What were the keys to the team’s victory this week?
The main thing was not letting emotion play a part when the game was tight. It was back and forth, and the Texans had some things go in their favor and we had some go ours. In those moments you can't dwell on them. Instead we have to focus on the next play. We did that and Keaton Mitchell delivered.
Can you talk about the development of Walter Nolen so far?
Walter Nolan has been a major factor. It might not pop on the stat sheet if you are looking at paper, but he is plugging holes and forcing backs to have to try and make something out of nothing. He is holding his own as a starter on this team in his rookie season and he will continue to play a significant role.
Can you talk about what it’s like to prepare to go against a player like Alvin Kamara?
Alvin Kamara is such a dynamic player, which really keeps you on your toes.He has stellar ball carrier vision and great acceleration when he finds an opening. To top it off he can run routes as well as most receivers in the league. He can make things happen in so many ways and if he finds open space that is a hard man to tackle.
What is the status of Emika Egbuka and when is he set to return?
Unfortunately we are dealing with a multi-week injury, but we are confident he can be back at 100% within a few weeks.
Over your career, what makes a team better at not turning the ball over as the season goes along? What kind of things you need to emphasize? How much of it is coaching? How much of it is a mental part? Physical part?
Honestly a majority of it falls in the mental area. That's not to say there aren't physical aspects though. Outliers in the league like Lamar Jackson, Patrick Mahomes, Caleb Williams, and so on really open your eyes to how the ability to extend a play with your legs or zip a ball in with at near superhuman levels elevates a quarterbacks ability. However, even those guys can struggle with turnovers if they don't have their mental straight. We play a huge part in putting our teams ability to play mistake free football with the way we call plays and put together a game plan.
RB Keaton Mitchell is so impressive, how hard he runs is so apparent. What else about his skill set makes him special?
Keaton Mitchell is one of the fastest guys you will see on the field, and he combines that game breaking speed with the ability to shake off tackles seemingly like they are nothing. He has been a game changer for us this season and has really went even beyond what we expected to see.
