San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh, offensive coordinator Klay Kubiak, and quarterback Mac Jones addressed reporters following Thursday's practice as the team prepares for its Week 8 matchup against the Houston Texans. Here's everything they said.
Transcripts provided by the San Francisco 49ers Communications staff.
Defensive Coordinator Robert Saleh
As far as your Thursday practices, a couple of your players said after the game that they thought that that outing was going to happen because the Thursday practice was so good and intense. Did you sense that from the Thursday practice? And with the 49ers Thursday practice in general, is that more intense than other places you've been? How did you run your Thursday practice in in New York?
"We were similar. I will say, last Thursday was a very physical practice. It was probably a little more than what we normally would be, even for here. I thought the guys got after it and I thought today's Thursday practice was really good. I don't want to speak for the entire League, but usually Thursday's workday. You put your pads on, you hone in on all the details that you installed on Wednesday, lock in your third-down game plan, but usually League-wide Thursday is your big workday."
What struck you about Houston Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans in 2017 when you got here and he was a quality control guy?
"Well, first I was there when we drafted DeMeco. He's just different. You could tell he was different from the get. He was Defensive Rookie of the Year. I remember we initially had him at WILL linebacker and then something happened during OTAs, he slid in the MIKE and that was the last of it for him. The rest is history. But, incredible mind. What makes him special to me is that he has an incredible amount of humility in terms of he knows he doesn't have the answers, he's willing to ask the right questions and he is incredibly smart and will learn. He can evolve, he can adapt, he's a great communicator and people gravitate towards him. He's an elite human, elite father, elite man. He's all of it. We knew that from when we drafted him and obviously he stayed true to himself as he's gotten bigger and bigger."
You only allowed 10 points in your first game without LB Fred Warner. How did you pull that off?
"Good players (laughter). These young men, I know it's a young group, but they're all excited. I thought [head coach] Kyle [Shanahan] did a great job with messaging last week and it's a tremendous opportunity for everyone. We talked about it on here. Before Fred was [former 49ers LB] Patrick Willis and [former 49ers LB] NaVorro Bowman. Before them was, shoot, [former NFL LB] Ken Norton Jr. and all those other great linebackers. It's [LB] Tatum's [Bethune] opportunity. Before [LB] Dee Winters was [Denver Broncos LB] Dre Greenlaw, so there's always an opportunity for somebody to step into the shoes that have been there for a while. I thought our guys did a great job taking advantage of their opportunities on Sunday night."
DB Deommodore Lenoir wasn't out at practice yesterday and he was to the side of the practice field today. If he's not able to go on Sunday, how do you fill that void?
"Yeah, if he can't go, obviously those would be big shoes to fill, but no different than everybody else. It'd be a great opportunity for somebody else to step into those shoes and play well. Thought [CB Darrell] Luter [Jr.] did a great job last week stepping in for [CB] Renardo [Green] when he was knocked out of the game. This League is about opportunity. Like I said, you have your superstars, right? The ones who are, they're just different. You do have the [DL Nick] Bosas of the world and guys that transcend coaching, if you will. There's nothing you can say to those guys. They're just special. But, then from there, the rest of the League to me is A to Z and it's separated by a gap that's about that big. They're all special athletes. They all have abilities that are out of this world and some of them just need an opportunity. That's the only thing separating A from Z is an opportunity. So, if someone gets an opportunity, you hope they take advantage of it."
You mentioned Luter. Between him, CB Chase Lucas and Dmo, particularly in the run game the other night, how did you think that they impacted the game and the way they were physical?
"All of them did. You can throw [S Jason] Pinnock in that too because there was a lot of big nickel that we played in that game. [LB Luke] Gifford came in and played, we played base, so we kept mixing up the personnel for them with regards to their run groupings. I thought everybody did a really nice job being gap disciplined. I thought the D-Line really got after it and just got to go do it again."
That dynamic that you talked about when people get their opportunity, those guys have seemed to excel here. Is there a climate here that might be different than other places that allows them to continue to study and then when they're needed they go and perform?
"Yeah. A couple things. One, and I do think it always starts at the top, and then you talk about Kyle and his messaging and [president of football operations and general manager] John [Lynch] and the type of player that we bring in year-in and year-out, they're made of the right stuff. But, the other part to this is continuity. These systems have been in place for, how many years has he been here now? Eight, nine? Yeah. For nine years. So, there are veterans teaching young guys, so there's an acceleration in terms of development and it gives these young guys a chance to move along faster than it would be if you're trying to install a whole new program every two or three years. I think that's one of the forgotten arts of football. I mean, it's the ultimate team game and developing these young men, developing coaches and developing players is a huge part of it. It's kind of been thrown off to the side for the sake of change, you know? I would say it starts at the top. Continuity, Kyle's messaging, all of it gives our guys a really good chance to excel when they do get their opportunity."
What is your assessment of Houston's offense after Monday night? When you have a team that's objectively struggling a little bit, as a coach, how do you guard against the 'oh, hey, we got this?'
"I get the narrative for Houston, but this is also the same team that dropped 40 on Baltimore and they had 26 on Tennessee in a shutout. So, this is a damn good football team. Going up to Seattle on a Monday night, that is hard to do. They were right there. I thought their defense stood on its head and gave themselves a chance to win. They had the ball inside the five-yard line. They had opportunities to win that or to at least tie or win the game. But, it's a damn good football team in all three phases. We all know that it's going to be a tremendous challenge trying to get down there and get another win."
When you talk to Tatum Bethune, it's clear that football's really important to him. I know you probably go to the Combine and talk to those guys in those rooms. How do you discern which guys football's important to as opposed to just good at it?
"Yeah, that's the one big question. You want guys who love the game and everything about it. There's a difference between a player who loves the game and everything that it brings versus a guy who likes what football gives him. There's a big difference. When you're going through the evaluation process, trying to find the guys who genuinely love ball, whether it gives them money, fame, they don't care, they just want to play the game. Trying to separate those guys from the guys who like what football gives them, the fame, the notoriety, all that stuff, those guys don't last. It's the ones who truly love the game and the process that goes with it. The studying, practice, rehab, lifting, all of it. It can get tricky, but if you dig enough, you can find it."
Is LB Nick Martin getting any reps at strong side or is he just weak side?
"The WILL and SAM are very similar, but he's mostly WLL linebacker."
Guys like S Malik Mustapha, Dee Winters and Tatum Bethune have said they congregate together throughout the week outside of the facility to study more film on top of what they've done here. What does that say to you?
"They love the game. [Former University of Alabama Head Coach] Nick Saban, I don't want to sit here and mess up what he quoted, but he has a cool piece that goes around social media that talks about how people who love ball gravitate to people who love ball. You can't have mediocre people mixing with elite minds. It just doesn't work. Usually that happens, they're going to gravitate towards one another. If you love the game of football, you're going to gravitate to one another, and if you don't, you're going to gravitate to your click. Those guys love the game of football and everything that comes with it. So, it's not surprising to hear that they try to find each other to study more tape."
When you left here to go to New York, how aware were you that DeMeco was going to be next in line? Did you have any peace of mind knowing that the 49ers were in good hands if DeMeco was taking the job?
"It was a no brainer for Kyle. That was the setup from day one. Like I said, DeMeco, he ascended so fast. Obviously, he played the game, but to go from QC to linebackers coach to coordinator, he was ready to be a coordinator after his first year of being a linebacker's coach. Like I said, he's got a fantastic mind. He's a quick learner and he's got the confidence to be able to adjust. He did. He made it his own in his years as a coordinator. So, he took what he learned, he made it his own and they played fantastic football, earned a spot, rebuilt it in Houston and they're doing it again. So, he has proven that he understood the blueprint. It wasn't like he just took over a car and he started driving it around. He made that thing better and he went and built a new one again. But yeah, he's a fantastic coach. Everyone in this building at least knew that it was going to be good when he took over."
You didn't try to bring him with you?
"Kyle would've killed me (laughter)."
What stands out for you about Chase Lucas?
"Football savvy, energy giver. He sees all the nuance in football, every little detail. He studies his butt off. He's the ultimate energy giver. He's giving juice to everybody. He's talking smack with everybody. He's helping out [CB] Upton [Stout] as much as he can to help him accelerate. A young man who loves the game of football and everything that goes with it. A guy that when he seizes his opportunity he's taking advantage of it. The guy's out there, he plays corner, he plays nickel, he plays safety. It would be a disservice to try to explain how valuable he is. He's invaluable to this football team. He's awesome."
With regards to Tatum, he's certainly seemed very confident going into the game the other night. But, now that he's past that first game as the guy stepping in for Fred Warner, have you seen him settle even more and become even more comfortable?
"He can't be comfortable, which he knows. He's got to go do it again. It's kind of the message. We did it once, that's great. You can't take a deep breath. You've got to step on the gas and keep doing it over and over and over again. This League is a proving ground week-in and week-out. As much as they love you this week, everyone can hate you next week. That's just the world we live in. We embrace it, we love it. But for Tatum, he doesn't have time to breathe. He's got to keep going."
Even with what you've been able to accomplish with this group, some fans have already started kind of preparing themselves mentally for your next head coaching opportunity. Obviously, you were able to interview for a few this past offseason. Presumably, you'll be in line for another sooner rather than later. Is that still your end game in this? Do you want to be a head coach again?
"End game is trying to find a win on Sunday. We'll go from there."
Offensive Coordinator Klay Kubiak
Houston Texans head coach DeMeco Ryans was a rookie your dad's first year in Houston. Do you remember much about him? Do you remember your dad saying this guy's going to be a head coach someday? Did anything strike you about him?
"Yeah, he was rookie of the year, I think, his rookie year. I think he was a second-round pick and just right away he was the leader of their defense. They had a young team, young defense and he was the leader. And I know my dad just was so thankful to have him because he was just a guy who just stepped in and became this leader and this smart, tough, charismatic player and just really led that franchise for however long he was there. He was the guy. And whether or not he knew he was going to be a coach, you'd have to ask my dad. But just those traits were there, those leadership qualities."
When you watch the Houston defense, how familiar does it look and how has he maybe evolved it from what he was doing here?
"Yeah, it's his defense. It's the defense he's been running. It's what he ran when he was here. Obviously, there's some tweaks. There's new things. There's always things that are evolving. But the thing about it is, that's why it's good. There's a core philosophy and it's the way they play and that's what sticks out. It's what it's always been. And it's why they're a top defense because they know their identity. They play their system very well, very sound, very physical and they play with their hair on fire. So that's why they're one of the top defenses in this league."
Defensive coordinator Robert Saleh was just talking about last week how he thought head coach Kyle Shanahan did a really good job with the messaging with the game. He said that a couple of times. Is that something that you kind of keep your ear out for and you appreciate like what a head coach has to do week-to-week as far as that messaging?
"For sure. Yeah, it's something you're learning as you watch a head coach operate like that. Someone who is very much dialed into the offense and the scheme of everything. But then after all that said and done, he has to pull back and think about, okay, 'what's the message to the team? How do I want this team to play on Sunday?' And not just the offense, not just how we're going to move the ball, but 'how do I want my team to play?' Kyle's able to balance those things out. I think that's one of his greatest strengths. As a coach, he can balance those two things. And I agree, we had a good message. In any game you go into every game with a goal, a way you want to play. And it just so happened, it worked out for us on Sunday."
Do you remember your dad kind of working on that being something that he would try to do week-to-week? Do you remember when that sort of came online for you that that was a thing?
"Yeah, for sure. I just remember when he was a head coach, he'd come home like on Friday afternoon, we would talk and he'd tell me, 'I think I want to say this to the team tomorrow. Here's what I think we need to hear. Here's what I think our guys need tomorrow night.' As you start to talk to them the night before the game. What's cool is I think as a head coach, you don't really know what that message is on Tuesday or Wednesday. It has to kind of sink in as the week goes on. And then when you get to Friday and you get to Saturday, you really get a feel for where your team's at and then you really know what the right words are. And I just know we would always have those conversations. My dad would come home Saturday after the team meeting, we'd say, 'what'd you tell them? What'd you tell them?' We wanted to hear it because it was such a cool kind of inspiring thing. And then you'd go watch the game and you could hopefully feel the team playing that way."
Did you get a chance this week to talk to your brother at all. It's kind of unique, you guys are going against the same team in back-to-back weeks. Have you had a chance to kind of compare notes?
"Yeah, we talk every week. That is kind of interesting, we've kind of been following each other this year, but he's not revealing too much and vice versa. We're divisional foes. But we always talk after games, just kind of, 'Hey, what were you seeing in the defense?' How'd they look to you live?' Just kind of sharing little stuff like that, but just pretty much the norm."
When you guys brought in OL Matt Hennessy last year, you guys signed him to a two-year deal, which you don't see a lot of for guys coming in that late. What did you see in him then that you liked about him? How much do you think maybe even just those extra couple of weeks help him now?
"It was just getting the guy here early and getting him into practice right away. You notice his athleticism right away. That's what stood out, the way he moves. He's been in a similar type of scheme where he has blocked in the zone scheme. So, he had a good feel, but just a really good athlete playing the position. And then, yeah, he got a head start. He got the offseason. He had a great camp. I loved the way he got better in camp. And so, we expect him to step in there and play good football for us."
What kind of adjustment is that for maybe OL Mac Jones or whoever?
"It'salways a little bit of an adjustment. You're talking about cadence and just timing of things. There's some communication, but at the end of the day, there's trust. We think Matt's going to go in there and play good just like [OL] Jake [Brendel] did. And we'll be rolling."
You have a couple really fast weapons in RB Isaac Guerendo and WR Jordan Watkins that you're not really utilizing. Do you see a role for Guerendo in this offense? Would Watkins' presence create some space for you guys?
"Jordan's coming back from the injury, and it's just been a matter of getting him back into practice and getting his conditioning back and then getting him elevated when we can. And he's got to get out there and take advantage of his ops. I think I said this about [RB] Jordan James last week. He's doing a great job of being ready for that moment for when the time comes and who knows when that's going to come, but we like where he is at. Isaac, there's definitely a role for Isaac. Isaac, he's got great speed. He does great things in the pass game. It's the way we've used our backs, it's been [RB] Christian [McCaffrey] and [RB] Brian [Robinson Jr.]. I think Isaac's doing everything he has to do in practice to be ready for when we need him and that can come up with injury, that can come up anytime in the game. But he's been doing a good job."
QB Mac Jones
What have you seen from the Houston Texans defense so far looking at film?
"Yeah, they're really, really good. Top defense in the league, great front, great linebackers and really solid secondary. They play together. They played a lot of football together, to be honest, and really talented group, well-coached and definitely have a big challenge on Sunday."
After going through a training camp here and seeing defensive coordinator Robert Saleh's defense and then watching them on tape, do you see just schematic similarities? Is there anything you can draw from that at all?
"Yeah, a little bit. I think both have kind of done some different things. Like every coach that has a tree, people do their own things. They're very sound like I said and definitely going to be a huge challenge. They're very sound."
It seems like this offense is designed to take advantage of linebackers. Does that jump out to you when a team has a really good linebacking core. Is that one of the things they jump out about them?
"Yeah, they have elite linebackers, and they have guys who have seen our type of offense a lot. So, they kind of know what we're doing and what we're not doing. So just have to see them on each play and they're going to make some plays. It's a really talented group, like I said, so definitely have our work cut out for us."
As the season's gone on, have you seen any change at all in QB Brock Purdy in terms of frustration or is he the same even-keeled, even-tempered guy that we've seen for three years here?
"Yeah, I would say so. I don't see him being a guy that changes a lot. Just comes to work and does his thing and he's been a great help to me. So that's all I can speak on that."
Saleh was talking about messaging and how he thinks that head coach Kyle Shanahan does a good job week-to-week of coming up with a strong message. Is that something that the players kind of note? Is that something that you listen for having been with three different organizations now?
"Definitely, yeah. I definitely think he's one of the best that I've been around in terms of team meetings and offensive meetings and then not just the X's and O's, but what he's trying to get across for the week. Definitely taking a lot of notes everywhere I've been. I've been super impressed with his messaging and he's a great public speaker, but he also backs it up. So, it's been a pleasure just to be in there learning from him, from the start, from OTAs all the way through. He's always trying to come up with something new that can get to the team but that's because he means it, it's not just make believe."
Do you keep those journals, those notes? Do you have them in order and do you ever go back and look at them?
"Yeah, I do. I have a lot of them. I keep them stored away somewhere. I won't say where, but I have them all stored. And then playbooks too. I have every playbook in any game I've played since college freshman year. So, it's really cool when you can look back even against this team we're about to play. I've played them a few times in Jacksonville and whatnot, so you can always look back and see is there any differences? Is there anything the same? And then also the messaging, like what was the messaging going against a defense like this at a different place. Kyle just does a great job taking it one week at a time. It's nice now because it's virtual so you can keep everything on your iPad versus, it's been a lot of binders for me in the past."
You won in Houston as a rookie with a fourth quarter comeback. Do you remember that vividly at all?
"Yeah, I do. We got kind of lucky. It was a roughing the quarterback on like a third and 20 to keep the drive alive and then we went down and kicked it. I know they were pissed about that, but it was good to get that under my belt and it was a big win for us. I remember, I think we were like 2-4 or something like that and struggling a little bit and then we ended up winning like seven in a row, whatever. But it's a long time ago, it seems, and completely different staff and system and everything. But it is nice when you've played in a stadium and you kind of know what to expect fan wise and where the play clocks are, all that stuff. So, it's good to go play there."
Was it a legit roughing the quarterback call or did you have to sell that?
"I don't know, you're going to get me in trouble if I complain about the refs [laughs]. Even five years later, they'll send me a letter, but no, I don't know. It wasn't that bad to be honest. I've had worse."
Do you do that when you're at a new stadium just kind of go out there and orient yourself to where the play clocks are and things like that?
"Yeah, everyone, that's kind of one of the things I think a lot of quarterbacks do. I don't think it's like rocket science. You just walk out and find them and figure out where they are. But they have a really loud stadium there. I feel like the sound gets trapped well in there and the fans are very passionate. And like I said, their defense is unbelievable. So definitely have our work cut out for us. And at the end of the day, it's a hundred-yard field and 53 and a third wide, so you know what you're getting yourself into."
I assume you've met retired legendary quarterbacks. Is there like an instant connection or understanding because you guys both know you have that shared experience because the job of NFL quarterback is so unique?
"Yeah, I know what you're saying. I respect anybody who's at the top of their field and for me, whether that's an athlete or an actor or whatever, like I want to learn, figure out what they've done to be successful, to be honest. I've been fortunate to not only watch but talk to a lot of really good quarterbacks that have played and every year I'm trying to learn something new and add it to my game or whatever. So yeah, it's really cool when you're a kid you're looking up to those people and then maybe when you're in the NFL you at least get a chance to talk to them and learn from them. Whether that's how do you deal with an injury or what about this defensive coordinator? So, it's pretty cool to just talk ball when you get a chance, usually it's in the offseason."