Here's what offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi and defensive coordinator Renaldo Hill had to say ahead of the Bolts' Week 1 game vs. Washington.
DC Renaldo Hill on containing Washington QB Ryan Fitzpatrick
"Experienced guy. He's seen a lot of looks, he's seen pretty much anything you can throw at him. We just have to be sound on our assignments. We can't give up the explosives. We got to make him work for everything that he gets. Hopefully, we can try to speed him up in that way, where the offense has to press a little. But at the same time, he has played a lot of ball. He's going to know what we are doing, just like we are going to know what he's doing. It's going to be a game where we just have to play smart football. That's our plan."
OC Joe Lombardi on slowing down Washington's defensive front
"I think it's a number of factors; smart play selection, protection plan. It's obviously an elite front. Our guys have to come ready to play, and we have to be smart in the way that we handle them. It'll be an all-day affair with those four."
Hill on Washington RB Antonio Gibson
"Explosive and size. When you see him in person, this is a big six-plus-footer, 200-something pounds, who can roll. He gets going running inside, and he's good in the passing game. He gives you problems. We have to identify where both of those backs are aligned and what they do."
Lombardi on Washington's LBs and DBs
"First thing you'd say is that they're a really well-coached team. They play hard, they run to the ball and they tackle well. There are a lot of plays that you see that you think the ball is completed, or the ball gets on the perimeter, and you're just used to seeing the angles and you're like, 'Oh, this should go for 10 [yards],' but they rally and tackle it for five [yards]. They're DBs that like to challenge. They're competitive. Like I said, they play hard, they run fast and they tackle well. We'll have our work cut out for us, that's for sure. They were one of the top-ranked defenses last year. They're pretty strong across the board."
Hill on defending WFT TE Logan Thomas
"I think it's going to be a mixture of a lot of guys matching up against Logan, based on the call. But, we have to be aware of him, and we will be, and know what he likes to do in certain spots. If you start to move to one guy, they have playmakers all over the field, so we just have to do a good job within our scheme and do a good job of identifying those guys where they are at those locations and what they like to do in those spots."
Check out the best photos from Bolts practice on Thursday at Hoag Performance Center.
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