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Here are the game notes and quotes from the game:
·
The Washington Redskins snapped an eight-game
home losing streak and improved to 3-3 this season with a 38-26 win against the
Minnesota Vikings in front of an announced crowd of 78,476 people at
FedExField.
·
The Redskins extended their consecutive home sellout
streak to an NFL-high 371, including postseason games. The team has sold out
all 153 preseason, regular season and postseason games at FedExField.
·
The win was Head Coach Mike Shanahan’s 168th overall victory as an NFL head coach, which
ties him with Pro Football Hall of Famer Bud Grant for 14th all-time. It was
Shanahan’s 160th regular season victory as an NFL head coach. Shanahan passed
Grant in this category in Week 4.
·
Quarterback Robert
Griffin III completed 17-of-22 passes for 182 yards and a touchdown. He
also tied a career high in rushing attempts (13) and set a career high with 138
rushing yards with two rushing touchdowns.
·
Griffin
III set a franchise record for single-game rushing yardage by a
quarterback, surpassing his own record of 84 rushing yards from Week 2 at St.
Louis.
·
Griffin
III now has 379 rushing yards on the season, establishing the team record
for rushing yards by a quarterback in a single season. His total surpasses
Harry Gilmer, who had 365 rushing yards in 1952 and saw action at both
quarterback and left halfback in that season. The previous high by a Redskins
player who played strictly quarterback was Joe Theismann, who rushed for 314
yards in 1984.
·
Griffin
III finished the evening with a 76-yard touchdown run. The run is the
longest by a quarterback in team history and the longest by an NFL quarterback
since Pittsburgh’s Kordell Stewart rushed for an 80-yard touchdown against
Carolina on Dec. 22, 1996.
·
Griffin
III’s 76-yard run was the longest by any Redskin since Clinton Portis had a
78-yard run vs. the Kansas City Chiefs on Oct. 18, 2009.
·
Griffin
III now has at least one rushing touchdown and one passing touchdown in
three games this season, making him only the second individual quarterback in
team history since 1950 to do so three times in a season (Joe Theismann, 1980).
·
Griffin
III joins Michael Vick as the only NFL quarterbacks since 1970 to rush for
at least 130 yards and two touchdowns in a game.
·
The 178 points scored by the Redskins in six
games this season is the highest scoring output by the Redskins since scoring
207 points from Weeks 2-8 of the 1999 season.
·
The 38 points by the Redskins are the second-highest
total of the Shanahan era, trailing only the 40 scored by the team in Week 1 at
New Orleans.
·
The Redskins rushed for 183 yards, marking the
fifth time the Redskins have rushed for 175 yards or more under Shanahan. The
Redskins have rushed for 996 yards in the last six games, the most prolific
six-game rushing output for the Redskins in the Shanahan era.
·
The Redskins have rushed for at least 125 yards
in eight consecutive games for the first time since doing so across two seasons
in Weeks 12-17 of the 2006 season and Weeks 1-2 of the 2007 season.
·
The Redskins held the Vikings to 94 rushing
yards. The Redskins have held opponents to less than 100 rushing yards in four
straight games, marking the first time the team has done so in a single season
since Weeks 1-5 of the 2007 season (the team had a bye in Week 4).
·
Griffin
III threw his second interception of the season in the first quarter,
ending a streak of 104 consecutive pass attempts without an interception dating
back to the second quarter of the Redskins’ Week 2 game at St. Louis.
·
Kicker Kai
Forbath converted his first career field goal attempt, hitting from 50
yards to conclude a 13-play, 48-yard scoring drive.
·
The 13-play drive was the team’s longest scoring
drive by number of plays this season.
·
Running back Alfred Morris scored his fifth rushing touchdown of the season,
scoring on a one-yard run in the second quarter to cap an 11-play, 90-yard
scoring drive.
·
The 90-yard scoring drive tied the team’s
longest scoring drive by yardage this season (Week 3 vs. Cincinnati).
·
On the Vikings’ first offensive play following
the score, linebacker Lorenzo Alexander
registered his first fumble recovery of the season.
·
On the following play, Griffin III threw his fifth touchdown pass of the season, connecting
with fullback Darrel Young for an
eight-yard touchdown. The touchdown reception was Young’s second of his career
and his first since Nov. 15, 2010 vs. Philadelphia.
·
Alexander
and defensive end Stephen Bowen
combined for a sack of Minnesota quarterback Christian Ponder on the Redskins’
final defensive possession of the first half. Alexander added a fourth quarter
sack and finished with a career-high 1.5 sacks.
·
Griffin
III scored for his fifth rushing touchdown of the season on a seven-yard
run on the Redskins’ first drive of the second half. He added his sixth on the
76-yard run in the fourth quarter.
·
With touchdowns by Griffin III and Morris,
the Redskins became the first team in NFL history to have two rookies each rush
for five touchdowns in the first six games of a season.
·
Griffin
III’s six rushing touchdowns are the most by a Redskins quarterback in a
single season in team history. He was previously tied with Joe Theismann (1979)
and Eddie LeBaron (1955).
·
Safety Madieu
Williams scored in the fourth quarter on a 24-yard interception return. It
was Williams’ second career interception return for touchdown and his first as
a Redskin. It was his first since scoring on a 51-yard interception return as a
rookie for the Cincinnati Bengals on Oct. 31, 2004.
·
The Redskins have now returned an interception
for a touchdown in consecutive games for the first time since Weeks 7-8 of the
1994 season (Darrell Green and Andre Collins).
·
Including interception returns for touchdowns by
linebackers Ryan Kerrigan and Rob Jackson, the Redskins have three interception
returns for touchdowns this season. The last time the Redskins had three
interception return touchdowns in a season was 1999 (three). The Redskins now
have four defensive touchdowns this season for the first time since 1999.
·
The Redskins have intercepted a pass in seven
consecutive games, dating back to last season, for the first time since having
interceptions in seven straight games from Weeks 11-17 of the 2005 season.
·
Including scores by Young and Williams, the Redskins
now have 21 points on offensive possessions following turnovers as part of 49
points off turnovers (including four defensive touchdowns) this season. The
Redskins totaled 43 points off turnovers in 16 games last season.
·
The Redskins were +2 in turnover margin, marking
the seventh consecutive game in which the Redskins have posted either an even
or positive turnover margin. This marks the first time the Redskins have done
so in seven consecutive games since a seven-game stretch across two seasons in
Weeks 16-17 of the 2009 season and Weeks 1-8 of the 2010 season.
·
The Redskins had four sacks, the team’s highest
total since posting four sacks vs. Dallas on Nov. 20, 2011.
·
Nose tackle Barry
Cofield received his 100th career regular season start. This
came one week after appearing in his 100th career regular season
game in Week 5.
·
Linebacker London
Fletcher appeared in his 230th consecutive game, the longest
active streak in the NFL.
·
The victory gives the Redskins a 9-8 advantage
in their regular season series against the Vikings. Including postseason games,
the Redskins now have a 12-10 all-time record against Minnesota.
Executive Vice President/Head Coach Mike Shanahan
On quarterback Robert Griffin III’s 76-yard touchdown run:
“Anytime you get man coverage and
you have a six-man rush and they’re covering the receivers and the quarterback
can break through that line like he did… He saw a hole and he took off and the
rest is history. Great job by him looking at the front and seeing that rushing
lane and taking advantage of it.”
On if Griffin III played any differently after suffering a concussion
last week:
“You can’t do that as a
quarterback. You have to go play. I think common sense prevailed. I think he’ll
learn every game maybe when to slide, when to throw the ball away, when to go
out of bounds a little bit earlier. I thought I saw that today in a number of
situations. As time goes on, he’ll keep on getting better and better at keeping
people away from him.”
On how much emphasis was placed on breaking the team’s home losing
streak:
“I’ve never even talked about that.
You focus on getting the job done, having good practices, doing the little
things the right way and trying finish a game. That’s what we’ve been focusing
on. We don’t talk about those types of things. We talk about the things we do
poorly and what separates the good teams from the average teams and the way we
can improve in that area.”
On the defense:
“They did a great job, again. I
thought the way they played early was very impressive – keeping them out of the
end zone. The first couple drives we couldn’t get anything going and they did a
great job – great game plan coming in with a couple corner blitzes, kind of
getting us off guard a little bit. I was proud of our guys. We kept our
composure, we came back and executed and did some adjustments that you have to
make during that game. I was pleased with the players and the coaches
throughout the game. You have to go through some adversity at times, and you
have to keep your composure there. I thought we did that because they had a
chance, instead of nine points, it could have been 21 points and all of sudden
it’s pretty hard to catch up, especially against a defense like that.”
On the defense scoring four touchdowns in six games:
“That’s what you want. That’s what
you have to have. On your football team, you have to make plays. [I’m] not only
impressed with making plays, but scoring touchdowns – not only four TDs, but getting us the ball on the six-yard line
is like TD in itself.”
On linebacker Lorenzo Alexander:
“He’s one heck of a football
player. He got a game ball. We gave him a game ball for rushing like he did in
the limited plays that he did play, obviously the interception [fumble
recovery], but he’s a guy that gives everything and we’re going to have to play
him some more obviously.”
On if Griffin III’s 76-yard touchdown was supposed to be a passing
play:
“That was third down and he was
looking to the left and we had both outside receivers on out routes, about
10-12 yards. When he looked over there at Josh [Morgan], he saw a lane open up.
He’s very smart and very aware that was a six-man rush. If they don’t get to
Robert right away, he’s into the secondary and for sure he’s got a first down.
Not too many quarterbacks can outrun those defensive backs. That was a heck of
a play. You don’t see that very often.”
On linebacker Keenan Robinson, cornerback David Jones and safety Jordan
Pugh:
“Anytime you get a few safeties
that go down, people are going to get opportunities – just like our defensive
line. [Chris] Neild goes down, [Adam] Carriker goes down and guys get
opportunities – as well as [Brian] Orakpo. Guys stepped up today like we’ve
talked about Lorenzo making some big plays. That’s what you have to have – guys
taking advantage of an opportunity. There are a lot of young guys without a lot
of playing experience that did a good job today.”
On kicker Kai Forbath:
“I’m a nice guy aren’t I
[laughter]? Breaking in a kicker and his first kick is a 50-yarder. I started
thinking about that and I said, ‘That’s not going to very popular if he
misses.’ Anyway, I was really pleased with the way he handled himself
throughout the game. To handle the situation like that [in] your first kick in
the NFL and kicking a 50-yard field goal and he nails it says a lot about him.
Hopefully, he can keep it going.”
On his level of concern that Griffin III would get hurt again:
“There is a little concern for
anybody that has a concussion. Jordan Pugh is going through the same test that
Robert went through last week – [wide receiver] Aldrick Robinson [in Week 4].
We’re going to make sure everybody is OK. We’re not going to play somebody if
they’ve got a head injury, if they have a concussion. The great part about it
is Robert felt good throughout the week. After he had the concussion, he had no
side effects. So now you have to let the person play the game. Sometimes a
designed run helps the quarterback. If we would have gotten a dropback pass
against that defense today and didn’t have some designed runs, there would have
been a number of sacks. That’s one heck of a defensive front and a defense that
puts a lot of pressure on you. Robert, by doing what he does – keeping a
defense off-balance – really gives him the chances in my opinion to stay
healthier.”
On tackle Trent Williams:
“[I’m] very impressed. He’s played a couple great
defensive ends back-to-back weeks and even on his one sack late in the game, it
wasn’t him that we were blocking down on that side. Trent has really come into
his own – very talented, just keeps on getting better and
better, very good leader as well.”
Quarterback Robert Griffin III
On his 76-yard
touchdown run:
“We kind of felt like they were going to pressure us in that
situation. Kyle [Shanahan] called a good play. I saw the blitz and I was
thinking I’m either going to throw hot, or if they miss this blitz and don’t
hit it the right way, I’m going to run for the first [down]. I saw that they
missed it; [I] took off running and got to the sideline. [I] thought about
running out of bounds, because everyone has been telling me that lately. You
know in certain situations… I felt like I had the guy outflanked, and I just
took off running. The rest is history. I got to enjoy the moment a little bit.
It was pretty fun to hear the crowd and see my teammates on the sideline
celebrating as I got the touchdown.”
On if he said
anything to the defense on the sideline:
“I was talking to London Fletcher just a few minutes ago and
told him I was going to mention him, so ‘Thank you.’ They kept us in the game.
Our offense can be so potent at times, we want to make it all the time, and we
have so many weapons that if we hold teams to just field goals, it’s huge
because we can come back. We had two or three bad drives there in the first
half, and we went into halftime winning the game. They did a great job, and I
told them I would give the defense a special shout out, so there it is.”
On if he feels his
overall approach to the game was any different:
“It’s like I’ve told people, you stay aggressive, but you
just try to be smart. I felt like I got out of bounds a couple of times when I
should have. I threw the ball away one time and got a penalty because a guy hit
me. You try to play smart but stay aggressive. One time I ran up the middle and
the safety was coming down and I slid for seven yards, so you have to live with
that and not worry about the eight or nine yards you could have gotten, taking
the hit. I told the team I wasn’t going to leave them hanging, so I tried to
make sure I did that today.”
On if anything
changed on the third drive when the team ran the triple option:
“It was just trusting what Coach called and just being
ready. We got in a bad situation on the first drive, third- and-17, it’s hard
to get out of that. On the second drive, we moved it a little bit and we could
kind of feel like we were getting in the rhythm. So by the third drive, we knew
we had something going, we pulled out the [Brandon] Banks package of plays,
it’s not that he affects every play, but having him out there on the field
definitely makes the defense aware of him. So we can do a lot of things when we
spread teams out like that. We got in the rhythm and I felt that, aside from
the interception, I played one of my best games – just doing what I was asked
to do, being fundamentally sound and just helping the team win.”
On his feelings about
breaking the eight-game home losing streak and the recent losses by Washington,
D.C. area teams:
“We know that to lose eight straight at home is
unacceptable, for any kind of sport. We made that a point of emphasis this
week, to make sure we came out and protected our home turf. Even though I
wasn’t here for that time, I’m still a part of this organization and I take on
all those burdens with the other guys. We make that a point, and hopefully we
can start a home game- winning streak or a winning streak period. And with the
Nationals losing down the stretch, of course that’s tough. I saw my Twitter
feed, with a lot of people saying they hoped we would win to get people over
that, since there will be a lot more attention on us, now that the Nats’ season
is over. You take all of those things into account and I think the fans and
people around this area will appreciate us coming away with a victory.”
On how he felt about
the difference in preparation coming into the game and after the game:
“I felt good. I didn’t get hit too much, but it’s football,
so your body is going to break down throughout the course of the game. That’s
why you try to build it up during the week. They did a good job of making sure
I was OK, constantly being on me to be honest with them, so that I wouldn’t go
out there and be in harm’s way. I told them that I would be honest with them. I
had no symptoms and I had remembered everything since 15 minutes after they
took me out of the game [last week] and it stayed that way. I thought they did
a good job taking care of me. They did the right thing by not letting me go
back in the game. And then to come out and play the way we did, as a team,
coming off of that, shows a lot of pride and passion for all the guys to go out
and put it on the line every week.”
On if he did a good
job selling the roughing the passer call:
“I mean, he hit me good. It wasn’t like a basketball flop,
but I definitely sold it pretty well. The ball was clearly gone, guys. It was a
great job of me and the ref being on the same page [laughter].”
On the importance of
converting on third down:
“You try to get that monkey off your back. Me and Santana
[Moss] had been working on stuff all week and he smiled and said we hit that
just like Coach wanted us to hit it. So
whenever we can make a third down here and there, when everyone has been
talking about the struggles on third down, it makes everybody feel better to
get some relief, a lot of relief off your shoulders. It was good. And then on
the third down, at the end of the game, to have that happen the way it happened
and to win the game that way, it’s special. That’s all you can say about that.
We definitely did a better job converting on third down in this game than we
have previously.”
On watching the
replay of his touchdown run:
“A couple of guys, Rex [Grossman] in particular, came to me
and said, ‘Hey, you can stop smiling by Wednesday,’ because I was all smiles. It
was a special feeling and I’ll definitely watch that. You know I got to prove
to those guys that I still have that track speed that they’ve been talking
about, or saying that I don’t have. I was able to break a long one. It always
feels good when you can do that. Anytime the [defensive back] catches an
interception and runs it back, a receiver gets a long catch, or the quarterback
throws a long touchdown pass or runs a long one… It’s something special that I
can do personally and it was fun to be able to show everybody that and to help
us win the game doing it.”
On enjoying the
moment during the touchdown run:
“It was all a blur. Coach Sean [McVay], the tight end’s
coach, said he felt me run by him because of the gust of wind. What can I say?
No, but I could see guys telling me I got the first, so they were saying stay
inbounds and slide. I was kind of running like I think I can get a little more.
Then it all went from stop and stay inbounds to go – go for the touchdown. It
was interesting to see the different reactions. Larry [Hess], our trainer, was
running down the sidelines, he was running the same 40 I was running. A lot of
guys had some made up thoughts in their head, but it was cool.”
On the celebrating
with fans after the touchdown and bouncing back from last week:
“The jump was fun; I actually tried to leave and they held
me down. Fans, gotta love them. I just sat there and enjoyed the moment for a
little bit. I didn’t want us to get a penalty so I was trying to get down. At
the end of the day I think the refs and everyone understood how big of a moment
that was. They didn’t throw any flags or anything like that. But to come back
after last week, getting knocked out of the game and personally, myself,
feeling like I let a lot of people down… The players were telling me that I
didn’t let them down. The coaches were saying the same thing, but as a
competitor, as a player and as their teammate, I felt like I did. So to come
back and play the way that we did as a group and then to have the outcome that
we had, for me to be such a big part of it, was huge for me to show them that
I’m going to come out, I’m going to play smart, I’m going to help us win and
then I will always be there for you in the end.”
On reporters saying
he should have taken the week off:
“I didn’t read into any of it. You know of course that stuff
is going to get back to you. For me it was just a matter of I was going to be
honest. If I had gone the whole week and showed up on game day and did not feel
right, I wouldn’t have played because it wouldn’t have been right for me. It
wouldn’t have been right for the team. If anything would have happened today
there would have been a lot of consequences and repercussions for that. I just
wanted to make sure I was fine, that I wouldn’t put myself in harm’s way, or
this organization. I felt fine, I felt normal, I still feel normal. It will be
a good night. For me, that means going to sleep and watching a movie,
probably.”
Linebacker Lorenzo Alexander
On the play of the defense and quarterback Robert Griffin III:
“It was a great job of us playing
hard for four quarters, finally… Today we were able to finish out, come up with
some big plays, scoring on defense, giving the offense a short field. Robert
[Griffin III] did a great job coming back after being hurt last week, staying
to the real game, making some good passes, making some good plays with his
legs.”
On his performance:
“It was great. I understand what
my role on the team is to be a special teams demon and a captain, and fill in
on defense when need be and take advantage of my opportunities. I know I can play
in this league. Losing the weight has made me a different player, quicker, more
dynamic, and I think that Coach was able to utilize my history as far as
playing [defensive] tackle in some of our game today. It was a great feeling to
go out there and finally contribute on defense and win.”
On if he was aware he was going to be playing a lot on defense today:
“Yes, we had a package going in
early. It was between me and Keenan [Robinson], just how the game felt. After
going in and making a couple plays, they kind of stuck with me and was able to
take advantage of some things. The defensive line did some great things opening
up things for me, and I was able to get a couple of sacks.”
On his fumble recovery:
“Some of that is being at the
right place at the right time. It was more Perry [Riley] doing a great job
rushing. It was a blitz, both guys coming off the edge. Perry did a good job
pushing the back into the quarterback, stripping [the ball]. Hopefully, I can
turn it in to see if it is an interception, hope his arm is going forward. I
was in the right place. I was able to catch it, wish I could have scored, but I
had [Matt] Kalil all over my back.”
On receiving a game ball:
“It is great. It shows that I am
valued around here. I have been here for six years now. I am up this year, and
it is just going out there and playing hard. It shows that people want to keep
me around. I am a Redskin through and through. I don’t do it for the glory; I
go out there representing my team, playing hard. I am just a blue-collar,
hard-nosed guy, and things happen to good people who play hard.”
On snapping the team’s eight-game home losing streak:
“We definitely have to defend our
home field if we ever want to become a good team in this league. All the great
teams that go to the playoffs go 8-0, 7-1 at home. We have never been able to
do that since I’ve been here. After showing up for over a year for our home
fans, that’s very disappointing so that was definitely something we were
thinking about because we have the best fans here. I understand when we start
winning people will fill the stands and have it packed all the time.”
On Robert Griffin III’s 76-yard touchdown run:
“It was amazing to see him drop
back. He saw the hole open, and he took off; then I was looking down field to
see the edge. He has world class speed. No one was going to catch him once he
got to that edge and took off. It was a pretty great play. That is one of the
great things of having somebody that has that type of dynamic and athleticism.
He can always create a big play, give a hard position for the defense, and
always keep him in the game and make big plays when you need him.”
On Griffin III:
“He’s a go getter; he’s a
playmaker. Obviously, he’s our stud. Anytime you have him in the backfield, you
think you have a chance to win the game. Just his approach to the game, his
humbleness, his fire, his want to, you see it all leading up into the week.
Just talking to the guy, you know he’s a winner, and you know he’s going to go
out there and make big plays for you at any time.”
On Kai Forbath’s field goal:
“It was great. If our offense puts
us in a position where we get field goals, we have to put points on the board,
and I thought we did a great job of doing that. It is great to be able to put
points on the board, and not have to start at maybe the 35-yard line.”
Kicker
Kai Forbath
On his first NFL
game:
“It
felt great. I had a good warm-up. I felt ready for today and [I’m] just happy
that we got off to a good start.”
On his
confidence level before kicking his first field goal:
“I
never go out there and think I’m going to miss. If you do, you’re going to
miss, so I went out there and did like we did in warm-ups. And that’s what
happened.”
On if he had to
adjust because his first attempt was from 50 yards:
“That’s
what I actually tried not to do. I don’t try to kick it harder than I normally
do. I just try to stay smooth and make good contact.”
On if he heard
the crowd’s reaction after the kick:
“No,
I didn’t [hear it]. I was busy trying to give high fives to my linemen for
blocking.”
Free
Safety Madieu Williams
On the play of
the defensive backs:
“That’s
what we’ve found out from being defensive backs – you’re going to get
criticized. That’s part of the nature of the beast, especially when things
aren’t going well. We have a strong group of character guys. We hung together,
we played together, and when things come together like that for us on Sunday,
as a unit we celebrate together.”
On the team’s
red zone defense:
“I
think we’ve been doing a pretty good job of holding guys to field goals in the
red zone. We’ve been playing pretty good in the red zone over the course of the
year. It’s just one of those things where we don’t want them to get down there
obviously, but when they do get there we’re limiting the damage to three points
so it gives us a chance to win the game at the end.”
On if his
interception return for a touchdown was sweet because it was against his former
team:
“Not
necessarily. I was telling Rex [Grossman] that it was business as usual for me.
It was nothing personal. I was there for three years and I enjoyed my stay. I
just wanted to come out and play well for the guys in this locker room and play
well enough to give us a chance to win.”
On snapping the
team’s eight-game losing streak at home:
“We’ve
been close over the past couple of weeks. To finally get a win today was
something that we’ve had our eyes set on to come out and play well. Not only to
play well but to come out and get a win. The guys did a great job of not losing
focus throughout the course of the game. We showed a lot of resilience and it
just goes to show the type of character we have in this locker room.”
On Robert
Griffin III’s 76-yard touchdown run:
“I
knew no one was going to catch him. We’ve seen it in practice and I think that
the rest of the league is seeing it today. The guy possesses a lot of ability
and he can throw. Today shows that he can run too.”
Tight
End Fred Davis
On Robert
Griffin III apologizing to the team for not running out of bounds last game:
“It
shows that he expects so much out of himself. He doesn’t look at himself as a
rookie. He has the starting job and he is trying to do the best to help us win.
Getting out of bounds is something that will help us win unless it’s like right
now when we needed him. He did what he needed to do and made a play.”
On playing with
Griffin III:
“Real
fun, you never know what’s going to happen. You can be down in the worst
position and still come out on top.”
On his thoughts
when Griffin III scored the 76-yard rushing touchdown:
“Yeah,
I was like, ‘Oh he’s gone’. He took off. I saw him take that third gear and he
was gone.”
Wide
Receiver Santana Moss
On snapping the
team’s eight-game home losing streak:
“That’s
what we needed. Obviously we heard about the losing streak and it wasn’t
something that we were really focusing on. We were just focusing on trying to
finish the game and win the game. I’m just proud to get that win. Every time
we’re out there on the field we’re trying to play and our main goal is come out
there with a ‘W.’ We didn’t understand why it was so tough to do it at home but
we’re glad it’s behind us and all we can do is move on now.”
On next week’s
battle for first place in the NFC East with the Giants:
“It’s
bigger than that to us. They’re a division rival and we just want to go out
there and do the best we can against them. We know that they’re the Super Bowl
champs and all that other stuff comes with it, but it’s New York. They’re in
the NFC East and we’ve got to take care of business.”
On Robert
Griffin III’s 76-yard touchdown run:
“When we were in the huddle we all said that somebody’s got
to make a play. That’s why he’s here. That’s why they’re ranting and raving
about him. Honestly, we’ve all seen what he’s got. He’s young right now. Some of
the things he’s doing we’re all wowed about because it’s so early and he’s so
young, but he’s a football player. Just know that when he’s on the field, he’s
going to make plays.”
Tight End Niles Paul
On his big hit in
punt coverage:
“I just knew that was my opportunity to get down there. They
kicked to my side and I knew we had to make a big play. I didn’t see him fair
catch it so I just took my shot.”
On if he watched the
replay afterwards:
“Yeah, I was looking around to make sure I didn’t get the flag
because his helmet came off. I didn’t feel like it was a helmet-to-helmet shot,
I just threw my shoulder at him. When I didn’t see any flags, I knew it was
OK.”
On how it felt to
make a big play on special teams:
“It felt good. We had quite a few big plays on special
teams. After the adversity we were first facing on punting, to be able to keep
doing what we’ve been doing the past couple weeks feels good.”
Fullback Darrel Young
On how he feels about
this year’s team compared to past years:
“I think we are growing under the Shanahan regime. You can
look at what we have done the past two years and we haven’t done positive
things; whether it be third down, [or] whether it is finishing games. But we
are doing a better job of all of that and winning some of those close games.”
On breaking the home
losing streak:
“It’s a terrible feeling to keep losing. It felt good to win
at home but it felt even better just have a win. Regardless of whether it’s on
the road or at home, you have to win in the National Football League. You’re
supposed to win at home because you have the 12th man on your side,
but sometimes you’re not fortunate enough to win those games. But today was one
of those games that we had to close and we did what it took in the end.”
On if the team needs
“utility players” to make more big plays instead of relying on superstars:
“Yeah, well, if you look at Coach Shanahan’s history, he’s
done a great job of drafting guys low, bringing in free agents and just
bringing in guys that make plays. I’m not saying I’m a playmaker but if you
look at a guy like Lorenzo Alexander, all he needs is opportunity. He’s proved
that. He’s played just about every position in the NFL and he’s still on the
team. That just goes to show we have ball players on this team. Look at Alfred
Morris, he was playing fullback in OTA’s but now he’s the star running back and
probably third-leading rusher in the NFL. I don’t know [where he’s ranked]
after the games today. He’s a great player, man, and like I said, Coach
Shanahan just does a great job at finding talent.”
Linebacker London Fletcher
On the key to the early stops in the red zone:
“Just playing good
red zone defense. We talked about making it so they can’t kick field goals.
[Running back Adrian] Peterson had a big run on their first drive but we were
able to hold them to a field goal. Especially in our first three possessions,
that was huge because if you think about it, we ended up going into halftime I
think up 10-9 or whatever the score was. Those were big stops and we got them.”
On the momentum change in the second quarter:
“The game was such a
blur. I can’t even remember what happened in the second quarter. But I think we
tackled better, were able to get them in some third down situations. I think at
one point they were 0-for-5 after that initial third-down conversion where they
quick-snapped on us. We were trying to come up with a blitz and they snapped
the ball quickly. We weren’t able to get on them. In our pressure there, we
knew what their game plan was as far as going quick snap on third down so we
had to switch up the people over there. [Linebacker] Lorenzo [Alexander] was
able to come over there and they fumbled... I don’t know what they ended up
crediting, but I think [linebacker Ryan] Kerrigan had some good pressure on the
end. We’ve just got to make sure what we’re doing.”
On Alexander’s speed:
“He made some great
plays for us. He’s a very explosive player, losing that weight, getting down to
whatever he is right now in the 240s, and he’s still a strong player with pass
rush ability… He’s able to get penetration, chase [quarterback Christian]
Ponder down. He’s a one-man gang. I call him ‘Jeezy O.M.G.’”
On generating pressure:
“Thinking back to
last week’s game, we went to more three-man rush. We wanted to play more
coverage, draw eight back in coverage when we were facing Atlanta because they
had so many weapons in the passing game. When you think about it, they had Roddy
White, Julio Jones, Tony Gonzalez. Those guys are going to be a handful to deal
with in the passing game so we decided to rush just three-man coverage,
three-man and draw eight in coverage. But this week, we decided we weren’t
going to do that, go with some more four-man pressures, maybe five-man
pressure, things like that, six [or] seven-man. We came with some six-man
pressures, things like that, to try to mix it up as far as what we were doing.
We weren’t going to sit back on coverage this week.”
On quarterback Robert Griffin III’s run:
“It was the game
because if you think about it at that point in time, I think we were up five
points, third down, still three minutes left on the clock, or three-plus
minutes, and a lot of time left to have timeouts. I had a great view of
everything watching the play develop. When I saw the lane part and he was able
to get past that first initial tackle and then a sideline guy tried to get him,
and then from there, it was just like, ‘Wow.’ I’m watching him run down the
sidelines. It’s really just like he was in a 400-meter run, just as relaxed as
you can be. You saw his long stride, really just like, ‘Wow.’”
On if he thought Griffin III would run out of bounds or
slide:
“No. The thing about
that with him, with a guy that has the ability to make plays, you have to just
allow him to trust his instincts on when he can make a play, when he can make a
gap and things like that. Right there he knew he had an angle on the guy and it
was just an opportunity to make a play. It was a huge play. It was the
difference in the ball game.”
On if Griffin III’s energy is contagious:
“One of the great
things about youth is that you don’t know. He doesn’t realize how hard it is to
win in this league. He’s just been phenomenal in what he’s done. Nothing’s been
too big for him. Really, he’s just going out there really having fun. I wish I
could have as much fun as he does playing the game because he’s really just
going out there carefree, just making plays like he’s just out of high school
and it’s how college might be. It’s great to watch.”
On the defense from a statistical viewpoint:
“I’ve been put into
a situation like this. I’ve been on top-ranked defenses a couple times when I
finished down with Buffalo, a No. 2 ranked defense twice and made the playoffs.
Since I’ve been here, we had a couple top 10. I think two or three defenses that
were ranked top 10. I think only one time we made the playoffs. Our highest
rated defense was No. 4, but never made the playoffs. So I think statistics you
can look a lot into but at the end of the day, what really matters is winning
and losing. You find ways to win. We gave up a lot of yardage today but if you
really look at that game, there wasn’t a situation where we didn’t put in [our
all]. We played some great defense today. Last drive we kind of got to
soft-type defenses, giving up some short catches, things like that to eat at
the clock, things like that. They end up with more yards but our interest in it
this week was stopping runs and I thought we did that. We played some good red
zone defense and we got takeaways.”
On losing key players early in the season:
“In the NFL,
injuries are going to happen. You have to be ready, whoever the next guy is.
You’re one play away, two plays away. Know where you are in the depth chart. I
think one of the great things is the management, front office, they’ve done a
great job of adding depth to our roster. In the past, I don’t think we were
good at withstanding those injuries, losing [Brian] Orakpo and [Adam] Carriker,
and some of the other guys we lose. Especially thinking about Pierre [Garçon]
not playing today, we’ve added depth to the wide receiver position. I think
that’s great seeing the young talent we have on this football team. The guys
are stepping in, playing the roles when given the opportunity.”
On safety Madieu Williams’ interception return for touchdown:
“I’ve got a couple
touchdowns in my career. I don’t know if he’s as good as I am, but anytime you
get into the end zone, that’s great. What happened, we were showing a pressure,
dropped back into a zone defense. We did a great job of taking away Ponder’s
different reads. The last time, I think the pass rusher was able to get to him
which forced him to step up and throw the ball off target. Madieu was standing
there. He caught the ball and we had some great blocking and he got into the
end zone.”
On winning at home:
“I think it’s huge.
Our fans deserve it. We’ve played some good defense and good games, but we
haven’t played for 60 minutes. We’ve given up some wins in the fourth quarter of
games, especially late. Today we finished the game… It’s huge. It’s good to
finally win at home. What we want to create is an environment when teams come
in here and they know it’s going to be a long day. I still would like the crowd
to be louder. I think teams can get comfortable with the crowd. I would like
our stadium to be even more hyped up. When you come in here, let’s be loud.
Let’s get some false starts on the opponent’s offense. From that standpoint, I
would like our fans to be louder, especially on third down situations. When we
go on the road, that’s what happens. Be louder, fans, and we’ll play better. I
want them as loud as they were when Robert scored that touchdown. That’s how I
want our fans to be.”
On if the team has the right mixture of youth and
experience to get through the next few games:
“Yes, I think so.
Coach [Mike] Shanahan is always talking about character. That’s one of the big
things he really emphasizes, just getting the right character guys in here.
Sometime that word can be really talked about but no one really understands
what he means by it. It’s just about having guys who do things the right way,
who are professional, who are not concerned about a lot of other things like
who should get credit, things like that. Again, I think it’s a great mix of
young talent. I’m one of the old guys. I guess probably the oldest on the team.
Being around these young guys, they keep me enthused, keep me excited about the
game. Right now, I’m just trying to impart as much to them if I can. If I look
at a guy like Perry [Riley], I’m trying to give him as much information as
possible so eventually he’ll be able to make that next step as a player, like
the other guys. I think we do have a great balance.”
Vikings Head Coach Leslie Frazier
On his team’s
performance:
“I thought we came out pretty good in this ball game. I
haven’t heard anything about our players that was negative injury-wise. I have
to credit the Washington Redskins for doing a very good job in all phases and
just playing much better football than we did. We didn’t play well enough to
win. Congratulations to the Redskins. We’ve got to figure out the things we
need to do to play better going forward.”
On his frustrations
after the first quarter:
“That’s tough. On the road you want to take advantage of
every opportunity you can to keep the crowd out of it. We talked about that. We
knew that. We know that. Anytime you let a team stay in it and you have some
opportunities, you create some potential problems. We just didn’t do enough
over four quarters to come away with the win.”
On their red zone
sequences:
“We’ll go back to the tape and see what we were doing. We
thought we had a good plan going into the ball game and obviously the thing we
were doing wasn’t working as effectively as we thought they would be. We will
go back and reassess it.”
On Griffin III’s
performance:
“There aren’t a lot of guys who play that position that can
break a 76-yard run and not get caught. So that creates some issues for any
defense. He’s a heck of a young player that can throw the ball and run the
ball. When things break down, he can make plays. He’s a very good player.”
On his weariness to
blitz Griffin III:
“We were very concerned about it coming into the ball game. We
wanted to pick our spots when we did do it. We knew what the potential
ramifications would be if we did do it and didn’t get there.”
On Christian Ponder’s
performance:
“I really think the Washington Redskins’ defense did a real
good job of handling our run game and they had good coverage and got good
pressure on the quarterback without having to blitz, although they did blitz
quite a bit. But I think you credit the Redskins’ offense more than the
defense, more than some of the things that Christian didn’t do well.”
On the offense’s
adjustments:
“We did end up making some adjustments to try to take some
of their press coverage away. It was something that they had success with but
we did make that adjustment.”
On scoring three
field goals instead of touchdowns:
“You want to be able to always get touchdowns, especially on
the road. You don’t want the fans in the game. We had an opportunity to really
silence the crowd and change the Redskins’ approach. But as time went on, they
got some momentum and we were not able to adjust and make some things happen to
offset some of the things they were doing. That is part of playing on the road
and winning on the road. We know that but we were not effective in getting it done.”
On penalties:
“I have to take a look at the tape to see if those were
pre-snap or post-snap penalties. We will do what we have to not allow that to
happen.”
On the Redskins
recovering a fumble and scoring a touchdown in the second quarter:
“That was a chance for us to really get ourselves going. We
didn’t capitalize and we gave them some opportunities. Plus, they were getting
the football in the second half. We created some energy for them and didn’t
execute the way we needed to. It cost us.”
On facing another
quarterback like Robert Griffin III:
“I have to look at our schedule but I don’t know too many
guys who make a 76-yard run playing quarterback in our league. There are a few
but I don’t know if they are on our schedule.”
On guard Geoff Schwartz
rotating in:
“We talked about it before the game and during the week. We
wanted to be able to get some tape on Geoff in game situations and this was an
opportunity we thought we could get it done.”
On wide receiver
Jerome Simpson not playing:
“I just didn’t feel comfortable in what I was seeing in
practice in a couple of different areas. I thought it would be a good idea to
give him a little more time and a full week of practice so he can get back on
the field and help us. I had a feeling yesterday, after the walkthrough, what
direction I wanted to go.”
On running back
Adrian Peterson’s ankle:
“I don’t think it slowed him down. He still ran as hard as
he has ever run and he never complained about it. I don’t think it hindered him
at all.”
On the Vikings’ fight
to stay in the game:
“That is the good thing about our guys. Even at halftime we
talked about how, in our league, you have to play four quarters. You hope guys
believe that. The way our guys fought when we were down 30-12, I don’t think
any of our guys ever doubted that we would get back in the game and have a
chance to win it at the end. It showed by the way they played and that gives me
hope that as we go forward we can make the adjustments we need to be
successful. It was encouraging to see how our guys battled back and didn’t
concede. That was very encouraging.”
On to whom he would
compare Griffin III:
“There are probably a few guys. Michael Vick when he came
into the league, he was a heck of a runner and still is. He is a pretty good
passer as well. Steve McNair and other guys but I would have to think about it
for a little bit.”
On if tackle of punt
returner Marcus Sherels was helmet-to-helmet contact:
“I would have to see the tape of it since it happened so
fast. When I saw it I didn’t think so and the officials came over and talked to
me about it. I would have to see the tape though.”
On his thoughts about
the game:
“Tough loss for us; wanted to keep winning alive, winning on
the road. We started off fast as an offense as we talked about, but as we
talked about before we have to finish in the red zone. We kicked three field
goals without touchdowns. It was not good. We need to finish. It came back and
bit us in the butt. [We] kind of slowed down in the second quarter with three
turnovers, spotted them 14 points. It’s tough to win that way. I’m proud of the
way we fought back. We finished until the end, and that’s always good to see.
We never counted ourselves out, we finished. I think it’s a testament to
[defensive end] Everson Griffen, to come out and play today. With the situation
he had to deal with he came out and played with a heavy heart, that’s a heck of
a teammate. We’re very proud of him and we’re supporting him. But we get back
to work tomorrow and move on from this, we don’t want this to linger. Just like
if this was a win we wouldn’t want it to linger. We have a tough road ahead of
us. We have to be back home for the next two weeks though. We get back to work
tomorrow.”
On if there’s a
pattern of red zone breakdowns:
“No, not really. We
will have to watch the film. I don’t know what the issue is. I think it all
goes back to execution. We have to keep executing and learning from it. But I
can’t pinpoint one exact thing.”
On Redskins
quarterback Robert Griffin III:
“He’s unbelievable.
He played extremely well. He’s actually a very good quarterback, a very good
athlete. He won the game and he will probably play in this league a long time.
He’s a good player.”
On the Redskins’
defense:
“They didn’t do
anything we didn’t expect. They’re a different defense schematically to begin
with; they do some different things, a lot of different coverages. They didn’t
do anything that we didn’t expect.”
On if wind impacted
his passing:
“No, I don’t think the wind was impacting it. I just had a
couple misses. I didn’t play as well as I should have.”
On the interception
return for touchdown by Redskins safety Madieu Williams:
“I tried to take it down, the ball kind of just slipped out
of my hands. It sailed trying to throw it to [wide receiver Michael] Jenkins
seven yards in front of me. Fluke play, I think.”
On if he was looking
for the zero blitz on the pick-six:
“It did get there a couple times. They rolled back to cover
three, so I wasn’t exactly sure. I think it did twice before. We’re always
anticipating cover zero. They’ve showed that same look a couple times before. ”
On his fumble:
“I think he just hit
the right spot. I was going through my throwing motion and I don’t know how
hard I got hit, but it [the ball] just got knocked out.”
On how the team is handling the loss:
“I think for how
young this team is we show a lot of maturity. Obviously a lot of the game was
on their side and we just kept pushing through, especially in the second half
and the fourth quarter. We just kept pushing through and no one hung their
heads, even in the locker room afterwards. Obviously we are disappointed. We
know it was a tough game we would play, but we know we have got to get better.”
On comparing this loss to their loss against the
Indianapolis Colts:
“We turned the ball
over three times and threw interceptions. That is just never good having those
turnovers like in that Indianapolis game. We’ve been here before. We lost the
second game of the first quarter [of the season] and we lost the second game of
the second quarter. We can learn from it. We have to go back home and play at
home and keep our winning streak at home alive.”
On his performance:
“Turnovers are never
good and fumbles and recoveries for a touchdown and the pick-six. It’s
disappointing, for sure. You never want to have those situations, but you just
have to forget about it. We do a good job of forgetting about it and moving on
and just keep playing.”
On wide receiver Jerome Simpson:
“We practiced with
him and weren’t really sure. It was going to be a game-time decision and
unfortunately he didn’t play… We won three games before he came in. We’ve got a
lot of playmakers at the wide receiving position and obviously at running back.
We were making plays without him.”
On wide receiver Percy Harvin:
“He is a heck of a
player. The plays that he makes and the hits that he takes, he keeps getting
up. We know that he is sore and has been hurting, but he is still playing and
making plays. He is an unbelievable player. Probably the best player in the
league right now, for sure.”
On his reaction to QB Robert Griffin III’s 76-yard
touchdown run:
“We just had to get
back out there and score. Obviously we want to score and take the lead, but
they made a play. RGIII is a heck of a quarterback who made an unbelievable play.
Obviously it showed his athleticism on that play. Our mindset was we had to go
out there and score and see what happens.”
Vikings
Wide Receiver Percy Harvin
On Robert Griffin III’s
76-yard touchdown run:
“It was a great play. I am a fan of RGIII. He made a big play for his
team, so all the better for him. But I am concerned about our team, we didn’t
make enough plays to win the game.”
On having to settle for
field goals in the red zone:
“That is something we have to go back to the drawing board and get a
little better in the red zone.”
On his disappointment in
the team’s red zone struggles:
“It was very disappointing, especially when your defense comes out on
fire like that and gets you a turnover on the plus side of the 50. We had the
chance to go up 21-0 and we didn’t do that. But that just shows you if you
don’t get three points, seven points will end up [costing] you at the end of
the game.”
Vikings Running Back Adrian Peterson
On the offense
settling for field goals in the red zone:
“You have to go back in time. I have said after four games
that we have to turn those threes into sevens and today it finally came back
and bit us. We picked it up in the second half; we got behind, but kudos to the
rest of the guys offensively for zoning in and focusing, giving ourselves a
chance. That was the situation and it is the only good thing to take out of it.
Most importantly, we need to turn those threes into sevens.”
On his evaluation of
the offense and what it can do better:
“I have to go look back on the film and see. From my part,
the run game, I don’t feel like I did well. I kind of left the offense out to
dry the first half, picked it up the second half. That is what happens, all
those threes. We did a good job.”
On his ability to hit
holes:
“I missed a couple; I need to be more aggressive. That is
pretty much what it boils down too.”
On coming out on a
second-and-goal play:
“I have confidence in the guys they put out there. We all
can execute on each play. I ride with anything we do. Unfortunately we did not
get in and we have to correct it.”
On his ankle:
“It held up. It got twisted up one time and I had to come
out to shake it out but I was able to get back in.”
On not being
aggressive to the holes early and if it was related to his ankle:
“It is always in my head. I was hesitant the first half. I
need to make sure that does not happen again.”
On coming back to
FedExField where he got hurt in 2011:
“I did not think about it too much. But it was a little
emotional. RGIII [Robert Griffin III] just came out. He is a pretty different
player. Like I told him, ‘you have the heart of a champion.’”
On what the loss
taught the team:
“We just have to be more consistent, be more aggressive and
execute. We need to take advantage of all opportunities. Offensively, we need
to turn those three points into sevens; it is a different game if we do that.
We will try to sharpen it all week.”
On dropped
passes:
“It hurts but it goes around from each position on that
field. We cannot just highlight one as a team. Each guy has to sit back and
study and see how they can improve, eliminate dropped balls, fumbles or
whatever it is.”
On the fans chanting
“RGIII” and momentum shifting:
“I really did not see it affect us. I see it on the
sidelines and look around at my guys and see what kind of energy I am getting
from those guys. You see the fight in us. You are down by 17 or 18 and our guys
fought. We fought. That is the heart of champs. Kudos to Washington but we will
bounce back for sure.”
On the team battling
back:
“We missed the two-point conversion but it was on to the
next. We weren’t worrying about that. We had to keep focused and hopefully the
defense would give us the ball back.”
On his sore ankle:
“It got twisted up but I came back in and finished the game, it feels good. I will have to assess it tomorrow when I wake up.”
“It got twisted up but I came back in and finished the game, it feels good. I will have to assess it tomorrow when I wake up.”
On arguing with
Redskins cornerback DeAngelo Hall:
“He just got caught up in his emotions. He slapped me in the
face. He didn’t follow through with it, but he slapped me in the face. I was
just telling him to not do me like that and he looked me in the eyes and he
knew I meant business. But respect to him, sometimes I know you get caught up
in your emotions and do things you don’t mean.”
Vikings
Cornerback Chris Cook
On if it was hard reacting to all the
different options Robert Griffin III brings:
“No, I don’t
think it’s hard to react to what he does. We practiced what he did all week.
All I can say is they out-executed us.”
On the Redskins
completing a lot of slants:
“They were just holding the linebackers with that playaction. Our
linebackers had to respect it. Then he was just raising up and throwing it.
They got a few plays off of that, but after a while we made an adjustment and
they tried to come back again to it and I broke it up.”
Vikings Left Tackle Matt Kalil
On his team’s
performance:
“I think we bounced back in the third and fourth quarters.
We played a lot better, but unfortunately we came up short and we have to get
back next week.”
On Redskins
quarterback Robert Griffin III:
“He did a great job. He definitely put the team on his back
and made a lot of big plays. That is what he got drafted to do… He is a good
guy, one of my good friends. He did a great job.”
On his journey as a
rookie:
“Twists and turns. Nothing is ever going to be perfect but
it is something that I will continue to grow and that is what it is all about.
I have great teammates behind me, and hopefully I improve week-in and week-out.
That has kind of been my journey so far.”
On adjustments he
needs to make:
“Little tweaks, nothing major thankfully. I have been pretty
fortunate. You just have to stay healthy.”
On how he would
evaluate his play this year:
“Good. I think I have played solid. Not that I have been
satisfied. I am never complacent with how I play. I always want to improve at
something I do.”
A big thank you to the Washington Redskins for providing the game notes and game quotes.
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