Defensive tackle Amobi Okoye and defensive end Mario WIlliams go over adjustments on the sidelines during the Texans' game against the Titans.
Members of the Texans and Titans spoke to the media after the Texans' heart-wrenching 38-36 loss.
Texans owner Bob McNair
(on his feelings) "Well, I'm just deflated. We made such a great comeback, and they made a great play at the end. And give them credit for that."
(on if this is as painful as it gets) "Well, to come back the way we did – our offensive effort early on was just so, so bad, and then to come back the way we did I just thought showed a lot of courage and a lot of character. And it looked like we were going to be able to put it away but as they say, they made an outstanding play at the end, and congratulations to them. But it hurts, yes."
(on the emotions at the end of the game) "I was so happy for (WR) André (Davis) because it was such a great, great catch, great play, but I knew there were 50 or 55 seconds left on the clock and they had three timeouts and the game wasn't over. But at that point in time, it was just capping off a tremendous comeback."
(on what he says to head coach Gary Kubiak who blamed the loss on himself) "I say to him, 'Let's just keep working. Let's just keep getting better.' And he's a smart coach and a good coach and he'll get the team prepared for the next game, and that's what really counts."
Texans head coach Gary Kubiak
(on the play of QB Sage Rosenfels) "I think it had a lot to do with what we're doing. They came after us early and we didn't handle the pressure very well, and of course we were trying to adjust on the move with the way they chose to play us. We didn't do much at all until the fourth quarter. He kept battling. He's got some plays that he should've had back. But he gave us a chance to win, too."
(on what he told his team after the game) "I told my team I was proud of their effort. I told my team that I did a poor job at having the offense ready to play. That's my job, and I did a horrible job at that. By the time we adjusted it was too little too late."
(on ball security today) "To have six turnovers and have the lead with 50 seconds left, I've never been a part of that. The first thing, I'll start with (WR) Jacoby Jones. I made the decision that he was ready to play, and it's obvious that he's not ready to play with his shoulder. That's a poor decision on my part, as a coach, he should not have been out there. Simple as that."
(on the running game) "We're struggling running the ball. With what they were doing defensively, the way they were coming after us, we were going to have to throw the ball today. They lowered up the box and called a lot of blitzes at us, a lot of pressure on our football team, so that natural adjustment was that we were just going to have to throw the ball. That's just the way it ended up. And then the fact that we were down made it even more so. I don't know if we ever even tried to run the football, to be honest with you."
(on if the turnovers or offense was the most disappointing part of today's game) "It's both. Those things are going to get you beat. Like I said, I'm proud of their efforts that we gave ourselves a chance to win, but I'm just very disappointed in this guy you're looking at right here. For us to go out there and play offensively that way for that long, there's no excuse. That's my job."
(on if the Titans had any plays the Texans weren't ready for) "They brought some blitzes that we hadn't seen them bring. But in the National Football League to bring four strong and four weak is something that you see, so you just go adjust. We had to go out of the box. We had to get out of our game plan, and our game plan was not going to work against what they were doing, so we had to go adjust. We put in some new stuff at halftime, things that give you a chance to pick up some of the blitzes they had. They had not been blitzing that much, and it's a great job on their part as coaches."
(on whether or not Tennessee backed off in the fourth quarter) "They got the lead and didn't actually blitz as much. But they still blitzed us all the way up to the last drive, they came after us. That was their game plan. They came after us and make us get the ball going, and put a lot of pressure on our quarterback, and they did. They beat him up."
(on the play of the Texans defense) "They were on the field all day. We couldn't get them off the field. They did a heck of a job just to have us in position to win. I'd like to have that last 50 seconds back, because I think we make those plays and find a way to win that game. They're the ones that kept us in the game."
(on the Texans pass rush and DE N.D. Kalu) "He's been a consistent pass rusher. I'll have to go back and look. We were playing some man coverage there at the end which means we're bringing people. Somebody has to get there and make a play because you're exposing your corners when you're doing that. I'll have to go back and look at it, but N.D. has been consistent at rushing the pass for us all year."
(on QB Matt Schaub's injury) "I'll tell you what, Matt is just beat up, to be honest with you. He's having an MRI. We're concerned about his hip. The x-rays of his leg were negative. We're concerned about his hip right now, so we'll do the MRI this afternoon. But just in general, Matt's beat up. He's taken a lot of shots over the course of the first seven weeks of this season, and hopefully he's just beat up and we can get him back healthy."
(on the Anderson fumble and de-activating CB Dexter Wynn) "The fact is (WR) Jacoby (Jones) is ready to come back. We were able to de-activate (CB) Dexter Wynn and get Fletch (CB Jamar Fletcher) back involved because (CB) Daunta (Robinson) was nursing a hamstring throughout the week, as you all well know, so that's the way we chose to go. Everything in practice looked like number 12 was ready to do it, but there is absolutely no doubt that he was not ready. Somehow I've got to see through that. There are a lot of people making that decision – whether or not he goes back out on the field – but ultimately I'm the one that has to know whether or not he can play, and I think it was obvious in the first few plays of the game that the kid couldn't play. He was apprehensive about getting hit and holding on to the ball. So it's my job as a coach to get him out and put somebody else back there."
(on who would be the "disaster" quarterback) "(TE) Owen Daniels would be the guy that would go in. He can take a snap. He knows what we're doing offensively. He could find a way to hand the ball off or do something, so he would be the guy."
Texans WR David Anderson
(on being selected as the punt returner when Texans WR Jacoby Jones was injured) "Coach (Kubiak) had a lot of faith throwing me back there. I haven't really been back there in a while, but I've still got to make that play, and catch that ball and make something happen. I just took my eyes off of it. Just like coaches tell you, you've just got to get back in there and keep playing. Just like everyone always says, you've just got to keep fighting, and that's what we did this game; we just kept fighting."
(on whether he was surprised that Texans Head Coach Gary Kubiak selected him to be the punt returner when WR Jacoby Jones was injured) "Not really. I'm on the chart, and that's part of my job description; to play special teams and do that."
(on the last few minutes of today's game) "I've never been through anything like that. We get a touchdown; (TE) Jeb (Putzier) gets a quick touchdown, and we come back, get one onside kick, and we're all excited, then we get another onside kick; we're all excited. Then we have three catches; we're all going nuts. Then A.D. (WR André Davis) catches a bomb, which is amazing. I don't even know what words came out of my mouth, but it was probably just all screams. Then we just had to wait for the defense to pull through, and a couple of their guys made a play, and we ended up not pulling it out, but our defense played great all day and they kept us in the game, so we win and lose as a team, for sure."
(on whether he can think about his first NFL touchdown after today's emotional game) "It's a team effort, and you've got to do your part when your number is called. They called my number down in the red zone. You catch it, and you get excited, and you want to make those plays for your team, and when you do, obviously you get excited, but we got a long way to battle if we want to get back in the game, and we did it. I was excited, but at the same time we knew we had to keep plugging."
(on his fumbled punt) "It went right at the last second, and I didn't get under it properly, and it hit my arm and went left. I just misjudged it. It happens, and I didn't make a good play."
Texans SS C.C. Brown
(on the loss) "It hurt bad. We felt we should have won it at the end, but they made a play. Made a play, put their kicker in field goal range and they won. That's basically what it is."
(on the defense being on the field so much) "Man, we did what we could. We should've had more three-and-outs but we didn't. We had to try to keep the offense in the game as much as possible. At the end, bore down, they made a play and they won the game."
(on the last drive) "Basically, they were trying to get a deep ball close to the sideline. The guy just went up and made a play. That's all it is."
(on if this hurts after coming so far back) "Any close game is going to hurt when you lose it, but at the end, they won. Ain't (anything) we can do about it now."
Texans TE Owen Daniels
(on why the offense struggled so much early on) "I guess I'll have to look at film. I don't really know, honestly. We had a game plan set and we obviously weren't executing, we weren't blocking, we weren't throwing, we weren't catching. So ask me again once I look at the film. I'm not exactly sure."
(on all the scoring at the end of the game) "We should've been scoring all game. We put our defense in a really tough situation. They played unbelievable for us and we wore them out pretty good by keeping them out there, but somehow we got things together. Obviously, our two-minute offense is working well. We need to get the regular offense working well."
(on QB Sage Rosenfels not quitting after his rough start) "Yes, that's what we expect out of him. That's what we know he can do. He's a really good player, and it's good that we have two guys who if things go wrong, if they make mistakes, they don't get too down on themselves about it. He just kept on working, kept on plugging and he did a great job for us in the end there."
(on if he's ever been a part of a game like this) "No, not at all. It's tough. I don't even know what just happened, honestly. It's crazy. I was so happy, I was so ecstatic; I'm sure everyone was. When (WR) André (Davis) caught that touchdown, (we) got that extra point, I guess I was thinking the game was pretty much over. But it's tough. Tough way to end it, and again, we've got to play to better on offense for more than just 10 minutes."
(on what turned around with QB Sage Rosenfels) "I don't know, maybe it was just him just getting a little more comfortable when he was out there, being out there a little longer, getting into the flow of the game, being able to put some drives together without turning the ball over. Being in that two-minute mode, just going play by play, not needing to huddle, I think he worked well in that situation."
Texans WR André Davis
(on his touchdown reception during the final Texans drive of the game) "It was just a play we called, and I just made sure that I kept on running to give us a chance and (QB) Sage (Rosenfels) just put the ball up in the air to give me a chance."
(on what he was thinking during the fourth quarter) "It was just one of those things where you know you have to play all 60 minutes, and you want to make sure that you're giving your all for the whole game because anything can happen, as we can see, anything can happen. We just made sure of that on the sidelines. Even though things weren't going well for us the whole game, we just wanted to make sure that no matter what, it was a pride thing. We wanted to make sure we went out there and let them know that we weren't going to give up until the end of the game."
(on what was the difference for Texans QB Sage Rosenfels after his turnovers) "We executed for him, and he started to focus a little bit more. Once again, (QB) Sage (Rosenfels) is a great player for us, and he just got a chance to get in there, and once he got his jitters out, he definitely helped the offense out, and everybody really started to execute the plays."
(on whether he thinks the Texans offense got on a roll in the fourth quarter) "I think it's one of those things where we continue to push each other. Anytime you see your teammate make a play, you want to make sure you're making a play too. You never want to be that guy who was not in there making plays, because that's what makes football fun. When we continue to push each other from practice and that leads to the game, and then just to continue to encourage each other. When we can do that, and we can do that consistently as a team, we will be more successful."
(on whether the Texans rallied around each other in the fourth quarter) "From the beginning, it was tough. Tennessee is a great defense, as you guys can see, and there are still times that we're hurting ourselves, but we just have to make sure that we fix our mistakes. Then, whenever we do get into a position where it is a tough team, and things aren't going well, we have to make sure that we keep our heads in it, and try and do a little bit more to help our defense out, and make sure that they're not staying on the field for too long."
(on his last touchdown catch) "It was just (QB) Sage (Rosenfels) and the offensive line giving me a chance to make a play. Everybody went out there. Everybody went out there; we tried to make sure that we were all fighting until the end. It was me on two safeties, I think and I got around him, and the second guy just wasn't able to make the play. (QB) Sage (Rosenfels) put it up there, the offensive line gave him enough time to put it up there, and I made the play."
(on whether he has ever played in a fourth quarter like he did today) "I don't think so. I think there's been times where there's been comebacks, but I don't think I've ever been a part of a game where we were able to score 29 points (in the fourth quarter), It's not really the greatest position you ever want to be in. As you cans see, from the first half, there was just so many mistakes on our part, on my part."
Texans LB Zac Diles
(on recovering the onside kick) "I just wished that we came through to victory that would've been the number one goal. I was just in a position to make a play. The ball bounced my way and I was able to jump on it. It was great to get the ball back for the team and put us in a position to go ahead and get a touchdown."
(on the odds of recovering the onside kick two times in a row) "The ball bounced our way today for both of those plays. The bounced off of 88's (Titans TE Ben Hartsock) chest and bounced in the air and the second one just looked like it just sat on the ground and my eyes got big and I ran and picked it up. Sometimes the ball bounces your way and sometimes it doesn't."
(on how the game turned out) "It's a 60 minute game. You just got to keep playing. It's never over until its all zeros on the clock. So when we came in to halftime we knew we
had 30 minutes left in the game."
Texans FS Von Hutchins
(on where do the Texans go from here) "We fought for 60 minutes regardless what the scoreboard said. We know as a team what we did. In the first half, offense didn't play very well and the defense held it up for them. We clicked in the second half. We still have a long season to go. We are 0-3 in the division right know and we play in a tough division. We got to come out next week and play harder. The season is not over right now. So, come tomorrow we just need to prepare better."
Texans DT Travis Johnson
(on the Titans' last drive) "I had no doubt in my mind that we were going to stop them. We work so hard and left everything on the field, but you know stuff happens."
(on the being behind the first three quarters and coming back in the fourth) "It's difficult really. All of us put so much emotion in this game. A lot of us have been playing this game since we've been six years old. That's all we know. So we go out there and give everything you've got and give for 12 hours a day every day. Its tough when you want to win so bad we want to win just like kids want to win."
(on the Titans starting the Texans' end of the field) "It's tough, but at the same time its football. It's nothing different, nobody invented anything new, its football and just so happens they had a shorter field. We just worked to hold them just to field goals and worked the three and out. That's all that we could ask for everybody to give their all and everybody did."
(on where the Texans go from here) "Up. We just got to go up. That's all that we really go to do is go up. When we get down we just keep fighting. That's what we are all about. We are just fighters."
Texans DE N.D. Kalu
(on his emotions during today's game) "As a D-lineman, I just really feel like we didn't take advantage of the opportunity we had in front of us. You know, our offense did a great job of bringing us back in the game. They have 50-some odd seconds left to score a touchdown, or score a field goal. That's when we're supposed to get excited and know that if we get one or two sacks the drive is dead. And for us not to get a sack, that's just hard to swallow, because that's what you live for."
(on whether he has ever played in a game like today's) "No. This is something that I've been seeing eleven years, and I'm sure for the fans it was exciting, but we've got a sick feeling in our stomach right now. We fought and scratched to get back into the game, then for the defensive line to let the team down like that. I don't know who got beat, supposedly, but it wasn't that person's fault. The D-line is supposed to make a play, either a batted pass or a sack, and that's what is hard for me to accept."
Texans DT Amobi Okoye
(on the game) "It hurts real bad. We played our hearts out and just came up on the short end. But there are a whole lot more games to play - a whole lot more games to play."
(on the defense being on the field a lot) "The defense, we get prepared for situations like that. That's why you play defense. You don't care how long you're out there, you're just going to give everybody your all until the last whistle. And just like I said, unfortunately today we came up on the short end again, because those guys, everybody was playing their butts off."
(on what coach Gary Kubiak said in the locker room) "It's just a loss and it's time for everybody, we've just got to put this one behind us and really, really buckle down and see what it is we're not doing right - see exactly what we're not doing right and correct the things."
(on what was going through his mind on the last series) "Man, it was tough. It was tough, but I was hoping we'd get a field goal block and we could get a stop through that and win the game, but that didn't happen either. It was a tough loss."
Texans TE Jeb Putzier
(on how he felt after his touchdown) "I knew we had to get that onside (kick). Fortunately, our special teams did an amazing job, and got that ball."
(on how he felt having Texans veteran QB Sage Rosenfels during the final drive) "Sage has been doing this for a long time, and he understands defenses very well. He went out there and made plays, and he can sit back on the clock; he's a very calm quarterback to be around."
(on whether he has ever been a part of a game like today's) "Unfortunately, we took a little too long to get it going. We played really ugly for three quarters, and then finally got something going, and then our momentum just carried us for the rest of the game."
(on what it felt like during the emotional game) "I'm tired. This whole team is tired just from the emotion of that game. On offense, I know we weren't getting anything done, and our defense was on the field the whole game, so they're tired from that. It wasn't until the fourth quarter that we actually got them some rest."
Texans CB Dunta Robinson
(on defending the Titans on their game winning drive) "They just made plays. Me being the type of player that I am I'll take the blame for this one. Good position or whatever you got to make that play and I didn't make that play. That's on me."
(on defending the catch that lead to the Titans game winning field goal) "I tried to reach up at the end. It was a good throw and good catch, but he came down with it. Like I said I'll take the blame for it. We should've won this game. Coach (Kubiak) put us in position and I didn't make the play."
(on the final play) "I thought I was in a good position and a perfect ball was thrown and he caught it. Put them in a position to win the game and that's what they did."
(on the frustration of the loss) "Some Sunday's things go this way. We had to fight and claw to get back in the game and we did. It didn't turn out the way that I intended at the end."
(on the play) "I blame myself for what went on. They make the call and I played it and I had to make the play in order for my team to be successful. But it didn't happen so I'll man up and take the blame. You know 99 times out of a 100 I'll make that play it was just that one time that he made it."
(on the Texans coming back late in the game and taking the lead) "That was a good moment, but for me personally that's thrown out the window. The only thing that I'll remember is that catch."
(on how emotional the loss was) "That's part of football. That's part of being a professional football player. To play long enough some losses like this going to happen. One thing about me I'm not going to place the blame on anybody. It happened on my side and it was my play to make. If anybody wants to point to blame point at (number) 23 this week."
(on is this loss being the most painful loss) "Yes, especially when you feel that you are the cause for the loss. That's the life of a cornerback that's the way things go."
Texans QB Sage Rosenfels
(on adapting the play after a rough start) "We have a lot of pride in our team and our offense. We played so poorly for three quarters, and we didn't want to finish the game that way. At the very minimum, we wanted to finish the game scoring some points. You never know what will happen in that kind of a game. Our guys kept battling. They made some plays, and the next thing you know we're down by 13. When you're down by 13 in this league with a few minutes left in the game, you've got a chance. You get the onside kick or throw a hail mary, which is basically what happened, and we had a chance. We showed the character of this team. A lot of the great things happened in the fourth quarter, but we also have to look at the poor play, especially turning the ball over, which I did three times during the game."
(on the difficulty of playing with limited practice) "As the game went along, I started feeling more comfortable and getting in the groove. I've run a million two-minute drills in my life—in a lot of pre-season games and a lot of regular season games. I've always been pretty good at them. It has been a strength of mine if you'll ask any of my former coaches. The game slows down for me during two-minute drills, while for other guys it will feel like it speeds up. The guys kept making plays, and that was a positive thing."
(on his emotions as he was getting prepared to play) "I started feeling confidence as we picked up first downs. You get one first down and another first down, and then you start gaining some confidence. Then, things will really snowball from there. So, for us, it was just getting those first couple of first downs, and thinking, 'What were we doing for those first three quarters?' We got those first downs and we had playmakers. The more opportunities those guys get, the more times they will make great plays."
(on importance of his teammates confidence) "The only chance we had to come back was for our offense to make great plays, execute and play quickly, and for our defense to help them. The defense was doing that and holding them to field goals. We turned the ball over a lot, and it seemed that most of those turnovers were held to field goals. That's how teams win games, and that's how teams come back from those types of games. They had our backs, and hopefully next time we will have their backs again."
(on the rally by the offense) "I think it upsets offensive players when you look at the scoreboard and realize their team has 200 yards of offense and our team has 30. I think if that doesn't upset you as a player, you can't play this game. I think that was disturbing and upsetting to us. The nice thing about it was that we did do something about it, but it just wasn't enough."
Texans LB DeMeco Ryans
(on whether he has ever played in quarter like the fourth quarter in today's game) "No, this was the first one. Being a lopsided game the way it was, the way our team fought back, and got it, it was a great effort on our part; great character. It's just unfortunate we didn't come up with the play at the end for us to win this game."
(on his emotions during the last minute of the game) "We were on it. We were out there; we were ready to go out and just make some plays and just shut them down. That's how we felt. We felt like we could go out there and shut them down, and do that, but the guy threw the ball up and the receiver made a good catch."
(on what the Texans can learn from this loss) "It's a tough one to take. But you take that being down the way we were down. You take away from it the way our team fought back. I think you can't take that away from the guys. The guys in this room fought hard, and never looked the other way. Everybody in this locker room believed we could do it, and that's what we can take away from us. We were down and out, fans leaving. It shows that we stick together. We're all we have on the field out there, so we stick together. Anything is possible for us."
(on whether the Texans felt tired during the game) "No, I don't think we were tired. It's just a matter of us going out big. We had high emotions and that kept us in the game. There wasn't a point where we were tired, even though we were out on the field a lot. We felt like we had to go out, step up and make plays."
(on his first career touchdown) "It was exciting to come through on the blitz, knock the ball out. It was an exciting play for me; my first NFL touchdown."
Texans QB Matt Schaub
(on his injury during the game) "It's a little bit of my lower back and my hip. I just landed right on it. (DT Albert) Haynesworth got me, so we'll see what happens."
(on whether he believes the injury may be more serious than it appears) "We'll see, I don't know. I have to talk to the doctors, and we'll see what happens."
Texans WR Kevin Walter
(on his mindset throughout the game) "I think we were all upset during the first three quarters. We just couldn't get anything going. The first half was pretty bad by us, and we didn't get it done. In the third quarter, we didn't get it done. The fourth quarter came around and we made some plays and executed. We just have to do that for four quarters and we'll be fine."
(on Texans QB Sage Rosenfels) "He's a pro. He knows how to handle it. Look at him; he makes plays. We've got two quarterbacks who can do a great job of doing that, and he got it done."
(on whether he was concerned that his catch being ruled out-of-bounds in the fourth quarter would stop the Texans momentum) "Not at all. We drove down the field right after that. It was out-of-bounds by a few inches, but we kept going and making plays. I forget who made the play. (WR) David (Anderson), or somebody made a play down field a few plays after that, so I was not concerned about that play at all. We moved down and executed."
(on Texans head coach Gary Kubiak saying that he did not prepare the offense well for this game) "Obviously he's going to take it, but you know what? It's on us, we're the players, (and) we're out there. They (the Texans coaching staff) prepared us real good. It's on us. We're the ones out there playing. We've just got to fix what we do, and if we played like that in the fourth quarter all four quarters, there's no doubt in my mind we'll win."
(on whether he has ever played in a game like today's) "Nothing like that. In college, we had a game similar to that and we won, but nothing like that. You're real high one moment, and then a minute later, you're (as) down as you can be. It's not a good feeling for sure."
(on whether he felt the Texans would win after WR André Davis' touchdown reception) "After (WR) André (Davis) scored, and we kicked that (extra point), there's no doubt in my mind that we were going to win that game, and it was done. But in this league, it's never done until the clock turns zero, so it was definitely frustrating."
Texans T Eric Winston
(on whether he felt the Texans had won the game after WR André Davis' late touchdown) "You don't feel like you have it won, but you like your chances at that point. They made some great plays coming down the field; took some chances downfield. That was a third down play that they threw that ball on. (If) that guy doesn't make that play, they're staring at fourth and 10 right in the eyes, so that's pretty tough. You've got to give them credit. They made a lot of plays. They made a lot of plays on defense early in the game."
(on whether he had a feeling the Texans would score after recovering their onside kick) "Yea, you've got that much momentum going, it's like 'just get the ball, we're going to go score.' That's the way it is. Momentum is the most underrated factor in football; it really is. (If) you look at college or pros, (if) you get that momentum going, just like they had, we couldn't do anything right. Then, all of the sudden, we get a couple of big plays, we couldn't do anything wrong and they couldn't do anything right. It just builds on itself. Then you get that believing going, and all of the sudden, now you're just putting up points faster than you can count."
(on the Texans offensive fourth quarter) "It's amazing. To score 29 points in the fourth quarter and I think we still got two turnovers too, in the fourth quarter. That's unbelievable. But, I think that's what we've got on this team. We've got a bunch of guys aren't going to quit; a bunch of guys who are going to keep swinging. That's what it's all about: is just going out there and keep swinging. We're going to have to keep swinging, for these next seven weeks, keep swinging. We're going to San Diego. They've got more momentum going than anybody. They've got a big game today for sure, but they have momentum going. We're going to have to carry this over. We're going to have to suck it up, take it, and move on."
Titans head coach Jeff Fisher
(on what today's game) "I think sometimes people forget that there are two teams on the field. That was a tremendous effort by the Texans. Their offense got going, their defense dug in and their special teams gave a phenomenal effort end of the four quarter. We had the game at hand and we let it slip away and now we have a lot to learn from it. Fortunately we had an extremely accurate place kicker today and a veteran quarterback who's been in big games before and put us in position to win this game. This is a very good team that we played today. I'm impressed with (Houston's QB) Sage's (Rosenfels) effort and their ability to protect the passer and their ability to stay in it, execute and make the plays they needed to."
(on what changed defensively in the second half) "If I could answer that I'd tell you. If we could have stopped it, we would have. There is a lot to be learned from this game. (Titans defensive coordinator) Jim (Schwartz) was aggressive and he was doing the same thing he was doing in the first three quarters. We just couldn't find the ball and they did."
(on if he is pleased with having to kick field goals or if it was an indictment of the redzone offense) "I think the word indictment is a litte strong. I think when you are playing a defensive team like this who is making plays you have to get points. When you're kicking field goals in order to win you have to get the turnovers and that's what we did. No one is pleased with our lack of scoring. We're are going to continue to work on it, but today I'm pleased that (K) Rob (Bironas) was very accurate."
(on Titans QB Kerry Collins' performance) "Kerry had a good feel and is reading coverages. They knew he wasn't going to scramble around so that played a lot of man (coverage) and some three-deep. (Titans offensive coordinator) Norm (Chow) put him in good situations. Kerry made the read and made a good throw."
(on Titans starting QB Vince Young status at game time) "He was in position to backup if need be, but he wasn't at full speed. We made the decision to go with Kerry because we didn't want to submit him to potential further risk. He'll be day-to-day this week and I think he'll have a much better chance to play this coming week."
(on defensive plays that were made by the Titans) "If we're capitalizing off of turnovers then we have a different ballgame. The fumbles and receptions, Jim (Schwartz) did a nice job of putting them in a position to make the second interception. No one in that lockerroom is disappointed because we won. Our goal before kickoff was to be 4-2, now we're 4-2 and looking forward to next week."
(on the rivalry between the Titans and the Texans organizations) "It is a game that you are not going to want to miss. Year after year it always seems like it's going to end up like this."
(on the hit suffered by Texans QB Matt Schaub) "I thought (DT) Albert (Haynesworth) got his head across from what I saw, but they are going to air on the side of caution. We were getting good pressure."
(on the play that got the Texans in scoring position at the end of the fourth quarter) "We'll have to look and see what happened. If you could do it all over again you wouldn't do it again. It was the perfect ball at the right time, the DB overlapping, a slant in the second window with place coverage and, not to get too technical, it was just a combination of things."
(on the offensive performance) "We felt going in we had fresh legs that would run the ball hard. Offensively the numbers were there, we ran it, our completion percentage was there, and the protection was there. The difference was not being able to get a stop in the fourth quarter."
(on injuries suffered by the Titans) "(S) Donnie (Nickey) has an ankle (injury) and (WR) Chris (Davis) has an ankle (injury). Albert (Haynesworth) is okay. (FB) Ahmard Hall has a fractured forearm and he'll require surgery. It's hard to predict how long he'll be out."
(on the onside kick) "We had the ball in our hand. We had the ball in hand on the second one and we had the ball in our hand on the first one. You have to make those plays. Those are plays you just absolutely have to make and we didn't. They needed those kinds of plays to take the lead and they got them."
Titans K Rob Bironas
(on playing yourself in Fantasy Football) "I am not in a Fantasy Football League; I quit that after the first year of playing that I did."
(on his eight converted field goals) "You know, I wasn't really thinking about. I knew the first half we kicked five and somebody told me at halftime we kicked five by then and I knew that was something. The offense kept putting us in position to kick field goals and I am going to go out there and do my job. I am not really thinking about how many are going up until we get back into the locker room."
(on knowing he scored eight field goals) "I knew we hit quite a few but I try not to count, I try not to know the distances before I go out there. I am always concentrating on the same kick."
(on the most field goals he had) "Never really counted, but I will remember this one."
(on the first field goal vs. the eighth) "No. One I think was the first one over 50 to get this year so I was glad to get the 52 out of the way. I knew where we were on that one afterwards, I had plenty of leg, good hold, good snap, the line was clocking well, it is bad to open the game like that but it is always more fun to put one point on six after a touchdown but we'll take a field goal when we need it."
(on which field goal is more impressing) "I got to let this one sit in a little bit. Last year was an incredible year for me, for myself, for the team. We got 10 more games this year so we'll see how the year turns out."
(on his proverbial zone) "I always try to keep myself in my own zone. When we get in field position, for possibility of a field goal or extra point I start to get ready for it but I was obviously in a good zone today."
(on the way the leg is feeling) "Eight and 0, if I wasn't kicking eight, I was warming up for eight. And kicking extra points one way or the other I knew I was going to be kicking. So the leg is good and fine. I will be getting ready for next week."
(on thinking if you would be kicking to win) "At 57 seconds left in the game I was ready for the offense to put us in the position. (QB Kerry) Collins hit (RB) LenDale (White) on a couple of big plays and I knew we were going to have a shot to win it. I was warming up for a long one and then I saw it was going to be a short one, so I took a couple more practice kicks and Coach (Fisher) let the clock tick down and then I went out there to get the win."
Titans LB Keith Bulluck
(on the Texans' fourth quarter success) "I don't know. I think they just opened up their offense a little bit more. It's hard for me to say. We go from a team not giving up any points in the 4th quarter to giving up 32. I'm dumbfounded right now."
(on his mindset after the Titans lost their lead) "We ain't got Vince (QB Young) so I hope Kerry (QB Collins) can put it together. He's been playing great all game. Just hoping Kerry can put a drive together to at least give (K Rod) Bironas a shot on his career day."
Titans QB Kerry Collins
(on the game) "I never got too comfortable. I guess I have been doing this long enough to know that you can't ever get completely comfortable in a game because until time runs out you never know what is going to happen. You just got to try and stay in it and hats off to them for fighting back the way they did. I thought it was really impressive. We just needed to make some plays there at the end and it came down to guys stepping up, making plays and (WR) Roydell (Williams) did that. I can't say enough good things about him; he is a good player. He's really coming into his own and made a huge play for us today."
(on his status of being in a game like today) "The playoff game when I was with the Giants, we got up a big league against San Francisco and they came back like gang busters, like what happened today. So maybe that stuck in the back of my mind a little bit to know that you always got to stay in because you never know when things are going to turn around. But that was as crazy of a game that I've ever seen. I mean between turnovers and field goals, it was a wild ride."
(on your thought about the comeback and the win) "I just wanted to stay focus, stay in it, and know that when they started coming back we might have to go out there and win the game. It is crazy that it came down to that but that's life in the NFL. This is one the wildest games I'd ever seen but I guess at this point nothing surprises me."
(on K Rob Bironas and scoring more in the in zone) "If we would have just convert on a couple of those turnovers we got deep in their territory, got touchdowns instead of field goals we wouldn't have been in the situation right at the end. So that is obviously going to be a point emphasis for us."
(on starting the game) "No, I pretty much knew that it was going to be my game. Vince hadn't taken any offensive snaps all week. I think going in Friday and Saturday I pretty much knew that it was going to be my game. "
(on your thoughts about the last minute of the game) "When they kicked the field goal, they got ahead, scored a touchdown and went ahead; I just tried to stay focus as much as I could and try to refocus to what we needed to do. All of sudden it went from us being in a position where we trying to get time off the clock to where we were hey got to go when this thing. Credit to the guys, they hung in there, (WR) Roydell (Williams) went in there and made an unbelievable play. We were able to win but that's part of like in the NFL. You got to be able to refocus under some wild circumstances, which we had today."
(on what the team huddle was like) "It was calm. Everybody was calm. I think everybody was focused on what we needed to do; they were giving us some man situations. They were playing man to man coverage and it was going to have to come down to making a tight throw. (WR) Roydell (Williams) was one on one with a good corner, a very good corner and he made a great play."
(on your first win as starting QB with the Titans) "It's great. I tell you I am proud of the guys, I am proud of the way we played today and I appreciate their effort for me being the backup guy and I appreciate the way we worked this week, the attitude that came into the game, and it feels great to get a win. It feels great to be able to help my team. I will look back on this and know that there was more that I could have done but that's part of the NFL. I am just glad to get a win."
Titans DE Kyle Vanden Bosch
(on the fourth quarter comeback by the Texans) "I have no idea. I think we were looking for answers ourselves. We will have to go watch the films and figure out what we need to fix."
(on being concerned about the fourth quarter defensive letdown) "We have been a good 4th quarter defense this year. We just let it get away from us. I wish I had more answers, but we will have to go in tomorrow and figure out what we need to fix."
Titans RB LenDale White
(on what happened in the 4th quarter) "If I knew that, I don't think it would have happened. We had a mental letdown and let them get back in it. You can't allow things like that to happen. When we are on, we have to stay on and move the ball and get first downs and keep our defense fresh."
(on the field goals by K Rob Bironas) "Anytime we are in the game we want to score touchdowns. We don't go into the game wanting to kick field goals. It is good to have a field goal kicker like Rob Bironas. When we are not able to punch it in and get scores, he can come on and get three. Three is better than zero any day. He was effective today, if it wasn't for him, we would not have won this game. He kicked the ball through the goal and that is what we needed him to do."
(on how he played today) "I love running the ball and pounding it. I think the more carries I get, the better I get in the zone and I can feel the defense and they keep giving me the ball. Henry broke off a couple of big runs. We didn't have a bad game, just when the 4th quarter comes around, we need to put more points on the board and keep the defense off the field."
(on QB Kerry Collins' play) "Kerry made plays, he always has. That is why we signed him back. If (QB) Vince Young went down, we knew he could come in and get the job done"
