Matt Moore – January 4, 2017
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Wednesday, January 4, 2017
Quarterback Matt Moore
(How much are you looking forward to Sunday’s competition going up against the Steelers?) – “I think everyone is looking forward to it. Obviously, we played them once earlier this year and have the opportunity to play them again in the playoffs. It’s a great opportunity. You couldn’t ask for much more.”
(Forgive the premise of this question, but you’ve been more mobile than I expected you to be. How would you characterize what you can do in that area?) – “I think it’s something that when it has to be done, I do it. There are certain cases (where) you’re trying to extend plays or make plays. There are sometimes where you have to. I don’t know. It comes from instinct and just playing. Good things can come out of it. If you can move around and create some time and create some plays, that’s probably a good thing.”
(Head Coach Adam Gase just told the other half of the media down there that you’re the starter unless something drastically happens. I assume he has told you the same thing?) – “I’m working as I have the past couple of weeks. That’s just kind of how we move forward.”
(How do you feel physically?) – “I feel good. I haven’t been hit in a while. So, playing three games and getting hit, there are a couple of things here and there; but it’s nothing crazy and part of the game. I feel really good.”
(What does it mean to you to play a playoff game?) – “It’s an unbelievable opportunity. There are a lot of guys … Some guys go a lot and some don’t get those chances. This is my second time ever being a part of a team that has gone to the playoffs, so I’m excited. I know the guys are excited. It’s an unbelievable opportunity and a great football town, so we’re ready to go.”
(How do you guys as a team not try to do too much knowing what the stakes are?) – “I think I’ve said it in the past, just execute the offense. Whatever the game plan is, if you do your job – no matter how big, how small it is – that’s really all you can do. Just play start to finish and that’s it. You don’t need to do too much. Rely on the guys around you and stuff like that.”
(Is it hard to instill that into some of these guys that maybe haven’t experienced anything like this?) – “Guys are going to be excited, I’m sure. But I think for the most part, there is a really good understanding that this is a team game, you don’t need to be Superman and just play within the scheme and the system and you’ll be all right.”
(Is your cohesion with the receivers noticeably better than it was when you first took over?) – “Yes, I think so.”
(How have you seen that manifest itself?) – “Sunday was a perfect example – last Sunday. The Patriots were pretty stingy. I think on Jarvis (Landry)’s touchdown, he started on the right side of the field and worked all the way left and I kind of found him. Things like that. I think they understand how I see things now and use it to their advantage to get open and catch balls underneath. Just little things like that.”
(There was a play I think in the third quarter of the last game where RB Jay Ajayi was coming across and maybe it was a fake handoff and the ball got knocked out and you just picked it up and threw it to WR DeVante Parker. I was wondering what was going through your mind while that was going on.) – “I was like, ‘This would be a terrible place to turn the ball over,’ first of all. (laughter) We were backed up. I snagged it and still had time to hit the underneath route to DeVante, so it was good. But yes, you’re right, it was just a little play-action and I just hit his elbow or his hip or something and knocked the ball out.”
(In general, to what do you attribute your calm mentality and approach to life to?) – “I don’t know. It’s kind of just how I go through it. It’s hard enough as it is, so I think if you’re tight and you think about it and dwell on all that, it just makes it worse. I think I have high standards and high expectations, but I like to be as comfortable as possible.”
(The confidence level of the way you guys were able to run the ball the first time against the Steelers, what does that do for an offense and for you specifically?) – “It’s huge. You can control the game if you run it. Obviously for a quarterback, they’re going to try to stop the run which means down the field there should be openings. I think guys understand that. The o-line really takes that to heart. They understand that they can take over the game if we do it right. Obviously, everybody wants to run the ball. That goes without saying. I’m sure that will be a deal for us. If we can get it the way we want it, then the shots downfield will be there.”
(Steelers Head Coach Mike Tomlin was saying that as far as preparing for the possibility that it could be you or it could be QB Ryan Tannehill that it didn’t really make much of a difference, because it looked the same. The offense looked the same to him. Is that the way that you view it as well?) – “Yes, I think so. Nothing has really changed. I would agree with him.”
(As far as your performance filling in, making sure that there is not a drop off at that position, how do you evaluate yourself in about three games, four games, whatever it has been?) – “There is some good and some bad. I’ve turned the ball over in every single game, which that has to be eliminated. As far as other things – execution, moving the ball, relationships with guys – I think that’s all good right now. We just need to keep building on it and keep moving forward.”
(How tough has it been to keep QB Ryan Tannehill from throwing something out there?) – “He’s going crazy. He’s doing his best to get better. That’s just who he is. He wants to compete.”
(With the uncertainty around QB Ryan Tannehill, does that affect you at all as far as your preparation or your mindset for the game?) – “No. I’m preparing like I have the past couple of weeks. That’s all I can do. There is enough to worry about with Pittsburgh, so that’s where my focus is.”
