JAGUARS HEAD COACH DOUG PEDERSON
POSTGAME MEDIA AVAILABILITY
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2022
Q. What were your overall thoughts about the game?
DOUG PEDERSON: Just overall, [I’m] very proud of this group, just how resilient they are to bounce back
from a loss last weekend to putting things together this weekend against a divisional opponent who I
have a lot of respect, obviously you know, for [Colts Head Coach] Frank [Reich] and his team. [I’m] just
very proud of our guys, the way they worked in practice this week, and how they came out and really
took charge of this game from the opening drive.
Q. What did you see on film leading up to this game that really allowed you to key in and shut down
the run game of the Colts and take them out of so much of what they wanted to do?
DOUG PEDERSON: I’ll tell you, [I have] a lot of respect for their run game and [Colts Running Backs
Coach] Scottie [Montgomery] and the guys. They did a great job. It’s nothing that you see on tape. It’s
just about us. It’s about being physical and just understanding to stay disciplined in your run fits and
your eye discipline on things. Our guys did a great job, just rallying to the ball, getting him on the
ground. It was a focus for us this week in practice and [it’s] just a credit to how hard our guys worked to
understand and then eliminate the run.
Q. Offensively what did you have in your game plan that limited you from taking the shots downfield?
Was that game plan or a reaction to what they were doing?
DOUG PEDERSON: It was a little of both. [Colts Defensive Coordinator] Gus Bradley, gosh, he’s great at
what he does. What I appreciate about Gus and his scheme is they kind of just show you one thing. He’ll
mix it, but he’ll show you one thing, and you’ve got to stay completely disciplined going against a guy
like Coach Bradley. I thought our guys did that. [Jaguars QB] Trevor [Lawrence] was efficient, got the ball
out of his hand. Some of it was by play call and design to help him a little bit. We had moments where
we had some shots dialed and just for whatever reason we also had them alerted to some runs. They
took it away, so we had to run the football in those situations. It’s hard to express that and explain that
obviously when you’re not in the game plan meeting and understand kind of what we’re trying to get
done.
Q. Both sides of the ball right out of the gate were really clicking for you today. As a coach, can you
feel it, especially offensively, early in a game that you know it’s going to work on this particular day?
DOUG PEDERSON: You hope. You know, you’ve got a lot of football left. It’s a 60-minute game and
you’ve just got to take it one play at a time. One thing I learned a long time ago is you never get too high
and you never get too low. It’s a 60-minute football game. Listen, they were down I think 20-3 last
weekend and came back and tied that football game, so anything is possible. We just have to stick to our
process and stick to what we were doing.
Q. I’ve always been told that coaches learn the most about their team between Game 1 and Game 2.
Did you learn anything about your football team today?
DOUG PEDERSON: I just learned that this group is eager to win. They want to win and they put in the
hard work during the week. That’s something I’ve been very proud of this group and really appreciate
what they’ve done and how they’ve been able to take the mistakes from a week ago and sort of
minimize them going into this week and really attacking the game plan and really just attacking their job.
Q. First drive of the game you had a 4th down situation, and you went for it at that point. Is that more
of the push them to that confidence level you need them to be because you dominated the time of
possession today?
DOUG PEDERSON: Yeah, it’s just a credit to the guys. Execution there, I think it was a great throw and
catch to Zay Jones to get the first down. Again, we were in one of those areas of the field where it’s a
little bit gray, too long for a field goal and maybe a little bit too short for a punt. You’re okay if you don’t
make it, but I’m going to try to be as aggressive as possible, give our guys opportunities. I think once we
got that one and another one after that, it just kind of felt comfortable for them. We’ve just got to
continue to work those scenarios and prepare our football team that way. It does help the confidence of
the team when you do go for one on fourth down and you get it and stay on the field. We ended up with
points there.
Q. There was a little chatter last week about QB Trevor Lawrence’s accuracy, but today I’m sure this is
his best completion percentage of his career. Did you guys work on anything in particular? You talked
about the pitch and runs. In practice, did he really get diligent about trying to improve his accuracy?
DOUG PEDERSON: You know, every week we work on that kind of stuff and try to be as efficient as
possible. My hats off to [Offensive Coordinator] Press Taylor, the coordinator, and [Passing Game
Coordinator] Jim Bob [Cooter], [Quarterbacks Coach] Mike McCoy and the guys for really putting
together a great plan and really helping Trevor [Lawrence]. That’s something that we as a coaching staff
kind of take away from the week before. We’ve got to help our guys. We can’t just throw a bunch of
plays out there and expect them to execute. We’ve got to help them, so that’s why we practice, that’s
why we go out and do the things we do. I thought Trevor did an outstanding job today getting the ball
out of his hand. He saw things really well. There were a lot of catch, break tackles, get first downs, things
like that. He threw hot a couple times. Those are all the things he’s capable of doing, and yeah, we
continue to work on that stuff every week.
Q. Defensively we’ve been talking about how good this defense could be for a while now. Was this
maybe more of what you thought it could be?
DOUG PEDERSON: Yeah, they played extremely well. We know Indy was down a couple of their pass
catchers and good pass catchers, so who knows. But I’ll tell you what, my hats off to [Defensive
Coordinator] Mike Caldwell, [he had a] great defensive plan. The guys executed it during the week in
practice, and again, to me that’s where you win football games is during the week, and then you just go
out and execute the plan. For them to fly around today and do the things they did, get after the
quarterback, create turnovers, all the things we talk about, we saw it. Things are starting to kind of, I
think, click for guys. [There’s] still a lot of football ahead of us. We’ve got to play this team again, and
we’ve just got another great opponent next week.
Q. We saw what seemed to be a concerted effort to really maintain balance today. Was that in the
back of your mind or were you just calling the game in the flow?
DOUG PEDERSON: You know, again, I seem to learn from experience, but you do what it takes to win,
bottom line. You do what it takes to win. If that means running it 37 times or 47 times, 50 times or 10
times, you do what it takes to win the football game. It was just a great opportunity, and again, credit
the offensive line, [Offensive Line Coach] Phil Rauscher had those guys prepared, and it was good
balance. Overall, it was a great balance for us.
Q. To be able to have a performance like this in the home opener, how much do you think this will
keep fans engaged and keep that bond between the team and the fans stronger than it might have
been in previous years?
DOUG PEDERSON: Yeah, I thought we had a really good crowd today. They got loud on a couple of those
defensive fourth down plays in the second half, and that was good to see the guys out there. Listen, you
get paid to win games, right. You win, the fans show up. I’m a fan. I want to go watch a winner, so I’ll pay
money to go see a winner. We have to just win games. This was a great start today. There’s a lot of
football left, but the crowd was excellent today. Hats off to them. They showed up even after the
rainstorm there in the first half, but credit to them, and hopefully we can keep the momentum.
Q. It seemed like QB Trevor Lawrence was pretty much on point with everything today, not just his
throws but where he went with the ball, where he decided to go with it.
DOUG PEDERSON: Yeah, a lot of it was by design, the designed play call at the time. We worked on that
stuff in practice this week. We knew going into this game, listen, this is a [Colts Defensive Coordinator]
Gus Bradley defense. They’re going to be sound at what they do. They’re going to be in the right spots,
so we have to be in the right spots and we have to be disciplined in the passing game, and there are
some areas of the field that you can try to get after, but yet the ball has to come out on time because
they rally and tackle. I thought Trevor [Lawrence] did a great job in that aspect of just getting the ball
out of his hand, getting it to the right spot. Guys stayed disciplined in the game like we talked about and
executed that well.
Q. In terms of all three phases, is this as close to the kind of game that goes just the way you draw it
up?
DOUG PEDERSON: I would have to say so, maybe shy of the Super Bowl a couple years ago. But yeah,
listen, they took full advantage of the week of practice and understood the game plan. I challenged
them to stay in their play books and know the game plan inside and out, all three phases. They did that,
and when they do that, you can kind of see the execution on the field.
Q. We saw two touchdown passes from QB Trevor Lawrence to WR Christian Kirk. Is that a connection
that you’ve seen growing in practice, or was it just right place, right time, great play execution today?
DOUG PEDERSON: Yeah, it’s something that we’ve started back in the spring with those two kind of
building that relationship. Christian [Kirk] is a great player. That’s why we went out and got him in free
agency, and you can see it now two weeks in a row, some of the plays that he’s made. He’s made an
impact for our offense. But yeah, it’s just a matter of them just continuing to work, stay on the same
page, again, coming up with game plans that help Christian get open and Trevor [Lawrence] to find him.
Q. Did you get a game ball in the locker room?
DOUG PEDERSON: I did.
Q. How meaningful was that, and did you almost run out of game balls because so many other guys
had so many big performances today?
DOUG PEDERSON: It’s special. It’s my first win, obviously, as the head coach here, but it’s a team win.
We celebrate as a team. I appreciate that, and it will definitely go on the mantle at the house, but my
hats off to those guys in the locker room. They’re the ones that did it. I didn’t get hit, I didn’t have to
throw any passes or run the ball, so all credit to the team.
Q. You only have six division games, so starting out 1-0, how important is that to the race to winning
the division?
DOUG PEDERSON: It’s something we talked about this week. The AFC South, it’s a great division. It’s only
going to get better and stronger. This is a great football team today. It’s going to be a different game
next time we play them. In order for any team to get to the postseason, you’ve got to be able to win
your division, so this was a great step in that direction.
JAGUARS QUARTERBACK TREVOR LAWRENCE
POSTGAME MEDIA AVAILABILITY
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2022
Q. What did you do to kind of work on the accuracy issues you might have had last week, and Doug
[Pederson] said it was more or less the coaches put you guys in position to make plays a little bit
better than maybe last week.
TREVOR LAWRENCE: Yeah, I think it’s both. When you look at it, obviously we all have our part. It’s the
ultimate team game, coaches included. You look at everything, and we all could have played better last
week for sure. Coaches could have coached better. We’re all in it together. I think when you look at that,
our coaches did a good job of being honest with us, things we could do better, but also things they could
do better. We had a really good week of prep, felt confident about it, and I think they put us in good
positions all game. We just controlled the game. Like I said after the game, it’s kind of an ideal way to
play it, you have the time of possession like we did, long drives, you hold the ball for a while, you’re
ending with touchdowns besides the one field goal, so it was awesome. Then our defense comes out
there and just stopped everything, especially at the end of the game when we’re trying to run some
clock off and they’re getting the ball back pretty quick and defense was just stunning them. It was
awesome. It was a lot of fun.
Q. You were 25-for-30 today, I think. A lot of stuff underneath, intermediate. Was there a reason that
you weren’t taking more shots downfield? Were you just taking what the defense gave you? Was that
the game plan?
TREVOR LAWRENCE: Yeah, definitely, it was our plan. Just the way — the defense they run, the structure,
they try to take away shots. They play soft. They’ll give you things underneath. They just make you be
patient for the whole game. A lot of teams get impatient, try to start forcing throws downfield, and
really we did a good job of sticking to our plan. That was what we planned on doing and we executed it
really well. The guys did a great job after the catch. Christian [Kirk] was awesome, and some of the other
guys, too. Evan [Engram] had some great plays. So really that was the plan, and it’s cool being able to
just execute the plan that you have all week and to do it to a tee, so it was great.
Q. Were you and your teammates aware that the Colts have not won here since 2014 and that your
last shutout was against them in 2018?
TREVOR LAWRENCE: The second part, no, I didn’t know. But yeah, I mean, I think everybody knows
about them not winning here in a while. For us it’s just trying to keep that streak going, which we
extended it to another year, to next year. We’ve still got a lot of division games left. We’ve still got a full
season ahead of us. That’s the 24-hour rule we talked about after the game. Let’s enjoy it tonight,
because this is a big one. It’s a division win, really played well, dominated the game. We should
celebrate, but when we come in tomorrow, we’ve got to flip the script and get ready to roll.
Q. After every game you kind of know how you played. You don’t necessarily have to watch film to
know inside how you played. Did you feel like today you were about as on point as you could be in
terms of where you went with the ball and ball placement in terms of giving your guys a chance to get
the axe?
TREVOR LAWRENCE: Yeah, I’m happy with the way I played. I think I left a couple plays out there, but
honestly, for the most part, I think I maximized what was in front of me. Our guys did, as well. The O-line
did a great job of protection. We did a nice job, I think Coach [Doug Pederson] and Press [Taylor], with
the play calling, just mixing it up, keeping them on their heels. Like I said, everything works together, but
I’m happy with how I played. It was an efficient day. That was the plan, and that’s the most satisfying
thing is when you have the plan and you know this is going to work if you can execute it for four
quarters, and we did it and got out of here with a win, and it was awesome.
Q. How difficult is it, and Christian [Kirk] echoed this in the locker room, when you have to play within
the offense? He said he wants to have a 40-yard touchdown pass and you want to probably throw it,
but how difficult is that to say, all right, that’s what we want to do, but this is what the situation is,
and we have to play within the offense?
TREVOR LAWRENCE: You know, I just think that we were really prepared to do what we did today, just
be patient, and that was what was preached to us all week, so I think that made it easier. But yeah,
sometimes it’s hard to be patient. But that’s what they want. They want you to get impatient and start
forcing the ball downfield. They want you to just try to do too much and not take what’s right there in
front of you. We didn’t do that today, so that was awesome.
Q. What would you say to the folks who during the off-season were saying Christian Kirk is getting too
much money from the Jacksonville Jaguars?
TREVOR LAWRENCE: Two games in, and it’s been great so far. I don’t really care about that stuff. I know
he doesn’t, either. We’ve talked about just blocking all that out. At the end of the day, I said it after the
game, the group we’ve got, we’re confident we can beat anybody we play, and no matter whether we
prepare the right way and we execute it, that’s another story, but we’ve got the talent, so I’m not
worried. He’s awesome. From a quarterback’s perspective, the way he plays, the way he sees the game,
the way he gets open, just everything. He has a great feel, so it’s been great, that relationship, and just
keep building that with all the guys. We’ve got a great group.
Q. When this stuff works, how fun is the design of some of the things you guys are doing, the 4th
down play down near the goal line and probably several other examples?
TREVOR LAWRENCE: It’s awesome. Just like I said, when you have a plan, you have a scheme and you’re
planning on seeing this look and this is why you’re doing it a certain way and it works out, that’s the best
part I’m sure for the coaches but also for us players. It’s this is how you practiced it, this is the look you
think you’re going to get, you get it, you execute, you make the play. It was awesome, especially in those
big moments; we had a couple 4th downs, just a bunch of drives we kept alive and marched it down the
field. It was great.
Q. You’ve been going uphill in your career so far. You’re at .500 for the first time. Does it feel like a
good place to be and then maybe try to build off that?
TREVOR LAWRENCE: Yeah, I mean, that’s all you can do is just take it week by week. We talked about it
early in the week last week, really felt like we should have had that one, but you’ve got to move on. The
same thing Monday; you’ve got to flip the page and you’ve got to move on to the next weekend. We did
a great job of that. I thought we prepared really well. Same challenge this week after a win and playing
really well all around, offense, defense, special teams, but you’ve got to, all right, now it’s time to
prepare for the (Los Angeles) Chargers that we’ve got to go play. That’s the challenge, and you’ve got to
do it every week, and I think we’ve got the guys to do it.
Q. Building on that same ilk, this time last year obviously struggles compared to this year, but now
you’ve got a lot more going on. You’re using the term “maximize” for your performance in the past
game. How much more excitement do you feel getting prepared going into the Charger game? I know
there’s still the 24-hour rule going on, but how much more excitement is it to get back out there and
prepare?
TREVOR LAWRENCE: I mean, you’re excited every week. Obviously, a little bit for different reasons.
When you lose a game, you’re ready to get back and let’s go get the next one. When you win a game,
let’s keep this momentum. I think that’s a big thing in this league is you have to forget the game, but you
also use that momentum, let it carry you throughout the season, build some confidence, and I think it
has with this crew, and we have a lot of confidence already, but now to put that together and go
dominate a game and show it on the field, I think that’s huge for us, so just carry that into this week.
Q. Can you talk about the match-up problem that Christian kind of creates, especially when you put
him in the backfield, motion him out and stuff like that?
TREVOR LAWRENCE: Yeah, his versatility, being able to put him outside, inside, in the backfield,
wherever you want him, and then mixed with all the other threats that we have, the guys at running
back, the other wide outs, our tight ends. It just creates problems for defenses. As much as we can keep
using that to our advantage, we will, and I think we’ve done a good job of that so far. You saw a lot of
those, we should have had last week, we didn’t execute quite right, but those hit today. So being able to
just, like I said, carry that and keep the execution level like it was today, and we should be fine.
Q. You talked before, I guess, about how he prepares and how he’s good for the other receivers.
What’s one thing about his preparation or anything that maybe stands out for you?
TREVOR LAWRENCE: I mean, there’s a lot of things. He’s very professional the way he approaches the
game, the conversations we have. He sees things really well. After a play, he might — whatever the
concept was, I’m not getting into all of that, but he’ll see something and come to me and ask what I saw,
and it’s just constant conversation. I think that’s the biggest thing between a quarterback and a receiver
is just having that dialogue all the time, whether that’s in practice, in a game, both. He does a great job
of that, and our other guys do, too. During practice we always go after, and if something wasn’t right
that day, we go fix it and make sure we’re on the same page. I think seeing some of that stuff start to
pay off and click.
Q. Second year, second staff. Obviously, every coordinator is going to want to put you in a position to
be successful, but this early on to go out, have a performance like this where it does work to a tee and
you talk about that level of execution, what does that do for your relationship between you,
coordinator, the head coach, everything involved?
TREVOR LAWRENCE: I think it just confirms what we’re doing here, what we’re building. The people we
have, coaches and players included. I think that’s really it. That confirms that we’re on the right track.
We’re where we want to be. Like I said, you’ve just got to take it week by week and keep getting better.
If we win this game and go and lay an egg the rest of the season, it really doesn’t matter. We’ve got to
keep getting better, and I’m confident we will, but it really does just confirm what we’re doing. I’ve got a
lot of faith in the coaches and our players and just proud of, like I said, the way we executed, and it’s fun
when it comes together, and it was awesome.
Q. The touchdown pass to Christian, was it exactly like the play last week to J-Rob [James Robinson]?
TREVOR LAWRENCE: The second one you’re talking about? Yeah, similar. A little different. I mean, it’s a
little different — you guys can go back and watch them and look at the difference in them.
Q. Not the same language in the call?
TREVOR LAWRENCE: Yeah, not the same plau. Like I said, same thing. Coach is doing a great job of
knowing the situation, getting us in the right play, surprising the defense. I think they did a great job.
Q. As a follow-up, I know nothing is more important than getting the W no matter how you get it, but
when you have this upcoming match-up with a guy like Justin Herbert, do match-ups like that stoke
you? Does it provide any extra motivation at all, or is it just another opponent who happens to have a
great quarterback?
TREVOR LAWRENCE: Yeah, it doesn’t really change anything for me. At the end of the day, we’re there to
win the game. I’m not playing against him necessarily, he’s not playing defense, so I’ve got to study what
they’re doing on the other side of the ball. It’s always a fun match-up, though, when you have two
young quarterbacks, and he’s obviously playing great and he’s a great player and I have a lot of respect
for him. It’s going to be a fun match-up, but no, it doesn’t really add anything to me. It’s still a game
we’re trying to win.
Q. I don’t think we’ve actually asked you this specifically. When it comes to Doug’s aggressiveness on
4th downs, what do you make of it? What do you think of how aggressive he is?
TREVOR LAWRENCE: I love it. I love it. It’s awesome. I think it just builds confidence in the whole team
when he’s willing — we’re on the — what was it today, we’re on the 50 and have a 4th and 2 and early in
the game he’s willing to go for it. It just shows, one, he trusts our offense; two, he trusts our defense. If
for some reason we don’t get it, he trusts our defense to hold up. I think all the way around, that’s the
mindset is no, you’re not going to go for every 4th down, but we’re not scared to go for it. We know
we’ve got the players to do it, and just being aggressive and instilling that confidence in the whole team.
Q. Were you surprised a couple of the times that he has gone for it through two games?
TREVOR LAWRENCE: Not really. I mean, that’s stuff we’ve talked about through OTAs, through camp.
Every situation is different, but you never know really what he’s going to do. Just depending on the
situation. But I think most of the time I have a pretty good idea. I’m standing on the field kind of keeping
all the guys right there and sometimes he’ll call us off, but we did a good job executing today. I think we
were 2 for 3. The last one was kind of like a four-minute one so doesn’t really count, but that’s fine.
COLTS HEAD COACH FRANK REICH
POSTGAME MEDIA AVAILABILITY
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2022
FRANK REICH: We’ll learn from it. We’ll get better and pick ourselves up off the mat. It’s early in the
season. Obviously, a very poor showing in every way. We’ve got to learn from it and move on.
Q. At this point it doesn’t seem like it’s about talent. Sloppy, listless; why?
FRANK REICH: It was not a good effort out there today. It was not good. We’ll go back and look at the
film, evaluate it play-by-play, evaluate the schemes. We’ll evaluate the schemes, we’ll evaluate
everything. We’ll evaluate plays, schemes, everything top to bottom.
Q. It feels like it’s unmotivated so far. Do you feel that from the team? Why do you think you haven’t
been able to get the team to go?
FRANK REICH: I actually don’t feel unmotivated. I certainly respect the fact that that’s what it seems like.
If you would feel what it feels like during the week, unmotivated is not a word that you would
characterize what our week are like, what this last week was like.
Coming off our performance last week, the intensity at practice was at an all-time high, the intensity in
meetings last night. Honestly, I mean, it’s not about speeches or anything, but the intensity of the
meetings last night, the ferocity of the players, all week long wanting to coach us, wanting to get back
on track. I don’t feel it’s a lack of motivation. I just feel it’s a lack of we got out-coached and we got out-
played.
Q. It’s a weird week with the Michael Pittman Jr. injury and then not having him. What was the
challenge like of sort of adjusting the game plan to not having him, and how do you get this to a point
where you can have a good passing game without him?
FRANK REICH: Obviously, we didn’t know we weren’t going to have him until later in the week. We
thought we were going to have him. Then it just didn’t work out. We just made a few small adjustments.
Our passing game, even if we knew earlier in the week, I don’t think it would have changed much. It was
just a question who are we going to put in what role? I thought Ashton [Dulin] stepped up and made a
couple of plays today in Pitt’s absence.
(As) an offense in the first half, we were just not productive on first and second down. We got nothing.
Every time we just couldn’t get a completion, we couldn’t run the ball on first or second down. It
seemed like in the first half every run was two yards.
Usually when we’re humming, we’re effective on first and second down. We just ended up in a lot of
third and longs today. Put a lot of pressure on our O (offensive)-line.
Q. Do you need to make changes on the offensive line?
FRANK REICH: Like I said, we’ll evaluate everything. Everything gets evaluated, top to bottom. Coaches,
players. I get evaluated. Everybody gets evaluated.
Q. Are you surprised a little about the performance of that unit? I know clearly your left tackle is what
was going to be a little bit in question, but the rest of those guys, less so.
FRANK REICH: Last week against a good — we played a really good front last week, and I thought they
played good. We had a lot of yards rushing and a lot of yards passing. This week we didn’t play well.
So, one of the things I said to the guys in there — and it doesn’t make anybody feel any better, but I think
I’ve been around long enough to know that as pathetic as that was today, where that is and where we
need to be, the distance is not that far. It’s not that far because we’ve got the guys, the players, and
coaches to do it.
I know that doesn’t play in the outside world, and I’m fine with that. We’ll take our medicine. I’ll take my
medicine, and we’ll just keep doing what we do.
Q. So much was supposed to change after last season. You bring in Matt Ryan and bring in [Stephon]
Gilmore. Why does it feel the same as it did in January here today in Jacksonville?
FRANK REICH: We’re two games into it. We’re 0-1-1. We’re two games into it, and we’re 0-1-1. It’s a long
season.
We’ll take our medicine for the pathetic performance today, coaches and players. We’ll see how things
stack up.
Q. Can you put your finger on any common theme to the slow starts in each of the first two weeks?
FRANK REICH: No. Again, I’ll go back and look at this one. I mean, we talked about what it was last week,
so go back and look at this one. On offense, why the lack of production on first and second down? (I’ll)
Have to go back and look at it and break it down play-by-play.
Q. On if Jim Irsay said anything to you in the lockeroom?
FRANK REICH: No.
Q. How would you assess Matt Ryan throughout just these first two games, specifically today? I know
the first throw looked like just a bad decision honestly.
FRANK REICH: There was a little miscommunication, I felt like, on the play. We got the coverage we
wanted, and just a little bit of a miscommunication between he and Ashton on the play.
Obviously, that’s one that Ashton is not normally in there on that play, but we just didn’t make it. We
were just a little bit off on the timing of it. We were a little bit off on the timing, and Matt was kind of
holding it waiting for him to break, and it didn’t quite break when he thought it was going to break, and
he had to let it go. Unfortunately, it ended up in an interception.
Q. Is he all right? I know he wasn’t in there for the last drive.
FRANK REICH: As far as I know, he is fine. Thanks.
COLTS QUARTERBACK MATT RYAN
POSTGAME MEDIA AVAILABILITY
SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2022
Q. Matt, how would you assess your performance today individually and as a team? Why were you all
never really able to get going at all?
MATT RYAN: Yeah, I’ve got to play better. There’s no doubt about that. I think as a group we all have to
play better, too. It’s disappointing when you put in the work during the week and you come out and you
don’t play the way that you’re capable of playing. Credit to Jacksonville. I thought they did a good job,
played well, but we have to set a certain standard for ourselves. Every week we have to show up, and
we’ve got to be ready to go. In the first two weeks we haven’t done that. It’s a long season, and we’ve
got to get back to work, but today wasn’t good enough.
Q. You talk about being ready to go. Is that something you’ve felt during the week, or is it just on
game day?
MATT RYAN: It’s hard to put your finger on it. Obviously, we have to look at today, at the tape of today
to see all of the mistakes that we made. There were a lot of them. I feel like the preparation has been
pretty good, but clearly, it’s not transitioning into playing the way we want to play. So, I think we all
have to take a hard look in the mirror, find ways to individually be better, so collectively we can be
better. That’s what we’ll get back to work on tomorrow.
Q. From a protection standpoint, is there anything you can do as a quarterback, especially on some of
the stunts and just different movement tactics?
MATT RYAN: Yeah, I think, number one, we’ve got to make sure when we go back and look at it we’re in
all the right calls. That’s partly my responsibility as well. So, I’ve got to do a great job of that. Then, I’ve
got to do a great job of getting the ball out. You know, trying to understand and we knew coming into it
it’s a good pass‐rush team, understanding the ball has to come out. I have to do my part that way. Then,
make good decisions with the football, too. Even when there is pressure, and that’s part of playing this
position is being able to hang in there, make good decisions under duress, and we turned the football
over too much.
Q. What happened on the first interception?
MATT RYAN: It’s just a little bit not being on the same page. I think Ash (WR Ashton Dulin) has done a
great job for us all year. I probably put the ball out just a little too far.
Q. When is the last time you were part of a shutout?
MATT RYAN: I don’t know. I’ve played in a lot of games. I’ve got my ass kicked before, I know that much.
It’s all about how you respond. You get up off the floor. It happens in this league. There’s good players
across the board. Every week is going to be tough. It happens to you sometimes, but one can’t turn into
two. You have to pick yourself back up, have a great week of preparation, and make sure we have a
better performance next week.
Q. At any level are you just kind of surprised? You knew this team. All you knew is what you saw from
afar. Are you surprised you guys are here right now?
MATT RYAN: Certainly had high expectations for us coming into it, and you never at the beginning of the
year think you’re going to be 0‐1‐1 after two weeks. It’s just not in the competitor’s mindset. We are
where we are, and I think being realistic about where we’re at and what we have to do to improve is
important. It has to be brutal honesty, and we’ve got to find ways to play the way that we’re capable of.
It starts with me, and I’ve got to do that this week.
Q. Is there something in the game plan that needs to change or needed to change today?
MATT RYAN: We have to play better. We have to figure different things out. When you don’t score
points, you have to be critical of everything. I know our coaching staff will do a great job of that, and
that starts with Frank (Head Coach Frank Reich). He takes ownership of everything, and I have a lot of
respect for that. I think across the board we all just have to do a better job, but as players, it comes
down to making plays come to life. We’ve got to do a good job with what is called of executing our
assignments and making sure that we’re all on the same page.
Q. As a leader, how do you deal with if a guy needs a kick in the pants or a helping hand up off the
mat?
MATT RYAN: I think it’s about knowing your teammates, getting to know them individually,
understanding that everybody is different. How you deal with guys is how you think is best for them
individually. We’ve got a competitive group. There’s no doubt about it. We certainly have not put that
out there the first couple of weeks, but I have great belief that we will.
Q. You were brought here to make a difference. How do you think this team can kind of grow from
these experiences and be different in a sense from these first two weeks?
MATT RYAN: I think if you are going to be a championship football team, which is the objective of all 32
teams across the league, you have to be hard. You have to be tough. Sometimes you have to have that
mud on your face a little bit and pick yourself up and find out what we’re really all about. Although it’s
early in the season and we have a long way to go, the sense of urgency needs to be there, and I think it
will be. I think we have the right group of guys, but you have to be battle‐tested. You have to have some
wounds. You have to come back from those a little bit, and you have to be tougher for those
experiences. Although we’re not where we want to be two weeks in, I think there are instances that you
can learn from, and you can be better for and be tougher for as we move forward. That’s what we’ve got
to realize. We’ve got to put it into action.
Q. Were you okay with the hand after that late shot?
MATT RYAN: Yeah, I’m good. Just sometimes you get rolled up. It feels funny sometimes when you are
out there, and then you shake it off and you are good.
Q. You played here as a member of the Falcons. Did that Jacksonville defense look or feel different
from your perspective?
MATT RYAN: I think they’re improved. Obviously, scheme is different. Different coordinator. A handful of
different players. I do think they’re an improved unit. Certainly played with confidence today. I give
them credit. They played well.
