San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh and offensive coordinator Klay Kubiak addressed reporters following Thursday's practice as the team prepares for its Week 2 matchup against the New Orleans Saints. Here's everything they said.
Transcripts provided by the San Francisco 49ers Communications staff.
Defensive Coordinator Robert Saleh
What can you tell us about QB Adrian Martinez? I know you had Adrian with the Jets last year and now he's here. What's the story with Adrian?
"A big fan of Adrian's. He's first and foremost, a really good person. He's got a live arm. He's athletic. Then he's young in the game, he's a willing learner, but he's a good player."
DL Yetur Gross-Matos seemed to have some effectiveness rushing from the inside in the opener. What do you see from him and how he can contribute with limited snaps at this point?
"Yeah, as he gets comfortable, obviously coming back from injury, we'll increase his reps. But one thing he can do, he's versatile in that he can play outside and inside. I do think he's very powerful as a pass rusher, but he also has great feet and athleticism to capture an edge. You kind of saw it, for a guy who hasn't had really any practice reps or game reps, he went out there and I thought he did really well. So, looking forward to seeing how he progresses over the course of the year."
How would you assess DL Mykel Williams' first game? He didn't exactly light up the stat sheet, but he was on the field a lot.
"Yeah, he was. There's a lot of things he's got to clean up. When you get into an NFL game plan and it's going pretty quick, there's a lot of assignments, alignments for those guys where we're not just lining up in the same spot as in years past. There are different things that we're asking him to do, which is a lot for a rookie. When his feet are in the ground and he knows what to do, he looks really good. He'll come along just fine. On the 40-yard play, you talk about inches, on the 40-yard play at the end of the game, he's about to end it. And that center for Seattle I think made an unbelievable play to save it. But Mykel is free off the pick and he's about to end the game. He did a lot of really good things, but there's obviously some things he has got to clean up."
Do you like what he's been doing from the inside more or the outside?
"It's going to be a work in progress for both. He's going make his living, at least while we're here, being a first and second down run defender on the outside and then rushing the passer on the inside. We think he can rush the passer outside too, but we also think that he can be an elite interior pass rusher, which is very hard to find. Those guys are rare. Even more rare than an edge guy. So, he's got great versatility to him and when you ask guys to go inside out, it does take him probably a little bit more time. Especially when you think of our philosophy. We try to get guys doing one thing and doing it really, really well. He's in a position where his greatest gift is his greatest curse in terms of his versatility. We're trying to make sure that we balance it enough so that way he can maximize who he is."
Going into the next week, as specific as you can allow, what are some jumps or some improvements that you are looking forward to seeing out of the defense and specific players?
"Well, you always want to be clean. We gave up five explosive plays and you're never, I shouldn't say never, but you're trying to strive to keep it to a minimum. You want to make sure that your assignments are always 100-percent, the things you've got control over. You know, it is the NFL, you're going to miss a tackle. You're going to lose a one-on-one, that's going to happen, but you never want it to be because you weren't a 100-percent in your technique, you weren't 100-percent in your effort, you weren't 100-percent in your intent and violence. So, there's that stuff that we have to clean up, you know? If we can continue to do that, there are mistakes out there that we didn't get caught on, and that's what they're alluding to. There are things that you look at on tape and to the naked eye no big deal. But to us, it could be taken advantage of by a good offensive coordinator who sees the space that certain techniques are creating."
How did DL Nick Bosa play up before the grand finale?
"I thought he was outstanding. I get the sacks and all that stuff, but he was rushing with great power, his run defense was on point, he played smart and I thought he was awesome."
Can you quantify how big of that final play was by him and how it kind of defines who he is?
"Well, I've talked to you guys about it before, they're closers. Guys like him, [DL] Bryce Huff, they're closers. I joke about it, but it's also part truth in that even in baseball, you've got this guy who comes in and closes the ninth inning, he plays once every 30 games, he's asked to close a game and he gets paid a junk ton of money to do it. That's that guy. You're in the fourth quarter, every game's going to come down to one score and you need somebody to close the game. That's where those edge rushers and interior pass rushers come into play."
Do you have to reinforce that with him going into the season at all?
"No, he's wise beyond his years."
What's the key to defending the screen pass? It seemed like you guys identified it and attacked it pretty aggressively.
"Effort. It's 11 hats to the ball. It's setting edges on the outside and 11 hats running to the football. It's not one guy that defends the screen, it's the entire defense. So, we always talk about defending the screen is about effort. It's as simple as that."
What's your assessment of the Saints' offense?
"We've played [New Orleans Saints head coach] Kellen [Moore] before, got experience with him in the past, both here, the Jets, all that good stuff. He's a damn good coordinator. A very, very good play caller. They showed a variety of stuff. They're not just going to sit back and be a vanilla offense. They're going to give you multiple personnel groupings. They're going to jump in and out of tempo. They're going to give you some wonky looks. They're going to make you work on a lot of things. And they've got the personnel to do it. [New Orleans Saints RB] Alvin Kamara is one of the better backs in the league. Their O-Line is very talented. Their receivers are as fast as we've seen up to date. This quarterback, I'm telling you, he's going to be a household by the end of the year. This kid's pretty good. So, he's a twitchy athlete. He's got a hell of an arm. He's very decisive in his decision making as he goes through his progression, and he's accurate with the football. So, they gave Arizona everything they could handle."
You guys won the time of possession in this first game by 16 minutes. How important is it for your young defense to play complementary football early in the year?
"That's a great observation. The offense was outstanding on Sunday, that Seattle defense is a bear. They're going to be a bear all season and our offense was able to just churn out time. I've always said that the best defenses in the world are the ones that are on the sideline watching. Our offense was precise. They were in favorable situations. They were converting on third down, running the heck out of the football. It was cool to watch on the sideline. It was awesome."
Last week, we were talking about the game slowing down for rookies and you joked "let's see" Week 1, that's when it's really going to speed up. So how did S Marques Sigle and CB Upton Stout do in that regard?
"They were good. I thought they did nice jobs attacking Stout and giving him some things that you can prepare for. But, until the speed of Week 1 happens, there's just little things that he'll be even better on. Sigle, I thought did a really nice job. Again, there's things that he can clean up. He was in certain positions that could have left him vulnerable, but thankfully he came out unscathed. So, I thought overall all the rookies did a nice job for their first game and the key for them is to continue growing."
Bosa said you were nervous before that game. I assume you might be nervous before each game, but there was a different level of anxiety. Is that true? And is it just because of the unknown of what that was going to look like?
"I'll tell you guys a funny story. On Monday night, I had a dream that Seattle scored 37 points. It was a nightmare. I told [assistant head coach defense] Gus [Bradley] about it, and he goes, 'man, only 37? That's pretty good.' By Friday, it gets down though, you keep going down. So yeah, if you have a conversation with me in the beginning of the week, I'm scared to death. As of now, I think we're going to give up 50. But that's just the way we're all wired, at least I'm wired. I'm scared to death and I need to prepare as good as I can to calm my nerves on Sunday."
Follow up. Is it junk ton? Was that what you said? Junk ton of money?
"Oh, junk ton. Yeah. Junk. It's a better word than saying the s-word for you guys."
Offensive Coordinator Klay Kubiak
What have your impressions been of QB Mac Jones since he's been here, and what's his state of readiness if indeed he has to go this week?
"Mac's been really impressive since he walked in the door just the way he's kind of first been open to the coaching and open to learning what we do here and the way we coach quarterbacks. He bought in from day one. And you've seen the growth. You saw it in OTAs and then in camp, he had a great camp. If we need him to play, he's going to be ready and he's done everything we want him to do. If Mac gets an opportunity at some point, then I'm excited to watch him play."
He's talked a couple times about the need to rebuild his confidence in terms of feeling free to cut it loose when you see something and trusting it. Have you seen growth in that regard over the last six months?
"Yeah, I don't have anything to compare it to because I wasn't coaching him, but I do see growth from OTAs to training camp to now. You saw a guy who was learning in OTAs and then a guy who was more confident in camp and a guy who's fully confident right now. So yeah, his trajectory has been great."
The expectations for WR Ricky Pearsall this year were high for him to make a second-year leap. His performance in Week One seemed to validate that to some extent. What have you seen from Ricky and just the strides that he's made?
"Yeah, the offseason he had, obviously he had some setbacks, but the training camp he had really, and the way he was able to stack days, stack weeks, put together practice after practice and get better, it paid off on Sunday. I think I told Ricky, 'you're ready to play, you're ready to go out there and make plays.' And he did. Now, okay, what's the next challenge? Get a new game plan, go against a new team and do it again and that's what he has to keep doing."
You said there was a lot of timing that he had to figure out with QB Brock Purdy from year one to year two. Now with Mac stepping in how much of an adjustment is that for a receiver to try to get on the same page?
"It's probably a little. I'm sure there's some. I think the timing adjustment is more just learning our route tree and whoever the quarterback is, learning the timing of our routes, and whether it's Brock or Mac or anyone there's a growth period to that. And he still growing, and I think he's definitely more comfortable. So, sure, the quarterback maybe changes it, but I think no matter who's throwing him the ball, he's in a pretty good position right now with all that stuff."
What do you think of WR Jordan Watkins? What'd you think of him this summer? Is he ready to roll this week?
"Yeah, we'll see. He's coming off the injury and he's gotten to practice. I think he practiced once last week, and he's gotten two good days in. So, for him it's about just continuing to put good practices together and depending on kind of how our room shapes out for game day, whether he gets an op or not. But he's been doing a good job, and we expect him to keep getting better and contribute if he has to play."
It's only been a couple days, but how has WR Kendrick Bourne looked and where do you see him fitting into that group?
"He looks good. It's new right now to him. He was here in this scheme before I was here. So, there's learning with any new player. He's an NFL receiver. He's a big physical, strong guy, got great hands and he works and he's got a great passion for football. So, there's a growth period there, he has to keep getting reps and keep seeing things. But again, we'll kind of see how it shapes out for Sunday."
What do you see from New Orleans Saints defense coordinator Brandon Stanley's defense. What makes him tough to face?
"Man, one, just the way he coaches fundamentals, the technique of his scheme, is as good as anybody. His guys play extremely fundamentally sound and extremely hard. He does a great job of mixing stuff up, he is not a guy that you really can predict things from drive to drive. So, he kind of keeps you on your toes. He's a super smart coach, he puts his players in a position to play fast. And he is just going to keep you guessing, keep you on your toes as a play caller. And so, being around him for a year, just learned a lot from him. It's going to be a challenge for sure."
When you don't have TE George Kittle out there, how do you make up for what he brings and how do you fill that void?
"You don't make up for losing a player like that. George has been playing at a high level, but you eventually have to get to a point where you move on. You say, 'okay, what do we have and what position are we going to put these guys in that we have now?' So, it's not about replacing George, it's about guys stepping up and playing good football. That's just how I see it."
For people who weren't familiar with TE Jake Tonges before he made that catch, what makes him good? What makes him an NFL player? What's his skillset?
"Yeah, Jake's got great hands, and he's got a route running skillset for a tight end. He can stretch the field vertical. He's got good speed, but to me it's his hands and you saw it in the preseason, he made some really good plays for us in the preseason. So, he's got the receiving skillset and we've been developing him as a blocker, and he has gotten better. He's been cool to see kind of grow as a player over these past couple years."
Were you surprised at all that Seattle stayed with their nickel when you guys went to 12 and 21 personnel? Were you expecting that?
"Yeah, that's kind of what they do. They do play base, but they're primarily a nickel defense and 21, [Seattle Seahawks CB Devon] Witherspoon's, I think is one of the best defensive players in the league. So, them having him on the field in that position, it makes sense. He's a really good player. So, we were ready for that."
What's your perspective on that touchdown to Jake Tonges, what's kind of going through your mind as the play is happening?
"Slow motion. You see Brock kind of moving around and buying time and you're just hoping to see someone pop, and nobody really popped. Brock threw it up and threw the perfect ball. So, it was really cool."
Was it one of those kinds of, 'no, no, no, yes' type of things?
"A little bit of that. But guys need to make plays to win games and we did."
What's your philosophy on 50/50 balls because you have to throw them. You want your guy to throw some of them, but you have to take care of the ball. Do you have a philosophy on it? Does head coach Kyle Shanahan?
"Yeah, you got to give guys ops to make plays and that's really it. And guys, when they can't make a play, they got to try to make sure the defender doesn't make the play. So, that's really what it comes down to."
You had RB Christian McCaffrey out there; I think 58 snaps. Was there one snap in particular that jumped out at you?
"Yeah, there's always little things with Christian that people don't really notice, but for me, I always look at like the runs where, it's maybe a bad look or they blitz or it's just not the best run look, but Christian finds a way to get five yards. So now instead of second and nine, you're in second and five or second and six. Those make a huge difference in a drive. You see the runs that are blocked for two that get four or five. Christian is very consistent at that. So those are the things I see about him. He's a guy who just grinds and he makes things right for us."
Was the plan to give Christian the ball as much as you did? Is the plan to give him the ball as much as you need to win?
"It's a fluid thing. Yeah, we've talked about this in the offseason. Yeah, you'd love to find ways to give Christian a blow, but Christian doesn't like coming off the field. You're in the heat of battle and Christian's making plays for us. So, it's just kind of situational the way that happens. [RB] Brian's [Robinson Jr.] going to continue to get more reps because he's coming along and still learning the offense and getting better. So, it'll be an evolving thing as we go through the year."
The Saints ran a lot of like five-two base last week. What kind of challenges does that present trying to run the ball between the tackles?
"Just a lot of big bodies up front and they have very physical edge setters. They got big guys inside and they got two really good inside linebackers. So, when you put those seven guys down there in the middle, it's tough to move them, you know? So, it presents a huge challenge and that's what we're getting ready for."
What have you seen from RB Jordan James in practice and how close is he to maybe contributing?
"We'll see what kind of happens for game day, but Jordan's been practicing really well. I think there's a natural kind of needing to get back into football shape after missing time. He's been back out there, he looks good to me. It's like anyone else who misses time, they need reps, they need to get back into it and kind of see where they're at. "
Circling back to that conversation you had with Ricky leading into the Seattle game, how much of him taking this next step is at this stage more mental and kind of having that confidence that he can be the guy? He talked about wide receivers/passing game specialist Leonard Hankerson, putting those expectations on him and challenging him in that way.
"Yeah, I think any player is just confidence. It's just repetition. It's just going out there and doing it consistently. And when you can do it consistently, you got to believe that you can do it on game day and that's kind of where he is at. So, I think that's the same for all players really."
Is there a trophy for the Kubiak Bowl?
"No trophy, it's one game. They're onto their season. We're continuing with ours. It's moving on, but it was cool to see my brother last weekend though. That was nice."
What are your impressions of QB Adrian Martinez so far?
"It's been really cool to see him get some reps in the scout team. He's a guy who, to me, looks real comfortable. He's a good athlete. He throws the ball well and we don't know a ton about him just because he's kind of new here, but from what we've seen, I've been impressed."