After Tuesday's practice, some Texans answered questions from the media. The following is a transcript of those interviews.
SS Glover Quin
WR Kevin Walter
DE J.J. Watt
RT Eric Winston
SS Glover Quin
(on playing the Ravens again) "I mean, I think it gives us a little edge. Knowing who we played against before, knowing the personnel they have and the things they like to do and the things that we struggled with in the first game. I think that was probably our worst game as a secondary in the whole season and we felt like we let the team down on the back end. We left some plays out there that turned the game around the wrong ways. We feel like if we go out and play our game and play to the best of our ability and make the plays we should have made in Week 6 I think that was, we'll be just fine. Playing against them already, knowing who they like, and knowing what they like to do, and knowing the guys, is obviously a big help."
(on if he thinks the Ravens will continue to take shots down the field) "I would. They had success. I think they had two passes that went for like over 100 yards. (Ravens QB) Joe Flacco, he's a great deep ball thrower so you have to go into that game expecting that they're going to take some shots early in the game because we play a lot of press-man and so, a lot of teams have been taking shots on us early to try and back us off and soften us up. You have to expect that going into it. We have to be ready for it and make plays on it and take it away."
(on if it's about discipline and trusting other teammates) "Definitely. Everybody has a job to do and I mean, you have to trust that everyone is going to do their job. You have to do your job. If you're supposed to be deep, or you're supposed to be on a man, or if you're supposed to be in the box stopping the run, you just have to trust that everybody is doing their job and take it one play at a time. Everybody work together, the front seven, and the back end, and we'll be just fine."
(on why he was able to make the transition to safety so seamlessly) "I don't know if I made it that seamlessly, but, I mean I just feel like football is football. I went from playing corner and I always try to be a physical corner and tackle and try to use my brain to make plays. And playing safety, being back there, sometimes you have to think a little bit. But, I feel like football is football, and I was able to have some great guys come in and help me out and a great group of coaches and everybody working with me and trusting in me and I was able to make the switch pretty smooth."
(on if he had any concerns switching positions) "I felt like football was football, but I did have some concerns just because it's the NFL and a lot of safeties have a lot to do with defense because you are the last line of defense and there is a lot of open-field tackling. You're in the open field with the best backs in the world so that is tough. The speed is different, the angles are different, coming from the middle trying to tackle, dig routes and slam routes and so, I was a little concerned at first not having the whole offseason to work on it and get prepared for it. But we just worked hard at it during training camp and just went with it and our system kind of fits me a little better and it was good."
(on if Wade Phillips did a good job in moving players and identifying changes) "I think that's what he does, I wouldn't say best, I think he calls the game best, but he does a great job of finding guys that fit his system. He knows, he's been doing it for a long time, so he knows the guys that he needs and the guys that can do the things that he's going to ask them to do and he did a good job of coming in and evaluating the players that we already had and putting them in a position where they could be successful. He told us from day one, if we go out and do the technique that we're being coached and know what to do and how to do it, he'll call the plays on Sunday to put us in the best position. And he's done a good job of doing that."
(on keeping in touch with former teammate Bernard Pollard and how he's done in Baltimore) "I keep in touch with him pretty much. Me and him are good friends. His wife and my wife are good friends. He's excited. I think I told him a few weeks ago, I think I told him something like, I'll see you in three weeks. And so after the game on Sunday I texted him and said 'I'll see you on Sunday.' And he was like, 'This might not be what ya'll want,' or something like that. So I was like 'Hey, let's get it.' So it's fun. He's a good friend of mine and I mean we bonded the time that he was here. So it will be exciting to go up there and play against them and hopefully come out on top."
(on if he studied Ed Reed or other safeties when he found out he was moving positions) "I mean I didn't have a lot of the film to study those guys, but over the years I've always just studied all DBs. And once we got in I used to look at them. But I didn't have as much time extensively study them during the offseason. But, I mean, watching some of the great safeties play over the weeks, like Ed Reed and Troy Polamalu and those guys, just seeing how they do things, how they carry themselves and the way they make plays to help their team has been a big help."
(on why the first game in Baltimore was the secondary's worst game of the season) "I wouldn't say it was a mental lapse, we didn't have any mental errors, I just didn't think we made any plays either. I think we had one interception, JJ (Jonathan Joseph) caught an interception off a tipped ball I think, that was the only play the secondary made all game. So, we gave up two big plays that were 100-and-something yards. And so any time you're doing that as a secondary, you're giving up 50-yard plays, and we were stopping them, and those were the only things that they got on us. I think they got field goals off those both times, but still, that's six points and that changed the whole momentum and field position of the game. And playing a defense like Baltimore you have to control the field position."
(on how to get RB Ray Rice down when he reaches the second level) "You have to rally. I mean he's dynamic in the open field and he has a low center of gravity so it's hard to take his legs because his legs are so small and he's so strong. So you have to just try to get in front of him the best way possible, and take him up high and hope that your teammates will come and help you out."
(on what he and his teammates thought about Tampa having interest in Wade Phillips) "I actually didn't know anything about that until like, I don't know, I saw it somewhere like yesterday maybe. I mean, but, in this League, for him to come in and do what he did with our defense, you have to understand and know that someone is going to have interest in him and I mean that's just a part of it. We can't let that be a distraction to us. He's here with us right now and that's the way we have to go about it. Hopefully he stays with us, but that's a decision he has to make and things like that. We can't worry about that, our job is to go out and prepare for Baltimore and that's what we're focusing on."
(on what makes Gary Kubiak a special coach) "I love Coach Kub. He's a great coach. Definitely, he's a player's coach. He played the game for so long so he understands the stresses and the whatever it takes to get ready for a game. He understands it from a player's perspective, and he also understands it from a coach's perspective. So he does a great job of giving us the proper time off, and doing a great job of controlling practices and juts everything that a player would love. I've talked to several guys who have come from other organizations that say that Coach Kubiak is probably the coolest coach in the league. And they say do whatever you have to do to stay here, whatever you got to do, take pay cuts, whatever, stay here. He's a good guy. Like I said, he'll walk past you and speak, some coaches probably don't even walk past the guys and speak to them. Every time he sees you he'll speak and he's always an even-keeled guy and he expects a lot out of us and the way he treats us we have to go out and play hard for him."
(on why Head Coach Gary Kubiak treats the players well) "I think that definitely has a lot to do with it. For playing the League for that many years, you have to understand what it's like as a player, and now that you're in charge, you can kind of put your touch on it and know, 'Okay, I need to get this out of my guys, but I also know what they're feeling as well, so if I treat them a certain way that they'll return the favor. They'll practice hard.' We practice hard every day, and we go out, and we play hard every Sunday. I think that has a lot to do with him playing for so long and understanding what it's like as a player."
(on how the teams will respond to being underdogs again this week) "I wonder how many games we've lost this season when we were the underdog. I think the last three games of the season, we were picked to win, and we lost all of them. Every game that we're picked to lose, we go out with a chip on our shoulder, and we some kind of way get a win, so we're going to have the same edge on Sunday. We're going to go out there knowing that it's a tough environment, knowing that we got to go fight, and we're going to leave it on the field. We're the underdogs; hopefully we can come out on top."
(on if making the playoffs possibly saved Head Coach Gary Kubiak's job) "I don't think the players or anything tried to worry too much about that because that's obviously out of our control. We didn't have a good year last year, and he stayed, so we can't go out and control that. We did have a goal to make the playoffs, but I don't think it was based on, 'Okay, we have to go do this to save Coach Kubiak's job.' It was just something that we wanted to do for this organization, something that I think every player in the League works to try to make it to the playoffs and try to get a chance to win a championship. That was our main focus, especially after coming off my rookie year where we finished 9-7, and we actually had a chance, and then I think the Jets won that last weekend, and we got knocked out. Then to go into last season with high expectations thinking, 'Okay, man, we're right here. We can make the playoffs,' and to finish up, I think we finished up 6-10, and it was just like, 'Man, we got to go do it this year. We got the pieces. We got to put it together. We got to all buy in and work every day and try to make it.' I think we did a good job of buying in during training camp, and all the players worked hard, offensively, defensively, and special teams. We won most of the games that we were supposed to win, and we won some of the games that people didn't have us to win, and we got into the playoffs. Once you get the in playoffs, somebody got to deal with us."
(on how fun it has been in the playoffs) "It's a lot of fun. I remember last week, coming in, and it was just like, 'Man, that's 20 teams cleaning out lockers today, going home, wondering what the next move's going to be. Just like, man, geez, don't know what to do with themselves, so much free time, and out of 32 teams, we get to come to work, so it's 12 teams left.' That was last week. Now it's only eight teams left, and so it feels good to be in the what, top 24, in the NFL? That feels great, so on Saturday and Sunday, all those guys will be sitting back and watching us play, and last year, we were sitting back watching them play, so it feels good to be on that stage, to go out and represent this organization, and fight for the title."
* *
WR Kevin Walter
(on Head Coach Gary Kubiak) "Oh, there's a lot of things about Coach Kubiak. You want to play your heart out for him. He's a coach that you respect, and he treats us like men, and that's the way it should be. He'll hold you accountable. He'll hold you to your job. You want to win for him, and I'm glad I play for him. He does a lot of great things. He coaches extremely well. He's very smart. I'm just glad to be aboard."
(on Kubiak's coaching style) "Oh, yeah. On game day, he'll yell at us for sure. If we're not getting it done, he's going to bring us all together, and he's going to let us know we're not getting it done. Behind the scenes, absolutely. When we meet and watch film, he gets on us like I just said. He's going to tell us if you're doing things right, if you're doing things wrong, and he's not afraid to yell at you."
(on examples of how Kubiak treats the players) "Yeah, well, he's been in this League for a long time. He's played in this League for a long time, so he kind of knows what we go through as far as how your body feels and the way you have to prepare. He's experienced it before, so he knows how players feel, how they prepare. I think that's a good job of him."
(on getting the playoff win against his former team) "Oh, it was great. Going against those guys, we got them twice this year. Going against Cincinnati, it was great just getting that playoff win. It doesn't matter who it was against. We worked real hard. I'm proud of the guys in that locker room. I'm proud of everybody. We've worked hard many years to get to this opportunity to win a playoff game, and we did a good job of that last week. It's just one step closer to where we want to get to."
(on maintaining the intensity going into this week) "Oh, there's going to be some intensity. The stakes are higher. The intensity goes up. This is the second round of the divisional round, and what better team to go play than Baltimore in their house? They're going to be physical, their crowd's going to be ready, and we'll be ready to roll too."
(on embracing the underdog role) "I love it. I love being the underdog. That's what it's about. People aren't going to give us a chance this week. People didn't give us a chance last week. I've been an underdog my whole life, and people say I can't do this, can't do that. That just motivates me. I know it motivates those guys in that locker room, and we're looking forward to going to Baltimore and playing well."
(on if there is more pressure on Baltimore to protect that home field advantage) "I guess so, I guess. We have nothing to lose, according to people. We're going to go out there. We're going to play sound football. We're going to play good football and play with energy. That's what we need to do. I thought we played well at times in the first game we played, but we didn't get it done when it counted, but the great thing about it is that doesn't matter anymore. We have a chance to go and play them again, and it's a new season."
(on the benefits of having played once in Baltimore already) "Yeah, it's good because we kind of know what the atmosphere is going to be like. It's going to be louder. We know that, and they're pretty dang good at home. I think they're undefeated at home this year, but we just have to execute and play our football. As far as playing them this year, we kind of know what to expect."
(on his thoughts about FS Ed Reed) "I think so, absolutely. He has a phenomenal talent, many pro bowls. The good thing about Ed, he can catch the ball. Not a lot of defensive backs can catch a ball real well. He knows when the ball's near, he snatches it. He makes good plays, he's smart, he knows the different concepts we're trying to run on them. I think he's by far one of the best in the League."
(on the advantages routine-wise of playing a Sunday game at noon this week) "Routine-wise, we're just preparing the same like we normally do. Today, we came in, had a nice walk-through, got off to a good start. We started watching film on them this morning, but we're going to prepare the same. Wednesday's going to be the same, Thursday and Friday, and obviously we'll travel Saturday, and get ready to roll on Sunday. As far as preparation, it's all going to be the same."
(on matching Baltimore's physicality in the regular season game and not backing away from it this week) "Yeah, we know they're going to be physical. We know their leader on their defense, Ray (Lewis), he's going to be getting those guys going. We have to match their intensity and even play harder. That's the way we look at it. I think for us to go in there offensively, to be successful, we can't turn the ball over, and I think we need to stay on the field. We need to keep our defense off the field, and I think those are the two main things. Obviously, once you get in the red zone, you can't kick field goals. You need to score touchdowns."
(on if they have been watching film from the regular season game against Baltimore) "Oh, yeah. Watched it this morning."
(on things learned from watching film from the regular season game against Baltimore) "Just we need to make more plays. I think it was a pretty close game in the third quarter. In the middle of the third quarter, we were right in it. I think we just needed to make more plays when it counted. I think in the second half, they did a great job of executing, and we didn't do that good of a job, and that's why they won."
(on the significance of having WR Andre Johnson back for this game as opposed to the regular season game against Baltimore) "Oh, no doubt about it. Yeah, Andre. You could see the impact he had last week. The guy's a special player. He's back, he's feeling good, he's feeling healthy, and that's going to help us big-time as a team."
(on the two mantras – "1-0" every week and "Next Man Up") "You're right. We battled through adversity this year. It's been a tough year through injuries, but next man has to step up. We're all brought here. Coach Kubiak and Rick Smith had brought us here to do a job. Doesn't matter who's in. We needed to execute and do our thing. As far as injuries, it's tough. We had some injuries, but we've had a lot of guys step in and make plays. I think we're pretty healthy right now, and we're all looking forward to getting out there, getting on the road, and getting a road playoff win."
(on his confidence in QB T.J. Yates) "Oh, his preparation, it's outstanding. As a rookie quarterback, for not being dressed in the beginning of the season, holding the clipboard, and then being thrown in the fire, I'm extremely impressed. Just his poise. You can tell he's not nervous out there. It's one of those things I've seen before. I'm in the league for nine years, and you see some guys just get the jitters, and not just the quarterback, but every position. Having the jitters is a good thing, but he does a great job of staying relaxed and poised, and that's what you need at a quarterback position."
(on if QB T.J. Yates can handle this weekend) "Oh, he's going to be ready. I know that. Stakes are a little higher for everybody. We all need to play well around him. We expect him to play well, and he will. This is playoff football. This is what you play for, and going up to Baltimore is going to be a great experience."
(on how WR Andre Johnson's presence meant from not having him in the regular season game against Cincinnati to having him back for the playoff game) "Oh, yeah. Having him out there, the defenses need to know exactly where he is on every play. Being a defensive coordinator, I wouldn't want to prepare for 'Dre every week. It's tough. He's one of the best in the league, and he's proven that through many years. It opens up a lot of things for everybody. It opens up things for Arian (Foster), for myself, for Owen (Daniels), all the other receivers. It's big-time having him out there. We do a good job of moving him around, so it's hard for defenses to really key on him because we move him around so much."
DE J.J. Watt
(on the interesting text messages he got after the last game) "There's plenty of them. I told you about that one from my college roommate, Louis Nzegwu. There's just so many. Everyone from back home, everyone from Pewaukee saying how proud they were, a couple of my Central Michigan buddies from when I was playing there, playing tight end. It was special. It was a big, big day for me and family was here to celebrate with me, so it was pretty cool."
(on his reaction to watching his interception now) "It's pretty cool. Everybody's kind of amazed, even myself watching it, you're kind of amazed just how big of a play it was for us as a team to get our momentum going. It was very, very cool."
(on if he had time to think or if it was instinctive when he got his interception) "I thought about putting my hands up and blocking it, but I really didn't think. When the ball hit my hands, that's when I clenched my hands, but I didn't think about actually the catch."
(on the last time he scored a touchdown) "High school. High school, my senior year, so it's been a while. It felt real good."
(on if he's been in touch with the Pizza Hut he worked at since the game) "Not really, I've switched my phone number since then, so they haven't found a way to get a hold of me. But when I go back to Pewaukee, I'm going to be sure to stop in and say hello."
(on how fun the season and playoffs have been for him) "It's very cool. It's very cool to be playing into mid-January and beyond. This is the latest I've ever played football. I'm happy to still be practicing. I'm happy to still be in meetings. It's very special. It's very cool. This is why you come to the NFL, to play in games like this, to prepare for games like this. It's just so much fun because of the guys we have in our locker room and the chemistry that we have. We're having a blast playing football and we don't want it to end any time soon."
(on how much the team workouts during the lockout helped) "Yeah, I think it was great, especially for me just to meet the guys, to get involved with them, to work out with them. It was awesome because I got to learn their personalities, they got to meet me and then coming into camp, it wasn't like strangers. It was like, 'Hey, I've seen you before. Now let's go to work together.' It's helped our chemistry immensely."
(on if he's proud of the season he's had after being drafted in the first round) "I am. Obviously, the people who drafted me here (Executive Vice President/General Manager Rick Smith) Mr. Smith, (Head) Coach (Gary) Kubiak, (defensive coordinator) Coach Phillips, everybody involved in drafting me here, I want to prove them right. I want to prove that they made the right decision because they showed a lot of faith in me. Trust me, I remember draft day. I remember a lot of people in Houston's reaction on draft day and obviously I don't have any problem with it. It was warranted at the time, but it was always my goal from day one to prove to them that I was the football player that the city of Houston would hopefully come to love and I'll always continue to work to make the city proud, to make Mr. Smith, Coach Kubiak, Coach Phillips proud because that's all I can do. I can't control people's reactions. All I can control is what I do on the field."
(on if he's surprised at how far the defense has come this year) "A little bit, but I would say I'm less amazed than more, I don't know what I'd call it, but you could see it coming. With how hard everybody worked, with how much everybody bought in to what Coach Phillips was putting in, there was never a question, never a second guess. It was whatever he put in, we're going to run with and that's why it's working so well because everyone's bought in to his process and everyone executes their assignments."
(on if he's surprised by what he's been able to do so quickly) "I mean, I think playing in this game with the coaches and players around me, I don't think it's necessarily surprising. I think it's just a product of the players and coaches I have and just trying to go to work every single day."
(on being named the team's Community Player of the Year) "It means a lot. Especially my first year, it means a whole lot. In some ways, it means more than the on-the-field awards because at the end of the day, the football season ends at some point and at some point, your football career's going to end. To have an impact in the community, to have an impact on kids in the community, that means a heck of a lot to me and that's something I'm always going to be proud of."
(on fans' initial reactions to him being drafted by the Texans) "On draft day? I saw the videos of people's reactions. I saw them interview fans. I saw the reaction. I saw a lot of video reactions of people here in Houston and that's fine. It's all motivation and there's a lot of people patting me on the back now. I fully understand that there's both sides of it. In life, NFL, everything is 'What have you done for me lately?' business. I know how quickly people can jump on your bandwagon and I know how quickly they can jump off. That's why you come to work every day and that's why you try to make them proud every day."
(on what specifically fans said after the Texans drafted him) "They wanted other people. I know there were a lot of other guys on the board they wanted. That's why I really appreciate Mr. Smith, Coach Kubiak, everyone having faith in me as a player and that's why I want to prove to them that I was the right choice."
(on how much pressure is on him to continue playing at a high level this week) "I think there's always pressure. I think I always put a lot of pressure on myself and I think that's where your pressure needs to come from. If most of your pressure is coming from outside sources, that means you don't put enough pressure on yourself. I think for myself, for our defense, we always put pressure on ourselves because we want to be the best. That person looking at you in the mirror needs to be your biggest critic."
(on who has better hands, him or TE Owen Daniels) "OD has way better hands than me. He's proved it his whole career here. He's a beast and he's a Pro Bowl tight end, so I'll give it up to him. I just got lucky."
(on playing for Head Coach Gary Kubiak) "I think he's a guy you love to play for just because he understands the players. He knows when to push you hard. He knows when to kind of lay off a little bit. He puts the game in the players' hands and he lets the players do their thing. He's a great football coach. You can't really put your finger on it, but he's definitely a coach that you love to play for."
(on if there's ever been a time where it's been harder than he thought it would be) "I've had a couple bumps along the road. It hasn't been easy by any means, but I think coming out of the University of Wisconsin with the coaches and the players that I had there, it definitely helped prepare me. I was going up against the biggest college offensive line every day in practice, so that transition was made easier. I also think coming into Houston with the coaching staff they have here really helped me a lot and guys like DeMeco (Ryans) and Antonio (Smith). It's never a one-person job. It's always the people around you that help you get to where you are."
T Eric Winston
(on the rumor that Head Coach Gary Kubiak's job was on the line last year) "Not so much. I think it was a situation where we felt like he was doing everything he was supposed to and we weren't holding up our end of the bargain so, I think we've always, not necessarily played for him, but played for each other and I think he's part of that and he's part of our family, obviously he's kind of the head of it. So, we always I think had his back in a certain sense and I'm so glad he's kind of been vindicated this year through it."
(on why the team has Coach Kubiak's back) "Well, I think there's people in this business that do things the right way and being here for so long and talking to guys that are in other places and talking to people that are in other organizations you can tell that this is a special place and not everyone has it the way that we have it, and it's not that it's easy. In a way it's easy for the players, but in a sense it's fair and everybody is treated the right way. Everybody is treated like professionals. Everybody is treated like they'd want to be treated and at a lot of places you can't say that."
(on why the Texans didn't receive more recognition this year) "You know, I don't know. I think probably because we haven't played in some national games throughout the year. We played a lot of noon games. We didn't play any Sunday night games. We didn't play any Monday night games so, when you don't play in the national spotlight, you don't do some of that stuff sometimes you fly under the radar. You know, I don't think he's worried about it and I know we aren't either."
(on what he wanted to see from the rookies last summer at workouts) "I guess as a veteran I didn't expect much other than guys willing to come out and work. Obviously J.J. (Watt) set the tone early on in coming out and Brooks (Reed) came out so, you know, it was a tough time and at first when I talked to J.J. I didn't know what to expect from the workouts myself so I told him if he was comfortable in a place and he had somewhere where he was working out and that he felt like he was getting better to probably stay there, but he was hell-bent on coming down here and it's probably made a lot of difference for him. I know he wanted to get acclimated to the weather and get used to the climate and he's gotten used to a lot of things pretty fast."
(on how much getting together with players during the off-season has made a difference now) "I think it was really big. You know, just the feeling that we had around each other. We took a worksheet and we did it and it wasn't because the coaches were around, it wasn't because people were watching, it was because we kind of demanded it from each other and we did everything we could to make it fun. You know, there's not a lot of fun in running gassers, but we found a way to incorporate some games into it, incorporate some races, and just try to make it as fun as possible doing what we knew a lot of other people weren't doing. You know, I don't know if the workouts necessarily paid dividends, but I know how close we've gotten over it, how much fun we've had out there, how much friendships have become stronger and forged during that time. You know, I definitely think that helps."
(on what makes Coach Gary Kubiak special and a "player's coach") "Like I said, I think he's just a guy that treats the players the right way and I really believe, and I've never asked him this but, you've got to think that when he makes decisions he probably looks back and says, you know, 'How do I look at it as a player in these positions.' You know, we don't like them all. He can be as tough as anybody, but at the same time I think he really does the little things. It's just little stuff. I remember when I first got here, there were two guys to a room, the first plane we got on, I don't even know what it was and he's fought for all that stuff. You know, these guys are professionals, they've got to be treated like it and it's not so much the game plans or anything like that. It's the schedules. It's the little things that treat us the right way and I think when you do the little stuff for guys that they're going to want to reciprocate."
(on reflecting on this morning's film studies) "You can always say in NFL games, you know if we could have done this, if we could have done that, but we didn't do it. I think we've got to look at what we didn't do and go from there. Obviously they're a tough front. Not a lot of teams run the ball well on them. You know I thought we had some chances to run some balls well. We broke out a few runs, but nothing consistent. I looked at it just, you know, I thought we did a good job on Saturday of very little negative plays. I think we had four negative plays even if you count the penalties. So, I think if we go to Baltimore, that same attitude where if we're in third-and-threes, third-and-fours, those are manageable. Those are positions where we can run the ball as well as pass the ball and you've got to make them play honest and I think if you can put an aggressive defense like that and make them play honest it's hard for them to be as aggressive as they want to be and I think that's where we've got to be."
(on the offensive line's attitude on Saturday's game and if that same momentum will carry on to Sunday's game in Baltimore) "I don't know if we were playing that or whatever. I don't think it was much different. I think that we stuck with the formula that had got us there. I think in the previous three weeks we had kind of gotten away from the formula that had led to all the success we had had in the middle of the season and earlier in the season, the seven-game win streak, running the ball well, no turnovers and playing good defense. I think that that's really what put us in the position to do what we did in the second half, because we were up in the game, we hadn't turned the ball over, we were in the control field position, we were gaining some third downs there, especially in the second half and so I think it allows the coaches to call more runs, it allows us to have more chances to break Arian (Foster) on the big one and I really believe if we can just get enough chances, it's only a matter of time."
(on how much having a rematch like the Texans did last weekend will help them in the upcoming game against Baltimore) "Well, we're a different kind of offense and there's not a lot of teams that do what we do and so sometimes you never know how teams are going to play, sometimes you never know how they're going to respond to some of the motions, some of the combo blocks, things like that. So, it's good for us to go back and watch film and, hey, they wanted to try and play it this way, you know, maybe in the next game they'll try this. They weren't good at this, so they're going to probably address that. Things like that but, you know, that's the same for them too. You know, whatever we did well they're going to say the same thing and they're going to try to stay, but also, it's two teams that are pretty stuck in their ways and I think that's why they're so successful. I think we're successful because we're stuck in the ways of we're not just going to change on a whim if we've had a bad game or we've had a bad half, we're going to stick with it and I think Baltimore is the same way. They're going to be aggressive no matter what. They're stuck in their ways because they've had a lot of success with it for a lot of years so I think at the end of the day it's going to come down to winning a lot of one-on-ones upfront. It's going to come down to can we break a tackle and get down there? Can we hold onto the ball or can we force the ball out? They're cliché's for a reason and I think they're probably going to hold true in this game as well."
(on the Texans embracing the "underdog" title) "Yeah, I was happy to hear it going into the Cincinnati game. That was good, because most of the year it had been, 'They've gotten this far, but this is why they can't win this game,' or 'They've gotten this far, but this is why they can't beat Atlanta, this is why they can't go on the road to beat Cincinnati. Seems like we've played well from the underdog role. It seems like we've played well when most people are doubting us so, you know, that's fine. We've had a lot of doubters all year and I think there's a lot of guys in that locker room, and maybe we're the only ones that believe in each other and believe that we can beat anybody in this League when we're playing the right way and we're playing within ourselves and how we know how to play so, I'm excited about the challenge. It's going to be tough. It's going to be a lot tougher than Cincinnati. You know, I wouldn't say we're used to it, but we know what their crowd's going to be like. We know what they're going to be like and we've just got to come off the bus ready to go. I think if we do that we're going to be there at the end with a chance to win it."
(on what sets RB Arian Foster apart from other running backs) "You know I'd say Arian is the most complete back I've ever been around. You know, and I've been lucky in high school and in college and in a lot of places to block for some pretty talented runners, but, you know, a lot of guys can run the ball well, a lot of guys can catch the ball well, a lot of guys can make people miss, a lot of guys can run for power, but there's not many of them that can do it all and Arian is definitely that guy that can do it all. He's so fluid out in the open field and he hardly ever gets tackled by the first guy. When he catches the ball in the back field he doesn't fight it, it looks like he's a receiver and he can play slot if he wanted to and then on tough situations he's able to lower his pads and go get it. That's not very common."
(on the Texans previous meetings with Baltimore) "It's been pretty one-sided so, we've got to get on the board. That's the way I look at it. At the same time, you've got to look back on it and I don't think a lot of that stuff is going to have a lot of bearing on this game either though. So, there's different guys, there's a different situation and we all know from past experiences that playoffs, funny things happen in the playoffs and games turn out a lot different than they did in the regular season, so hopefully we can hold true to that."
(on the 1-0 mentality the team has and how that has helped them) "You know, we've had so much adversity this year. We've had so many things come up that it's the mindset of just taking it one week at a time has helped us just from that standpoint that I think you can get lost and I think you can get sometimes bogged down if you start thinking a couple weeks down the road. If you start thinking overall big picture, you know, how're we going to do this with, you know, this guy out, this guy out, this guys out, and we've got to play this team on the road and I think when you just look at it one day at a time, one week at a time it's allowed us to be at our best every week and I think when we were right in that mindset and doing exactly that I think we've been at our best and I think we got back to it last week."
(on if he was pleasantly surprised as to how well the rookies have showed up this season) "Sure. You know, when you draft a rookie, to me, just looking back at how much I struggled when I was a rookie, I don't expect a lot of them to do much. Just because it's such an adjustment and there's certain guys that can, J.J. (Watt) is definitely one of them that can come in day one and is strong enough and is good enough to play, but there's not many of them. J.J. has been awesome, Brooks (Reed) has been awesome. I think T.J. (Yates) benefited from some great coaching in college. A similar system, similar language, but there's no doubt that he's adjusted his play, that he's learned a lot and that he's gotten a lot better so, it's been awesome. I think anytime that you have this many injuries and you have contributions, not from vets, but from rookies stepping up, making big plays in big games, that's why a team goes as far as it does."
(on if he is surprised the rookies have made such a strong contribution to the team this year) "I'm not surprised that they've made contributions, but I'm surprised they've had to do it. You know, I think that's been the tough part about it. You never know how a season's going to go. You never know if you're going to be blessed from the injuries standpoint or if you're going to have to have guys that have got to go and you know, we've definitely had one of those years that we've had guys that have had to go. So, I'm not surprised looking at them and then seeing the work. T.J. (Yates) was one of those guys that was at Rice every day. To play quarterback in this league without an install and to just go out and say 'Hey, we've got this. Oh, ok.' It's like he knew it already from day one so, he's a quick study. Obviously he's a quick learner. Like I said, he benefited from his college coaching I'm sure, but it's been awesome what he's done here and you look around the League, you know, it's easy to say, that's what they're paid for, that's what they're supposed to do, they're supposed to come in and play, but take a peek around the League and see how many teams wish they had T.J. Yates on their roster."
