First of all, you know on behalf of Kyle, our family is our organization. Just wanted to let the folks in LA. I'm a Southern California guy. I know a lot of people down there and people who've been directly affected already, and I'm sure there's going to be more.
So our heart's too.
We've been sitting and you know what we call our mind meetings talking about all our players on a close out and your mind keeps strifting because man's that's that's rough down there. So our thoughts and prayers do go to the folks and people of LA and that things calm down. So start with that and then we'll open up for questions.
Can you talk about your decision with Nick and kind of what the overall plan is now for the defensive coordinator position.
Yeah, First of all, it's a real tough decision. I love Nick as a person and I love him as a coach. Still trying to hope to keep them on board and another capacity because he's a guy I don't want to lose. But just where we're at really as a team, where I think we need to go. Uh, there's a lot of big decisions ahead for us and as hard as it is for me to come to this conclusion, but I feel there's some options out there that can end up being a better option in the
situation that we're in for our team. And when really it comes down to that, you know, in the position I'm in, regardless of anything else, that's always the stuff I gotta go with.
So it was a real.
Tough decision for me, and I'm still hoping that we can keep a neck here, but I do feel there's some other avenues that in the long run, will be better for the forty nine ers.
I know candidates for both of those coordinator spots.
There are candidates, yes, internal one. I'll give Stalei a shot just talking to him. You know he's been here. There'll be a lot of guys outside the building too.
Back to back years, you fired your defensive coordinator after one year?
Do you have to go back through the process of this house. I know both different situations.
Were there things that went wrong in the process to find these last two guys?
I don't believe anything went wrong in the process.
I think I'll tell you what it's It's a I think more opportunistic or easier process.
Talking about her.
Right now and whatever the date is today, it's a little bit harder in February, which on the last two are in. Just you know, being the last team to finish last year and before that, being the second to last team to finish makes it a lot different. So there's more opportunities out there and planning and looking into all of them.
We experience being a defensive corner of being important to you this time.
Yeah, I think some of the stuff that you know, just where we're at, you know, some of the decisions that we got to make in things like that, I think having the experience of going through this before, building things before, I think is what is definitely a bonus for me.
It helps me with some stuff. So that's stuff I will look into.
But again, you always, regardless, you don't want to put just any handcuffs on your decision. You're gonna always try to figure out the best one, and so you've got ideas going into that. But just being so early, I'm gonna have an opportunity to talk to a number of guys too, so we'll see what that leads us to.
Lily, you've always kind of stuck to this is who we want to be defensively. Is that still the scheme you want or are you more open to.
Potential changest I mean, I love the scheme that we've had here.
I mean I think it's one of the hardest things to go to when you got the right guys in the right spots. But I do think people adjust the schemes, and I think you have to adjust too, depending on your personnel, and I think that was a tougher thing for us this year. Just going into the season was a little bit harder than past seasons, and some of the injuries we had I think made a really tough for Nick, and I thought he got better trying to
adjust and do different things. But I do think that's something that definitely, I'm not saying you got to change schemes, but you have to have the ability, the the history and the knowledge of how to change some stuff up when you're in some certain situations.
And I think that we do need that more going forward.
Under consideration for that special teams coordinators.
Yeah, Nick would be in consideration.
Yes, he's been let going or hoping to bring him back.
I just I just told him he's not gonna be the defense coordinator. Yeah, So I mean, he's under contract still and I'm really hoping that he'll come back, but that's got to be something he and his family feel good about too. And the exact role that we end up carving out for him, which I'll work on here over the next few.
Weeks, challenging is that for him to go from being the defensive coordinator to being and I'm not saying just another assistant, but I'm going being the defensive coordinator to moving back into a different role.
I don't know, I haven't done it before, so it's I mean, I'm sure it is a challenge. It has to do with is that something that you want to do. Is this something you're comfortable with. I know our building would be comfortable with it. I know our players would be comfortable with it. There's you know, this was a tough year, but no, Nick didn't lose any respect or anything like that for many of our players or our coaches.
And I think if you talk to anyone, whether it's with you guys in the media or it's just one on one, he's got a lot of respect for people from people here, and everyone does think he's a good coach. You know, I spent his last two days having exit interviews. That's been you know, to go through these two days where all I do is just talk to people and you talk to everybody. Lots of good feedback on Nick and I think the guys would be real excited it if he was here next year.
Is there any uncertainty about Trent Williams him playing in twenty twenty five.
Uh, Trent, Trent's doing well. He's uh, you know, he's uh.
He had a bruise in the you know, in the ankle joint and it probably took a little longer than anyone anticipated, but sometimes that happens.
And the good news is it's taken a positive turn.
Trance's Trent's mindset is where where it always is, and he's still very interested in and being a great player that he is, and I think he's still got a lot lot left in the tank. So Trance committed as ever, and we love having Trent Williams a part of us.
Mentions out there for the DC's bought also special teams coordinator.
What are you looking for for both spots?
I mean, I'm looking for a guy who I think will fit with our team the best. I'd like to send and talk to you guys about our personnel. I want to obviously talk to someone about their plans schrammatically and what they like to do.
But that's all great. What are you planning to do with our team?
And that's what it involves certain people, I mean in terms of when they look at what we have, what they think we need going forward, what we got to go get And so it's I want someone that kind of messes with what I believe in and but I also believe in that you got to fit to come up with the best thing possible that fits our situation right now. So that'll be talking about our personnel, the roster, think a lot of things like that, and what their plan would be with it.
Someone running a different scheme from the past seasons.
Yeah, don't open anything.
Brock talk the other day about wanting to get an extension.
Done as soon as possible.
All right, do you have that same optimism that it can get done by mid April when spring praying, spring workout start.
Well, listen, I think what we know about Brock is that he's our guy we've got. You know, we have interest in Brock being around here for a long long time. He's done so much for our organization. He's won big games and you know, had a little tougher task as we all did this year with some of the things that happened throughout the course of the year.
We just never could string games where we were all together.
And through that he continued to lead, he continued to play at a high level. So we have every interest in him being around, you know, the way this thing goes. These these press conferences are necessary, but always kind of silly because Kyle's coaching. We spend time together all the time and there's big issues that affect the team.
But he's just getting off coaching.
He's had his door shut for two days doing exit interviews.
You know, we were just up but we were talking about our players.
We'll have some time here in uh in the coming weeks to sit together and put put our whole plan together. That's obviously a priority that position, and you know we'll give it that attention.
You guys last sat up there in camp.
One of the priorities you said was we have to have finishers this year.
And you guys got outscored i think one sixty five to eighty eight.
In the fourth quarter. So what does that tell you about this team.
What went wrong is a physical staminas at mindset? Is it the personnel schemes? What what do you put your finger to?
Yeah, I, I you know, you don't want to. You don't want to have excuses. A lot of our finishers weren't out there, you know. And then on top of it, we still had opportunities, We still put ourselves in good position and we couldn't get it done. So we have to own that as a team. That's why we're six and eleven. We have a high standard. We had high expectations. We fell short of that, and it's our job to
fix that. And Uh, I know that Kyle and I are are committed as we've ever been to doing just that.
We don't plan on being in this place. Don't like it.
It's terrible to sit home and watch something that you expect yourself to be in the tournament. And we're going to go about the work. Uh, And we're excited about the work to do just that. But I do believe we have finishers on this team and got to continue to add to that.
We've got to continue infuse youth and good football players to this team. And we'll do that.
A couple of off seasons have had a lot of trauma and maybe kel can address this too, and a lot of it, you know, there's social media posturing or maybe some of.
It has already begun.
Just is there any as the organization that you can do to kind of mitigate that, calm it down. It just seems like it's heated up times in the last of couple of seasons.
Yeah, I think every team has a certain measure of that.
I think we've got to We have a lot of good players, you know, and one of the things that comes with having a lot of good players is it's hard to feed everyone, you know, and you've got to make tough decisions. And we're certainly at it at a point where we've had a five year run with four NFC championships, two Super Bowls, and you know, you have to go back to the fundamentals of really building a thing.
The life blood of your organization needs to be strong drafts because it gives you young players that you have on your contract for and so we I think we had multiple I think seven players that were starters off that draft class. Whether we expect them to be, they did, and they gained really valuable experience. I even had free agent guys like Evan Anderson who contributed, you know, a lot, and so I think we're really excited about this rookie class.
In that movement, we've got to continue to add to it. We have ten probably right now, nine draft choices. We think we'll have ten with a compick. But you know, we need to continue to add to it in that way. And you know, I hope we continue to have hard decisions because we have a lot of great players.
Here is the first year the special teams have struggled here and wildly noted you don't take a real detailed interest in special teams.
Does that need to change?
Little con Can you get more involved?
Do you need to get more involved?
I mean, what do you mean by I don't take interest in special teams?
You know you're not watching the kicker tryouts.
And that kind of Let me let me help Kyle there, I would.
I would tell you Kyle spends an ordinate amount of time with all phases of our team. Special teams is extremely important in the way we construct our rosters. We can you know, the time is there now and kicking. Neither of us are kicking specialists, So we don't sit here and profess to know everything about kicking and things of that nature.
But the time issue.
I'm sorry to interrupt, Kyle, but no, I spend plenty of time there.
I just don't be as you guys. Yeah that's it.
Well you turn it around on me there, But no, I just don't be ask you guys with that stuff. But to say, like, I mean, we spent some heavy draft picks on special teams players, which I think is investment. We spent some salary cap on guys. I mean, bringing guys like George otom haven't played againstouls here these last couple of years. I mean that's bringing back. Those are
special teams decisions. Spend a third round pick on a kicker, making special teams changes is why special teams is important to me, because if we do work at it, but it's you know, it wasn't good enough this year.
I don't put that just on Brian by any means.
I mean losing your kicker, losing your punter. When injuries do affect the roster, especially offense and defensively, what it did affect the most was special teams, and I think that was unfair to Brian in a tough situation to put him in, But I do think it's an avenue we can get better in and you can't change the whole thing out, And so Brian ends up being the fall guy for that, and I really appreciate him, like he did have a real good three years here and
worked his tail off and was very loyal to us, and it was a very good coach And he'll bounce back on his feet and we'll be going against some soon, I'm sure. But no special teams is part of football and everything part of football is extremely important to us.
A couple of years ago that you wanted to find something to make when it comes to guys that would just period looking forward, you have some hard decision to make when it comes to roster changes and coaching changes. Right, So, there was some video circulating on the internet from the families of a couple of players that would lead some people to believe they Drake Greenlaw knows whether or not
he will be here or not. Have there been any conversation where he's been given a dependentive answer of his future as.
At ninety No, we don't even know, guys. This is we haven't spent much time together yet. I've had two plays with two days with excellent interviews with players and coaches. But I mean players don't know either. And that's what's hard for players. It's they they're under contracts. They know when their contract's going to run up. That's an emotional time for players, for their families, for wives, girlfriends, whoever
it is kids, just like it is for coaches. When I can't always tell them exactly what their future is going to be the day this season ends.
It's tied to a lot of other people.
And I know I've been on that side. I know wives are texting you all day asking what the deal is and they don't believe that you really don't have an answer yet. And I know what they look like when you walk home through the door and they're like, what are we doing with our lives? And you're like, I don't really know. There's a lot of things that you want to solve so fast for people. That is stressful for people sit in our in our chairs, but you can't solve everything at once.
A lot of things are tied together.
And when you hear things like that are green law, like we're doing everything in the world we can to bring green law back and We're not into losing really good players who are unbelievable people. So we're going to do everything we can to never lose really good players or good people. But that's also a very hard challenge, very hard, and that's something that you don't just talk
about in one meeting. There's too many things that connect to that draft, free agency, roster years, all that stuff, and that takes weeks months to decide.
And I think the only thing I'd add to that the communication with the players what's most important. And I know I sat with Dre and always have great discussions with Dre.
I know about his want to be here, and I know our want to have him here.
And like Kyle said, there's realities and there's tough decisions and so many factors to all those things.
But believe me, the desire on both sides is there.
You mentioned a couple of weeks ago that you wanted to gonna go ahead.
You mentioned that the scheme because of personality, it was harder on Nick. When you look at the defensive line, I think the wide nine is coming to scrutiny. How much do you view, especially in the run game, the struggles there being being schematic and how much of it is personnel.
I think it's a little bit of both.
I mean it's I mean, first of all, like I don't regardless of injuries or anything like, this year is most disappointed to me because regardless of injuries, I feel we should have been a playoff team and then you never know what happens in there. But when I go back to the hardest thing for me this year was those three games I've talked to you guys about first one versus Arizona, first one, versus LA first one versus
Arizona second one verse Seattle. I thought we did I thought we should have won those games, and we lost them at the end, but I thought our own mistakes, which means we would have been eating too going into week eleven. And that was the hardest thing because and then we hit some real bad injuries, which we're gonna be tough, but that's to me what made it steamroll where we didn't have a chance to make the playoffs.
So when I look at that stuff like that's the stuff that I feel we've got to mix it fix the most. And is that scheme is that personnel? I mean, that's that's football. You got to adjust I mean, your scheme changes when people are getting hurt, when you can't do exactly what you want to do.
It's happens on offense all the time.
You guys are going to see I hear it from you guys, but I mean the offense looks different when a different quarterback gets in there, it looks different, when Christian McCaffrey gets in there. It looks different all the time. And that's how defenses can be too. But you have to build it that way so you because it's really hard to just change something up and three days of practice. You got to have that foundation of how you implement
it and where you think the season can go. And that's what you really truly try to build in the off season and then in the training camp. And you know, that's something I think will be better at building this offseason, having a little bit more time to do it, being a little more prepared for it because we saw where it went last year. And that starts with getting a coordinator in here who can help us map that out.
And once we do map that out, it goes right to free agency and how to make sure we can get the best possible situation that we have out of the situation that we're in, and then it goes to the draft, and when that's over all the guys are here and then you get to work the same lines.
You mentioned a couple of weeks ago that you wanted to find the root causes for the down season beyond the injuries in your mind, what do you feel those root causes work? Yeah, you know, I think my point there was you don't just want to say it was injuries, you know, because like Kyle just mentioned, how we had games within our control in spite of it, Despite those injuries, we were in position to win a lot of games.
So I think you just want to dig deeper and you want to look at everything, and that's what we'll do. That's part of our process, that will always be part of our process. We can go more in depth this year. I think you always try to look for the positive in situations, and they're and a whole lot of positive, not being the playoff run. You have to make it a positive because we have this time, how are we
going to use it? And I think we can focus a little bit more on where we want to go, where we want to evolve in both personnel, scheme, all these things, and that's what we'll do.
We'll take advantage of the time.
In a sense, it kind of energizes you to come back and have this time to really put our minds and our staff's minds together to come out with the best to give us the best opportunity to compete going forward.
You've been doing this for a while now and drafted green Law and Jennings and Purdy and guys that are insane, insane competitors. Did you know going into the draft those guys were insane competitors? And how do you find more guys like that?
I can't say you always know like Juwan Jennings you could, We don't. We don't spend a lot of time watching like highlight tapes of off the off the Internet, but up in the draft, meaning someone said you should watch this highlight tape and so we did that.
With Jawan and it was and say it really was. It was.
So you kind of had an idea of the type of competitor. And I smile when I talk about you on because I love the way he plays, I love the way he competes. You know, you don't know on every player, but I think the process and the way we include everybody the way we we you know, we pair personnel staff with coaches and the thorough process we have.
It's a good process.
So you find guys like that, and uh, I think we're going to rely on that process and challenge to continue to get better. What we know is when we have consensus up there, we do really well. And you know we've done that and we need to continue to do that.
I want to make any changes to the offensive staff. And related to that, I don't clay. You let him call plays in the last game. Was how did he do there? And and do you expect his role to grow or shift within within that structure.
I thought he did an awesome job.
And Clay's roles going to be the same as it's been, which has been the offensive coordinator. He just hasn't had that title yet. I mean, Clay's done as much as anyone no offense for these last two years. So this was his second year doing that, and he gets better and better each year at it just hasn't had the official title yet. And now he'll get the official title, which he more than deserves. But it's it's more about, you know, recognizing what he's already been doing and doing at a high level.
Call plays or where you delegate that sometimes.
I mean, I mean, yeah, I'll continue to call plays, but it's I mean Clay and I have done everything here the last two years together kind of hand in hand, and we'll put the game plan in together. Yeah, I call it. Only one person can speak to the quarterback, but I mean him first or Flurry. Those are the guys that rely on through play calling throughout the game. It's not like I'm just in silence there calling every play.
You know, I'm disgusting them with the guys who've prepared for within the week, Disgusting what the guys are talking with their players and.
What they see.
And it's the same thing we all did for Clay versu Arizona.
Ricky went through. How do you both judge the season he had?
I thought Ricky had an unbelievable season. I mean, I know the gunshot wound is the biggest obviously, but I just I've never had a rookie player miss all of OTAs in training camp and have much of a successful
rookie year. It's tough to do that. For him to do that and then get into Week one, which I knew he would be way behind because of that situation and then get a gunshot wound kind of made me think that we were gonna get nothing from him, and just in terms of how could we and how hard that would be on him, but how quick he came back from that, and then when he did, just to watch him go through rookie things and alive NFL game and stuff and then have them to watch him come
back from that stuff throughout the year and still hit a rookie wall without a foundation of an offseason and stuff like that, I thought it was a huge success from this year.
I'd agree.
You know, you have these exit interviews and you always take away impressions and the coolest thing some of these rookies are typically they're just done. You think about it, long college year, right to combine training, you get drafted, you go OTAs all that Ricky one thing. He said to me, mister Lynch, I just want to keep playing because I feel like I'm just getting my feet underneath me. So that's really cool that he has that excitement and
he's going to use that. I said, Now, the key is you use that to motivate you through this offseason, and the best players they don't ever take a rest. They shut her down, the intensity and things like that, but they never rest, and so his mindset, I can tell's right.
He's a really good football player.
Proud of the way he handled a lot of adversity, things that nobody could anticipate and work through it. And I think we're going to have a really good football player.
I would On that note, behind behind the scenes.
We talked to Mooney Kinna for the first time yesterday since what happened in the trend and Chris, Chris Firster and Ricky. I mean, you guys had a lot of things that are not typical, pretty brutal mind scenes.
How hard that? How hard was that behind the scenes, and how did you both navigate?
I mean, that's it's that stuff's always tough, and I mean, and the football season is so intense for everyone. I mean, that's that's why anyone who's really been my friend over the last twenty years realizes these you're not going to know anything about them for about seven months because we kind of go into a hole and you get caught up in the season and all that stuff. But we all do have families and stuff out and that it does weigh on people, but like you still got to
come and you got to do your job. But like that stuff is hard, and you watch guys go through it, and it's you know, I think it. You know, you don't like to watch anyone go through some something tragic, but you really watch how impressive people can be going through that stuff.
Like it's when you watch.
People really grieve and things like that, it's you realize that's the hardest thing all humans have to deal with. But then to watch people who are grieving so badly and you still have to come into a room and then go perform at a high level, which is a whole different type of pressure, and to watch them handle it and get through it, you realize how much stronger some of this stuff makes those guys and then inspires guys around them, and it does make you closer at times.
But like I think our stuff was pretty documented this year, but there's stuff like that every year, maybe not as big, quite as big, or as many of them, but a lot of teams deal with that stuff and we've been
through a number over these years. And just what going through with Chris Firster and his wife last year, just her passing away a week before the Super Bowl and things like that, and going through it with Johnny over the years, when him battling his cancer and things like that, Like it's everyone has those tough moments in life, but when you have to do it through this, it's it is.
It is unique. But when you go through it, I think it does make.
People a little bit closer and a little bit stronger for going through some of those moments.
And that's the you know, this is a you know, it's a production based business and we're paid to win games, compete for championships. The one thing I will say acknowledging that we fell short of that standard. I am proud of this team, the way we hung together. Like Kyle said, there's always things and there's things behind the scenes that no one hears about. Frankly, one of the craziest things about this job. As a player, I prided myself with really knowing my teammates.
There's so much stuff I never knew that.
I'm disappointed that I didn't, because now as I sit in this seat, so much comes to you the challenges people are going through. But I will say that this season I've never had anything like it in terms of the amount, the severity, the unique circumstances, and I was proud of the way our team stuck together, had each other's backs and stayed together. And I do believe we'll be stronger for that.
It's really tough to find instant impact offensive linemen. Does Dominic Pooney's success this year help you identify or further crystallize the blueprint what you might be looking for.
I think it shows that our process worked there. And you know, but I would say he really exceeded our ex spectations. We thought we got a good player. I think he showed us a little more than that. And we were just talking about it upstairs. Everyone saw the real strong play, the consistent play. I think there's more
in the tank, you know, where he can grow. I think the toughness he dealt with some you know, he had an ac joint one week and you know, we were really questioning whether he could play on Sunday, and he practiced on Wednesday. And I've had that same injury. I always prided myself on having a high pain tolerance.
That stuff hurts, and he didn't miss a practice, So I think he's got the right mindset to and uh, yeah, we got to continue to to find guys like Tom because he's gonna be a good player for us.
How about you guys, assess, how would you assess brocks performance this year and how important is it.
For you to have him back, you know, in time for ts just given that he's the quarterback to throw that process.
Yeah, definitely it's poor to have our whole team back for Otas's that's actually it's you know, last year, you know our are it was like eight weeks after our last game that our guys needed to be back for voluntary work and stuff, which I think is real important.
In the year before that, it was it was like nine or ten weeks.
So these last two and then when we all got back, it was like you could tell we all were back, but you know, we wish we had a little bit more time.
And when I look at a calendar and now.
I realize we have fourteen weeks until we need to get back.
Like I expect everyone to be.
Ready to go, and you know, excited to really get this going and play some football, and that starts with Brock. Like Brock is the leader of our team. I've loved these three years with Brock. I plan on being with Brock here the whole time I'm here. So like Brock's been a stud. He's a guy got a lot of confidence in and just as a human. But it starts with what he's down on the field these last two and a half years and capable of winning a Super
Bowl with them. We just almost did. And and I know he's capable of getting the Niners Super Bowl in the future.
Five year run for that the champion cips.
I know he wasn't saying that's it, but do you do you think, you know, you need to kind of set the stage for another kind of error or another refreshing kind of what's been going on, Like what went on there was really good and now it shifts a little bit.
Yeah, I think it shifted in that time. Also, I think we went to Super Bowl in nineteen and the next time we went, we had you know, we went in nineteen, we had a rookie receiver and a veteran receiver, you know, and Debot and Emmanuel.
You know, the next time we went, we had ba.
You know, first time we had a different quarterback, and four years later it's Brock. I think we did have different guys on defense, you know, I think we look at I don't remember the numbers, but I feel like there was like eight guys who played in the nineteen Super Bowl. So I think we have already done that, and I think you got to do it again without
a doubt. I think when you do come up short like we did on February eleventh last year, I do think in the off season, when you know how close that could have been and it just comes down to a couple of plays, and everything you want to think about is how to make that up because you do believe this, You do believe you can do that again. And I think that's when people talk about windows and
stuff like that. And I think that's how we did spend our off season trying to look at how we could come back and make that game up and get to that point this.
Year and pull it off.
And we took our best shot at that and it didn't go right, and now we're going to do it again. Does that mean like every thought us to try to get to that right now? I think whenever you think that way, you're selling your organization short. You got to always think right now, but you got to think big picture too, which to me, and football is always on like a two to three year timeframe, and I think we've.
Been doing that really since we've been here.
We've never fully sold out for that year, but we always want to be competitive and feel like we have a chance to do that, and we felt that way about five years in a row, and we've gone to it twice and I feel like we had very good opportunities to win both of those games. And that's the thought process we're going to have every year Florida.
As a coach at GM, about yourself, about the team, with the whole Devandre Campbell episode.
What did We Want? Was the first thing about.
Yourself as a coach in the GM.
What I already knew.
That's something that we don't roll with and it was hard to stomach, and once we saw it, we were done with it.
You guys, he guys been doing this a while together now, and you guys know the way football is. You know, when you lose, it's it's.
A brutal game.
And and yet you need you guys don't point the finger at each other. The discussions always do we have enough talent? Was it coached well enough? How do you resist the urge to fracture? How do you stay united through the pressure of this whole thing.
I think that's that's why I really wanted him to be here with me. I mean, John got in this for the right intentions. It was to try to put together a team to win a Super Bowl, and that's what he's committed to. That's really the simplest way that everyone says. You know, but like in this business, you always go through hard times, but it's it's never just coaching and it's never just personnel. It's everything. That's why there's never a quick answer. Like on anything of football,
there's twenty two variables out there every play. There's a long season, there's lots of scheme that's involved, there's lots of talent that's involved, there's lots of just random stuff with injuries, referees, like schedules, weather.
There's so many things that goes into play.
And when if you're an organization where people's number one concern is surviving, which that doesn't mean they're a bad person. There's a lot of people who don't like to move their families and there's a lot of pressure on people
in that way. But when you know you know the character of a person and why people get into it, like John's not ever going to do something or talking away just to survive, and anyone who knows how I am, like, I'm not like that either, Like you're not going to make a decision just to escape goes someone or just to survive. That's it's hard to win this business because it's throw business and it's hard to tell your.
Family to move and things like that.
But that's to me what that's why John is who I wanted to work with because I knew why he was getting into it, and those are the things. And I also knew what we were gonna have to go through for a little bit, especially the first couple of years. And anyone who says they're going to be a certain way, and when you go through those hard times, it's human nature.
It's a little bit tougher to be that way. And that's why I feel so fortunate, And just the situation I am in with someone like John, with someone like Jed, with how his parents are, like, it's just I've never sat like I've had to. I can always just tell what I think from a football standpoint, and I know I'm going to get from John what he thinks from his football standpoint, it's not always the most fun answer.
You got admit a lot that you didn't.
Do right, but that's the truth of it, and that's the only way that you can consistently overcome things and find a way to consistently be successful.
Yeah, And I would just say it's it's respect and respect is earned. And you know, we felt a lot flignment when we came in here and that's only strengthened since we've been here, and that that doesn't always that's not always the case, and it's not just blind loyalty and blind trust. It's it's earned every year. It's earned every But what I know about Kyle, he's a good person. I know he gives us I say it all the time.
He gives us an advantage I think every every year, every week, and he's obsessed with always continuing to evolve and press the And I think when you have that, you have his natural instincts as a coach, you have the staff, people want to work with him, people want to work with us, and you know, it's you got to you got to come to grips with the successes, with the failures, but never lose lose what the ultimate goal is and I think we've been able to do that.
And we challenge each other, but we have each other's backs and that's a that's a good feeling. And you know, we got to keep forging ahead and get done what we came to get done here.
Uh, John with with the contract reworking for Jamon Hargrave kind of setting up the post June one, what have you expressed him about the plan and what you would except from him or whatever the case?
Maybe, Yeah, just that, Matt, it was a you know, we had some some salary cap challenges and and that was something that you know allowed for the post one you can early designate it. And what I told Javon is he's a player we really like, the same reason we went out and signed him. That hasn't changed. Uh, He's an impactful player. We did we did. We do have some challenges and so this doesn't mean we can't compete for his services.
It allows him though, rather than waiting.
Until post June one and being being soo because free agency already happened, it gives him an opportunity to go see what is market and that may include us.
So we'll get into our plans. We know Jayvon who he is.
He's on there, on a good track coming back from his injury, and you know, would we be interested in having them?
Of course?
Is that something we can come to an agreement on and is it something that fits in our plans?
We will see.
And that's that's the exact conversations I've had with Jamar.
Started free to see you're free, yes, yes, depots situation.
Debot's under contract, yeah back.
Yeah, a good player and has done a ton for this organization. And uh, you know we're not in the business of letting good players out of here.
So you just took my question. I don't want to waste anything. Uh, you had to with Armstead and Juice last year. Obviously different results, but you know that was something you had to do with the finances.
Do you expect to have to do more of that this offseason?
You know, we will see, you know you we'll see we do we do?
Uh, there there are realities, there's challenges. Like I said, we've got a lot of really good football players. Uh, the York family has been really good to letting us reward our players, and we've done that in a number of instances. That becomes tougher and tougher to continue to do so. We'll look at every avenue to become a better team, and we'll see where that takes us.
Appreciate thanks, thank you,