VS.

POSTGAME QUOTES
AUGUST 31, 2007

Bengals-Colts Gameday

Initial comments:
"First off, having the vantage point that I had tonight, I think what's wonderful is our fans. Sitting up there where I was sitting, being able to look across and being able to see the stadium filled like that and as loud as it was, has just been tremendous. I know they're practicing too. They were a force tonight and that's great. Now they can save up for nine days and they can get ready to go. Like we're going to do, we're going to charge up. It was just awesome for people to come out tonight and be here and enjoy themselves.

"I think as the game went, we stuck pretty much to the plan. The negatives were that we've got to take care of the football, no matter who it is. Guys are fighting for yards, etc., but we've got to take care of the ball, and our quarterback's got to take care of the ball. He had two plays there that we don't like to see. So we've got to fix that. And I think, third down, again on offense — we need to do a better job. But now it starts for real and we can make no more excuses. Now it's time to get it done.

"It's unfortunate; it looks like Aaron (Elling) injured his knee, probably an ACL. Otherwise, there were some minor bumps and bruises that guys will either come back from or be on the mend somewhere else from."

TE Reggie Kelly and FB Jeremi Johnson both left the game with injuries::
"Reggie had a mild ankle sprain, so he'll be limited for a while. Jeremi had tightness in his hamstring and we took him in to ice him. Ahmad Brooks also had a mild ankle sprain. (Eric) Ghiaciuc somehow has a sore neck or something that came up before the game during warmups. Rudi (Johnson) got sick — had a respiratory thing — that we were trying to get calmed down. He had a great workout before the game but wound up not playing. All in all, we came out of it in pretty good shape for the guys we rested. And we have the opportunity now to make some decisions tomorrow morning through tomorrow and get the football team put together the best we can and move forward."

When you're watching a fourth preseason game, do you watch individual players more than you normally would?:
"Yeah. I was watching some guys. I wanted to watch, particularly, some guys on special teams. But I also wanted to watch guys that were playing in different spots. Chinedum seemed to relax tonight and play football like he practices, which is good — getting the start tonight like he did. So I think that was a real positive. I thought Ahmad (Brooks) again takes another step forward, which is good. Landon (Johnson), Caleb (Miller) played a lot of football and responded. Lemar Marshall came out and did a good job tonight after being here just less than a week or whatever its been for us. Offensively, Jeremi got some good snaps in tonight. Kenny Watson got his first real chance to touch the football. Those are some things that were good to see. We keep working in there. Tab did a great job tonight on blocking. That's what's good to see at the point of attack. You're looking at that, and obviously it's a game where we want to keep that clock moving as fast as we can. So that was kind of the point of emphasis."

You didn't get WRs Bennie Brazell, Glenn Holt or Antonio Chatman in tonight's game. Have you figured out what you want to do with the wide receiver position?:
"We certainly know what we want to do with the guys that we currently have on our team, and we'll see if there's better options. But, yeah, we're comfortable with where we are on our team and we'll see what happens."

What can you say about the injury to kicker Aaron Elling?
"I hate that for him, as a colleague and as a friend. We've known each other for a while. It's unfortunate to see that happen to anyone, much less a friend. That's my teammate, and that's unfortunate. You don't want anyone to get hurt. I don't know what to think. Being helpless as it is, and feeling useless for the game, and then you see the guy that is filling in for you after you go down. It's like 'what do we do now.' Kyle (Larson)did a great job of stepping in and hitting the extra points and the kickoffs. Kyle proved he is a versatile athlete and he did a great job."

What were you thinking when you picked up the fumble and scored the touchdown?
"I'm not quite sure. The ball came out, and it almost caught me off guard. It usually doesn't happen twice in the span of three games right in front of me. ... It was fun though. I think Herana-Daze (Jones) got the ball out, and whoever is there is supposed to pick it up and run. I really didn't do anything. The guys set a really good wall and I just ran it into the end zone."

What is your mindset at this point with cut day tomorrow?
"I feel good. You go out there and play. You don't think about anything else. You just let the chips fall where they may. I had my chance to control what I had to control today, and tomorrow we will see what happens."

Will you be nervous on a sleepless night?
"No. I'll just relax. I'll probably kick back with No. 32 (Rudi Johnson), and have a good time."

Talk about your chances to make the team:
"I feel good. I've been here for three years, and I feel good in the system. I feel like I can run everything, pass-wise. We will just see what happens tomorrow."

Your thoughts on tonight's final preseason tune-up?
"As I told the team, a lot of good things happened out there tonight. We saw a lot of good individual performances. We had a couple of turnovers. We went for it on fourth down, and that was kind of the difference in the game. It is a downer not to win it with all the effort we put out there, moving the ball and doing some good things on defense. We were able to see some of the things we wanted to see. Some players had performances that will make it hard to cut them. "I think we came out of the preseason the way we wanted to. We now have a short turnaround time to get ready for New Orleans, but I think our team feels good and ready to go."

What would you have done if you had scored on the final drive?
"We would have gone for two. We went for two the first time and tried to make it a six-point game and win it at the end. We would have tried to tie the game, and then onside kick."

What are your toughest decisions before the opening game?
"We have a lot of good players, and the toughest thing is narrowing the roster down to 53 players. Whether you keep four tight ends, or six receivers — those types of things. I think we have the players in ranking order in terms of their position, but how many to keep at each position is the key.

"We had some injuries on the offensive line and that could complicate some things, but other than that, we didn't have any injuries that we didn't anticipate.

"Overall we were able to look at some players in some critical situations. We had the opportunity to look at a few of our kick returners. I thought some of our young defensive players did a good job. We wanted our young secondary guys to play against the Bengals starting receivers, and they went in the game and did a good job. We saw a lot of things that were positive.

"I wish we had a little more time to prepare for the regular season, but I think we will be OK before (Thursday), when we open with the Saints."

How do you feel about your performance?
"Overall, I think I played all right. I think I had the touches I needed throughout the preseason. A running back wants to touch the ball every play if he can. I had the opportunity to show I can make a difference when I carry the ball."

Are you excited about the opening festivities commemorating last season's Super Bowl victory?
"Everyone is really looking forward to Thursday. It was nice to come here and close out the preseason and have some of the young guys play well, but it is time to get after it now.

"We didn't play a lot of the starters tonight, so we are going to be ready to go and we will be fresh. Come Sunday, we will be ready to practice, and by Thursday, ready to kick off.

"Coming home to celebrate the Super Bowl will be very big. To see that banner drop will be amazing. It is a culmination of many of last season's accomplishments. Once it drops, it is time to put things behind us and start rolling. This is a new season, and we will be ready to go against New Orleans."