Talk us through your Week 12 Game, What did you like, what didn't you like?
Wow, that was not what we expected on our home field. Before we get started let me just say you will hear me use the word inconsistency a lot through this presser. Now, I really wish I could polish something out there to make it seem shiny but the truth is, once again our inconsistency showed. I won’t be a stickler, our special teams did well, congrats to Eric West on that big performance. That is all I can really boast about. I said this game could be a measuring stick for us and if so then we have a lot of work to do going forward. We are further behind than I initially thought. I obviously thought we would go out there and do a much better job considering how we have been playing the last few games. But we got dominated in all facets. We got 7 first downs while we gave up 22 of them. We gave up nearly 500 yards of offense while failing to break 200. We gave up 100 yards to two different running backs. I said last week if we played the same game we played last week, normally we should have lost. Well, we did, and we did. There are a lot of things to think about going forward. We have 3 of the next 5 games at home against some pretty good competition as we close out with some divisional games. We will be better once Evans comes back but that was not the only place we are struggling at. Games like this really tell us where we need the most improvement and if we are going to compete we are going to need our defense to really step up because it doesn’t get easier.
What did you think of the All-Star skills challenges?
Well I am happy everyone walked away in good health. Those were some pretty tough competitions out there and those guys were really competing. Almost felt like a school yard atmosphere. It’s good to let these guys go out there and put on a show and showcase themselves. As a GM I like seeing the true versatility and skills of players who may or may not have opportunity to be wearing a Warriors uniform next season. With the impending off season soon approaching I was out there with a pen and pad taking notes. I know a lot of those guys will use this skills challenge to get bigger pay days so this off season will be a fun one.
What did you think of the All-Star Game itself?
The winner will always think better of the outcome than the loser. Like I said, I think GM Jon has done a great job over there in Seattle but he got a little ahead of himself by thinking all those Seattle players could truly compete with the cream of the crop of this league. They are a good team and are ahead of us in the rebuilding stage but they are only one season removed from being one of the worst teams in the league. They will get there eventually but I hope future GM’s who have the opportunity to pick teams learns a lesson from this. Congrats to GM Kirk, he proved not only he actually knows what he’s doing but that we didn’t need a lot of players he snubbed to win. Not sure if it was luck or tenacity but either way, he chose the team that took down a West coast team many thought would dominate the East.
With the Minor League Call Up Window here once again, do you plan on calling up any players?
I would love to give you an answer here but that is something I have to talk to my coaches about. Calling guys up requires roster movement and we have to feel like it’s worth messing with team chemistry. We are already dealing with a lot of highs and lows during this season. Also, we have to take into consideration that we would be taking players who are learning at their own pace without the constant eyes of the world watching. They are gaining the skills they need and to suddenly throw them into the fire just because the opportunity is there can be very detrimental to the growth of a young player trying to make it in this league.
Talk about your game this upcoming week, and how do you feel about the final five games of the regular season?
Well what can I say, we have no easy task ahead of us as we travel to Orlando this week. The last time they were here they won by ten. Obviously, we haven’t done well on the road and they are coming off of a game in which they completely dismantled the world champs. We got our hands full definitely. Hopeful, this week that passed we can chalk up to the inconsistency bug that has plagued us all year. Next week we will go back, watch some video and hopefully be ready to really give Orlando a game. Considering our inconsistency I wouldn’t be surprise if we went out there and got a big win just like I know everyone here won’t be surprised if we walked away with another L, it just speaks to how inconsistent we have been. Again, 3 of the last games are at home. Going into this past week I actually looked at the standings and thought, “”WOW, we are two games out the wildcard hunt” nothing is impossible but this past game didn’t help. Listen, I love this team, the players and the coaching staff and I expect better and I hope they do too. Thank you, if there are no other questions the coaches and I have to speak about this upcoming week.
