg talent. To answer question, it has been somewhat of a surprise in regards to his kickoff ability. I don’t think any of us envisioned that. We did see a player that we thought had a lot of ability as a punter and we felt good about his athleticism, we felt good about a lot of things when we selected him and fortunately we were right.”



Were you able to make it home last night with all the fog?


“We made it back; it just was a little slower. Everyone made it back alright.”



Does Vilma just have an ability to always be in the right place at the right time? What kind of affect does he have on the linebackers overall?


“That’s a trait that a lot of smart players have. They’re able to key and diagnose and recognize and I think one of the biggest allies for good defensive football is pre-snap formation play recognition. Jon spends a lot of time on tape work. That room, with Joe Vitt and that group works their tails off. At linebacker, just being able to get aligned correctly on each play with the different sets that you’re seeing offensively – especially with all the substitutions and when you’re playing like he is on an every-down basis – is a challenge, and he handles that well. He’s very dedicated. I think his peers respect him and appreciate not only his athletic ability and his ability as a linebacker, but how hard he prepares each week on that side of the ball.”



In retrospect, would you call the fake field goal again?


“I don’t have to deal with retrospect. It was something that we looked at and felt good about, no different than the third-and-one reverse that we called, and we felt real good about that. Those were the decisions that we make. We felt like the opportunity came up and we took it and hopefully it will work the next time.”



How rewarding is it for a coach to see the team responding in the fourth quarter like your team has done this season?


“It has been a big emphasis this season and the guys have followed through. We’ve been able to rush the football; we’ve been able to get off the field defensively. Our numbers have been good. We have to continue to work on that and not take it for granted. We have some tough games ahead here where hopefully we can do the same thing.”

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