**
Q: With the bye coming so late in the season, there would seem to be pros and cons. How valuable is it when the offense is struggling to have the chance to step back? **
A: Well, I think the bye week is always good. The main reason is the players get a chance to get healthier, as healthy as they can. It gives coaches the chance to go back and look at things, you know, what we did so far this season, with some self-scouting and get ready to play Green Bay. So, is there any good timing? It's a time of year to be able to do those things and become a better football team.
Q: Coach Gilbride was talking about how teams are playing their safeties deep to take away the big play. What needs to happen up front to get that running game going?
A: Well, we need to, in all the runs, whether it's three-wide, regular or two-tights, we need to be on the same page better. There have been some games where we've been productive in the runs and there have been some games where we haven't been as productive. It really is something we as an offense have to step back and look at this week. When we evaluate week-by week, we find that this individual just continued to maintain his block another two seconds, we have more yardage. We just have to, as always as an offense when you're blocking, you have to be on the same page, give a little bit more effort and execute.
Q: What have you seen out of Diehl since his return over the last two weeks?
A: Well, he's a competitor. As most guys when they go through an injury, they miss valuable time. Even though he had the preseason, playing a new position, we also had him working some at guard. So, he just has to get more familiar with the right tackle position. I think he'll be just fine.
Q: When you re-inserted him into the lineup over Locklear, what was some of the reasoning going on? Sean had been playing so well.
A: Sean did a nice job. When he signed to be a New York Giant, he knew he was going to compete for a starting position and David Diehl won out the starting position in preseason. Because of any position when an injury occurs, you don't really lose your job, because of an injury. So, that's why David was inserted back into the starting line-up.
Q: He's had a couple of bumps since his return to the line-up. How patient are you with him?
A: You know, we all have bumps. It starts with me. I have to do a better job in bringing the message going into that particular week. Where our problems are, particularly in pass protection. Where we need help in certain areas. The team we just faced was probably as good as most in rushing the passer. That's what the game turned out to be. We have to do a better job of protecting the quarterback.
Q: How has Beatty played?
A: His technique is getting better. He is still a little bit away from nosing up against the premier pass-rushers. I see a little growth each week with William. He's competing with some of the best pass-rushers. For the most part, he's holding his own. His ceiling, it's just hard to tell how good he can really be. He can really be good. He needs some work with it. He's not at that point yet. There are still some things technique-wise that he needs to correct. His assignments are much better than what they have been in the past.
Q: Have you seen David Baas and Chris Snee the last couple of weeks being affected by their injuries?
A: That's out of our minds. The thing about the NFL is, we all know, being in the offensive line room, you're going to get nicked up. You probably feel the best the day before training camp starts. After that, some days are better than others. It really doesn't matter from a standpoint of when we go into a game, if the trainers feel that they're healthy enough to play, they're expected to play their best. We don't look for excuses in our room. We look for how we can get ourselves better from that standpoint and be able to go out and execute. I really couldn't say what's bothering each and every guy. There are a lot of things that are bothering everybody from an injury standpoint. That's not our concern right now. Our concerns are to play better and play as well as we can.
Q: You guys are always assessing yourselves and assessing where you're at. When things were going well for you guys up front against the pass-rush earlier this year, were you playing as well as what it looked like? I guess that would lead me to the other question, which is now that you're struggling, are you playing as poorly-
A: We're not playing as well as we need to be. When we're playing as well as we need to be, then you're executing. It starts, we feel, it starts with us, up front. Obviously, other positions as well. When you're moving the ball on offense, there are a lot of people who need to have the credit. When we're not moving the ball, you have to look at everything. Probably, we have not played as well when we were playing and executing on offense as maybe we have in the last couple of weeks in certain areas. In other areas, we need to play better. So, it's a combination. It really is. It is one thing as a coach you can put your finger on to make sure that you're improving at it. In terms of the overall concept, it's really a lot of things that need to improve.
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