New York Jets: Todd Bowles gives current state of team

With a huge game coming up for the New York Jets against the Indianapolis Colts on Monday Night Football, head coach Todd Bowles recently spoke to the media about injuries, what he expects from quarterback Andrew Luck and the challenges that await in what should be a tough game.

It’s great to see how Bowles reacts weekly since his demeanor and humble mentality continues to be consistent all across the board. One can tell that he’s handling things well and players are absolutely responding well to him and everything he’s trying to accomplish this season with the Jets.

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We here at The Jet Press would like to thank the Media Relations Department of the Jets for sending us a complete transcript from Bowles on the current state of the team as they prepare for a huge test against the Colts. Enjoy!

On Antonio Cromartie’s Injury status…

Week-to-week. He hasn’t done anything so we’ll just take it day-by-day. If so, week-by-week.

On Devin Smith…

He’s full-go, he practiced today. He practiced full speed.

On if Smith will play Monday…

Too early to tell right now.

On wanted to see how Smith responds to getting banged up in practice…

No, I said he hadn’t been hit yet. I don’t want to see him get banged up. (laughing) I don’t want to see him get banged around. You have to feel comfortable with what he’s feeling on the inside. He’s running fine on the outside, but that’s just in a t-shirt. So, we’ll see how it gets when we get in pads and see how it goes day-to-day, but he’s got a lot to catch up on, too.

On the biggest challenge Andrew Luck presents…

He’s a great quarterback. It’s not just him, they’ve got great wide receivers across the board, they’ve got about four of them. They have very good tight ends and they throw the ball around very well. They’ve got a great back, back there in Frank Gore. It’s going to be an all-around challenge for us.

On if he has faced the Indianapolis Colts with Luck as their quarterback in his coaching career…

Yeah, I did. Two years ago we played them in Arizona.

On what the outcome was for that game…

We won the game, but that was two years ago.

On what he thinks Luck does especially well…

I think he does everything. He’s one of those quarterbacks, he’s big, he’s got size, he can run. He can beat you with his brain, he can beat you with his arm, he can beat you with his feet. He’s just a hell of a quarterback. He’s probably one of the best in the league. He’s easily one of the best in the league and we’ve got our work cut out for us.

On if Luck is better now than when he played against Arizona two years ago…

I’m sure he is. He has two years too. He was young then. He was great then and he’s great now, so it’s continued progress. Those guys, you just hope to slow them down, you can never stop them. You just try to get some stops in between.

Sep 13, 2015; Orchard Park, NY, USA; Indianapolis Colts quarterback Andrew Luck (12) throws a pass under pressure by Buffalo Bills defensive end Mario Williams (94) during the second half at Ralph Wilson Stadium. Bills beat the Colts 27-14. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Hoffman-USA TODAY Sports

On how Luck beats opponents with his brain…

He’s very smart. He can scan the field, he can see coverages, he sees disguises. He sees blitz packages, he sees fronts, he can see everything. (Then) Checks them into the right play and gets it going and he can still throw the ball down the field. He’s a sharp player.

On if blitzing made the Buffalo Bills successful in the game against the Colts…

I don’t know. I think Buffalo played well, Indy made some mistakes and that’s every week. Going into Week One, you don’t know what’s going to happen. I know that we’ve got them at their house on Monday night and they’ll be a totally different team. We just have to be ready for their best.

On his philosophy on playing veterans who are injured that don’t practice during the week…

It’s a gut-feel and on an individual basis. You have to get to know the guy a little bit and know what his pain tolerance is and know that he’s not going to be out there for one play. It’s a gut feeling.

On his knowledge of Cromartie and the possibility he will play on Monday…

Yeah I do. I told him unless I see him running, and that will be my determination not his. He may feel well in his mind and I may not see it, or he may feel well and he may look well and he may play. So, I’ll see later on in the week.

On how difficult it is to determine if an injured player will play because all players want to play…

Well, the film doesn’t lie, practice doesn’t lie. You see what you see. If you see him limping, he’s not playing.

On how dangerous an 0-1 team is in Week Two…

I don’t know about that. We don’t worry about the records, we just go and try to make ourselves better for Week Two. It doesn’t matter what they do or where we’re playing at. We have to progress and get better on our own, then we’ll worry about the opponent when we get there.

On if he is curious to see how the team will respond to having a Monday Night Football game against a team who is 0-1…

We get challenges every week. Our challenge is to ourselves, to get better, not worrying about whether a team is 0-1 or where we’re playing at. We just have to take care of ourselves. If we take care of ourselves, we go into the game and try to play our type of ballgame.

On why he is confident in Marcus Williams…

He’s a good ball player. He had a good camp. He continues to practice well. He’s good under pressure. He’s fundamentally sound. He does all the right things and he’s a young player and he’s getting better. So, we have complete confidence in him.

On if he has any concern in ramping up Williams’ reps…

Not really, no. He played the whole last preseason game. Marcus knows how to play. He’s a pro. These guys know how to play.

On if he sees Williams’ high confidence level…

Yeah, I do. He fits right in. You don’t look at him as a second-year guy. You look at him as a vet. He goes out there and does his job. He does everything the right way. He gives you the utmost confidence to have in him so, it makes you feel comfortable.

Aug 13, 2015; Detroit, MI, USA; New York Jets cornerback Marcus Williams (20) celebrates with teammates after making an interception during the second quarter of a preseason NFL football game against the Detroit Lions at Ford Field. Mandatory Credit: Raj Mehta-USA TODAY Sports

On if Lorenzo Mauldin’s injury is cause to add another linebacker…

Not sure yet. We don’t need to add one, but if there’s one out there, we’ll look at him.

On why the decision was made to waive Oday Aboushi after his suspension was up…

Well, obviously you can try to trade him if you want, but when the suspension is up we don’t have enough room, we’d have to let someone else go. So, he was the odd man out.

On why Aboushi wasn’t waived before his suspension…

Well, usually people wait until after the first game and try to bring people back so, if somebody got hurt, you try to trade them. It would have been a good business move.

On if there was an uncertainty in what he had in Chris Ivory…

No, I knew what I had in Ivory. We just needed a good stable of backs. People get hurt all the time. The only thing that surprised me about Ivory was how quick his feet were. He has excellent feet and that says a lot. You don’t have to be a blazer as a runner but if you’ve got good feet and you have good vision, you can be a good back.

On if it is challenging to spread out the practice schedule when you have an extra day because of the Monday Night game…

It’s not challenging. You just got to make sure you don’t over-coach them and overdo it. Make sure they get the proper rest, but make sure they get the proper work as well. We’re into a good season groove and a good schedule, so right now, early, it’s going pretty good.

On what he means when he says over-coaching…

Just putting too much in, seeing too much on film instead of seeing what you’re seeing and then working with what you’ve got to work with and let the guys do their job.

On if there is a tendency to over-coach when you have extra days…

Sometimes, there is.

On if Trevor Reilly will be a backup for both outside linebacker positions…

Yes.

On why Williams went undrafted…

I have no idea. There’s a bunch of guys that go undrafted. There’s not enough teams and not enough draft picks to go around. There’s a bunch of schools and a lot of players get overlooked. Depending on what you need after the first round, a lot of people go in a lot of different directions. I don’t have a real reason for why he didn’t get drafted. I just know there’s not enough people to go around.

On if anyone was held out of practice today other than Mauldin and Cromartie…

No.

On Quinton Coples’ coverage responsibilities…

He was in the flat. You have a guy in the flat but if you look at the tape he was covering the guy, but then the quarterback was breaking free and he was in a tough situation. If he goes back and cover, the quarterback is running for a touchdown. If he runs up, the quarterback throws it so he kind of stayed in-between. It’s a tough call, it’s a tough situation. He’s a flat player, the play they ran required him and that guy to be in the flat. The play got extended so the guy kept running. He’s in a tough spot. There was nothing wrong with what he did.

Nov 24, 2014; Detroit, MI, USA; New York Jets outside linebacker Quinton Coples (98) against the Buffalo Bills at Ford Field. Mandatory Credit: Andrew Weber-USA TODAY Sports

On how he plans to assign Williams or Buster Skrine with respect to outside corner and the slot position if Cromartie does not play…

It varies from week-to-week. They’ve both done enough in the preseason and OTA’s where they’re interchangeable that way, so that won’t be a problem.

On Geno Smith’s timetable…

No. The timetable hasn’t changed. He’s throwing the ball in practice, but nothing has changed.

On if Smith will be a backup for Fitzpatrick on Monday…

No.

On Mauldin’s timetable…

Concussion protocol depends on whether he has headaches or not. Could be a week, could be two, could be Monday. I don’t know yet.

On if the team was focused in practice…

I mean they’re focused. Any time you’re putting in a new game plan, they’re focused. The guys ran around, it’s the beginning of the season. We haven’t reached the dog days yet, not after week five. The guys are focused and we understand it was only one game and we’ve got to try to get two.

On if Muhammad Wilkerson will thrive in a one gap scheme…

I think Mo is good in any scheme. He’s just one of those players, he can play two gap, one gap, 3-4, 4-3. His ceiling is as high as he wants it to be. He’s a heck of a player. He had a good game last week. Just continue progressing and see him getting better.

On Reilly’s progression since OTA’s…

I think he plays a lot smarter. Before, he was just like a train wreck. He was just running into people. He has a great awareness. Now he’s got a lot better awareness. He’s working on his feet, he’s working on his hands. He’s working on becoming a complete linebacker. I think he’s making good strides.

On if he’s confident in Reilly against the run…

Yeah, I think he’s fine.

On his biggest takeaway from Leonard Williams against Cleveland…

Nothing. You’re going to have some growing pains. I thought he played well. He took on double teams, he took on blocks and let other people make plays. You just go from there and get better.

On if Williams’ responsibility on some plays was to hold up block to free up other players…

Yeah, at times we were. At times we weren’t. Overall, I thought he played well.

Aug 29, 2015; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; New York Jets defensive lineman Leonard Williams (62) during the pregame warmup for his game against the New York Giants at MetLife Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ed Mulholland-USA TODAY Sports

On if Williams had technique issues during Cleveland QB Josh McCown’s scramble…

No, he didn’t.

On why there was a gap for McCown to run…

You’ve got to give them credit. The lineman pushed him a little wide and he ran up the middle. Its football. They’re going to make some plays.

On if Williams has tendencies to go up field too far…

You can say that about anybody on the field. It’s not just Leonard. On that play, the guy just made a good football play.

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New York Jets: Todd Bowles gives current state of team

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