VS.

POSTGAME QUOTES
OCTOBER 12, 2008

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Q: Opening Statement:
The disappointment of the loss starts with us not getting anything going offensively. Were not moving the ball effectively enough. We had some penalties early in the football game that really hurt us - the holding penalty on the scramble for the first (down). We even had a penalty on defense that comes up and hurts us on the contact on the third-down play. Defensively, theyre doing some good things, but again, its the drive. Weve got one drive in the fourth quarter where if you get them off the field, it makes a big difference in the football game. We have to get the guy on the ground and tackle him when the ball is out in the flat and make them convert on fourth down. For the most part our guys did some good things, but again, its not good enough.

Q: On establishing the run:
I didnt think we did a very good job getting the run game established at all.

On not being able to hold the lead:
I think they drove back down and got the tying touchdown when we had some penalties down in the red zone. The touchdowns they had were because of their third-down conversions. I think they had only one third-and-one or third-and-two that they converted. The rest were third-and-four and third-and-five. We have to get them out on those downs. We did at times, but not enough.

Q: On the Jets field position:
The field position was leveled the other way today. When we were punting the football, we didnt get the ball punted out of there deep enough. On the other side, we only had one good return. I think thats key, too. We werent able to flip the field position at all today, which would have made a big difference in the football game. The defense was playing with a short field almost the entire first half and almost all of the third quarter.

Q: On the Jets second-quarter punt that was down on the Cincinnati four-yard line:
The field turf here is going to catch the ball at the five-yard line. The guys going to down it on the one. They are in position to down the football on the one-yard line. He knows that, so if he catches the football, do you want it on the four or the one? Take your pick. Wed like him to catch it on the five, but with the field turf, you know how the ball goes straight up in the air. That old axiom that you guys always want to lean on has gone away if you watch enough of these games. You cant really predict that one. If the ball is tailing away, hell let the ball go, but a ball up in the air like that, hes going to catch the football.

Q: On Chris Perrys performance:
Were going to look at all that. We need to look at that. We need to take a hard look at that and see what the best thing is for us as we go forward.

Q: On the offense:
Its a combination of things. I cant sit here and elaborate much now. Weve got to do better. Its not good enough.

Q: On the play of QB Ryan Fitzpatrick:
Id rather reserve my judgment until I watch the tape.

Q: On whether he is adjusting to starting:
Yeah, I am. We didnt have the outcome that everyone had hoped for. They played well defensively today. We need to run the ball better, and we will. Those guys up front are working their tails off, and it is one guy on defense making a play here or there. It was a struggle out there today. We need to go back to the drawing board to figure it out.

Q: On trying to run the ball consistently:
Thats what we are trying to figure out right now. For whatever reason today, we just couldnt get it going. Going into halftime after we scored and got the ball back, we thought we had pretty good momentum coming back out. We thought we were in a good position, but nothing really materialized in the second half.

Q: On the first half vs. the second half:
There was the 14-play drive. We were playing pitch and catch out there. Every time we got into third-and-long situation, they pretty much dropped everybody. There were a lot of guys running around out there, so it got tough for us. They put us in tough situations.

Q: On the Jets defense:
They didnt change anything from the first half. It was our inability on first and second down to get completions and keep yardage manageable. They were leaving us in those third-and-long situations, and it was tough.

Q: On if the Jets were playing coverage or blitzing a lot on defense:
They were doing both. On third-and-long, theyd drop a lot of guys, but other than that, they came with their normal pressure as we expected. They played well up front.

Q: On fumbling the ball:
I was rearing back to throw a deep ball to Chris (Henry). I rolled out of the pocket, and there was a guy on the backside I didnt see.

Q: On whether the Jets changed up their defense:
I think it was more us and of our mentality of attacking them. It was at the end of the half and teams tend to soften up a little bit because they know it is going to be more of a passing situation.

Q: On not effectively running the ball:
The thing that we did well today was defense. I think we had three turnovers with a touchdown early which was great. Its one of those things that were going to have to do a better job of. Well go back to the drawing board and figure out whats going on.

Q: On the first quarter defensive touchdown:
It was great. It gave us momentum at the beginning of the game. At the same time, offensively, we didnt have the ball a lot the first quarter. We had a lot of three-and-outs.

Q: On the first quarter:
We got out of field position today which put us in situations where we were backed up. They did a good job of keeping us back there.

Q: On Brett Favre:
Hes fun to watch with the enthusiasm he plays with. He is still loving the game and thats something I definitely respect and admire.

Q: On offensive plays:
I was playing pitch and catch with the receivers. We were getting the ball out quick. They softened up a little bit, so we wanted to take advantage of some of those holes in the secondary. At the end of the half, we were in the offensive mode to throw the ball and move it because of the time situation. It worked out which was nice.

Q: On defense in the second half:
They didnt do much of anything that was different. It was more of the situations we were in. We battled field position and had some third-and-longs. We needed to go out there and make more plays.

Q: On starting:
Im definitely more comfortable out there. The more youre out there, the more comfortable youre going to get. Defensively, there wasnt anything out there that surprised us today.

Q: On the Jets defensive play calling:
When we got into third-and-longs because of our inability to run, get completions and move the chains on first and second downs, they dropped a lot of guys. That was their way of getting to us. It was a bit of a change up on third down.

Q: On if he is traveling back with the team:
Im going to stay here and see the doctor first thing in the morning. Im not trying to shut anything down. Ill play when they give me clearance to play. If they tell me to sit, Ill sit. If they give me clearance it doesnt matter whether were 9-6 or 0-15, if they clear me Im going to play.

Q: On how his elbow has been the last few weeks:
Its frustrating because I enjoy practice. Its frustrating to watch practice and not be out there. Im going to the supposed best elbow guy (doctor), one who worked on a bunch of major league pitchers. Hopefully we can get a chance to evaluate it and hopefully I can get out there and practice. Its a big concern of mine to get out there and play. Its a concern of mine if I have to sit on the sideline and watch, Im just not used to doing that. Its not my concern whether or not my injury is season-ending or not. I was told it would get better after about a month and every day its gotten better, so thats a good thing. Hopefully it got better over the last week. It was my decision to get a second opinion and have someone else look at it other then our doctors. Hopefully theyll have a different opinion and say it looks a lot better and Ill be able to play.

Q: On his assessment of the offense today:
Its not one or two things. Its especially tough to watch as an offensive guy when your defense plays the way it does. They were giving us turnovers and got the ball back. Offensively, we just kept our defense on the field way too long and it wore them out. I think we only had one possession in the first quarter. When you put your defense in a position like that early in the game theyre going to get worn down. When they are out there the whole first quarter its going to make for a long day for them. We just didnt do enough offensively.

Q: On the running game:
Its something we have to look at and find a way to get better at. When you dont have a running game it doesnt open up the passing attack and it makes it especially hard on Ryan (Fitzpatrick). Its also demoralizing offensively. We need to find a way to keep our spirits up and keep our heads in it. When you come out and get an early score defensively it gets you going and you think, alright we can get some points up. But when you cant put the points up to help your defense out it makes it tough.

Q: Opening Statement:
Im really happy obviously with the second half, especially defensively. We did a nice job coming out and not allowing any points. I liked the distribution of sacks that we had today (with) all different people involved. What I really liked defensively was when we were able to get them backed up and were able to keep them backed up. So we had them backed up, then we had the ability for our special teams to come out and to work that into even better field position. Leon (Washington) had (15.4) yards per-punt return, 30 yards per-kickoff return. Its a great effort by him, but more importantly, its a great effort by the whole group. Offensively, obviously we need to do a much better job protecting the ball, especially against a team like this. Marvins (Lewis) record historically has been very good when he wins the turnover margin (29-5). To be able to overcome that, I was happy about that as well. This is the first time my wife hasnt been to a game in I dont know how many years since weve been together. Shes watching on TV. Id just like to say hello to Julie and Zack (laughs). Its the first game and I know she feels badly about not being here. I miss you.

Q: On the Jets defense:
I thought it started with being able to stop the run and thats a problem that we had last year against Cincinnati. They were able to run it 41 times so we were on our heels in the running game which hurt us in the passing game and allowed some big plays. So it started there, and then I thought we did a much better job with our substituted defense and the coordinated effort of the substituted defense. That generated some positive production.

Q: On the Jets third-down offense:
I think the upside of that is that we were 4-5 to finish the game especially when we really needed it, but, that needs to be a lot more consistent. The Bengals do a lot of things in terms of their pressure package, the looks and that type of thing. We need to be much better on third down, and more importantly, much better protecting the ball.

Q: On if they will continue to wear the Titans jerseys since the team keeps winning:
I dont think its our option. Im open to wearing whatever if its going to help win but its not really our option.

Q: On Kris Jenkins:
Anytime you can have Kris sitting there in the middle, its a really positive thing. He makes plays in that short area but Kris has the ability to make plays down the line. He forces teams to either double-team him which frees up somebody, or if they dont double-team him, hes going to be very disruptive.

Q: On Kris Jenkins injury:
Hell be alright.

Q: On Thomas Jones:
Theres another guy that I didnt mean to overlook. Thomas had a career amount of touchdowns today which is a great thing for him. With Thomas, with Leon (Washington) and now with Jesse (Chatman), I feel confident with all three of those guys running the ball. I feel confident with all three of those guys in protection (and) out on routes. Thomas helped us, obviously carrying the ball, but also with his ability to get in around the pass and give the illusion that it may be a more run-oriented set.

Q: On Jerricho Cotcherys injury:
I havent talked to our doctors yet but I will here after the game.

Q: On if today was an example of Brett Favre taking what he was given:
Thats a good pass defense. They havent given up a lot of big plays, they historically dont in the passing game. They bring a lot of heat. If youre not solid in protection, then they make you pay for it like they did on that first third-down with us.

Q: On improving on offensive third-down conversions:
I promise you, weve looked at it a lot over the bye. I felt like we had some good things moving into this weekend. I still feel good about our package. Well just look at situations when were calling it and if theres some other element that we can improve. Its not something that we wont pay attention to and its going to be key moving forward.

Q: On Darrelle Revis and Dwight Lowery:
Dwights really getting an education here early. Its never going to be easy any week and hes doing a nice job. I think having a guy like Darrelle out there, who went through the same thing last year, helps. That relationship continues to grow based on the understanding of how each (of them) is going to play and how they fit into the overall scheme. If Dwight keeps working, I think hell continue to improve.

Q: On if he called timeout after Ben Utechts catch late in the second quarter because he hoped the play would be reviewed:
Youre always hoping at that point you might have a shot there. That was one element and the other element was I wanted to just talk about the next situation and what the down and distance was that was set up there after the catch. That was part of it, too.

Q: On if Brett Favre was forcing throws when the team was in a position to score:
There were some throws that were in tight coverage but you cant be happy about that one week and then mad about it the other week. He makes a ton of those throws. You never want it to go for a pick. Its the cost of doing business when youre going to throw it into tight spaces.

Q: On the second interception:
That was in the third quarter? In the third quarter youre pretty far away from putting anybody away. But picks, nobody is ever happy about picks. On the flip side, he makes a bunch of tremendous throws into tight coverage and that makes it difficult to defend. It makes him difficult to defend. You want to go through the best decision-making process possible. Hes made a ton of decisions and a ton of them have been really, really good. Theres going to be some of that, and I understand that. Theres going to be some substantial upside as well.

Q: On offensive balance:
I think it goes without saying how important not only having balance on offense, but in all three phases of the team is to be productive. Like today, when we look at this game, you can point to the balance on offense at least, and when you compare one week to the next on how all three phases are so important in this game. It wasnt our best performance, but it was a win and we did some good things. I give them a lot of credit. They took Dallas to the wire, they took the Giants to the wire and they took us to the wire. We had one of those games. I dont believe in ugly wins. I believe a win is a win and that one felt as good as any win Ive been a part of in recent memory.

Q: On turnovers:
A turnover is never good. Im not sitting here today saying Im feeling better about the turnovers today. I feel like the first one - I havent seen the film - but the first one obviously could have been a turning point for them and thats never good. It happens. What I think is more important, is the fact that it happened and the fact that we overcame it. We came back. We didnt miss a beat. Turnovers will come back and bite you but you have to be able to overcome the turnover. You have to be able to overcome bad plays; you have to be able to overcome penalties. Ive been playing a long time and Ive been playing the game the only way I know how to play it. Sometimes you make good decisions, some times you make bad decisions but you have to be able to roll the dice and you have to go down swinging within reason. You have to trust the guys around you. Today is one of those days that it was going to be one of those days. I said this two weeks ago, Youre not going to go out there and throw six touchdowns in one day. You may throw three in one drive (laughter) which wasdifferent. We have to be able to win games like that. We have to be able to overcome turnovers. Ive played in games where weve had no turnovers and lost. In fact, we talked about it all week that (Bengals Head Coach) Marvins (Lewis) record as a head coach is outstanding when they are plus-one (24-5), they had to be plus a couple today and we won the ballgame so that doesnt always hold true. We have to be conscious of that but we also have to play. You cant play scared. Im not saying that has happened, happened today or that it has ever happened. What I am saying is that you turn it loose, play the way you play and whatever happens, happens.

Q: On game plan including short passes:
We threw a couple nice passes down the field that had to be good throws but more importantly had to be good catches. Aside from those, it was move the chains types of throws, some quick screens and things like that. We had a high completion percentage. I compare this group of receivers to the guys Ive played with the past few years, that if I can complete 25-30 balls - this mentality has been different the past few years than it has been, in my mind, with these guys whether they are behind the line of scrimmage or five yards in the defensive backfield, they are going to break a few. The old saying, get the ball into your play-makers hands. We had a high completion percentage today. We didnt have a lot of yards today. Like Jerrichos (Cotchery) big play towards the end of the game today on third down was a quick screen. They have to tackle him and if they dont tackle him, we get the first down. So thats been my mindset, if we break a few - great. Theyll play a little bit tighter on us if we wanted to take a few chances. We run the ball well enough that we can keep them in check. It was one of those games. I havent thrown for a lot of yards yet this year, but that doesnt matter. Im not here for stats. Im here for wins and it was one of those days you may throw for 100 yards, you may throw for 400. I have no idea. You may throw six touchdowns, you may throw one. It doesnt matter.

Q: On comfort with high completion percentage play-making:
I think this offense is built for that. I think that the balance is starting to show itself a little bit. Each game is different. Obviously, you never want to predict or assume anything in this league but I think that today, for us is proof-positive that we can win however. Did I think that we would score points, did I think that we would get more TD passes, did I think that we would be more productive in the offensive aspect of the game? Yes, but with each week I see our running game more-so than me being comfortable, than our offensive line being comfortable with each other and having more input and I hear them talking to (assistant head coach/offensive line coach) Bill Callahan and (head coach) Eric (Mangini), (offensive coordinator) about certain runs and to Schotty (Brian Schottenheimer) about certain runs they feel comfortable with and, off of that, two nice passes down the field were off play-action today. The only way play-action works is if you run the ball effectively. I think we have a good mix of built-in runs with built-in passes that you can protect yourself. I think Cincinnati did a good job of disrupting that for the most part, but I think that there is no reason why we cant complete 25-30 balls, depending on how many you throw, week-in and week-out. This is probably the highest completion percentage Ive had up to this point in my career, maybe not for as many yards, but once again, I think the most important thing is to continue to get the ball to Jerricho and to LC (Laveranues Coles) and to TJ (Thomas Jones) and to Leon (Washington). I made a couple little dink passes to Leon where there was no way he should get that first down and he makes guys miss. That drives a defense crazy. Use those guys. Let the defense have to come up and force them to play a hand and then something big will come from it.

Q: On mindset playing against teams with low win percentages:
I love to stockpile victories but I dont think that you can assume any game will be easy. In the situation were facing now, were aware the teams we are facing havent been that successful. Never can anyone, especially us, take anyone for granted. Id like to say we can go in and that no doubt we should win this game and win the next game. Our worst enemy and this comes from day one my first game I ever played in is ourselves. If we can play the way were capable of playing and clean up some of the little things, we should be fine. We cant worry about who were playing and their record. We have to worry about how were playing and how we can get better and how we can clean up some of the things we have made mistakes in, so I think well be ok.

Q: On two interceptions today:
On the second one, I was talking about it to (Bengals LCB Johnathan) Joseph coming off the field just now and he had a good play. In hindsight, I would have liked to back-shoulder throw to Jerricho, but it was good coverage and the ball was tipped up in the air. Its one of those, if it falls incomplete, no big deal, if Jerricho catches it, its a great play and one thing you dont want to happen is for the ball to be tipped in the air and they make a play on it. The other one I threw it to Bubba (Franks), it doesnt matter what the route is called, but Bubbas got the corner-route, scramble around and hes going to take it up the boundary. In hindsight I wish I would have just thrown it away, but I threw it and I thought that Bubba had as good as chance to catch it as anyone. In fact, I also thought it was out-of-bounds. It was one of those things that just happened. I thought that in both situations, neither guy was wide open, but I liked my chances one-on-one with those guys. I give those guys credit for making those plays. I think more times than not, those guys will make that play or it will fall incomplete.

Q: On team's confidence:
Im one man speaking for the whole group, but with each week and with each practice the guys are starting to [have confidence]. Eric said this several weeks ago to the team, and I think that I told this to the media, that I totally agree with this when we finally get to a point where as a team we believe as one, that were unstoppable and were unbeatable - we will make mistakes, things may not go our way all the time. Thats part of football, thats part of sports - well be fine. When doubt starts to creep in our minds, were in trouble. I think each week with this team, theres a lot less doubt. Im not going to say that were going to go on a winning spree. Id like to think so, but I think there are some positive vibes taking place here and thats how you start winning. Things start kind of happening and you go ok, that didnt happen to us in the past. You just kind of start believing in that and good things fall in place.

Q: On scoring a career-high three touchdowns:
First and foremost I am happy about the win. We came together as a team and put together the plays we needed to get the win. I happy to be able to contribute.

Q: On whether he feels he is a better running back with more carries:
I just take what I get and try to take advantage of my opportunities. I am the type of (running) back that can get 20, 25 carries a game. Thats how I train and mentally thats how I prepare myself for each game. You never know how a game is going to come out. I just try to take advantage of the opportunities I get whether its in the passing game or the running game.

Q: On whether he feels confident in the running game:
You have to have a balanced offense to be successful and to score points in this league. We have the weapons on offense to do both, in the running game and the passing game. You never know how the game is going to come out. (Two weeks ago) we threw the ball really well and scored a lot of points. Today it wasnt the exact same situation. We had to grind it out a little bit more. The good thing is were able to do both.

Q: On the offensive penalties in the first half:
We had some good plays called. We actually scored a couple of touchdowns that got called back. We just stuck with it. Our offensive coach (Brian Schottenheimer) did a great job calling plays that series and putting us in a good position. Guys made the plays, but we had a couple of penalties. We ended up scoring a touchdown which was good.

Q: On scoring a career-high three touchdowns:
It always feels good to score a touchdown. Thats the whole point of being out there with the ball in your hands. It definitely feels good to score touchdowns and get in the end zone and contribute to the team winning. Today was definitely a team win.

Q: On whether he considers himself a running back that grinds the ball well:
I consider myself the type of (running) back that can wear a defense down. Every play, I try to run as hard as I can whether I am running into a guy or blocking a guy. I try my best to make him feel it, so in the third and fourth quarter of the game he is tired. I consider myself a 20, 25-carry a game back. As far as grinding it out in tough situations, the third-and-1, fourth-and-1, I take pride in those types of situations when Im out there.

Q: On the importance of a balanced offense:
Its very important because you never know how the game is going to come out. If you throw the ball well one game then the next week the defense is going to prepare for the pass and try to stop that, so you have to be able to run the ball. Its the same thing for the defense trying to stop the run. Both of them compliment each other. If youre throwing the ball well, safeties have to back up and that gives us more room to run the ball. If were running the ball well, safeties are up trying to stop it, so we can throw the ball deep. It compliments each other so its very important.

Q: On scoring a career-high three touchdowns:
Its always good to have success. As a running back you want to score touchdowns and you want to gain yards. It always feels good to score touchdowns. You never know how its going to end up. Laveranues (Coles) had a great game two weeks ago and Brett (Favre) had a great game two weeks ago. They played well today too. It just so happened I am the one to score the touchdowns this game. Were a 100 percent team. We dont have any selfish guys on this team. We all play hard together. We do what were asked to do and thats why were able to have success.

Q: On confidence in the running game:
To play football and to really win, you have to be able to run the ball. When I was in Chicago and we went to the Super Bowl, we were able to run the ball regardless of what defense we were going against whether it was eight or nine guys in the box, we were able to run the ball. Its the same situation here. We know that we have to be able to run the ball successfully. Its demoralizing to a defense when you can run the ball in, especially on the one or two-yard line. Its important for us to be able to run the ball and the coaches understand that. Were lucky enough to have a lot of weapons at receiver, quarterback and tight end, guys that can make plays down the field. Were lucky to be in that situation where we can do both well.

Q: On the Bengals:
Theyre a good ball club. They remind me of us last year where you have a good team but you just cant put it together. Id hate to be the team they put it together on. Theyre very talented. Our defense stepped it up today and gave us a nice even look and Leon (Washington) and the special teams guys gave us great field position all game.

Q: On the Bengals taking away the deep ball:
Anytime you have a team like they have, they pretty much sit in cover-four and they have very good cover corners. They beat us up pretty good on the outside so what we did was try and take advantage of what they gave us. After a while they caught onto the short stuff and started playing up, but again, I think we did a good job and are fortunate to get out of here with a win.

Q: On Thomas Jones' three touchdowns:
Thats exciting not only for him but the offense as well. It just shows you what a talented group we have. Him and Leon (Washington) are great kids. One week it was a wide receiver, one week it was a running back, now all we need is a tight end. It surely helps us out at wide receiver.

Q: On what caused him to leave the game:
My eyes were watering. I could have lined back up, but I wouldnt have been at my best. If I am not going to be at my best to help my team win then I need to take a play off. We will get someone in there that can do it better than me. I knew I wasnt going to be firing on all cylinders. I took a moment off and I was fine.

Q: On the game:
Cincinnati is a good team. I still dont think their record indicates the type of talent they have. I just think theyve had a rough stretch, but at the same time we are still working ourselves. A victory is a victory and we will take it how we can get it. Its the same as every week. We have some things we have to work on, but it feels a whole lot better when you get a W because it helps.

Q: On stopping Cincinnatis run game:
We did a good job. I dont know what the final stats were, but at one point it was a 1.8 (yard) average. If we can keep them down like that then we are doing our job. We know the past couple of weeks we have had a little bit of trouble in the second half. We wanted to work and do that. We take ownership as a D-line to help out everybody on the defense. If somebody else needs a little help we are going to try to give them some. We have a great pass rush and it helped alleviate some pressure for the defensive backs. They really stepped up this week and played a whole lot better. I am proud of them. They have been under a lot of pressure and they are starting to step up and answer the call.