Head coach Jeff Fisher
(on what David Carr means to the Texans' offense) "You can look at the ball games, including ours. I think David had a career day against us. Even though they were in a catch up he still nevertheless had a lot of big plays and had great numbers. After that he continued to do so against some good defenses until he was hurt in the Buffalo game. The offense has continued to develop. (Domanick) Davis is running very well and has continued to develop in his absence. We're expecting to see him play. I know it's exciting to get back on the field and they should get a boost. If he is unable to play, we expect Dave (Ragone) to improve. He had some balls in the past ball game against Tampa Bay that could have been the difference in the ball game had they been caught. That just shows you that they are doing a good job developing him at well."
(on Steve McNair's ability to overcome injuries) "He's overcome so much in his career. This past week was very difficult for us but it was an objective decision. He was just not able to move around in the pocket. He's done a phenomenal job for us during the week preparing when he has not been able to practice yet still come out and play at high level. He's having a great year. I don't know what his status is going to be for this weekend. It's doubtful that he would do much in practice today. He may soft toss a little bit. He's still sore and he's still limited. So we're just going to have to wait and see how he is."
(on their backup quarterback situation) "We're having discussion with Neil (O'Donnell) right now hoping to get something done. We're going to have to get creative and work hard at it. I was hopeful that it was going to get done but it's not as of yet. So Jason (Gesser) will take practice today."
(on if it feels like he has been coaching 10 years) "It feels like two actually. It's gone by really fast."
(on if it's important to return to the Super Bowl because it's in Houston) "No it's not. Every year the goal is to get there and it would make it better if we are fortunate enough to do that. There's so much ahead of us yet. That will be a special moment when someone can hand (Bud Adams) the trophy but until then I don't think it's really different than any other year."
(on Bud Adams) "Since the day that I have met him he has been great to me and he's been great to the football team. It's his passion. He expects you to be successful. He's willing to help. He's very interested in what is going on yet at the same time he's not too interested to the standpoint that it can be a problem. That's happened over the years in other places. H allows us to do our jobs and trusts us to get it done."
(on coming back to Houston) "It's just another road trip for us. Houston is a great town and we enjoy spending time there. I'm very excited that they have a team and they have a competitive team but there's so much distance now between the time when we left and when we left and this weekend. It really just becomes another road game for us."
(on if there is a sense of urgency to win this week) "Yes there is, very much so. This week and this game is what you do everything that leads up to this point for. Your off season program, your organized team activities, your training camp, the hard work throughout the season is there to have an opportunity to clinch the playoffs in a specific game. There are three teams in the AFC that won their division last year that are eliminated. That just shows you hard it is to have a chance every year to get back to the playoffs. This is our biggest game of the year without a question."
(on being a wild card team) "Of course you would like to play them all at home but there are several other teams in addition to Indianapolis that are playing very well. Our goal right now is to get in the playoffs and then just play and see what happens."
(on Greg Comella) "It was a tough situation for us this year. Greg was doing well for us last year and then hurt his shoulder and was out several weeks. He worked very hard to get his shoulder back. We kind of moved a slightly different direction with the offense. We had the tight ends playing the full back position and we felt like it was one of our better packages in a addition to our three wide receiver package. So it was one of those things that didn't work out. He was really playing well prior to getting hurt. This year we got some things settled and we were very encouraged we he had done. He had a great preseason for us on special teams. We just found ourselves in a cap situation and was just unable to keep him. It had nothing to do with ability or personality or anything. He did everything one would expect somebody out of his position. He brought leadership here, a good solid work ethic, and a commitment. It just didn't work out from s cap standpoint."
(on being an 'even keeled' coach) "I don't think I had any choice over the first couple years. It was very difficult. I think we learned through experience there is so many things you can control. There are things you can control inside the locker room or in the meeting room or on the practice field. Don't get caught up in all those other things. Our approach is to play at a high level every week and also try to keep wins and losses in perspective."
(on if the AFC South will be a four team division next year) "Yeah there will be no question about that. The Texans have just been hurt by injuries and youth and it's very difficult to try and overcome the injury situation that they have endured. We went through that in the 2001 season. It's all about staying healthy and improving. You see a great deal of improvement throughout their roster. Not only from a personnel standpoint but their younger players are improving. They're very well coached and they play with great effort. I would assume that next year this division is going to take on a slightly different complexion. I don't think you're going to see a couple teams run off with it and a couple teams trail behind. I think the race could be very even."
(on if Eddie George have played to his potential) "Yes he has. I think he has really turned it on the last five or six weeks. If you look at Eddie's numbers you see he really has only one 100-yard game. The fact of the matter is that we have got a number of 100-yard rushing games. We've just been doing it by committee, a little bit with Robert (Holcombe), a little bit with Chris (Brown). Eddie didn't get the carries we would have liked the last couple of weeks. If you look at his carries and what has been doing the last month he has started to turn it on now. That's Eddie George. That's classic Eddie George. He's the difference make in December and January."
DE Kevin Carter
(on the Texans having a healthy David Carr and Domanick Davis) "It gives them a whole different outlook with their game plan. I think now having Domanick Davis running like he is and having their starting quarterback back it pretty much given you new life. We realize that they're going to be dangerous."
(on playing down to their competition with al of their emotional games) "I assure you this game is pretty emotional as well. There's not a question of which team is going to show up. You can have your own opinions and write whatever you want to regarding that. We have our own agenda cut out and it's very clear. We know what we have to do. It's not a matter of playing to competition."
(on their quarterback situation) "Billy (Volek) played great. He stepped in and did a great job for us. We're really proud of him. That also gave Steve (McNair) and extra week of rest. Hopefully he'll be back and ready to go and nothing will have to be taken care of as far as getting another quarterback."
(on why they are always a good run defense) "We put a lot of emphasis on it, especially this time of the year. When you're playing in December when it's cold no one wants to hit anybody. Teams that can put their head in there and put their hands in there and be physical and still do it in December are the ones that are going to win. We realize that and that has been our approach all year. Get people in passing situations because we have a lot of trust in our front four. We have a lot of pretty good players upfront and we know we get the job done."
(on coming back to Houston for the Super Bowl) "It's something that we all think about and talk about from time to time. Not really in regard to trying to do it for any other reason than to win a world championship. It would ironic because we're a team that started out there. The thing on our agenda is to clinch a playoff birth."
(on Head Coach Jeff Fisher) "Coach Fisher has been pretty even. That's just his personality. He keeps an even keel. Something bad happens, keep playing. Something good happens, keep playing. We're a fairly steady team. We do feed off emotion, especially the defense. I think as far as our personality, I think we're a pretty even keel team. It's definitely a reflection of our coach. He keeps us doing the right things and keeps us on track whether we have won two or lost two."
(on being a wild card vs. winning the division) "We realize you can talk about wild cards or division champs but at that point it really doesn't matter. Whoever wins keeps playing and whoever loses goes home. There has been wild card teams that have actually gone onto win the Super Bowl."
(on home field advantage) "We like to play at home and we think that we are a really good team in our own stadium as is everyone in this league. You can't make up for circumstances that have already taken place. All you can do is start from where you are and try to make the best of it."
(on Jeff Fisher being able to remain as head coach for 10 years) "If you look at his record and what he has done. Even through some rough times he has always kept us pretty even. Last year we started out 1-4 and we came back and had the season we had last year. I think the reason he has been a staple of our organization is because of the result that he has gotten. He's kept us winning a lot of games. I think we are way up there as far as winning percentage with him as a head coach."
