McDaniels Presser Transcript

Josh McDaniels address the media as Denver Broncos Head Coach for the first time. (Reuters photo)

BRONCOS PRESIDENT AND CEO PAT BOWLEN

Opening Statement

“Good afternoon ladies and gentlemen. I’m ecstatic, I’m excited and I’m ready to introduce the new head coach of the Denver Broncos, Josh McDaniels.”

BRONCOS HEAD COACH JOSH McDANIELS

Opening statement

“I’d like to thank Pat Bowlen and the Broncos organization for giving me this opportunity. I’m excited and looking forward, very much, to the opportunity to lead this team. I’d like to thank my wife, Laura, who is here with me today, for all of her support and understanding. This is a difficult business to go through and she’s given me an opportunity every day to pursue my dreams and I couldn’t ask for someone better to stand beside me. I’d like to thank my parents Thom and Chris. I come from a football family. They’ve given me all of the direction and guidance that a young man would want to have if given the opportunity to fall in love with this game that I’ve been a part of for, basically, all of my life. I owe them so much and am looking forward to sharing this process with them. I’d like to thank (New England Chairman and CEO) Mr. (Robert) Kraft and the Patriots organization for all of the opportunities that they have given me professionally and all of the things that they have allowed my family to be a part of with the New England Patriots for the last eight seasons. I’d like to personally thank (Patriots Head Coach) Bill Belichick for providing me my foundation in this league and for mentoring me for eight years. I’ve formed a special bond with him that will last long after I am done coaching in this game and my appreciation for what he has done for me I can’t express just in words. I’d like to thank (Notre Dame Head Coach and former Patriots Assistant Coach) Charlie Weis for teaching me the basics of the system offensively that we’ve used for the last five seasons in New England and for also teaching me how to handle adversity, because anybody that has worked for or with Charlie knows that you are going to have to handle adversity. This is an opportunity that doesn’t come along very often and I know that I am coming to a place where winning is the most important thing. It’s been very clear to me during this process that it is the most important thing to Mr. Bowlen. It’s the most important thing to this organization. I’ve learned very quickly that it is the most important thing to the fans and community and it’s certainly going to be the most important thing to the coaches and players of the Denver Broncos. I want this team to be tough, smart and prepared to play well under pressure and the evaluation process of how to get this team to that point is going to start today, and is going to be ongoing. Everybody here in this organization is going to be held accountable to do their job, their piece of the puzzle to fit in to make this team competitive for championships every season. We’re going to be as precise as we can in every phase of our preparation and in every phase of our daily operation and in our performance on game day. I’m very excited to share in this commitment to win and I can’t wait to get started. Thank you.”

On whether he could have imagined at such a young age (32) he would be a head coach in the NFL

“I don’t really think that that is something that I stop and think about at all. My age has never been a factor. It’s never going to be a factor, it is about performance. It’s about what you are capable of getting the players to do. It’s about the information that you can give them and it’s about doing your job to the best of your ability. That is what I am going to do. It is what I’ve done my entire career and that is what I am going to do going forward.”

On how much he studied the Broncos before his interviews took place

“When the job came open, certainly, it was something that I had to look at very seriously. It’s a great place with a great history and tradition. It’s a place where you come and where the culture is about winning. It’s not somewhere where you have to re-create that culture and that was something that was very attractive to me and I’m sure to other candidates. I did as much research as I could before the process began. I worked through that with a couple different meetings with the people that I met with in the Broncos organization. This is definitely a dream come true to have an opportunity to lead this team and this organization. I couldn’t have imagined it would come up, but once it did it was certainly an opportunity that I was going to jump at.”

On what changed his mind after passing up head coaching opportunities in the past

“I think last year the timing wasn’t right for me. Our season that we were having last year in New England (2007) was a little different than the one we were having this year. Not making the playoffs allowed me to get into this season right away as soon as the season ended. I’ve spent a lot of time in preparation over the last year getting myself more ready to go in case this opportunity did present itself again and I just feel like the timing is right. I’ve had the opportunity to experience a lot of things. This year was certainly a different experience for me, the way that our season went, and it better prepared me to go into this next step of my career. This year the timing is right and I am thrilled to be here.”

On whether he has spoken with QB Jay Cutler

“I have not. That is something that will take place here very shortly. There are a lot of people that I want to reach out to and speak with, here shortly—players and coaches that are still on the staff and that will happen here soon.”

On whether he has a list of assistant coaches in mind

“There are some people that I have spoken with and the process today and tomorrow will really start to pick up. There is definitely a short list of candidates that we would like to get in, interview and go through the process with and make the best choices we can for those positions.”

On how he describes his coaching and leadership style as compared to his mentors (Bill Belichick, Charlie Weis)

“It’s different. I’ve had a lot of great mentors. Nick Saban was also someone that I worked for and under. I’ve tried to take some things from Nick, from Bill and Charlie along the way. I hope I’ve taken all the good things from them. The way I coach and try to lead is by being more prepared than everybody else—trying to do that on a daily basis because I think that is what players respond to. Players want to win, they want to be taught and improve and they want to have an opportunity to be successful, and as a coach that is your job. That is what I want to do every day when I come into the office. I want to be prepared and give them an opportunity to succeed, with what particular scheme or system we are using on that particular day or week. That’s what I want is to be prepared and for them to be prepared. We are going to play tough and smart and well under pressure and that is the way that preparation is going to extend to them on the playing field.”

On whether he considers himself a “tough” coach

“At times, of course, if that is what has to happen. That is what you do when you are in this profession. I don’t think you do it unnecessarily but I like to believe I’m a teacher. I’d like to believe that I can communicate. That is a very important word for me. I think that goes from the top down and when you need to get your hands dirty in this game you need to be willing to do it. I think the players accept that, look forward to it and will respond to it accordingly.”

On being offered a head coaching job after growing up in Canton, Ohio

“It has been a long road with a lot of great influences for me. When that conversation took place I was very eager to accept that. Growing up in Canton is a very important part of my life. Football is next to nothing; the people of Canton love this game and cherish the weekend that they get to really shine in August. I have been going to two-a-days since I was five years old. For 27 straight years—I know that sounds silly because I am 32—but for 27 straight years I have been going to practices from the beginning of August until now. That is where I learned to love the game. My father loves the game. I think that kids that grow up in Canton, Ohio, that is something that you have a great opportunity to fall in love with because it is right there, it is present and it matters. It certainly matters to me.”

On his plan to improve the defense

“First of all I would say that, as much as I have coached offense in the past four or five years, I am a football coach that has been built to understand defense. That is where I have learned my foundation. Defense is very important to how we will attack people offensively. As much as I can say that I am proud to have worked with the offense the past couple years, I am a football coach and I want to have an opportunity affect the kicking game, the defense, offense and every phase of the game. My goal as the head coach is to not just improve the defense, it is to improve the team. There are areas where this team is going to improve offensively. They can improve defensively and in the kicking game and that is part of the evaluation process that begins today. We are going to evaluate the people, we are going to evaluate the scheme, we are going to evaluate the coaches that we bring in here and determine what the best way to go about winning championships is. That is our goal and our focus and it is not just specific to the defensive side but certainly we can improve in that area as well.”

On what defensive scheme he may use

“Once the coordinator is named we will discuss the personnel that we have here and the direction that we want to go. I don’t necessarily think that it is always the same based on what they have done in the past. They may have personnel that is more suited for one scheme but you may want to start to go towards another. There are going to have to be some decisions made in the near future with where we want to go here in the long term. We want to have a consistent scheme. As somebody who has played against this team for quite a few years here—I have had the opportunity to play them five or six times in New England—the scheme and the system has changed quite a bit and we want to bring some consistency to that and make sure to improve whatever that scheme is from day one.”

On whether he will call plays for the offense

“Yes, yes I will be.”

On who will make personnel decisions

“I have met (Vice President of Football Operations/Player Personnel) Jim Goodman and his staff in the personnel department. I think it has to be a situation where we are going to collaborate on what we feel is best for the football team going forward from a personnel standpoint. Certainly Jim has done a great job of evaluating players from the college level (and) free agents and he knows this league and the players that are going to come into this league. I look forward to working with him in collaboration to try and create the best roster with the most depth that we possibly can.”

On who will have the final say if there are any disagreement in personnel choice

“Hopefully there are not many of those but Jim (Goodman) would make the call if there is an issue in terms of personnel.”

On if his personality differs from his former co-workers Bill Belichick and Charlie Weis

“Sure. I try to focus on the positive things that those people have given me the opportunity to see. I think that you will certainly see me bring a little bit of a different vibe. I am going to have a lot of energy, I can smile. I will do some things that I think people will like and get used to. Like I said, I think the personality of a coach—and this is true of everybody, any coach and any player—it comes through over time when you get the opportunity to see how I differ from them. It is hard to describe that standing right here. There are going to be some things that are going to be different.”

On if he was involved in the “Spygate” scandal and how he felt about it

“No. That situation was something that happened. I was not aware of that. I wasn’t aware of it and all the things that did happen in terms of that whole scenario. It really didn’t affect us to tell you the truth. It was all about preparation and trying to do whatever we felt was best that week. It really didn’t have anything to do with that.

“I don’t think it is good. To have that kind of attention was a distraction and I think that is how we all treated it. We tried to do the best we could to limit those distractions every week and it will be no different here. Certainly we are never looking to do anything that is not within the rules established by the National Football League. They determined the punishment on that and it was what it was and we moved on.”

On growing up in a football family and his father’s influence

“He is very proud. I am sure he is very, very proud today. My father, I have had the most opportunities to witness him. I started out when I was very young. I have had more years around him than any of the other coaches I have mentioned. He is a very good teacher and is great with the players. He is emotional when he needs to be and those are all things that I hope to take from him. I think the one thing about my father that I know I do take every day into this job is his passion. There is nothing about this game that is unimportant to him and I would say that is true for myself. That is how I approach this job every day and I think everyone will see that come through.”

On his assessment of last year’s Broncos defense

“That will be something that will be ongoing. I don’t have every single answer here relative to the defense, the offense or the special teams, but starting early tomorrow morning we will be looking to try and evaluate what we have. I think that is the first place you want to start is evaluating— what you have done and what you have here.”

On if he has had time to evaluate the Broncos

“I have done it some back in New England. I haven’t even had the opportunity to sit at my desk yet, but I will be looking forward to that. I can’t wait to get started on that process. I think that is something, like I said, that is not just applicable to the defense, it is not one side of the ball here. This is a team that won eight games and anytime you win eight games and fall short of your goal I think there are a lot of things that need to be improved and that is what we are going to do.”

On whether he will retain any of the offensive assistants that were not released by the Broncos

“I am going to have an opportunity to meet with them as soon as I can. I haven’t had conversations with them but there is no preconceived notion with what is going to happen with them. I don’t know most of them but I have a relationship with a couple of them. I know they are all fine coaches and they have done a great job here. I think it is a decision that will be made here over the next few days.”

On his impressions of Broncos QB Jay Cutler

“Jay is very talented. I have had an opportunity to watch him a number of times on film and in person once this year. He has a lot of ability. I know just from some of the information that I gathered on him coming out of college that he is a very intelligent person, a very intelligent player. He does a lot of things well. I think Jay is going to enjoy playing in this system, this offense. It is very quarterback friendly once you get to the point where you can use all the tools that it gives the quarterback. Obviously he is a very important part of our success going forward and I can’t wait to get started working with him.”

On the immediate challenge of being a head coach in the NFL

“I think it is a process that has to come in place. There are a lot of things that are going to come up that I have not necessarily dealt with before but I am looking forward to that. It starts with an evaluation process of where we are at, where we have been and where we want to go. I think once that process begins I think a lot of things start to fall into place starting with staffing, players, our schedule for the spring and the rest of it. There are a lot of things that need to be done and I look forward to doing them.”

On being the predecessor to Mike Shanahan

“Coach Shanahan is a legend in this game and a hall of famer. It’s a privilege to follow from his tenure here as the head coach of the Denver Broncos. I have had the good fortune to work with another one of those types of coaches (Belichick). I am very much looking forward to following what he has done. Again, there is a culture here and it is about winning and that is a big part of Mike Shanahan. That has been established, it is very obvious. The people here care about it most importantly. That is the thing that I think I am looking most forward to, is joining an organization that is very similar to the one I just came from. It is all about winning and that is what we are going to do on a daily basis, is whatever we think is the best way to go about improving our football team so we can win as many games as we possibly can.”

On whether his age helps him in coaching

“I wouldn’t say that my age (helps). The relating to players and all that stuff—I’ve coached older players, I’ve coached younger players—I don’t think age is a factor. What they care about is what I’m saying and whether or not it’s going to help them win. That’s the most important thing to me and that’s the most important thing to the players. That’s where all the preparation and hard work (come in). You want to come in and you want to give them an opportunity to be successful. That’s my focus and that’s where my focus will be.”

On his impressions of the Broncos through the years

“A hard team to beat. We’ve had some games out here (in Denver) that have been very competitive. We were fortunate to win one of them and unfortunately didn’t play very well (in others) and they did—and they deserved to win those games that we played against them otherwise. Every time you see their name on the schedule you know that it’s going to be a 60-minute game, they are going to be well prepared, they have good players and it’s going to be a dogfight. That’s really what comes to mind anytime you see this team on your schedule, and I’m happy that now I’m on the other side of that schedule.”

On playing the Patriots in 2009 (at home, date TBD)

“That will be great. I look forward to that. I don’t think any coach is afraid to go back and play a team that he was a part of for a long time. It will be exciting for me; hopefully it will be exciting for the players and this organization. (But) it’s not about that. It’s not about me going back to play against New England. I just think they are a competitive team that I’m sure will have a good team this year and we will look forward to the challenge.”

On how he will address the players

“Once we get kind of established here and get rolling we will set a date to meet with them here all collectively. (I will) have an opportunity to stand in front of them and talk to them about where we are going. I think that’s very important. I think we want to do that at the right time. We want to make sure we have some people in place, get the staff issues taken care of and start moving in that direction. The first time we can actually get together and be together and they can hear me and understand where we are coming from as a staff and where we want to go this year and in the future—I think that will be very important.”

On whether he will have a staff put together by the NFL Combine (Feb. 20-26, 2009)

“I would hope so. Like I said, it’s begun already—the process. As soon as we can put together a staff of the best coaches that we can to help this organization win, that’s when it will be done. If that’s January or February or whenever it needs to be—to be the best—that’s what we’re going to try to do.”

On whether he is bringing Dom Capers with him and whether he has hired Mike Nolan

“(I have not) talked to Dom Capers—not that I wouldn’t but I have not talked to Dom Capers—he is under contract with the New England Patriots. I have not done that. I have had discussions with Mike Nolan, but nothing has been official yet.”

On Denver’s offensive talent

“I think anytime you come into a position like this you are eager to see how they relate to some of the players you have had in your past. They have a lot of guys who do a lot of things well. (WR) Brandon Marshall and (WR Eddie) Royal and (WR Brandon) Stokley and (TE Daniel) Graham and (TE Tony) Scheffler—the list goes on and on. They have a lot of talent. I think the biggest thing is to get the players to understand the system that we are going to utilize this year and to move forward in that and progress every day and have a great spring. That’s the goal right now, to have a great spring and accomplish a lot be fore the break between spring caps and training camp. I think that’s the exciting part for me, not only offensively but, I think, for defense and into the kicking game as well. Any area that we can improve this team, any area where we have an opportunity to get better, that’s what we’re looking to do.”

On whether the offensive system will resemble the New England system

“Yes.”

On the coaches under Patriots Head Coach Bill Belichick’s coaching tree

“Everybody is different. My experience in New England is unique. I had an opportunity to work in the personnel department under (Vice President of Player Personnel) Scott Pioli which was very valuable to me. Then I had an opportunity to work on defense with Bill (Belichick) and Romeo (Crennel) and Eric Mangini and Rob Ryan and Pepper Johnson—and had an opportunity to learn the way they saw the game defensively. Then I moved over from the defensive side to coach offense with Charlie Weis. I learned a tremendous amount in 2004, in that season. I had an opportunity to work with (Patriots QB) Tom Brady for the first time. Then I’ve moved on and grown from that process. I think the thing that I’m most excited about is that I can affect more than just the offense. The quality of the experience that I’ve had in New England is more important to me than the quantity of years that I’ve been there. For me, that’s the biggest thing. When I was on defense, they were quality years. When I had an opportunity to witness how the personnel department ran—and in continuing years have had an opportunity to do that—that’s been very valuable to me. And obviously my experience on offense has been very valuable in my growth as a coach. I don’t think that I’m an offensive guy or just a defensive guy or whatever it is. I’m hopefully a well-rounded football coach that’s had great experience and was taught by a lot of great men and great coaches. I’m going to try to take all the things that they taught me and use them to our advantage to try to win here.”

On taking a year off after being a graduate assistant coach at Michigan State in 1999

“It was a great experience (at Michigan State). Coaching for (former MSU Head Coach) Nick Saban was a great experience. I looked forward to that opportunity and thought I might have (had) a chance to do it for more than a few months there coming out of college, (but) I thought it was a great chance for me to go and learn from one of the very best. It was a great experience. He (Saban) went to LSU (Louisiana State University) after that season before our bowl game and I happened not to go with him. I made a choice—a personal choice—not to stay there at Michigan State. It had nothing to do with my experience and I stayed in touch with the people I met at Michigan State. I was fortunate enough that (Patriots Wide Receivers Coach) Brian Daboll and I were together at Michigan State. He was in New England in 2000 and then like I said, we stayed in touch and had contact with one another. That was where the opportunity was born—from our relationship. I’m sure that Coach Saban somewhere along the line put in a word too.”

On whether he saw any weaknesses in the Broncos when preparing to play them in 2008 (Oct. 20 in New England)

“I think every week you go into a game you are trying to find any and all weaknesses that you can to try to be successful. There are certain games that are going to be about the schemes. Certain games are going to be about—maybe we can pick on a player. I’m not going to stand up here and say exactly what we were trying to do in our game. We had some success. I’m glad we did then and I’m hoping to reverse that trend going forward.”

On whether he will wear a ‘hoodie’

“Will I wear a ‘hoodie’? Absolutely. I can’t wait to see my ‘hoodie.’”

On being able to coach Broncos DT Kenny Peterson

“He wasn’t on my high school team but he was on my brother’s and he played for my father. I’ve just had an opportunity to see Kenny and meet Kenny after games what have you throughout his brief NFL career. It’s a thrill to be able to stay in contact with guys and see how productive they have been and they have made a lot of themselves. My father has had the good fortune of coaching a lot of players that have had a chance to be successful at the college level, and some have had the opportunity to do that at the professional level. Kenny is one of them, he’s a great kid, he works extremely hard and I’m sure I’ll look forward to seeing Kenny here shortly.”