Ryan Fitzpatrick – December 29, 2019 (Postgame)
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Sunday, December 29, 2019
Postgame – New England
QB Ryan Fitzpatrick (transcribed by New England Patriots)
(Was that two-minute drill executed by the numbers, or were you doing some improvising out there?) – “Yeah, I mean there’s always a little bit of improvising going on. I think the guys that we had in the huddle – the receivers, tight ends, running backs – they’ve done such a great job all year with the communication. And so sometimes there’s communication going on at the line or different things happening in the huddle, and it was good to have those guys in the huddle because it’s been a core group for us all year. They stepped up and they all contributed on that last drive.”
(How were you able to exploit the DeVante Parker vs. Stephon Gilmore matchup to your advantage?) – “Well, you know, Steph is a special player and has been all year and has been for years now. For us and for me as a quarterback, I’m always going to rely on my playmakers, and DeVante’s been that guy all year long. There were a couple that maybe I didn’t get in there, make the throw or Steph did a good job with. But I wasn’t going to shy away from a matchup – not because I don’t respect the other guy but because I have that much confidence in our guy. DeVante really stepped up big today.”
(Talk about spreading the ball around today. I thought that Isaiah Ford really stepped up in key situations to move the chains and Mike Gesicki had the big touchdown catch at the end. Just take us through spreading the ball around and those guys coming through.) – “Yeah, it was huge. Sometimes we relied on throwing to DeVante outside, and a lot of times we relied on working the middle of the field. I missed Albert [Wilson] a couple times that I wish I would have hit him, but he had some nice catch-and-runs – Isaiah, same thing. I think as a quarterback, when you have guys that you trust and you know they’re going to do the right thing and you know they’re going to make the play, it makes your job a lot easier. All those guys out there have certainly developed into that this year. Again, I said this the last few weeks about Isaiah Ford, but he’s a special guy – a guy that you can just rely on in any situation – and he did a great job today.”
(Take us through the last drive. You guys had really controlled the game and they didn’t take the lead until late in the game. What was the feeling going into the huddle? Did you guys have that belief that you could put it in the end zone?) – “Yeah, we definitely had a lot of confidence. Once they got down there, I was kind of happy they took the lead rather than tied it up, just so then it was really all on us to go down there and score a touchdown or not. A great situation to be in with a lot on the line for them, and for us, maybe not as much on the line, but with the pride and all the things that we worked through this year, there was a ton on the line for us, too. I’m just proud of the way we played, proud of the way we coached today. Sometimes you don’t get rewarded but this was a big reward for the guys that stuck with it all year.”
(In terms of pride, the Patriots beat you by a lot earlier this season and then you come back and win five of your last eight games including one here. Is it gratifying?) – “Yeah, you know it’s a tale of two separate seasons for us because it was such a new roster at the beginning of the year. The guys that were still on the roster had to meet the new guys and then we had to do a lot of soul-searching to figure out what kind of year we were going to make it. And we put our head down, worked hard and it’s been nice the second half of the season to see some of those results.”
(I know I talked to you at the start of the season about how there’s only 32 starting quarterback jobs and how you signed with the Dolphins for that opportunity to start. After this season, I know you didn’t get as many wins as you wanted to, but were you proud of the type of team that you led?) – “Yeah, I didn’t know – again, I knew there was a starting position that was open and that’s why I decided that I wanted to be here. I met a lot of great people along the way – whether it’s the staff, the coaches, the people that work in the building, the players – and it’s been a season full of adversity but that’s what makes it all worth it. People can say whatever they want about not making the playoffs and our record, but to me, this was such a successful, great season in the fact that we had so much adversity and overcame it and stuck together. Those are the things that you get from football and from team sports that are hard to get anywhere else. That’s a lot of the reason why I love this game so much.”
(What do you think the story of the season is for you guys?) – “I’ll remember – and we touched on this the other day – but the Danny Kilgore’s and the Jesse Davis’s and DeVante [Parker] and all the guys that were there for those first few games and for OTAs and for training camp. We had that tough situation at the beginning of the year where we had to work through a lot. Everybody stayed the course, so the guys that kind of worked together and kept each other up all year, that’s what I’m going to remember. For me, it’s about that. It’s about the team, it’s about the guys and those are the memories that stick with you.”
(Is there anything sweeter than beating a team that’s run this division for so long and taking the bye week away from them?) – “I do think coming into New England and winning a game in New England is no small task. And I’ve seen that first-hand lots of times with four years in Buffalo and two years with New York. I know how difficult it is to beat them. I know how difficult it really is to beat them at home. So, I’m proud of what we did out there today and hopefully with this win, we’re going to have a great plane ride home and we’ll go from there.”
