Noah Igbinoghene – October 23, 2022 (Postgame)
Sunday, October 23, 2022
Postgame – Pittsburgh
CB Noah Igbinoghene
(What did that moment mean to you overall?) – “Man, I was just able to get the interception, that’s all I’ve been working on. That’s all the coaches have been preaching is just ‘get the ball, Noah, get the ball.’ And I was able to get it. I wasn’t really worried about the critics and everyone else was saying. I’m just focused on this team and what the coaches want me to do. Got this win for the team. Got the win so that’s the most important thing.”
(With the catch and the jump and getting your feet in-bounds, what was your whole thought process in that moment?) – “I just got to get my two feet in, that was my thought process.”
(What do you think you guys got right with the defensive game plan today because they didn’t score in the second half and you guys were really in control the whole game?) – “Just sticking with our game plan I would say. The coaches had a great game plan. We kind of stuck to our game plan in the second half and it worked. And we went up like you said we shut them out in the second half and it’s a blessing.”
(Take us through that final play?) – “I turned around, I was playing my responsibility and the ball was right there and at first I didn’t think I caught it cause the referee right there said it was out. I saw the review and I saw everyone get excited and I got excited as well. I got the interception and it’s my first one. It’s a blessing.”
Justin Bethel – October 23, 2022 (Postgame)
Sunday, October 23, 2022
Postgame – Pittsburgh
CB Justin Bethel
(What do you say about a guy like S Jevon Holland back there? He’s in control no matter what – no matter who is in there, right?) – “For sure. He is a great player. He is going to continue to be a great player for a long time. We just keep getting better from here.”
(As a defense, do you enjoy those moments when the game is coming down and it is in your hands the last couple series?) – “Yeah, when you’re in that kind of situation – the offense has done everything they need to do, and as a defense, it’s our job to keep the opponent from scoring. So, the offensive guys gave us the lead, and we were able to stop them from scoring at the end of the game.”
(What was your game plan against the Pittsburgh Steelers tonight that you felt worked so well? What did you like about what Defensive Coordinator Josh Boyer came up with?) – “I think he did a great job just knowing the personnel that we had especially with everyone kind of being down DB-wise and making a plan that we could go out there and execute at a high level and be able to make plays on the ball.”
Raheem Mostert – October 23, 2022 (Postgame)
Sunday, October 23, 2022
Postgame – Pittsburgh
RB Raheem Mostert
(How great was it to pull off a win after losing three straight, to get back on that winning side of things?) – “It feels great. It’s always great when you get a win, but we have to move on to the next team. It’s the 24-48 hour rule, soak it all in and get back to work tomorrow or even Tuesday.”
(Primetime game, did you guys feel that atmosphere electric out there? And Tua (Tagovailoa) came back as well.) – “We felt it. When Tua came out there, you could just feel the energy. That’s something that we need on this team, especially having three losses. That energy was exciting. It pumped us all up, and I’m just happy that we won.”
(We’ve been waiting for game changing plays on defense too, how about that down the stretch?) – “Yeah, that was major, especially Jevon coming up with that interception big time in a critical situation, so the offense just has to capitalize on those opportunities, and they definitely gave us some opportunities to capitalize.”
Tua Tagovailoa – October 23, 2022 (Postgame)
Sunday, October 23, 2022
Postgame – Pittsburgh
QB Tua Tagovailoa (Transcribed by ASAP Sports)
Q. How did it feel to be back?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: It felt good. It felt good running out the tunnel. The atmosphere was great. A lot of support from the fans, and just being able to be out there with my teammates, it was awesome.
Q. Two late drives, the Steelers are driving both times for a potential go ahead score, what’s going through your head on the sideline?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: Well, situational awareness of things that could possibly happen if they do score, if they had to kick a field goal, things like that. I would say I was prepared for whatever happened, if they did kick a field goal, and then we got the ball back, or if they scored and we got the ball back. The time, what that looks like with two time-outs that we had left. So going over situational awareness.
Q. When you see Noah get that toe-tagging grab in the back of the end zone, corner of the end zone, what emotions are coming upon you at that point?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: Yeah, it’s gratifying. I think the defense played their asses off throughout the whole night. They gave us many opportunities offensively to go and put points on the board for our team so that we wouldn’t be in the situation we were in late in the game where it was
10-16. A lot of things that need to be corrected offensively. Obviously starts with me. But we’ll take the win. We’re extremely happy about that, and we’ll go back to the drawing board when we come back in. But to what you said — you know, a situation was coming to mind, as well, when Noah did get the interception because we thought he was probably down at the half yard line, maybe 1-yard line. I’m not too sure. That situation we probably have to quarterback sneak or do something like that to get out of the end zone and just run the clock down. But they called it a touchback, so we were able to kneel the ball.
Q. What was working so well early, especially in the middle of the field, and how did that close up as the game went on?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: Yeah, I think they made really good adjustments defensively, but there were just little misses here and there that we had offensively. A lot of the misses could have turned into really big plays. Just better execution, and it starts with me, like I said.
Q. You finally had the opportunity to meet with Bob Griese for the first time. What did you take away from that experience?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: He’s a cool guy. We just said what’s up. He just said, “Are you going to ball out tonight?” I said, “That’s the plan.” We just had that kind of conversation back and forth. Really cool guy. Really awesome to kind of be around him and the other guys. It’s a great opportunity to be around a team and a group of guys like that, an undefeated season in the NFL. That’s hard. It’s hard to win games in the NFL. It’s greatness that I was able to shake their hands.
Q. How did it feel getting out there? Not having been out … are there any adjustments at this point in the season or because it’s this point in the season you’re (indiscernible)?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: Well, not being able to play two games does have an effect on my performance in a way that I haven’t seen full speed reps in practice where guys are coming to hit me, tackle me. You know, so kind of getting used to that, and really just being able to help our o-line out, trying to get the ball out faster, trying to make quicker decisions for our guys, just so the defensive line doesn’t get comfortable with their rush patterns and kind of finding the spot of where I’m dropping at. Yeah, there are some things that you do kind of have to just see when you play the game. You don’t get some of the looks in practice.
Q. You said some plays could have turned into big plays. Did you feel fortunate that there were some potential interceptions dropped? Do you need some of that to win a game?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: I wasn’t talking about their defense, I was talking about our offense. Miscues with ball placement, communication with a route that this receiver thought was this look and I thought was that look. Just miscommunications on our part with that. We just couldn’t find our rhythm again. Yeah, that’s something we’ll have to work on.
Q. You had two times where you lowered your shoulder and you were the aggressor there lowering the head. You had said this week that was something you might want to avoid. In the moment is it too hard to avoid?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: Well, situation, I can see the first down, and to me there were close calls where it’s like, okay, maybe if I do just put my shoulder down, hopefully I can get forward progress with this. But that was all it was. I wasn’t trying to be Superman or a superhero out there. I was just looking at the situation. The second one was a third down, try to run and lower my shoulder hoping to get through the guy to get the first down. That’s all it was.
Q. Did you talk to Brian Flores afterward on the field?
TUA TAGOVAILOA: Nope.
Jaylen Waddle – October 23, 2022 (Postgame)
Sunday, October 23, 2022
Postgame – Pittsburgh
WR Jaylen Waddle
(What did you like out of QB Tua Tagovailoa on that first opening drive? I believe that he was 6-of-7, but the ball was coming down really quick, finding you a couple of times on that drive too.) – “Seemed like he ain’t even missed a step; wasn’t rusty at all. Trusted what he saw, so it was good.”
(It looked like at times when you’re out there, you can find these, is it finding soft spots in that defense over the middle or were those kind of just designed routes?) – “Yeah, trying to find soft spots, so we were just getting a lot of zone, so it’s just getting in there, sitting down where I need to sit. I think Mike (McDaniel) did a good job of play design, putting us all in position to make plays.”
(You’re a young player who’s seen a lot of success early in your career. What was it like seeing a player like CB Noah Igbinoghene get that pick and the celebration for everybody afterwards?) – “It’s big, man. Noah (Igbinoghene) works tremendously hard throughout the week, and we’re all rooting for him. We expect that from him every week. Noah’s a great player.”
Mike McDaniel – October 23, 2022 (Postgame)
Sunday, October 23, 2022
Postgame – Pittsburgh
Head Coach Mike McDaniel
Q. A couple close endings this season already. Those last two drives – picks off Kenny Pickett and then Noah Igbinoghene gets the toe-tapping grab? What’s going through your mind those two moments?
MIKE McDANIEL: ‘Hooray.’ This is something that we’ve been making a big point of emphasis within the team on turnover differential. So it’s something that we’ve been focusing on, getting one early, and then at the end of the game when it mattered most to get two more was obviously the difference in winning and losing. So it was very exciting, but on top of that, it was something that we’ve made a focal point so it was good to see that happen.
Q. What do you think happened with the offense? Obviously they scored 13 points in the first quarter, three the rest of the game. You were bogged down in the red zone. What do you think went into that?
MIKE McDANIEL: There was some — it wasn’t one thing. We were doing some good things, and players were doing some solid things. But then there was key mistakes, whether it was a bad play call or it was a guy making a play here or there. We just weren’t really coming together. We lacked that rhythm and especially after we had in the third quarter, that first drive that we went for it on fourth-and-3 in the tight red, felt like right after that we kind of hit a lull that we can all learn from because it was like we got punched in the stomach or something. Yeah, it was a struggle to the Pittsburgh Steelers defense, to their credit. They adjusted themselves, and we didn’t make the further adjustment, which is something that we’ll focus on moving forward.
Q. You mentioned that fourth-and-3. Can you discussion the decision to go for it there and then also the play call?
MIKE McDANIEL: Yeah, so that’s something that we’ll never — I’m very aware that it’s one of those things that if it works, it’s a great play, and if it doesn’t, you know exactly what you have to — it could be a deciding factor in the game, so you do that. I think at the moment I had some faith in the players and then regardless, you do it, and you don’t convert; that’s a bad decision because you have points, especially with the way Jason (Sanders) is kicking. It would have been a two-score game. Those are things that you’re well aware of when you enter into it. It was something that I felt pretty good about it working out. It didn’t, so that’s something that I take full responsibility for and luckily the rest of the team had that decision’s back, and we were able to come up with a win.
Q. Specifically to that, was it one of those — in terms of your decision-making process, do you have somebody in your ear telling you the analytics behind it and win probability and then you go with your gut, or is it just a pure numbers thing in deciding?
MIKE McDANIEL: No, I have a couple guys within analytics that are in my ear in all those types of situations. In this situation they did not advise me to go for it. So there’s plenty of decisions that are made that — it’s a balancing act. You take the statistical percentage chance, which is what they’re evaluating, and it’s one of those things, I think it was a fourth — I think the scoreboard might have said three, but I think it was like a long two and a half, but it’s one of those if it’s fourth-and-2 they’re a lot more supportive; fourth-and-3 the percentages go way down. But that was something that I do pretty much every game where you’re balancing that with the momentum of the game and where we were at. I felt really confident that we’d be able to convert. Obviously we didn’t. I would have never even entered into that chance-taking process if I wasn’t super confident in the way the defense was playing. I really wanted the team to be able to make it a two-touchdown game because we were going to go for two if we were able to get in the end zone and score. It didn’t work out, but that’s why it’s an entire team function and job to win a football game. The defense came through, and we didn’t turn the ball over, so we ended up on the winning side.
Q. From a defensive perspective, what are some things you liked about what Josh Boyer did from a planning and then in-game adjustments, especially with all the injuries?
MIKE McDANIEL: No, it was a tremendous plan. We felt pretty good about our matchups with regard to our front and how we could really disrupt them and get them out of the pocket. We didn’t really get the sacks that we were hoping for, but you have to be very disciplined with that young quarterback because he is quick and he can make you pay if your rush lanes don’t have integrity. I really liked that. I really liked how the plan all week was going to play to our strength and then utilize fundamentals and make them earn everything and be physical. We’ve been working on a lot of open-field tackling and things like that and getting turnovers, and I thought collectively the entire defensive staff and the defensive players put forth a very winning effort, so it’s encouraging.
Q. Tua’s performance especially the quick start after missing three games and two full weeks of practice?
MIKE McDANIEL: It’s not an easy thing to do because we were on a Thursday night game in Cincinnati when he last played. Those games you don’t have full-speed practices. So his last full-speed practice was before the Buffalo game, which was our third game of the season. It’s to his credit. If he wasn’t so prepared and hadn’t put himself in the position of playing quarterback when he was out, he wouldn’t have been able to have any sort of success like that because it wasn’t like — I mean, it was a legitimate couple weeks where you’re not playing football. I think he did a tremendous job. I know he’s a competitor and a perfectionist and there was some stuff, particularly in the second half that was getting him frustrated to a degree but did everything it took to win the game, and that’s all that matters.
Q. Were you okay with him twice lowering his shoulder in those situations?
MIKE McDANIEL: You know, it’s hard. Was I advising him to do that? I think no. I think he immediately the next series after the first time he did it, he was like, ‘Coach, I’m sorry. I needed that.’ I was like, all right. But it is football, and he’s going to protect himself, and he’s got that component to his game where he’s a competitor and he’s trying to get a first down for his team. I’m never going to totally encourage that at all. I’m probably going to advise him to slide every time, but when push comes to shove and a guy has the ball in his hands, it’s going to be tough to get him to completely turn it down, although I will try.
Q. Going back to the no-interception, how proud of him are you for that, and what do you think that will do for his confidence?
MIKE McDANIEL: No, it’s a big deal. It just goes to show, and it’s a great example for the entire team, this is a guy that because of certain matchups that we had going on at the beginning of the year, he didn’t start the year dressing. You can go one of two ways with that. You can either let it define you and rattle you, or you can not even blink and worry about the opportunities you do get. I think that’s one of my favorite examples of this season because he does his best to ignore the noise, but nobody is oblivious and he really, really wants to do big things in this league, and he’s only 22 or 23 years old. He’s super young. But I think the whole team really just in the locker room was really excited for him because they know how hard he’s worked to get on the field, to contribute, and then to do it at the end of the game, that’s a big moment that will always be one of the bigger ones in your NFL career because it’s his first game-ender.
Q. Realizing scoring is down across the league, you guys are moving the ball a lot. Your yardage is a lot and it doesn’t seem to be reflective in the points. Do you feel that way?
MIKE McDANIEL: Absolutely. No, we should be scoring more points than we are. I think everybody on the team would agree with that, so you have to — there’s no just like some sprinkle fairy dust to fix that or it’s just not an absolute. You have to identify and address what has been the hiccup when you get in those situations. I think we’ve had both misfortunes during the year. There’s been times we haven’t got it in the red zone enough because we are scoring when we’re there. In this case we were moving the ball, but things were — we had some hiccups and weren’t able to get touchdowns. So the whole deal is to continually progress with your game and make sure that that is not the norm because you don’t — it is frustrating for the whole team, and we’re not going to be able to just have to out-score 10 points every time to win games, so we’ve got to find a way to get better at that, which we’ll be focused on moving forward.
