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Offensive Coordinator Scott Turner talked about the injuries that are piling up at wide receiver. The group was already young, but will now likely have two guys from that practice squad called up to replace Antonio Gandy-Golden and Isaiah Wright. The offense will have to make adjustments, be flexible and get players ready to do things they wouldn’t normally do.
Turner talked about the spacing issues that a lot of people have been pointing to in recent weeks. He basically blamed the receiver for not running the plays as they were designed, but said the spacing has generally been good. Another complaint about his offense is they haven’t been taking shots downfield enough. Turned blamed this on the Giants defense and their ability to prevent big plays. He didn’t want to “force it”.
Turner won’t underestimate the Dallas Cowboys defense even though they are one of the worst in the league this year. He said they still have good players who can make plays every week.
Scott Turner Presser
Wide Receiver:
Scott Turner is addressing the media. Washington has some injuries at WR. He wants the players available to know they're going to get opportunities, so they need to step up and produce.
— Zach Selby (@ZachDSelby) October 21, 2020
Turner said the team will evaluate who it has healthy at WR. The offense will have to make adjustments, be flexible and get players ready to do things they wouldn't normally do.
— Zach Selby (@ZachDSelby) October 21, 2020
Turner said there's a fine line when calling plays with inexperienced wide receivers. It does not limit what they can do offensively, but the plays just have to be more specific.
— Kyle Stackpole (@kylefstackpole) October 21, 2020
Spacing issues:
“There have been some times where we’ve had to make some adjustments. Maybe a guy will slow down a little early or maybe make a break a little short and the spacing will be off. But I think for the most part, it’s been good. I think some of those things you talked about with down the field, that’s something that we’ve talked about. Obviously, we’ve talked about it in these sessions with getting some throws down the field. Last week against the Giants, their defense is really geared toward preventing those types of throws. They had only given up 13 throws over 20 yards going into our game. I think we had three, which is about the average of what they had been giving up. Certain defenses are going to give you certain things. It’s not wise of you to try to force it, but that’s definitely an area we need to improve.”
3rd downs:
Washington was 53% on third downs. Turner said as a group, the offense did a good job of executing. Kyle Allen did a good job of keeping plays alive and extending drive. Washington has not been good on third downs, so Sunday was a positive step.
— Zach Selby (@ZachDSelby) October 21, 2020
Scott Turner said he liked how they handled third downs last week. Washington converted 8-of-15 third downs... Allen completed 10-of-12 passes for 97 yards and 7 first downs on third down... how you extend drives...
— John Keim (@john_keim) October 21, 2020
Dallas vs Washington rivalry:
Turner said rivalries are normally felt more so on game day as opposed to the days leading up to it. This week will be different, obviously.
— Zach Selby (@ZachDSelby) October 21, 2020
Cowboys defense:
Dallas has one of the worst statistical defense through six games, but Turner doesn't want Washington to overlook a division opponent. There are good players on Dallas' defense, he said, and Washington will need to be ready.
— Zach Selby (@ZachDSelby) October 21, 2020
Trust the process:
Turner said the daily energy and enthusiasm from the players has been "outstanding."
— Kyle Stackpole (@kylefstackpole) October 21, 2020
"Ultimately, we're going to get where we want to go."
Washington’s offense:
Turner said the offense will do whatever it can to be the better team on Sunday. There is an extra challenge this week with injuries at wide receiver, but Turner said the offense will look at every opportunity.
— Zach Selby (@ZachDSelby) October 21, 2020
Turner said Rivera is telling the offense he believes in them when he elects to convert a fourth down. As a competitor, he relishes that and wants that opportunity.
— Zach Selby (@ZachDSelby) October 21, 2020
Antonio Gibson:
Scott Turner on Antonio Gibson as a WR - "Antonio's got an interesting skill-set" and says it's absolutely something they want to expand on but "can he mentally do it" along with everything else they are asking of him. #WashingtonFootball
— Chris Russell AKA The Rooster (@Russellmania621) October 21, 2020
Scott Turner on RB Antonio Gibson being able to play receiver: "Definitely something that we would like to expand on."
— Kyle Stackpole (@kylefstackpole) October 21, 2020
Said he has the physical tools to do both. It's more a matter of gradually expanding his responsibilities as he gets more experience.
Kyle Allen said the team has been putting a big emphasis on playing better on third downs. They improved last week, but need to continue to play better every week. He takes all the blame for his fumble last week, but quickly moved on to try to put the team in a position to win the game. He felt like he let the other players down, and he expects more from himself.
Press Conference: Kyle AllenKyle Allen spoke to the media about how he has improved in the offense, Coach Rivera's mentality and more.
Posted by Washington Football Team on Wednesday, October 21, 2020
Kyle Allen
3rd downs:
Kyle Allen is addressing the media now. He said there was a big emphasis for playing better on third down. They sustained longer drives, but the offense overall still needs to play better.
— Zach Selby (@ZachDSelby) October 21, 2020
Allen said a big emphasis coming into the Giants' game was converting third downs. The offense delivered, converting more than 50% of those opportunities and converting both fourth downs.
— Kyle Stackpole (@kylefstackpole) October 21, 2020
Fumble vs the Giants:
Kyle Allen said after the fumble, "walking off the field I'm thinking, what an idiot I was..."
— John Keim (@john_keim) October 21, 2020
Said he quickly replaced that with: "It's a new situation; two-minute drill lets go tie the game up."
Mental Toughness:
Allen said his mental toughness comes from how he has developed over his career. It's become who he is as a player, and it shows up a lot on Sunday, he said, and he is proud of that part of his skillset.
— Zach Selby (@ZachDSelby) October 21, 2020
Allen's initial reaction to the fumble return for a TD: "The worst thing I could have done in that situation."
— Kyle Stackpole (@kylefstackpole) October 21, 2020
But then Scott Turner and Alex Smith reminded him that there was still time left to overcome his mistake. Their encouragement helped.
Wide receivers:
Allen might have to throw to some different receivers this week. He said the players need to prepare themselves, but he added that he needs to do what he can to help them get ready.
— Zach Selby (@ZachDSelby) October 21, 2020
Antonio Gibson/J.D. McKissic:
Allen said J.D. McKissic and Antonio Gibson have staples of their offense. The more Gibson grows as a player, the more responsibilities he will be given.
— Zach Selby (@ZachDSelby) October 21, 2020
Mental toughness:
Allen credits his mental toughness to his collegiate and professional experience. Allen went from being a highly touted recruit to transferring to being an undrafted rookie to starting to backing up and now starting again.
— Kyle Stackpole (@kylefstackpole) October 21, 2020
Washington vs Dallas Rivalry:
Allen admits he did not watch Washington-Cowboys games growing up. He lived on the West Coast, so he got the 49ers-Rams games. That said, he understands the rivalry.
— Kyle Stackpole (@kylefstackpole) October 21, 2020
High volume offense:
Kyle Allen spoke to the media about how he has improved in the offense.
— Washington Football Team (@WashingtonNFL) October 21, 2020
Kyle Allen says the #WashingtonFootball scheme is a "high-volume offense" and that he is still learning the nuances and the all of the reads.
— Chris Russell AKA The Rooster (@Russellmania621) October 21, 2020
Can notice an improvement from last year, when to break the pocket etc.
Prepared to start:
Allen said that even before Alex Smith was named the backup, he was "preparing his ass off."
— Kyle Stackpole (@kylefstackpole) October 21, 2020
"He's been as locked in as anybody in this building."
Turnovers:
Allen knows the type of player he is and believes he is capable of making big plays. He expects more from himself after committing two turnovers Sunday.
— Zach Selby (@ZachDSelby) October 21, 2020
Allen provides an honest assessment of his turnovers: "I feel like I let the guys down a little bit. ...I expect more out of myself."
— Kyle Stackpole (@kylefstackpole) October 21, 2020
Ron Rivera:
Kyle Allen on River's mindset - "We're trying to create a winning mentality here.....It's an aggressive mentality."
— Chris Russell AKA The Rooster (@Russellmania621) October 21, 2020
NFC East:
Allen brings up how @WashingtonNFL is a very young team that would have benefitted greatly from an offseason. But every week, he has seen growth from this team. And being only 1 game out of first place, he still sees an opportunity to fight for this division.
— Kyle Stackpole (@kylefstackpole) October 21, 2020
Scott Turner:
Allen doesn't feel like the offense is limited by the youth of the team. Everyone challenges each other to be better. He said Turner puts a lot of trust on the players to learn how to play in the offense because there are chances to succeed in his system.
— Zach Selby (@ZachDSelby) October 21, 2020