Oakland Raiders Head Coach Norv Turner
(on the hype surrounding the Tampa Bay game) "It's interesting. Outside of the hype I'm the new guy here. It was a big football game for us. The fact that we were on national TV and you know we had lost early against Pittsburgh and just wanted to get ahead in the won-lost column and it gave us a chance to get to 2-1. It was a good game and I thought the one thing that came out of it was our guys handled the hype real well and got ready to play."
(on people now in the Texans organizations that he worked with in Washington) "There's lot of people that I have great relationships with and am very familiar with. We worked hard to try and get some things done there in Washington and there's some people that I have a great deal of respect for."
(on playing against a team run by former Redskins general manager Charley Casserly "I think the biggest thing when you start getting into a game is that kind of goes out the window because you're looking at schemes and the coaching and the personnel and what people do. You know, I don't think that's a factor."
(on Warren Sapp's addition to the defense) "The biggest thing that Warren has brought to our team is leadership, energy and his great work ethic. He's made plays in practice and he's made plays in each game like when he caught (Charlie) Garner from behind early in the game that were pure effort plays. We're such a young football team. I think all our guys can learn from that and all our guys can look at that and say 'hey, here's a guy that's been to seven Pro Bowls or eight Pro Bowls. Here's a guy that won a Super Bowl ring a couple of years ago and here's a guy that maybe wasn't expected to do those things, but here he is doing all of those things and he does them in practice.' Someone said to me last week … Someone said 'I hear Warren is struggling in the 3-4' I said there's a lot of guys who would like to be struggling like he is. He's making plays. He's getting pressure on the quarterback. We're very multiple on defense so he's getting the opportunity to do a lot of things."
(on if Kerry Collins is a better fit at quarterback than Rich Gannon) "People automatically say that and assume that. With Rich (Gannon), I think he had five plays over 40 yards or over 35 yards. The things we're doing we were getting done with Rich. I think there are certain passes that Kerry is more comfortable with than Rich and there are certain things that Rich is more comfortable with. The one thing when we made the decision to try and get Kerry signed is we knew that injuries are part of the game. Kerry was available and has taken a team to the Super Bowl and played in a Super Bowl and he's capable of playing at a high level like he did on Sunday night, so it was just the right thing to do."
(on if he feels for Dave Wannstedt and his former team, the Miami Dolphins) "It's hard because Dave is one of the great people and really a heck of a football coach. You look at the won-lost record he's had since he's been the head coach in Miami. It's pretty remarkable. I don't know if there's any team that could lose their best player at that kind of position and go through all the turmoil they've gone through with everything. All the people in Florida have suffered because of the hurricanes but it's had a great effect on their football team."
(on Raiders defensive coordinator Rob Ryan) "I look at Rob and I see his situation very similar to when I first had the chance to go to Dallas … I had a great opportunity. Rob has been around obviously his father and his brother and some of the coaches he's coached with and when you have the four years with (Bill) Belichick and being exposed to that system and being a part of that system then he was a perfect fit for our football team. With Rob it goes beyond the Xs and Os because he's got a great feel for people, he's got a great report with players and he's gotten us off to a real good start defensively."
(on if he was surprised by Raiders owner Al Davis) "When you say surprise, it's hard for me. I think the biggest thing on a daily basis is every time you're with someone new you get a chance to grow as a person and as a coach. With Al, he's got such a wealth of knowledge and experience. There are a lot of things that we talk about and he'll say something and I'll think I never looked at it that way and we'll adjust something. We do have the same philosophy in terms for wanting to be a power running team and wanting to get the ball up the field and it's been a good fit in terms of what we're trying to get done."
(on preparing for Houston) "We're so young. We have 33 guys that are five years or younger. We're playing a lot of second and third years guys and they're kind of wide eyed and excited to play. I was in Miami last year on opening day and obviously I saw Houston and on that day I saw it first hand. They're a very good football team, very physical up front on defense, very explosive big play receivers on offense and a young quarterback who can make good plays. Rob (Ryan) was in New England and they were fortunate to get out with an overtime win. They had to convert a fourth down to tie the game. Our experiences are hopefully going to help our football team understand that we know what we're getting in to. Our guys put on the Kansas City film and Houston won the football game and did the things they had to do to win it."
(on David Carr) "I think from having seen him and watching him grow that he just keeps getting better. If you can make big plays that's a big part of being successful in this league. He certainly can do that and all the other things. He just continues to grow."
(on preparing for the Texans running game with or without Domanick Davis) "What we have to do again, there are certain positions you have to prepare for a player, there are certain positions you have to prepare for a scheme. I don't think Houston is going to change what they're doing in the running game in terms of the star on that. We have prepare for that and be ready to tackle whoever they hand the ball to."
(on Charles Woodson playing safety instead of corner) "He played a few snaps at safety in the Pittsburgh game. He may have played a couple I guess in the Buffalo game. It's something that we're going to have as part of our package and it's something we'll use when it's appropriate, when it fits best in what we do. We like (Marques) Anderson, we like Stuart Schweigert. They're guys that have come in here. Anderson got here late, Stuart's a rookie. Against Tampa that was the best defense we could play and put Charles in the position to make a lot of plays."
(on Woodson matching up against Andre Johnson) "I don't know that you want to spend a lot of time with any one guy matched up on Andre. He is explosive. Obviously he's growing as a receiver. He's a big play guy. Kansas City had him doubled and he got the 50 yarder where it was a big play in the second half. We just have to do a good job. We know he's going to get some catches. We have to do a good job of tackling him and keep him from getting over the top of us."
*Oakland Raiders Defensive Lineman Warren Sapp *
(on if he's glad the Tampa Bay game is behind him) "Yeah, definitely. This way we can just get the season going again and leave all the 'this question, that question' alone."
(on if he likes his new uniform) "It fits me like a glove. A couple people called me and told me Sunday night it looked like I had been wearing it my whole life. So I guess it looks good on me."
(on if he's used to the new colors) "After a whole month of training camp when you're wearing it twice a day you get pretty accustom to the colors."
(on if it was hard playing against his former team) "The only difficult part was watching that defense go out there and get ran on like they did and there's no way I can help them. I was kind of happy to see it going on. That was the first time in almost 10 years I've been able to do that."
(on Texans offensive lineman Todd Washington describing playing against him as a "continual migraine headache") "That's a good observation."
(on giving people headaches) "Well, it's just one of those deals where I am what I am and I usually give people headaches all day long. If Todd's got a headache then I was doing my job."
(on changing to the 3-4) "I'm a little farther away from the quarterback than I've ever been but it's for the betterment of the defense. We have some different calls, some different coverages that we send only three guys rushing and sometimes it's a little different than that. It feels like two sometimes. It's just one of those deals where the defense is working so I really don't have a problem with whatever they ask me to do."
(on how good the Raiders defense can be) "The sky is the limit for us. That's with any defense. Like (Tampa Bay defensive coordinator Monte Kiffin) used to say, 'you're 60 minutes from the penthouse to the outhouse. What have you done for me lately?' We've got a tough Texans squad that loves to run the ball and a good strong quarterback that's mobile and one of the premiere receivers in the game when he gets going."
(on those who say it is a 60-minute battle against him) "That's pretty well what it's going to be because it's an all-day affair. I'm not going nowhere and I hope they're not. I've always been a hard worker and a guy that plays 60 minutes. So if you expect anything less, so be it."
(on if talking on the field is an attempt to get in his opponents head) "Naw, I'm just having fun. If I'm talking I'm playing well."
(on if he has become a spokesman in the Raiders locker room) "It's not about ruling the roost. It's just one of those deals where I had a team full of teammates that wasn't very vocal in Tampa. (Derrick) Brooks was a quiet leader. (Jon) Lynch said stuff every now and then and Ronde (Barber) had his own little sneaky way about him. I had a room full of guys that didn't talk much. I've always talked since I was a little kid. I got progress reports from when I was in elementary (school) saying he talks too much. So it's just me."
(on if he's ready to go into television) "Not quite yet. I've got a couple more years to run around on this 100-by-53 and a half so we'll see after that."
(on playing next to Ted Washington) "It's a luxury that you just really can't describe. The big man eats up a lot of space inside. We've got a rule: Whenever in doubt, turn it back to Ted."
(on how he wants to be remembered) "It's not for me to dictate how I'll be remembered. I've always said that I wanted my teammates to say if they were going to war they were taking me and an opponent, they'd also have that same type of respect for me. I think my play exhibits that."
(on what he misses about Tampa and his home in Florida) "The warm weather. I really miss the sun because today the sun has not come out in Oakland."
