Head Coach Brian Flores
(I know you have another game this weekend and you’re probably not prepared to do another autopsy of the season as of yet, but I just wanted your initial thoughts about what you were feeling when you found out last night that the playoffs are no longer a possibility?) – “Disappointment. I think you’re in the wrong business if you’re not disappointed by that. That’s probably the – disappointment for our team, for the people in the building, for our players, coaches, support staff. Everyone works really hard and they put a lot into this, so definitely disappointed.”
(I know you don’t want to dissect the season yet, but just an overview on a particular thing that you’ve ranked bottom in the league all season and that’s points. Do you think part of the issue is that you simply don’t score enough points offensively as a team?) – “Right now, the focus is to make the corrections from last night and really get started on our next opponent, which is obviously a very good opponent in the Patriots. You’ve got to score points to win games. You’ve got to have more points than the opposition, so that’s always something that is at the top of the priority list. We’ve got to do a better job from that standpoint and that starts with me.”
(After facing QB Mac Jones in the opener, how have you seen him grow from then to now as you get started in preparations this week?) – “He’s done a great job for them. Good command of the offense. I think they play well together as a team. Balanced run-pass. They do a great job defensively, a good job in the kicking game. It’s a very good team and he’s done a nice job for them.”
(I know it’s early in game preparation, but obviously it’s a situation where you’re not competing for a playoff spot. Has there been any discussion within the coaching staff about maybe getting some of the younger players who may not have had any opportunities a little bit of playing time or some snaps this weekend?) – “No. We’re really focused on making the corrections from yesterday and getting the beginning preparations for this game. We always have conversations about who is going to play, how much. Those conversations will be had. We’re always going to try to put our players in the best position to have success and our team in the best position to have success.”
(I was wondering if you could share with us your message to the team this morning following the loss and a lot of disappointment I’m sure in the building.) – “It’s a tough loss. I know they are all disappointed. I think there are a lot of emotions that come with being eliminated. I think it’s easy to go and lament all of those feelings. A hard thing to do is pick yourself up and move on to the next challenge. That’s what we need to do. That was the message. I think they took to that and we’ll make the corrections today and I’m sure we’ll be out there Wednesday with great energy and excited to go out there and compete.”
(Could you possibly walk us through the decision to put QB Jacoby Brissett in the game n the third- and fourth-and-short yardage situations?) – “Jacoby has gone in there in those instances really pretty much throughout the year. He’s kind of been the sneak quarterback and we felt like it was an opportunity to push the ball down the field.”
(I don’t want you to go through gameplans because there is still a game left but it feels like the past several instances have been going into the game and usually end up in either like the pass attempt like we saw yesterday or trying to get around the edge. Is that more you guys trying to keep defenses off guard by not just sending QB Jacoby Brissett up the middle automatically every time he’s in the game?) – “Yeah, I would say so. I think it’s a little bit of you think it’s a sneak and we do something else. You think it’s not a sneak and we try to sneak it.”
(Is there ever a thought to sending QB Tua Tagovailoa around the edge or just trying to pick those short yards up with Tua?) – “Yeah, I think we’ve done that throughout the course of the season as well. He’s snuck it and he’s also thrown some of those dash passes to his left. I think we’ve done both if you kind of look at it.”
(Looking over WR Jaylen Waddle’s stat line from yesterday, he had a dip in targets, receptions, yards and everything from what he’s been doing the last couple of months. I’m just curious now that you’ve had a chance to watch the tape, what they did to take him away from the game and if there is anything he can learn from how the Titans attacked him yesterday?) – “They did a nice job. There was some double coverage. Obviously, they paid a lot of attention to him. We missed him on a couple of throws. A combination of all those things was a reason for a little bit of the dip but I thought he made one nice catch there in the fourth quarter. He put us in position, we just couldn’t finish the drive off.”
(I guess it’s been three weeks since RB Malcolm Brown has returned to practice so you have a decision to make there. What will you do with him?) – “We’ll talk through that and make the decision we feel is best for the team. I’ll talk to our staff about that here tonight, tomorrow. We’ll do what’s best for the team.”
(Are there any guys on the practice that you may consider using a final elevation to get a good look at here in this finale?) – “Potentially. Again, we’ll have those conversations on the roster, which will include the practice squad and any guys who could potentially come off of the IR and play in the game. We’ll look at it all and try to get the best 48 to the game.”
(I was going to ask you if there was any thought in retrospect to wishing that you had used RB Duke Johnson a little more in the second half on runs? I know it’s very difficult when you’re trailing to get the running game going in the second half of a game but was that a thought you had at all after the game?) – “I thought Duke ran the ball well in the first half. We probably could have stuck a few more runs in there. When you’re down, you want to try to get back into the game and try to create some other plays, which we missed on some of those other plays that we had guys open as well. Look, we just didn’t execute across the board – offensively, defensively or in the kicking game – and we didn’t get the result we wanted.”
(In terms of, I know you talked about the thoughts you had in your mind last night and not to probe if you want to keep this personal, but was there anything kind of gnawing at you when you went to bed last night or woke up this morning with regard to how the season played out missing the postseason? Fans might say the Jacksonville loss, others might say different things. Was there anything gnawing at you last night or this morning?) – “No. There’s always – I try to just not think about what’s happened or look too far ahead. I try to stay present and the focus was on making the corrections from the game, thinking about my message to the team today and that’s kind of where I am right now.”
WR Jaylen Waddle
(I know you want it to come in a win, but what would the rookie receiving record mean to you and also if it comes in a win against the Patriots?) – “I’m not really that focused on the record or anything. I’m just focused on doing my job and trying to help win.”
(I know you’ll have the offseason to think about this but what initially comes to mind if I asked you an area where you could still improve after all the great things you did as a rookie? What’s one area where you think you can get better?) – “I think there’s a lot of areas, to be honest. I think just knowledge of the game is always something that I can get better at and really just studying my opponents in deeper detail, being one step ahead and knowing what I’m going to see out there, I think that’s big. Obviously, you always want to work on catching the ball. That’s always thing No. 1 for a receiver to work on. Details on routes, top of the routes and trying to create more separation. I’ve got a lot to work on.”
(How unusual is it to be in a position where you’re not going to the postseason? There was so much winning at Alabama, is this a shock to your system, your season ending in seven days?) – “It’s disappointing, I would say that. We obviously wanted to make it far and try to make a run for it. But the season’s not over yet so we’ve still got another game to go and build into next year.”
(With the way you were played defensively yesterday, was it different from how other teams defended you?) – “Kind of, not really. I think they really did the things that they’re known for. They ran zone and had a lot of zone things to me. No, not overly different.”
(How difficult is it to find ways to make an impact when you are so heavily focused on from an opposing defense?) – “You’ve still got a job to do, obviously. If that means taking two for your teammate to get open or drawing attention to yourself to create positive plays, then that’s what you got to do at that point.”
S Eric Rowe
(You guys were eliminated yesterday after other results went final. Does that make the final week of the regular season tougher to get motivated for? Or as a competitor, do you still get up for the final chance to play this season?) – “I feel like if you’re a competitor, whether it’s for playoffs or not, whether you’re in the game, you’ve still got to put out good tape. Me personally, I’m just a competitor so it doesn’t matter what type of game it is, what type of status it has, I’m going to get out there and play, because me, I want to make my opponent look embarrassed. That’s just me, personally. I feel like everybody on the team is a competitor so no one is going to take it like, ‘Oh why am I here? It just don’t mean nothing.’ I know we’re all going to play hard.”
(I was just wondering what emotions you were left with after missing the playoffs for two years in a row and having an opportunity to make it with a win against Buffalo last year, and obviously if you had won yesterday and next Sunday. Is there frustration, anger, disappointment? What emotion have you felt the last 12 hours or so?) – “It’s disappointing. It hurts because of the work that we put in. Even in training camp, just the amount of work that we put in on and off the field. I know we went through a rough patch at first and then we clicked together but we just kind of clicked it really a game or two too late to where we had to win eight or nine straight just to make the playoffs. It hurts but that’s just how this league goes.”
(I know there’s still one game to play but I wanted to ask you your thoughts about where this franchise can go, where this team can go. I guess I’m driving at points of optimism. What do you view as the points of optimism? – “It’s tough to say because obviously teams change every year. A couple points is growth, growth as a team and as a whole. Just the way that we clicked together, even secondary-wise, the way that we communicate together. We’ve gotten a lot better being on the same page and hopefully it extends to next year. But really just growth as a team in general.”
(You mentioned it earlier that this team, despite winning seven in a row, it was just one loss that led to an elimination. Obviously, that’s because of those seven earlier losses. Do you find yourself looking back at all at those games against the Jaguars, Falcons, Raiders and Colts and wondering what could have been?) – “I haven’t looked back on it now because obviously we were still focused on trying to win each game and we have one more game to win. All of our focus is going to be on the Patriots this week instead of trying to recap the season because the season’s not over yet technically. We have one more guaranteed game left and that’s where the energy is going to be at.”
LB Jerome Baker
(I don’t know how much of the film from yesterday you’ve had a chance to review, but given how well the defense has played these past seven weeks, what strikes you as the thing that went wrong the most for the defense yesterday?) – “We just didn’t execute. I think that was the main thing. We just didn’t execute at the end of the day. I didn’t watch it yet but I can tell you that was the main problem.”
(How disappointing is it to know that you might finish with a winning record, but you’re not going to be in the playoffs?) – “It’s very disappointing, but it is what it is.”
(This team, despite winning seven in a row, there was one loss yesterday that led to elimination. Obviously that was because of those previous seven losses. Do you find yourself looking back at all as you reflect those games against the Jaguars, Falcons, Raiders or Colts and wondering what could’ve been if you just got one of those?) – “No. I can’t change the past. There is no point in looking back and trying to see what could’ve happened or what could’ve been. I deal with reality and reality is we’re not going to the playoffs. We’ve just got to finish this season off strong and get it done Sunday.”
(What do you think is going to have to be different in order for the team to make the playoffs in the future?) – “That’s a tough on to answer right now. I think right now we’ve just got to focus on Sunday. Get a win Sunday and worry about how can we get better in the offseason. Right now, we’re just worried about Sunday. We’ve still got an opportunity and just to play in this league is a blessing. We’ve got to go out there Sunday and get it done.”
WR DeVante Parker
(On yesterday’s game, what was the explanation you got for the fourth-down no-call on what looked like pass interference?) – “There was no explanation. I just didn’t agree with his call and that was that.”
(What were you trying to tell the official?) – “That it should have been a flag.”
(You guys were eliminated after other results. Does that make the final week of the regular season tougher? Or as a competitor, do you still get up for this final chance to play this season?) – “We’ve still got another game left so we’re just going to go out and play for one another.”
(It seemed like there were a couple of plays where you ran one route and QB Tua Tagovailoa threw another. I was just wondering if there was any miscommunication between you guys yesterday.) – “Yeah, there was but we talked on the sideline afterwards so we got that squared away.”
(How would you describe this season?) – “I’d say a tough one.”
(I know you have one more to play but what has surprised you?) – “Nothing, really.”
G/T Robert Hunt
(I’m wondering what’s the overriding feeling in the locker room this morning as it sinks in that you are not going to make it to the playoffs this season?) – “It’s not a great feeling. We all wanted to win. We all wanted to go to the playoffs. Losing a tough one, it’s never fun. I would say nobody’s happy.”
(Does that make the final week of the regular season tougher to get motivated for or as a competitor, do you still get up for this final chance to play this season against a division rival?) – “Of course, we want to play. We want to go out, take it one day at a time and of course the goal is to try to end the season on a good note. That’s exactly what we’re trying to do.”
(Is finishing with a winning record – you guys are 8-8 now and a win would put you at 9-8 – is that something that motivates you guys or the team?) – “For myself, yeah I would like to do that. I’m sure everybody else would like to do that too. That’s the goal pretty much. I’m sure everybody wants to win. I know we all want to win. We all want to go out on a good note, like I said.”
(Since this probably will be the last time we get a chance to talk to you until this summer, I just wanted to ask you if you are happy and content at right guard, if that is where your position is long term. Is there any part of you that would still like to play tackle?) – “Wherever the coaches need me, wherever I’m at, whenever they need me, I’ll be available to go. I got some stuff to work on still, but I think I can be great at guard and tackle in my opinion.”
(How would you assess how you played at the guard position your first full pro year there?) – “There are things that I need to get better at, for sure. Starting to get the hang of it here a little late. That is starting to work well for me. There’s some stuff that I can improve on.”
(How would you assess where the offensive line as a whole is right now?) – “I think we’re getting better. We have our ups and downs and that’s that, but I think we’re definitely getting better. I think we have a room full of guys who care, that want to get better and that are willing to get better. That always speaks volumes and I think we got a great room of guys that are willing to do that.”
