Following the Texans' Week 1 victory over the Miami Dolphins, members of both teams spoke to the media.
CHAIRMAN/CEO BOB McNAIRHEAD COACH GARY KUBIAKOLB CONNOR BARWINLT DUANE BROWNNT SHAUN CODYTE OWEN DANIELSRB ARIAN FOSTERCB KAREEM JACKSONILB BRADIE JAMESWR ANDRE JOHNSONCB JOHNATHAN JOSEPHOLB WHITNEY MERCILUST DEREK NEWTONFS GLOVER QUINOLB BROOKS REEDQB MATT SCHAUBDE ANTONIO SMITHWR KEVIN WALTERDE J.J. WATT
CHAIRMAN/CEO BOB McNAIR(Transcribed by Greg Dillard)
(on the start of the season) "Yeah, I'm really pleased to get a win, nothing like a 'W'."
(on DE J.J. Watt's performance) "Well I think it's unbelievable. I think he had three blocked passes in the first half. I think that's right. I've never heard of that. It's just fantastic. I think he really turned the game around."
(on QB Matt Schaub's performance) "I thought he started off a little slow, but there were a few balls dropped. He picked it up and wound up with a good game. I was pleased. We didn't have any interceptions, didn't have any turnovers. We didn't run the ball the way we'd like to obviously, you know some rough spots. I thought we really held on defense when we needed to. All in all Miami is underrated. I think their defense is very good. People don't realize that."
(on how important it is to get off on the right foot) "Well I think it's extremely important, and it's always easy to take your foot off the pedal a little bit when you're a heavy favorite. So I'm glad to get this one behind us and we go to Jacksonville next week and that'll be a tough game over there. We've got a lot of work that we need to do."
(on DE J.J. Watt) "J.J. was unbelievable. He just has a great knack for timing the throws and when to jump. He is just a big man and has such a wingspan that he covers a lot of area. So he did an outstanding job and as I said I think he turned the game around."
(on WR Andre Johnson)" Andre was phenomenal. He made some great catches. He continues to be super. There is no other way to explain it."
* *
HEAD COACH GARY KUBIAK(Transcribed by Tiffani Walker)
(on the game) "I thought we were a little shaky as a team. Opening day I don't think you really know what you are. You think you do but until you get out there and get going. I thought we played a little shaky on both sides of the ball. Just not real clean. We kept battling and battling but then we were explosive. We got, what, three turnovers in a row. We scored 24 points there in the second quarter if I'm right, is that right? 21? Something like that. We were explosive as a team in that period of the second quarter. That third quarter I did not like. We come out of the locker room, we go three-and-out and we let them right back in the game. We put together a great drive, we've go first-and –goal in our stadium, on the one and we don't get the ball in the end zone. I didn't like the close factor from that standpoint. I didn't like the fact that we couldn't run the ball. We're playing a speed offensive football team, so trying to control the clock and not being able to run the ball, that's an issue as a coach that I haven't got solved yet. But, good win. One and 0 after one week. We've got to move forward."
(on the three defensive turnover ) " We do a great job of getting our hands on balls, tipping balls. I've been in this game a long time and I've been places where guys knock balls down at practice and stuff and coaches get mad cause they want to work on the pass route, or this or that. And I've learned not to say one darn thing because we knock them down in practice and we bat them during the game and they turn into big plays for us. (Asst. Head Coach/Defensive Line) Bill (Kollar) does a great job of teaching that."
(on DE JJ Watt and his play) "I don't think that surprised you or me. He could have played the last two weeks of the preseason, but that wouldn't have been very smart. He's just an excellent football player, very well-conditioned and he played a lot of football today. He's gradually turning into a great player very quickly."
(on WR Andre Johnson and how much it means to him and the team to get back on the field) "He means a great deal. I usually don't talk much about what goes on in our meetings, but we had a powerful team meeting last night and it was all due to him. He stood up and talked to his teammates about his career and what he wants to get out of his career and what this team means to him. I didn't have to say a darn thing after that. He's in it for all the right reasons. He understands he's in year 10. Like I told you all before, we need him to be successful, but we're all rooting for him to stay healthy because if he does he'll do great things."
(on TE Owen Daniels' play) "Owen has had a good camp. I think (TE coach) Brian (Pariani) has found a nice workload for Owen throughout the course of the week and during the games where we are keeping him fresh. I think it helped late in the season last year and he's off to a darn good start. I felt really good about us throwing the ball today, but we're trying like heck to keep them off the field some too with all the snaps. I thought we threw it well, just didn't run it very good."
(on the trouble on third down and short yardage situations) "We didn't run the ball good. That's all I can tell you. First third-and-one we had we got stuff. I know we had another one there somewhere and during the fourth quarter we might have had three third-and-longs. We are actually 40% or something like that kneeling down on the ground. I thought the key to us being explosive offensively eventually ended up us making some third downs. But it would have been a lot better had we run the ball better."
(on the running trouble being the Dolphins defense or lack of execution on offense) "I don't know. I won't sleep good tonight but I'll see it in the morning."
(on the explosion of scoring in the game) "I think in the past the game we were in there early teammates start to panic a little bit. We just kept playing and then all of a sudden it takes on play and we get really explosive as a team. And that's part of this league. We've got those players capable of doing that. I always tell the guys, 'you're going to get down 10 in this league, so you better be ready to come back and play. You're going to get up 10 and you're still going to be in a tough ballgame.' So I like the way we were able to work through our uneasiness early in the game and be a darn good football team there in the second quarter."
(on the red-zone play) "I couldn't go through all the possessions. I know the one that bothered me the most was first-and-goal on the one. I think we had first-and-goal on the eight and we jumped offsides and that turned into first-and-goal from the 15. We kicked a field goal. Those are two of the very poor possessions right there. But in the second quarter when we were playing well and explosive, I think we were three for three. Obviously we got down there a few times and we need to finish more than we did today."
(on if he's ever had a player like DE JJ Watt who can change a game) "Its interesting cause you just wait for him to make those. The one I'm thinking of that he batted down he almost caught again. He's got such confidence in that. The greatest thing you can do as a D-linemen when you can't get to the quarterback is get your hands up. It's easy to say, but it's hard to teach. And I just think that we do such a good job of teaching if and enforcing it at practice and it carries over when we play."
(on the injuries ) "A couple things, (LB Tim)Dobbins had got a neck issue. We had to send him to the hospital for some further checks. (LB Brian) Cush(ing) is a little sore but came out of the game ok. (CB) Jonathan Joseph got sick on us in the second half, but he's ok. So that's where we're at. Dobbins will be our biggest issue."
(on starting out shaky and being tight in the first half) "We were facing something a little different, that hurry-up. They got the ball first, right? Am I right? Long day. They went right down the field, I think, and we were able to force a punt and we were pinned back. Offensively, we dropped the first play of the game. But we get explosive, and I think we go right to the 40 or 35. So, we were doing some good stuff, but we had just a couple issues, we dropped a ball or two. Just things that showed we weren't totally in rhythm. But you have to play through those things and we did today.'
(on RB Arian Foster) "He was fine. I think he carried it 25 times. Arian was ok. He was fine going into the game. That's part of procedure: if you don't practice on Friday you become a game time decision. He's fine. He just had a sore knee."
(on the right side of the offensive line and their play) "I couldn't tell you right now. I know we didn't run the ball well. And when I see that I see all of us, I don't see right or left."
(on DE Tim Jamison's play) "Timmy is really playing well. Life is good with Timmy. He's a new dad. Good things going on for Tim Jamison. I'm really proud of him. He's turning into a heck of a player."
* *
OLB CONNOR BARWIN(Transcribed by T.D. Durham)
(on batting balls down) "We're pretty long up front. (DE) J.J. (Watt) is really long. We practice it obviously. And then it's about being a smart defense. You have to know the situation. You have to know when they're going to throw quick passes. I see some guys rush up the field, but it's a 3-step drop, you're wasting your down there. I think a lot of it has to do with being coached up and being a smart player."
(on being off the field in the third quarter) "Yeah, I was yelling over on the sideline saying 'are we going to be able to play this quarter?' But yeah, we were a little frustrated, but it's a good frustration."
(on holding Miami to 2-for-10 on third downs) "Well that's huge obviously. It's one of our goals to get teams off the field on third down. Those are like turnovers; those are big stops."
(on what this defense has to do better before facing Jacksonville next week) "Stop the run better. Obviously they're going to be a better running team. We have to stop the run earlier and better next week."
(on if they were expecting a lot of quick passes today) "Yeah, with a rookie quarterback (QB Ryan) Tannehill and what we saw in the preseason, Bill Kollar, the defensive line coach, had told us what situations to expect that quick pass and (DE) J.J. (Watt) took advantage of it."
LEFT TACKLE DUANE BROWN(Transcribed by Jesus Acevedo)
(on the play of the offensive line) "We did a pretty good job on pass protection but something that we hang our head on is our run game. We definitely were not happy with the performance put in the run game and it's something we have to work on going forward. We have a pretty good idea in what we want to get accomplished. It's about effort and that's something that we're going to have to take a step up on going into next week."
(on the last 90 seconds of the first half) "That's what our defense is about, turnovers. They did a heck of a job of giving us the ball and giving us a short field to work with. We did a great job of turning that into points. What we have to work on on offense is establishing the run game and getting those longer drives and keeping our defense off the field and giving them a chance to rest."
(on relying on the defense) "It's great. That's the sign of a great team. When the offense is struggling a little bit the defense can come out and play great, play lights out, get turnovers to give us momentum and we're going to have to be able to be there to give them that same break. We have to give them a chance to rest and get them off the field as much as possible."
(on the Texans running game) "They threw some wrinkles in there that we hadn't seen on film, different alignments, different stunts, and timed us out pretty well and got us into negative yardage. Besides that, it's on us individually myself included. You get on the right guy but get more push and that's something we have to work on, definitely before next week.
NOSE TACKLE SHAUN CODY(Transcribed by Jesus Acevedo)
(on knocking down passes and J.J. Watt) "J.J. Watt was knocking down the balls like a maniac, like he just didn't want those balls to go by him so he was just knocking them down."
(on J.J Watt) "J.J. Watt does not let you throw the ball by him. He wants to knock that ball down like a mean juggernaut so he does a goo job of knocking the balls down. Good job J.J."
(on what changed the Texans slow start) "Turnovers helped. Whenever you get a turnover that sparks the crowd, it sparked us off and we get rolling. They were running the ball a little bit so we made some adjustments and it helped out."
(on the offense turning turnovers into points) "That's always what you want, is the offense to capitalize and they definitely did."
(on learning from this game) "You could sense the frustration throughout the stadium and the sidelines. They were having a little success running the ball and definitely those turnovers helped and got our teams sparked up."
* *
TIGHT END OWEN DANIELS(Transcribed by T.D. Durham)
(on starting off the game slowly on offense, but getting the win) "Well, we came out with a win. We scored 30 points, which is a good thing. You're going to win a lot of games scoring that many points. But there's a lot of stuff to clean up. I don't think we feel as good about the win as we would have liked to feel about it. But that's good when you win a game like that and still feel like you can play a lot better. I think we threw the ball well, I think Matt Schaub played really well today. We protected well up front. I think we need to clean up some things in the run game. We'll take a look at the film and see to that. But a win is a win, you have to feel good about it and enjoy it."
(on a lack of rhythm early on for the offense) "It's hard to say what it is. I think we knew what we were doing out there, we were on our assignments, maybe we were just a little bit off on our blocks when we were running the ball. I think it's just a little bit of everything. Everyone had a part in it, and everyone has a part in it when we're running it really well. We'll take a look – I can't pinpoint it. I can't rewind it in my mind. We'll improve on it and we'll get better."
(on the defense getting three straight turnovers in three straight plays) "After the first one, we're like 'alright, they'll shut them down and make them punt or we might get a chance to go to a two-minute drill.' But they got it back for us and then got it back for us again. Just awesome. We felt we needed to convert that. We hadn't really done much. We had moved the ball and hadn't really had much to show for it, so being able to get 7's in those situations was really good for us."
(on watching DE J.J. Watt blocking passes) "He's at it again, man! You love to see it. I was telling this earlier after the game, it's so demoralizing from an offensive perspective. I don't know if they had guys open or what it was, but when you have a guy open and you throw the ball and it gets tipped, it could've been a big play, but then it's a big play for the defense. He's tipping the ball and not tipping it down, he's putting it up in the air for the other guys to have a chance to make a play on it. That's really good stuff right there."
(on if he could remember a time when the defense gave the offense so many opportunities) "Not consecutively like that, no. It was pretty awesome for us. It kind of got us jump-started. I think in terms of getting us some confidence from some field position to get points on the board. But three in a row like that, those don't come very often."
(on having WR Andre Johnson out there at full strength) "Absolutely. He looked good out there today. He looked like the good ole' Andre that we're used to seeing. I expect to see that the rest of the year from him. I know he's ready to play hard for us, he said that yesterday at the team meeting. He looked awesome. I'm excited to see him play this year."
(on how he felt during the game) "I felt good – as good as I've felt in a while. Hopefully I'll keep that going and feel healthy and try to help out as much as possible."
(on being out there and getting into a rhythm with Matt Schaub) "Yeah, it's been a while. I know we had some preseason games together, but him missing those games last year. I think we had a really good rhythm before he got injured last year. It takes a little while to get back into it, especially when it's a regular season speed of the game. We were able to get that connection and keep that going. It's worked well in the past."
* *
RUNNING BACK ARIAN FOSTER(Transcribed by T.D. Durham)
(on how things went today overall) "Well we got the win so that's the most important thing, but I felt like I played smooth."
(on what caused the team to get off to a slow start offensively) "I haven't watched the film yet, you know. Things move around kind of fast out there so it's hard to pinpoint what the problem is. We have every intention on fixing our mistakes."
(on how big it is to get off on the right foot) "It's always big to get that first 'W' under your belt to start the NFL season. I'm happy about that. When you win a game by that much and you still have a lot of mistakes it just shows how good of a team you can be. We're still optimistic. We're going to go fix our mistakes and get ready for Jacksonville."
(on the defense helping out a lot for the offense) "Those guys are some of the best in the business at what they do. It's fun watching them operate out there and it's fun watching them fly around. I'm looking forward to the kind of season that they're going to have."
(on DE J.J. Watt knocking passes down) "I mean, we expect nothing less from him because he's been doing it since he got here. It's good to see him block. He's an elite athlete."
(on WR Andre Johnson's performance) "Andre is Andre. Anytime he's healthy, he's a threat out there. It's an honor to be a part of his career. I can look back and say 'I was a part of that.'"
(on having all the players of the offense healthy) "It's good because we can be a lethal offense, we just have to execute."
CORNERBACK KAREEM JACKSON(Transcribed by T.D. Durham)
(on Miami's receiver group in general) "They have some guys that can make plays. Of course (WR Davone) Bess can. We didn't see as much of (No.) 19 (WR Legedu Naanee) as we thought we were going to see, I'm not sure what the deal was with that. (WR Brian) Hartline made a couple of catches. They had a pretty good group. For us to come out and perform like that against them – I'm glad we came out and started on the right foot."
(on the routes that Miami WRs were running) "Nothing was really technical about it. They made some good catches. We were expecting they were going to run a lot of quicks, which they did. Got a couple stutters here and there, but for the most part they did what we expected they were going to do."
(on the four Miami turnovers changing the game) "Anytime you get four turnovers, it definitely changes the game. Sometimes it's throughout the course of the game, but we got them back-to-back, so we were able to put up points right before half."
(on the defense providing turnovers when the offense is struggling) "It's big. Like I said, those turnovers right before half - the offense was able to punch it in. Anytime you get turnovers with an offense like we have, it's almost certain that we'll at least get three out of the deal. For us to get them and make the field short, we were glad for that."
* *
INSIDE LINEBACKER BRADIE JAMES(Transcribed by Bracken Flynn)
(on his role as a veteran leader) "Help lead the team and get everybody in the right positions. I don't have to be the guy. I think as a veteran once you realize that you can just go out there and play and be a piece of the puzzle."
(on DE J.J. Watt's performance) "(DE) J.J. (Watt) is getting to the point where he's getting special. That is what he was doing in training camp before he got injured. If he consistently does that, I mean we were going against a young quarterback, so you have to consider that. Just the way our DB's played and the defense responded after coming out slow, that's the drama of the first game. In the preseason they ran a no huddle with a new offensive coordinator, and we didn't want to give them light. Those guys were able to make plays, but then we were able to stop them."
(on the different looks Miami showed from the preseason) "You watch film, but this is the NFL – they have good players too. Once we withstood the first wave, we were able to settle down and not only stop them but make plays and get turnovers. With the offense that we have, if you get those guys the ball they can turn it into points."
(on if he had ever been a part of a series where the defense has three consecutive turnovers) "I don't know. That's what we are here to do: make plays."
WIDE RECEIVER ANDRE JOHNSON(Transcribed by Melissa Montemayor)
(on how he felt being able to show people how healthy he is) "I just wanted to go out and play to the best of my ability. I wasn't really worried about showing anybody anything. I know what I can do and that was pretty much it. I wasn't worried about showing anybody anything."
(on his touchdown catch on the fade route) "(QB) Matt (Schaub) put the ball in a great spot. He put it in the back of the end zone and I was able to get to it and get both feet down."
(on the message he gave his teammates during last night's team meeting which head coach Gary Kubiak described as 'very powerful') "I think just going through the injuries last year and all the guys that we lost. I just told the guys that you never know when it's going to be your last time when you're out on the field. I told them that I don't know what's going to happen and I don't know how much longer I'll be able to play this game. I was just basically trying to tell them that we have a great opportunity and we have to take advantage of it. That was pretty much it."
(on if his performance today helps his confidence as well as his teammates) "I think sometimes teammates feed off of each other so you have other guys out there making plays or wanting to go out there and make plays. But for myself, I know what I'm capable of so when I go out and play, I wouldn't say I'm surprised at what I do. I just go out and try to make the best of any opportunity that I'm given."
(on how he feels about QB Matt Schaub's contract extension and if he plans to be around long as well) "Well I'm under contract for four more years so I plan on being here. I'm glad to see him receive it and I think he really deserves it. I think a lot of the time he doesn't get the credit that he deserves. I'm just excited that all of us are back out on the field together. Me, him (Schaub), and (RB) Arian (Foster) and we have everybody healthy. I think the sky is the limit for this team."
(on why they haven't been running any fade routes in previous years) "I don't know I'm wondering the same thing. We practice them but in the heat of the moment, plays are called and those things are out of your control. Whatever play is called, we just try to run it to the best of our ability."
(on if there is any extra satisfaction for him knowing that his college teammates were probably watching him go up against a Miami team) "Well it's always fun to play against your hometown team. I grew up a huge Dolphins fan and grew up there right by the stadium. I could stand in my grandmother's front yard and watch the game on the Jumbotron so we used to have Dolphin parties and all kinds of crazy stuff. I still have an uncle that's a huge Dolphins fan and he always tells me, 'I don't care because you play for the Texans, I'm rooting for the Dolphins.' And the crazy thing about it is that, as long as we aren't playing them, my family still wants to see them do well because that's what we grew up on. It's fun to get a chance to play against them."
(on what QB Matt Schaub does well even though he doesn't get the credit he deserves) "A lot of times when things go bad, he gets a lot of criticism. Of course, he's the quarterback and the quarterback gets a lot of criticism but one person doesn't make a team and it showed today. When the offense was struggling, the defense went out and made some big turnovers and was able to give us a big boost and help us get a little bit of momentum. At times, when the defense is struggling, we have to go out and score points. I think those are the things that happen in this game of football. A lot of times, certain guys get the blame but if you don't have eleven guys on the same page the play is not going to work. I just think sometimes it just goes a little overboard."
(on how much confidence he has in QB Matt Schaub and if he's going to put the ball in the right spot) "I have a lot of confidence in him. We put a lot of work in together over this past off season, going over to UH (University of Houston) just about every day and running routes together. After the game was over, we looked at each other and were like that's one. We got fifteen more to go. We got Jacksonville next weekend so we got to get ready for that."
(on if he was frustrated with the offense before their explosion in the second quarter) "Yeah you get a little frustrated because you know you're not playing to the best of your ability as an offense. We knew that and once we got a turnover we just knew we had to put points on the board. It gets frustrating but that happens. It comes with the territory of playing football so I'm pretty sure today won't be the only time we get frustrated. It's going to happen a lot throughout the season but the thing is just how you battle through adversity."
(on if he feels good knowing that the other three teams in the division lost today) "I guess that's a good thing but we have to win it next week. We have a division game next week so we need to go out and get a victory in Jacksonville."
* *
CORNERBACK JOHNATHAN JOSEPH(Transcribed by Bracken Flynn)
(on how the first half turnovers changed the game) "In this game, anytime you get turnovers it increasing your chance of winning. We went through that stretch for probably 10-15 minutes where we got our hands on some balls and our offense capitalized."
(on being a part of such a prolific run of turnovers) "It's a good thing to be a part of. Obviously, we had a chance to get more, but we'll take what we had today and try to get better for next week."
(on his interception play) "We were in fire-zone coverage and the (Miami) QB (Ryan Tannehill) made the inside throw and I made a jump on the ball and made a play."
(on if he thought the Texans should be concerned about a slow start) "Absolutely not. It is the first game and we are both trying to figure each other out, and get a feel for the game. Once we got rolling, we just were unable to be stopped on both defense and offense."
(on what was causing so many turnovers) "It could be a number of things, but putting pressure on the quarterback. With (DE) J.J. (Watt) and those guys getting their hands up and getting those batted balls increases our chance of getting turnovers downfield."
(on how the team had planned on slowing down Miami RB Reggie Bush) "He's the tailback, but he is also like a slot receiver at the same time because of his quickness. They move him around a lot to get mismatches, so for us it's kind of finding a way into the offense to get our best guy to cover him.
(on how the defense was able to create so many turnovers) "Sometimes when you have a rookie quarterback, or whatever your situation may be, it starts with those guys up front getting the tipped balls and things like that. I got a jump on the ball, but it couldn't have happened without that pressure to force a quick throw. It all works hand-in-hand with the pressure up front and the coverage in the back."
* *
OUTSIDE LINEBACKER WHITNEY MERCILUS(Transcribed by Greg Dillard)
(on how frustrated the guys were with the slow start) "Pretty frustrated, the thing is everybody was jumping the gun a little bit, a little shaky or whatever. But after that we buckled down and were able to keep them from gassing us up the middle, things like that with the run and were able to start coming after them in the pass game."
(on DE J.J. Watt's performance) "Very impressive, that's exactly what we expected from the start. He was able to get about three tipped passes. Our offense was able to capitalize on the picks."
(on playing in his first regular season game) "It was awesome. The thing is it gets real out there. It's way different from the preseason because you're not going against a lot of rookies. It's now; I'm going against the vets and things like that. I see the difference between the experience of play and the level. The thing is I'm starting to get my experience and all I have to do is be in the film room a lot so that my game can improve greatly."
TACKLE DEREK NEWTON(Transcribed by Greg Dillard)
(on keeping QB Matt Schaub clean) "Yeah, we've got to (keep Schaub clean). We've just got to do that as an offensive line. With that guy right there, we're going to do some great things."
(on grading his performance alongside G Antoine Caldwell today) "We did good. For me, being my first time, he already has some starts under his belt so he kind of knew what it was like. With the chemistry we have, we did some good things out there, but we still got to do some work and keep doing that. By the time the next game comes, we'll be better than we were last week."
(on what needs to improve) "It's a variety of things that we were a little off on. Other than that, we've got to pick it up, pick the pace up, pick everything up. We've got to be ready."
FREE SAFETY GLOVER QUIN(Transcribed by Bracken Flynn)
(on the slow start by the Texans) "It took us a little bit to adjust. They came out fast, and we knew they were going to start like that. We had seen it on film. It just took us a little bit to get settled in."
(on his hit on Miami RB Daniel Thomas that resulted in a fumble) "We were in our dime defense and I was in the box with the linebackers, so a lot of the time they see a small guy – and run away from (ILB) (Brian) Cushing – and come to me. The hole opened up and I gave him (Miami RB Daniel Thomas) what I had. I went for him and I hit in the sternum. He bounced back and the ball just shot out. I don't know if he hurt his leg or what, but he didn't play the rest of the game. We have a little bit of history too. We ran into each other last year in Miami down at the goal line."
(on the flurry of turnovers to end the first half) "Anytime that you can get turnovers and the offense turns it into points, that's when you start putting the pressure on them. We had a big turnover that started with (CB Johnathan) Joseph, then (ILB Brian) Cushing got one, and then we got another one with the tipped ball by (DE) J.J. Watt. I guess they decided they were going to run the ball a bit, and so we had real good momentum. We were flying around on defense and the offense was taking care of the points. We turned it from 3-3 to 24-3 right before halftime."
OUTSIDE LINEBACKER BROOKS REED(Transcribed by Greg Dillard)
(on how he felt playing today) "I felt good. I didn't have that many plays really. We're working (OLB) Whitney (Mercilus) in there. We really didn't have that many plays in the second half so it's not like one of those 70 play games. But it was good. It was good to play a whole game."
(on DE J.J.Watt's performance) "He's does it in practice so it's just kind of second nature to him. He's got big old mitts. It's almost just as good as a sack to me. He had a great game. Whenever you have guys doing that, creating turnovers you're going to win most of the time."
(on the importance of blocking QB passes) "That might make a quarterback a little more hesitant to throw a shallow pass. It's great when you got guys knocking balls down. A lot of people see it as just a knockdown, but the reality it's timing."
QUARTERBACK MATT SCHAUB(Transcribed by Jamie Goldberg)
(on the relief of the contract being signed) "At no point was it ever going to be a distraction for me. I am excited for it to be done and over with so that every ounce of focus and energy can be directed to this season and what we have going and being out there and something down the road. Just extremely excited to be 1-0 here after our first week and get 2012 under way."
(on if he thinks this will be where he will finish his career) "Absolutely, I am excited to continue my career here in Houston and finish my career here. We have a tremendous organization and one that really cares about us as players and providing an environment to win, and I am extremely excited about that."
(on how quickly the contract came together) "It was an ongoing process as anything like this, back and forth. And we're just excited that we were able to get it to where both sides are happy about it."
(on being excited to be a part of what is in place now with the Texans) "Over the years going through all that hard work and that grind of getting our organization and our team to where we are fighting for a championship year in and year out. It has been a process and to see that thing come together now over the last year and a half has been really special and the type of talent and guys we have in that locker room, how tight-knit we are. All we care about is helping each other out on Sundays to get a win and that's important and an exciting time for us."
(on today's game getting out on this start) "It was a great way for us to start at home. The place was electric. Reliant Stadium, our fans, were really in full force ready to go. It was slow to start, we were trying to get the ball and move it up and down the field. We settled for a lot of field goals today and we didn't get a lot of our opportunities in the red zone, especially on the goal line. It wasn't pretty there are a lot of things that anyone in our locker room could tell you that we can play much better than we did today. But, in this business a win is a win, and we are excited about it, and we have to move on to get ready for Jacksonville."
(on Andre Johnson) "Andre is Andre. He is playing at an extremely high level. He is the best in the game, and he showed it today. He made a ton of great plays for me and helped me out in tough situations. He beat man coverage and made me look good."
(on if Miami was doing something they weren't expecting, or just struggle of beginning of the season) "I think it was a combination of a lot of things. They are a great group. Their front is very stout, and out there, and very physical, which makes it difficult on us. I think just the excitement and the enthusiasm at the start and beginning of the year played into it. I think there are a lot of things that we need to go back and take a look at and be hard on ourselves and critical of our play from top to bottom so that we can correct things and move forward because there is a lot that we can get better at."
DEFENSIVE END ANTONIO SMITH(Transcribed by Jesus Acevedo)
(on the Texans performance) "First half it seemed like we were getting our feet wet. Trying to get into the flow of a real game and then the game plan cause nobody game plans each other in the preseason and they had a couple of good runs. One good run play actually that they kept running til we has to figure out what they had going, but overall I think we played a real good game."
(on RB Reggie Bush having success running) "They did a thing where they open the splits up between the center and the guard to give Reggie more space to fake like he's going outside but cut it back up inside so by the time we honed in and figure it out. There weren't that many more running yards after that."
(on DE J.J. Watt) "Oh yeah, volleyball champ. You know J.J. do that every day in practice. That's something that (Assistant Head Coach /Defensive Line Coach) Bill (Kollar) teaches and it doesn't happen by accident it isn't him just randomly throwing his hands up in the air, it's a technique that Bill coaches and it works."
(on the turning point in the game) "Turning point in the first half I think, is when we all just calmed down. The turnovers helped us to get that confident. When you have big plays it kind of reverses the energy, give you an energy boost and then you can calm down and play like we know how to play. I think that once we got comfortable, you seen what happened, we just start to play better, get big plays, sacks, things like that."
(on the Dolphins running scheme) "We've seen the play on film but the way they were doing it was specific for our defense and nobody who they played in the preseason runs our 3-4 like we run our 3-4."
(on WR Andre Johnson) "He's back in action. I'm always happy when Andre's playing like that. It keeps us off the field to get a little breather. It was good to see him making his plays."
(on the atmosphere of the locker room at halftime) "We were still disappointed because we know we can play better. We know we can play better football and it wasn't too farfetched to think that we could dominate so when we came in the locker room in the second half it wasn't like we were playing the best game ever, it was like we need to lock this thing in and finish this game off like we know how to finish it."
* *
WIDE RECEIVER KEVIN WALTER (Transcribed by T.D. Durham)
(on the slow start on offense) "Yeah we started off sluggish – the first quarter wasn't as planned. We have to start faster than that. But I think we did a great job in the second quarter. The defense did a wonderful job getting turnovers and that was huge. Then it was our job as an offense to get points off of that, which we did."
(on controlling the ball in the second half) "That's what we wanted to do. We wanted to come out after halftime and run the ball well and then control the ball and keep the defense off the field. I think we did a good job there. Obviously there are things that we need to work on. We'll watch the film and correct those."
(on WR Andre Johnson's performance) "It's awesome. It's awesome seeing Andre out there making plays. It's nothing new; he's been doing that his whole career. We need him to continue to do that each and every week."
DEFENSIVE END J.J. WATT(Transcribed by Emily Anne Kuoni)
(on his ability to disrupt the trajectory of the football) "I go to the YMCA every Tuesday and Thursday and play outside center, and that's where I get my success from off the field. (Joking) It's something we work on; we work on it every day in practice. We do that ball drill. It's something I've been working on since college. I know I have long arms, and you can't get a sack every play so you might as well try to knock the ball around."
(on playing with an elbow brace) "I didn't even know it was on. It felt good. My elbow didn't bother me one bit today. I'm very, very pleased with it. One more time, I know I say it a lot, but I have to thank our trainers for getting me back so quick and in such good shape."
(on learning how to bat away the ball, whether it requires practice or a knack for the timing) "I think it's a combination. Once you start to work on it, once you start to understand the quarterback's rhythm, you see his eyes, you understand his arm motion, you can start to figure out when he's going to throw it. And you know when you're stuffed, as a passer, it happens, sometimes you get stuck. You throw your hands up, try to do anything you can to make a play. And that's when you have success."
(on how his blocks changed the feel of the game) "Yeah I think you could feel it. Obviously interceptions are huge, so those two that got picked off, those were big plays. And that was great for our team. I really wish I would have grabbed that one and ran it to the endzone on the one where I was open. And then obviously you have (CB) Glover (Quin) making the big play, knocking the ball out. So those turnovers, I think we had a 24 point second quarter. That's huge. That's tough for any team to come back from. So when you give our offense the ball, they're tough to stop. (WR) Andre (Johnson) had a great day. It's fun to watch them play. We like to stay on the sidelines."
(on the crowd at Reliant Stadium) "Unbelievable. They're phenomenal, such a good crowd. They've been with us all year, last year, they came out strong this year. They started off the playoff season for them, so it's going to be fun to see how much better they get as the year goes on."
(on the play of the Dolphins in the first quarter) "They were running the ball, and we weren't stopping them, plain and simple. They were running the ball well. We were frustrated by it, and we got some corrections made, and I think in the second half they had maybe 11-15 yards rushing. So we got it corrected, hats off to our coaches, they did a great job. It's the first game of the season; there will be some bumps. But we're very happy with the way we ended it. Obviously, a 30-10 win, we'll take that all day."
(on batting away QB Ryan Tannehill's passes, is it the responsibility of the quarterback or the line) "I think it's a combination. You have to get penetration to get your hands up. Obviously if you're far away, you're not going to get it done. Maybe it's him throwing the ball low, maybe it's us getting our hands up more. I don't care how it gets done as long as it gets done I'm happy with it."
(on how it feels to be back on the field) "Unbelievable. There was a lot of days of built up frustration, a lot of built up days of watching, waiting for my turn. I felt like I was in a cage for the last four or five weeks, and they finally let me out of my cage. It just felt so good to get out there with my teammates. You don't understand how fun it is to play on our defense. Everybody makes plays. You see (CB) Kareem (Jackson) make plays; you see (FS) Glover (Quin) make plays; you see (ILB Brian) Cushing make plays. All the guys are making plays. And when you're a defense like that, it's tough to beat. It's so much fun to be on that field."
(on the play of Miami's rookie RT Jonathan Martin) "He'll be a good player. He's young; he got put in a tough situation here at Reliant Stadium. This is a tough environment for anybody to play in, much less a rookie quarterback and a rookie right tackle. He'll grow up, he'll get better. But today, he went up against a great defense and a great crowd."
POSTGAME QUOTES FROM MIAMI DOLPHINS
* *
HEAD COACH JOE PHILBIN
RB REGGIE BUSH
CB SEAN SMITH
DT RANDY STARKS
QB RYAN TANNEHILL
RB MARCUS THIGPEN
DE CAMERON WAKE
* *
HEAD COACH JOE PHILBIN(Transcribed by Channler Hill and Amanda Worthy)
(on his comments of the first game) "First of all, I want to congratulate the Houston Texans, their players, Coach Kubiak and his staff. I thought they played a very fine football game. We had emphasized to our players all week the importance of the turnover margin. Obviously it's the number one statistic in football. We banged it home every single day. Unfortunately it wasn't reflected in the performance today. They (Houston) did a great job taking the ball away from us; we didn't create any on our own. I told the team at half-time and I told them at the end of the game, I thought the game was played in the first 24 minutes, about how I thought it was going to unfold, or how we needed to play the game. So our guys played tough, they played physical; we came out ready to play, as did Houston. It was a good football game. We unraveled a little bit in the last six minutes of the half, but that's on me. We've got to do a better job there. But there are some encouraging signs. But again, I think Houston deserves a lot of credit. They played well and certainly earned a big win."
(on if he could fix the amount of turnovers in the game, over a course of time) "I hope so. We've got to look at a couple things. We've got to do a better job of knocking the hands down, no question about that. And some of it may be the throwing lane. (QB) Ryan (Tannehill) maybe has to pick and move and slide a little bit and adjust his throwing angle. So I think it's a little bit of both as typically that is, when that may get tipped."
(on how he thought QB Ryan Tannehill played overall) "I thought his command was good. There were one or two throws in the first half. We were moving the ball. I think it was second down throw onto (WR) Charles Clay, that was a little bit behind him and I think we had a third down thrown to (WR) Anthony Armstrong that was right off his finger tips. When you have a guy open like that, and again, it could have been the route, we haven't obviously sat around and talked about it, but, the big thing whether you're a rookie a veteran it doesn't really matter, when you throw and guys are open, we know how tough it is to get a guy open you've got to make those throws that are right there. And those are two that stick out, but overall, again, the game doesn't appear too big for him. He had reasons why he was doing things on the field. He came back, he was very composed on the sideline; no sense of panic. So I thought it was good. Unfortunately we had some balls tipped and we had a bunch of picks."
(on his comments of the style of the defense) "Again, I think in the first half, don't quote me, I don't have the stats in front of me, I want to say Houston's first three possessions might have been on the10 or six or 14, whatever. We were playing good field position football, we were giving up some yards, we were punting the ball, and we were moving it a little bit offensively. The game was unfolding to me in our favor the way we wanted to play the game. Our defense was a big part of that. Obviously they were on the field the whole third quarter basically. They went three-and-out on offense, the one time we had the ball, we also made the big punt return. There were some good signs. Hopefully there are some things we can build on."
(on what he thought about his team in the red zone) "It wasn't very good. We didn't score any touchdowns on offense which obviously wasn't very good. A couple times, it's tough sometimes on fourth down. Give Coach (Wade) Phillips and his staff a lot of credit. They did a great job. If it's a different type of game, we might have been in a position to kick a couple field goals there, but it wasn't and we didn't get it done on offense. So, we were not very good at all in the red zone."
(on if he has ever been in a game that snowballed so quickly) "I'm sure I have. Nothing comes to mind right this second, but yeah I've been in some. Yeah, I mean, I have, I'm sure. I can't sit here and tell you exactly which ones."
(on how he stops that from continuing) "Um, halftime? That's supposed to be a joke. No, I don't know. If I had the answer, you know, obviously guys have to step up and make a play. Unfortunately, they did and we didn't. There's no magic formula, You know, we thought we were doing the right thing at the end of the half trying to run the ball. We thought that was a wise decision, and then we don't block the play very well and they make a great play, put their helmet on the ball and the ball pops loose. So again, you have to credit them. They made the plays to win the game. I wish, I'm not trying to be sarcastic, I don't know that I have a good answer other than get back to basics, get our composure, our poise back, and you know, just play football. We didn't do that well enough."
(on the blocked balls by the Texans defense) "They timed up their jump well. You coach offensive linemen to knock their hands down, and drive, kind of treat it almost like a drive block when you feel them with their feet off the ground, you know if you time it up right from an offensive standpoint you should be able to, you know, they have no balance obviously because they don't have their feet in the ground so you should be able to move them, knock them down, get them off their feet, get their hands down, but we didn't do that effectively."
(on what he thought about RB Marcus Thigpen) "I'm sure when I watch the tape of that play that you're gonna see a lot of guys doing their jobs, doing things right, but I thought that he made an impact in the game, obviously. We were hoping we could get a big play out of our special teams, which we did. But, I thought he did a nice job. We were very encouraged by him."
(on how he would assess the Miami defense on their coverage of WR Andre Johnson) "Disappointed on the last play of the half, I think. They scored on that, you know, was it 12 seconds left on the clock I believe? They didn't have any timeouts. You know the ball is going to the end zone. That's not good football. I mean, I think he had 8 catches for 119 yards. He played well. He played well."
(on if he has an update on RB Daniel Thomas' injury) "I do not."
* *
RUNNING BACK REGGIE BUSH(Transcribed by Lance Jaramillo)
(on frustration of losing the game) "Extremely tough because all week we talked about turnovers. It's the number one statistic that gets you beat in this game. It's extremely tough knowing that we're very well aware of what was going to help (the Texans) win and what was going to help us win. We knew the game plan; we just didn't execute the right way. Take nothing away from Houston. They're a great team and they played well but we made some mistakes that really cost us and we know better."
(on his reaction to committing three turnovers before the half) "Your reaction is to try to weather the storm. You know they're going to make plays too. You don't want to necessarily give away the game with three turnovers that quick, back-to-back. We've just got to figure out a way to get better on Monday."
(on running the ball effectively as a team) "It was really encouraging. The offensive line did a great job of opening up holes for us and making it easy for the running backs to go out there and make plays and be effective. We've just got to continue that and learn from our mistakes this week and get better."
(on Miami Dolphins rookie QB Ryan Tannehill's performance) "I thought Ryan looked good. Obviously tipped balls are something we can help on the running back's side and the offensive line's side by getting their hands down. That's something that's easily fixable and I thought Ryan did a great job for the most part throwing the ball down the field and finding the open receivers."
(on Miami Dolphins RB Marcus Thigpen's punt return for a TD) "It was great. It was such a huge play for us. Coming out of the second half like that, he really gave us a spark. So it was a great job by him. I think he did a great job on special teams all day today. Yeah, I'm retired (as a punt returner). I've moved up and I'm doing only running back stuff now.
(on the Houston Texans' defense) "They did a good job at creating turnovers. I thought we did a good job pushing them back and keeping them from dominating the o-line and in the trenches. Our offensive line did a great job but it wasn't enough to win the game."
CORNERBACK SEAN SMITH(Transcribed by Matt May)
(on trying to overcome the turnovers and bad field position) "It was definitely hard to overcome. Turnovers are huge in this game; you never want to have 3 or 4 going into it. The percentages are always low when you talk about winning the game with something like that. As a defense our job is to respond, no matter what the situation is."
(on covering Andre Johnson) "You have to give a lot of credit to him. We had guys that were in perfect position and he made the plays. He likes to trick you with the double moves. At the end of the day it's all about finishing and he stepped up to the plate. Our defense is a press man team so they shifted him around and put him in motion to get him (Johnson) open."
DEFENSIVE TACKLE RANDY STARKS(Transcribed by Matt May)
(on offense turning the ball over and affecting the defense's mentality) "It really did, but at the same time it's a team sport. We have to just go out there and stop them. We gave up 3 turnovers and we couldn't stop them. That's the way it works; if you give the ball up and have no takeaways you're going to lose."
(on his 2 sacks and performance today) "It feels okay, but in the end we didn't win. We just have to go back to practice and get better for next week."
(on defense being asked to do too much during the end of the second half) "We're supposed to make stops, we're the defense that's what we're supposed to do. The field position hurt us a lot but at the end of the day we need to make stops."
(on focusing on his pass rushing during the preseason) "I did a little more this year because I'm playing a 3 technique now. I have more opportunities for one-on-one. The defensive backs are helping me get sacks with good coverage."
(on Houston Texans offense) "They played good as a unit, they're very efficient. The Texans have a good run game. They're hard to stop; everything is off the zone game. If they get their running game going they run the bootleg and hit you with the play action. That's when they get dangerous when they take shots down the field."
QUARTERBACK RYAN TANNEHILL(Transcribed by Amanda Worthy and Lance Jaramillo)
(on how he felt going into the second quarter) "Yeah, it felt good. We were running the ball, which was great. We were able to have movement up front, and (RB) Reggie (Bush) was obviously making some great runs. I thought we were in a rhythm early on, and even in the second half. You know, cut out that last six or eight minutes, whatever it was of the second quarter, and I felt like we moved the ball as an offense."
(on the deflected passes) "They were on all quick game, and it is something we are going to take a look at this week and see if we can fix. There are several factors of that and we'll see what we can do about it, we'll have to be better, with some things to not get those balls deflected."
(on how he would evaluate his game) "Anytime you turn the ball over you can't be happy with yourself, so regardless of how they happened, it's not good. You can't turn the ball over and put your defense in a bad situation. It ultimately led to a lot of points for them. Really focus this week on not getting balls batted at the line and being able to throw a quick game past the D line."
(on the Dolphins' difficulty in the red zone) "We didn't capitalize. I think there are some things we can do better. Plays that I didn't make, plays we didn't make as a team down in the red zone, and I'm sure we'll focus on that this week. There are a few things where they played good defense and they had the right play call on one fourth and sixth I think it was. They played everyone across on the sticks and we had nowhere to go. I had to check it down, unfortunately. I just hoped that (TE Antony Fasano) could break a tackle. They just had a great play call for fourth and eight and we didn't have a great one."
(on what he saw on the interception on the slant) "It was an under route, had man coverage, he was off and you have to say he just made a great play. I thought the location was good, the timing was good. He just made a great play on it. That's something that I'll learn from obviously. It's a little bit faster out there than it is in practice. In practice, that ball is getting in there, he's catching it and able to run. Great player made a great play and just gotta learn from it."
(on if he had butterflies before the game) "I was a little nervous, but I don't think that is was nervousness. I felt confident in what we were doing. The offensive line protected me pretty well all game. There's no reason to be really nervous. You have a little butterflies any time you go into any game regardless of how long you've been playing. It's just part of the excitement and buzz of the game, and I felt like we had a groove early on and really settled down."
(on if it he felt the game was snowballing in the second quarter and if he could have stopped it) "A couple of those are just bad breaks you know, the first pick obviously made a great play and after that two tipped balls and a fumble. It's just one of those things where it seems like everyone is going wrong that could possibly go wrong. You take even one of those plays out and the rest of them probably don't happen so, there's not much you can do but learn from it, and not let it happen again."
(on if he and WR Brian Hartline got something going late in the game if he hoped to get it going earlier) "Any time you can get a receiver going, you get a hot hand, it's a good thing. Obviously you look back and say well, he was playing well at the end, why couldn't we get the ball in in the beginning. But we had other guys making plays in the beginning of the game. You've got to think it's his first week back, so I'm not sure how much the coaching staff knew how much he was going to be able to contribute, but he got out there, showed that he is healthy and that he can run and make plays. He did a good job for us."
(on learning from first regular season game) "I think we learned a lot. I think I learned a lot and we'll learn a lot from the tape as an offense. I felt like we moved the ball as an offense. We were able to run the ball, had some throws down field, some mid-range throws and I felt like we hurt ourselves more than they really just stopped us. That's a good defense. Being able to move the ball on a good defense like that gives us some confidence. Obviously we have to fix a lot of things and eliminate those turnovers but I think it gives us a look at what we could be if we play to our full potential. "
(on if he was confused by the Texans defense) "No, they didn't confuse me. One time I was down in the red zone, they brought the safeties from deep. No possible way to really see it from down there but was able to get the ball off to (TE) Anthony (Fasano) and he made a great catch but there wasn't any confusion. I think we did a good job identifying what they were doing and just playing ball."
(on the Texans defensive line deflecting his passes) "It was a lot of things. They were doing some pushing up front. They're a great team. We saw on tape they're a great team at getting their hands up. We knew that was going to be something we had to face coming in to the game. They do a great job of if they're not getting pressure on the quarterback, getting their hands in the passing lane. I think there are a lot of things going in to that. I've got to be better at getting the ball out of those hands and finding throwing lanes. As an offense we'll take a look at that and approach it next week."
(on the reality of being out of College Station and in to the pros) "It's fun. I think that we were excited to go on the field and move the ball. We got off to a good start obviously in the first quarter, but didn't finish the half the way we should have. It's been a whirlwind the past year but you have to learn from this weekend and take it day by day and practice next week going in to the next game."
(on what the Texans did to adjust to him after the first quarter) "I threw the first pick obviously and that's not good and then had two tipped balls and a fumble. It wasn't anything they were doing differently. They just made some plays and we turned the ball over."
* *
RUNNING BACK MARCUS THIGPEN(Transcribed by Lance Jaramillo)
(on the first touchdown of his career) "It's a great feeling. It sucks to lose, but I give credit to the guys up front. They did their job and allowed me to do their job."
(on building a rhythm from kick returns) "That's my thing. I try to get in a rhythm. The guys know what I can do and what I'm capable of so they try their hardest to block. I give them credit. They definitely helped a lot. I was loosened up and ready to get us back in the game. We needed a spark and I was trying to be that spark for us. Unfortunately they outplayed us today and we give them credit."
(on running the ball effectively as a team) "It was really encouraging. The offensive line did a great job of opening up holes for us and making it easy for the running backs to go out there and make plays and be effective. We just got to continue that and learn from our mistakes this week and get better."
(on how quick he spotted the seam on the punt return) "It was pretty quick. I was trying to eye the gunners coming down. I saw we had two double teams blocking them, I saw the seam and that was it. I had one guy to beat and I saw (P Donnie Jones) and coach said if I get tackled by the kicker then I owe him $500 dollars so I can't do that."
*DEFENSIVE END CAMERON WAKE *(Transcribed by Olivia Williams)
(on his matchup with T Duane Brown) "(It was) another one of those good old-fashioned Sundays. You got two good players going at it. It was a lot of fun. At the end of the day it's hard to focus on the one-on-one matchups when you're not ending the day with a W."
(on previously seeing a half end with three turnovers and defensive turn arounds) "Probably not, but that's the way you play this game. There is no script. Every given Sunday anything can happen. You gotta go out there and whatever situation you get thrown into you gotta play to the best of your abilities and come out on top."
(on turnovers and defense) "I've played with most of these guys for a few years now. We are a very resilient group. They aren't ho-hum and kick the dirt. Hey, so what? Let's go out there and get a stop and kick a field goal and go back and do this thing again. That's kinda the mindset, don't let them move the ball and minimize as much as you possibly can."
(on WR Andre Johnson's 3-yard line catch and the goal line stand) "It's that same mindset. Every game you go into you have no idea what's going to happen, but we practice this all the time back in court. It's on the three, they gotta score, you gotta come out. And that's the mindset. It doesn't matter if they're on the three yard line. We could draw a line in the dirt, and they're not gonna cross when we're all here and get the job done."
(on what he learned about his defense today) "It's the same old same old for me. We got a lot of tough guys, a lot of guys can make plays all over the field. We know what we can do day in, and day out. We go at it in practice. I've seen what these guys can do. You just gotta go out there and execute and do our best to get the ball."
(on overcoming the four quick turnovers) "That's football. That's the way the cards are dealt and you've gotta play your hand. As a defense, we've gotta go out there, regardless of where the ball is. They throw the ball in, and it's on the one that's an opportunity for us to keep them out, that's an opportunity for us to get a turnover, an opportunity for us to do a lot of different things. That's the mindset you've gotta have. You can't go out there, 'Oh man, they're on the one yard line, what are we gonna do?' We're gonna stop them. That's the way we go into each game.
