Full Transcript: Kellen Moore on Working with Justin Herbert, Drafting Quentin Johnston

May 01, 2023 at 02:10 PM

Eric Smith

Editorial Director

Take a look at quotes from Chargers Offensive Coordinator Kellen Moore on Monday afternoon:

Offensive Coordinator Kellen Moore

On the offseason:

"It's been really good. It's been really fun just being able to collaborate. Obviously, with coaches, initially. Now, that we have the players here, just really starting to build that. It's been a lot of fun. It's been great kind of connecting with these guys. Today was the first day on the field to actually do some field stuff. We actually had a football out there. That was good."

On QB Justin Herbert:

"He's just really detailed, really diligent with his work. He really has just been awesome to kind of collaborate and make sure, as we go through this process, that we don't lose anything as we go through a transition. I think that's one big part of this thing, is that there's been a lot of success. Justin has had a lot of success his first few years. We want to make sure we build off of that and not start from scratch."

On if Herbert's recovery affects the offseason program:

"Really, to be honest, most years I think there's always a handful of guys that are going through this process. It just kind of happens a lot of times. OTAs [Organized Team Activities], a lot of guys are going through cleanups and a couple of different things to go through in an offseason. This happens. [G] Zion [Johnson] will be going through it just like Justin. I think you get as much as you can in the classroom, the walkthroughs, all of the different components to that thing. Obviously, there will be some field work that Justin may not be able to be a part of — as much as he would want to, we would all want to, but we'll catch up with it. We have plenty of time through the training camp and all of that."

On the roster:

"Really, ultimately, the roster we were pretty much able to bring everyone back from last year, for the most part. Walking in that room today, other than [Quarterbacks Coach] Doug [Nussmeier], [Offensive Assistant] Phil [Serchia] and myself, the three coaches that were new, everyone else was part of 2022. It has been really fun just to kind of start building those relationships. I think that's the biggest thing about this thing, is that we're doing this thing together. As we find each other, start understanding each other and start working together, I think, develop this thing and build it."

On the positions on the roster:

"I think the really cool part is listening to the position coaches, initially, because those guys have spent a lot of time with these guys over the course of the last few years. Really, understanding where their position is, getting to know some of the players and then, ultimately, kind of setting our eyes on 2023. That was our whole plan from the beginning. It's been really, really good. I think you have a really cool offensive line that's young, that's developing and that's going to be a tremendous strength of ours. [C] Corey [Linsley] leads the way, but you have a bunch of young guys that may have dealt with getting banged up a little bit last year, but fought through it. That's going to be a really, really good group. [TE] Gerald [Everett] at the tight end spot with young guys behind him kind of finding their roles, dealing with health things. It seemed like, obviously, a lot of guys were banged up. The receiver room, kind of the same thing. You have [WR] Keenan [Allen], you have [WR] Mike [Williams], [WR Joshua] Josh [Palmer], they've been doing it for a long time. They're really, really good. Really talented. You have some younger guys in there. Then, obviously, at the running back position with [RB] Austin [Ekeler] and then, the younger guys who kind of have their different opportunities. Each group kind of has that feeling to it. It'll be a lot of fun."

On Head Coach Brandon Staley:

"Brandon has been awesome. He's been really, really good. I've just loved working together, collaborating on this thing and kind of building this offense toward 2023. Again, kind of embracing all of the good things that are going on and then, hopefully, kind of being able to add some different things that can hopefully help us as we go on in our future here. Brandon has been awesome through the whole transition, through the draft process. It's been a lot of fun."

On the team selecting WR Quentin Johnston in the first round:

"Brandon [Staley] is this defensive guy and he's drafting these offensive guys, I like this. It's a lot of fun. Q [Johnston] really stood out for us as we went through the process. Everyone kind of sees the measurables, the size as far as the height and the weight. What he did for TCU from his versatility, I thought, was really, really special. His ability to kind of catch-and-run, he was a fly-sweep guy. He got the ball in a lot of different ways. You saw a lot of versatility in his game that maybe, initially, someone may not have necessarily anticipated. We were really excited that he was there and available for us."

On areas Johnston can improve:

"Certainly, everyone is going to have things they want to improve on as they go into the NFL. He had a couple of drops, statistically, if you get detailed into that, but he makes some spectacular plays. I think he's going to be just fine. It wasn't a big concern for us. If you see enough of his contested catches at TCU and the challenge of the catches that he didn't make, you feel very comfortable with that."

On how Johnston and WR Derius Davis add speed to the offense:

"There's a vertical element of it that we're really excited about. With Q [Johnston], just the size, catch radius. He goes up and gets the ball downfield. You can do it however you need to do it, whether it's size, catch radius, speed. He definitely brings a vertical element to us. Derius, obviously, the kick return and punt return component of it, and then he just has straight-up natural speed that's very rare in this league. Only a handful of teams have those type of things."

On not drafting a tight end and if that's a position he'd 'like to see grow':

"No, sometimes drafts, that's just the way drafts go. There was a lot of tight ends in this draft that we liked. Sometimes, that's just the way drafts go. We feel really good about the group. Gerald [Everett] has done a tremendous job. He's been in this league for a number of years. From afar, I've always been impressed with his production and versatility at the tight end position. Then, we have this younger group that we're really excited about just developing these guys. Giving them roles and opportunities. I think the cool thing about football is that you can play it in a lot of different ways. There's not just one way to do it. We find what these guys do really well and try to enhance those things."

On the importance of tight end to the offense:

"I think the tight end room is a very rare room and it's a very important room for an offense because they're part of every aspect of the game. The run game, they're right in there with the O-Line in the run-game component and the techniques. They're in the pass game, obviously, with the QBs, at times they're a protector, even in the play-action game and what not. Those guys have to be able to do a lot of different things. It's a very important role just because of those things. We probably used a little bit more tight ends, maybe, the last couple of years in Dallas. A little bit more 12 and 13 [personnel] and some of those different things. It suited us well. We'll do whatever suits us best as we kind of build this thing. I am excited about the guys we have. I think they all have traits that are really exciting. I'm excited to just work with them."

On the importance of explosive plays:

"I think it's just something that we've all talked about through this whole process this offseason. I think it's a collaborative effort. It's not just about Dallas or the scheme. I think it's just all of us working together on creating more explosive opportunities. I think Brandon [Staley] is always a really awesome resource for me because he views it from the defensive side. He can express the challenges that certain things create when you're on the opposing side. The quickest way to get to the end zone is big plays. In this league, if you go 12-, 14-, 15-play drives, they're awesome. They're really fun to be part of because it bleeds the clock and does so many good things. At the end of the day, when you do have explosive opportunities, you need to take advantage of those. It's a quicker way to get to the end zone and, ultimately, when you look at the statistics, explosive plays has a huge impact on who's winning games."

On improving the running game:

"It's just a collaborative effort. I think there was some health stuff. Obviously, there were some missing pieces last year. I thought there was some good stuff. Again, I think the biggest thing as you go through these transitions is don't lose any of the good. There's plenty of good that has gone on here, run game included. There will be different things, schematically, that come from my past experiences or someone else on our staff's past experiences that we think may be able to better suit us or help us in some form or fashion. I think we're really excited to just collaborate on this thing. I think we'll utilize some of the things that were in place and some other stuff. We'll suit it however it best suits our players. Whatever best suits us, we can adapt and adjust however we need to."

On if RB Austin Ekeler's absence affects the offseason program:

"Right now, we're just so focused on really the foundation of the system, of offensive football. Just kind of building a really solid foundation focusing more on the bigger picture, the big picture from a scheme standpoint. Then, as you get into Phase Three of OTAs, training camp and as you get into the season, we start narrowing that thing, getting specific from player-specific responsibilities and what not. Right now, we're at such a wider lens that we're really teaching for everyone."

On the team's sixth-round selection, DL Scott Matlock, calling him the 'Boise State GOAT":

"He's awesome. I got a chance to meet him when he was here for his visit. He's a stud. I'm glad we have a couple of Broncos. I think we have two now [Matlock and DL David Moa]. We need to get a couple of more somehow. We'll figure out a way."

On if he and Matlock took a picture together on his visit:

"We did take a picture, yes."

On Matlock catching two touchdowns at Boise State:

"Oh yes, he's already told me. [Boise State Head Coach] Andy Avalos immediately sent them to me. He's the head coach at Boise. He sent them to me as soon as [Matlock] got drafted. For you guys concerned about the tight end position, maybe we have something there [laughter]."

On drafting Johnston speaking to the philosophy of 'you can never have enough playmakers':

"I completely agree with it. Whatever positions they are — I think, sometimes, we get very focused in the positions — you just want really talented players who can have an impact on the field. Whatever position they are — running back, receiver, tight end — we'll figure out how the scheme fits those guys. To have Q [Johnston] join that receiver room with all the talent that's in there in those guys and the experience, I think it's going to be awesome for him because he's going to learn so much from those guys. It's going to allow us to put these guys in different roles and different positions to allow them to be successful. No one is ever going to complain about having a receiver room like this room, where you have all of this talent. I think we're really, really excited."