Buccaneers Select Quotes: Monday, September 17, 2018

Below is a selection of Tampa Bay Buccaneers quotes from today's earlier media availability. Full video of press conferences can be found on Buccaneers.com.

Head Coach Dirk Koetter

(On how he feels about the way the team has responded to quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick)

"Well, I mean his numbers are off the charts. I guess how would you expect them – everybody – to respond? Of course, everybody's responded well. Out team's playing well. Our team's doing something that not many thought they could. We have a good locker room. Our guys believe in each other right now. Any player that's playing well – he's backing it up with his play – you get what you deserve."

(On if Fitzpatrick has earned the starting position when quarterback Jameis Winston returns)

"I won't be the one getting in to that because we'll worry about that when the time comes. Right now, right after I get out of here we're going to start working on Pittsburgh and that's all that matters right now. Everything else is in the future because it could all change like that."

(On how much more impressive the win against the Eagles is compared to the win over the Saints)

"I don't what you want me to say. The guy's played a lot of football – played a lot of NFL football. He's putting the ball on the money, he's making good decisions, he's not turning the ball over. The one interception that he's going to get credit for in no way was his fault. He's doing everything you want your quarterback to do and he's done it before. He's done this. I thought that was an interesting stat that I didn't know last week when he got NFC Offensive Player of the Week – they said it was his sixth time in his career. The guy's played good football and then just listen to what he says. He's on a team that has good players around him and we're protecting him [well]. I don't know what else to say."

(On how ball security contributes to the game)

"Two 75- yard touchdown in one game – that's the first time that's ever happened in my career. I think we've shown that we have explosive players. When a 15-yard pass over the middle to your tight end can turn into a 75-yard touchdown, it just stands to reason – if you don't screw it up yourselves, you keep putting the ball on the money, you're not getting sacks, you're protecting the guy, eventually your playmakers are going to make plays. That's what we're doing a good job of right now. That was not a work of art on offense yesterday. That first half was actually – take two big plays out of it and good drive right before the half – there [were] a lot of mistakes by us mixed in there: a penalty, dropped pass, dropped pass for an interception. We can do better. We have room to improve. Let's enjoy it and work on getting better. Get ready for Pittsburgh."

(On if the running game in the second half is a concern)

"We need to run the football better. We had too many MEs (mental errors) in the run game. MEs – whether it's in the run game or the pass game – are no good. We have to do better. We're scoring points and that's the bottom line – you've got to score more points than your opponent. Of course, you guys are all going to pick out the stuff we need to get better at and believe me we know what we need to get better at."

(On the chemistry between Fitzpatrick and the players)

"We did a good job in training camp with the players. That comes from the players buying in – the players communicating with each other. Winning also help that for sure."

(On what they did in the preseason to create that chemistry)

"We tried to get the players talking more in front of the other players. We did things – especially on the defensive side of the ball. Coach [Mike] Smith and the defensive staff going clear back into OTAs (Organized Training Activities) had different players talk about their life and where they came from – a way to get to know guys. Thomas [Bassinger] did that article and we had a team thing where we did a similar deal in groups of six or eight. We had players talk – different players talk on different topics during training camp. I think it was just good for those guys to hear each other talk."

(On if the additions to the defensive line has helped improve the offensive line)

"Absolutely, there's no question at all about that. We talked about that a week or so ago. We wanted to have a harder training camp. We tried to make it a harder training camp, but the defensive line set the tempo for that. Then the offensive line had to adjust or get crushed and that's not going to happen. George [Warhop] isn't going to let the O-line get crushed and 'Buck' (Brenston Buckner) isn't going to let the D-line get crushed, so that definitely happened. That helped our team in more ways than one.

(On how well safety Jordan Whitehead handled being thrown in the game)

"I think we had eight players on defense that if you counted their special teams plays, played over 70 plays in the game. Part of that is the time of possession was skewed – and that's where those 75-yard touchdowns, one-play drives. In that heat, to have eight guys play over 70 plays and then two of those eight were the rookie corners. When Jordan came in, I think Chris [Conte] was in the 40s with his play-count and then Jordan came in and played the rest. I thought Jordan came in and made a couple mistakes, but also made a couple nice hits."

(On what Fitzpatrick is like off the field)

"He's a fun guy to be around. Fitz is a fun guy to be around. Most of your team is in their early twenties and Fitz is older, but he relates to everybody. He relates to the young players, he relates to the old players, he relates to the coaches. He's just got an easy manner about him. He's witty, he's quick to make you laugh, he's sharp. He makes everybody feel comfortable and that's just one thing. Also, right now, he's backing it up with his play.

(On if defensive end Noah Spence is working his way back from the shoulder injury)

"Any time we don't have a guy active – we talked about this last week with Ronald Jones – that doesn't mean we're down on him. It doesn't mean [they've] regressed. It means, 'Ok, you can get 46 guys on gameday and we've got to get the 46 that we think give us the best chance to win that game,' – special teams has to factor into it. If you have five defensive ends up on game day, just like five wide receivers – four and five got to play on special teams. There's not enough guys if you don't do it that way."

(On if Spence is a special teams player)

"He works at it. He is working at it. He's not a starter on any special teams right now, so that's one thing that comes into play. We're not down on Noah. He's working extremely hard to work on the things that we've asked him to work on. It's not about not trying hard enough, not working hard enough, not caring enough. We're going to make the decisions that we think give us the best chance each week – we have to."

(On how Spence is handling not playing)

"He's disappointed. He wants to play, he wants to help, he wants to be a part of it. That's a good thing. That's all good. Noah, when he found out on Friday that he was going to be down, he came up and met with me on-on-one and we had a productive meeting. That's a sign of maturity on his part to come up and look me in the eye and talk it out man-to-man. I appreciate that. We didn't agree on everything, but we've got a plan in place to keep pushing forward."

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