Kansas City Chiefs vs. Jacksonville Jaguars
Saturday, January 21, 2023
Divisional Round
Jaguars Head Coach Doug Pederson
great football teams like the Chiefs are. You can’t make those mistakes. I think they are disappointed in
that more than anything and just coming up a little short.”
Q: Do you feel like they are close?
PEDERSON: “I feel like we are close. Obviously, we have the right leader in Trevor. I feel really good about
him obviously. What he has done and how he has played this season. It is a matter of the youth of the
team now these guys played a lot of football. They are going to learn from the good and the bad. It is
something to really lean on as we head into the offseason and as we approach the offseason program in
a couple of months, which is kind of crazy to say. We are going to learn. I am excited for the future of
Jacksonville. Working with Trent (Baalke) getting the right players in here, whether it is free agency or
whether it is the draft and continuing to build our roster.”
Q: Were you disappointed you did not stop Chad Henne on the 98-yard drive?
PEDERSON: “That was a momentum switch in the game. We had them at the two yard line and let them
off the hook a little bit. Those are opportunities there where we need to be better. We need to play better
and coach better in those situations to try to get off the field at some point. I credit them. They executed
well and ended up with a touchdown.”
Q: What did you see on the play where Patrick Mahomes got hurt and would that change your strategy?
PEDERSON: “I didn’t see it other than him being tackled from behind. I didn’t see the whole play. I am
sure he got something rolled. Probably one of the players got rolled up on the back of his legs on that.
Hats off to him for gutting it out there in the second half and sticking with it and playing hurt. That is a
sign of a true leader and a winner and that is what he is.”
Q: How many of those plays do you just chalk up to Mahomes being Mahomes?
PEDERSON: “That is what he does. He eludes the pressure. He can step up and he has great vision down
the field. He finds those guys. We talk about it all the time. If you get opportunities to tackle him or sack
him, you have to try to do the best you can to get him on the ground. It is easier said than done.”
Q: What is the disappointment like with Travis Kelce having such a big night?
PEDERSON: “A lot of them were short, intermediate type catches. Some of them were off of scrambles. I
mean that is going to happen. He is a great player. He is a big target for Patrick. You obviously have to
know where he is at when he lines up in the formation. We just have to do a better job moving forward.
Those are all things we can learn from.”
Q: Did you feel like your defense did enough to give you a chance?
PEDERSON: “They gave us some opportunities. There were some unwarranted penalties in there too that
kept them on the field that we have to eliminate. You know there was a roughing the passer. We jumped
offsides one time and there are just things that showed up that we have to try to eliminate. Overall, I
thought the defense did a nice job of really kind of keeping things down. Second half especially forcing
them to punt the football and get the offense off the field. Football games are all about playing
complementary football, and we can learn from it and do a little bit better.”
Q: Did you feel like you needed to get one or two takeaways which didn’t come through?
PEDERSON: “You try the best you can to try to create some turnovers or some takeaways. There were a
couple of chances in this game to get some hands on these footballs. It would have been nice to get at
least one of those.”
Q: How much of your confidence in the future in rooted in Trevor?
PEDERSON: “I think it is everything. I have said this before that the success of your football team relies on
the quarterback. You have to get that piece and that player right. I feel personally in Jacksonville that we
have that person right. He is just going to get better. He is going to learn from this. He is going to grow
with the receivers, tight ends, the backs because they are all young. They are all going to be there and
keep working. We are just going to continue to get better and grow as a team.”
Kansas City Chiefs vs. Jacksonville Jaguars
Saturday, January 21, 2023
Divisional Round
Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence
LAWRENCE: “It’s hard to talk and think about that. But it’s special what we were able to do. No one
thought we should be here, and we just kept believing. It was really cool to be a part of, it was special. It’s
just the beginning. This year was huge, obviously, for this organization, for our city and for our franchise
moving forward. It sets the bar of who we’re going to be and what we’re going to do moving forward.
That’s the mindset, and we won’t settle for less than that. We got a taste of it, but there’s more left and
we all feel that.”
Q: How long does it to take you to process all of the positivity that came from this season and the
transformation of this franchise?
LAWRENCE: “Just equal parts crushed by the loss, that our season ends here, knowing how close we were,
then on the flipside, being proud of what we were able to accomplish and what we were able to overcome.
I want to have more time to think on it, reflect on it, we’ll have plenty of time to do that. It’s going to
make us better. This won’t be the last you guys hear from us, we’re going to be back.”
Q: What would your message to Jaguars fans be about what to expect for the 2023 season?
LAWRENCE: “First of all, thank you guys and all of you who are in here who are Jacksonville people, I
appreciate you guys. A lot of ups and downs this season. It was a special year for us, for the city, for
everybody. We couldn’t have done it without all of you guys supporting us. We’re thankful for you guys.
Those last two home games were games that I’ll never forget. Just excited for that to be the atmosphere
and the future for our team. I’m really excited. It’s hard to even think about next year right now because
this loss is fresh. We’re going to be back, this is the new standard. We set that, this is the bar and we’ll be
back.”
Kansas City Chiefs vs. Jacksonville Jaguars
Saturday, January 21, 2023
Divisional Round
Jaguars Players
Q: Were you out of sync offensively at times?
JONES JR: “It was just playoff football. There were times when we were going, and we did what we needed
to do. And there were times when we shot ourselves in the foot a little bit and got behind the ball a little
bit. That’s playoff football.”
Q: How does it feel knowing that there were plays there to be made?
JONES JR: “Yeah, there were plays there. In any game, there are challenges. You try to do everything you
can to go in and capitalize on those. Some we didn’t, some we did. It just didn’t go our way.”
Q: You were brought in here to turn this around. What’s your pride level?
JONES JR: “I’m happy. Because that’s the reason I was here. It was the reason I wanted to come here. The
reason why is to win, and I think we definitely accomplished that. We didn’t accomplish what we really
wanted to accomplish. But hey, it was a good time.”
Q: You’ve been a part of losses to end a playoff run before, what makes this postgame locker room
different?
JONES JR: “I’ve been in a couple where we were dissatisfied, there were a couple when I was back at
Cincinnati and we had great teams, but we just couldn’t get it. I feel more proud here, and more mad back
then. We just always dropped the ball. The resiliency this team had the whole year. At one point, every
game was a playoff game at one point, and we capitalized on all of those opportunities. Highs and lows.
It was a great year and a great step forward for the future of this program. A lot of these young guys now
know what winning tastes like and now they are going to want to come back.”
WR ZAY JONES
Q: I know it’s tough to look ahead to next year, but what can you take away from this year?
JONES: “I don’t know even what to say about next year right now. That’s hard. I got teammates that are
sad man, that are grumbling and crying. It’s hard to think about next year. I’m going to be here and try to
support people the best I can.”
Q: You’ve been a part of season-ending losses. Why is this locker room different?
JONES: “I’m just trying to be where my feet are. Just being present and when you put so much into it, I
put my heart into this game. I put a lot of time, effort, and energy. And these guys do in this locker room
as well, and all of these coaches as well. To come together as we have, and we break it down on family,
we generally mean that. We’ve grown to be brothers. When Christian (Kirk) is banged up, I’m worried
about him. Trevor (Lawrence) is worried about him. We care for each other. To have the season end like
that, it’s difficult. I’m always optimistic. Right now, it’s just to be with the guys and uplift each other.”
Q: On Jamal Agnew’s fourth-quarter fumble.
JONES: “Jamal (Agnew) is great player. He’s an all-pro returner. The things that he’s done for us, provides
us a spark. Our first touchdown maybe wouldn’t have come as easy if it wasn’t for Jamal. One error doesn’t
define him. It doesn’t say who he is as a player. Anyone that points the finger at Ag [Jamal Agnew] is wrong. Because it’s a team game, we win together, and we lose together. That’s just how it is. If it’s me, I
know Marvin (Jones Jr.) and the guys would have my back. I don’t see it as one man’s fault. It’s a team
game, if we would have overcome it, we would all be celebrating in here. That’s just how I see it, you got
to give credit to Kansas City. They’re a great team. We knew they were a great team. We’re a good team
also. We just ran out of time.”
S RAYSHAWN JENKINS
Q: What can you learn from this game and this season?
JENKINS: “We have a lot of young players this season. Honestly, we learned that there was going to be a
learning curve, early, especially having a lot of young guys. There was going to be a learning curve, and
we had to endure some pains early on but we got everything clicking. We got it turned around at the right moment, but ultimately tonight, we weren’t able to keep what we had going on. We will get back in the lab and make a run at this thing next year.”
Q: How tough is it to slow down a guy like Travis Kelce?
JENKINS: “Tough, it’s tough man. Shoot, he is one of the best to ever do it. Of course, it’s going to be
tough. We made it hard on him all day. He had his two touchdowns. I would say we did our part as far
as just the overall game plan execution. The only thing I would say is that we got to get that ball back into
our offense’s hands on a takeaway.”
Q: “What was your thought process when you saw Patrick Mahomes’ injury?
JENKINS: “He’s a warrior man. When we saw Pat go out of the game, we thought it was a good
opportunity to kind of take advantage of Henne. He came in and was still able to operate and do some
good stuff on offense. Pat coming back and ultimately getting it done for his team, it just shows you the
warrior he is.”
Q: What does the experience of playing this team here do for you all as an offense?
JENKINS: “It’s just one of those things that, hey, we’ve been through it. Hey, we’ve been to that type of
environment, of a hostile environment, and it just puts another thing on our resume. Young players, you
can’t be young anymore. It is what it is. You have been here before. It’s the divisional round of the
playoffs, and you’ve been here before. Let’s make a run at it next year. You know what it’s supposed to
look like. You know what the standard is.”
WR CHRISTIAN KIRK
Q: What makes this postgame locker room different from ones you’ve been in before?
KIRK: “I think it hurts the most because of everything we have overcome this year. How far we’ve come
in one year, making the steps we’ve wanted to make and in our first year of being together. Everybody in
this locker room plays for one another. They love one another. When you go out there and it all finally
comes to an end, it hurts. It stings. There are emotions, there are tears. You put it all on the line and you
put so much into this stuff. It’s not supposed to be easy to lose and to move on from it. It is going to sting and it is going to hurt. I am so proud of everybody in this locker room and this team to be in this place and to be where we are today.”
Q: What was the postgame message that coaches and players shared with each other?
KIRK: “We are going to be in this position for many years to come. We have built something special here
with the guys in this locker room. With the guys we have, this is going to be a familiar position for us, and
everybody is looking forward to it.”
Q: How are you feeling and what is the extent of your injury?
KIRK: “I’m not feeling great. It’s my knee. We are just going to see what it is, but I wasn’t going to finish
the game not on the field. We have gone through so much and gone through so much adversity. I was
going to finish the game on the field with my brothers.”
Q: Trevor Lawrence waiting for you guys in the tunnel after the game. What does that say about the
person he is?
KIRK: “It goes to show the guy he already is and has been. He is the ultimate leader, ultimate battler. He
is a guy who loves his teammates and is going to go out there and leave it all on the field.”
Q: Early on you had the drop and came back. You got injured and came back. Trevor made that tough
3rd down run. What does it say about this team?
KIRK: “The drop is the drop. When you are running a hundred miles per hour and you are doing everything you can to try to sell out and make a catch, sometimes it happens. People can point the finger and people can put however much they want on it but it’s football. I know, for me, that stuff comes and goes. You come back, you make a play and you are responsible for the next play. That’s all I am worried about. I think everybody had that mentality. Everybody did a great job, especially when there were a lot of ebbs and flows in this game, ups and downs. People stepped up when they were supposed to step up and make plays when we needed them.”
Q: How long will it take people to get past the hurt of this loss and see the progress that was made this
season?
KIRK: “You might sense a little bit of dwelling right now. Obviously, once the final whistle blows, it hurts.
We are going to take time off, take tomorrow off and come in on Monday and look at all the things we
have done and all the things we have accomplished this year. We will set the standard and president of
what we can accomplish next year.”
LB FOYESADE OLUOKUN
Q: What are the emotions the team is feeling right now?
OLUOKUN: “It hurts. We have come a long way. We were looking down and out at whatever it was, from
a lot to a little. I’m talking about wins and losses. We made a run to get into the postseason. We haven’t
been to the postseason in a long time. Everybody came together as a team. Everybody played for their
brothers, and everybody was fighting all the way to the end of games. We saw a lot of games go our way
towards the end of the season. You get to this point, and you’re playing extra football. You get this far, you don’t want to only go this far. We wanted to keep going. We learned a lot as a team. I told them
boys, ‘you really changed my career in terms of how I look at NFL football.’ I got back to playing football
for the boys, for my brothers, as a team in general. There is a camaraderie we had and to have it come
up short like that, it hurts. We learned a lot. We are going to use that. I’m going into the offseason, and
I am going to be better. I’m going to be better. Everybody, in turn, will be better. The team is going to
be better. We learned a lot.”
Q: How hard was Travis Kelce to bottle up today?
OLUOKUN: “Yeah, those option routes when they move the pocket, he always knows where to sit down,
keep running or over routes. We have to be more matchier or catch and tackle when he does catch it.
We can’t let him catch and run. Maybe we learned a little bit how to go against them in big games and
what their game plan is going to be. Maybe get a little more man on them, stick to them or in zones,
maybe really match them up there going to the sticks.”
Q: How big was it for you to get this far in year one?
OLUOKUN: “It felt like year one back when we were losing. It felt like year two when we were winning.
We wanted to keep it going as long as possible. I guess it was year one, and we want to make it a better
year two. To see that success in year one, we know that we are a force to be reckoned with and we know
what to expect as a team. Going into the offseason and coming into training camp, we are not accepting
mediocrity from this team anymore. That’s for sure. We know what we are capable of. Teams are going
to be ready for us. They know we are force too, and we have to play better than they are expecting.”
Q: Do you get a sense in the locker room that the guys aren’t satisfied with going this far?
OLUOKUN: “Whatever happened in the past, I wasn’t even here for that. We know what we just did, and
we want to build on that. We know we started off the year not how we wanted to. Let’s continue what
we did this year into the offseason and training camp and the beginning of next year. Let’s come out
doing it the right way.”
Q: Coach Doug Peterson said he expects to be playing more in the playoffs.
OLUOKUN: “What was the score? 27 to 20, right and that wasn’t our best football. Let’s play good football
and see what happens.”
Q: Coach Doug Peterson said that some of the mistakes that were happening early in the season came
back out today. Do you agree with that?
OLUOKUN: “He said matchier on passing downs to 87. I mean, the ball is going to him. We need to hold
our gaps better on stretch plays and RPOs. We need to be better at communicating. We were expecting
over-routes in the field when we know it’s an over-route formation. We have to be clean. When you get
this far in the playoffs, you can’t let plays slide. We need to be better all the way through the game.
Obviously, our fight is going to be there all the way through the game. In order to come out on top, we
have to be cleaner all the way through.”
Q: What did you say to some of the guys after the game?
OLUOKUN: “It’s a growth. You have to continue to grow. This is just the start for them. It took me five
years to get here. This is my fifth year and just tasting the playoffs. They got that experience in their first
year. Now they know what it should look like. They have been a part of three and whatever it was and
now they’ve been a part of a playoff run. They should know what it looks like. Practice, preparation,
energy level, what it should look like week in and week out. Any new people we bring to the squad, we
know what to expect, the standard.”
