Buffalo Bills head coach Sean McDermott looks ahead to hosting the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday night in Orchard Park. (Courtesy of the Buffalo Bills)
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00:00Good to see everyone, so I'll give you the injury
00:05Updates here, so just one by one Dalton Kincaid won't practice today
00:10We'll see how he how he does the rest of the week
00:13Keon Coleman will be limited today. We'll see how it goes each day as we move through the week
00:20Same with Spencer Brown
00:22He'll be limited also and then Milano
00:25Dwayne Carter and Tylan Grable all still in their window and we'll see how those three progress through the week here
00:39Yes
00:41What do you want to see out of Milano this week that tells you he's moving forward. Yeah
00:49Probably what you would expect just in terms of
00:52You know I'm getting back in the flow endurance
00:56You know because he hasn't played football in quite some time, so really just trying to
01:02Take it. You know one day at a time one play at a time not to sound
01:07Like it's coach speak, but that's that's really what we're looking at
01:11We'll see yeah for all three of those guys, we'll see sorry the same same line of questioning when he does eventually get activated
01:18Do you anticipate it's gonna be just kind of a pitch count maybe the first time on Milano. Yeah
01:25Yeah, I would say for any of those guys. You know who haven't played for some time
01:30DC same way as
01:33I would say for any of those guys
01:35You know who haven't played for some time
01:37DC same ways as Thailand guys that have missed multiple weeks. Yeah
01:54Yeah, it's there's some moving targets right with who who we're expecting to play
02:00You know we have to prepare for
02:02For them to be as healthy as they've ever been really just because we don't know
02:06just because we don't know so
02:09That's that's really how we're approaching it
02:13The prep work that you need to do because of not only the number of questions they have with the level player who are questions
02:19uh, yes, I mean probably no different from our
02:23Situation, you know with the different players we've had out and do players play do they not play?
02:28Um, so yeah, it makes it makes it a little tougher
02:32Um, and and you spend a little bit more time with the prep
02:37But given impending weather, um, how does that impact which you do have to basically put together two plans
02:45Uh again, yes from a preparation standpoint, you know, we've been through it. Um
02:51Before so, you know, we have some experience with it. Um
02:57You know, we can't control the weather
02:59I think only he can control the weather so I know he can control the weather
03:03So I think it's really just about how we respond to it
03:07Um, our staff does a phenomenal job
03:10The people that have shown up, uh for the years that i've been here at a minimum and beyond
03:15my time here of shoveling the stadium out, um
03:20I think that that'll
03:22That'll happen again. If it if if uh, if if need be and
03:27Um, we'll get ready to play a football game
03:29How much more comfortable you become with that
03:32coming, you know
03:33Since maybe the first time it happened and it was probably a big I mean it was a big deal for a lot of people
03:38But now how much more comfortable you become with the whole weather situation?
03:42Knowing how to plan for it and knowing what to expect and knowing things come through or something
03:47Yeah, I mean, um again just i've always been amazed since since uh moving here
03:52That you can get a foot two feet three feet seven feet
03:58And the roads are cleared in some miraculous way
04:02So credit to all the people that are out there working or that will continue to work
04:05Uh this winter as we get into the into the snowy months and days and weeks here
04:10Um, what a phenomenal job they do really didn't plan on saying that but i'll use that as a opportunity to to uh
04:16To praise those people that are out there
04:19Clearing the roads like they do for for all of us. You don't get to pick when it happens
04:23But are you happy with when the bye week fell this year and you feel like it came at a good time
04:30Uh
04:32Yeah, I mean it's always
04:34You look at the schedule and you're like, oh, where's that by and you're going down and you're going
04:40And then you finally get to it you're like, oh, okay, so we gotta we gotta get through whatever it was, you know
04:459 10 11 weeks whatever there
04:47um
04:48So you take it just like you take the schedule and where you play and who you play
04:53One week at a time. Honestly, that's that's I think the best
04:57Approach every year really do you do anything different this week? You guys have had so much success off the bye
05:03Not letting things like when you have two weeks off people go away
05:07Getting things ramped back up to where they were before the bye
05:09What do you do if anything differently to get ready to come off the bye?
05:14It's a good question. Uh
05:15you know, I don't really have the
05:18Hey, this is exactly what we do formula
05:20It's just more of I think us really just getting back to what we do getting back to to the basics today. We're
05:27uh, you know, we're going to practice and have a have a normal practice, uh in pads and
05:32And uh working on the fundamentals that we need to have for for a good football team in san francisco coming here
05:37Was there a walk through monday?
05:39No, no. Okay. So it was a the players were in but there was no walk through
05:44I just want to be clear and clarify you are duane carter and tylon both having their windows open to practice today
05:49Yes. Okay. Thank you. What would you say? What have you seen from bobby babich? Uh,
05:54And his game management as the season has gone on
05:58game management meaning
06:00Calling and just the way he's managed the
06:03Plate calling. Yeah. Yeah
06:05you know like anything else I think you get better with experience and
06:09It is to me the the tough to be a plate caller is the toughest job
06:14uh
06:16To me on the football side of the building, right? No offense to anybody else's job my job included
06:21Not only do you have to shape a game plan
06:23But you have to call it call a call a game and you've got 65 70 plays roughly
06:28On average to get exactly right to put the players in exactly the right position
06:33And that is really hard to do against good football teams in particular
06:38your fourth down
06:40What's been made of how you've kind of evolved regarding your fourth down thoughts?
06:45When you are entering those types of situations, how often would you say or can you maybe give a little glimpse into when you get?
06:51the third down
06:53you already know
06:54and certainly what happens on third down can affect it, but
06:58What's that thinking of getting to what you're going to do on fourth down before you're even halfway down?
07:04Yeah
07:05You I would say 90 percent of the time you already know
07:09We already know 90 percent of the time
07:12There's 10 percent of it where you're going, okay
07:15We're going to go for it on fourth and two and that ball ends up at fourth in
07:19a long two
07:20Maybe really a three but it says on the scoreboard, uh two
07:24um, which is what
07:26You know, I know a lot of people out there see and you're like, oh, I didn't go for it
07:30It's fourth and fourth and two. Well, it's not really two. It's
07:34when you're out there alive, it's a
07:36two and a half or almost three so
07:38That's where it gets a little bit not to get too granular and specific tim, but
07:42That's where it gets tough because you've got to make a decision on saying. Hey, what do we want to do here?
07:47It didn't it's not on two
07:48It's certainly not on one and a half. It's on
07:51Almost three but scoreboard's reading two, you know
07:54Affect what you do on third down then because you then know you have two plays instead of one. Yeah
08:01Potentially. Yeah, so you try and be
08:03um
08:05you know
08:06My communication with joe, uh, and he does a great job
08:10like bobby, um
08:13I I just think that communication is important. Although it doesn't always mean that you
08:19um
08:20You know take third down and say for sure that this is what we should do just because we would go for it
08:27I think that's part of the uh
08:30um
08:32Kind of in exact science of the game a little bit as it relates to
08:36Four down territory. How much of a cheat code is josh allen on fourth and short?
08:43I think every coach in the nfl would love to have josh allen on fourth and short
08:48Yeah
08:50Having had the chance to catch your breath at least I I imagine you did over the bike. Did you get any chance to
08:58Gather any perspective on being nine and two and what the season has been so far
09:02um
09:03Given the turnover that you went through and all the new
09:06pieces that are in place
09:09Yeah, I don't really think
09:10Yes to a point, but I would say
09:13um
09:14a small point right just just in terms of
09:18You don't really get a chance to slow down enough until the end of the season. Um to
09:23um
09:24Think about how it all came together
09:26Which which what what the team and what certain individual individuals were able to accomplish?
09:32um, I think that's for after the season more than anything and
09:35um
09:36I think this time this week specifically with thanksgiving you're you're grateful
09:40For just the opportunity to go out there and and be be in the room with these guys and gals and on this team
09:48and
09:48um, you get a chance to watch over the bi-week other teams and other organizations and
09:53You realize how how good we have it here
09:56You mentioned kind of what it's like from your perspective preparing for san francisco when they have all these moving parts and injuries
10:02Kyle shanahan, just what do you make of what he's done with kind of this group when there's been
10:06Evolving players who's involved and who's not and just what he's able to do from a coaching standpoint. Yeah, he's a great coach
10:12Simply put he's a great coach. Um
10:15We've both been in the league a long time
10:17um, you know, we've
10:20um
10:22Gone up against each other a number of times in the in the nfc south
10:25It was for a few years there and twice a year. Um
10:30I don't I mean, I don't think there's many coaches in this league better than better than kyle shanahan. I really don't
10:35Obviously uncertainty around brock. Uh purdy, but if he's able to go what challenges does he present?
10:41Um preparing for him and what he's able to do with that offense with brock
10:44Yeah, um, he's a guy that I don't know as well just having you know, not playing played san francisco
10:50Um, but you know from afar watching his career in college and and watching
10:56Since he's been in the league what he's been able to do a lot of respect for his game how he plays
11:00um, you know just
11:02the way he handles himself it sounds like with his faith and everything have a lot of respect for that and
11:07um, but what he's been able to do with their team and um, you know, he's just got those traits that
11:12That you that you admire
11:14A couple guys who's aspiring to do stuff for their foundations different charity events
11:18What's it like just seeing guys who's their downtime for events like that? Yeah, I think it's great. I know kian
11:23Uh did some things and there's a lot of the guys like you mentioned
11:26um, katherine doing things in the in the community or when they go back home, uh those things so
11:32Um, it's certainly it's certainly fun to watch
11:35When they pay it forward, um, and I think our guys do a great job of doing that
11:40There's a possibility of clinching up the amc east this week, is that something that
11:45You guys talk about it all acknowledged at all. I know it depends on what happens on thursday, but
11:50Just being able to do that already at this point in the season. Yeah, I think we're mostly elena
11:55Focused on our level of play this week. Um
11:59against a good football team
12:01Um, so that's that's where our focus, uh mostly is right now
12:06With kian not knowing he's gonna play this week and i'm not asking who he is, but with him trending
12:11Probably in the right direction and amari probably getting healthier too with the biweek
12:15How much do you look forward to seeing what?
12:18This receiver group can do
12:21After seeing the glimpse of it in amari's debut and seeing how they all came together in that game
12:27How much do you look forward to seeing this group healthy?
12:31I mean I do. Um
12:34I think the neat part about it about it partially is watching what um
12:40You know the guys who have stepped up when when said player or players have been out
12:46I think that's been really to me
12:48um
12:50Amazing to watch right and
12:53The way joe's handled it from an offensive coordinator standpoint or bobby when the defense, you know, and smiley's affected by it as well
13:00Too but just the leadership from from those guys on into the player leadership
13:05No one's blanked. They've all gone out there those players that have been called upon to step up
13:10and done their job and and that comes from preparation and
13:14um
13:15You know some of those guys got put in the lineup late in the week
13:18When a guy didn't get cleared so on so on and so forth
13:20So I say all that to say that i've been very impressed by the way holistically
13:24Um, the team has handled it
13:26By week coming off of my weekend and holiday week and all that stuff
13:30So it is a little bit different, but you're kind of in a sunday to sunday rhythm here. Yeah
13:35What is the significance of that?
13:37routine
13:38more than anything, I mean even the bye week is for me at least is
13:43I love the bye week like anyone does everyone does but
13:47sometimes i'm like
13:49you know
13:50I don't really
13:51I guess I have it. Usually i'm in a gray shirt and bill's sweatpants
13:55And so
13:56uh
13:57When i'm not wearing those I kind of go in my my closet. I'm like, I don't know what to wear
14:02I'm, kind of like not myself
14:04Um, so I told the guys some of the guys this morning. I said it's good to be back in
14:08You know my gray t-shirt and and my bill sweats
14:15That's getting a little personal
14:19We haven't talked to you since terry was named a player of the week a couple weeks ago
14:24I know he doesn't have captain as his official title
14:26He might be on the leadership council, but a guy like that has been here for as long as you have
14:31Go early on in his career a couple injuries
14:34Then he told us this spring it took him three years before he really knew the defense
14:37As good as you know, he should how much of an example can that be to younger players at this level?
14:42What can he do in that locker room to be a leader at this level? Well, he is I mean
14:46He's on the leadership council. Um, he is one of our leaders. Um
14:51You know, what more can you say about him? He's he's turned out to be a phenomenal player
14:55He's a phenomenal person you watch these guys grow, right?
14:59Um, and you watch how his family has grown and
15:03Getting married since being here and everything. So you're just
15:06It's kind of a snapshot of life, right when you these guys come in they're young they grow they develop on the field off the field
15:12Um his influence in our locker room I can tell you is is big
15:15Just talk a little bit about the coaching dynamic when you're playing a team
15:20That you haven't seen in four years that you've never seen brock
15:22Furry as a you know, as opposed to the other extreme with you know, a division team you play say twice a year
15:27Right, it takes um, you know, at least for me
15:30It takes a little bit more time to get myself familiar with the offense or the player in this case, uh with brock
15:37You you have a chance to tv watch or tv scout
15:41You have a chance to tv watch or tv scout
15:44The team or the player just as you're watching casually as as fans do like like we do when we're not, you know competing so
15:52um, it takes a little bit longer to get you know, I guess comfortable if you will with
15:57With what you're watching