Quotes from:

Zac Taylor

Head coach

What are your overall thoughts on today's game?

"Not acceptable. Humbling for us, certainly. (We) never got a chance to break that game open like we felt we were capable of. (We had) two opportunities at the end of the game there to close it out on offense, and defensively to get guys on the ground. (The) tackling wasn't good enough. So, we're not going to look at anything after that and say anything was good enough after that loss. (It was) humbling, and we're really going to have to dig deep to bounce back next week."

Why did the game slip away today?

"I don't know. I wish I had that reason for you. Someone's got to step up and make a play. Someone's going to (have to) make a point either way just to separate that game for us — create a turnover, getting on the ground, third down, win offensively explosive play in the game — just never happened for us."

When you guys started facing adversity, do you feel like it just started snowballing on the defense?

"We just needed somebody to rise up and make a play. Someone just hold the fort down. I didn't see enough of that today."

Do you feel like you've got to improve the intangibles in adverse situations like that?

"I think someone needs to step up and lead the group. That's what I'm waiting to see. Someone step up and lead the group and take some accountability over there, and get this thing going the right way."

From a perspective of the rush defense, why do you think the Jets were able to get so many yards on the ground?

"They got a lot of momentum. They're a dangerous team that way. That was certainly a strength of theirs, with their offensive line. Again, we weren't good enough. I don't know how many explosive (plays they had). It felt like there was a decent amount of explosives there."

How disappointing was the pass rush?

"We need, we need somebody to step up and win some one-on-ones."

Is it troubling to see how the run defense is playing this season?

"It's something we've certainly got to improve on."

Tee Higgins came off the field visibly upset. What was supposed to happen on Joe Flacco's last pass at the end of the game? Was that pass supposed to go to Andrei Iosivas?

"Yeah, he was an option there. I don't know — he was probably just frustrated we lost."

Was there a thought of playing Jake Browning late in the game with whatever Joe Flacco was dealing with?

"It was a very tough decision right there. Joe was ready to go. I don't think anything Joe did on that last couple plays was anything that led us to not being able to win. I thought he was fine. He threw it away — we were expecting a coverage and didn't get it. He threw one away and the other one to (Andrei Iosivas), I didn't exactly see what it looked like."

Who are some guys you see on the defense ...

"We just need guys to step up. I'm not going to sit here and name names. We just need guys to step up."

At different points when you had the lead, did you feel like maybe the defense was subconsciously playing prevent?

"No."

What led to Cam Taylor-Britt being back in the starting lineup today?

"Guys just have got to continue to rise up for us. Again, just continue to find the best combination of guys we've got over there."

Where does this loss rank for you?

"I'm not into ranking losses — I'm into being frustrated that we lost this game. It was right there for us to grab and create some momentum for ourselves, and we missed the opportunity. Quite simple You've got to give credit to the Jets. We had them down multiple times (by) big scores, and we just never delivered that knockout blow and they just kept hanging in there. They made play after play, and their confidence rose. And so then, they were able to get that win. We saw this on tape. We saw the five one-score games and we saw (at the) end of games, they had their opportunities and they just hadn't been able to capitalize on them yet. Here we are, we're the team they got it against. It's unfortunate."

Can you take us through the final plays on offense? You guys got a little momentum, it seemed like ...

"Yeah, we got some momentum. The first down play — I've got to jog my memory on the second down play. We'd had some success running in that situation. Obviously, it's not good when they're up in there and they jam it up on you. And then the third down — we just didn't get it going."

In the grand scheme of things, how much more difficult is it to achieve the goals you set out for the team?

"It's still all on the table. It's still a long season. This is going to be a difficult season for a lot of teams, and so you've just got to be in the thick of it and give yourself an opportunity. This is one that we had right in our grasp, and that's the disappointing part about it. We were right there, we had this. Any time you've got a game like that and you can do (what's necessary), we let it get away from us. It's frustrating."

What was so good about the run game today?

"We were just able to lean on it some with the lead, felt like we had good control of the game and stick with it. I thought our guys up front were doing a great job. I thought the backs were running really well, breaking tackles. Joe (Flacco) did a great job controlling the perimeter with some perimeter stuff in the run game where he got some completions out of it on some runs to control some of the pressures they were trying to hit us with. I just thought the guys did a nice job."

How was Trey Hendrickson feeling heading into the game and do you have an update on him?

"He was ready to play. (It's a) hip (injury), so we'll see where he's at."

Was it a re-aggravation of the previous injury?

"That's what I think it is, yeah."

JOE FLACCO

Quarterback

Walk us through what happened at the end of the game, going back to the locker room ...

"I had something happen, wasn't feeling 100 percent. Just trying to make sure something was right."

Were you hurt on a sack? How do you feel now?

"Yeah, landed a little awkward. I feel good right now."

What kind of change happened in the fourth quarter?

"We got the touchdown in the fourth quarter, but they had two stops come up late. You put yourself in third-and-longs, and a few plays don't hit like they did earlier, and you don't convert a third down, and that's how it goes. The drives we were scoring well on, they were some big-time conversions, and the one we did score on the fourth we were rolling through a little bit. You have to expect at some point they'll come up tough, and you have to make some plays. We didn't do it."

What do you think prevented you from closing the game out?

"You guys watched it. This league is going to come down to the last minute or two, most of the time. We had a drive before that two-minute where if we go put points on the board then it's a different game, but we didn't do it."

Take us through the final three plays ...

"Sometimes its part of the game. You don't make the play down the stretch that gets you over the hump and into field goal range."

Did you have a conversation with Zac about going back in?

"It was so quick. There was not much conversing. It all happened so quick, and next thing you know you're out there."

Any thought that you'd go back out of the game?

"I wasn't really thinking about it. I was thinking about getting back out there."

Any concern right now?

"I don't think so. We'll have to wait and see what we talk about."

What makes young guys turn into leaders in the locker room?

"I think the biggest thing is proving it day in and day out, that you're the type of guy who will show up and work hard and give 100 percent every day. Those things start with your actions — how you show up. Do you show up with intention every day? The more you do that, the more it slowly happens."

Is it something guys can learn?

"Guys can definitely learn, from looking at other guys. From seeing how they show up, when they show up, and the process they go through. You can definitely learn how to become someone who comes in and works with intention, has detail and passion for what they do. You can feed off that and learn yourself, and you become the guy that other guys can look to."

How is Zac's message of "guys need to step up" received in a NFL locker room?

"We're all men, coaches included. We're prideful, but at the same time, what makes a good football player — a tough grown man — is the ability to look inward, maybe acknowledge some of the things you can get better at. That's where it starts. When you get that type of message from a coach, you take it to heart, because you have pride in what you do. You look at yourself and how you can improve and how you can take that next step, and help everyone around you do the same."

What enabled you to find success in the run game?

"The fact we were able to start well in the passing game, then they have to worry about that. It opened up a little inside, and credit to the offensive line and running backs for doing their thing.

Jamarr Chase was saying he was getting doubled ...

"Yeah. We were trying to get a double move on him one time, because one time when they come and double, they have one guy outside and another guy coming inside. Maybe he gets a little low and you can get over the top. We expect that a little bit. You know they have to do something like that. There were a few third downs where they made sure to double him. Credit to them, but at the same time, we know those things are going to happen with those guys, and you have to find ways to overcome it. For most of the day, we did. But in crunch time, we weren't able to make it happen."

As a quarterback, do you feel like there's added pressure to keep up?

"If you let it, then you can. Ultimately you have to focus on your process and going out there and executing. If you can take your mind off being a fan on the sideline, or putting yourself in the mode of watching and wanting the team to win, then you can focus on your job at hand and give yourself the best chance at success. If you remove yourself and become a fan and just want to win, you can get caught up in all the wrong things, and feel the pressure more than you want to. Then you don't play the way you want to. It's tough because we all want to win the football game, but during those 60 minutes, you really have to remove yourself from having those thoughts and trying to stay even and play the play."

Did you sense the offense took their foot off the gas?

"I don't think so. I really don't. We went down and scored, then they scored. We got the ball, and our mindset was to score again, and we didn't. I don't think there was any stepping off the gas. We didn't execute as well as we wanted to on those last plays."

Are there a few plays that stand out that you wish you could have back?

"I have to look at the film. There was definitely a play early on. I threw an incompletion to Jamarr on my right side in the first quarter. I was a little ahead of him on a (one-on-one) route that he had backside. I probably could have waited a little longer and maybe we would have had a big play out of it. Instead we ended up punting."

You've played on teams where defenses carried offenses, and vice versa. How do you keep it from devolving to where players are saying, "We're doing our part, and they're not doing theirs"?

"I think it slips into people's heads. It's hard not to. It more slips into the sides' heads who feels like they're not living up to the standard. This is a team sport. We're all in this together. It's not offense, defense or special teams. They're out their doing their job, but we are one. We feel this as one. I think it's hard to not be in your head when you're on that side of the ball for a given stretch. I always try to tell people: "I'm so consumed with doing my job, and everybody should be so consumed doing their job, that they're not worried about what other guys are doing." Put the blinders on and go do your job. When everyone can do that, that's when you get out of those things. There's no judging your brothers for not playing up to their expectations. You need to play this game with confidence. If you lose a little of that because you think your brothers are looking at you like, 'Come on, can't you just do this?' That's not a good feeling to have. Hopefully, we can get across that's not how we should be feeling toward our teammates."

Did the Jets do anything different with Tee Higgins after his touchdown?

"We have to go back and look. I don't think we threw the ball a ton in the second half. We got the run game going more, and had to throw it in little situations here and there. I feel like it's the way the game went. Obviously, they'll do things to double those guys. It wasn't some huge vastly different plan."

Anything about the one sack you took at the end of the game stand out?

"The last play on the second to last drive? I'm blanking on what happened."

TED KARRAS

Center

On Nick Mangold ...

"Rest in peace, Nick Mangold. One of the all-time great centers, local legend, New York legend, cultural driver in the NFL, and one of the originators of the O-line 'find-one' systems — an amazing man. So I'm thinking about him and his family. That was tragic news today. Obviously, he was looking down on the New York Jets today. That was a big loss for the NFL. I'm thinking about his family and all his teammates. He was a man that was a longtime hero for the center position, so it was tragic news this morning."

How do you stomach this game, given the loss to a winless team and scoring almost 40 points on offense?

"No stomaching. Numb feeling. A horrendous feeling."

Do you feel, offensively or defensively, you let up emotionally and psychologically when you were up 31-16 or 38-24?

"I know I didn't. I can't speak for everyone else, but I don't relax until there is three zeros (on the clock). Obviously, it's a three hour-fight that we lost."

It's evident that Zac Taylor said he needs someone to step up. It's clear on defense that leadership is lacking, and that's something Taylor said he's searching for. As captain, how can you fill that void on defense if you can?

"I can be a leader for the team, but I'm not out there with the 11 guys on defense. I'm not just going to blame one thing — we can't just blame defensive leadership. We got to look at a lot of different things. We let the Jets beat us today. Horrendous."

How do you dig yourself out of this?

"Just come into work tomorrow, come into work Wednesday. We got a football game to play. I'm not going to get quoted with a cliché this week, but we have the Bears coming into town. Let's go."

It seemed like the Bengals offensive line flexed its muscles today with nearly 200 yards rushing ...

"We didn't score 40, so it doesn't mean (crap)."

Does this loss change the outlook on the season for you guys?

"Maybe. You can go through the numbers — I don't know. We got the Bears coming into town, so we're going to stomach this one tonight and get ready for a big week. We got to go."

JA'MARR CHASE

Wide Receiver

What did you think of the offense's performance today?

"The run game was tremendous today. We did a lot of running the ball — upfront did (well) and our running backs did (well) too."

Did you sense the Jets were a desperate team with their winless record?

"It doesn't matter about their record. We have to go out there and play. It doesn't matter about their record."

Zac Taylor said he was looking for leaders to step up on the defense. How much of that is on you as a leader in this room to surge the charge, or help the defense find leaders?

"It ain't my job. I play offense, not defense."

How frustrating is it for you to see the defense give up 39 points, and do you feel as an offense you're doing all you can do when you score that many points?

"It's pretty frustrating, but the offense still needs to capitalize at the end. We left stuff out there."

Did they do anything to you in the second half coverage wise?

"Really, the fourth quarter, they double-doubled the whole time on every series."

What was your view on the last series?

"They just doubled up me, Tee (Higgins) and left 'Drei (Andrei Iosivas) one-on-one, and (ran) some blitzes."

Does it seem frustrating that it seems you need to score 35-40 points on offense to win games? Is that sustainable?

"I don't think that's how that works. It's just the NFL — everyone is good. Everybody knows how to play football. Everyone watches film, and you have to adjust."

Is there still a lot of hope for this team?

"We're still good, but we just have to find a way to not put ourselves in positions like this. We're pissed off."

GENO STONE

Safety

You guys probably felt like you had it under control for most of the day ...

"Yeah, for the majority of the day. We did our job for the majority of the day. I think we started out how we wanted to start out, especially when they got into the red zone and we held them to field goals. It all comes down to stopping the run. It's the biggest thing we have to do — tackling. We can't' give up plays at the end of the game. We got to give the ball back to our offense and get some stops."

What's missing on the run defense in your mind right now?

"Honestly, it's a collective effort. You can't point one thing out. Everyone is on the field and has to do his job. It is what it is. The only thing I can say for the back end is (that), I think whenever we have the opportunity to have an open field tackle, we just have to get them down. That's really all it is — no matter if the run breaks — we just have to get them down and we can't let them score."

How frustrating is it that the run defense hasn't been what it's needed to be most of the year?

"I don't know. I can't really describe the things that are (going) on my mind right now. I think the biggest thing is we have to be better on defense. I feel like everyone has to step up. Leaders have to lead. I have to lead more in my group — I can put that on myself. All the other position groups can put it on themselves. At the end of the day, we have to play better and have to want it. You can't go out there and one person be an individual and do their job right, and the other 10 don't. So, we have to do our jobs right, together."

You believe in the young guys, but has the defense's youth presented challenges?

"A little bit, but at the end of the day, I think Al (Golden) is putting us in great situations where it's not too complicated. At the end of the day, you just got to do your job. Whatever your job is during a certain play — do your job. We're having little hiccups here and there, but at the end of the day, there's 10 other guys on the field. So if one person messes up, you should be able to make them right."

How concerning is it that Zac Taylor said someone has got to step up on defense?

"No, we definitely do. Someone has to step up. I can speak for my group as much as I can — I have to be the guy that steps up. You know, I'm the oldest guy in the room, so I take on that role and (want to) make sure we're all right on the back end. But at the end of the day, as a whole — as a defense — everyone has got to step up and play better. You can't just single out one person because we're on the field together. We just have to be better next week."

DJ TURNER II

Cornerback

You had the lead multiple times and just couldn't quite hold on ...

"Yeah, we have to finish the game up. We just have to finish better."

What will that take? What do you think the biggest problem that caused you to not finish the game?

"As a unit, we just need to make the plays that come to us and put a dagger in. We just didn't do that it today."

Offensively, you score 38 points. Do you think that should be enough to win a football game? Justin Fields had been struggling a little bit, but he played well today, didn't he?

"No, man, it's about us. The offense scored enough and the defense, we should have lived up to it. This is not about what they did, it's about what we did. We have to finish the game out, play better defense."

What was the problem with stopping the run today?

"We're going to review the film tomorrow. I won't speak on it yet."

Do you feel like there was gap control responsibility? Do you feel like the guys were doing what they're supposed to do when they're supposed to do it?

"Like I said, I'm going to do a film review tomorrow. I'm not going to speak on it because I didn't review the film."

That touchdown at the end went right on the back line. Is there anything you can do in that situation? Is it hard to turn around?

"You can't turn around, but just play through the hands of the big tight end. You just have to play and wrestle through the hands. That's what you have to do."

CHASE BROWN

Halfback

Obviously, this one didn't end the way that you were hoping for. But you once again found some running room with a multi-touchdown performance. What are your thoughts on what you were seeing out there today?

"Yeah, from a positive standpoint, there were a lot of positives offensively. The only downside was the finish, and I think that's the most important thing. When you're in those situations to close off the game, it's, 'Who's finishing that (crap)?' And that's the story there. But the O-Line stepped up big. We're finding so much room in these running lanes and in this run game, and we're building a lot of confidence. I think there is something to build on in that area. We need to continue to take a step forward there from the last two weeks. So, I feel good about that. At the end of the day, we just need to finish. Sometimes you're just at the wrong end of the stick when it comes to the game. They're on the five-yard line, right? And then the two-minute warning hits. That's a huge advantage. It puts a lot of pressure on us, but we have to be able to finish those and come up with the win and find those wins."

What was it about those middle runs today that were so effective for you guys?

"The double teams were really strong. When you get double teams like that, they're going up to the second level. It just makes our life easy. We had a ton of space and we're both against them. We're both able to play with more patience, more tempo and hit the holes and hit the running lanes when they're there. So, it was a positive. I think the run game took another step forward in that area."

What does it mean to you when Zac Taylor says guys have to step up all over the team?

"I think his message is that when you have opportunity to finish the game, make some big plays to finish the game. Make them — end of story. And that's not directed at anybody. You ought to be able to make those plays that really decide the game on both sides of the ball. At the end of the day, we're all going to learn from it. We're all going to stick together. You know we'll move on to next week. Zac said it at the end there. We're going to treat it as a 1-0 mentality week going into this bye. We have to win next week and we will be good. I think we'll be good no matter what. We just need to find a way to win. At the end of the day, we scored 38 points, right? The offense is starting to get some mojo. The defense played really well as well, it was just that second half. If you look at the start of that game, the first half the game, you wouldn't be able to predict the outcome. We just have to take pride in finishing these games and coming up with the win."