Transcript of Jets head coach Eric Mangini's Monday news conference the day after the Jets' 16-13 overtime loss at Oakland:
In talking to the team, I told them that I thought the film reinforced what I said after the game. I was really proud of the way we fought back in the fourth quarter, and the things that we were able to do to get back in the game.
Defensively, to execute what we call a four-minute situation where they're trying to run out the clock and they really need one first down to win the game, we were able to stop them. Also, having those three timeouts available at the end of the half, that's usually hard to do, but we were in a position to do that. Offensively, to come back and go 61 yards with 1:21 left, no timeouts, and to put us in a position to kick a 52-yard field goal and then convert on that, I thought all those things were excellent.
What was most disappointing about the game were the opportunities that we had, whether it be in the red zone where we were third-and-3 on the three, got a penalty and then a turnover, so that cost probably a minimum of three points, then you look at the turnover we had on special teams where that results in three points. There is upside, defensively, from that perspective when you're able to stop them in a sudden-change situation and hold them to just a field goal.
There were plenty of good things on tape: running the ball as effectively as we did offensively, defensively the last two drives of the fourth quarter and the first two drives of overtime, making them go three-and-out, right on down the line. All those things are very positive things, but they can't be sandwiched in with nine penalties and three turnovers. It just makes it too difficult. Those are the things that we have to continue to work on. Those are the things that we have to eliminate to be effective. Especially when you're on the road, it makes it even more challenging.
On the Jets' pass-blocking…
On the first drive, we were able to go down and score three points. There were a couple of things we didn't have as cleanly as we should have. I thought we got those take taken care of in that set as we moved forward. We really could have done some things there, not just with the protection but with the routes that would have helped us. There were a couple of other opportunities there that really weren't the scheme, more just not converting on the technique. That led to some hits on the quarterback that could have been avoided as well.
On if this was the first week there have been letdowns in the pass-blocking…
No, I don't think it was a function of it just being the blocking, it never really is. It's a function of if they're bringing more than you can block, being able to get the ball out quickly enough to avoid the hit and have those routes on that give a good outlet. Some of the stuff that they did was a little bit different than what you normally see in a max-pressure situation. Very rarely do teams max-pressure and press-cover. It's pretty uncommon.
On Brett Favre saying this was one of the toughest losses of his career…
I think how he feels is how he feels. I think it was tough for all of us because you do see the opportunities. It's very easy to turn on the tape and see those opportunities. It's always disappointing when you do so many positive things, and, again, to have production against you, whether it's offensively or defensively because of things that you do. That's under our control, and that is something we need to get better at.
On if he wishes Favre threw the ball more in overtime…
He threw the ball 38 times. We were running for 7.2 yards a carry. The only touchdown that we had in the game was [on a drive of] eight out of nine runs. I feel pretty comfortable with what we did in overtime.
On addressing mental errors in practice…
I feel like we do a lot of those things, and there are things that we need to continue to do. We do a lot of different cadences during the course of practice, so it's not always on one during practice, and then on two or three during the course of the game. Some are small things that need to be cleaned up, whether you're shaving toward the line of scrimmage.
One of the motions that we had was where Brad [Smith] kind of came in a little bit too early. Those things are small things and they're timing things. They need to improve. We focus on those little things. It's not just big-picture. It's cadence, it's motions and it's shifts. We have officials at practice every single day. We monitor the amount of penalties each player gets, the types of penalties that we get and keep track of that. We've kept track of that since training camp and post it. If we feel like we're heavy in one area or another area, we try to do things that specifically stress that area to reinforce whatever it is we have to work on.
On Oakland's fake punt…
I think it was a really good call on their part. I think it was one of those calls that is like Texas Hold 'Em — you're going all in at that point. If you stop them, you're in field goal range. If you don't, it's a really good play. We had someone assigned to the play, didn't get it, and it worked out well for them. That is a chance you take with any of those fakes, whether it's a fake field goal, fake punt, a surprise onsides kick. It's either a really great play or a dramatic shift in field position.
On if Favre is getting hit too much…
We don't want him to get hit at all. There are a lot of different things that we have faced, especially over the last couple of weeks, really over the course of quite a few weeks now, with the combination of pressures that we're getting. There is a lot of communication involved in that. I think that is another important reason to be able to run the ball effectively — to slow down some of those things.
That's why it's so important to vary the cadence with quick counts, hard counts: slow down the rush. It all works together. It's the right pickups on the offensive line. It's crisp routes, hot sights with the receivers, and it's getting rid of the ball quickly enough to avoid those contacts.
On Brad Smith…
We've had plays in for Brad throughout the season. Some have gotten called, but a lot of times with those plays, they're specific to a look. You may call three or four of those plays and may not get the look that you want, so you check out of it and you go to the next play. It was just one of those situations where we did get the looks that we liked and he got a chance to do it. I thought he was pretty effective in it.
That's not really going away. The Brad Smith-specific plays will be in every single week. What's nice about it now with Brad is that he's developing more and more as a receiver, so it's not like you have to put Brad in for "his plays." He's in during the course of the regular game, and you can just call the plays as a part of the natural progression. To me, that's a better situation than saying insert him to run his specific plays.
On the passing game…
I think that there have been some really good plays in the passing game. I thought in the first drive that we had some really positive things going. There were a few things that if we were a little bit cleaner on, they could have been really big plays. I don't think it's a function of any one specific area. It's a function of having balance in the passing game and the running game, with the cadence for the play-calling. All of those things are things that we're continuing to work on.
On Jerricho Cotchery…
He got a little banged up during the course of the game. That hurt some of his opportunities. I don't think it was necessarily specific to Jerricho. It's going to ebb and flow like that: Brad has a bigger game, there have been games where Chansi [Stuckey] has had big games, [Chris] Baker got more catches yesterday.
I like that. I like the fact that we have multiple guys that can have five, seven, eight catches. I think that the players, too, like that because you can't zero in on one guy over another.
On the injuries to Cotchery and T Damien Woody…
Today is a day after the game so they're getting looked at. Then we'll look at them tomorrow. They'll go through their treatment and we'll see where we're at on Wednesday.
On reviewing the statistics…
Usually the first stat you start with is turnovers, giveaway/takeaway. You can pretty much tell how a game is going to go by that stat. Occasionally, there is an imbalance where a team wins and they haven't come out on the plus side of turnovers, but it's the exception, not the rule. I'd say that's the strongest statistic probably in football is the giveaway/takeaway ratio.
On reviewing the interceptions…
The first one, he was trying to push it in tight coverage and J-Co fell down. In the worst-case scenario, if he was able to keep his feet it probably would have just been either knocked down or he had a shot there, but he fell and the ball sailed. The second one I think was just a little bit different look than what they had been giving so they read it differently by the two parties and it sailed.
On the progression of the offensive line…
I've been happy with the O-line. I think it's a good group. I think it's a group that works well together. I think it's a well-coached group. I think that as you look at some of the things that they've been able to do, one game you have six touchdowns throwing the ball, another game you have close to 250 yards rushing with the average that we've had. You want to be able to do all those things and do all those things in the course of a game — run the ball effectively and pass the ball effectively. That is something we'll continue to work for.
On if he is hesitant to call a passing play when the game is on the line because of the turnovers…
Not at all. No.
