Chip Kelly’s weekly press conference came and went yesterday without any fireworks (not that there ever are any, really). The most animated he got was when he was asked about preparing for a rivalry game like Washington, and whether anything changes. I’ll let you guess how he reacted to that question (hint: “the Super Bowl” and “every game is” were the operative words). As for the rest, read away:
On how Washington has improved:
“They’re winning games. I think they’re playing better as a team; some of those guys that we’ll face: Devin Aguilar, Jermaine Kearse, (Chris) Polk, guys like that have played a lot of football, and they’re very, very experienced in certain spots. So I think offensively they’re very explosive. It starts with the running back, who can beat you catching it and running it. Very talented backup in (Jesse) Callier, I think their quarterback has…they lost the number eight pick in the NFL draft in Jake Locker and Keith (Price) has come in and has really lit it up. And I think he benefits from two real veteran receivers, and then even the other guys. James Johnson, who has played a ton of football for them, a third year guy for them, and then a true freshman tight end in Austin Seferian-Jenkins— maybe the best young tight end in the country. So I think they’ve got a lot of weapons, and I think scheme wise Sark has really put those guys in position to make plays.
On Washington’s defense:
“It’s always a very movement oriented group that will tax you, they seem like they’re a little bit more athletic at the second and third levels now, guys that can run around. They’ve got some veterans in there like (Cort) Dennison and Alameda (Ta’Amu), that have played a lot of football for them. (Desmond) Trufant’s played a lot for them, (Nate) Fellner’s played a lot for them, so they got some experience there mixed with in some youth, but it looks like the younger guys that are in there are real athletic and can run.”
On Keith Price and how he’s developed:
“He’s different now, he’s just got more experience. But I was real impressed with how he played, how he handled the atmosphere here in Autzen in the first start of his career. Some guys really struggle in this stadium, it’s a real difficult place for a first year quarterback to come in and play. I was really impressed, I remember just walking off the field and going, “That was a pretty good job by him.” And then it seemed like he picked right up where he left off. Very, very efficient passer, he’s thrown 22, 23 touchdowns this year, doesn’t turn the ball over very often, and it really seems like he’s got a great command of what is a very diverse offense. They do a lot of different things on offense, but to do a lot of different things you’ve gotta have a guy pulling the trigger that understands it, and it really seems like he has a great grasp of what their scheme is.”
On comparisons between LaMichael James and Chris Polk:
“I think they’re different. Chris is a different back; he’s a bigger, bruiser type guy. Different sizes, probably LaMichael maybe a little bit faster, but I think they’re different in terms of what they bring to the table.”
On defending Chris Polk:
“He’s a big, tough, physical back that can run behind his pads, and he can break a lot of tackles. And I think that’s a big, important thing for us, is how well do we tackle him? Because if you don’t wrap him up, he’s gonna keep running, and I think he’s got just kind of an innate ability to make people miss if he has to. But also, there’s a lot of guys that can make people miss, there’s a lot of people that can run people over; I think he can do both and that’s what makes him so dangerous.”
On Pac-12 officiating:
“I’m not going there (laughs). I left my wallet in the other room.”