Team

VS.

POSTGAME QUOTES
OCTOBER 4, 2009

Initial comments:
“I guess we stayed as advertised. It was a game where we got off to a good start, but didn’t play spectacular football throughout. The Browns played their butts off today and they made some plays. Obviously, Josh Cribbs was the equalizer and kept them in the field position game. We have to do a better job in that phase. Offensively, we weren’t able to get the ball consistently and win on third down. Defensively, third down hurt us early in the game. We settled down and played third down better later on. It was a tough fought football game and a good one to win when you don’t play your best, but we knew it was going to be a tough game up here.”

Q: On going for it on fourth and 10 in overtime:
“I think in reflecting on it, I told the offense ‘let’s not give the ball back to them.’ In order to not give the ball back to them, you don’t want to punt it there. I think our guys were pretty confident in getting something going and making the play. [The Browns] didn’t have any timeouts left so if we did give the ball over to them there, it isn’t necessarily that they had a big advantage. It worked out today and I feel good about it. That’s the way it is.”

Q: On the fourth and 10 play call:
“I would never tell you the play call, but that was just Carson. They were in a two-deep man under coverage and the middle of the field ends up being wide open. There were a couple other chances early in the game where he didn’t run the football in those situations. It was good of him to take the run and get down [early] enough to get us the timeout in that situation. Sometimes you get the bear and sometimes the bear gets you. We’ve been playing aggressive this year, and I think our team likes that. They play to that well and it sits well with them. Right now, we’re riding the wave with that. We’ve had a number of fourth downs we’ve converted and we just have to keep going.”

Q: On whose decision it was to call the fourth down:
“I’m the one guy who has to make the decision and that’s it. Carson was very confident, as he always is, on picking it up.”

Q: On what happened after they led 14-0:
“Well, we let a return out the door and we kept giving them opportunities and field position. I believe it is such a fine line in NFL football week in and week out. If you don’t play well or you turn the ball over, you’re going to get beat. We had the fumble on the kickoff return and we had the interception down the field. The defense was able to come in and hold them to field goals most of the time, but those sudden change situations are difficult.”

Q: On the offensive shift from the first quarter to the rest of the game:
“We have to look at things we’re doing, adjust, and be better. We have to be more consistent. It isn’t one area that broke down here or there. We need to be more consistent on defense. We let a couple runs get up there, and we need to do a better job of that. [The Browns] are a better defensive football team than people give them credit for right now, but they’ve just been on the field a bunch.”

Q: On the 3-1 start:
“It’s good. It’s a good start to the first quarter of the year and it is where we are right now. We have another big division game next week so we’re going to circle the wagons, lick our wounds and wind back up.”

Q: On the late game finishes and penalty calls:
“I don’t like that. I think our guys lost our poise a little bit there in the third quarter for whatever reason and we can’t do that. We had some guys retaliating back and that’s the thing we are going to focus on more than anything. We have some good strong leaders and they need to stay poised through the entire game. That’s what happens when you start all that and you’re worried about something else. Then you don’t hear something, or somebody else misses on something that’s important in the huddle or the sidelines in an adjustment. I’m glad we got out of here with the victory, but we have a lot of work to do in that area. We were lucky today. They ended up offsetting the penalties. They could have been called on us, or they could have been called on them. We thought we got hit illegally and we’re going to retaliate, we can’t do that.”

Q: On whether he breathed a sigh of relief after the win:
“We were going to get out of here one way or the other. Whether we win by 40 or one we were going to get out of here and go home and take it as that. It’s tough when you come up on the road and they’re fighting their tails off with their backs against the wall. They’re a better football team than their record right now.”

Q: On the defense:
“We kept points off the board. We literally gave up a third down play that gets the ball to the one yard line. They have the one drive that I don’t even know what field position that ball started at, so we’ll see when we watch the tape. There was a lot of football out there today so I can’t remember everything. We’ll have a whole lot of tape.”

Q: On the fourth down sequence in overtime:
“Marvin was saying we were going to punt, but I told him I think we can get this, let’s go for the win instead of going for the tie. That’s why Marvin is great. Some guys, once they make up their mind, they make up their mind. He listened to what I had to say. He takes coaches opinions and players’ input and waits to make a decision. That’s why it’s great playing for a guy like Marvin, your opinion does matter. A lot of coaches, its their ego or its their way or the highway. Marvin listens to guys around him and listens to their input, and makes the best decisions possible.”

Q: On his decision to run on the fourth down:
"We were just running a four man pattern and they had really good coverage, and fortunately the offensive line played great all day. They had a really nice pocket with a really nice seam. The defensive line all slanted to the left and we just washed everybody down. There was a nice big crease to run through and get the yardage.”

Q: On going for the win:
“We came here for the win and nothing else. Being a defensive-minded head coach, the first thing that probably comes into your head is to not give them the ball and give them an opportunity to kick the field goal. They still had two timeouts left and possibly could have done that. We trusted our offense, and as long as we continue to make plays, he will have trust in us.”

Q: On the late touchdown in the fourth quarter:
“They dropped everybody. I think they dropped eight into coverage and the line stayed on their blocks. When they drop eight into coverage and they’re only rushing three, it gets tough once the quarterback starts moving around. We stayed on our blocks and Chad did a good job of getting open and catching my attention with those pink gloves. He made a great play.”

Q: On being 3-1:
“We’ll take three and one. With as tough as it is to win one game in this league, we’ve been fortunate enough to scrape away and win three. It would be great to be 4-0 but we’re not worried about that. Denver is a good team and they beat us. We need to start looking at how we’re going to get ready for Baltimore.”

Q: On thinking about Shaun Rogers on the last kick:
“The only thing I think about on any kick I ever attempt is the part of the ball I am going to kick. I have a rhythm, I have a routine I do on every kick and whether that was any extra point, field goal or a game winner, my job is to kick it the same. There’s nothing I can do to make anything any different from that kick to keep someone from blocking it. My job is to kick it the best I can and really stick with my focus and kick the ball clean and not worry about who is going to block it.”

Q: On the decision about going for it on fourth down:
“At that point we knew it was go for it or something else. The field goal was not an option. We are not going to try the field goal into the breeze we had. It was a pretty good breeze we had and we did not want to do that and give them field position with a minute left.”

Q: On rebounding from a physically tough game today and then facing the Ravens next week:
“These guys are in the trenches for 60 minutes each week. They bleed, kick and scratch to get everything they can get. We just happened to have five quarters today. When do we not have a physical game? When you look at our division, we always have physical games. It’s not every game where you can say your kicker and your punter get trucked on a return. We both walked away with bumps and bruises. The whole team fought, kicked and scratched for everything they got today. It makes the win that much better. We usually do four jumping jacks before each game. We say four jumps for four quarters. This week for some reason we did five, we said five jumps for four quarters, well I guess it was five jacks for five quarters.”

Q: On what you do this week about correcting the blocked field goals:
“Really no matter what happened to those blocks, they are in the past. There is nothing we can really do to change those. We stick with our fundamentals. We continue to do the drills and as a snapping, holding, kicking unit, we continue the same thing and our job is to execute. When we get team opportunities, we continue to look at the other team’s rushes and we do the same preparation every week. Now, whatever happened this week, it’s over with, we move on to Baltimore.”

Q: Initial comments:
“I couldn’t be prouder of how they played and competed through five quarters. I thought that there were some great individual efforts, as well as some great collective efforts. Shaun Rogers blocking a field goal, blocking the PAT there late. (Mohamed) Massaquoi, the things he was able to do offensively. I’m not sure how many yards he had, but it was well over 100. Jerome Harrison, guys like Mike Furrey, playing some on defense. There were just a lot of really good individual efforts. It’s difficult to lose at any point. It’s always difficult to lose one like this when it went as long as it did, they fought as hard as they did and to come out on the minus side of the ledger. I think the thing that you see is that there are a lot of things here to build on from this experience. Offensively, we were able to move the ball, able to run the ball. Defensively, there was improvement on third down. Some of the other things that we were able to do with packages, I think all good things. I haven’t even mentioned Josh Cribbs and the day that he had. Talk about a guy that wills the return to happen and the way that the group blocked. Tough for the group, but I couldn’t be prouder of the way they played and that’s what I told them.”

Q: On if the fourth down scramble was the last thing they expected Carson Palmer to do:
“We were in man-to-man coverage. There hadn’t really been a big scramble issue to date, especially with the injury that he’s had and the problems he’s had with that. You always want to keep your rush lanes and keep the integrity, just maybe got a lane too wide and the opening opened up. Guys were doing a good job down the field with the coverage and he was able to get the first down.”

Q: On if he thought about going for it on fourth-and-one when it was tied 14-14:
“I did think about going for it at that point. I thought that we had a better shot there. We kind of lost a little bit on the third down play, it was third-and-inches. I think if it was fourth-and-inches we might have had a play in mind for that, but when we got knocked back a little bit, at that point go ahead and take the points.”

Q: On if he thought about trying a long field goal at the end of regulation:
“With Billy (Cundiff), he has a nice leg. If it was Phil (Dawson), it may be a little bit different. That doesn’t mean I don’t have confidence [in Billy]. That field goal was a pretty low percentage. I would have liked to gotten a few more yards. If we had a play before and then take a shot at it, but weren’t able to do that.”

Q: On if he thought about going in the end zone on third-and-long on the 20 when it was 17-13:
“When we’re in that range with a kicker, if you were to lose yards on a sack and it would take some time to push it down the field, you could very easily be out of field goal range just as quickly as you [entered it]. You’d love to always take a shot in that situation, but again, there are just things that we have to balance out. As we go forward with Billy, and this is not any slight against Billy, with Phil things could be a little bit different.”

Q: On if the just appearance of Derek Anderson’s sharp throws energizes the team:
“I think that, offensively, there were a lot of good things, Tony (Grossi), having the running game going. I thought Mohamed (Massaquoi) really showed what his potential is and made some outstanding catches. I know Braylon (Edwards) didn’t have many catches, or I don’t know how much production he had. One thing that I was impressed with him is, it was never a concern of his. It was never a worry of his. He was out there blocking as much as he could, obviously he was working to get open and we wanted to get him the ball. I was really impressed with him throughout the game as well.”

Q: On why it took until today to get Mohamed Massaquoi involved in the game:
“We hadn’t really been doing very much effectively. We hadn’t really converted a lot of third downs and had the opportunities that we had. It wasn’t something that we were trying not to do, it just didn’t hit. It was good to see, really good to see. Brian (Robiskie) got his first action. I think he might have gotten a grab. All those guys, Josh (Cribbs), Mike Furrey, I thought they all played well.”

Q: On Jerome Harrison:
“I thought he did a nice job last week and then to get the volume of carries that he had this week. (Chris) Jennings might have had one or two in there. I thought he did pretty good from coming up from the practice squad. I give credit to the offensive line, too. There were some guys filling in and doing well. That’s a group effort. The tight ends, Lawrence (Vickers), I thought all of them, all together, did a nice job and really, the receivers too. You lose track of those guys. There were some blocks that they made that helped spring some runs that probably wouldn’t have been there.”

Q: On Derek Anderson’s goal-line interception:
“I think it just got away from him a little bit. When we challenged it, they didn’t have the television angle from the other way. I really thought the DB had trapped it, but there was no way to really confirm it. On the scoring plays, that’s why you take a chance at challenging it, but just didn’t have the other look. I think it just got a little bit away from him.”

Q: On what the team was able to do in the second half today that they were not able to do in the previous three games:
“I think it was the complementary football. I think more so than anything our ability offensively to generate drives, and generate long drives. I think we only had three or six plays defensively in that third quarter, and also, our ability to get off the field on third down defensively. The defensive line, I thought did a nice job in their third down pass rush. That coordinated defense, the coverage held up. That’s a good group. They have a good group of receivers, a really good quarterback. Our guys filled in where they needed to fill in. You saw Mike Adams playing a couple different roles. Mike Furrey out there playing safety, playing star, and that’s sometimes what you have to do, is just figure out how you can help. Figure out the best combination and play good coordinated offensive and defensive football and good things usually happen.”

Q: On the secondary play:
“With the secondary, it’s very similar to the offensive line. You have to work together and you have to work together over a wide range of field. You can’t communicate back and forth to adjacent people. I thought their communication was better today and they’ve been working at it. Jerome’s (Harrison) been working with them. The important thing is to take things that we did today and carry them through week-to-week. We’ve played spurts of good football here and we played spurts of football that really wasn’t very good at all. I think everybody sees what we can do and the importance of working at it and the process that’s involved. Hopefully we’ll come out on the plus side of these games.”

Q: On if he sensed the team gain momentum after the skirmish in the third quarter:
“I felt like our guys were ready to play, were excited to play. I give them a lot of credit, in the sense that it’s easy to come in when you’re winning and work hard and play hard and do all the right things. It’s tougher when you’re not, but it’s so important to stay with it, to be consistent and move forward. They’ve been working on it. They’ve been working at practice and we’re going to keep working at it.”

Q: On why he called a time out on defense right before the two minute warning in the first half:
“What we were trying to do is, in looking at it, I thought they were going to get the play off before the two minute warning. We didn’t have people in the right spots at that point for a fourth down play. I thought about letting it run to the two minute warning, but the last thing I wanted to do was not call it, have them snap it and have a guy miss a line. You never want to waste a time out. I probably would do it again if it came up, just because we weren’t in the right spots. It was too critical a point in the game. I didn’t want to leave it to chance that maybe he’s not going to call it. We did it when we did it, trying to get people in the right spots. I’ll have to take a look at what they were going to do.”

Q: On Derek Anderson’s play:
“I thought he played well. You don’t want turnovers and he was very conscious of that throughout the week. It’s something he’s continued to work at. He made a lot of nice throws. I thought he made a lot of nice checks. There were some times where the clock was getting a little bit tight and he got guys in the right spots. I thought he ran the offense well, which is very important. I also thought he threw the ball pretty well today also.”

Q: On if it is clear that Anderson gives the team the best chance to win:
“I was really happy with him today. I think it showed our ability to, as we play together and mix the run and pass and do some different things, move the ball effectively. Cincinnati’s been playing really good defense throughout the whole course of the season. I was pleased with him.”

Q: On how important it was for the team to not give up today after Cincinnati scored two touchdowns:
“To me, it’s important to understand how to deal with adversity. I thought our guys dealt with adversity well today. There were a lot of times where we were in tough spots. The blocked field goal, they score, the blocked PAT. To me, that’s dealing with adversity. You don’t know what’s going to happen. You just don’t know what’s going to happen. You have to play that play, that moment with the same intensity. I thought there were some great examples of that throughout the day.”

Q: On the interception:
“Steve (Heiden) and I just misread it. I was expecting him to do something different and the corner came off of Braylon and made a good play. It was a low ball, I was trying to put it in low for Steve to make the play. We just didn’t read it right and we weren’t on the same page, but it is football. That wasn’t the only thing that cost us the game. There are a lot of different things that we could have done better when we got the ball in overtime.”

Q: On the pressure in overtime:
“I am pretty sure that they were bringing more guys than we could block and we were trying to make some plays down the field. We could have held onto the ball a little longer but when I had a couple of free guys, you just have to make the plays. Those are a couple of things that I will probably be frustrated by tomorrow, but overall the guys came out and played and I can’t knock the effort that was put out today. We stuck together and played hard. Key thing was we lost, but it something that we can build on and move on.”

Q: On if he was happy with his performance:
“I am never happy when we lose. I always think that I can do something better to help us win. That’s just the way I do it. We’ll see it tomorrow and decide whether it was good or bad.”

Q: On the play of Mohamed Massaquoi:
“I think Mo stepped up and really played well. For it being the first week that he was really involved in the game plan, he made the plays when they came to him. He was aggressive and he knew that we had to be on the same page in a couple of different situations. For him not really playing with us a ton, he just needs communicate and get better.”

Q: On the receiving unit:
“Once we get him (Massaquoi) and Braylon going at the same time I think that we can do a lot of different things. I think the confidence of everybody out there was, I could feel it and guys started feeling how it was supposed to go. We were moving the ball when we wanted to but we just didn’t get the points when we needed them.”

Q: On if this was a statement game for him:
“I always try to do what I can to help my guys play. I made it a point to go out there and not try and force things, manage the game, be smart, know the situations and play good football. I think for the most part I did it, but we’ll see when I watch it tomorrow.”

Q: On scoring field goals instead of touchdowns:
“Points are points. Anytime you get points, you are happy. They are not a bad defense and you have to give them credit because they played hard. I played safe. Obviously, you can’t get seven points every time you go down there, but I just have to make more plays when they come up.”

Q: On what the Bengals did to take Edwards out of the game:
“They rolled to him a bit and put guys over the top of him. We’ll find ways once we see it and figure out what ways to get him the ball and get him more involved.

Q: On getting pats on the back from the defense coming off the field:
“It seemed like we got three plays in and then it seemed like we didn’t play again until the second quarter and that was kind of frustrating. I think our defense played unbelievable today. For the most part, they had some struggles early on in the first half, but they tightened up and made big plays all through the second half and gave us a chance to win the ball game in overtime. They were blocking field goals and when those guys get going like that, we are going to play well.”

Q: On whether this was a moral victory:
“I wouldn’t say that applies to us. I guess we had some good things to obviously look at and be okay. If we can continue to execute and do these things, we are going to win. We’re gonna wins games. We just have to keep going at it. Nobody is happy that we lost. Nobody is happy that we just went to overtime and played it to the last 10 seconds. That isn’t what we are here for.”

Q: On the blocked kicks by Shaun Rogers:
“I think part of it is, going in I pay attention during the special teams segments. Their kicker kicks the ball a little bit low. I think on the first one the snap was a little high and the kicker was thrown a little bit off his rhythm and Shaun gets so much penetration being so big and he can jump too. He just gets up there and gets his hands in the way.”

Q: On the interception and his touchdown:
“We already talked about the interception, but I will tell you again. The run wasn’t a designed run by any means. I pump faked and the guy turned his back to me and I just kind of kept going. On the pick, Steve and I had a little miscommunication. I probably shouldn’t have thrown it in there, but the guy made a good play too. I tried to throw it low for Steve and he came off outside. I said that it was frustrating. It wasn’t the one thing, we had a lot of different opportunities to get three points and go home happy.”

Q: On the Palmer draw:
“He did a good job. I have to give him credit for making a play when they needed it. I said that our defense played well today and it is frustrating.”

Q: On the spark following the Edwards skirmish on the field:
“I don’t know. I feel like we had momentum and we were playing well. Obviously, you don’t want to go out there and fight, but when their guys are picking on our guys and guys are in situations, you have to stick up for your teammates. I’m not saying it is okay by any means and I don’t think Eric (Mangini) thinks it’s okay, but we just have to be smart.”

Q: On the last pass to Edwards in overtime:
“I saw him but the next thing you know, I was looking at the ceiling. It was open. We had a free guy, I knew we had a free guy and I was just trying to buy a little bit of time to let him run his route.”

Q: On his performance:
“I don’t know. I just try to throw the ball on time and play together. The more we play together, the more we get used to them when they come out of breaks, the ball is there. We’ll get it. Obviously, those are some situations where guys are ready for the ball and they hit them in the face.”

Q: On the pass to Royal:
“I don’t think he was ready for it, but the more we play together, he makes that play.”

Q: On getting the offense going:
“That drive in the third quarter. I think it was our first drive and we were first and 20 and we marched down, made some plays, Mass (Massaquoi) made a couple of big plays. It takes a little while to get going but for the most part, I felt good and live. A couple of the sacks were my own fault. On one, I scrambled out and it was my own fault. The protection was good, but they are such a good pass rush team and the only one they got me on was when I turned into it.”

Q: On starting after losing the QB battle:
“I don’t think my frame of mind ever went by the wayside. I felt like I had a good training camp and did some good things. So I was confident, like I always am, in my own abilities and I when I get in there, I try to be positive and give the guys a spark and continue to do the right things.

Q: On whether he feels more appreciated in Cleveland now:
“I don’t know about that. We still lost. I don’t know if you are talking about in the stadium or what not or on our team, but I feel like our guys have always had my back. My team mates. It is always nice when you somebody says you played well and or nice throw. It is the little stuff. I’ve always tried to do the same things with our guys.”

Q: On his performance:
“I would take negative yards running, no touchdowns, and a win any day over a good personal performance and not winning.”

Q: On team’s performance:
“We fought until the end, guys played for each other and things didn’t go our way. I would go to a fight with any of our guys any day. It’s tough to play this long and not have the ball fall your way. It’s tough.”

Q: On Derek Anderson’s performance:
“I don’t know how to read coverages like him so I can’t grade his performance, but he was out there running the offense really well and I think he will get better every week.”

Q: On team playing well despite being counted out:
“The world isn’t in here. It’s these players in uniforms and the people in the organization, they are all that really matter. It’s about the people that support us in good times and bad. We are going to get back at it tomorrow and get ready for next week.”

Q: On being effective without catching a pass:
“I believe so. I try and go out there and be the guy everyone focuses on. That’s one of the core characteristics that Coach Mangini speaks about. That’s what I am trying to be, not a distraction, but a helpful guy on this team. Mohamed Massaquoi, what can you say, the guy made the plays that came to him. He performed well, he has been getting better each week and having more confidence each week and it showed today. He had a superb game.”

Q: On the game:
“I think there are two factors involved. Coach Mangini, as he came in this week, had a different approach. What I mean by that is it wasn’t much different, but he showed us there is a lot of season left. He said you guys have so much fight and so much talent. He had a different feel about him. I can’t explain it, but he did and we ran with that and we worked hard for him this week. We, as players, knew that we spotted those 14 points. On offense we give them the fumble that goes back for a touchdown. If we don’t do that, it’s 7-0. We ran with them and the defense was doing a good job. We were getting movement on offense and we came out here and continued the things we were doing and tightened up some of the areas and made some plays.”

Q: On the offense compared to last week:
“A big thing we did today was taking what they gave us. They were having some zone problems, so we were taking advantage with running the ball. They were blowing some covers, leaving Mohamed one-on-one. Derek Anderson saw that and made some good throws and Mohamed made some good catches. It was a good job of exploiting what they were giving, exploiting the zone look they were giving us. We did a good job of mixing up the run and the pass, that’s where we got movement.”

Q: On losing a hard fought game:
“You can sit here and say we played well, but it hurts. Especially for us to have that feeling going into the game, and having that feeling during the game, especially in the third quarter going into the fourth. To have that feeling get knocked out of you in the end, it hurts. We are going to have to watch it, and stomach it again, and then move past it, but it definitely does hurt.”

Q: On his personal foul sparking the team:
“If you want to take it that way, that’s a good way to take it and I’m sure everyone will love that. For me, it was that I saw them doing a little extra after the whistle on our running back Jerome Harrison. I’m not a fan of that. As an offense, we take care of one another. So I was just trying to take care of my guy, which led to some other things and that’s a personal foul, but I’m not going to stand for the extra after the whistle. I was just protecting my guy after the whistle.”

Q: On his return game:
“You have to score. Reading that little bio they had on me, I was amped up the whole day and the return unit was amped up for me. They said we are going to get you in the end zone and I was trying to. Unfortunately, we didn’t get in, but I was giving everything I had to find the end zone, but I just came up short.”

Q: On QB Derek Anderson’s performance and the energy of the team:
“I think he played solid. An alternative is always good and he proved that he can lead a football team. I’m proud of this football team. We fought until the end. In a city like this that works hard - I don’t think that any other city works this hard - the blue collar workers in Cleveland expect the football team to work as hard as we did. Even though we lost, I think the fans are still proud of us.”

Q: On improvement:
“This is the kind of game we build on. A team that came in and beat Pittsburgh and is a good football team, we battled with them. We did okay, but they battled too and you have to give credit when credit is due. They are a good football team. This is the type of football game and the type of football that we need to continue to play throughout the season.”

Q: On his comfort level:
“You learn a little bit more every time you step out on the field. You take your experience into the game.”

Q: On his preparations:
“I work and ask questions. I look at the older guys and see how they do things. When I do something wrong, I try and see how I can do it better.”

Q: On the game:
“They did a good job of mixing it up. They made some plays when they had to. It was just a good game with everyone out there competing.”

Q: On his overturned touchdown:
“We had to go see it on the replay, but we were able to go out and score on the next play, so that is what matters.”