Jack Del Rio Presser: Chase Young is chomping at the bit to get back out there

Jack Del Rio, Scott Turner and players speak to the media after practice

Jack Del Rio

Five-man front:

“That was our approach based on last week’s opponent and our game planning. Every week we try to put together a plan to stop the people that we’re going against and utilize those we have available. I thought the guys handled it well. Feel like they’re gaining confidence in knowing what they need to do for each other, playing faster and playing with more confidence.”

Why the five-man front has been so successful:

“We’ve got five guys we like. It’s just something our guys have done. It’s part of our plan. We’ve used it effectively in several games throughout the year.”

William Jackson III:

Chase Young:

“Look forward to getting him involved as we go. He’s full of energy. He is I guess chomping at the bit. I mean, he loves football. It’s a guy that, it’s been a year now or close to it, a complete year. This is a guy that really loves to play the game, loves being around his teammates so it’s great to have his energy back on the field.”

Chase Young coming along mentally:

“Yeah, I think that’s certainly a part of it for anybody coming back from injuries, is to gain that confidence, the trust in yourself and what you’re capable of doing again. I mean, that’s part of what he’s working through. But, his energy’s been terrific. I think he’s a strong-minded guy and he’s stayed strong throughout. He is working his way back. So, we’re now practicing him and when we get him in a position where we feel like he’s ready to roll, we’ll cut him loose and let him play.”

Justin Jefferson:

“A lot of talent, size, speed, athletic ability, route running hands. He’s a good player.”

Benjamin St-Juste:

Kevin O’Connell/Kirk Cousins:

“I think [Vikings Head Coach] Kevin [O’Connell] has done a great job up there. Kirk’s a good player. He’s been a good player for a long time. I think the combination up there has been really good for them. The right head coach at the right time for Kirk and his career. So I think he’s excited about that. They’re both excited about that. They’re putting a good product out. They’re putting points on the board. They’re moving the ball, they’re getting explosives. They can run it, they can throw it, the boot game and the play action games. It’s legit. They look for chunks and I just think they’re doing a nice job. Kirk’s always been able to make all the throws.”

DL Coach Jeff Zgonina:

“Well, Jeff has to get some credit. I mean the group’s responded well to him. We’ve got a good group, they’re putting in the work. They’re rushing more and more like a group looking out for one another and awareness of each other and communicating well. They’re stout. They’re strong and they’re stout. So Jeff’s done a good job preparing those guys each week. We brought a young guy in that ended up playing. We got him from Dallas. JR [Jon] Ridgeway. To bring him along and have him play as big impact as he did last week in the game, that’s gotta be a credit to the coach to get him ready. The guys responded well to Z. That’s what we call him. That’s what he’s doing.”

John Ridgeway:

Kam Curl and the green dot:

“Well, he’s the guy we want to have on the field all the time. He’s bright and he handled it. He was excellent. So I mean, it was an easy choice for those reasons.”

Scott Turner

Antonio Gibson/Brian Robinson:

“It’s been really good. I mean, they’re both really good players. They compliment each other. We got Antonio going a little bit in the past game. I think we can get some more production from both of them in the run game. Would’ve liked to do a little bit better there, not all that that is on them, although those guys can play better as well but, they’re two really good players. Like I said, they compliment each other and I think they’re both gonna continue to get better, especially B-Rob, just, you know, being a rookie.”

Trai Turner:

“I was happy for Trai. I’ve known Trai for a really long time. He jokes he calls me his cousin because we obviously have the same last name, but no on a personal level, he did not play well early. He knows he didn’t play well early. Saadiq [Charles] was playing. Saadiq was sick. Trai stepped inand really played well, really had a complete game. There’s a couple plays that he’s gonna want back that I think any offensive lineman’s gonna do that but was physical. He was him himself again. Did a really nice job on picking up some stunts, finished blocks, played with an edge that he’s kind of known for, so it was good to see that. He ended up earning a game ball for his performance, so I was really happy for him and it, and it helps us obviously when he plays that way.”

Two-minute drills:

“Yeah, I mean, that’s part of the game. You look at all the really good quarterbacks in this league and they’re making a lot of off schedule plays and the Colts have a good pass rush. They were effective with the pass rush. But what happens in those situations, those two-minute drills, you run a couple plays and the defense is on the field and they’re in the play, three, four plays in a row. Now all of a sudden they’re not rushing quite as hard and Taylor [Heinicke] was able to recognize that, keep the play alive. Terry [McLaurin] was running a stop route. Felt them sitting on him, he spun out of it and luckily Taylor saw it and gave Terry a chance and obviously you guys saw the play that Terry made. That’s something that it’s gotta be part of your offense. I mean, if they’re rushing for and they’re not getting home, quarterback’s gotta be able to move around and improvise it adds another layer to your production.”

Armani Rogers:

Za’darius Smith:

“The thing about him is they move him around. Most of the time, he’ll line up to our left, but they do the spinner package where he goes and lines up over the top of the center. We’re gonna do some stuff to help as much as we can where we don’t have him singled really on anybody but definitely on the center. I mean, every time you go into a game week who are the play makers and he’s the number one guy you circle and they got more than just him. We’re gonna have our eyes on him and make sure that he doesn’t wreck the game.”

Taylor Heinicke:

“We got Taylor as a undrafted free agent. I was the quarterback coach. He’s older now, I guess he’s more mature, but no, you guys know him, but he’s exact same as he is now as a player. I mean, he’s just gonna go out there and play with his hair on fire. That’s what you like about him, you appreciate about him. He made our team as an undrafted. He made our 53 men roster because of the way he performed in the preseason and it was a lot of what you guys see on Sunday. He’s gotten a lot better. He’s learned. He’s got more experience now. I always joke with him that he made the team because the fifth round receiver was Stefan Diggs and the guy that was a second or third year guy was Adam Thielen and they were playing with him in in the fourth preseason game and it’s like, no wonder you look good, you know, against a bunch of backups. But no Taylor, his style of play has been the same. He’s just learned some and gotten better with experience.”

Final two drives:

“It wasn’t just him. We had some plays, the third drive of the game was as good as you can get. We didn’t have third downs. We’d just go right down the field and score. And then we had other drives in the first half where we got 20, 25 yards and then we just couldn’t convert on third downs. And that’s been our issue in other games this season as well. I mean we had a little bit of resurgence where we did better on third downs in Green Bay, especially in the second half. And you saw we were able to move the ball and score points. And then this past game, we just struggled on third downs and we got to stay on the field. And I already talked about the run game, I think we can get some more production there. But you look at the course of the game and we were at Taylor’s nine yards in attempt. I mean, it’s pretty good we just couldn’t sustain. And then at the end of the game, you know, it’s, you don’t have a choice and we converted two fourth downs on both of those drives which was huge. Obviously the third down issue was still an issue but we got the first down on forth down and he kept some plays alive. And just on the whole offense, the urgency, we just have to have that sense of urgency early in games because obviously we’re capable of doing it. We just need to be more consistent.”

QB sneak:

“When [the official] spotted the ball, it was inside the one and then of course we call time out and the ball’s fully on the one-yard line. We had a timeout, so I felt good about that. When it’s that situation, you can do anything on offense so they’re not just playing the sneak. So you kind of have a better advantage for that. I told Taylor, tell the guys in the huddle, hey, knock your guys into the end zone. I knew their defensive line was tired because they just defended an entire, really two, two-minute drill, two 80 yard drives in a row. So I felt like we could get it in and we had the time out like I said.”

Jahan Dotson:

“I leave that up to the trainers. I think he’ll be back fairly soon. Obviously, I don’t know if it’s going to be this week. It’s just one of those things. I mean, he’s never had an issue like that. So sometimes when a guy hasn’t had soft tissue and then they have one for the first time, they kind of just got to get over that but he’ll be back. it’s going to be quicker than I think. It’s not something that I’m worried about. It’s just one of the unfortunate parts of the game, you know what I mean. That we got injuries, and we got guys that got to step up and we will.”

Brian Robinson Jr.:

Arrest of shooting suspect:

Tress Way

Snyders selling the team:

Practice Updates

Injured players

Chase Young

Jeff Zgonina