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50 ILLUSTRATED VOLUME 25, ISSUE 3 f got to be able to provide those spark plays when you need those spark plays." Q: What was the unit that really caught your eye this year? Hazell: "I thought there were two groups that played pretty consistently, improved throughout the duration of the year and that was the line- backers and the offensive line. They were the two groups that we thought going into the sea- son were the most suspect. Those were the two groups that (ratcheted up) each week." Q: What the team showed this year defen- sively — for the corners to be able to play man some, the secondary seeming to play the ball more in the air and pursuing the ball better and being a bit more physical at spots — is that what you're hoping this defense will be? Hazell: "I thought they improved from Year 1. I thought they were more gap sound. I thought they were more aggres- sive. I thought we took more chances, which we needed to take in the back end. Here's where we've got to get better: In those games where we've got to get them stopped at the end. That's where we've got to become tougher and figure out who's going to make the plays. Somebody has got to make plays in those situations. That was the hard part." Q: During the season, you said you thought you found an identity on offense. Can you define what that identity was and does that change at all because you lose some speed guys in the backfield? Hazell: "How I'd define us — spread people out and try to get as many relief throws as we could. They took some of those away toward the end of the year, but still, I think that's a major part of our package. Being able to have multi- ple options on each play, two or three options, which causes defenses to be more honest. The thing we have to get better at — what I've said for two years now — we have to be able to develop a guy on the outside to take the pressure off every- thing that's happening close to the box. That's got to be our main emphasis between now and the start of next season. Who is that guy? How do we get that guy the ball in stressful situations? I think that's been holding us back. I really do." Q: You thought you had that guy with DeAngelo Yancey starting the year. Hazell: "We did. And he didn't come as far as we'd like him to come. So we've got to find that guy." Q: Can Yancey still be that guy? Hazell: "We'll have to see in the spring time. He's got to work harder. He's got to be much more confident. He lacks some confidence right now. So we'll have to see if he's the guy or if there's someone else who can be that guy." Q: Do you have the playmakers on your roster? Can you develop that or is that something you have to be? Hazell: "I think you have some, you develop some and you get more. Part of that is confidence level. The guys that you're trying to develop, they have to develop confidence in themselves that they can make those plays consistently and in critical moments. It's easy to make plays when there's 45 minutes left in the game." Q: Who would you consider playmakers you have right now? Hazell: "That's shown to be a playmaker? I think the only guy really, consistently, is Anthrop. And that's what I'm talking about, consistently. You've seen Greg (Phillips) make a couple plays and a couple other guys, but consistently, An- throp has been the guy. So you have to develop — I have in my mind who I think are going to be some playmakers who have not played a whole lot for us. But that's yet to be seen. We'd like to have a solid three — it'd be nice to have four or five — on each side of the ball that you can count on." Q: Do you feel you have more on defense right now? Hazell: "Yes. Talk about (Ja'Whaun) Bentley, Frankie (Williams), Anthony Brown, (Jake) Replogle. They've con- sistently made plays for us. So if you look at that side of the ball, those are four guys. And that calls other guys to make plays. That's the whole thing — you just have to have enough playmakers that it becomes infectious. Then all of a sudden, you have to double a guy so other guys can make plays." Q: Do you anticipate any changes with the coaching staff? Hazell: "No, not right now. (But) I'm evaluating (them), where I see it, where we are and the areas of improvement we need to make as a coaching staff." j