Sept. 15, 2016
What are your thoughts on the wide receivers in terms of the way they have played, how they have rotated in and how hard it is to get as many guys into the game as possible in this offense?
Gattis: It's a challenge when you're dealing with the number of guys that we have. We're trying to rotate six or seven guys throughout the game and trying to make sure guys are getting the amount of reps to allow them to develop early in the season. Each game calls for a different game plan and obviously with the increased emergence of our tight ends, Mike Gesicki is playing really hard and playing really well, so we have a lot of confidence in him. We're asking guys to be unselfish right now. We're trying to be as balanced as we can be, not on ly in the pass game, but in the run game, especially when you have the backs that we have.
I've been very pleased with the way these guys have gone out and performed. Obviously offensively, we're still taking strides toward the offense that we want to be and I think we've shown going through, how explosive we can be in putting up the points and the yards and the numbers to be able to win games for us.
I wonder with DeAndre Thompkins, how has he done adjusting to a couple of new roles - at a different position and obviously a lot more playing time with the recent injuries?
Gattis: I've been very pleased with DeAndre. He's a guy who has had a great offseason. We talked about it before the season started, with who were the most improved players for us and that was Saeed Blacknall and DeAndre Thompkins. DeAndre is starting to show where all of his hard work and his dedication is really paying off. We have tremendous confidence in him. We know the kind of player that he can be and the player that he is so exciting to be able to go out there on Saturday's and for people to kind of see how hard work is really paying off. Our quarterbacks have tremendous confidence with him as well as the other receivers. So he is just another example of a guy who is just making the most of his opportunities and working hard each and every day to continue to develop to be the player that he wants to be.
I wanted to ask about DaeSean Hamilton, obviously he was pretty upset after the Pitt game. From your perspective, have you ever seen him like that before and what does that say about him?
Gattis: DaeSean is a true leader. He is a competitor and a guy who has a work ethic that is infectious. He has, probably, the greatest work ethic on the team, so he takes a lot of pride in how he performs and everything that he does. He's a guy who has made tremendous plays for us. I would never judge one man on one play. He's a guy who has 137 catches in his career at Penn State and I'll probably say half of those have been big at some point whether it's been on third down conversion, touchdowns or whatever. He knows the kind of player that he is and he knows the kind of player that he can be.
I think he stepped up as a leader last week. Not only in how he performed but in how you accept your performance after the fact, and he really showed other guys how passionate of player that he is. Players rallied around him and they respect him for who he is and how hard he works. When you go out and see his work ethic each and every day in practice, you can only respect him for the player that he is.
You've been through the emotions with someone like DaeSean Hamilton and maybe as a player probably yourself as well. What is the process for a receiver from start to finish, from the moment they miss that catch to recovering from that and getting through that?
Gattis: I think every player that has ever played and anybody professionally that does anything knows that not everyone has always had a perfect moment. I've had moments as a player where I've let myself down and I've let myself to a lower expectation and the neat thing is that learning from the experience and learning from the situation that happened and moving on. In DaeSean's case, he's a phenomenal player. I don't need to have to stand here and vouch for him because his history here, his past year and all the accolades he's received for the kind of player that he is.
It was great to see DaeSean come out this week and have a great week of practice. We put last weekend behind us, we're focused on this week and it shows in how we've prepared and how we've practiced this week. There was an increase and urgency in small details in everything for everyone across our whole team. So it's not just how one guy responds, but how does your team respond. We're very pleased this week with the week of practice that we've had. I think it's been one of our better weeks ever, but DaeSean's going to bounce back. We have the confidence in him and just as he has won plenty of games for us in the past, he'll continue to do that in the future.
How does DaeSean's skills fit well in having him in that slot position?
Gattis: I think everyone is overemphasizing the slot title, but DaeSean has spent up to 70 percent out of his past in the previous two years working out of the slot, just in our three wide receiver set. So he has a natural skill set inside, he's a great route runner. He has really good short area quickness, he has great feet. He is a student of the game, he understands the nuances of that position and how to get open and it shows. He's a great fit for us, we feel like he is a guy we can play at a number of positions because he can play any of our wide receiver positions. Although we label them as an "X, Z or H," we feel like we're still trying to put our best three guys out there on the field, but they can all be interchangeable.
How much do you think the pass game has improved from spring, when you installed the offense, to now?
Gattis: I think you're just now seeing it kind of touch the surface because each game plan is different. You're not going and carrying all of your passes in each game plan based on what opponent defenses do or based on your game plan to attack that defense that week. There's still a lot left that a lot of people haven't seen. A lot of different concepts and it's different from when you're practicing against your defense in your script in practice toward success in the games and obviously we've increased importance in our run game. I think what people are starting to see is small pieces of how dynamic this offense can be in the pass game, how dynamic this offense can be period, especially in the run game. As the weeks go on and we start facing different defenses and how they attack you, we'll see more and more of those roles increase.
Where do you think Juwan Johnson is it at with at this stage with his development? How is he doing for you guys and what are some areas where he needs to keep working at?
Gattis: Juwan Johnson is doing a fabulous job. He's doing a great job, he's being selfless and doing a lot of things, him and Irvin Charles. He's getting opportunities in the game. The tough thing with Juwan is that obviously he's behind a pro guy like Chris Godwin. If Juwan keeps developing at the rate that he's going, he's going to be a phenomenal player. We have a lot of confidence in him, his role is going to continue to increase on offense, but it's hard when you have seven guys to try to kind of make sure everybody is getting the same opportunity if Juwan's in then who's out. There will always be the question of how to get the right players on the field and how to get them the right amount of time. We're working through that right now, but Juwan has been a phenomenal player for us as a young guy and he has a very, very bright future if he keeps developing, keeps learning from Chris.
Chris Godwin seems like the stability factor within the unit, with all the talent. Can you speak to his intangible factors and also, what he's like in the film room?
Gattis: Chris is a phenomenal kid to coach. It doesn't get better than No. 12, just a great kid. He has a wonderful skill set. He's a pro football player, that is who he is. He has really great speed, great ball skills, he has great body control. He is a guy who can stop on a dime, a guy who can make great adjustments and step up. I think he has a lot of physical ability that makes him the player that he is. He is also very, very savvy. He's a smart football player, he's mature. You'll never see Chris rattled, you'll never see him too hype or too low. That's the thing, he stays who he is no matter what the situation is and he's very humble. He shows up every day and he wants to work on things. He'll constantly comes to me and say 'hey coach what do I need to work on' or 'how should I run this route and what should I do' and it's those things to perform at his level that he's always trying to get more and more information to get himself better than that's what leads to a success.
I can't be more thrilled for Chris and I think people respect him across the country for who he is. He is a reliable player. He is a guy who, when the ball is in the air to him, you feel very confident that he's going to make the play.