Jaguars vs. Saints Postgame Saints Quotes: CB Eli Apple, DT Malcom Brown, DE Marcus Davenport, DE Cameron Jordan, QB Teddy Bridgewater, P Thomas Morstead, RB Latavius Murray, LB Demario Davis, WR Ted Ginn JR., HC Sean Payton

SAINTS CB ELI APPLE

(On the Saints performance, playing without QB Drew Brees) “It’s just been a great team effort, from the offense, defense, special teams, everyone is making plays out there. We’re having a great time, great energy and that’s what it comes down to – bringing that electricity to the sideline and making plays on the field and coming together to finish out the game. That’s what we’ve been doing.”

(On how they tried to coax QB Gardner Minshew II into making a big mistake that would favor the Saints) “It’s just about showing different looks, trying to confuse him into throwing us the ball and he did that in the second half. We’re just trying to capitalize on the opportunities we get.”

(On the defensive line being able to contain QB Gardner Minshew II) “That’s great. Anytime you can keep him in there, in the pocket, and have someone that can converge on him, that just makes it easier for us on the back end. And, of course, the timing is always messed up on that one because he’s just going to panic. So, like I said it’s been a great team effort and we just have to keep it going.”

(On not allowing the Jaguars to score a touchdown) “It’s always hard to hold a team without a touchdown. I think we were just playing fundamentally sound in all facets from d-line to linebackers and communicating. We just need to make sure we do that all the time.”

SAINTS DT MALCOM BROWN

(On the defense’s performance and how they are working as a unit together) “Everyone’s just working, we are all just working, trying to be where we are supposed to be, trying to help out each other. Chip in where we can when opportunities open themselves and try and make a play.” 

(On his thoughts on New Orleans’ defense before joining the team) “Definitely aggressive defense, like getting turnovers, like getting sacks. You know, everything you love about defense, they do it all so there’s not one note that you can hit that they don’t do. I looked into all that and I was like I would like to play there with them and help contribute somewhere, do my job, and see where we end up at the end of the year.”

(On the challenge of containing Jaguars RB Leonard Fournette in today’s game) “We come in and try to do our job, that’s part of the game. There’s always a 50/50 run versus pass, whatever’s it’s going to be. So whatever comes out and they do whatever they’re going to do, we just have to react to blocks and make the plays and not let them get too many yards.”

(On not keeping QB Gardner Minshew contained) “It was a big part of the game plan and we just wanted to get out there and rush and do what we do every day.”

SAINTS DE CAMERON JORDAN

(On how gratifying it is to win low-scoring games) “A win is a win, no matter how you get them, as long as you get them. Nobody talks about how you lose, they only talk about how you win. At the end of the day, we’ve got to put these games together. I don’t even know what our record is. I know we have Chicago next week, allegedly. I only work one game at a time. I can’t look too far ahead. And with our defensive line, the way they’re progressing, I’m overly excited the way they’ve progressed. I love the way our front seven’s playing, I love the way our defense is playing. When it comes down to it, we’re only going to try to perfect our mistakes each and every game, win, loss or draw, and make any loss a lesson.”

(On how the Saints made Gardner Minshew II uncomfortable) “When you talk about his ability to scramble, we’ve played some elusive quarterbacks our first four or five games, not sure if you noticed. But when you talk about us being accustomed to a scrambling-type quarterback, we had a game plan set in motion. I feel like we went out and executed just that. We made him a pocket passer, and we created opportunities for our defense to create turnovers, and we capitalized on one out of a possible three.”

(On what it means to tie Pat Swilling for the third-most career sacks in Saints history) “I worry about accolades after the season. You talk about what we have to do in-season? We have to keep on winning. When we talk about everything we want to do as a defense, we better keep on striving. And personally, I feel like when I had those two sacks, I was trying for the ball, trying to create a turnover. That’s something that I have to make amends for. I feel like our team is playing at a high level, and I have to be the spearhead of that.”

(On why the defensive line has been so good for the Saints) “I said at the beginning of the season that we’re only going to continue to get stronger as a defensive line. After the first game, we got David Onjemata back. We got Mario Edwards back. We ended up getting Sheldon Rankins back. Each and every game, you saw the flashes of how good we could be. It also shows us the amends of what happens when our defensive line reinforces each other. Last game, you saw a flash of Carl Granderson. We have depth on our defensive line, and that’s something we haven’t always been able to say.”

SAINTS DE MARCUS DAVENPORT

(On if there was anything that inspired them after QB Drew Brees went down earlier in the season) “We’ve been inspired. It’s been our mindset to do our job. You have to win the way you have to win and in order for us to win, we have to do our job. That’s the most important key.” 

(On how the team prepares during the week) “It’s practice. We do a lot of our stuff in practice. We try to go full speed and win in practice. That way, it’s natural come game time. And even in the game, we miss stuff, we miss opportunities, we see keys. We do challenge each other on the field, too.”

(On his confidence level) “I feel like my confidence has improved but it’s just been a process. Like I said, practice. I feel like we practice good and we translate that.”

(On whether the team celebrates the victory or looks at areas to improve immediately following a game) “We did let some runs get out so that number should’ve been down. It’s just things like that. We still have little plays to clean up. I think that after a great game where we don’t really have that feeling of having anything that got away, then I think we’ll be more content.”

SAINTS QB TEDDY BRIDGEWATER

(On his postgame thoughts) “We had a couple struggles early in the game, but great teams always try to find a way to win each football game and that’s what we were able to do today. Specialists did a great job with changing the field position, defense did a great job of, you know, keeping those guys from crossing the 50, and we came home with the win. Like I said, great teams find a way to win football games. We knew that there was going to be a fight coming out this way, with different elements and things like that, but it feels to get back on the plane and heading back to New Orleans with a win.”

(On the two connections to TE Jared Cook) “Yeah, it was just – the touchdown where I tried to get the ball to Mike [WR Michael Thomas] and Jacksonville had a great coverage call to take Mike away and Jared won his matchup. That’s what we expect from those guys, when we get those matchups and try to take advantage of them. The third-down play was just a great play call by Coach [Head Coach Sean Payton]. We knew that we had two options, front side and back side, and the defense lost Jared and he made a big play for us.”

(On whether he’s starting to get more comfortable with Jared Cook) “Yeah I’m definitely getting comfortable just with all the guys. Of course, we scored a little today, mainly me with some accuracy things. But overall man, these guys, we work extremely hard throughout the week just trying to continue to build that chemistry. Today, Jared had a solid day for us and Mike, even Mike, had some catches. It’s good to just continue to get those guys involved and they help this team win football games.”

(On whether it was his decision or coaches’ decision to pass and not move much from the pocket) “Well, it was just plays that were called. They didn’t require me to move much, and we tried to execute something different this week – well, I did – and I came in at halftime and I made the right adjustment and was able to go back out there and play fast.”

(On whether it was frustrating to not get the run game going today) “Sometimes, but for the most part, we know that when we’re out there playing, it’s going to take all 11 guys on the football field to win these football games. Offensive line is doing a great job of blocking for whoever is back there and wideouts are doing a great job of blocking our side as well. So, we love to get RB Alvin Kamara going, but we got playmakers on this team – they’re on this team for a reason.”

(On the importance of getting the running game going in the second half) “Yeah definitely. The defense has been playing lights out. And when you come out and you play a team like Jacksonville, you understand that it’s going to be a battle. When you respect the game and you respect your opponent, you understand the challenges that come with that battle. Today, was one of those days where they played us tough, but we were able to score one touchdown, kick two field goals and give ourselves enough cushion.  You know, the way our defense has been playing, I apologized to D.A. [Defensive Coordinator Dennis Allen] today right after the game and told him ‘I’m sorry, I don’t want to have to put you in that situation where you’re having to fight all game and we’re making it hard on you,’ but hats off to the defense.  Those guys have been playing some lights out football lately.”

SAINTS P THOMAS MORSTEAD

(On how his health is at this stage of the season) “Two different things: I had a GI bug a couple weeks ago. That ran through me for two days. Last week, I got some sort of respiratory rut, a couple days of light fever and things like that. I feel good, but I’ve been feeling good for like two days, so it’s just nice to feel good.”

(On the Saints winning almost every facet of the game) “I just feel like there’s such a sense that everybody, when their number is called, is going to execute their piece. You don’t need to worry about doing something that is someone else’s responsibility. I feel like there’s a high level of trust on this team right now that everybody is going to be in their position. If everybody is operating as one cohesive unit doing their piece on each play, it’s easy to talk about doing that, but once you start demonstrating it, you start getting a confidence. I don’t want to say it gets easier, but it’s like, we’ve been on some rolls here the last few years, and we get on a roll, and everybody has just embraced what this season has become so far. It’s just been a lot of fun.”

(On if the Saints have found a good habit as a whole) “By no stretch have we played perfect all along the way. There’s been mistakes, but I feel like everybody’s intent is to be in the right spot and do the right thing.”

(On head coach Sean Payton saying the Saints are a very prepared team) “Is that happening because it’s the type of guys we have or is it that we’re winning and it creates an environment where it’s easier to prepare? I feel like it’s probably a little bit of both. We do have an awesome crew of guys and it’s just been a lot of fun. It doesn’t matter how you do it, but I think everybody’s just enjoyed the fact that we’ve won in a variety of different ways. I think the big thing is that, I think, is that everybody feels like every single play matters. You can point to plays in games and say, ‘That was a turning point,’ or ‘That was a big play.’ But I think everybody believes that every play could be that play. When you get everybody totally focused, totally energized, emotionally bought-in and everything, that’s very hard to do week-in and week-out, and I feel like we’ve done that across the board for the most part this season.”

SAINTS RB LATAVIUS MURRAY

(On what the last three days have been like, between the birth of his child and his play today) “It’s been a little crazy. I had my son Friday night. My fiancée went into labor Thursday night, so it’s been a crazy 72 hours. But to finish it off with a win and the birth of my son back in New Orleans, I can’t complain at all right now.”

(On whether he had added inspiration with the birth of his son) “I was definitely inspired, but I try to bring the same energy, bring the same mentality every game. But when you have new life coming into the world that you created, that’s definitely a different feeling, for sure.”

(On whether he suspected he could be needed with Saints running back Alvin Kamara not 100 percent) “I think it’s just one of those things where, if you continue to prepare as if you’re the starter, as if you’re going to be the guy who is going to get the carries and get the rock, if you prepare that way every week, there shouldn’t be any surprise, regardless of what happens. I try to keep that same mentality regardless, but obviously today, I was thrown into the mix a little more. I think that’s just a part of the game, me being ready.”

(On the added emphasis to run the ball more in the second half) “There was definitely an emphasis. We hadn’t run the ball well in the first half; I think we had 11 yards rushing in the first half. We know we need to establish the run-game, regardless of who we are playing, if we want to be successful on the offensive side of the ball.”

SAINTS LB DEMARIO DAVIS

(On facing RB Leonard Fournette) “He’s just proven to be one of the top backs in the league. He’s very explosive, a very tough tackle, very elusive if you allow him to get into space. So we knew it was going to be a game that was going to be a slugfest. They have a good offensive line and he loves to run behind them. They’re a good group and they’re playing good football. It was a tough challenge, so we were glad to prevail.”

(On the execution of containing QB Gardner Minshew) “I think it was a good job by the coaching staff putting together a plan for our front to keep him contained, keep him in the pocket, taking away his hotspots. We knew where he felt most comfortable and to try to take that away from him. It was a good job all the way around. I think our coverage guys did a great job of taking away the first read, taking away the second read and just getting the victory today.”

(On Coach Sean Payton’s saying the defense could have held the Jaguars without a touch down for eight straight quarters) “Defensively when we’re rolling, we’re tough to beat. I think we got out there and got into a groove and it just kind of worked in our favor. I really commend our guys because that’s a tough group. Jacksonville is playing some good football. To be able to go against a team that executes well and to be able to get off the field consistently on third down, create a takeaway, get some sacks, that was big for us.”

(On the hit on Jaguars TE Geoff Swaim) “First of all, I want to say my thoughts and prayers to Geoff Swaim. I know he was able to walk off the field, but you don’t know what the residuals are of something like that. That’s very unfortunate so my prayers are with him and I hope he heals up well and recovers from that. Unfortunately, it’s a part of our game. It’s a bang-bang league and sometimes those hits do happen and we don’t like them. It’s just an unfortunate bang-bang play that just happened when we collided and I guess he came up on the bad end of it. My prayers and thoughts are with him.”

(On facing another player from Brandon High School) “I guess back home they call it the Brandon Bowl. It was in the back of my head, I’m not going to lie. You have to do your job at the end of the day, but that’s hometown pride. But I guess for the Brandon Bowl I’m 1-0.”

SAINTS WIDE RECEIVER TED GINN JR.

(On whether he agrees with Saints head coach Sean Payton that it is hard to get energized when the crowd doesn’t get into the game) “With Sean, he has been in this game for so long, he prepares us throughout the week for what we’re going to be going into. We already know that Jacksonville is not a real rah-rah type of stadium. We kind of know what’s going to happen with the fans. We just try to go out and try to take it over, which didn’t happen until the fourth quarter, but it happened and that’s all that matters.”

(On what the feeling is like in the Saints locker room after a road win) “It’s always a good feeling when you can come in here and everything that somebody did good really stands out, and everything that somebody didn’t do good, doesn’t stand out because you didn’t take a loss. However you win a ballgame, you just win it. We’ll just get back on this bus and go home and get ready for next week.”

(On whether he was hoping Jaguars cornerback Jalen Ramsey was going to play in this game) “Yeah, but I don’t think I would have saw him at all with Mike [Michael Thomas] on the field. He’s the type of guy who likes to matchup people and different things like that. He’s a great guy, he’s a great talent, and I want to see him get healthy and get back on the field at all costs.”

(On what difference it makes for the Jaguars defense with Ramsey out) “I don’t really know. I’m not on the defensive side of the ball. We know he’s a great player and we want to make plays against him, but as far as him on the field or off the field, there’s not much to say.”

(On the play of Saints TE Jared Cook) “It was real big for his confidence and for the situation to rally the team. It just shows that it’s not always just on one person or on that person, we’ve got weapons all the way around and if everybody is doing what they’re supposed to do, we should be able to get what we get.” 

SAINTS HEAD COACH SEAN PAYTON

(Opening statement) “It was a good, hard-fought win. I thought there were some observations. Defensively, we were outstanding. I think, the second half, we got a little bit better offensively. I think we missed a number of opportunities in the first half and we’ll look to get those cleaned up. It was a good win to get on the road and we’ll go from there.”

(On if wins like this helping them down the road) “I think as long as we’re coming to work each week and focused on improving the things we’re not doing well then I think they are beneficial. Our focus and attention to detail has been good. I think we still have a lot of work to do to get where we want to go. We’re not going to like the third down numbers offensively. We are not going to like some of the stuff early on but that starts with me and all of us to improve in that area. We are going to love the way we played defensively. I felt the energy again was there today. I thought today was going to be a challenge coming here from an atmosphere standpoint. It’s nothing. You to have find a way to bring it and be ready to play a game knowing it might be a little quiet. We had a good turnout fan-wise. Nonetheless, it was a good win. I thought in the kicking game we did some really good things. We had the long punt and covered that well. I thought we caught them mid-punt with a 9-yard, 10-yard gain that changed the field position. In the first half, we won that field position battle – we just didn’t score enough points.”

(On Thomas Morstead’s performance) “Outstanding. It was a good team win. We got all the way back to OTAs and the mini-camps in June; you want to put yourself into a position to win games like this. I thought we had energy and played with the type of passion you need to play with.”

(On how important Jared Cook’s third-down catch was in the fourth quarter) “It was a short-yardage call. It felt like the ball was in the air for 20 seconds, really. It was just a wide-high play you get caught in the blocking scheme and he did a good job of sneaking out the backside. It seemed like it took forever. It was a big play just to get the first down and keep the drive moving.”

(On winning games in different ways this last month) “In a number of the games this past month, I would agree with (you). Last week, a little differently. Yet each week, we just talk about how do we win that game. Because, honestly, in a week or two weeks from now, we’re not going to look specifically to how we win certain games. Hopefully, we’re going to learn and get better from how we won. The key is understanding wins in our league. Yet you want to score every time we score the football and defend every time you get the football. Man, I told our defense I felt like if they played eight quarters they were not going to score a touchdown today, honestly.”

(On if he saw the defense building towards their performance today) “Like anything else, there is confidence that comes from a game. You feed off of that. I think there’s a level of expectation that is pretty high in our locker room relative to what kind of team that we think we can be.”

(On why defensive players always insist on trying to get better to reporters) “We talk a lot about the opponent being faceless. The opponent is really inside all of us. Are we doing the things that we can to improve collectively? Not just players and coaches but all of us. You’re constantly looking at that. I think when we’re a part of a team that has a chance to be good, generally, those good teams, you begin not to want to let anyone down and perform for everyone else. Those traits exist in our locker room.”

(On if Alvin Kamara’s injury hampered them again by leaving early) “Two different things though. Obviously, he had the swollen ankle coming into the game, but he was ready to go. He tweaked his knee. I don’t think it changed what we were doing. We’re going to look at the tape tomorrow and be frustrated at times that first half, relative to certain looks we have. It wasn’t anything difficult because we didn’t get a lot of pressure. We’ll make the corrections and improve in that area.”

(On getting the running game going in the second half) “We needed to. I think we were 11 yards at halftime. That’s five yards off the bus. Fortunately, we were able to do it and I think it especially helped in the fourth quarter.”

(On if it was Latavius Murray’s best game) “He ran with confidence. I know he had a night without sleep. Having a baby, I think he and wife Thursday night, so congrats to them. Friday, we were without two running backs at practice. He played hard. He made some really big plays for us. The one play came back because of holding, which I disagree with, but it is what it is.”

(On not getting a lot of pressure defensively) “The expectation by us was a little bit more pressure from their defense relative to linebacker pressures and safety blitzes. I thought we did a good job of putting the quarterback [Gardner Minshew II] on the spot where we wanted them, not allowing him outside. Our objective was to make him play in that phone booth and give him looks defensively we felt like he hasn’t seen (before). I thought we did a good job of that. There were a couple of extended plays, but not many.”

(On if he felt they kept Leonard Fournette in check) “Yeah, he’s a tough back to bring down. I thought our guys tackled him well.”