Latest / The Jacksonville Jaguars Official Podcast Network / Press Pass | Heath Farwell: “As the game evolves, we got to evolve right there with it."

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Press Pass | Heath Farwell: “As the game evolves, we got to evolve right there with it." · The Jacksonville Jaguars Official Podcast Network

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Yeah, it's gonna be interesting to see how this works out. Obviously,
• 0:03
  Speaker 1: as a special teams coaches got together, it wasn't exactly
• 0:07
  Speaker 1: what we were looking for, but as the game evolves,
• 0:11
  Speaker 1: we got to evolve right there with it. So it's
• 0:14
  Speaker 1: something my assist and I, Luke Thompson, have really looked
• 0:17
  Speaker 1: into this offseason and we'll continue to look throughout training camp.
• 0:21
  Speaker 2: What are the keys to it?
• 0:22
  Speaker 1: What are the you know, we have to study all
• 0:24
  Speaker 1: the college tape, that's what they've been doing for a
• 0:26
  Speaker 1: couple of years and reaching out to those buddies that
• 0:28
  Speaker 1: are in that game, uh, to kind of figure out
• 0:30
  Speaker 1: the tricks to it. It's gonna be all new to us.
• 0:33
  Speaker 1: Is it going to change a ton Possibly not. You know,
• 0:38
  Speaker 1: like coach mentioned, we got Jamal Agnew we're gonna want
• 0:41
  Speaker 1: to We want to return, so we're gonna try to
• 0:43
  Speaker 1: return as much as we can. Are we gonna fair
• 0:45
  Speaker 1: catch at times potentially, But I think if you have
• 0:49
  Speaker 1: a returner like we do, you still want that. It's
• 0:53
  Speaker 1: a big part of the game. It's a big part
• 0:54
  Speaker 1: of momentum. It was a big part of our season
• 0:57
  Speaker 1: last year down the stretch of slipping the field giving
• 1:01
  Speaker 1: the ball to the offense on the other side of
• 1:02
  Speaker 1: the fifty.
• 1:03
  Speaker 2: Uh. It was a huge part of what we did.
• 1:06
  Speaker 1: Like they're trying to legislate away from people on the
• 1:10
  Speaker 1: outside agree, how do you see that.
• 1:14
  Speaker 2: I don't look at it that way. I look at
• 1:15
  Speaker 2: it more. It's a safety issue.
• 1:17
  Speaker 1: They're trying to figure out another way if we could
• 1:18
  Speaker 1: prevent one less concussion.
• 1:21
  Speaker 2: Uh.
• 1:22
  Speaker 1: I think it's valuable. And I think as a as
• 1:23
  Speaker 1: a coach, as a former player, we're we don't we
• 1:26
  Speaker 1: don't want those as well. We want it safe for
• 1:28
  Speaker 1: the players. We love to keep the traditional aspect of
• 1:32
  Speaker 1: the game as much as we can. Uh, but we
• 1:34
  Speaker 1: have to look at safety and and and I agree
• 1:36
  Speaker 1: without one hundred percent, if we can help the game,
• 1:38
  Speaker 1: we'll do it. Does this change There's been argue that,
• 1:43
  Speaker 1: you know, getting guys need creates more games on sideline.
• 1:46
  Speaker 2: I mean, are they getting Oh, I don't know. I
• 1:50
  Speaker 2: don't know.
• 1:51
  Speaker 1: That's I think that's gonna be. We'll we'll find out
• 1:53
  Speaker 1: a little more information this season. There's a potential you
• 1:57
  Speaker 1: have just as many kickoffs because now the squid bibbs,
• 2:00
  Speaker 1: maybe some of the directional kicks will come into play.
• 2:04
  Speaker 1: That maybe because you're getting more touchbacks, you know that
• 2:07
  Speaker 1: on the fair catch, that maybe team's getting a little
• 2:10
  Speaker 1: more creative. So I don't know. I think that's all
• 2:13
  Speaker 1: part of every special team's coach across the league is
• 2:16
  Speaker 1: doing what I'm gonna do of really study it. How
• 2:19
  Speaker 1: can we help our team and maybe it is fair catch,
• 2:22
  Speaker 1: you know what does that look like? And and trying
• 2:25
  Speaker 1: to come up the best answers to kind of help
• 2:27
  Speaker 1: our team.
• 2:27
  Speaker 3: Have you thought about it much from that same point
• 2:29
  Speaker 3: from when you are kicking off, do you just kick
• 2:31
  Speaker 3: it out of the back and say right to the
• 2:32
  Speaker 3: twenty five or you're you're a fan of and maybe
• 2:35
  Speaker 3: trying to slid more to see if you can pin
• 2:36
  Speaker 3: them inside of the twenty five because obviously where they
• 2:39
  Speaker 3: starts to big deal you want to.
• 2:40
  Speaker 4: Start a side at the time.
• 2:42
  Speaker 1: Yeah, there's a big advantage to pinning them inside the
• 2:45
  Speaker 1: inside the twenty. So we're gonna try to cover kicks.
• 2:48
  Speaker 1: I mean, that's part of the deal of pinning him
• 2:50
  Speaker 1: inside the twenty going eighty ninety yards a versus defense
• 2:54
  Speaker 1: is valuable versus get them to the twenty five. There's
• 2:57
  Speaker 1: definitely a big percentage change of scoring when you do that.
• 3:03
  Speaker 1: So we love to cover more kicks. Are there times
• 3:06
  Speaker 1: when we were gonna, you know, kick touchbacks out the
• 3:08
  Speaker 1: back of the end zone. Absolutely, but we love cover kicks.
• 3:12
  Speaker 1: We have a good group covering. Let's take advantage of
• 3:15
  Speaker 1: that if it helps us that week.
• 3:16
  Speaker 4: I'm sure Doug and Trent probably asked you about when
• 3:19
  Speaker 4: the Manness thing.
• 3:20
  Speaker 2: Came up and just wanted curious as to what your
• 3:22
  Speaker 2: input was on that.
• 3:24
  Speaker 1: We're excited to get him. I mean, Riley did a
• 3:26
  Speaker 1: fantastic job last season for us. He was a big
• 3:29
  Speaker 1: part of some big games for us, you know, one
• 3:31
  Speaker 1: of the biggest games in Jaguars history. But getting the
• 3:35
  Speaker 1: opportunity to add Brandon Brandon, you know, he had reached
• 3:38
  Speaker 1: out to me. So it was a guy that wanted
• 3:40
  Speaker 1: to play here. I think that just kind of gives
• 3:43
  Speaker 1: you the picture of where the culture's gone. You know,
• 3:46
  Speaker 1: when you have players that are free agents after getting
• 3:49
  Speaker 1: released and say, hey, coach, I would love to play here.
• 3:53
  Speaker 1: Just a testament what coach Peterson's done, what the overall team,
• 3:57
  Speaker 1: what it's like to be here. So it's a guy
• 4:00
  Speaker 1: that wanted to be here. And then it was an
• 4:02
  Speaker 1: opportunity to get better as a as a group. You know,
• 4:05
  Speaker 1: I said, Riley did a really good job, but this
• 4:07
  Speaker 1: is a guy that gives us a lot more flexibility,
• 4:09
  Speaker 1: not only on kickoffs, uh, to be able to pin
• 4:12
  Speaker 1: him deep and do some different stuff. But it gives
• 4:15
  Speaker 1: this a longer uh you know, kickoff line on Sundays.
• 4:18
  Speaker 2: Uh.
• 4:18
  Speaker 1: You know at times later in the season, some of
• 4:20
  Speaker 1: those lines got shorter.
• 4:21
  Speaker 2: With Riley, this won't be an issue.
• 4:23
  Speaker 1: And and and I think that'll free us up to
• 4:26
  Speaker 1: potentially maybe not go for one when it's a longer,
• 4:29
  Speaker 1: longer distance on fourth down. Maybe that's three points that
• 4:33
  Speaker 1: we could take advantage of. So it just gives us
• 4:35
  Speaker 1: a lot more flexibility to add to a very good kicker,
• 4:38
  Speaker 1: one of the best kickers in the league, to our roster.
• 4:41
  Speaker 1: We had to take advantage of advantage of it, especially
• 4:44
  Speaker 1: if a guy wanted to be here.
• 4:45
  Speaker 3: Did you know him going back?
• 4:46
  Speaker 4: And you guys cross that.
• 4:47
  Speaker 1: I've never I've never had the opportunity to coach him.
• 4:51
  Speaker 1: I have met him pregames and stuff like that, had
• 4:53
  Speaker 1: some conversations, So it was a it was a pleasant
• 4:56
  Speaker 1: surprise when I got a phone call from him.
• 4:59
  Speaker 2: Uh.
• 4:59
  Speaker 1: But Like I said, anytime someone wants to come here
• 5:03
  Speaker 1: and and it helps us be a better football team,
• 5:06
  Speaker 1: we have to explore it. We have to look into it,
• 5:09
  Speaker 1: and if it helps us just one percent better, we're
• 5:12
  Speaker 1: gonna do it.
• 5:14
  Speaker 4: Your experience with the coaches you that under does having
• 5:19
  Speaker 4: a kicker where they have some confidence fifty plus?
• 5:23
  Speaker 3: Does it change play calling in any way? Does it
• 5:25
  Speaker 3: make it more conservative or or more maybe take a
• 5:29
  Speaker 3: chance for or can it good by as ways?
• 5:31
  Speaker 1: I mean, I think I think that's a question probably
• 5:34
  Speaker 1: for Press, but I think Press would definitely be excited
• 5:37
  Speaker 1: to know that, Hey, we don't this isn't a four
• 5:40
  Speaker 1: down territory. We're in range here, you know, go try
• 5:44
  Speaker 1: to get the first off. If we don't get it,
• 5:45
  Speaker 1: we're fine kicking this. We got a good opportunity to
• 5:48
  Speaker 1: get three points right after this because that line, that
• 5:51
  Speaker 1: kick line is so deep. You know, last year in
• 5:54
  Speaker 1: Denver they send them out of a bunch of long kicks.
• 5:57
  Speaker 1: I don't anticipate us doing that as much.
• 5:59
  Speaker 2: As they did. But do you do have access.
• 6:02
  Speaker 1: To doing that, which is a huge advantage of maybe
• 6:06
  Speaker 1: it's right before half sending him out there for a
• 6:08
  Speaker 1: sixty plus yarder. Maybe it's a game winner. Those are valuable.
• 6:12
  Speaker 1: Uh you know, with those three points right before half,
• 6:15
  Speaker 1: maybe it's end of a game, just game changing points
• 6:17
  Speaker 1: because they all come down to one possession down and down.
• 6:20
  Speaker 4: In the NFL, difference with where you will let him
• 6:24
  Speaker 4: kick from as opposed to watching him kick and mile
• 6:27
  Speaker 4: high altitude does that translate to Jackson isn't the same?
• 6:32
  Speaker 1: I mean, it's definitely the altitude is you know, is
• 6:34
  Speaker 1: a big advantage. But you know, I've I've watched this guy.
• 6:37
  Speaker 1: I've watched you know, most of his kicks over his career,
• 6:41
  Speaker 1: and he's had many kicks of sixty plus away from
• 6:45
  Speaker 1: mile high, including in Seattle last year, a sixty four
• 6:48
  Speaker 1: yarder that had the distance. And my background in Seattle
• 6:51
  Speaker 1: kicking towards that end zone, the open end zone in
• 6:55
  Speaker 1: Seattle is a tough place to kick. So he still
• 6:57
  Speaker 1: has that elite leg strength that in mile high maybe
• 7:01
  Speaker 1: help them a little bit. But he'll, he'll this weather
• 7:03
  Speaker 1: here is good enough. He'll he'll be able to kick
• 7:05
  Speaker 1: some long kicks if we ask him to do it.
• 7:09
  Speaker 2: From the guys in the roster to sandows help.
• 7:11
  Speaker 3: He is a gunner or a core guy, or what do.
• 7:14
  Speaker 2: You see this year? I mean, I think the buy
• 7:16
  Speaker 2: in is the biggest.
• 7:17
  Speaker 1: So the guys who come to my office voluntarily on
• 7:20
  Speaker 1: their own, the guys who stay after practiced and wanted
• 7:23
  Speaker 1: to drool, work on, you know, by themselves and ask questions.
• 7:26
  Speaker 2: I think that's the biggest thing. How much is the.
• 7:28
  Speaker 1: Buy in because a lot of these players haven't played
• 7:30
  Speaker 1: a ton of special teams in college, so getting the
• 7:32
  Speaker 1: opportunity to kind of see what that looks like and
• 7:35
  Speaker 1: then can it translate to our game? You know a
• 7:38
  Speaker 1: lot of these guys have never protected a punt pro
• 7:40
  Speaker 1: they do the spread punts in college, so can they
• 7:43
  Speaker 1: do a kickslide in the National Football League?
• 7:46
  Speaker 2: Can they do a gunner release first a vice?
• 7:48
  Speaker 1: Those are things they've never seen, never done, So I
• 7:52
  Speaker 1: think those are things that show up. Can they learn
• 7:53
  Speaker 1: our techniques? Can they? Can they do the NFL what
• 7:56
  Speaker 1: they're going to be asked to do in the NFL?
• 7:58
  Speaker 1: Uh and teach them the tools of it? Can they
• 8:00
  Speaker 1: do it? Just preparing them for training camp because that's
• 8:02
  Speaker 1: really when it's going to get competitive. Have mentioned the
• 8:05
  Speaker 1: three defensive backs Antonio braswell, and then how have you
• 8:09
  Speaker 1: guys drafted and the contributions they can make on special teams.
• 8:12
  Speaker 4: What have you seen from those three?
• 8:14
  Speaker 1: Love all three of them. They've they've been fantastic. I
• 8:16
  Speaker 1: liked him in college, Antonio starting with him. He's big,
• 8:20
  Speaker 1: long and fast, and his play speed shows up. That's
• 8:24
  Speaker 1: another thing I was excited to see. When we check
• 8:27
  Speaker 1: the GPS is the miles per hour just even in practice,
• 8:32
  Speaker 1: it translates really well to him. So his length, his
• 8:35
  Speaker 1: speed is going to be a value on special teams.
• 8:39
  Speaker 1: He's very smart, he understands the game, and he was
• 8:43
  Speaker 1: well coached in college. He has a good understanding and
• 8:45
  Speaker 1: better than most guys coming out of college to translate
• 8:48
  Speaker 1: to special teams. So excited about him. Braswell has been really,
• 8:51
  Speaker 1: really good. You know, he's a smaller body that sometimes
• 8:55
  Speaker 1: doesn't necessarily translate, but his toughness, his buy in, he
• 9:00
  Speaker 1: carries a ton. And then Eric he's doing the exact
• 9:03
  Speaker 1: same thing. They're learning new stuff. He's getting better every day.
• 9:07
  Speaker 1: So those are three guys that have a big impact
• 9:10
  Speaker 1: on the later part of the roster the last few rounds.
• 9:13
  Speaker 1: The biggest thing they could do is be a quality
• 9:16
  Speaker 1: backup and then be a big contributor, you know, for
• 9:19
  Speaker 1: us on special teams with Antonio.
• 9:21
  Speaker 4: I know there was some questions about his forty yard times,
• 9:24
  Speaker 4: So I'm curious with the GPS.
• 9:25
  Speaker 2: I mean, did you guys regard him as a guy
• 9:27
  Speaker 2: who had speed.
• 9:28
  Speaker 1: We did, and I liked his game speed, and so
• 9:32
  Speaker 1: that's what you know. We thought we what we saw
• 9:34
  Speaker 1: on tape, and then we checked the GPS. Since he's
• 9:37
  Speaker 1: been here, it shows up what we saw on tape,
• 9:40
  Speaker 1: which is which is more valuable than a forty time
• 9:42
  Speaker 1: or anything else, is what is their game speed? What
• 9:45
  Speaker 1: does it look like, you know, matching up against another guy,
• 9:48
  Speaker 1: you know, running down the field as a gunner. That's
• 9:50
  Speaker 1: where it's gonna show up. Cover guy stuff.
• 9:53
  Speaker 2: That's it. Appreciate you guys,