Brian Hoyer: “This is my team. This is my offense.”

1

Quarterback Brian Hoyer answers questions during 49ers training camp

SANTA CLARA

Quarterback Brian Hoyer answered questions in the 49ers media auditorium Thursday. Here’s a transcript, courtesy of the 49ers P.R. department.

 

Take us through the three days you were in Dallas, what was accomplished there?

“It was great, first and foremost just to get back around the guys. You get so much time off and you spend so much time with the guys while you’re here and then all of a sudden you don’t see them for an extended period of time, so to be around the guys and get together and kind of build that comradery, that was great. As far as the football aspect of it, I think a lot of it being a lot of new players, a new system, everyone trying to learn it, I think it was a good kind of midway point between the last minicamp and training camp to just kind of have a refresher. We did a three day thing and each day we basically, I think during the offseason we had seven installs so we kind of tried to put two in each day and throw a little bit, work out a little bit and obviously at dinner time go out and have a meal together. One day a few guys went golfing, a few guys hung out with some of the guys that lived around there. It was good. It was my first time doing anything like that and I thought it went well.”

 

Did you guys have your iPads, playbooks?

“I brought everything down, I had it already kind of scripted it out. This day we’re going to do this. It wasn’t anything that was crazy organized. It was more, hey this day we’re going to work these concepts, we’re going to work two-minute, then get a little conditioning in. At SMU we were allowed to use their weight room so we were able to work out, so it was good. It was the right amount of time. We got there Monday morning, left Wednesday afternoon and I think guys got a lot out of it.”

 

How is your mindset going into camp different knowing you’re the starter, as opposed to a couple times when you’ve had camp battles, how does it change?

“You don’t have to deal with the unknown a little bit when it comes to that. That’s always nice, especially being a human being. You can tell yourself not to worry about things as much as you want to, but you know those thoughts creep up in your mind. So now just to be able to go out and focus and take control and know this is my team, this is my offense. It kind of eliminates that and you can just focus on the football side of it.”

 

Did you consult with any coaches or anyone else and say hey what do you think the best way to organize this is?

“Yeah, I texted our quarterback coach and said ‘Hey is there anything you guys saw after you sat down and kind of reevaluated the OTAs.’ Are there certain routes you want guys to run, certain concepts to work on. So, he definitely helped when it came to that standpoint. Like I said too, with so many guys we kind of just wanted to stay fresh on it, so you go back over almost every install and maybe you have a guy run a certain route that he might run more than the others, but that was really it.”

 

How long does it take you to adjust to learning how fast players get out there breaks and how they run their routes?

“It’s always a constant work in progress, I think. Obviously you get a ton of reps in the offseason, and like I said we had that break so it was good to kind of keep that fresh in my mind with those guys and then when we get back out there tomorrow you just try to pick up where you left off. You never want to digress, so hopefully that timing comes back pretty quickly. The difference between now and the offseason is you’re going day after day after day. You’re going to get a ton of reps at it. You know, routes on air, one on ones, team, seven on seven. So, those things should pick up pretty quickly.”

 

In our world we look at the Niners situation and say there’s speculation this team doesn’t have a long-term solution at quarterback. You signed a two-year deal, and there’s a lot of talk about Washington Redskins QB Kirk Cousins, next year’s draft, and whatever. What’s your reaction to that, when you hear things like that?

“All I can do is play this season. That’s what we have in front of us, the 2017 season. And I know from being in this league it’s about what have you done lately, so one whole year can change a lot of aspects on how people think about things. So for me, like I said, to be able to go into training camp and not have to worry about a  quote unquote competition, to be the guy to have gotten all the reps in the offseason, I feel very confident and very excited about going into this season. Like I said when I first got here, one of the big reasons I came was to be with [head coach] Kyle [Shanahan]. You know, having been around him, now as a head coach for a full offseason going into training camp I think everybody’s really excited. I know for me personally, this is probably the most excited I’ve ever been going into a training camp.”

 

Do you think that approach is different now that you’re at this stage of your career than it would have been–?

“For sure. Every year you learn something new, I think. Going into your ninth training camp, being a veteran, you know what to expect. Going in, having an understanding of the offensive system, having a full offseason, with the guys out there. Just getting back into the rhythm of it, I think there’s a comfortability. Even though it is a new team, a new training camp, everything, I think there is a comfortability knowing what to expect as a veteran.”

 

How is Kyle different as a head coach, verses as a coordinator?

“Well I think, he has to get in front of both sides of the team now, not just the offense. You can still tell he’s an offensive coach, but he also sides with the defense sometimes too which is tough for me to see. You know, I think the one thing, and you’ve seen a lot of our guys talk about it, is that the best thing in my mind about Kyle is the way he explains how he sees things. How he’s trying to attack a defense, where the defense is trying to attack the offense. I’m sure he can stand up there for five hours and go over every single play and say, ‘Hey on this play we’re trying to affect the defense this way, and the defense is trying to play it this way.’ I think our players have gotten a lot out of that, seeing that in cover three, what is the curl-flat player’s responsibility. I think for a lot of us, sure we all know what cover three is but do you really look at it that far in depth. He really breaks it down person by person, and I think that kind of knowledge has helped our team as a whole. And that’s been really cool to see the defensive players respond to it. I was used to it with him as an offensive coordinator trying to explain it. I remember I was sitting right there in that seat and [LB] Dekoda Watson was right next to me and we went over our running play for about 10 minutes and Kyle just talked about gap scheme and which players defended for that. And Dekoda was like ‘Man I never even knew that. I was just out there playing. I just do what my coaches told me to do.’ To see it explained that way, it was really cool for me to see him respond to him that way.”

 

When you played with Kyle you didn’t really throw to running backs that much. He’s really evolved in that aspect. Is that something you’ve noticed?

“I noticed it watching him when he was in Atlanta last year. I think when they threw a touchdown to [Atlanta Falcons RB] Tevin Coleman against Seattle in the playoffs, I remember texting him like hey congratulations I wish we would’ve had that play when we were in Cleveland. I think that’s one thing that’s been really cool is to see how this offense has evolved. I’d played in a similar offense in New England, and then in Houston and each time, each year something new evolved. So, to play with Kyle back in Cleveland, and now with our system here, sure the core routes, formations, protections, those are still intact but I think an offense that’s going to do well is always evolving to what’s going on in the league. Kyle’s definitely been able to do that. With getting the backs involved, and I think the backs that we have, you know signing [FB Kyle Juszczyk] Juice, what really label do you give him. Guys like that will be really important parts of our offense.”

 

How much in the offseason did you work on the radio communication and getting that rhythm down? I’m assuming Kyle’s in your ear.

“I remember going on early and he was just kind of telling us the plays and I said let’s just start doing the radio communication now so we’re used to it. So I’m used to hearing you in the helmet and standing by the huddle. I kind of have a method of I want to be just outside the huddle when the play is coming out. I don’t want to be in the huddle trying to give the play while he’s talking to me. I want to hear him say the play in my helmet, take a second, get in the huddle and then call the play. Back in Cleveland when I was just learning the system I was just trying to repeat what he was saying, get it to the team and then as I’m walking to the line of scrimmage think of the play. Whereas now, I hear the play coming in and I can paint a picture of what Kyle is trying to emphasize on that play, and then relay it to the rest of the offense and break the huddle and go. We’ve been doing that I think pretty much since day one is using that coach to quarterback communication.”

 

I know you understand you’re in a fairly violent sport. Not to suggest any injuries you’ve had you could have prevented. With that said, have you changed your training methods at all as your career has gone on, just in hopes of trying to stay healthy?

“Yeah, I think as a professional athlete you’re always trying to do what’s best for your body and to prolong your career. There’s different methods, diet, workouts, obviously working out with [head strength & conditioning] Ray [Wright]. I’ve worked out with basically four different strength coaches over the last four offseasons, so you kind of get a little bit different aspect from each guy and then kind of tailor it to what you need. I don’t really look at it like, ‘Well I got a helmet to my forearm, I’m going to do more curls or something.’ It was just something that the luck of the draw really, so if anything you kind of just go in and you want to have a good diet, a good training regimen and then just be ready for the season. The year in Cleveland, before they benched me for [former NFL QB] Johnny [Manziel], I didn’t have any injuries. So, I think sometimes it’s just what your luck is that year and how you deal with it depending on the injury.”

 

When you see your friend former NFL WR Andrew Hawkins retire like that with a good opportunity with the Patriots, and the CTE study that came out, what’s going through your mind?

“I had to deal with that a few years back in Houston, and obviously a lot of questions go through your mind, but also you take the time out to do some research on your own. I was fortunate enough to go see a specialist in Pittsburgh, Doctor Micky Collins. Ran through a bunch of tests and met with him and the thing that I walked away with that, from my experience with him is that concussions are treatable. There’s different types of concussions and there’s different things you can do. So ever since then I try to stay on top of things that keep my brain active. I try to read a lot more, I wasn’t very much of a reader. My high school teachers will probably tell you I didn’t do well on my summer reading assignments. You try to read a lot more, there’s some brain games you can do. Obviously we know the risks as NFL players. Obviously there’s a lot of studies out there, but I’m pretty confident with the changes of technology, equipment getting better, obviously our medical staff being better. You prepare for those situations and after talking to some specialists, obviously there’s some risk involved but I think there’s also a way to make sure you take care of yourself and do the things that are proper. Diet, exercises, you know you can exercise your brain too, so that’s something I’ve kind of talked about implementing into your training regimen. There’s things that you can do for that too.”

 

Are you saying that these activities can thwart off the head injury?

“I don’t know if you’d say that, but it’s more like treating, if you break an arm, you tear an ACL, you have a rehab for that. So you should do the same for when you have a brain injury in my opinion. From my experience, it helped. Thankfully I was able to get through last season with no such injuries, and hopefully do the same year. I think, just like any physical injury, when there’s an injury in your brain there’s stuff that you need to do to help get back to normal.”

This article has 106 Comments

  1. Throwing to those running backs is how you defeat the Seahawks. That and the TE seam route.

    1. Let’s hope our kicker is clutch with 2 seconds on the clock and 51 yards out.

  2. Concussions are a big concern. I hope the NFL institutes a protocol to give every player in the league a brain scan before the season. That way, they will have a base line set of parameters, so they can monitor any changes.
    .
    I heard the same spiel with Gabbert last season. That is what they are supposed to say, so it is predictable. Brimming with confidence, upbeat and positive.
    Now we will see how he does with live competition with pads.

  3. Nice interview Grant. I like Hoyer. Seems like a stand up, intelligent guy and I say give him a chance. All the silly talk about Cousins coming next year is annoying in my view. He’s not here. Forget about him and when we play him this year I hope we sack the bum 10 times. I’ve seen quarterback controversies (Joe/Steve) where the starter is looking over his shoulder at the up and coming backup but continually talking about a player that isn’t even on the team as a threat to the starter hypothetically down the road is asinine to say the least. As for the whole concussion discussion, these guys are paid millions of dollars to play an extremely violent game voluntarily. Nobody is holding a gun to their heads to play the game. Enough already. All involved with the sport seem to be doing everything they can to minimize the problem with science and equipment. In the end it is still a violent sport. What’s next, flags around the waist and no contact. Jeesh.

  4. Not to hopeful about Shanahan but the commment from Watson sort of gives me reason to believe he really knows football not just offense.

    But I will continue to say….

    Tank Carradine

  5. Correct me if I’m wrong! Isn’t this the same QB that threw 5 int in a playoff game!!!

    1. No, only 4, but he also fumbled the ball away.
      .
      However, he did throw the ball like the DBs were the intended receivers.

    2. The regular season is what we’re worried about right now. If we get to the playoffs with Hoyer in year one then it would be a hudge improvement for this team. With Shanny as HC I think he’d keep Hoyer under more control than Houston did.

      1. With Shanny as HC I think he’d keep Hoyer under more control than Houston did.

        Not sure I understand this comment. Bill O’Brien is about as tough a coach as anyone in the league. He controls everything about that offense. Hoyer lost that playoff game single-handedly with the worst performance I have ever witnessed in my life. My only criticism of O’Briens handling of Hoyer is that he didn’t bench him in the 1st quarter.

    3. 6 INTS in a Playoff Game
      Norm Van Brocklin+ (HOF)
      Brett Favre+ 6 (HOF)
      Frank Filchock (Never heard of him)
      Bobby Layne+ (HOF)

      5 INTs in a Playoff Game
      Tommy Kramer (Good, not great)
      Dan Fouts+ (HOF)
      Rich Gannon (Good, not Great)
      George Blanda+ (HOF)
      Dan Pastorini (Meh)
      Richard Todd (Meh)
      George Blanda+ (Oh, look, a double-dipper!!!)
      Mike Phipps (Meh)
      Y.A. Tittle+ (HOF)
      Gary Danielson (Good, not great)
      Jake Delhomme (Steaky – great or bad, rarely in the middle)
      Jay Schroeder (Definitely not good)
      Frank Filchock (Still haven’t heard of him…)
      Dan Fouts+ (HOF AND a double-dipper!!!)

      Seems there’s more to it than just pointing fingers over a single bad game.

      1. You win. You’re right. My bad. Brian Hoyer is every bit as good a QB as Brett Favre, Dan Fouts, and Y.A. Tittle. I never really thought about it that way but now you’ve made me see the light. I was blind but now I see. I am now a believer in Hoyer’s superior QB skills. With Captain Hoyer at the helm steering Hoyer’s Heroes to the promised land I believe the 49ers can easily make the playoffs with a very strong shot at being the victors of this years Super Bowl. One small stain on a man’s career should not define his future path. Thank you so much for directing me to the light.

        1. Houston 9er

          Having been on the blog since early in Maiocco’s time, and having read your contributions…are you saying it sincerely…or merely sarcastically ?….I certainly learned from it…Thanks Moses….

          1. Ore, that was dripping in sarcasm. It sure looked like Hoyer was concussed, and now I find out that he had 2 major concussions that season.
            .
            Maybe Hoyer will be better, but he is immobile, and does not have the speed to elude the pass rush, so he may not last the season. I hope he can remain uninjured, but my expectations are not high on that happening, since he was also injured last season.

            1. Marino and Brady are immobile……….Seb, where did you get this idea that you put track athletes in as QB?

              STILL…..wont tell us what you know about the QB position that Shan. does not.

  6. Grant,

    This may be something you want to research. I seem to recall that Hoyer had 2 concussions in a season when he played in Houston. He did some interview where he said his wife had expressed significant concern with him continuing to play. He had some lingering effects of the concussion where he couldn’t remember the plays. If I remember right, he went in for acupuncture treatment which he said helped his symptoms. I’ll be very curious to see how he responds if he gets a concussion, especially after this recent CTE study. Will he come back even if he’s medically cleared?

          1. So Seb… Since you’re keeping track of your self-declared wins, how many do you have since the first of the year? I’d think it’s in the range of 60-65.

            1. I do not need to keep score. I just know that when they devolve into hurling expletives, they become losers.

      1. Wait. Every other Niners draft pick has been signed. And King Diva’s agents play this same game every season. And this is Paraag’s fault? Got it.

        1. Quibbling over offset language when the Niners just got 55 mil from the league is obtuse, and greedy.

        2. Maybe the Niners should have anticipated what the agent would do, and thought ahead of time, instead of being inflexible, and ending up with a holdout.

          1. This is an idiot’s logic. Come on Seb, you can do better than that.

            Are you going to be butthurt over the team’s divorce from Kap for the rest of your life now?

            1. Rib, I just want the Niners to start winning. Being inflexible and angering the GM while quibbling over semantics, while depriving the team of the services of their top draft choice, is counter productive.
              .
              No, I have seen the Tittle- Brodie, Brodie- Spurrier, Montana -Deberg, Montana-Young, Alex- Kaep quarterback controversies, and still have rooted for the Niners to win.
              .
              While I certainly think Kaep gives them their best chance to win, I will wish Kaep well where ever he lands, but still root for the Niners to win more rings.

              1. No, I have seen the …

                Thank god we other fans didn’t have to be subjected to your passive aggressive sniveling during those episodes.

              2. Well, I certainly posted about Alex-Kaep, and you can guess what I said.
                .
                BTW, the Momtana -Young controversy divided families, so it kinda was a big deal. Lots of sniping from both sides, but I am sure you did your share of sniveling.

              1. Yup, anticipating problems and thinking ahead to circumvent them is an idiot’s logic, just like BT.

              2. So a team is supposed to roll over to an agents demand? If I were a draftee I’d definitely want my agent going up against team Seb.

              3. No, a team does not have to roll over, but they should think things through. I want more innovative thought on the team, and am disappointed that the stench of Baalke lingers.
                .
                BTW, Garnett and Bosa eventually signed, so there still is hope that this will end quickly.

              4. If you are a one trick pony QB, no innovation will matter.
                The team that uses him will have to revamp its entire personnel on offense to complement a run first, pass second QB.

                In the end, its not worth it cause you won’t win many games with a guy like that with a limited skill set.
                BUT, there is a storm coming Seb

              5. Prime, he is a dual threat QB who is elusive enough to avoid the pass rushers while also being strong enough to shrug off arm tackles. Interesting to note that KS had the QBs roll out and run bootlegs, which is a strength of Kaep’s.
                .
                Luckily, KS likes mobile QBs.
                .
                I envision that the present QBs, being immobile, will get bludgeoned by the pass rush. Wonder how the O line will protect this season.

              6. Dual threat? What,run right then run left?

                It was only a matter of time before you started criticizing the current 49er QB’s and oline.

                I thought it would happen when they season started but you seem to be so bitter over Kap leaving that it starts now.
                Poor Seb.

              7. Prime, you criticized the starting QB for the San Francisco 49ers for 4 years, so cry me a river.

          1. It’s more complex. His agent, within CAA, is Todd France. France isn’t quite as bad as the Poston brothers, but he’s known for hold-outs.

      2. Yup, it’s Paraag–only Paragg, right? Anything other wouldn’t fit your narrative.

        And we have victims…

              1. Seb fashions himself as the taxi driver in Harry Chapin’s ‘Taxi’…

                And me, I’m flying in my taxi
                Taking tips, and getting stoned
                I go flying so high, when I’m stoned

              1. I also think Kaep is a Super bowl QB with a 4-2 road playoff record and has set playoff records for a QB running the ball.

              2. Hey Seb, Dilfer–not exactly a prototypical NFL QB–has a winning SB ring. How many does Kaep have?

        1. Ravens officially announce they’ve signed arena league QB David Olson. He’s a training camp arm who will help with reps while Joe Flacco (back) is sidelined for a week. Baltimore previously only had two healthy quarterbacks: Ryan Mallett and Dustin Vaughan

          And obviously Paraag talked John H out of pursuing Kap.

          1. No, Flacco did. Remember, they played against each other in that Super Bowl, and Flacco did not want a player who might take his job.

              1. He is probably thinking about Alex Smith.

                While quaking in his $120 million boots and admiring his SB ring won at the expense of the guy with the crazy hair brought in play some snaps in the exhibition season.

        2. Remember, Paraag is in charge with contracts.
          .
          John Lynch is not happy. He sees the importance to see him signed. It might be the difference between winning and losing.
          .
          The stench of Baalke is lingering.

              1. Sharp as a tack today Seb. You must have had an extra Poptart this morning.

            1. Nah, Baalke embraced Anal lytics, so he relied on Paraag. Sure, JH did not like Paraag, but he was more of a gut instincts kind of coach.
              .
              Baalke relied on Anal lytics to justify his ACL strategy, and many leaks were attributed to Paraag, but I think they were done at the behest of Baalke. Too bad Baalke is gone, because now, when Paraag leaked, he could not blame Baalke for forcing him to do that.

            2. Maybe you did not realize this, Skippy, but Paraag and Baalke sat next to each other during the games. That was not marginalizing, that was embracing.

        3. Paraag may not be great in other aspects but in terms contracts and draft deals he has done very well.
          With that said it seems he may not have as much power as what was previously thought. In negotiations with Kyle it was Lynch who made the call to pay him so much.

      1. The guy has more than enough talent to begin a lucrative career in broadcasting–beginning with the Pac12 Network.

  7. Hey Brian Hoyer…

    Good interview….I enjoyed reading it. It did fill in a lot of the blanks as far as I’m concerned…All of the preparation that you’ve put in and the comraderie you’ve established with your ‘troops’ while going through your installs probably will show fruit early and often and I look forward to it. I love the connection that you have with Coach Shannahan, and yeah, this IS your team….this IS your offense. So be that Pied Piper and lead….and kick some ass along the way….

    1. Ancient manuscript from Mr. Piper’s family tree:

      The oldest comes from the Lueneburg manuscript (c 1440 – 50), which stated: “In the year of 1284, on the day of Saints John and Paul on June 26, by a piper, clothed in many kinds of colours, 130 children born in Hamelin were seduced, and lost at the place of execution near the koppen.”

    2. How cute. Declaring that this is your team, when they paid him backup money, not starting money.
      .
      Nothing will be handed to him, and Lynch said that he wants competition. He also said that he is looking to improve the QB position, until they find that franchise QB.
      .
      I still think that Barkley may out compete Hoyer, because he is more accurate. That may give other players an opportunity to upgrade the QB position.

  8. The problem with football is the actual time playing meaningful games <<<<<< Time spent reading, writing,talking. Every year its "great practice, great ethic, great this, great that".

    All that matters is Shanny and Hoyers comments after minimum game 4. You're 1-3 Hoyer, you still claim this offense? It's all so much BS. Remember last year, all those great Chip practices. All those great "Gabbert really in sync with his receivers". When you have marginal against marginal in practice, marginal becomes greatness. And suck in practice (think Bowman in coverage) means destroyed on Sunday. Think Gabbert. Think Kaep ( o wait a minute, the Rams game!!!).

    Q….why was Rams game an indicator Kaep should be a starting QB, but Gabberts also beat Rams and no one bangs drum for him?

    The truth always emerges, on Sunday.

    Early October. Let's chat then.

  9. Matt Maiocco‏Verified account @MaioccoNBCS 44s44 seconds ago
    More
    Jimmie Ward begins training camp on active/PUP.

  10. 49reasons. says:
    Seb, will you come around an apologize to Paraag after the Solomon signing ?

    July 28, 2017 at 11:10 am

    This is why Marathe ‘s job is secure. He’s a brilliant numbers guy who knows how to negotiate. And kudos to Solomon for getting it done!

    1. TrollD, Paraag is a leaker, who stabs people in the back. Maybe he needs to apologize.
      .
      Numbers guy? They are a dime a dozen. Like Madden said, they should never choose a suit over a coach or player.

  11. Imagine if u-know-who was the instructor at a class for Advanced French Kitchen Techniques for Haute Cuisine.
    ” OK Chefs, this is an important instrument in the kitchen. It has a handle and on the other end it has 4 pointy things called tines, t-I-n-e-s; tines. This fine tool is called a Fork. A Fork; f, o, r, k; fork.
    Everybody keeping up?”

Comments are closed.