Post by MizzouTiger on Jan 19, 2008 14:56:57 GMT -5
www.kcchiefs.com/news/2008/01/19/herm_edwards_and_chan_gailey/
Herm Edwards and Chan Gailey
Jan 19, 2008, 12:27:03 PM
EDWARDS: “We’re here to introduce Chan Gailey as our new offensive coordinator. He’s highly regarded in this league and he kind of goes back a long way for me.
“When I was first in Kansas City, Chan was involved in Pittsburgh and I got familiar with him there. I’ve followed Chan’s career and being a defensive guy you always consider the coordinators that you play against. I can tell you that he’s always had very tough, physical football teams and they were balanced offensively. Preparing for teams like his is very, very hard because those teams are never predictable.
“He’s also been in situations where he has had to coach a young quarterback. One that comes to mind is QB Kordell Stewart and he coordinated a system that allowed Kordell to be successful.
“He’s also coached a veteran team when he was the head coach in Dallas and in Miami he found a way to coordinate with an older quarterback. So he’s been in a lot of different venues.
“Also, the fact that he’s coached a lot of younger players the last six years at Georgia Tech make him valuable, because it is those type of players that he is going to find on this football team, especially offensively. We have a lot of holes to fill over there and he will get an opportunity to coach those guys. I think he’s a great fit for us; our philosophies are similar. He will be able to simplify things for young guys to be able to play and for us that is key. Young players have to be able to play for us. He is a veteran play caller and that’s very important for us in this situation since we are having to change coordinators. He understands a team concept on how to play football and I think that is very, very important. He’s a good fit and we’re glad to have him on board.“
GAILEY: “First, I want to thank Herm Edwards, Carl Peterson and everybody involved in bringing me here, it’s a great opportunity. I’ve been in this stadium a lot on the other side and it’s great to be on this side for a change because I’ve walked out with my tail tucked between my legs a few times and it’s fun to be on this side now.
“I look at the challenge we have here, but I also look at the opportunity. I’m looking forward to working with the players that we have on board now and then incorporating the new players that we will bring in and put to use. As Herm said, we are going to try to be balanced, unpredictable, physical, tough and not give up sacks. The objective is to score one more point than the other team every week. That’s the objective“
Q: Herm, will you allow Chan full control of the offense?
EDWARDS: “I’ve always done that. I’ve never been a head coach to get involved in play calling during the course of a game. I give my opinion during the course of the game, but I’m not a guy who stands on the sidelines and second guesses a coordinator. He’s an excellent play-caller. I don’t think he’s going to need a lot of my help.“
Q: Can you talk about your offensive philosophy?
EDWARDS: “I think the one thing that we both agree on is that you have to be tough. I think some people just assume that just because you play football you are tough. But you have to have tough-minded players and you have to be able to win in the fourth quarter in our league. Most games are tight and if you look at our games this year the games were tight in the fourth quarter and we didn’t win them.
“We need to win and you have to be tough enough when everyone in the ballpark knows that you are going to run the ball on third-and-one or fourth-and-one. You’re not going to throw a pass. You’re going to run the ball. Your going to be a tough football team. That’s a mindset that you have to build within your football team.
“Our ability to score points is very simple. You have to throw the ball but you have to throw it when you have the opportunity to make big plays and you don’t put the quarterback in situations where it’s a known down – in other words, where you’ve got to throw. You want to be balanced where you can take shots at people but don’t turn the ball over. We turned the ball over 33 times this year and had 125 negative plays and were sacked 50 some times. You’re not going to be very successful offensively doing that.
“I think he understands that and as you watch his teams play they’ve always been in the plus percentage on giveaway-takeaway. He’s had offenses that have been wide-open that have thrown the ball, but that have run the ball, too. You always want that balance and we were not balanced this year. We threw the ball more than we ran the ball. That’s not good – that’s not good for anybody. We couldn’t survive that way and that’s why there were so many negative plays. We got predictable and had to throw the ball way too much.
“You throw to score and you run to win. That’s what I believe.“
Q: You could have had many opportunities to be a coordinator in this league . This may not have been the best. Why did you come here?
GAILEY: “There are several reasons, but I’ll give you a couple: one is the guy that is sitting next to me. I did not know Herm but I knew a lot about him and people and knew him. The way that he handles things and runs things and treats people…we do have similar philosophies. Also, the opportunity to work for an organization that I think is one of the best-run organizations in the league. That’s important to me and I used to recruit Kansas City and I used to tell my wife that Kansas City is a great town. That was part of it. Then I looked at the opportunity with the personnel that is here. I think that we can work with some of the players that we have here and get well in a hurry.“
Q: Did you develop the whole Kordell Stewart “Slash” offense? If so, how did that come about?
GAILEY: “You never take all of the credit for everything in this business. Our staff came up with it, yes, and I happened to be the coordinator at the time.
“We just looked at it and tried to find a way to take a good player and let him do what he could do. To me, the successful people in our business take guys with ability and put them in position to be successful. If you have to pick a philosophy, that’s my philosophy. There is no name for our offense, we are just trying to take whoever we have and put them in a position to be successful.“
Q: When you simplify an offense do you look at what you have and then form something?
GAILEY: “Yeah, we’ve got a way we do things and we’ve got some beliefs that are ball-control, power running game, take shots [down the field], red zone attack – those things that you develop and you believe in. But at the same time you’ve got to be flexible enough to take the guys that you have and work with those abilities to be successful.“
Q: You’re going to be dealing with a young quarterback here. What’s your take on Brodie Croyle?
GAILEY: “First of all, I would like to tell you that I have looked at every film from last year but I haven’t. But I have seen enough to know that I think there is a good deal of talent in Brodie and I think he’s got a chance to be a very good quarterback.
“Everybody falls into the category of until they are really good they have the chance to be. Everybody falls into the category, ‘they have the chance to be.’ So, if we can put him in good positions and he continues to work and it works together I think he’s going to be a very good quarterback before it’s over with. We’ll see.“
Q: Herm, going through the process of interviewing, did you feel you had to go with someone with the experience that Chan had?
EDWARDS: “That was one of the criteria’s but more than that it was, was he going to fit. We had known each other but we really hadn’t sat down. But the more we talked the more I felt very comfortable with how he’s going to do things. He said a key thing earlier: it’s not about what you call your system, the system is the players. When we talked right there the light-bulb went off in my mind. This guy has been coaching a long time and he said the right words. It’s about the players.
“It’s about the players you have and how you’re going to make them successful. What they can do well you develop your plan around. Now, you’re going to have certain things you believe in but at the end it’s about the players.
“With that being said and the situation that we’re in having a young football team it’s very important that he stands before the players that he has experience. He brings wisdom when he talks to players.
“One thing about veteran players when you hire a coach the first thing they do is get on the phone and call. A bunch have already called me and said they’re excited.
“But at the end, his ability to coach young players, veteran players and the fact that’s he done it successfully.“
Q: How do you go about the art of calling of plays? What do you enjoy the most about that?
GAILEY: “I’m not sure I have an answer for that. I don’t know what is the most enjoyable thing. The challenge of the chess match is always fun. I like the week as much as I like game day – the preparation during the week to figure out what they’re tendencies might be, making sure that we self-scout and don’t have tendencies ourselves and formulating a game plan that allows the players to be successful on the field. Then going on the field and staying with the game plan until they show something different and then you play the chess match.
“There is an excitement about game day that makes the game what it is. That’s why it’s such a great game. If it was just stats we’d know who was going to win every week. You get in the game and unusual things happen.
Q: How important is it to be flexible?
GAILEY: “Very important. You can be hard-headed if you want to be but you probably won’t be very successful. I’ve learned one thing: just because it looked good on Wednesday night doesn’t mean it’s going to be successful on Sunday. If they change you had better be ready to change.
Q: Looking at the offensive line how quick can you fix it and is there anything you can do scheme-wise to help it?
GAILEY: “We’re going to sit down. We’ve already had discussions on the direction we want to go. I think that’s something we’ll have more discussions about and what exactly is going to happen.
“There are things you can do to help certain areas be successful. Now every time you give up something over here you take away from over there. That’s the balance. You can make it so easy on the offensive line that you make it hard on the quarterback. So, you’re always trying to balance that.“
Q: Has being away from the NFL coaching in the college ranks hurt you?
GAILEY: “When I left [Georgia] Tech I went over to the Falcons and watched tapes for two days just to see what had changed. There were a few things but it wasn’t that different.
“There are a few differences. Matter of fact, I learned a lot in college. There are a lot of stuff going on in college football that will make me better.”
Herm Edwards and Chan Gailey
Jan 19, 2008, 12:27:03 PM
EDWARDS: “We’re here to introduce Chan Gailey as our new offensive coordinator. He’s highly regarded in this league and he kind of goes back a long way for me.
“When I was first in Kansas City, Chan was involved in Pittsburgh and I got familiar with him there. I’ve followed Chan’s career and being a defensive guy you always consider the coordinators that you play against. I can tell you that he’s always had very tough, physical football teams and they were balanced offensively. Preparing for teams like his is very, very hard because those teams are never predictable.
“He’s also been in situations where he has had to coach a young quarterback. One that comes to mind is QB Kordell Stewart and he coordinated a system that allowed Kordell to be successful.
“He’s also coached a veteran team when he was the head coach in Dallas and in Miami he found a way to coordinate with an older quarterback. So he’s been in a lot of different venues.
“Also, the fact that he’s coached a lot of younger players the last six years at Georgia Tech make him valuable, because it is those type of players that he is going to find on this football team, especially offensively. We have a lot of holes to fill over there and he will get an opportunity to coach those guys. I think he’s a great fit for us; our philosophies are similar. He will be able to simplify things for young guys to be able to play and for us that is key. Young players have to be able to play for us. He is a veteran play caller and that’s very important for us in this situation since we are having to change coordinators. He understands a team concept on how to play football and I think that is very, very important. He’s a good fit and we’re glad to have him on board.“
GAILEY: “First, I want to thank Herm Edwards, Carl Peterson and everybody involved in bringing me here, it’s a great opportunity. I’ve been in this stadium a lot on the other side and it’s great to be on this side for a change because I’ve walked out with my tail tucked between my legs a few times and it’s fun to be on this side now.
“I look at the challenge we have here, but I also look at the opportunity. I’m looking forward to working with the players that we have on board now and then incorporating the new players that we will bring in and put to use. As Herm said, we are going to try to be balanced, unpredictable, physical, tough and not give up sacks. The objective is to score one more point than the other team every week. That’s the objective“
Q: Herm, will you allow Chan full control of the offense?
EDWARDS: “I’ve always done that. I’ve never been a head coach to get involved in play calling during the course of a game. I give my opinion during the course of the game, but I’m not a guy who stands on the sidelines and second guesses a coordinator. He’s an excellent play-caller. I don’t think he’s going to need a lot of my help.“
Q: Can you talk about your offensive philosophy?
EDWARDS: “I think the one thing that we both agree on is that you have to be tough. I think some people just assume that just because you play football you are tough. But you have to have tough-minded players and you have to be able to win in the fourth quarter in our league. Most games are tight and if you look at our games this year the games were tight in the fourth quarter and we didn’t win them.
“We need to win and you have to be tough enough when everyone in the ballpark knows that you are going to run the ball on third-and-one or fourth-and-one. You’re not going to throw a pass. You’re going to run the ball. Your going to be a tough football team. That’s a mindset that you have to build within your football team.
“Our ability to score points is very simple. You have to throw the ball but you have to throw it when you have the opportunity to make big plays and you don’t put the quarterback in situations where it’s a known down – in other words, where you’ve got to throw. You want to be balanced where you can take shots at people but don’t turn the ball over. We turned the ball over 33 times this year and had 125 negative plays and were sacked 50 some times. You’re not going to be very successful offensively doing that.
“I think he understands that and as you watch his teams play they’ve always been in the plus percentage on giveaway-takeaway. He’s had offenses that have been wide-open that have thrown the ball, but that have run the ball, too. You always want that balance and we were not balanced this year. We threw the ball more than we ran the ball. That’s not good – that’s not good for anybody. We couldn’t survive that way and that’s why there were so many negative plays. We got predictable and had to throw the ball way too much.
“You throw to score and you run to win. That’s what I believe.“
Q: You could have had many opportunities to be a coordinator in this league . This may not have been the best. Why did you come here?
GAILEY: “There are several reasons, but I’ll give you a couple: one is the guy that is sitting next to me. I did not know Herm but I knew a lot about him and people and knew him. The way that he handles things and runs things and treats people…we do have similar philosophies. Also, the opportunity to work for an organization that I think is one of the best-run organizations in the league. That’s important to me and I used to recruit Kansas City and I used to tell my wife that Kansas City is a great town. That was part of it. Then I looked at the opportunity with the personnel that is here. I think that we can work with some of the players that we have here and get well in a hurry.“
Q: Did you develop the whole Kordell Stewart “Slash” offense? If so, how did that come about?
GAILEY: “You never take all of the credit for everything in this business. Our staff came up with it, yes, and I happened to be the coordinator at the time.
“We just looked at it and tried to find a way to take a good player and let him do what he could do. To me, the successful people in our business take guys with ability and put them in position to be successful. If you have to pick a philosophy, that’s my philosophy. There is no name for our offense, we are just trying to take whoever we have and put them in a position to be successful.“
Q: When you simplify an offense do you look at what you have and then form something?
GAILEY: “Yeah, we’ve got a way we do things and we’ve got some beliefs that are ball-control, power running game, take shots [down the field], red zone attack – those things that you develop and you believe in. But at the same time you’ve got to be flexible enough to take the guys that you have and work with those abilities to be successful.“
Q: You’re going to be dealing with a young quarterback here. What’s your take on Brodie Croyle?
GAILEY: “First of all, I would like to tell you that I have looked at every film from last year but I haven’t. But I have seen enough to know that I think there is a good deal of talent in Brodie and I think he’s got a chance to be a very good quarterback.
“Everybody falls into the category of until they are really good they have the chance to be. Everybody falls into the category, ‘they have the chance to be.’ So, if we can put him in good positions and he continues to work and it works together I think he’s going to be a very good quarterback before it’s over with. We’ll see.“
Q: Herm, going through the process of interviewing, did you feel you had to go with someone with the experience that Chan had?
EDWARDS: “That was one of the criteria’s but more than that it was, was he going to fit. We had known each other but we really hadn’t sat down. But the more we talked the more I felt very comfortable with how he’s going to do things. He said a key thing earlier: it’s not about what you call your system, the system is the players. When we talked right there the light-bulb went off in my mind. This guy has been coaching a long time and he said the right words. It’s about the players.
“It’s about the players you have and how you’re going to make them successful. What they can do well you develop your plan around. Now, you’re going to have certain things you believe in but at the end it’s about the players.
“With that being said and the situation that we’re in having a young football team it’s very important that he stands before the players that he has experience. He brings wisdom when he talks to players.
“One thing about veteran players when you hire a coach the first thing they do is get on the phone and call. A bunch have already called me and said they’re excited.
“But at the end, his ability to coach young players, veteran players and the fact that’s he done it successfully.“
Q: How do you go about the art of calling of plays? What do you enjoy the most about that?
GAILEY: “I’m not sure I have an answer for that. I don’t know what is the most enjoyable thing. The challenge of the chess match is always fun. I like the week as much as I like game day – the preparation during the week to figure out what they’re tendencies might be, making sure that we self-scout and don’t have tendencies ourselves and formulating a game plan that allows the players to be successful on the field. Then going on the field and staying with the game plan until they show something different and then you play the chess match.
“There is an excitement about game day that makes the game what it is. That’s why it’s such a great game. If it was just stats we’d know who was going to win every week. You get in the game and unusual things happen.
Q: How important is it to be flexible?
GAILEY: “Very important. You can be hard-headed if you want to be but you probably won’t be very successful. I’ve learned one thing: just because it looked good on Wednesday night doesn’t mean it’s going to be successful on Sunday. If they change you had better be ready to change.
Q: Looking at the offensive line how quick can you fix it and is there anything you can do scheme-wise to help it?
GAILEY: “We’re going to sit down. We’ve already had discussions on the direction we want to go. I think that’s something we’ll have more discussions about and what exactly is going to happen.
“There are things you can do to help certain areas be successful. Now every time you give up something over here you take away from over there. That’s the balance. You can make it so easy on the offensive line that you make it hard on the quarterback. So, you’re always trying to balance that.“
Q: Has being away from the NFL coaching in the college ranks hurt you?
GAILEY: “When I left [Georgia] Tech I went over to the Falcons and watched tapes for two days just to see what had changed. There were a few things but it wasn’t that different.
“There are a few differences. Matter of fact, I learned a lot in college. There are a lot of stuff going on in college football that will make me better.”