2008 Week 13 Jets Vs Denver Photos
Transcripts of news conferences and interviews with selected Jets players in the Meadowlands locker room following their 34-17 loss to the Denver Broncos:
HEAD COACH ERIC MANGINI
I was really disappointed with the way that we played today. We've established a certain way to play football around here. We've established a certain identity and that was nothing close to that today.
I don't think we played well in any of the three phases. I don't think we coached well. I think when you have that, this is what you get. What we need to do is come back, work the way we've been working, perform the way we've been performing and the outcome will be extremely different. If we don't, then the outcome will be the same regardless of who we play.
I'm not taking anything away from the Broncos. I think they did an excellent job in all three phases from their perspective. I thought they had a good plan. Our performance obviously needs to be much better than it was today.
On his defense allowing almost 500 yards of offense …
Whenever you have a situation when you don't tackle very well and when you're not consistent in the running game – something that we have been very good at – you give up big plays, you're going to have these problems. That goes back to thing that we have been doing very well and we didn't do well today.
On his team's confidence level heading into today's game…
I think it comes down to our ability to execute. Every single week you see situations like this where teams don't perform as well as they should perform. There can be a multitude of reasons but one thing that has been consistent and will be consistent is our approach to every single opponent. Whether we're coming off a loss, whether we're coming off a win, it's got to be the same. If you do anything differently, if you look at it differently, then the results will be different than what you had.
On if Denver's defense was faking injuries to slow the Jets' offense…
With any injury situation, you take it at face value.
On the weather conditions…
We don't even use the indoor facility. We're always out in the weather. It didn't seem to affect them very much. It was the same for both teams. We've dealt with these conditions before. There is always going to be some situation, whether it's the crowd, rain, sleet, snow, heat. It's the same for both teams.
On play selection on key third-and-1 and fourth-and-1 situations…
Our fourth-and-one conversion rate over the course of the season has been outstanding. We're leading the NFL and I felt good about those plays. Those are the calls that we had that we thought would be successful.
On the strategy to stop Denver QB Jay Cutler…
It wasn't just a function of the short passes; it was the function of giving up the deep passes. The one they hit early where we missed the tackle on the seven-cut to [WR Eddie] Royal where it should have been 15 or 20 yards, turned out to be substantially more [a touchdown]. They did a nice job of mixing in the screens or bubble passes to the tight end to slow down some of the pressure that we had. We mixed the coverages throughout the day. Some of that also comes down to tackling. We have the guy lined up but we don't make the tackle and a six-yard completions goes for 12 or 15 [yards].
On if the first-quarter reverse from Brad Smith to Jerricho Cotchery was advisable considering the weather conditions…
The same thing with the ball handling, it didn't feel like it affected their ball handling. They didn't seem to put the ball on the ground. They seemed to catch the ball cleanly. Every time they had an opportunity to do that. Whenever you do a play like that, with the exchanges, it's crucial in getting the ball first. It's the most important thing. I felt like Jerricho had possession of the football. They [the officials] felt like he didn't and therefore it was unchallengeable.
On disappointment about not capitalizing on leading the AFC East…
That's not the disappointing thing. That's much less important than how we work, how we execute, how we perform consistently and complementary football regardless of our record and what happened the week before. I'm looking for consistency from the group and that is what's disappointing.
On last week's practice…
I think it could have been better. It should be better. I think each week as you move on throughout the course of the season, it should improve. Your personal preparation should improve. Your group preparation should improve. Your execution on Sunday should improve. They are all tied in together.
On if he had a "bad feeling" going into today's game…
It's not a function of having a bad feeling. It's a function of needing to keep improving week-in and week-out and I don't think this was, in any way, a case of improving.
On the challenge of coaching his team after defeating a 10-0 team on the road…
We haven't deviated one bit, win, lose or draw, in terms of our approach. It's nothing that snuck up on us. It's nothing that wasn't discussed. As we move forward, games are more important, not less important. It doesn't matter what [the opponent's] record is. It matters that you are able to win and to play on a winning level.
On the Jets' secondary…
It wasn't just the secondary. It was across the board. The secondary had to do with a lot of the plays that hit the defense in the gap, right in the center of the defense but it was far from just the secondary.
On his postgame emotion level…
I haven't gauged it. I'm not comparing this to some other point where I was angry or upset. I felt that, as a group, we didn't play the way that we should play or where we need to play as we move through the season.
On the loss serving as motivation…
I'm not really looking for a motivator or a silver lining here. I'm looking for good football. I'm looking for consistency and that's what the group, collectively, should all be looking for.
On today's outcome mirroring the level of competition within the AFC…
I honestly believe that every single team we play presents challenges. If you don't respond to those challenges and if you don't execute the game plan and if you don't do those things you're supposed to do to win the football game on any Sunday, regardless of who you are playing, then the outcome will not be very good. If you are consistent and take care of the things you are supposed to take care of, then we're going to win a lot of games. If not, then the outcome will be like this.
QB BRETT FAVRE
On the game overall...
We have four games left. We didn't win this football game. We got outplayed. We had plenty of opportunities. It wasn't like we played our best football, and we just lost. I thought Denver played outstanding. I thought we had some opportunities that we didn't capitalize on. I think we were in first place going into this game, and I think we are still in first.
There are a lot of things that need to be corrected, but it's not like there were any surprises. Obviously, I haven't looked at the film, but it's not like we are going to turn on the film and see something dramatic that we haven't seen that we need to correct. I think they are simple things, the fundamentals of the game — throwing, catching, blocking, tackling, all those things. They did those things better than us tonight.
Yes, it's disappointing, but the season's not over yet. We don't know when it will be over. We can control that. It's a loss and we'll go out to San Francisco and see if we can rebound.
On Broncos QB Jay Cutler...
I thought he played well. I thought he played outstanding. He made a lot of throws. These were tough conditions. It would be easy to write off our lack of production on the conditions, but that wouldn't look too good considering they did produce. I told him after the game he played outstanding, and if you play like that it's hard to be beat. He was the better man tonight.
On if there was a hangover from last week's victory...
No. We had strung together some big wins. I think this team is feeling good about ourselves, as we should, or should have. I think it's a wakeup call, but I don't think it had anything to do with the big win last week.
On if rain is harder to play in than snow...
I'd rather play in snow. I've played in colder weather. It was just windy enough and there was a steady rain the entire night. There were some plays where it affected things. The first pass I threw to Chris Baker was low, inside and incomplete. There were numerous passes I felt like I could have made a more accurate pass but the conditions got the better of me tonight. I think I'd rather play in snow than in the rain, but it's football.
On the third-and-1 and fourth-and-1 plays in the third quarter...
On the first pass, they covered. On fourth-and-1, it was a play where they were going to load everyone in there because it was fourth-and-1. We just took a chance on a pass. We played the odds. We had converted on some big ones earlier in the year on those types of situations.
Given the situation we were in, I haven't talked to Brian Schottenheimer, I think they were good calls. They didn't work, and I'm no different than anyone else, it is always easy to second-guess it when it doesn't work. I remember when we ran three running plays in a row against New England in the far end zone. We were stuffed, and everyone said you should have passed it. When they work they are great, and when they don't they were the wrong calls. I didn't think they were the wrong calls. I give Denver credit, but if I had to do it again, I would back him 100 percent
On the AFC…
I think it says one thing. You can be beaten any week. We can sit here and talk about those types of scenarios, "You beat this team, and that team beat this one," but the bottom line is I thought Denver played an outstanding game. I felt that going into today, if we have played the way we have been playing, we would win the football game. We could have played much better.
Denver played very good. They won the game. I didn't watch their offense against Oakland last week. I thought Oakland's offense played well against their defense. When you execute and get a few breaks here and there, which they got a few and maybe we got a few tonight, then good things happen. It's not anything more than you have to be on your A-game, or pretty lucky.
On his interception…
It was double-go. We were maybe hoping to get a mismatch on the outside. They actually played zone for one of the few times. I just took a shot, but I was looking at the safety the whole time. I tried to make it a catchable ball.
On the expectations after two wins…
I haven't really paid much attention to it. The only expectations that matter are in the locker room. I think being 8-3 going into this game, and winning some of the games that we have won, was deserving of attention. I thought that we handled everything up to this point very well. We didn't play very well tonight but I don't think that it was because everyone walked into the locker room prior to the game thinking that we are the team to beat. We felt good about ourselves and that should continue. We will correct some of the things that we made mistakes on. We will continue to do the things that we have been doing. Up to this point, it has worked pretty well, so we just have to play more consistently.
On Coach Mangini's being "upset"…
I think that I have seen him equally. He was upset, obviously, as he should have been. The plays were there to be made. He was as he should have been.
On this week's practice…
If I were Coach, which I am not, I could point to certain things during the week if the game doesn't go in your favor. Whereas it is easier to let things slip if you win the game. I am not saying that he let something slip or let anything pass, but I think we practiced hard. I think that guys have practiced with a purpose.
The one thing that I am very impressed with being here is that everyone practices, period. Guys don't sit out of practice. We like to have fun and joke around and be light-hearted. I hope that continues. I know that, as a coach, it's easier if you win games to allow that atmosphere, but we got to this point because of several key reasons. I think we need to continue to do that. Once again, [we need to] be more consistent. I think that you practice how you play and you play how you practice.
RB THOMAS JONES
On today's game…
We had a tough game. It was frustrating because we couldn't execute the game plan. Give them credit, they were ready to play. I think we were ready to play also but we just didn't show up like we were supposed to.
On if the Jets came out sluggish…
We were ready like we are every game. We were prepared but we just didn't execute the plays that were called as a team. We just didn't do what we needed to do today.
On today's outcome…
It's a tough loss. We kind of control our own destiny. It's just about us and we didn't take care of what we needed to take care of today. It's definitely frustrating but with the guys on this team we will regroup. We'll watch the film tomorrow and see something's we need to correct and get ready for next week.
On the play selection…
I just run whatever play is called. Honestly, if a run play is called, I'll run the ball. If a pass play is called, I'll protect or run my route. I don't get into the play calling, it's not my job. My job is to run the ball, block, or do whatever I am supposed to do.
On his second touchdown run…
I felt when he spun me around that I landed on top of him and didn't feel the ground so when I rolled over I tried to stay on my feet. I was like, if I run and score it will be up for debate and I'd much rather do that then just lay there.
On touching the ball more…
Like I said, I don't get into the play calls. These play calls were situational play calls and calls that we go over in practice every day but everything doesn't go perfect all the time.
On learning from today's loss…
You can definitely learn from it. You don't want to feel like this again. It's a tough feeling to loss like this at home. We didn't take advantage of a lot of situations. We didn't take advantage of our red zone opportunities, we didn't take advantage of our turnover, and we put the ball on the ground a couple of times. That's the most frustrating thing. A lot of the things we did today were in our control.
RB LEON WASHINGTON
On playing in inclement weather…
That's how football is in November and December. Everybody is feeling the same element. It's usually inclement this time of year. It was raining, wet and cold for them; and it was raining, wet and cold for us. You can't control that part. You just have to go out there and play football.
On if it is more disappointing to lose after receiving so much national attention…
It's disappointing to lose a game regardless. One thing we try to talk about all week long is not taking the gas that everybody tries to give us, 'oh the Jets are great, we're the best team to ever play this game.' It was good to get that humble pie after Thanksgiving.
On if the Jets did a good job of not allowing the additional media coverage affect them…
We did a good job. Judging by the way guys talked in the media, we did a good job of staying humble. At the same time, you have to play football games. It's not about what the media says. It's about going out there and playing on the football field. Today we didn't play well – offense, defense and special teams.
WR JERRICHO COTCHERY
On the fumble on the end-around…
Coming around I just couldn't get a grip on the ball. Brad [Smith] made a good toss to me. I just couldn't get a good grip on it. Once I was going down to cover up the ball I had it covered up until the dude came in and hit me. That is when it [the ball] came out.
On if he had possession of the ball…
Yes, I had possession of it. When the guy came in to hit me, that is when it came out.
On if the elements had anything to do with it…
The ball was slick, but in these times when we add the elements you just have to focus in more. On that particular play I just couldn't grip it the way I wanted to grip it. I just have to find some way to grab the ball on that fumble.
On if he had a bad feeling about this week considering the week of practice…
I didn't have a bad feeling. I feel like we still had our same confidence. We still had the same approach coming in to the game, but I think last week we did have one of our best weeks. We still had a chance to come out here today and focus in, but on a couple of plays like the one I had to start off I think that started the whole thing.
TE DUSTIN KELLER
On the game…
We didn't come up with the win today. We played poorly in the first half and it carried over into the second half. You can make excuses all day for whatever reason, but when it comes down to it, we didn't get the job done today.
On the confidence of the team…
We have lot of veteran leadership on this team. The Broncos came out and executed their game-plan better than we did. We will recover.
On preparing for 49ers…
We will watch the film of this game, make the proper adjustments and get ready for San Francisco next week.
CB DARRELLE REVIS
On the game…
The blame, is on us. We didn't do a good job in the running game or the passing game. There were a lot of calls the referees made that didn't go our way. The Denver Broncos did a great job moving the ball and running the ball. Missing a lot of tackles today didn't help us.
On how the weather affected the game…
The bad weather played a part in it, but you have to keep pushing and keep on making plays. We knew it was going to be raining and sluggish today, but we just needed to adjust and try to do the best we can.
On moving on to next week…
We are a positive team. We have to make the corrections and focus on the next team.
S KERRY RHODES
On if feels practice wasn't as crisp last week…
Yes, I guess you could say that, but I think every week you can find something we didn't do right in practice. We just didn't play well today.
On the missed tackles…
We shot ourselves in the foot with [missed] tackles. We didn't tackle well. We have been a good tackling team this year and today we didn't do a good job. I don't know if it was because of the weather or not, but we just didn't tackle well as a group.
On if the Broncos did anything that surprised them…
No, they didn't surprise us, but they did a lot of quick passes and quick bubbles. We haven't seen that a lot from them. They like to throw the ball down the field vertically a lot. Maybe, I guess because of the weather they changed it up a little bit and threw a lot of screens. The screens were not just screens, they were a run-pass option. If he [Jay Cutler] looked out there and saw a soft spot for the bubble, he would throw it. He caught us off guard. It was a good play they had going.
On if today was disappointing with talk about a Super Bowl…
It's not disappointing. It's disappointing we lost the game, but we don't really care about all that talk right now. If people in this locker room are worried about the talk it's not good for us anyway. We still have a long season. [We have] four games left to right the ship from this game. We have San Francisco next so once we move on to that we are still 8-4 in the division. We just have to move on from here.
LB BRYAN THOMAS
On where the missed tackles come from…
I can't really explain where miss tackles come from. Sometimes you tackle them. Sometimes you get them down. It's all about form tackling and wrapping the guy up. It was cold out there. When it's cold out there you have more missed tackles. We just had to have all 11 guys on the ball and put a hand on the guy.
On if he feels the team gave a good effort…
We had had great effort out there. There are just a couple of things that we have to adjust – missed tackles, the running back breaking tackles and the receivers breaking tackles. Those are the things that contributed to them getting extra yards on certain plays. Those are the things that we have to adjust to get better this week.
On the Broncos' running game…
We knew that they have a good running game, the stretch run. Those are the things that we knew they were going to come with, a lot of game-plan formations. [They tried to] get us in space, spread us out and run the ball. Those are the things they did, and there were certain things that we had to adjust to. We've been good at stopping the run. It's just a lot of things out there, missed tackles, that we have to correct.
