Q&A RB Priest Holmes - 9/30

royr17 · 09-30-2004, 07:17 PM

Q&A RB Priest Holmes
Sep 30, 2004, 2:42:53 PM

BALTIMORE CONFERENCE CALL

Q: What did Ravens RB Jamal Lewis learn from you during your 2000 season together?

HOLMES: “I would say that what he learned from me was very little because I think that most of his skills he pretty much already had. He demonstrated that in camp before we got started with the season. I think that one of the things I was able to add, along with the other guys that were there helping me out, was just the film watching on a Thursday night before the game just so you could familiarize yourself with the defense that you’re getting ready to play.”

Q: What is team morale like after the 0-3 start?

HOLMES: “0-3 is a situation that you wouldn’t want to be in. I think the morale for us is that with the effect of being 0-3 is pretty much devastating. It’s a real big blow not only to our egos, but to everything we established here over the last couple of years and going 13-3 last year. The expectations we had were so great. But we can overcome all of that with this practice that we’re going to have this week and then just being able to be on TV Monday Night with our families watching is a good platform for our to step up and put ourselves back in a situation where we can win again.”

Q: On Baltimore’s defense…

HOLMES: “With Baltimore’s defense, led by (LB) Ray Lewis, he does a wonderful job as far as getting the guys excited and having the guys ready to run. They’re definitely going to attack. They’re going to put an eight-man box and they’re going to dare you to run on them. Then they’re going to say, ‘Hey, beat us on the outside.’ But with what we have and our techniques and the way that we run the ball, I think we will definitely be able to get into the lanes and have positive yards. The one big thing we’re looking for is putting a hat on a hat and allowing the running backs run.”

Q: Do you have the players and team to turn the season around?

HOLMES: “Well we definitely have the ingredients because it’s the same team. There are a few things that have changed as far as our coordinator on defense, our second-tier guys that there are about 15 that were replaced. But still we definitely have the ingredients. Our keys guys are still here, our Pro Bowler players from last year are still here and it’s a matter of turning the program around. With that you have to win at least one game. The hardest thing to do is once you get on a streak if it’s losing, is getting that first win. Right now I think teams are coming in, and we’re going to their stadiums, and they’re having the feeling that, ‘we can’t let there guys get started.’ That’s what’s going to happen. Once we get started we’ll win and it’s definitely going to go downhill for us from there and we’ll be able to really pick up on some W’s.”

Q: What do you need to do to start winning?

HOLMES: “Well, one thing we have to do to win is the penalties that you’ve seen over the last three games, we have to definitely stop from doing that. With that, that will give us more positive yardage and keep us in a third-and-three, a third-and-two and allow us a better chance of getting the first down. That’s on the offensive side of the ball with the penalties. On the defensive side of the ball it’s just a matter of them stopping them when they come out in third-and-long, and not allowing them to get that momentum when they’re converting that first down.”

Q: What were your goals this year?

HOLMES: “I had one goal this year and it’s a very simple goal and that was to have more runs over 30 yards. Last year my longest run was for a total of 30 yards. And right now that’s the goal I have and it matches up with the team because we want to be able to get into the Red Zone a lot faster, not only with the passing game getting us down there but also with the long run.”

Q: What’s it going to take to win the game Monday night?

HOLMES: “I think the Monday Night football game comes down to who enjoys the excitement. Ray Lewis is going to come out and he’s going to put on his show during the beginning of the game. He’s going to dance and he’s going to have Primetime there – Deion Sanders – who will most likely be dancing with him. But I think that for the most part you’ve got to go in there and buckle up your strap and get ready to play some football because on Monday Night anybody can put their face on that trailer.”

Q: What can you say about the ability to establish the run Monday?

HOLMES: “Well the production on the run offense is going to be crucial. We’re going to come into this game knowing that Jamal (Lewis) is going to given a heavy dosage of the rushing attack and along side that I’ll be given a heavy dose of the rushing game. It’s going to be a combination of which one of us is going to be ready to play and which one of us is going to be able to break that big run. Just last week Jamal had a 75-yard run and he’s been doing that ever since last year with these long runs. The thing with our defense is to just get on him and wrap him up and bring him down.”

Q: What happened last week?

HOLMES: “Well it was very simple. We messed up two drives deep on the five-yard line. For one we went for it on a fourth-and-two and weren’t able to come up on that and the second time we were down deep into the Red Zone, right there at the goal line and we had a pass that we were throwing to (TE) Tony Gonzalez and Marcus Coleman did a great job breaking on the ball, picking it off and he took it back 102 yards. If we had eliminated just those two opportunities and actually scored, the score would have definitely looked a lot different. But you know what, in football it’s not going to be given to you, you have to take it.”

Q: Do you still have your Super Bowl XXXV ring?

HOLMES: “No I don’t, I actually gave it to my father. He has it put away right now for him once he returns back from Iraq. Right now it looks like he’s going to be coming back as early as January, depending on the election.”

Q: What have you seen on film of the Ravens defense?

HOLMES: “Well, what I’ve seen is they just man up. They play you one-on-one on the outside and they just make sure that Ray Lewis doesn’t get touched and allow him to make the tackle. I think that’s very simple defensive mathematics. You man-up everyone and you allow your best player out there to run around and make the tackle. What we have to do is get someone up on Ray Lewis and not allow the guys that are along side of him to get a big name off this game.”

Q: Can Ray Lewis himself stop your whole offense?

HOLMES: “No, I wouldn’t say that. As a whole, there’s never just one person that can stop what we have going on on the offensive side of the ball. It’s just a matter of making sure that we don’t allow their best player to get their entire team hyped. He does a great job as far as getting the guys excited. When you’ve got guys who can spark another guy, you don’t want to get that contagious and allow those guys to start peeling back and start rushing on (QB) Trent (Green) and then just getting excited and making the game get out of hand.”

Q: What can you tell us about LB Terrell Suggs?

HOLMES: “I think after last year we could tell that definitely even though he plays at that linebacker spot he still has that defensive end mentality. It doesn’t matter who’s in front of him, if it’s a tackle or if it’s a running back, his purpose and his job is to get to the quarterback. He’s a sack machine. He’s always trying to get to the QB, and that’s one of the things that he’s done a great job at doing. I believe he even has sacks this year. What we have to do, like I said, is not allow the young guys to get that attention that they’re looking for on Monday night.”

09-30-2004, 07:17 PM
royr17 MVP Join Date: Feb 2002 Location: Lovin my kids Casino cash: $-1461324	Q&A RB Priest Holmes - 9/30 Q&A RB Priest Holmes Sep 30, 2004, 2:42:53 PM BALTIMORE CONFERENCE CALL Q: What did Ravens RB Jamal Lewis learn from you during your 2000 season together? HOLMES: “I would say that what he learned from me was very little because I think that most of his skills he pretty much already had. He demonstrated that in camp before we got started with the season. I think that one of the things I was able to add, along with the other guys that were there helping me out, was just the film watching on a Thursday night before the game just so you could familiarize yourself with the defense that you’re getting ready to play.” Q: What is team morale like after the 0-3 start? HOLMES: “0-3 is a situation that you wouldn’t want to be in. I think the morale for us is that with the effect of being 0-3 is pretty much devastating. It’s a real big blow not only to our egos, but to everything we established here over the last couple of years and going 13-3 last year. The expectations we had were so great. But we can overcome all of that with this practice that we’re going to have this week and then just being able to be on TV Monday Night with our families watching is a good platform for our to step up and put ourselves back in a situation where we can win again.” Q: On Baltimore’s defense… HOLMES: “With Baltimore’s defense, led by (LB) Ray Lewis, he does a wonderful job as far as getting the guys excited and having the guys ready to run. They’re definitely going to attack. They’re going to put an eight-man box and they’re going to dare you to run on them. Then they’re going to say, ‘Hey, beat us on the outside.’ But with what we have and our techniques and the way that we run the ball, I think we will definitely be able to get into the lanes and have positive yards. The one big thing we’re looking for is putting a hat on a hat and allowing the running backs run.” Q: Do you have the players and team to turn the season around? HOLMES: “Well we definitely have the ingredients because it’s the same team. There are a few things that have changed as far as our coordinator on defense, our second-tier guys that there are about 15 that were replaced. But still we definitely have the ingredients. Our keys guys are still here, our Pro Bowler players from last year are still here and it’s a matter of turning the program around. With that you have to win at least one game. The hardest thing to do is once you get on a streak if it’s losing, is getting that first win. Right now I think teams are coming in, and we’re going to their stadiums, and they’re having the feeling that, ‘we can’t let there guys get started.’ That’s what’s going to happen. Once we get started we’ll win and it’s definitely going to go downhill for us from there and we’ll be able to really pick up on some W’s.” Q: What do you need to do to start winning? HOLMES: “Well, one thing we have to do to win is the penalties that you’ve seen over the last three games, we have to definitely stop from doing that. With that, that will give us more positive yardage and keep us in a third-and-three, a third-and-two and allow us a better chance of getting the first down. That’s on the offensive side of the ball with the penalties. On the defensive side of the ball it’s just a matter of them stopping them when they come out in third-and-long, and not allowing them to get that momentum when they’re converting that first down.” Q: What were your goals this year? HOLMES: “I had one goal this year and it’s a very simple goal and that was to have more runs over 30 yards. Last year my longest run was for a total of 30 yards. And right now that’s the goal I have and it matches up with the team because we want to be able to get into the Red Zone a lot faster, not only with the passing game getting us down there but also with the long run.” Q: What’s it going to take to win the game Monday night? HOLMES: “I think the Monday Night football game comes down to who enjoys the excitement. Ray Lewis is going to come out and he’s going to put on his show during the beginning of the game. He’s going to dance and he’s going to have Primetime there – Deion Sanders – who will most likely be dancing with him. But I think that for the most part you’ve got to go in there and buckle up your strap and get ready to play some football because on Monday Night anybody can put their face on that trailer.” Q: What can you say about the ability to establish the run Monday? HOLMES: “Well the production on the run offense is going to be crucial. We’re going to come into this game knowing that Jamal (Lewis) is going to given a heavy dosage of the rushing attack and along side that I’ll be given a heavy dose of the rushing game. It’s going to be a combination of which one of us is going to be ready to play and which one of us is going to be able to break that big run. Just last week Jamal had a 75-yard run and he’s been doing that ever since last year with these long runs. The thing with our defense is to just get on him and wrap him up and bring him down.” Q: What happened last week? HOLMES: “Well it was very simple. We messed up two drives deep on the five-yard line. For one we went for it on a fourth-and-two and weren’t able to come up on that and the second time we were down deep into the Red Zone, right there at the goal line and we had a pass that we were throwing to (TE) Tony Gonzalez and Marcus Coleman did a great job breaking on the ball, picking it off and he took it back 102 yards. If we had eliminated just those two opportunities and actually scored, the score would have definitely looked a lot different. But you know what, in football it’s not going to be given to you, you have to take it.” Q: Do you still have your Super Bowl XXXV ring? HOLMES: “No I don’t, I actually gave it to my father. He has it put away right now for him once he returns back from Iraq. Right now it looks like he’s going to be coming back as early as January, depending on the election.” Q: What have you seen on film of the Ravens defense? HOLMES: “Well, what I’ve seen is they just man up. They play you one-on-one on the outside and they just make sure that Ray Lewis doesn’t get touched and allow him to make the tackle. I think that’s very simple defensive mathematics. You man-up everyone and you allow your best player out there to run around and make the tackle. What we have to do is get someone up on Ray Lewis and not allow the guys that are along side of him to get a big name off this game.” Q: Can Ray Lewis himself stop your whole offense? HOLMES: “No, I wouldn’t say that. As a whole, there’s never just one person that can stop what we have going on on the offensive side of the ball. It’s just a matter of making sure that we don’t allow their best player to get their entire team hyped. He does a great job as far as getting the guys excited. When you’ve got guys who can spark another guy, you don’t want to get that contagious and allow those guys to start peeling back and start rushing on (QB) Trent (Green) and then just getting excited and making the game get out of hand.” Q: What can you tell us about LB Terrell Suggs? HOLMES: “I think after last year we could tell that definitely even though he plays at that linebacker spot he still has that defensive end mentality. It doesn’t matter who’s in front of him, if it’s a tackle or if it’s a running back, his purpose and his job is to get to the quarterback. He’s a sack machine. He’s always trying to get to the QB, and that’s one of the things that he’s done a great job at doing. I believe he even has sacks this year. What we have to do, like I said, is not allow the young guys to get that attention that they’re looking for on Monday night.”
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