Head Coach Brian Daboll

Q: (Safety/inside linebacker) Isaiah Simmons back?

BRIAN DABOLL: He is.

Q: So expect him to play this week?

BRIAN DABOLL: I do.

Q: Anyone else? (Cornerback) Nick McCloud?

BRIAN DABOLL: Not practicing.

Q: And (outside linebacker) Kayvon (Thibodeaux), I know he's been on there…

BRIAN DABOLL: Yeah, he'll be good.

Q: There's a report that (wide receiver) Jalin Hyatt said in the summer that you guys should trade him if you're not going to use him. How did you guys get past that?

BRIAN DABOLL: (He) never told me that. Jalin (Hyatt) is probably one of the closer guys I am with on this team. You should ask Jalin (Hyatt).

Q: What makes you have confidence in him, despite the fact that you haven't deployed him a lot, yet?

BRIAN DABOLL: Well, again, he has his role in personnel. (Wide receiver Darius) Slayton, (wide receiver Malik) Nabers, and (wide receiver) Wan'Dale (Robinson)… I've covered this. They're the starters in half personnel. He (Jalin Hyatt) has a role. When his number's called, he'll be ready to go. He's in good spirits. Jalin (Hyatt) and I and the receivers talk every day. We meet a lot. I have a lot of confidence in Jalin (Hyatt). Jalin (Hyatt) knows that. When he has a chance to make a play, he'll go out there and make a play.

Q: I only ask that because the fans have seen his explosiveness in games you used him last year in the Arizona game, in the New England game so they are asking…

BRIAN DABOLL: I'd say I think we have four explosive guys. I think Wan'Dale (Robinson) is explosive. (Malik) Nabers is explosive. (Darius) Slayton is explosive. (Jalin) Hyatt is explosive. Again, they all have roles. Those other guys play a little bit more than Jalin (Hyatt). But when Jalin (Hyatt) has his opportunity, I certainly have a lot of confidence in him.

Q: What kind of role does Slayton play in that room now that (former Giants wide receiver) Shep (Sterling Shepard) is gone? He's the elder statesman. Off the field, what role do you feel like he plays with the younger guys?

BRIAN DABOLL: Yeah, he's a good leader in that room. They meet a lot. The quarterbacks meet a lot with the receivers. The receivers spend extra time together. They do a lot of dinners together. It's a really close-knit group. He's been productive here for a while, (Darius) Slay(ton) has. I think the quarterback has a lot of confidence in him. He has confidence in all the guys. But he's been around. He's been around the block around here, understands things, confident player, good leadership, a veteran that's done it for a while and been productive doing it.

Q: How tough have you found the balance between… You obviously want to get the ball down the field, right? But maybe the way they're playing you or the way the game's played out, you haven't been able to do it. As a play caller, what's been your approach to that?

BRIAN DABOLL: Again, I think we've talked about that. You call them. If they play a certain coverage that gives you an opportunity to throw them, you let it go. Had one of our guys do a study in the analytics department: In the first two weeks, how many balls have actually been thrown 20 yards or more in the league? Thrown and caught 20 yards or more, not run and catch. Winning teams, it's been three and a half a game. I think we threw three of them last week. If they're there, you'd like to throw them. If not, you throw it underneath and you hope for some catch and run. There's a lot of big catch and run plays the first two weeks of the season. But you want to attack certainly downfield if you can. If they give you the appropriate coverage and the right look or the right matchup, you can go ahead and let it rip.

Q: Why do you commission a study like that? Just to confirm what you think?

BRIAN DABOLL: We do a lot of them just to get trends throughout the early part of the season of different things that are going on or maybe why some teams are a little bit more successful, some are less successful. It's not just that study. That's what I asked for this morning, thinking about it. You watch games throughout the league, see how teams are winning or how they're playing. Some don't throw the ball a lot down the field and score some points, but it's a catch and run or it's a screen pass catch and run. Other teams… I just wanted to see how many times that was happening. Then you look at yourself and say, 'Okay, how can we do it better or not do it better?' I think it's just you continually try to self-evaluate and see what you can do better to make sure you're giving everybody a chance.

Q: Do you say to (quarterback) Daniel (Jones) sometimes, I guess, given the situation, 'Hey, just throw it up, let those guys try to make a play?'

BRIAN DABOLL: If it's the right look. Today in the team meeting we watched, I don't know, 30 turnovers from the league this past week through all different teams. There's a lot of quarterbacks that just throw it up and there's three guys back there and it doesn't turn out so well. There's some that there's great individual plays by players, they catch it in between two guys. I think there's a time and a place for it. Certainly, if he has the right look, I think he'll throw it. If he doesn't, we don't want him to force things into a bad look and turn the ball over.

Q: (Special Teams Coordinator) Ghoby (Michael Ghobrial) said yesterday that the kicking Sunday is a competition. Is anybody ahead at this point?

BRIAN DABOLL: We have one more day. One more day. They've both done a good job. We'll finish it off today and make a decision.

Q: Is it strictly what you see this week? Obviously one guy has more experience than the other…

BRIAN DABOLL: I think that plays a part into it. I do. I think it plays a part into it. Ultimately, it's out here in practice. See how we do. Certainly, that plays a part in it.

Q: When you're setting up to do your game plan, is the first thing you do just identify the game-wreckers on the other side? A guy like (Cleveland Browns defensive end Myles) Garrett, do you have to base everything just off him?

BRIAN DABOLL: That's a good question. Certainly you do because it's a match-up league. Other teams have really good players and other teams have really elite players. It's hard to neutralize elite players. It really is. You have to have a plan for it, whether it's formation-based… He's seen as many different looks as he can see since he's played, whether it's with (running) backs, tight ends, formations and he still manages to make a lot of plays. It could be a really good corner(back). It could be a good cover linebacker. It could be an offensive lineman. Match-ups are part of the NFL, obviously. Big match-ups. Interior guys, offensive line, defensive line. Guys like (defensive lineman) Dexter (Lawrence II), it's hard to have a plan for him every single play because they are so good. But, you certainly have to take account of their elite players, and he's one of them in this league.

Q: When you go up against, and you've seen a couple now, the defensive coordinators that have been in this league, that have a reputation, that have a resume, how do you guard against going too deep? How far do you go back with (Cleveland Browns defensive coordinator Jim (Schwartz) to find tendencies? Maybe not you personally, but do you have your guys unearth as much as possible?

BRIAN DABOLL: I just think as a coach in this league, you put as much preparation and time into it. I go back quite a ways. You dig as deep as you can dig, just to make sure you're doing your part in preparing. That's your job as a coach to make sure you study the tape and see if you can find any types of tendencies. Whether it's last year, whether it's at Buffalo, whether it's at Philadelphia. There's a lot of tape on Coach (Jim) Schwartz. The players are different. You see what is consistent situationally, if you have any tendencies, and he does a great job of self-scouting. I've known Jim (Schwartz) for a long time. He's a very bright coach, but you certainly look at as much tape as you can look at.

Q: How aware are you that another coach might be looking at the same for you?

BRIAN DABOLL: Yeah, I think all coaches do that. They have a lot of good coaches on that staff, a lot that I've either worked with or have a relationship with. (Cleveland Browns Offensive Coordinator) Ken Dorsey is on that staff. I think the world of Ken (Dorsey). I think he's an exceptional coach when he was with me at Buffalo. We've been together for a long time. He knows stuff that I do. I know stuff that he does. Coach (Jim) Schwartz and I have competed against one another. People that have been in the league long enough, there's a history there that you go back and you make sure that you're dotting your I's and crossing your T's as much as you can.

Q: What makes Ken Dorsey a good coach and play-caller?

BRIAN DABOLL: He's very smart. He sees the game well. Understands, I would say, every area you need to understand to call plays: protection schemes, screen game, drop back game, route concepts, man-to-man beaters, blitz-zero beaters. He understands defenses. He did a great job with the quarterback. Adjustments. I think the world of Ken (Dorsey). I think he's a heck of a coach.

Q: This summer, you brought it up again after the game, you're kind of referencing him for input on play calls and stuff…Malik (Nabers), you're referencing him, like you talked about this summer. How rare is that for a rookie? I know that's something you talk about you want to do with your receivers, but specifically for a rookie, especially that early in the year?

BRIAN DABOLL: I would say once they're on the team, you have a history with them in training camp. You get a feel for the player. You meet with them every day. You get a feel for their understanding of football. Malik (Nabers) is very bright in that regard. Not just understanding where he needs to line up, different spots, different positions, but he also has a good feel of how defenses are playing him or certain players are playing him. He has good information. He did at camp. That's where you build the trust, is during training camp and all the reps. When he comes over to me and says, 'Hey, this guy, when I get this split, he lines here. Think about this.' They're out there. You trust your players. They see it. You can look at a tablet, but they're right out there. So, if they're giving you good information, you use it. If you go through a couple games where the information is not very good, then you don't use it. But he's an instinctive, instinctive football player, and he's done a good job since he's been here.

Q: I assume you did it with other guys in other places too?

BRIAN DABOLL: Yeah, absolutely. We were just talking about this yesterday. (Former wide receiver) B-Marsh (Brandon Marshall) stopped by. Got a great relationship with Brandon (Marshall) when I was with him. We've developed that relationship through coach and player. Then it's taken on from after I left Miami. We were talking about that because I asked him for a lot of input when he was on the field. A lot of it I listened to. Most of it I did because he was an instinctive player. He understood the game. He understood how he was getting played, and he understood the match-ups that we talked about. You have those good players. (Former New England Patriots tight end) Gronk (Rob Gronkowski), when I was with Gronk. They come over the sideline, 'This is how I'm getting played. This might work.' Quarterbacks. The players work really hard at this. The coaches do. It's a team effort.

Wide Receiver Jalin Hyatt

Q: Did you really say 'throw it to me or trade me' or whatever it was?

JALIN HYATT: I didn't say that. I don't know where that came from, but that's false. I love being here. (Senior Vice President and General Manager) Joe (Schoen), (Head Coach Brian Daboll) Dabs, I got so much respect for trading up for me and getting me. So, whatever that rumor was, it's not true at all.

Q: Does that kind of make angry when you hear reports like that?

JALIN HYATT: Yeah, I mean it does. It's false reports. I never said anything about being traded or going somewhere else, especially not in the summer. So, my focus now is just getting better for this team, being ready for my opportunity. But as far as trades and rumors of that, it was not true.

Q: Were you surprised when you heard it?

JALIN HYATT: Yeah, I was surprised. It came out of nowhere about trades. We didn't discuss any of that or I didn't have any communication about that with Dabs or Joe or any of that. So, I really don't know where that came from.

Q: I think the way it was characterized was that you yelled it out at practice?

JALIN HYATT: Like I said, I don't even know when or when that could've happened. I didn't say anything about any trades or wanted to be somewhere or not getting this, not getting that. Like I said, my focus is on this team, what we got to do, how we got to get better. And our focus is on Cleveland.

Q: Are you saying there's just no truth in this? Caught you completely off guard? You didn't know it was coming?

JALIN HYATT: Yeah, I didn't know it was coming at all. Like I said, this is a big surprise to me. I love being here. This is a great team, great organization. Like I said before, Dabs and Joe, I have so much respect for trading up for me and getting me in the draft. So as far as trades and all that is, it's not true at all.

Q: Do you find this whole thing just silly?

JALIN HYATT: Yeah, I feel like it's a fake story. I feel like it's somebody's out to get me or something. I didn't say anything about not wanting to be here. Like I said, I love it here. And we're doing the right things, right steps to get to where we want to get to as a team. And that's my focus.

Q: Are you frustrated with your lack of playing time?

JALIN HYATT: I'm a competitor. I want to be out there. I want to play. And the coaching staff knows that too. But it's the NFL and whenever my chance is or whenever my opportunities are, that's when I'm going to take advantage. So that's my focus.

Q: Why have they told you you're not playing more?

JALIN HYATT: I mean they didn't really say anything. Like I said, we got good receivers in our room and they're going to go with what they feel that's comfortable with (quarterback Daniel Jones) DJ. And that's what we do. So, like I said, just I'll get my chances. I'll be out there. And when they come, I got to take advantage.

Q: It's also you have to look at it, I'm sure you look at it too like it's a matter of the offense hasn't had a lot of plays too. Hasn't been on the field much, only 22 minutes. Is that going to your role too, kind of being not as much as you would like it right now?

JALIN HYATT: Yeah, It's still early in the season. It's Week 2. That's why I'm still shocked and surprised about the rumors that I'm hearing. It's Week 2, we're still early in this season. And as far as disappointing or mad, it's none of that. I'm a competitor at the end of the day. And I want to be out there. I'm going to take advantage of my chances when they come. But as far as trades and all that, that's all false.

Q: What did Joe Schoen and Brian Daboll say to you when it was clear you weren't going to be in the starting rotation?

JALIN HYATT: They came up to me and told me and I respect that from Joe and Dabs and let me know what I'm going to be doing. And that's where we're going to go from here. Like I said, whenever my chance comes, I'll be ready. And that's my focus.

Q: In your mind, what in particular do you have to do or improve on like specific things to get on the field more?

JALIN HYATT: Yeah, I mean just being more consistent, showing Dabs and Joe what I can do. Like I said, it's about what DJ wants, what he feels comfortable with. And that's how we roll with it. So, just for myself, just getting better each and every day and just taking advantage of my opportunities when they come.

Q: Do you mean as a route runner or do you mean like as a blocker, like other things that aren't receiving?

JALIN HYATT: Yeah, I mean just being consistent in everything, blocking, catching the ball, running routes, knowing my assignment on my role and obviously making plays. And it's got to get more consistent with all of it and once I get to that stage, that's when I'll be ready.