Opening Statement:
"Real quick, obviously a hard-fought game. It was a good win for us on the road. Tip your hat to Indianapolis. They did a good job of fighting back, and we did some things that we'll learn from on the tape, but good road win. Any questions?"
Do you feel like after winning three of the last four games you're starting to get somewhere, where things are getting fixed?
"Yeah, I think the thing that we talk about all the time is improving from week to week. We'll look at the tape. Still the penalty numbers were up again. I really didn't like how, and some of this is me, the sequence right at the end of the first half, we had a chance. We were down on the one. We get an offensive pass interference. Another play, another play, a turnover. Then we're in a two-minute drill. There were some things with the lead already that we could have done better, not only as players, but as coaches as well. We'll look closely at that game, but it's a good football team. Tough place to play, especially after them coming off of a home loss already. So we did a lot of things well and we'll make the corrections on the things that we didn't."
You talked specifically about the run game. Wanting to defend it better and rush the ball better.
"I thought we did that. Yeah, I think we did that. That was one of the goals."
What did you work on this week that helped you all accomplish that?
"All the fundamental things that go into doing both those things. There are a lot of things. One of the challenges we have in our league is creating the same environment with pads, etc. It's hard to do that, but our guys did a real good at handling that challenge. I'm sure (when) we go back and look at the tape it's generally a group effort. You're blocking on the perimeter. You're up front people are getting movement. Defensively, I thought we did a real good job early in that game of limiting some of the runs that we were getting, and that was encouraging."
The fake field goal was big early. It gave you a lot of momentum. Is that something you put in this week?
"Yeah, it was something Greg (McMahon) came to me with. We spent some time on it. Looked at it. We felt like we were getting a pretty consistent look. It had to be on the right hash, and I'm pretty bad about something like that. I can't wait for the second half, you know what I mean, so I'm pretty impatient when we ran the fake. Ironically we were waiting on the challenge, and had we won the challenge we'd have been left hash, fourth down, yard, yard and a half. We wouldn't have been running the same play. I think in the back of my mind it was if we win this challenge we're going to go for it here on fourth down, and if not, we're on the right hash. Anyway, we were out of challenges early in this game for the first time in I don't know how long."
Did that play have a nickname like ambush?
"Oh yeah, but I mean all these plays that we run have all sorts of names and it's not unusual."
Are you encouraged of the things that you are seeing out of the pass rush?
"Yeah I think part of that two fold, when you get a team that becomes a little bit more one-dimensional that helps. But yeah, I think those numbers are encouraging and we are doing a good job covering from the most part."
How has this given you more opportunities in general?
"Well I mean we're week to week here. We have challenges in each week and so it's sometimes not all the way to the right or all the way to the left, you with me? So we made some improvements and we are doing some things well and there are some things that we have to clean up, but it was a good win and kind of go from there."
Are you frustrated with the rule of not going to the ground?
"The rule is clear and it's just a matter of were there a step, two steps so we will look closely at that. Look you're on the road so you are not going to get a scoreboard shot if you are counting on people upstairs so we will look at it on tape and kind of go from there."
Kai Forbath kicking off was that just a this week thing?
"Yeah, we will see where Thomas (Morstead) is at and at some point we will make that transition back. Thomas is healthy, but I think going into Week 1 we knew we were going to go in that direction first."
Is it kind of ironic that him having a lesser leg a lot of guys would get a fair number, but where Morstead might have put that out?
"In regards to?"
On that kickoff the fumble.
"Oh yeah. Listen, there are a handful of things that were ironic, but yeah. Well we knew going in, look he's a real consistent kicker and we knew if you just look percentages at balls being returned, the first thing I said Wednesday and Mac had already said it. I said was to the rest of the kickoff coverage team, here are the percentages so you are going to defend more kickoffs even though. But you know what, I am comfortable with that if he keeps hitting them through the uprights. A lot of poise and did a good job. Obviously, I think it was his first field goal attempt for us, it was the one that we threw a pass on so. Anyway, a lot of things for us to coach off of."
