Transcript of head coach Eric Mangini's news conference with the New York Jets media Monday afternoon:
I talked to the team this morning. We talked about the second half and I was really pleased with the way we responded and the way we were able to deal with the adversity we faced in an environment that was very difficult to do that with and presented challenges. I was extremely happy with that; the way we were complementary in the second half, but also talked about the importance of being able to string four quarters together. This game was 17-3 and then a good second half put us in a position to tie it. It has to be consistent throughout four quarters and complementary. It can't be one unit playing well and another unit not. Everybody has to play at the same level and do it throughout the course of the game.
There are a lot of things overall that I was pleased with. I think Jerricho [Cothchery] had another impressive performance. Some of his runs after the catch reminded me of plays he had last year. Third-down offense in the second half, third-down defense in the second half, we were able to hold them there the last time they had the football to give us a chance to get back and drive. Being able to convert on fourth-and-7 to keep a driving going. There were a lot of positive things to look at. What's important today is to go though and look at the things that weren't positive, get them corrected and move on to the Dolphins. That's what we're doing.
On if he talked to Justin McCareins about the game …
I talked to everybody about the game and no game comes down to one catch. No game comes down to one protection or to one play. There were plays throughout the course of the game that we could have executed much better — the long kickoff return, the long completion to Heap, playing the touchdown on third down to Heap and right on down the line. There were plenty of them and it's never one guy. It's a group effort. We all needed to do a better job throughout the course of the game, not just for a half at a time.
On if he has to talk to Justin McCareins to not be down on himself …
I've found that most successful people are very critical of themselves, and they're critical because they want to get the things corrected and they want to continue to improve. Another point that I made to the team is just the importance of being brutally honest with everything that you can do better in your preparation, whether it's to your film study, meeting time, what you do in practice, whatever it is, and your performance in the game. And with that honesty, look at it, don't beat yourself up over it, assess it, then work on the things you need to improve. Do something proactive about it and move forward.
On how the coverage is breaking down on kickoffs …
Each one will be different. There were some missed tackles. On the one last week where we had a chance to get them backed up and then we had a chance at about the 30-yard line to get them as well. This week it was a combination of things: the way you read the block or the setup of the block. If they're starting one way you can anticipate which way the wedge is going to go and you want to avoid to the side of the wedge, not backdoor it, because when you do that you get sealed off and you can't get over to the play.
Even those decisions have a big impact because now the people that have avoided the correct way the lane is — instead of from the podium to the wall [in the Jets media room], it's from the wall to the trailer [outside the building]. Everybody has to have the lane discipline going down there and read the blocking scheme correctly to make sure that tackling space is restricted. The force is very important and who sets the edge on the return because you want to build that wall with your outside edge-setters. All the point men come down so the wall is critical. If you lose that wall or edge, then the guy can bounce it out and all your pursuit can't be effective. It's not just one thing. That guy has to do what he's assigned to do, which is tackle.
On how he things Kellen Clemens did for his first NFL start …
What I see with Kellen is not just the game, it was the whole week. I thought he handled the week of practice extremely well. I thought he showed poise at practice and in the game. His approach didn't change at all. It was consistent. That's what I really like about Kellen, that consistent approach, and that's why he'll keep making strides as a quarterback.
Then in the game, it's about as difficult a place as you can get: very loud stadium, excellent defense, a lot of schemes, very good players, being behind. He kept fighting, took hits and got back up and continued drives. Those are all positive things. There's a lot of rookie mistakes that we'll work through and that as he gains more experience he'll be better equipped to handle. That defense causes problems for young and old quarterbacks.
On Clemens' "rookie" mistakes …
The delay-of-game penalty and being aware of where the clock is. Now, he was helped out on that. That wasn't all Kellen. The whole process could have been a lot quicker. You've just to got realize, are you coming off a 25-second clock because that's what the clock has been reset to? Where are you in relationship to the playclock? How much time do you need to give the group to come up and assess the front, make their calls and get the shifts in motion? With a no-huddle team, the shifts in motions take a little bit more time so it's a balance, too, because each play is a little bit different depending on what you're doing.
On if Chad Pennington is going to start against Miami…
If he can, he will. We'll assess it throughout the week, but if he's able to, he will.
On how he will do as the No. 2 guy or the starter …
We've just got to look at it, see how the week of practice goes and where he is in the rehab process. Are there setbacks? It would be based on how he does throughout the course of the week. Just like with all the new guys, you assess it as you go.
On if Clemens and Pennington will split reps this week ...
It would be the same thing. Where is he? How many reps could he take? You can't tell right now that he'll be able to take 80 percent, 90 percent or 60 percent. You just see where he is and make sure you're not pushing it so far along early in the week that you're actually doing more harm than good. It's a process we go through with the trainers, Chad and the doctors. We evaluate as we go.
On what Chad did or didn't do that led to him not starting …
He did a really great job with his rehab. He worked incredibly hard at it. It was one of those things where you assess it throughout the course of the week. The progress he made was outstanding. I was really pleased with that, and that's why he was at the No. 2 spot, his work ethic and what he was able to achieve throughout the course of the week.
On what made him decide to start Kellen over Chad …
It's a combination of things. It was throughout the course of the week, evaluating it there and late in the week. I made the decision I did based on all that information. It wasn't one factor. It was throughout the whole week. That will be the case this week: looking at his progress, where the injury is and reps.
On Pennington's progress …
He was hanging out with the right guy. He and Curtis [Martin] spent some time together. Chad doesn't really surprise me. He was as diligent about that as everything he does. He kept chipping away at it and did a great job. I thought he did a really great job with it.
On when he knew who he was going to start at QB …
We go right down to the wire with all of them to make sure we've checked everything thoroughly. We have to understand where the guy is. Sometimes he can be in a place on Friday and you feel great about it, then the weekend and Sunday morning it changed. So you prepare for all the situations. [We decided] pretty late on Sunday morning.
On if Chad said that he was ready to go …
Chad always says he's ready to go. That's what you like about him. He is and he works at it. You've got to go through and assess it and make the best decision you can based on all the information.
On what Clemens did to make him comfortable in case he has to go back to him …
It wasn't just about the game for me, it was about the whole week. I liked the whole week. I've liked a lot of things that Kellen has done since he's been here. I was pleased with the body of work throughout the course of the week. I was pleased with the way he responded to getting hit a few times, being behind and in a place that's extremely loud. It's not like they lined up in a 4-3 Over/Cover 2 and you're going to get 50 snaps of that. Most of those guys are household names, and they're household names for a reason. They're pretty good players and Rex [coordinator Rex Ryan] is creative. He was creative yesterday.
On what Thomas Jones did in the game and why Leon Washington didn't fit into the game plan …
It's going to be different every week. Sometimes Leon will have a significant amount of reps and Thomas will have less. You've seen that a bunch of times here.
On Washington's lack of offensive snaps standing out …
I think each week it could be different. It's not necessarily setting minimums where you have to get X amount of plays. It's based on what we think is going give us the best shot. In the terms of the running game it's really across the board. Thomas can do some things better, the offensive line can do some things better, the quarterback and running back fit on where the ball is given. There are several different examples yesterday where you get to the second level and if someone had held on a little bit longer or the receiver had sealed their part of the responsibility a little bit better, the run goes for significantly more than it did. It's never is just A or B, it's all of them.
On if there were communications problems with the Ravens' blitzes ...
You're going to have certain plays where somebody comes free, and you have things built in to handle that in the actual route. It could be a "hot" or a "sight." It could be, as opposed to a hot or a sight, it's just built in. If you get two strong you go to the Z. If you get two weak, that's the quarterback's responsibility. There are certain things you know you can't pick up, and you're going to beat that with the throw and the route. There are times where you should have it picked up, you're counting on having it picked up and that breaks down. It goes both ways. You're not always going to have everything picked up, but you should have it picked up with the throw or the quick element of the route.
On if he is worried his defense doesn't have a sack or a takeaway …
All of those things are things that we're working on. We monitor turnovers at practice every single day. We work on ball disruption each week. We identify different guys or situations where those opportunities can come up, so that's consistently addressed. We've faced teams that have worked a decent amount of max protection or quick routes. When you blitz a lot, there's got to be a way to handle or address the blitz. You can max it up, throw quick or throw screens. You have to create the balance of when you want to pressure and when you don't.
On Kellen's doing anything out of the ordinary on his touchdown pass to Chris Baker …
The player that was on Justin [McCareins] was on him a lot tighter and the player that was on Baker had inside leverage, so Baker was breaking outside. There's that hole between the defender and sideline. I thought it was a really nice throw and Chris did a really nice job having awareness of where he was in relationship to the sideline.
You're reading the defenders. In a man coverage you know the route's breaking out at that point. You want to see where his leverage is. So if he was playing Baker outside, and Baker was breaking outside, he wouldn't have gotten the ball. He was playing inside and Chris was breaking outside. That's why it was thrown to Chris as opposed to Justin.
