San Francisco 49ers offensive coordinator Klay Kubiak, defensive coordinator Raheem Morris, and quarterback Brock Purdy spoke with reporters after Thursday's practice as the team prepares for its Week 4 matchup against the Denver Broncos.
Here's everything they said.
Transcripts provided by the San Francisco 49ers Communications staff.
Offensive Coordinator Klay Kubiak
You've been around a bunch of different quarterbacks. Where does QB Brock Purdy rank or, how do you feel about him post-snap?
"Brock's always been a really, really good processor. Real natural at it. Whatever processing means, just seeing the field, having good anticipation. To me, that starts with his process of understanding the play, understanding his footwork, understanding his issues on the play so he can play fast, decisively, aggressively. He's gotten better at that year by year with more experience and he's playing really good right now, so hope to keep it going."
It's an NFL record, I believe, when it comes to the team going through three weeks with no one being able to get to Brock Purdy. When you didn't necessarily know who was going to be starting on the offensive line, what have you thought of them?
"I think they've been really good. We knew who four out of the five would be, I think, in general, but as far as the guard competition, we felt really good. Whoever ended up starting was going to be the right guy and play good for us. These guys have done a heck of a job through three weeks. Obviously, no sacks, but I look at that as a team stat too. It has a lot to do with, obviously, the O-Line, our tight ends, our backs, our quarterback, our receivers being in the right place. There's been a little bit of luck involved. Brock's made some great plays of making people miss. So, it's really a team stat. It has to do with our offense being efficient and staying on track, and so far so good. Hope to keep that going."
What's the challenge of facing a playmaker in the secondary who's trying to bait you into throws like Denver Broncos S Talanoa Hufanga?
"You got to be careful. You got to know where he's at. You got to know that he's going to take his shots. You got to know the types of things that he's anticipating. We were around Huff for a long time in practice and seeing how he plays. He's such a smart player, man. He knows when to take his risks and it's very calculated, so you got to be careful. You got to know where he's at, but you got to play ball and you got to be decisive too. You can't let those kind of things affect your decisiveness, your aggressiveness as a quarterback. So, we're aware of him. We know the issue and got to play good football and hopefully if we do that, we'll come out okay."
How would you evaluate how WR Brandin Cooks has come along, getting elevated to the 53 today, and his state of readiness if needed on Sunday?
"Just super impressed with the person and how he's prepared and how he's kind of jumped in and just learned our offense quickly. It's a tough position to play in our offense with the alignments, with the run game assignments, with, obviously, the passing game and just real impressed with how well he's picked it up. He's a pro and he's been a lot of places, so I think that's what gives us confidence that he needs to be elevated and ready to help us."
Have you sensed in him conceptual knowledge from his time with Los Angeles Rams head coach Sean McVay and the Rams? Is there any carryover?
"Yeah, he has a lot of carryover knowledge with the route tree. There's things that he's really comfortable with that he did with Sean that I think we probably do here too in terms of how we teach routes, so that definitely helped a lot."
The Broncos have some special defensive players. They play a lot of cover-zero blitzes. What does it look like on film when you watch them?
"Yeah, that's going against [Denver Broncos defensive coordinator] Vance Joseph, who's just a really good coach, has a really good scheme. He knows when to call his shot and he knows when to be aggressive and to come after the quarterback. All that's great, but then you got to have the back end who's tied into it and they're aggressive when they know they're blitzing and it's all really tied together. That group's been playing together for a while and when they call those blitzes, they usually work. Those guys are ready for it. So, it's a big challenge. It's big on the quarterbacks, on the receivers recognizing that stuff and making plays when they're going to give you a chance to make plays too when they do that. We got to be ready for it, so it's a huge challenge this week."
That one blitz where Hufanga lines up on the outside and comes in and the Rams don't pick it up, who's responsible in your offense when there's a late guy threatening to blitz?
"It depends on the protection you're in, obviously. We put a lot of it on the quarterback. It depends on, is it the back? Is it the O-Line sliding a certain way? It totally depends on what protection you're in, and we have different ways of solving those problems. Are we going to re-mike? Are we going to throw hot? Are we going to slide the line a different way? There's different tools you can use to handle those issues. We're pretty comfortable using a lot of tools. That play in particular, it looks like there might have been a miscommunication. I don't know. I don't know what the Rams are in, but that's the challenge of this scheme is Vance designs some pressures and he can make you hot and you got to be ready to get the ball to your hand or make the right adjustments up front to pick that stuff up because it can cost you the game."
When a guy like WR Jordan Watkins has to wait as long as he did to get his opportunity and then gets proof of concept, what does that do for him confidence-wise, and what does it do for you guys as play callers in terms of dialing up for him?
"Hopefully that's confidence for him to know that none of this is too big for him. He's capable. He's been doing a good job. He's been ready. He's preparing the right way. His process has been good so that when he gets in the game and we call a play and it goes to him, he's ready for it. I think that's a confidence booster for him to just keep doing it, keep stacking the days you're stacking, keep going through your process. Gives us great confidence as coaches that the moment wasn't too big. That when called upon, he was ready to execute and do his assignments. It didn't just show up in the catches, too. He was pretty good in the run game. I thought he executed well without the ball, so it's all good. It's good positive stuff for him, but we got to keep going with him and keep stacking these weeks and keep getting better."
You guys have been more efficient in the run game this year than last year. You average over five yards a carry on first down runs. How much easier is it to call a game? Do you think the key to your success so far is the success running it on first down?
"It definitely felt that way in the first game. I felt like we were really efficient running the ball, staying out of long passing situations, second and long, third and long. In this game, it felt like maybe in the second half we got that going a little bit more. Anytime you can be efficient on first down running the ball, it's going to help. I always talk about staying out of obvious passing situations where the D-Line can tee off, where a play caller might change up their coverages. It just gets harder when you're in those situations, so the more efficient we can be. I've been real happy with our backs. They've had some good runs, but there's been hard runs that get us four, five, six yards that maybe were blocked for three that keep us on track, get us to second and four and then maybe third and two and we have a better chance of staying on the field. Then you look at the second half last week, [RB] Christian [McCaffrey] had a 12-yard run in the fourth quarter. That's what we're talking about. Those just efficient grinder runs that keep you on the field and let you keep calling plays, so hopefully we keep that going."
Every week there's been a highlight reel, Brock to WR Mike Evans. This one last week where he catches the ball down on his hip. I'm sure it's very busy in the 20 seconds after a score, but do you have any time to be a fan and say something on the headset or to somebody next to you?
"That one, I was like, 'Wow, that was really cool.' I thought it hit the DB in the head. I didn't ever see the ball go into Mike's hands because of how late his hands were, but that's pretty special. He's got that gift and you can't help but just kind of say, 'Wow, that's awesome.' Lucky to have him and hopefully we can keep stacking weeks with him and get him healthy and keep going. He's a pretty special player."
Do you feel like as coaches you guys are doing a better job of keeping Christian McCaffrey fresh for the fourth quarter?
"I'm not taking credit for that. I think when you got a back like KB [RB Kaelon Black], who we're trying to get the ball to as well, it's inevitably going to hopefully keep Christian a little bit fresher just with the reps. It's what we always say about Christian, though. He does not want to come out of the game, but the more we can rotate KB and keep a back rotation, it's going to help him. To answer your question, yeah, I do think it helps. Late in the game, if he doesn't have the wear and the tear of carrying the load throughout the three quarters, I think inevitably he is going to be fresher. He's going to be able to help us finish better. So, that's the goal every week, just to keep a good rotation with the backs and see where it goes at the end of the fourth quarter."
The Broncos are 29th against the run. You're watching the film. What does it look like?
"It's three weeks into the season. I think numbers are always going to lie to you. I think in their first game they gave up a lot of rushing yards, and that kind of skews things a little bit. It's a good run defense, man. They have some really, really good players up front. They're very, very active. They can dominate the run game, and they have it. You look at some of their tape last year, there's games where they dominate the run, so we got our work cut out for us. This is a heck of a defense. Huge challenge, and we got to execute. We got to be on it to run the ball well."
When WR Deebo Samuel Sr. was here last time, you guys built game plans around him. At this stage, I'm assuming it's more picking your spots. Is that advantageous for you as play callers, but also for him in terms of being able to find where there might be an opening to get him the ball and have a better opportunity to make something happen?
"I think with a player like Deebo, you always have to game plan. You need to find ways to get him to touch the ball and you got to get creative. You got to find ways that maybe the defense hasn't seen before. I think that doesn't change. He's a special player with the ball in his hand, and you're always looking for those. In terms of whether you're designing a whole game plan for him, I don't know if I've ever said we've done that. When we had him here, when he was a starting Z for years, more stuff probably went to him in the game plan, but with all of our injuries and guys stepping up and Deebo stepping up, inevitably the ball is going to find him more now that he's playing more. So, I guess I would just say to that, he's a special player and we've got to find ways to get the ball and he affects the game. You guys saw it last week. He touches a lateral and goes 80 yards and that's what he's capable of doing. I just think the way he's running the ball now too, the way he's punishing the defense when he touches the football, it has an effect. So, it's our job to keep getting him the ball and find ways to involve him in the game plan."
Defensive Coordinator Raheem Morris
Arizona Cardinals QB Jacoby Brissett got you guys a little bit on the keeper game last week. What challenge does that keeper game represent this week with Denver Broncos QB Bo Nix?
"It was a little bit of a combination of it all. It's the keeper game and the situation that it was in. I think most of them were short yardage or goal line, red zone type areas. We got to be better. You got to soften your eyes up and do some of those things. Obviously, we got another challenge this week coming in with a guy that runs keepers. Traditionally, the head coach, traditionally, a new guy's calling it, but that's what they do. So, that is something that we got to do this week and definitely clean up and do some different situations. Obviously, last week being short yardage and goal, running a bunch of sneaks, being able to pop some of those things. That was a great job. Hats off to those guys, and we got to do a better job."
What makes Bo Nix a challenge and what's the key to defending him?
"Obviously, Bo Nix can make all types of plays. He can throw all the throws. He can move all around the field. Last year he came in as a rookie and really showed competitive greatness. His ability to come back and do all the different things that he's done in a bunch of different games really shows it. I have a pretty good relationship with Bo. Obviously, he was part of that quarterback class that we all worked out and did some different things when we went and got [Atlanta Falcons QB] Michael Penix [Jr.]. I got a chance to see him live in person, the personality, the guy he is. I got a lot of respect for Bo."
How did you evaluate the many new pieces on the defensive line that you had in for last week's game?
"They went out there and held up pretty good. There's a bunch of different guys out there. Obviously, [DL Viliami Fehoko Jr.] Junior being fresh, being one of the guys that had a chance to go play for us. Obviously, [DL] Gracen Halton coming back, really feeling like an older guy right now, but he was out there doing his thing. Obviously, all of our guys went out there and competed at a very high level, got us a win. There's always things you can do to clean up, but there's nothing better than cleaning up things when you get a win."
You've been with DL Khalid Kareem before. What do you like about him? It seems like he's a guy who never stops.
"You just named it. The effort, the mentality, the physicality, the fight. Went out there and just throwing his body in for his team. He's our kind of guy. He's the kind of guy that you want to be around all the time."
Career-high 13 tackles for CB Renardo Green this past week. What have you seen? He's talked about the step that he felt he took as far as training and getting better, mindfulness coming into this season, but what have you seen from him back there on the field?
"First of all, I got to start off about the game. That was a game that was very challenging for our corners. They did a nice job of running duo, crunch, punch, whatever you want to call those runs to get to the corners. They got out there and those guys stepped up and made all of the tackles. Some of the ones you love, some of the ones you like, but when you go back and watch the tape and you realize if you miss one of those, those become explosive. To get out of that game, and I don't believe there was a rushing explosive. I think it was four explosives altogether. But to watch those two corners, both Renardo and [DB Deommodore Lenoir] DMo tackle, and then when [CB Jack Jones] Jack-Jack got in, tackle, that was very impressive. But to talk about the development and how they've changed, they've gone from guys who, I guess, everybody had questions about, to guys you count on. I was just talking to those guys today, man. They drive the bus. Everywhere I've been, defensive backs have the ability to drive the bus. You're always going to have your leaders, your [LB] Fred's [Warner], your [LB Dre] Greenlaw's, your [DL Nick] Bosa's, those type of people. But when you have the DBs, when things get too low and stuff starts to happen, they better be driving the bus for you to make this thing work and do the things that you want to do."
You have so many new guys on your defensive line, including some guys who are getting their first ever NFL snaps on Sunday. Can you do as much as you want to do as far as blitz packages and stunts and complex things along the defensive line?
"The search for perfection in the imperfect game. You do it out there on the grass, right? It's the stuff that we practice, the stuff that we can go out there and execute. You get a chance to watch practice, you get a chance to watch these guys, what they can do. We talked about it from the very beginning. What's the defense going to look like? What's the Niners going to look like? I'm going to do what the guys can do. So, we go out, we practice it, we put them through it, give them a chance to get some reps at it. And the things that they can do out in the practice field is what we want to go and execute. So, I feel very confident by the time we get to Sunday's with the guys that we got doing it. We got great D-Line coaches. [Defensive line coach] Kris Kocurek is obviously one of the best in the business, not even close, but you got to talk about his assistant as well, [defensive quality control coach] Cam Brown. You got to talk about [assistant defensive line coach] Greg Scruggs and what they're able to do for us and the stuff that they bring to the table with the amount of guys that we got in there coaching those guys. You feel really good about whoever you put out there at whatever time. It's not always going to be perfect, but certainly going to be the effort and the standard of the 49ers."
I know it's early, but how has DL Matthew Judon looked?
"Obviously, first padded practice for him today. Been with him before. Looks like he looked at really good times, really good moments for us in Atlanta with his ability to play strong. He's a smart guy. Obviously, he's on the practice squad right now and we'll see what happens. We got another day of practice and we got another walkthrough and go play a football game and we're going to put the best guys out there to give us the best chance to win."
As a veteran that hasn't been playing for the last three weeks, is it easier for you to plug him in?
"Probably a little easier just because of the commonality that we have with each other. Some of the stuff that you can carry over that we were able to do before. This is like some of those type of things, so a little bit easier with him. I wouldn't say with everybody, but definitely with him."
Guys had to have been gassed playing about 87 snaps. How do they bounce back? How have you seen them this week in terms of getting their legs back under them?
"I think our head coach did a great job of planning this week. [Head of sports medicine and head athletic trainer] Dustin Little, both Dustins [Dustin Little and vice president of plater health and performance Dustin Perry] did a nice job of putting together a plan for us to bounce back this week in order for us to be able to go practice and play the right way. It's smart behavior by our football team. It's smart behavior by our head coach. And everybody's in charge of those things and getting these guys ready. Got a lot of confidence in these guys doing the stuff necessary to go out there and play. They know what it is. They played in a lot of games. They played in a lot of long seasons. I just think they prepare the right way. We talk about [CB Upton] Stout, you talk about all the guys that go out there and throw their body around. We just mentioned the corners, but these guys will be ready to go. I got a lot of confidence in them that way."
Denver Broncos head coach Sean Payton isn't calling plays right now, but it's still his offense. What are the hallmarks of a Sean Payton offense?
"Execution, multi-personnel groupings, a furious first 15. You can go judge me online on that first 15, on that first drive, man. It's going to be tough, but it always is. It's always one of those things that you can do, Grant, and I absolutely enjoy playing against because of the challenge."
What's the key to stopping explosives? Was it a point of interest last week or is it just the way the game went?
"I just think that's the way football is right now. You got to limit explosives in the National Football League, and that gives you a chance to win every football game. Then you got to go out there and make a few plays that gives you a chance in the National Football League, and we've been doing some really cool things. Obviously, there's always things you want to clean up. There's always things you want to do better. There's always places you want to get better at, but I'm really pleased with where the guys are growing and developing, the growth that we're having no matter who's out there. It's been fun."
You mentioned going against Sean a lot over the years, but were you surprised to see a guy as accomplished as him as a play caller give that up?
"I mean, it's happened in this league a bunch. Guys step back a little bit. I'm sure Sean's going to be hands-on regardless. I mean, that's what he does. He's a great head coach. He's a great offensive mind. He's a great defensive coach. Got a personal relationship with him that goes beyond football. I just think he's one of those guys that can absolutely do whatever it takes and needs in order for his football team to play the best, and I've got a lot of respect for Sean."
QB Brock Purdy
Congratulations on being named the NFC Offensive Player of the Month. How do you feel about it?
"I'm grateful. But at the same time, it's so early in the year that I'm trying to go win this next game and be my best today, right here, right now. But whoever voted and put it together, I'm for sure grateful."
Did playing against S Talanoa Hufanga in practice while he was here help you kind of understand what he can do on the field?
"Yes, all the training camp reps and all the stuff of us going up against each other, have a good idea of Huff and how he plays and stuff. Obviously, he's in a little bit different of a scheme, but he's out there making plays for sure. So, I love the guy. He's awesome. He was a great teammate to me and everything and who he is. So I got a lot of respect for him. But, on Sunday, hopefully we'll be able to be smart knowing where he's at and stuff and just what he does, how he makes plays and how he helps his team. And he did that for us here. So, yeah, I just got to have my antenna up, I think, the whole game of knowing where he's at."
That big sack coming off the edge against the Rams. In that scenario where someone's coming in late like that, lining up late, is that your responsibility to kind of point that out to everybody and change the protection?
"I think it depends on what the protection is to start. Are we in a five-man protection, six-man protection with the back? Teams have different rules with that and stuff. So that obviously depends on the play and everything. So in that case, yeah, I don't know exactly what the Rams were trying to attack and go from there or what their protection rules were in that play. But yeah, there are some times where if he's coming like that in a certain protection, then either we can flip the protection and try to slide to him or just throw hot and have a guy run a route behind him or something like that. So obviously it depends, but I don't know what the Rams were trying to do there. Huff obviously made a great play coming around there and timed it up pretty good on the snap."
You guys are doing a lot of good things offensively. One of the things I've noticed is that you're not getting stuck in the pocket ever. Is that something that you and quarterback coach Mick Lombardi work on or are you just fortunate in the early going?
"Yeah, every week is a little different with how we view the pocket with getting the ball out. If a certain look's not there, let's progress and get the ball out of your hands and stuff. Mick does a good job with giving me a heads up on what he's seen throughout his film study and stuff throughout the week on what kind of game he thinks it is within the pocket. Obviously with scheme and the pass game and all that kind of stuff. But he does a really good job with sort of giving me a heads up on what my depth in the pocket needs to be and how he expects the game to go and to be smart in certain situations and if I can get a little deeper in the pocket in this game or not. So he's done a good job with that. And then at the same time, it's just a big credit to the guys up front, what they've been doing. I've said this time and time again, the fact that they've played with each other over the last couple years and have looked at a lot of different kind of schemes and looks, experiences that they've been through together, they're doing a really good job for me too. Collective effort there."
President of football operations/general manager John Lynch used an interesting word to describe your throwing earlier today on the radio. He used the word "torque," that he sees more torque in your throws. Why is that? Is that something that you feared you would lose when you had to have your elbow repaired a few years ago?
"I don't think so. I think for me, it's like you play in the NFL and with who I am as a quarterback and as a thrower, I have to sort of have this mindset of like being a violent thrower. And obviously I think I'm pretty well with the touch ball and all that kind of stuff and anticipation. But when it comes to getting the ball out of my hands and windows closing quick in the NFL, like for me, this year I wanted to make an emphasis on like just putting more zip on the ball and just having a violent mindset. I don't think it has anything to do with, 'Is your arm strong enough or is it not?' I think it's what's your mindset when you drop back and when you're going through progressions. When something's there, have your feet in the ground and have the mindset to put it on them and just have that way of thinking rather than always trying to throw the touch ball. So, I don't know. Something that I saw on film last year for me, and I just wanted to go into this offseason with that, work on that. And I feel like I've sort of seen it, throughout camp and then the first couple games."
Do you get data back in terms of miles per hour on the velocity of some of these throws? Are you ever curious to check?
"No."
How has it been with WR Brandin Cooks on the field with you guys? I know it's been only a couple of days, but he ran a 4.33 in the Combine. Does he still have that speed?
"Yeah, definitely. He's quick. He looks great. He looks fresh. It was cool for him to be here last week too and sort of go through some practices with him and stuff and just seeing how he moves. And then now this week, him getting more involved with the game plan and just being there sort of in the mix of things and getting him the ball and seeing what he does in space. So, I think he's in year 13 or something like that, but definitely still got that playmaking ability, which is cool."
You say you don't have the data, but does it feel like you have a couple more MPHs on throws when you're ripping it? Can you tell?
"Yeah. Like I said, if I had a radar gun or something and I tracked the hardest throw I had every single year throughout the NFL and I really tried to throw, I really think that it would all be the same. Going back to that mindset, I think it's just like the mindset of when I drop back and tell myself to be aggressive here and to rip the ball and not just try to anticipate and layer this throw. No, this throw can be ripped in this hole right now and go from there. So, yeah, hopefully that answers your question. I don't know."
Does the experience level and trusting what you're seeing, tie into being able to throw violently?
"100%. I think just understanding our concepts, the defense I'm going up against, obviously having good rapport with [TE] George [Kittle] and [RB] Christian [McCaffrey] and then getting in and out of cuts and putting the ball on them. And all the experiences that I've sort of been through so far in my career, just taking it to another level of I've seen this before, let's commit to the throw. Like I said, put it on them and rip it."
You've been under the center, 57% in the first 3 games. Do you prefer being under center as opposed to being in the gun? Does it help you with your rhythm when you drop from under center?
"Man, honestly, I love the balance that [head coach] Kyle [Shanahan] has with that being under center for the run game, the play-action pass, just the dropbacks. I like it a lot. I like sort of what defenses do. There's a lot of defensive checks where the quarterback's under center and now they can tip off on certain things. But for us, it sort of balances everything out because we can do anything from under center. And I like it. I think I've grown to like it. Obviously, like growing up, it's been a lot of shotgun stuff. College, all shotgun. And you come to the NFL and it's like, no, we can do everything from under center still. So Kyle's taught me that and I've grown to like it a lot actually. But either way, gun or under center for me, however he has a play drawn up and stuff, I'm going to trust that and go about it."
Kyle evidently showed highlights on Saturday night and CB Upton Stout was a big part of it. What kind of example does his play style set for the rest of the guys?
"Yeah, it's awesome. Just the energy that Stout plays with, his IQ for a young player. Obviously we've seen all these highlights, for us as players in team meetings and stuff over the years with [LB] Fred [Warner] flying around, [DL Nick] Bosa, [LB] Dre Greenlaw, some of our old DBs that we've had around like [former S] Jimmy Ward and Huff and all these guys, like the way they played. You always see those guys. And as we've been a couple of years removed from those teams, it's really cool to see a young guy come in and now feed off that. We always talk about the standard and stuff here. That's what we're talking about, how guys play the defense flying around. It takes all 11 guys. And even though Stout's a young guy, he's in his second year. On film, you put on the film and watch, the dude finishes plays. He's running all across the field, getting up after a hit, just energetic. The whole defense feeds off it. Even us offensive players, when we watch that, it's like, okay, that's what's going on on the other side of the ball for us. It's really cool. So proud of the guy. I know he's going to have a great year, but he's continuing to raise that standard, which is cool."
What's the challenge of going against Huff as a quarterback?
"I think he's really smart. I think he sees the game different from other safeties with knowing offensive concepts and sort of knowing and anticipating routes and stuff. He's always been smart in that way and I respect it a lot. He knows the right times to do things, and he's smart, obviously. He's got good hands if the ball comes his way. He's got good ball skills and he's fast around the edge on the blitzing. He can do everything. Obviously, he trains with [former S] Troy Polamalu and all that. So you could definitely feel that on the film when you watch him. So it's really cool. I got a lot of respect for him."
More info on: Kaelon Black, Nick Bosa, Brandin Cooks, Mike Evans, Viliami Fehoko, Renardo Green, Dre Greenlaw, Gracen Halton, Jack Jones, Matthew Judon, Khalid Kareem, George Kittle, Deommodore Lenoir, Christian McCaffrey, Brock Purdy, Deebo Samuel, Upton Stout, Fred Warner, Jordan Watkins
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