Q. In the Monday night win over Miami, you were very aggressive early in that game in terms of going for it on fourth down. It started with a fourth-and-1 at your 28-yard line, then a fourth-and-3 at the Dolphins 41-yard line, and then a fourth-and-1 from the Dolphins 4-yard line. Did you go into that game with the mind-set that you were going for it on fourth downs, or did you need to see certain things from your team or Miami before making those decisions?
A. I try to always go in with a hardcore plan but then be light enough on my feet to adapt. And certainly, (bring aggressive) was the plan for that game. During the Dolphins win streak, they were dominating time of possession and averaging 192 yards per game rushing. And so there were multiple things that had to happen to quell that. First and foremost, we had to play good run defense, and then we had to possess the ball on the other side ourselves. The schematic aggression was a component of that in an effort to minimize their possession of the football and thus our exposure to their running game. And so we could assault the mode in which they were creating victory over the past month or so.
Q. The first two of those times when you went for it on fourth down came on the team's second offensive possession of the game, which started at your 19-yard line. Do you give Arthur Smith a heads-up at the start of the possession about your plans?
A. There certainly are conversations that happen at the start of the possession, but these kinds of conversations go back to Saturday evening, or in the case of a Monday night game, back to Sunday evening and maybe Monday because that's just how we construct our plan and have transparent discussions leading up to kickoff.
Q. Three times during the first half, you went with the Steelers version of the tush-push. It's obvious why you wouldn't want Aaron Rodgers being the one to get pushed, and so what made you settle on Connor Heyward as being the right guy for the job?
A. He's a trustworthy and versatile athlete. He does a lot for us. He has done a lot over the course of his football career. He's played running back at Michigan State. He's just versatile. I remember when he came out of high school, I thought he was going to be a linebacker. And so a guy who has a versatile skill-set like his, who has a good football awareness and feel for the game, you just provide spots for them to contribute, and he certainly has done that in that area.
Q. Even though he's not getting pushed or doing any of the pushing. Aaron Rodgers is still on the field and lined up in the backfield behind the offense. What is his part? What is his purpose during the tush-push?
A. You're telegraphing your intentions if you take the quarterback off the field. Not only us, but in most instances, that's why people leave the quarterback on the field for Wildcat and things of that nature. It just minimizes the defense's time in terms of adjustment. You break the huddle, you come to the line of scrimmage, they notice that the quarterback isn't playing quarterback, and then the ball snaps. If you sub them out for a positional player, that provides additional time for the opponent to digest your intentions and thus construct a counter plan.
Q. There are 22 players on the field for a tush-push on both sides of the ball, but how many of them are actually involved in whether the offense makes the line to gain or the defense stops it?
A. It's generally a maximum of six players on either side of the ball. The A-gap and B-gap players on defense and the two linebackers behind them. As for the other five players, generally two of those are providing the edge and the other three are providing the perimeter contour that comprises the secondary. And similar things can be said about the offense. There are about five to six guys who are that are central to the push component of it, and others are securing the perimeter and the outer perimeter, if you will.
Q. How can something like that play be practiced and still adhere to the regular season practice rules outlined in the Collective Bargaining Agreement?
A. Because it's about timing and pad level, and you don't have to execute the play against an opponent to hone those skills on both sides of the ball. The people at the bottom of the push, their pad level and running of their feet is critical. You can do that with two-by-fours running across the gym floor like we used to do when I was in high school to teach pad level, for example. And then the timing component is about precision on offense. Sometimes you proceed fast. Sometimes you dummy-cadence them and do some things to try to get a free set of downs. And on defense, it's about ignoring all of those things and being ball-key ready.
Q. After the way Dylan Cook played vs. the Dolphins, are you willing to say he's the answer at LT for the rest of this season, or do you see him as someone capable of filling in until Andrus Peat clears the concussion protocol?
A. Not so fast. I don't know if I'm ready to anoint anybody for the rest of the season. That's just the urgency in which we're living right now. It's week-in and week-out. And certainly he did enough, and I'm thankful for his contributions in the construction of victory on Monday night. He'll start and play this weekend, and we'll see where it leads us.
Q. Lions Coach Dan Campbell was an NFL tight end for 10 seasons for 3 different teams – the New York Giants, Dallas, and Detroit – and you went against him 4 times as a secondary coach in Tampa and a defensive coordinator in Minnesota. What kind of player was he, and in what ways is he the same kind of coach?
A. He played with great intensity. He was about that combat, as we say. He was a point of attack blocker. He was the type of guy, particularly in the era in which he played, there were a lot of teams that played a 4-3 defense, so there was a lot of tight-end-side running game, 2-back running game, and things of that nature. And so your tight end had to be an absolute man, and he certainly was that. Statistics probably don't outline the success he had in his career, because he was a heck of a point-of-attack blocker and finisher. The Detroit Lions reflect that in personality, and I think he coaches with the aggression that he played with. I think that's why they've been able to turn that thing around and have a level of consistency and success during his time there.
Q. Hank Fraley is Detroit's offensive line coach and run game coordinator, and before he got into coaching he was an NFL center for 10 seasons, and you came across him as an assistant coach when he was a starter for the Eagles and as a head coach when he was a starter for the Browns. What kind of player was he, and in what ways is he the same kind of coach?
A. When I heard that that Dan hired Hank, it made sense to me, because they have very similar football character – effort guys, finishers, guys who do the things that you can't measure. I remember him from his time in Philadelphia as a secondary coach of the Bucs. Oftentimes, in NFC Championship Games, we were involved in some battles with those guys. And as a secondary coach, I always told my DBs to be careful around the pile because Hank was coming. You know, there have been some rules that have evolved over the years to minimize some of that, but I feel that spirit in his offensive line group and as a run game coordinator in the run game and their commitment to it. It's a perfect marriage between Coach Campbell and Hank, and I think that the consistency with which they run the ball and the amount of success they've had – 21 rushing touchdowns this year from their running back tandem is an indication of that commitment. They're doing a heck of a job. I respect it.
Q, With Fraley as the Lions' run game coordinator, is there anything different or special in Detroit's approach to running the football?
A. They're not trying to trick you. That's not Hank style, that's not Campbell's style. It's frontal assault, if you will. It's win by attrition. And I certainly can respect and do respect that.
Q. Jahmyr Gibbs has far more carries and yards than David Montgomery. How do the Lions utilize each of those running backs?
A. It was probably a more even division of labor, but less so of late, and that happens sometimes when you change play-callers. I guess about six weeks ago, Coach Campbell absorbed the play-calling, and as a head coach, he's probably less beholden to any of those guys in terms of distribution of the ball. Some guys benefit, some guys lose, and certainly you feel his affinity for Gibbs and what he brings since he's been calling plays. But also you feel an uptick in the contributions of Jameson Williams at the receiver position since he's been calling. But that also could be a component of the lack of TE Sam LaPorta, who's on IR, as well. And so we really focused a lot on the schematic since he's been calling it, because every play-caller is different. It can be the same playbook, but every play-caller is different. And certainly the uptick in work for Gibbs and maybe the decrease in work for Montgomery can be traced to Coach Campbell calling it.
Q. Same kind of question about their WRs – Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams – how are they utilized and in what areas of the field?
A. You know, both guys get a lot of touches, particularly of late. Since Coach Campbell has have been calling plays. it has been more even. You felt St. Brown more at the early portions of the season when Coach Campbell wasn't calling it, particularly in the red area, and you saw some schematics geared toward him. It's more balanced now. And I guess that's what I was referring to in our earlier conversation when I said Coach Campbell is probably a little bit less beholden to any of that. He's just trying to move the ball and score points and utilize all his weapons, and you certainly feel that. But they're a formidable tandem, those two guys. It's a lot of football over the last five or six weeks or so since he's been calling it going through that receiver tandem and Gibbs. It's about those three guys in just about any and all circumstances, and we better do a good job of being thoughtful about working to minimize them.
Q. For the second straight week, you're facing an opponent in a situation where a loss will eliminate them from the playoffs. Does your team have to match the Lions' desperation today?
A. You know, we're desperate, too. It's that time of year. I respect the position of those we compete against, but it's more about us and our journey. There's urgency in our journey. The road is getting narrow. We feel that urgency. We need to play with that spirit. I don't talk a lot about the status of the other group. It's assumed. It's that time of year. It's like musical chairs this time of year. You walk into stadiums, two teams walk into a stadium, and sometimes one team walks out. And I have respect for that. I think our team is educated in that way. We're interested, obviously, in maintaining and improving our position, and that's our mind-set.
Q. If the Steelers walk off the field this evening with a victory, what is most likely to have happened to contribute to that outcome?
A. That we've done a good job of minimizing explosion plays by their offense. I think explosion plays are the lifeblood of their offense. They average 6 a game, 20-plus-yard plays, run or pass. They've got a home run hitter at running back. They've got a receiver tandem that we've talked about that's formidable, and so we certainly have to minimize explosion plays. And we've got to play good situational defense. Jared Golf is special and having a special year. He's completing 70 percent of his passes. He's getting rid of the ball on time and all of those things. Down in and down out, you're not going to win all of those downs. But the weighty ones, possession downs, red zone, making them settle for field goals and things of that nature, the situational play we have to excel in that area.
