Chiefs HEAD COACH TODD HALEY – Draft Press Conference

**Tribal Warfare** · 04-22-2010, 09:38 PM

HEAD COACH TODD HALEY – Draft Press Conference

PR Staff

Posted 1 hour ago

HALEY: “Good evening everyone. I’m happy to announce, as you all know, that Eric Berry is the newest member of the Kansas City Chiefs. I know we’re all very excited about making him a part of this team. He’s been a highly successful college player that comes from a football background. I think he’s high character off-the-field and I think his ability speaks for itself and again, we’re just excited the way this night started out for us. Excited about the way this has gone after our first pick anyway.”

Q: Why him with the fifth overall pick?

HALEY: “I think we’ve done a lot of research. We’ve worked a lot of players out. We’ve spent a lot of time with a number of different players both in this building and outside of this building – Eric being one of them. As time went on, it just became more and more clear that this was the fit for us for a lot of different reasons. This is a kid, without talking personally about him, but on Fridays of game week they’d find him in the equipment room helping the equipment manager shine the helmets before a game day Saturday at Tennessee. Little things like that on top of what you see on the football field, I think it just became clear that this was the guy for the Chiefs.”

Q: Last year when you drafted DE Tyson Jackson, you and (General Manager) Scott Pioli compared him to Russell Maryland in terms of potential impact. Is there someone you could compare Eric Berry to in that regard?

HALEY: “No, not somebody that I would right now, Adam. I just think Eric has the characteristics that we’re looking for: captain of his college team; extremely productive; loves football, I think that’s clear when you’re around him for any period of time; competitive; and I think that’s just what he’ll do, I think he’ll come in here and amp the competition up and not just the secondary but all the areas, because I think when you get players like this, they tend to push other players.”

Q: When did you decide on him?

HALEY: “I think it’s been building. I don’t know that I have a specific time but there were just a bunch of those points during this process that Scott and I would look at each other, whisper to each other that this might be the guy.”

Q: So when you walked in here today, that’s the guy you wanted?

HALEY: “Yeah.”

Q: Was it an easy decision?

HALEY: “Yeah, it was.”

Q: Only five safeties have been taken in the top five of the draft since the merger in ’70. Why do you think that has been and why have you guys decided to buck the trend right now?

HALEY: “This was the fit for us. I don’t think we were going to let a lot of things take us out of that, pigeon-holing ourselves, so to speak. At the same time, I think the game’s a little different. You look at some of the numbers around the league, specifically the last two years; you better have some guys to defend the pass. Though we have needs in a lot of different areas obviously, and we need to get better across the board – that’s an area you better be prepared for and again, this is a guy that we thought fit-wise we thought was the guy and at the same time could hopefully compete and make us better.”

Q: Would you say that player leadership has been something that has been lacking on your defense?

HALEY: “I just don’t think you can have enough. You need leadership on any kind of team and you can’t put a price tag on it and I don’t think you can have enough, I really don’t. As long as I’ve been around, that’s what you’re always fighting and in coaching staff meetings you hear, ‘Gosh, we need more leaders. We need more leaders.’ You need leaders. We’ll see how this all turns out but at the different levels that he’s been at, he’s shown the ability to do that on- and off-the-field.”

Q: When you looked at the tape, what jumped out to you and the scouts about him?

HALEY: “Well I think he’s a physical player, very physical. He looks for contact. I don’t think he’s afraid to make big plays. I think he’s versatile – he has some ability to cover and in the division we’re in we’ve got to cover some of these tight ends and backs and receivers. Again, that’s all part of the process for us.”

Q: Is he a strong or a free safety?

HALEY: “I think in an ideal situation we want two balanced safeties that can both do the same thing and I think he fits that category.”

Q: How ready is he to step into an NFL game and was that a big selling point?

HALEY: “Well again, he’s got the characteristics, as far as we’re concerned, that give him a chance to compete and hopefully compete early and contribute early.”

Q: When you guys sat down with him, what kind of things were you trying to get him to reveal about the character stuff?

HALEY: “I don’t know that I’ll get into the specifics of that but again, it’s part of the process Kent. You visit with a lot of these guys and a lot of them are very well-prepared nowadays for the process a little more than they were early on. That’s why you just keep digging and talking to people and talking to the player and I don’t think you can do enough of that. We just felt very thorough in the process and we’re all excited.”

Q: How much emphasis do you put on the character side of a player when you’re evaluating them?

HALEY: “I think it’s a heavy emphasis. I mean, you’ve got to be able to play or the other side doesn’t have quite an impact. I think in this case it’s a good match.”

Q: Last year you were at the bottom of the league in sacks and stopping the run. Did you look at those areas from a statistical standpoint before you made the selection on Berry and think maybe we should go defensive line or linebacker with our top pick?

HALEY: “I think we looked at everything. When you had the type of year that we had, you have a lot of needs. We went through the process with the staff and at times had a laugh about it, ‘We can use this, we can use this, we can use this…’ but you’ve got to narrow it down and you’ve got to try to take the guy that you think can help you the most.”

Q: Will it be a defensive-heavy draft because you went so offensive-heavy in free agency?

HALEY: “I don’t know. I think we just have to see how it goes. You don’t know all the variables and we could use some help across the board.”

Q: Did you talk to the Kiffins (Lane and Monte) about Berry?

HALEY: “Some of us did. I did not talk to Monte about him, but I heard a couple conversations which were all very positive.”

Q: In terms of having both talent and character, there were only a few guys on the board that had both, correct?

HALEY: “Again, I think it was clear to us that he was the best match, both for us and for just what you were talking about, character, talent and ability. To us it was clear cut.”

Q: He is almost like a defensive back version of DE Ndamukong Suh, correct?

HALEY: “Yeah, and one of the things that was commented on, the more guys we visited with, is that this was a rich draft, not only talent-wise it appears, but character. There are a lot of impressive guys that came through this door and our doors at the combine as well as some of the visits we went on. Again, this was the match for us, but I will say that there are a lot of really impressive kids this year in particular.”

Q: How excited was Defensive Coordinator Romeo Crennel with this selection?

HALEY: “We gave a big high five down the hallway and he gave a big hearty laugh which I like to hear. So I know these guys are excited.”

Q: When you draft a guy at number five, it means a lot of money. It probably makes Clark Hunt a little more comfortable having a talented guy with high character?

HALEY: “You can ask him, he is right behind you. That is something that is important to all of us, that these guys represent the Kansas City Chiefs and Kansas City the way that they are supposed to. The more high character guys that we can bring in here that know what they are supposed to do, the better I think for all of us.”

Q: Is this a guy you can do a lot of things with defensively?

HALEY: “Again, I think that is one of the big positives with him is that he does have some position flexibility so to speak. He has shown the ability to cover in man-to-man situations; he is a really good down-in-the-box-hitter so to speak. He has been really good in the back end out in the open field where you have to make some difficult saves. He is on top of having a knack for pressuring the quarterback. There is some flexibility there which I am sure all of the coaches are excited about getting that.”

Q: Is Berry a little more prepared for the NFL than he would have been if he hadn’t played under Lane and Monte Kiffin?

HALEY: “I think playing at Tennessee is a big thing too. The competition and the teams they see on a week-in and week-out basis definitely is a positive. Not that small-school guys can’t do it, but I think that it helps.”

04-22-2010, 09:38 PM	Topic Starter
Tribal Warfare The Boom Boom Room Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: Far Beyond Comprehension Casino cash: $332813	HEAD COACH TODD HALEY – Draft Press Conference HEAD COACH TODD HALEY – Draft Press Conference PR Staff Posted 1 hour ago HALEY: “Good evening everyone. I’m happy to announce, as you all know, that Eric Berry is the newest member of the Kansas City Chiefs. I know we’re all very excited about making him a part of this team. He’s been a highly successful college player that comes from a football background. I think he’s high character off-the-field and I think his ability speaks for itself and again, we’re just excited the way this night started out for us. Excited about the way this has gone after our first pick anyway.” Q: Why him with the fifth overall pick? HALEY: “I think we’ve done a lot of research. We’ve worked a lot of players out. We’ve spent a lot of time with a number of different players both in this building and outside of this building – Eric being one of them. As time went on, it just became more and more clear that this was the fit for us for a lot of different reasons. This is a kid, without talking personally about him, but on Fridays of game week they’d find him in the equipment room helping the equipment manager shine the helmets before a game day Saturday at Tennessee. Little things like that on top of what you see on the football field, I think it just became clear that this was the guy for the Chiefs.” Q: Last year when you drafted DE Tyson Jackson, you and (General Manager) Scott Pioli compared him to Russell Maryland in terms of potential impact. Is there someone you could compare Eric Berry to in that regard? HALEY: “No, not somebody that I would right now, Adam. I just think Eric has the characteristics that we’re looking for: captain of his college team; extremely productive; loves football, I think that’s clear when you’re around him for any period of time; competitive; and I think that’s just what he’ll do, I think he’ll come in here and amp the competition up and not just the secondary but all the areas, because I think when you get players like this, they tend to push other players.” Q: When did you decide on him? HALEY: “I think it’s been building. I don’t know that I have a specific time but there were just a bunch of those points during this process that Scott and I would look at each other, whisper to each other that this might be the guy.” Q: So when you walked in here today, that’s the guy you wanted? HALEY: “Yeah.” Q: Was it an easy decision? HALEY: “Yeah, it was.” Q: Only five safeties have been taken in the top five of the draft since the merger in ’70. Why do you think that has been and why have you guys decided to buck the trend right now? HALEY: “This was the fit for us. I don’t think we were going to let a lot of things take us out of that, pigeon-holing ourselves, so to speak. At the same time, I think the game’s a little different. You look at some of the numbers around the league, specifically the last two years; you better have some guys to defend the pass. Though we have needs in a lot of different areas obviously, and we need to get better across the board – that’s an area you better be prepared for and again, this is a guy that we thought fit-wise we thought was the guy and at the same time could hopefully compete and make us better.” Q: Would you say that player leadership has been something that has been lacking on your defense? HALEY: “I just don’t think you can have enough. You need leadership on any kind of team and you can’t put a price tag on it and I don’t think you can have enough, I really don’t. As long as I’ve been around, that’s what you’re always fighting and in coaching staff meetings you hear, ‘Gosh, we need more leaders. We need more leaders.’ You need leaders. We’ll see how this all turns out but at the different levels that he’s been at, he’s shown the ability to do that on- and off-the-field.” Q: When you looked at the tape, what jumped out to you and the scouts about him? HALEY: “Well I think he’s a physical player, very physical. He looks for contact. I don’t think he’s afraid to make big plays. I think he’s versatile – he has some ability to cover and in the division we’re in we’ve got to cover some of these tight ends and backs and receivers. Again, that’s all part of the process for us.” Q: Is he a strong or a free safety? HALEY: “I think in an ideal situation we want two balanced safeties that can both do the same thing and I think he fits that category.” Q: How ready is he to step into an NFL game and was that a big selling point? HALEY: “Well again, he’s got the characteristics, as far as we’re concerned, that give him a chance to compete and hopefully compete early and contribute early.” Q: When you guys sat down with him, what kind of things were you trying to get him to reveal about the character stuff? HALEY: “I don’t know that I’ll get into the specifics of that but again, it’s part of the process Kent. You visit with a lot of these guys and a lot of them are very well-prepared nowadays for the process a little more than they were early on. That’s why you just keep digging and talking to people and talking to the player and I don’t think you can do enough of that. We just felt very thorough in the process and we’re all excited.” Q: How much emphasis do you put on the character side of a player when you’re evaluating them? HALEY: “I think it’s a heavy emphasis. I mean, you’ve got to be able to play or the other side doesn’t have quite an impact. I think in this case it’s a good match.” Q: Last year you were at the bottom of the league in sacks and stopping the run. Did you look at those areas from a statistical standpoint before you made the selection on Berry and think maybe we should go defensive line or linebacker with our top pick? HALEY: “I think we looked at everything. When you had the type of year that we had, you have a lot of needs. We went through the process with the staff and at times had a laugh about it, ‘We can use this, we can use this, we can use this…’ but you’ve got to narrow it down and you’ve got to try to take the guy that you think can help you the most.” Q: Will it be a defensive-heavy draft because you went so offensive-heavy in free agency? HALEY: “I don’t know. I think we just have to see how it goes. You don’t know all the variables and we could use some help across the board.” Q: Did you talk to the Kiffins (Lane and Monte) about Berry? HALEY: “Some of us did. I did not talk to Monte about him, but I heard a couple conversations which were all very positive.” Q: In terms of having both talent and character, there were only a few guys on the board that had both, correct? HALEY: “Again, I think it was clear to us that he was the best match, both for us and for just what you were talking about, character, talent and ability. To us it was clear cut.” Q: He is almost like a defensive back version of DE Ndamukong Suh, correct? HALEY: “Yeah, and one of the things that was commented on, the more guys we visited with, is that this was a rich draft, not only talent-wise it appears, but character. There are a lot of impressive guys that came through this door and our doors at the combine as well as some of the visits we went on. Again, this was the match for us, but I will say that there are a lot of really impressive kids this year in particular.” Q: How excited was Defensive Coordinator Romeo Crennel with this selection? HALEY: “We gave a big high five down the hallway and he gave a big hearty laugh which I like to hear. So I know these guys are excited.” Q: When you draft a guy at number five, it means a lot of money. It probably makes Clark Hunt a little more comfortable having a talented guy with high character? HALEY: “You can ask him, he is right behind you. That is something that is important to all of us, that these guys represent the Kansas City Chiefs and Kansas City the way that they are supposed to. The more high character guys that we can bring in here that know what they are supposed to do, the better I think for all of us.” Q: Is this a guy you can do a lot of things with defensively? HALEY: “Again, I think that is one of the big positives with him is that he does have some position flexibility so to speak. He has shown the ability to cover in man-to-man situations; he is a really good down-in-the-box-hitter so to speak. He has been really good in the back end out in the open field where you have to make some difficult saves. He is on top of having a knack for pressuring the quarterback. There is some flexibility there which I am sure all of the coaches are excited about getting that.” Q: Is Berry a little more prepared for the NFL than he would have been if he hadn’t played under Lane and Monte Kiffin? HALEY: “I think playing at Tennessee is a big thing too. The competition and the teams they see on a week-in and week-out basis definitely is a positive. Not that small-school guys can’t do it, but I think that it helps.”
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