 Mike, what are the struggles on the road? Have you been able to define any specific thing, or is it just been a variety of things, and at this point, you need to just go find a way to win on the road? I don't think we need to find a way to win on the road. We've played a close game in New Orleans had too many turnovers. Didn't play or coach well enough in Cleveland, and we can go all the way down the road. I mean, it's been some good things in some productive plays that we've had. Again, it's just the consistency and the overall execution that you have to have to be able to win on the road in some of those situations. In regards to your decision with the quarterbacks, are you able to pull anything from your previous experience to the previous old situation? Obviously, it's different, but can you pull anything from that from the situation? I would say that whoever the quarterback is, going against his defenses, we'll have to be ready no matter who is out there playing. Will, Ryan, Malik, the scheme that we've seen from these guys is disguises, and they do a fantastic job. So again, we're going to prepare all those guys as starters. Will is going to be the starting quarterback. And it's just about making sure that we're doing everything now to prepare, to take care of the football, to execute, to try to get some X plays. It's hard to continue to drive it and stay in third manageable. And then they've been really, really good in the red zone. Will Malik run Scal? Do you need Ryan to get some reps on that? We'll just see where things are here today. I think that that's a valid question. But just seeing where the reps are divided up and how ultimately Ryan feels and try to get both of them some work. How was Will maybe handled the stage, the coaching point, when Coach was kind of pulling out things he could do better? Hopefully like every other player. Acknowledge it. You can be frustrated, but you don't have a whole lot of time. I think it's maybe a different conversation, maybe on the field is one thing. And then in the meeting room, it's like, OK, why? We try to ask a lot of questions, like what each player saw, what were they processing so that we can hopefully correct and fix mistakes. If a player can tell you exactly what he did wrong, you don't have a whole lot to coach. It was just a mistake and you move on. So I think that he's been good in that regard. As you went through that process, how much do you have to weigh in just to the patient's understanding that he's in still developing play? Level seven. Well, we had patients for a lot of things, and then the mistakes that happened over and over, the repeated mistakes, we'd probably have less patients. And that would be the same at every position. Mark, do you have any consideration of keeping all three quarterbacks up to have Malik's package is still available, or do you still prefer just the two quarterbacks in an emergency? Again, a valid question, something that we'll work through, it just gets difficult trying to get other guys up on the game day roster. Special teams plays a part in that. So we'll look and see how things go throughout the week. What are some of the things that Ryan's meant to this team in four years that maybe we don't see behind the scenes? We've got a good group of veteran leaders here. We'll need them all to keep moving ahead and, again, find a way to win on the road. That's where our focus is. It's not about anything else. It's not about we're not even halfway. We're at a halfway point. We've got a great opportunity here to figure out how to start closing the gap and see if we can't get back in a race. What's working for Baker in the field down there, really protecting the ball well? This year has been pretty efficient. Yeah, I mean, the play-action game has been impressive. Their ability to mix different protections with that play-action pass game, mix different concepts, the shots, the two-man concepts, the overs. So that's been something that's been impressive. He's been able to avoid pressure in the pocket when it has been there. He's been able to keep the play alive to either scramble for a first down or be able to extend the play and throw. So that's the thing. When there has been some pressure, which row line has done a nice job, only allowing 13 sacks. Baker does a great job of ducking underneath guys or kind of slipping out of there. So give him a lot of credit for that. And they've protected well. When Jeff is doubled, you're expecting guys who are single to win. What are you looking for Jeff to do against the double? Well, it would be the same for any player that's doubled, which would be to, if you're talking about an interior rusher, balance the rush, get into the middle of the pocket. And then there's ways as they slide to you, trying to get on the center, push the center. Stay alive. The play's not over just because they've put two guys on you, whether that's in the run game or the pass game. Sometimes they leave. Sometimes they stay there. But just try to compete, split, get in on the center if you're talking about an interior player that's pass Russian. Like we asked you a lot about what you think is going on. I'm just curious, because you look at this team two-way games, what are you most proud of? What do you feel like is going well for this team? Well, I do think that I hate to say that we compete our ass off Gentry. But other than the clunker in Cleveland, I do think that we sit in there and we compete. We compete our asses off. And again, that doesn't make up for winning. We know what the ultimate goal is. But we've had guys that have taken advantage of some opportunities, whoever it's been out there. And I think if we looked at the last time we talked at the bye week, there's a lot of things that we've done that will help us win. We just have to eliminate the things and maybe do some things better that's going to help us do a little bit more consistently. At times, we've run the football. We've hit some X plays in the passing game. We have had some 20-yard gains, which have been good. Early in the season, stopping a run, getting off the field on third down. And so I just think that you have to just do it consist. Every week is a new challenge. And that's what I try to impress upon these guys. Phillips has had a couple of productive games the last few weeks. Has he given you a little more relaxed, a little more focused in that regard since you took him off the fucking team? You don't have to ask Kyle. I'm not sure about his relaxation. Maybe it's just getting back in there, been away for a few weeks. And he certainly helped us out the other night. And we'll need that on whether that's third down or first and second down package or in two minutes. Outside of Peter Will-Roger, who's shown you steady improvement over the first half of the season? I'm going to hold on the mid-season report card. I'm focused on Tampa. Do you feel like you've gotten steady improvement from enough guys on this team in the first half of the season? Again, I'm going to save the mid-season report card and focus on Tampa and try to get everybody ready. And we'll need everybody to continue to improve. I think that that's a great point that you're making, Paul, that we're going to need everybody to continue to improve as the season goes on and make a push here, try to get back into it. Is there any updates on S&B's moving forward? No, other than that he won't practice today, that he won't practice. And I would say that he'd be doubtful right now for the game. In particular, in the secondary from a leadership standpoint, since the buy-or-treat? Well, I mean, I thought Amani's always done that here the last couple of years. He's built a lot of confidence just in his self and tried to provide that kind of leadership. And again, S&B's played football, Christian Fulton. And again, it hasn't all been all bad. And I think that that's the, we've had some plays that we'd like to have back, certainly. But when Roger's in there, Roger doesn't say a whole lot. But the way he plays, he plays with great competitiveness and toughness. And when he was playing inside, he made some plays, factored with Blitstone and showed up in a run. He was very active. So as long as you, there's a lot of different ways to lead, make sure that you're prepared, you know what to do, you play hard. And that's a great way to start. And then if there's a vocal element to it, that can help as well. How big of a challenge is there in which state of the court, especially in terms of his size? Well, it's a great combination of size and speed. And he's run a lot of routes in his career. He's seen a lot of different coverages. And if they see how the game's going, if they let him play physical, that's also something that he does well. You know, sometimes when guys play physical, they just get caught up in just trying to push and shove. I think he has a great ability to continue the route and continue to find the football and not just make it a wrestling match. It's part of his route playing physical and the push-offs and everything else that he does. So we'll have to be able to match that and defend it as legally as possible. Nick Petite won't practice. Traylin won't practice. That'll probably be about it. How you doing? Doing well. What kind of conversation did you and Ryan have after Mike made his decision and how'd that go? I mean, he's been really good throughout this whole process with keeping the relationship professional while at the same time helping me out how we can. But yesterday at practice, doing a good job of stepping in and letting me know that the reps, even in the beginning of practice with the ones, I didn't want to step over him. But he came to me first to be like, hey, this is you. So it was cool to hear that. But I know that it isn't going to change our relationship and how we go forward. You're feeling, I guess, when Mike told you the news. And anything changed for you as far as how you have approached things really over the last couple of weeks? No, no. I mean, the news didn't change anything. It was cool to hear that and to see it become official. But it doesn't change really much how I'm approaching things. You talked, I know your tattoo's covered up. But how much does that kind of apply? That verse applied to pretty much your life since you got it. Yeah, I mean, it's been my mantra since I can remember. It stemmed from my grandfather. And it's just an easy thing for me to look to and just remind myself to never give up and to know that nothing in this life's ever going to come easy. And when you hit that bump in the road, to know that that's an opportunity to get better and just keeping a positive outlook about things, sometimes when I get down, it's a good way to kind of bring me back to base. Remind us what it says? Yes, it's a verse that's close to me because of the mantra, which is never give up, which is something my grandfather ended every single conversation I had with him. And I came across the verse when I was in college. And the second book of Chronicles, chapter 15, verse 7, which is, but as for you, be strong and do not give up for your work will be rewarded. So it's definitely fitting. And I really like it. How would you self-scout yourself over the first two stars to say what was good and what needed to be improved? I think, first and foremost, just operationally getting in and out of the huddle, getting the call, trying to eliminate all those mistakes because those are the things that just set you up for failure from there on out. So in that respect, I think I did a decent job. Just got to keep improving there. Just obviously decision-making, some throws here and there that you're going to want to get back. That's going to be the case regardless of how long you're playing this league. But obviously, with it being my first couple games, feeling out the plays that hopefully I can eliminate and turn into positive plays in the future. So my heart is critic, for sure. So I'm definitely going to watch the tape. And regardless of how I play, come away thinking that I got to be a lot better than I am. So I feel like you've got to have that mindset to keep improving in the league. With having watched the tape against Pittsburgh those last couple of drives, what did you take away were some of the specific lessons positive or negative? Yeah, just not trying to force things, even in a situation where you've got to make a play. You've got to understand and discern the level of risk that's appropriate for that time. So when you've got to go down however many yards with a minute left, sometimes you've got to make a play. But sometimes that play that you're trying to make could be the play that loses the game. So it's just the give and take there and feeling that out. And that just comes with reps. With you being your own personal critic, as you say, you're known to be a perfectionist. How much do you have to remind yourself to be patient and understand that you're still a devoted player? Yeah, I think it's just noticing what went wrong, the mistakes that I made, and trying to eliminate them from happening again. Understanding that it's OK to get frustrated, but it's important, right in that second afterwards, to get yourself back to neutral and move on. And then after the fact, when it's appropriate to go and watch the film to learn as much as you can from it. But even with good plays, you don't want to just focus on the outcome. You want to see what could have put yourself in a better position to even make it a better play. We're all improving every day here, trying to see how we can get our offense, our team, better. But we're also looking introspectively with how we can do better ourselves. How do you feel Mike Breyville has been with you just as far as like the relationship that's bringing you along, that whole problem? He's been great. I mean, he demands a lot from all of us. And it doesn't matter if you're rookie or a vet. The standard is standard and we're going to go and work our tails off for him because of the way he approaches his preparation. And he demands a lot from us. So his hard critic is anybody. But I feel like him and I have developed a great relationship. And I feel comfortable with him. That's a small sample size. But what's gone into the connection with you and Kyle Phillips here just recently? Yeah, it's good to have him back. I mean, he's a little dinged up. And now to have him kind of fully back in the swing of things, we've always known he was a special player that we can incorporate into this offense. So just continuing to find ways to get him the ball, however that may be. And I definitely developed a lot of trust with him. Can you imagine, as I guess, when you first got here, maybe you deferred to Ryan or Malik, guys that have been here before. Do things change in that regard as far as your leadership, how you handle yourself, when to speak of? And what's that like for a guy who has players in the locker room that are significantly older than you? Yeah, it's tough, because I've been in the position before where it's like you want to be a leader in your own regard. But when you're not the starter, it's like you might just be a little more standoffish with how actively you are in your leadership role. So I'm always going to be a guy that's going to lead by example and just show the standard through my actions. But I think when you do kind of transition into that starting role, there becomes some more kind of freedom with how you interact with the guys and coaching the guys and just being more direct with it. So I think the biggest thing for me was I didn't change who I was at practice from when I was third strength to now. And I think that helped me. And because I didn't have a huge shift in how I approached things, it made me more comfortable. But I'm definitely a little bit just more involved in the meetings and just getting the guys involved with what we're looking to get out of our offense. What's the line of thinking that Zaks are kind of a quarterback stack? How do you feel about that? It's a team stat. I mean, everyone's got a job to do. There's no way to peg a sack on whose fault it was, unless you know exactly the ins and outs of what's going on with the offense, with the protection, or anything. But I mean, it's a team stat. It goes in the team category, in my opinion. How much responsibility do you feel for helping out offensive line on the occasions that somebody may put in? Yeah, a lot. I mean, we preach to them that we trust that you guys know your assignments. We trust you guys are going to pick up the guys that you're supposed to. But dudes get beat, regardless of how good you are. So it's us letting them know that we're going to be smart with the ball. We're going to get the ball of our hands that we're not going to be hanging on to it for too long. And just continuing to understand the situations that do require you to get the ball out a little earlier than others. What's the challenge you face on Sunday and part of facing them as kind of the unknown, just what the pressures are going to look like, is how much they're going to come after you? Yeah, I mean, it's interesting. They obviously had it defensively, not their best couple of weeks, the last couple of weeks. So I mean, they're going to play their stuff. They're going to do what they do. We're going to prepare it to see what we think we will. But you question if that changes things for them, if they want to change up their scheme, or show some things that they haven't shown yet, just to switch things up, to try to get a little more success. But we're thinking about those things, not too, too much. We're really just focusing on our jobs and executing. Well, I think in camp, you talk a lot about improving your touch on passes. But we saw that touch improve in the last couple of games. But what did you do to get better from that first play? I think just reps. I think just even all the individual stuff, all the stuff I'm doing before practice and in between team periods, coaches putting us in a good position to make the throws that are going to be necessary in the games. And tweaking and adjusting and feeling out the different types of throws that could be required for different plays. But it's just been, I think, product of preparation and just working at it. When you look at some of the shots that you took in Pittsburgh, you took shots down the field. But there were times where guys underneath were open. Is it something like balance, that desire to take that shot, but also what the ticket's giving to you? Yeah, I think sometimes, based on a look or what we're trying to get out of the play, you can be locked into a certain route or a certain guy and going back and watching the tape and seeing a guy pop open somewhere where you weren't really thinking about going to the ball. Doesn't make you think, dang, I should have done this. It really just affects the thought process for maybe the next week. Or if we do run a similar concept, where my eyes might want to start that time. And also develop and trust with guys who we do see continuously win over and over and over again. So I'm just trusting my coaching and trusting what I see with my eyes. But I definitely miss some things here to there. Try to eliminate that. How much do you think of Ryan on or off the field that should take the familiar and take forward? I'd say just how he interacts with the guys in the meeting rooms. It's impressive to see him talk about just what we're trying to get out of our receivers and even our offensive line, what we're doing with the offense. And his football knowledge is way beyond mine right now. And I'm trying to get to that point. So where I can speak as confidently as he does in those meetings and to really just gain it even more trust with the guys. How much does it help that you're able to lean on some veteran guys like Derek and Diapa in the huddle and out there on the field as you make your way as a starter? Yeah, I mean, they're going to do their thing. I've got confidence in them. That gives me peace of mind. For guys that have been doing it for a long time at a high level, it just gives me confidence. And I feel like I've done a good job of just operating stuff, as I had said. But I think most importantly, I just want to make sure that the guys in the huddle believe in me and know that I'm on my stuff just like I know that they are because of the reps and the games that they've all played in the past. Have the same guy will be the quarterback that does take leadership, right? What kind of leader would you describe yourself as? I'd probably, like I said before, I'd definitely just a lead by example guy at first. I think I'm pretty not relaxed, but reserved, I'd say, at most times, but I think it's important to show energy and to show emotion when it's necessary. And I think I do a good job of balancing that, whereas earlier in my career, I was a very emotional player, and I let that kind of get to me. And I've done a good job of dialing it back, but still bringing it to the table when I feel like it's necessary. Ryan, you've been through so much in this league. When you got hurt there in the Baltimore game, could you maybe feel the or see the writing on the wall with this quarterback change coming? No, not initially. As times kind of progress, I've tried to walk through those emotions and prepare myself and just see the possibility. But in the initial moment, no. Have the news hit you, and maybe how do you approach things moving forward? Oh, it hits hard. I've never been in this situation before, so it hits hard, never a situation that anyone wants to be in. But it's a situation I'm in, so I've got to walk through it. How do you think Will has done and how you score? Yeah, he's done some good things, obviously. Came in and played really well the first game, and did some good things the last game as well. So I'm going to be here to answer any questions he has and try to help him out along the way. How long prior to the team meeting did Mike inform you? Was it just before or was it a couple of days? Just how long were you sitting on the information? Oh, we had a conversation on Monday, so it was a little before. How you feel physically, I guess, and how your mission is to try to get yourself in a position to play if you're needed again? Yeah, not quite there yet. Getting closer, just trying to stay on top of everything I can do to keep progressing and getting better, the thing is getting better. Just not quite ready yet. Do you want the need scout team reps, or are you more content to be behind will during team stuff? We'll figure that out as we go along. Right now, my main focus is getting healthy. Again, being able to get back into practice, do a little bit today. Try to see how it feels doing some individual, but the main focus right now is just getting healthy. Yeah, I mean, I want to handle the situation with Clash, it's not a fun situation to be in, but I want to be a pro and handle it with Clash and still be a guy that people can look to. So not an ideal situation, but I want to try to handle it well. In a situation like that, do you try to make a case for yourself, or I guess if the decision is made and you just have to live with it? Yeah, there's no making a case. You can disagree with the situation, but you're not going to plead your case. It's not the way it works. Will mentioned taking a rep that you said to you, Will. He said, you were about to take a rep, or you said, Will, that you, you know, talked about it. Yesterday for you. Yeah, yesterday, okay, talk us through that. Yeah, I just, we were getting ready to do some drills, and Will was kind of standing back, and I told him to get in there. It's his opportunity to take the lead in the drills and start owning the position. So that's the role I'm in now. Just try to support him and help him find his footing as he steps into this role. Do you think that the Cincinnati game has too much prominence when people look at your overall work as it's starting to automatically? Last time we played them, we beat them. So I'm not sure. Football health game. I don't know. That's up to someone else to decide, you know. I feel like, I feel like I did a lot of good things for this organization and kind of turned things around for a good period of time and won a lot of football games. So, you know, it wasn't perfect. Never is perfect, but hopefully people can look back and see the good things that I did and how I helped this city, helped this organization, and helped turn things around.