FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. – For the second preseason game in a row, offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian has called the game from the sidelines.
According to head coach Dan Quinn, it's something he and Sarkisian are trying out this preseason again to see where everyone is most comfortable. This is similar to last year where Sarkisian used the preseason to evaluate where he would call games from.
Sarkisian started the 2017 season calling plays from the field where he has more experience. After the first four games, Sarkisian moved up to the booth.
Quinn and Sarkisian are using the preseason to evaluate what works best in this regard.
"I'm trying it," Quinn said of Sarkisian calling plays from the field. "The reason why is with the addition of Greg Knapp in the press box, we're going to go back and forth on which is the best way for him. Greg brings a lot of experience to us, both as a quarterback coach and a play-caller. His eyes up in the press box are really valuable, too. As it stands today, I'm comfortable with how it looks. We said after this game is when we would make an evaluation and decide for him to go up or not. So far I feel comfortable with that."
For Quinn, whether it's in the booth or on the field, whatever works best for the team, he is "all for it."
The addition of Knapp, the quarterbacks coach, to the coaching staff has been something Matt Ryan and Quinn have talked about often. Knapp, a former offensive coordinator, brings a wealth of knowledge to the unit.
With Knapp in the booth, Quinn believes he is able to be an asset in providing information to Sarkisian in real-time from his vantage point.
"He would tell them what he sees," Quinn said of what Knapp can provide. "He would give instant feedback on the way somebody is playing something. That's kind of the information that can go right to the play-caller fast. The safety is playing this, the linebacker is playing this. They're kind of given the information that sometimes in the first 15 plays or so, that's what you're looking for, to gain some information on how a team is trying to defend you. Greg is very quick to see that and be able to call that out quickly, so it allows the play-caller to say, 'If they're going to do this this way, we can match it with another way.' Those two in sync definitely helps."
