Jerome Baker – November 11, 2019
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Monday, November 11, 2019
LB Jerome Baker
(On not recovering the loose ball on his strip-sack.) – “I think we should start this out by, welcome to Victory Monday. (laughter) But no, the sack, I honestly thought he got it off. That’s why I didn’t lower my shoulder or anything. It’s a play I missed. It’s all good.”
(DT Christian Wilkins gave you a little shot. Was that for the sack or was that because, “damn, pick up the ball?”) – “I don’t know. We’ve still got to talk about that. That was a hard shove. (laughter) But it’s all good. He’s always animated so it was all good.”
(How is Victory Monday after two in a row?) – “It feels amazing. I could definitely get used to it. It’s fun, but we’ll enjoy this one today and tomorrow get on to Buffalo.”
(The way you guys are playing defense – is this what you envisioned the process to be like? Everybody keeps talking about the process.) – “Yeah, if you just look at it, I just believe in ‘Coach Flo’ (Head Coach Brian Flores) and ‘P.G.’ (Defensive Coordinator Patrick Graham); these past few games have just been what they’ve been coaching us up to do and we’ve definitely been having fun playing this defense. (We’ve) just got to continue.”
(Head Coach Brian Flores was asked about this. Everybody knows the narrative around this, what people are saying and the whole thing is everybody wants – see if we can get a franchise quarterback in here. How satisfying is it to kind of put that aside and maybe ruin those plans for the people who wanted to see zero wins?) – “I love it. I love winning. I love winning now. I don’t worry about the future. I worry about winning now and it just feels good to win. The future is going to be the future. I’ll worry about that when it comes; but for now, like I said earlier in the year, it’s all about winning right now. I’m not really focused on next year or the year after that.”
(You have several young defensive players on this team getting better as the year goes on with CB Nik Needham and CB Jomal Wiltz and S Steven Parker and DT Christian Wilkins – you would attribute that to what? What’s happening that a number of these guys are improving as the year goes on?) – “They’re just believing in the process. They trust (Defensive Pass Game Coordinator/Cornerbacks Coach) Josh (Boyer) and ‘T.O.’ (Safeties Coach Tony Oden) and ‘P.G.’ (Defensive Coordinator Patrick Graham) – all those guys. They trust them and they believe they’re getting taught. Sundays, we go out there and just do what you have been taught to do. They’re making plays and it’s definitely exciting just to see them make plays – the excitement they have after the play, during the play, talking it out. I’m definitely proud just watching them grow as players and we’re all growing as a defense, so it’s definitely good.”
(And to hold up at corner the way you have with CB Xavien Howard obviously injured and guys coming in off the street and off practice squads – is it pleasantly surprising to you? What’s your reaction just to watching how well you’ve held up on the back end despite all the turnover there?) – “It’s a combination of everything – the players believing what the coaches are telling us (and) the coaches just teaching us exactly what we have to do in situations, just knowing the little things that you don’t really know watching the outside-in. Just knowing your leverage, communication. All those guys, they came in, that’s the first thing they did is communicate, know their leverage. You can eliminate a lot of plays like that and I’m definitely proud of them, the way they’re playing, and we’ve just got to continue.”
(Do you take it upon yourself to make Head Coach Brian Flores laugh and stay loose?) – “Yes. Yes.”
(Why do you take that upon you? It’s such a big role.) – “I’m all about having fun and laughing and joking. I pretty much do that with anybody. Raekwon (McMillan) – he’s been getting it for years. ‘Flo’ (Head Coach Brian Flores) is that way. Sometimes ‘P.G.’ (Defensive Coordinator Patrick Graham) – he’ll be in a meeting or something like that, be so serious and I crack a joke. It’s just to lighten up the mood. It’s still football at the end of the day. We’ve been playing it since we’ve been 6 (years old) or however long you’ve been playing it. It’s still football. Just have fun with it.”
(Some guys would be afraid to do that to the head coach, especially a first-year head coach.) – “It is what it is. You go out there, you have fun, whatever it is. He’s all serious about business. You’ve just got to know when to do it and the only time I really do it is when I know I can and he’s not – it’s not too serious (of a) moment.”
(What does it say about the type of guy that Head Coach Brian Flores is that he has that with you guys?) – “Oh, yeah. He’s all about business. He’s all serious. He’s a little uptight in some instances; but at the end of the day, he’s a great man, he’s a great coach, he’s a great person. So he still likes to have fun and laugh. I know that. I don’t have to look at that hard shell of ‘he’s the head coach’ thing. I can still see he jokes, he laughs and we’re just having fun with him.”
(What was going through your mind when you were coming down the blitz and you see that big hole in the middle?) – “$21,000 fine. (laughter) That’s all I was thinking about. I got fined $21,000. I really didn’t see the ball. I saw his arm go like this. I didn’t see the ball so I just ran through him and tried not to lower my shoulder. Turns out he still had the ball. (It was) just a play I made and just attributed to our defense, so it’s all good.”
Brian Flores – November 11, 2019
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Monday, November 11, 2019
Head Coach Brian Flores
(I want to phrase this very carefully so it’s not misunderstood. Obviously you and the staff are doing a great job extracting everything you can from these players. Your goal is to win. No one questions if that has to be the goal. That said, do you ever think about – not that it should affect what you do – do you ever think about the fact that these wins are hurting the franchise’s chance to get a franchise quarterback in the draft? Do you ever speak lightheartedly with General Manager Chris Grier about it or do you ever think about it in a quiet moment?) – “Again, that’s like seven questions in a row. (laughter) No, it’s not something I really think about. I think about this team, how I’m going to – my message to the team this morning, what my message to the team is going to be at 4 p.m. when we intro Buffalo, and then I’m going to get started on Buffalo. Maybe there’s not enough time to get into all of that. My job is to put this team in the best position to try to go out there and be productive and try to win football games. I think every head coach, every general manager, every organization is thinking about things long-term, as well as short-term. We’re no different, but right now my goal is to get each one of those guys in that locker better (and) as good as they can be. That’s the goal for me and our coaching staff.”
(Nine games into the season – does this franchise now have a winning culture?) – “I think these guys are really working hard. I think they’re preparing the right way. The process is something we talk about on a weekly basis and I think they’re trying to stick to that process and I think they’re seeing the fruits of that labor, but culture isn’t – it’s something you build over time. It’s early. We need to continue to be consistent in the things we’ve been doing, but I do think we’re moving in the right direction. I think there’s a trust and a belief in the process. I think they believe that this coaching staff is going to do everything possible to put these guys in positions to be successful and if we do that, then hopefully we give ourselves an opportunity to win games. The culture piece is about the relationships that are built in that locker room and on the practice field. I think we’re building towards that.”
(Can you talk a little bit about CB Nik Needham and the game he had and the progress that you’ve observed through the year in his play?) – “Nik played well yesterday. He’s a young guy who, we saw some – we talked about this – (Defensive Pass Game Coordinator/Cornerbacks Coach) Josh Boyer, it’s March and he goes, ‘I think I’ve got a kid from UTEP who’s pretty decent.’ When he says ‘pretty decent’ that means he’s probably pretty good. We brought him in as a free agent and he did some good things in OTAs and had some struggles like most rookies do in the preseason and wasn’t quite ready, so we put him on the practice squad. This is the National Football League – that’s the journey of a lot of guys in the National Football League. It’s part of their journey, I should say. He spent a few weeks on the practice squad. I think getting released and going through that process took him through a little bit of the reality of what the National Football League could be. It could be over in a heartbeat. He embraced that challenge and turned things around quickly and I would say took everything a little bit more seriously – meetings, practice, walkthrough, weightlifting, nutrition. He’s turned some things around and he’s still got a long way to go, but all of those things play a role in kind of how we performed yesterday and hopefully he continues to do that.”
(You’re 2-0 now in November. You have seven games left here. Do you think you guys can get on a roll here towards the end of the season?) – “I hope so. That’s going to take a lot of work. Things don’t just happen in this league. You’ve got to make them happy, quite honestly. That’s meetings. That’s walkthroughs. That’s practice. Hopefully – Tuesday’s the day for ‘the day off,’ but the good players, the good teams I’ve been around, that’s an active day where they’re getting to know their opponent. Even though we’ve played Buffalo and it’s easy to sit there and say, ‘oh, I know this guy and that guy and this guy,’ but things change very quickly in this league. We’re different than we were when we played Buffalo last time and so are they. I expect our guys to go about this preparation as if we haven’t seen these guys. That’s what I’m going to do. It’s not going to just happen. Anyone who thinks that is out of their mind, quite honestly. (laughter)”
(The point of where QB Ryan Fitzpatrick came out and QB Josh Rosen was in – was there ever any point in the game where you maybe thought in the fourth quarter, field goals might not be enough to pull this thing out?) – “I think at the end of a game, you get a feel for how the game is going. They’ve got a good offense and they could’ve gotten it going at any point. We were playing pretty well defensively. (I’ve) got a lot of confidence in Jason (Sanders). If we could put it in the end zone, we want to. It’s a good defense. We got stopped on a fourth down down there one time. Is there ever a thought that field goals may not be enough? I think that’s always a thought that goes through your mind. You always want to score seven, not three. But we’ve got a lot of confidence in Jason. Being up four is better than being up one. We’ve just got to take all that into consideration.”
(With LB Jerome Baker, is he going to get the knee kind of evaluated or looked at a little bit?) – “We’re evaluating a lot of guys that got dinged in the game. He’s one of them along with a few other guys. I think he’ll be out there Wednesday.”
(At this point, would you say QB Ryan Fitzpatrick will be the quarterback for the rest of the season or do you want to leave yourself to go week-to-week on that?) – “Yeah, I’d say he’s going to be the quarterback moving forward. I’ve said that before and things change. Things change in this league. I see him as the quarterback for the foreseeable future. He’s done a really good job. The guys, they feed off his energy. He’s been able to move the football. He’s made me really tough plays for us – scrambling, getting out of the pocket, making throws, tucking it and taking it to the end zone. He’s been productive. He’ll be in there.”
(With the turnover battle, there’s the practical impact of winning that and then also the psychological impact. How would you describe the emotional effect of winning that battle has had the last two week?) – “Anytime you – we stress it a lot. The players know when basically you – basically if you get a turnover, you’re closer to winning the game and if you turn the ball over you’re closer to losing the game. That’s just basically, at the end of the day, that’s what it is; so yeah, psychologically, emotionally, it does something to you. You’ve got to be able to overcome that when you turn it over or I should say you’ve got to be able to deal with failure, overcome the failure and deal with the success of turning the ball over. There’s a lot that goes into it. Turning it over defensively or in the kicking game, offensively you’ve got to go out there and try to put points on the board and try to capitalize on those turnovers. Conversely, when you turn the ball over you want to try to limit those. That’s the game. It’s an emotional game and that plays into the ebbs and flows of the game – turnovers, specifically is what I’m talking about. Hopefully we get more of them.”
(You’re winning some games with your quarterback, QB Ryan Fitzpatrick, who is 36 years old. You’ve got a second-year QB who’s developing but he may not give you the best chance to win. General Manager Chris Grier has talked about the importance of drafting a quarterback and the future and what are some things that you maybe envision for that QB position to make the most out of your time?) – “Um. I’m…”
(What’s your vision for the QB position in the future to make the most out of your…?) – “Ryan Fitzpatrick is going to start. Josh Rosen is our backup. Jake Rudock, he’s a guy we like to work with. He’s on the practice squad.”
(So nothing after that?) – “There’s nobody else on the roster.”
(And what are your thoughts on the position after that?) – “What’s that?”
(And your vision for the position in the future is what I was asking.) – “Like who’s going to be the quarterback in the future?”
(What do you hope to accomplish in trying – the quarterback in the future?) – “You mean for Sunday? It’s (Ryan) Fitzpatrick.”
(You had obviously flash plays from S Steven Parker, S Bobby McCain, we saw CB Nik Needham’s interception. Who went under the radar and sort of had a sneaky good game from watching tape? What names come to mind on either side of the ball?) – “Vince Biegel. He’s a guy who played tough in the run game. (Vince Biegel) had some good rushes, had some hits on the quarterback. (Steven) Parker is a guy who showed up in critical situations for sure. Offensively. Jomal Wiltz showed up in the kicking game and defensively. We’ve got a lot of guys who make plays without – we call it ‘making a play without making the play.’ Setting the edge defensively or making a big block in kickoff return or punt return or – we had a few guys from that standpoint. I thought Chandler Cox went in there and made a few good blocks, too.”
(What did you see from C Daniel Kilgore in his first game back?) – “I thought he played well. I thought he had really good communication. He had a lot of juice, played fast, tried to play physical. He was a good presence inside.”
Christian Wilkins – November 10, 2019 (Postgame)
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Sunday, November 10, 2019
Postgame – Indianapolis
(Coach Flores said he was waiting for one of these games that you could win in the fourth quarter. Did you notice how pumped he was?) – “Yeah, he was really excited. Rightfully so, we’ve worked so hard for this. The outside world, the media, maybe thought this wasn’t possible. We got two more wins than the rest of the world thought we were going to have this year, so that’s pretty cool. We are all excited. Just happy to be a part of this.”
(To see things come to fruition, how long do you think it took for guys to buy in and does it help to win?) – “Well I think it was more so guys coming together and learning each other. You know, building that relationship and that camaraderie and just everything that goes into being a team. And we are still building that. We are not perfect, we’re not 100 percent on everything. But we are not satisfied with these two wins. We are going to keep going and get more so that’s our goal, that’s our mindset.”
(Could you get a feel (Nik Needham) was balling today?) – “Oh yeah, Nik was playing his game. I am real proud of him because I know how much work he has put into it. He has the underdog mindset. I knew since coming in with him, in OTAs and things like that and rookie mini camp, that he was a worker. He was going to get after it and try to be the best he can be. From day one, I have just seen him get better so it’s not really a surprise to us that he makes those type of plays and does so well.”
Steven Parker – November 10, 2019 (Postgame)
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Sunday, November 10, 2019
Postgame – Indianapolis
(Can you take us through your pick?) – “Well, man coverage really should have been in better position, but fortunate to have been able to finish the play. That was the biggest thing right there.”
(Did you guys have any idea you’d have a night like this?) – “I mean it was a magical night. This is one of those games you live for, you dream about this. It’s exactly what you want to play for. Of course, we didn’t know exactly how it was going to go, but we knew it was going to be a battle.”
(What has this season been like for a young player like yourself?) – “It’s been very good. A lot of ups and downs but this team is really growing. I love that. Like I said, this is just one of those games you dream of. This is the exact moment you want to be in, especially as a defensive player. For us to go ahead and get off the field right there, that was tremendous.”
Nik Needham – November 10, 2019 (Postgame)
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Sunday, November 10, 2019
Postgame – Indianapolis
(How does it feel to get the second win?) – “It just felt good to contribute to the old guys and help get a win. That is all I am really worried about – I just want to win. It felt great. My first interception and I threw the ball on the ground. The older guys were telling me I got to keep it but I was just so excited I made a play in a big-time situation like that.”
(Did you feel like you could make any play out there today?) – “No sir. I was just trying to do my job every play. Just listen to the play call and execute. That’s all I was doing.”
(What is the difference with this team now compared to three or four weeks ago?) – “I think we are just – we have a real young team and new guys. I think over the weeks we are just building chemistry and really play for each other and don’t want to let each other down. Game changing plays happen out there and we don’t back down or give up we just go back out there and fight. That’s the main goal every week.”
Ryan Fitzpatrick – November 10, 2019 (Postgame)
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Sunday, November 10, 2019
Postgame – Indianapolis
(What’s it like to see this team rally from the season start to where you are now with two straight wins?) – “It’s been awesome. It is so much fun to be in the locker room when you’re winning and for what we went through in the beginning of the year and that attitude that everyone had and what we touched on last week even after that win, it makes it so much sweeter to go in and celebrate with this group of guys. We all know what we’ve faced all year and what we’ve worked through. Just a different way to win today, but another great team win. I thought the defense played really, really well today.”
(Could you talk about the job that Brian Flores and the coaches have done in raising you guys up from that start against Baltimore to today?) – “I think the coaches deserve a lot of credit and I think the players deserve a lot of credit, too – that whole building just for sticking together. His message has been clear to us the whole time. He hasn’t wavered in what he expects out of us. And again, this is stuff we touched on last week a little bit. But the guys knowing each other know and playing with each other for a couple of weeks and getting practices in and everything’s getting better and better. We’re jelling a little bit more as a team. I think the coaches deserve a lot of credit and I think the players deserve a lot of credit too for going out there, putting work in and not being discouraged by the start.”
(You took a helmet to helmet hit, are you okay?) – “It’s funny, because I took a helmet to helmet and looked and saw a flag and it ended up being a holding call against us. So I wasn’t really happy about that. As a quarterback or even as a guy who has played this game for a long time, I understand why they have the spotters and I understand why they call down. That’s for us, that’s to protect us. For me, it was frustrating because I was on the bench for five minutes. We were off the field and I had sat on the bench for five minutes going over plays and whatever else. It wasn’t until I went back into the game that it was called down to check on me. If they want to check on me, I get it 100 percent. I know why it’s in place, but there was a five-minute gap where I was sitting there doing nothing and they didn’t need me on the field, where I could have been checked. Then also, I just sat in the blue tent for what seemed like 10 minutes, but it was probably one minute, without anybody in there checking me in a very key moment of the game. So, I guess I understand why they do it, I like that they do it, but the timing of it was off and that was difficult for me to understand.”
(All that time is when the game is being potentially decided.) – “It was a huge series in the game for us. We’re going up to the line to start our first play of that possession and they got called from above and I had to come out.”
(Did they tell you that you were exhibiting any symptoms?) – “No idea. I know I got hit facemask to facemask, got up right away and felt fine. Again, I understand the process of it. I just think if they’re going to do it, it’s got to be right away, or it’s got to be when I’m sitting on the bench for five minutes because that was a big part of the game for us.”
(The way it started, and it’s a young football team with guys coming and going. Then all of a sudden over the last five weeks, you’ve got some traction, you’ve won two games. How did that all occur? How did that team that started against the Ravens Week 1, become this football team right now?) – “Well, we’ve just continued to come together. Getting more familiar with each other and then, we touched upon it a little bit, but in practice there’s been such a shift of the way that we’ve worked and the excitement that we’ve had and the confidence that we’re gaining. Even in a couple of those games that we didn’t pull out, Buffalo, end of the Washington game, Pittsburgh, you could see this team gaining confidence. Today was a great example of learning how to in a little bit because the last two games we’ve won in different ways.”
(You had some games where you had some leads and then didn’t hold them in the second half, now you’re doing it. Is this team learning how to win football games?) – “I think so. I think it’s a process. But I think today was a great example of that. The defense really stepping up, the offense playing well early, sputtering and then doing what we had to do at the end when we needed to do it. I thought it was a good team win and different from last week’s win.”
(You and this franchise are in an odd situation. You want to win games and you want to keep getting better, and then there’s the other side of moving forward and the draft next year. Do you feel that? I’m sure you hear it and you know it but is that a strange balancing act for you guys?) – “Not for us. We’re competitors and we want to go out there and play. It’s amazing every week, there’s another obstacle to jump over. Losing Preston (Williams) was huge and losing Mark Walton to his suspension was huge. We had guys on offense who were really starting to come along and produce for us and then all of a sudden, they aren’t out there anymore. So Kalen Ballage comes in and steps up. In the receiver room, we’re going to have guys continue to step up. It’s just amazing, as you go from week to week, it seems like there continues to be more obstacles and hurdles for us to go over and this team is finding a way to do it. I’m really proud of our guys for that.”
(The touchdown run in the second quarter, can you tell us about what you saw develop there?) – “That was, I thought, a well-designed play for us versus the defense that they had. They did a nice job defending it. I stepped up, and our three receivers that were on the right were all running routes that were leading them either to the middle or left side of the field. So, when I stepped up, I saw a lot of daylight. I was surprised I got all the way to the end zone but I made it. So I still have a little bit of quickness I guess.”
Brian Flores – November 10, 2019 (Postgame)
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Sunday, November 10, 2019
Postgame – Indianapolis
(As spoken for the Miami Dolphins, are the Miami Dolphins happy they won today?) – “Yeah. There is an excited group in there (the locker room). Tough game against a really good opponent. They’re a really tough coached team. A lot of good players. On the road. Tough environment. It’s hard to win on the road in this league. I’m proud of this team – I really am. There were some plays that we came back from. Some adversity we dealt with that earlier in the year would have been hard but now these guys are tough mentally, physically, they trust the process and we were able to overcome some. But that’s what you get is adversity in every game and I think we are learning how to do that and we’re doing that by sticking together and taking it one play at the time. I’m proud of this team.”
(The effort by the defense coming up with the three takeaways, coming and stepping up big for you and this was one of those defensive games where it was close all the way through and you had to just grind it out and your guys got the best of them.) – “Credit to the players. They went out there and executed and our coaching staff you know, Pat Graham, Josh (Boyer), T.O. (Tony Oden), Hobbs (Marion Hobby), Robbie (Rob Leonard) – work extremely hard to get these guys ready. To put these guys in position to make some plays and we got some today. Created some turnovers. Those are always big in the game. We played a tough, physical game. We tackled and I think even when they drove the ball a little, we just stuck together and took it one play at a time and made the plays we needed to win.”
(You have stacked together about five games in a row, winning the last two. Do you just feel this team coming together and that momentum just building for you?) – “Yeah, I think that’s something I felt, like you said, for the last four or five weeks and we are starting to come together across the board. From a communications standpoint, an execution standpoint, a practice standpoint, from a confidence standpoint. I think being able to overcome adversity is part of playing in the National Football League and we had a lot of that early in the year and we are starting to do that at a high level now.”
(Once again Ryan Fitzpatrick is able to get this offense going just enough and comes and takes a touchdown. Takes the ball in himself for the touchdown and just the things he has been doing since you put him in the fourth quarter against Washington game.) – “Yeah, Fitz has been leading the way and a tough, gritty performance. Not perfect obviously. There has never been a perfect game played so I love that he just comes right back in on a scoring drive and I was just very happy with Fitz’s (performance).”
(What happened there with his concussion protocol?) – “You know they called down and once they call down, it’s out of everyone’s hands and I had to take him out of the game.”
(But they didn’t call down until he went back on the field?) – “They called down when they called down. I’m not on the phones there.”
(CB Nik Needham and S Steven Parker have been in and out of the lineup. Both of them had interceptions. Needham had a big game. How have you decided whose going in week to week in this secondary? Is it just practice and who is practicing good?) – “Yes, it’s practice. It’s walkthroughs. We watched the tape last week and there are a lot of things. No one has set guys in the building, so I think our coaches are doing a job these guys ready and. Josh (Boyer), T.O. (Tony Oden), really all the coaches are doing a good job getting these guys ready and we just put the guys on the field that help this team win games. Those two guys in particular helped us a lot today and made two big plays in the game. One really in the red zone and Nik’s interception that put us up one – that’s a huge play of the game. Like we talked about, those winning moments and some of those as a team.”
(You have won two in a row and as you process through this, can you see the team improving from here?) – “That’s the goal. I told them that when we first met. I try to improve every day and again if this team is a reflection of me, we are going to improve every day at everything – blocking, tackling, study habits, preparation, walkthrough, practice, third down, red area, run game. We are going to try and improve every day.”
(What are you seeing in WR DeVante Parker and TE Mike Gesicki that have allowed them to become such a big part of your offense right now?) – “They are two talented guys – we will start right there. There is a toughness and grit in both of those guys, and we are seeing it on a weekly basis. We need that. Getting that from those two guys in particular, I think our offensive staff is putting them in position to have some success. George (Godsey) has done a really good job with the tight ends and Karl (Dorrell) with the receiving group. Just one foot in front of the other on a daily basis and that process, that commitment to the process is just the fruits of their labor.”
(It was well documented that you guys had a lot of scouts at the LSU-Alabama game. Only 13 teams didn’t attend and 19 teams were there. It’s no secret you guys are putting resources to next year. How much does this team feed off this and what everyone is talking about next year? What about this year?) – “I think if you are not motivated to play in this league, you will not be in this league long. I have been here for a long time and if you are not motivated on a daily basis, you won’t be around long – that’s players, that’s coaches, that’s personalities. I don’t know if we need extra motivation. It’s the National Football League.”
(That fourth down stop that gave you guys the victory, can you take me through that play and the emotions leading up to the victory?) – “It’s the winning play. It’s a four-point game. They’re in the red zone. It’s a good offense with good skill players. They go to (Eric) Ebron, who is one of the best tight ends in the league and low and behold we stopped him short. It’s a winning play and I’m just so proud of this team. The way they stick together. The way they fight. They played and overcame adversity. Went on the road and played in a tough environment. That’s what it takes to win in this league. To come to Indy and win, you have to be a physically and mentally tough team.”
