The Texans practiced Thursday at the Methodist Training Center, and afterwards, head coach Gary Kubiak and some players talked with the media. The following is a transcript of their respective interviews.
Head Coach Gary KubiakLB Brian CushingTE Owen DanielsRB Arian FosterCB Kareem JacksonWR Jacoby Jones
Head Coach Gary Kubiak(on what does he think it means to his players to see the military veterans attend practice) "It means a lot. I think it kind of makes them stop and see how fortunate they are and what they get an opportunity to do in their life and the lives they get the opportunity to touch and support. I think it's a good day for them. Hopefully, it's a dang good week. I know it's something I started talking about earlier in the week and to have this here today I think they understand just how important this week is."
(on how the team is physically) "We improved today. (Texans LB Brian) Cushing practiced. (Texans LB) DeMeco (Ryans) practiced. (Texans DE) Mario (Williams) still did not. (Texans WR) Jacoby (Jones) still did not. So, we got a couple of guys back and we'll see where we are at tomorrow. We are making improvements, but we're just where we're at right now. We're beat up as a team, just like everybody else in this league. We got to find a way to push to game day."
(on if the guys that are currently out will be playing this Sunday) "You know, I couldn't tell you right now. It'll go down to the wire. I'll probably know more tomorrow like I always do. (Texans LB Brian) Cushing and (Texans LB) DeMeco (Ryans) look like they are going to be fine. The other ones, we'll know in the morning."
(on the status of TE Owen Daniels) "Well last week was the best he's played. That's fastest he looked as a player since he's come back. I said all along, about the time we get past the bye he would be back to his old self. I think he's very close to that. That'll be big as we work toward the back half of the season. He's obviously has made a lot of progress."
(on if the Chiefs defense execute similar to opponents that he's faced before this season) "They're a 3-4 team and we played some 3-4 teams in Washington and Dallas, but this team is not giving up any points. They're just very stubborn in the red zone. (Chiefs defensive coordinator) Romeo (Crennel) does a great job. Trying to find points against this group is a premium. That's just something that we going to have to find a way to do."
(on what impresses him about the Chiefs) "Just to watch the stability about what's going on with their team. Coming off last year and all of a sudden having the fastest start in football. Watching (Chiefs defensive coordinator) Romeo (Crennel) and (Chiefs offensive coordinator) Charlie (Weis) brings stability on both sides of the ball. Their special teams making big plays, it just goes to show that when you get sound and get some stability you can turn the tables real quick in this league and they done that."
LB Brian Cushing(on if there is room for improvement in his game) "There's always room for improvement. I'm really looking forward for the second game since I got one under my belt. I think that it's just human nature just to get better game by game and get more comfortable. So I'm really looking forward for this week's match up."
(on the status of his knee) "The knee is fine. I just think it was a four-week off kind of thing. You're hanging out one day and the next day you're playing 73 plays and the knee got a little fatigued. That's basically just what it was. Going out there today, it pretty much felt 100 percent."
(on experiencing the criticism toward the Texans defense and what needs to be done to correct it) "I don't think you have to take anything. It's a pride thing no matter what. I think every time you step on the field, the defense wants to be as best as possible. We don't like giving up yards and we don't like giving up points. It's kind of an ego check now. It hurts and it's something that we need to get corrected and it will be corrected."
(on what is the biggest problem the Kansas City offense has to offer) "They're explosive in every single position I think. They got a very talented rookie tight end. They got a whole bunch of really good rookies mixed in with a couple of veterans and a very nice offensive line. I think from running back, to receiver, to quarterback, I think all around they're a solid team."* *
TE Owen Daniels(on how excited he is about feeling so fresh and contributing to the offense) "It feels a lot better. It feels like more of my old self. This past weekend seems like the best I've felt since forever as far as I can remember. So, hopefully I can keep everything clean and keep filling good."
(on if he's past the point where he thinks about the knee) "I thought less and less about it at the start of each week. I'm finally able to move around better because my legs are fresher and I've got some pop back in it. Honestly, I'll probably get treatment on my knee until next year."* *
RB Arian Foster(on what are the keys against the Chiefs defense) "We just got to do what we do well and that's just executing our offense."
(on why were the holes not there for him against the Giants last week) "It's football. Coaches game plan against us very well and the players were very disciplined. We didn't get a lot of opportunities to run the ball. We just didn't have that much. So, it's a combination of things."
(on what the Texans offensive line will need to do better in order to make hole big enough for him to run to) "You're not going to out run the NFL every week. It's just the nature of the business. They're going to do what we do well. We're going to keep at it. We know what we can do well and that's what we're going to do."
CB Kareem Jackson(on how he views his performance) "Individually, I just want to go out every day and work as hard as we can and try to get better in certain situations that opposing teams are attacking me in. That's just my thing."
(on how hard it is for him to deal with the setbacks of growing in the NFL) "It's not hard at all. I'm able to take it and go on and go to work every day. You just got to go out and prove to other teams that you're not going to be able to throw this on me because if you do, I'm going to make a play. That's one of the things that I'm trying to do now. I'm learning, but at the same time for me I just have to go out and make plays. I'm getting a lot more comfortable as the days go by. I think I'll be able to do that."* *
WR Jacoby Jones(on if he is ready for this Sunday's game against the Chiefs) "I think I'm ready to roll."
(on if he's ready to return punts) "Yes, the whole nine yards. Whatever I have to do and whatever role I have to do to be able to help the team out."
(on if he felt like Texans head coach Gary Kubiak was being a little conservative with him at practice) "I don't know. Put it like this. Let's say you got your child out somewhere running around and you're going to keep your eye on him right? You got to make sure they're inside when the street lights come on. So he's going to keep his eye on me."
(on how his calf feels on a scale of 1-10) "I'm about a 10. I think I'm a 10. Like I said before, any athlete is going to say he feels like 10. It's football. You're never going to be all the way 100 percent after the first snap from camp. That's just how it is."
