Cincinnati Bengals Head Coach Marvin Lewis
Opening statement…
It's a good win in a big football game, tough football game. We knew it would be. We were playing a team similar to what we play in our division week-in and week-out, well put together, physical, strong. Our guys just kept hanging in there and making plays. We didn't make as many as we needed to in the first half. (We) settled down, overcame some adversity at times, but we kept playing and kept grinding. It was good.
On A.J. Green's performance…
I keep saying, "Good players play good." The other guys did a great job today. As we keep saying, those other guys are going to be fine. They're just going to keep playing and playing better and better and better. So it was big today. And we needed them. (I'm) just pleased. We had some penalties and some things on defense there that kept some drives alive in the first half. We've just got to go back, look at the film, and get better after this game.
On how hot it was on the field…
I felt good. Our guys felt good. I didn't see anybody look taxed or anything that way. They felt good all the way through. That was good today for us. We may have worn their defensive lineman out sacking the quarterback, which was good at the end (joking).
On what adjustment is needed against the pass rush…
We had some errors which is unfortunate, and that's the biggest thing. We'll go look at it. I'm not going to sit here and explain things to you any time, but certainly not right now.
On if the win is more important being the first week…
You want to win every week. Obviously, this is a big win on the road. I think that's important. It's an AFC team. It's on the road. We're one up in that column and that's good.
On Green's performance…
Big day. He's everything as advertised. We know that, in every way. It was good today. He made catches, he made runs (and) he ran out of bounds once. That's what we need him to do all year long, obviously. We know he's up to the task.
On forcing the Jets to kick a field goal in the fourth quarter…
Well, again, we made a big stop there. That was a big stop, just like the stop they had in the first half on us. And then moving us back when we missed the field goal where they got us back out of field goal range there at the one point. We end up missing the kick. There were some of those field position changes throughout the football game on both sides.
On the field goal to end the first half…
Yes, it was great execution. When we snapped the offensive play I felt pretty good about it but when we snapped the field goal we were down there underneath two (seconds). It was great execution by our guys getting out there, getting set. You don't get to practice that in that situation very often and so that was huge and it's a great lesson for the defense to learn, too. We actually practiced that this week against our defense in that situation. So, it will be great for us to coach off of.
On if he thought about taking points off the board and going for a touchdown at the end of the first half…
There was a lot of thought but we weren't getting the ball coming out in the third quarter. We were going to have to kick off to them. And then the ball was going to be outside the two from what they explained to me a little bit, so it was not clear where the spot was going to be. If we were at the one, we were probably going to take the points off and go for the touchdown. But we were going to be at or outside the two from what Clete (Blakeman) said. And the fact that we were not getting the ball. If we're getting the ball to start the third quarter, I'd feel a little better about going for it there, even if they stopped us.
On if he was worried they would not get the field goal off in time…
I said earlier I felt like we had plenty of time but then actually we snapped it we were down pretty good. It will be interesting to look at it on both the TV copy and our video to see. We'll get a good chance to coach off it. It's a hell of a lesson for the whole football team. That will be something we'll cover tomorrow when we're all together, not just special teams, but all together.
On getting set up quickly for a field goal last year…
Yes, we've done it. But again, until you've really had to do it…You've got C.J. (Uzomah) out there and (Cedric) Ogbuehi who wasn't there last year, so we've got a couple of new guys who weren't a part of it in Seattle.
On if Andy Dalton's impressive performance under duress is expected…
It is. He had the one throw he probably shouldn't have let go. But I thought he played a good football game today. He was accurate in his throws and everything that way, and that's what we need. And he gets us in and out of the right plays all the time. He did a great job directing the drives. He had a drive, literally at the end of both halves, and that's awesome.
On if the way the Jets play defense lends itself to having four big plays on offense…
I think we caught them sleeping a little bit on (Brandon) LaFell, and that's good. That's the thing we saw from Brandon, is he's got great body control. He's a very accomplished NFL receiver and you saw him catching the ball going across the field, you saw him catching the ball on the sideline today, and he caught a couple deep balls. It was big.
On if this game illustrates the fine line between winning and losing…
That's what people don't get and understand in the NFL, how close it is. This will be one of those at the end of the year when they look and say almost 40 percent of the games are decided by a field goal or less, this will be one of those games.
On if the Jets have one of the better defensive lines they will face…
Yes, that's a good defensive football team all the way around. We've been saying that all week.
On if he sees giving up seven sacks as just going up against a good defensive line…
No, we've got to do better. We can't give up seven sacks. Our quarterback will not make it through the season if we give up seven sacks a week.
On if he is happy with the team's performance opening up with three games on the road…
I'm just happy. We kept pounding today and that's what we've got to do. That's the thing all season. Just pound together and break through. And today the breakthrough came late in the game. And then the defense had a big stop there at the end. Josh Shaw with a hell of a play. He intercepted the ball on third down. We don't have to have the angst of a fourth down.
On if he remembers the last time he said he was happy with something at the end of a game…
I'm usually happy. Maybe I don't tell you (joking). I'm always happy to win. It's tough to win in the NFL and we realize that and I tell our team that all the time. It's even more difficult on the road. We're pleased but we've got a lot of work to do, as we know. We've got another big game coming next Sunday.
Cincinnati Bengals OT Andrew Whitworth
On learning from game mistakes…
I think people look at last year, the Pittsburgh loss as a thing that was kind of damning to our team. I look at that Pittsburgh loss and say the reality is that we fought ourselves back into the playoffs to win a football game. I think this team has its ups and downs, but you find a way to win the game. That's all that matters. That was very much the same feel right here. We had to make a comeback in the end and defense had to make a stop. That's what you want to do to win football games in the league. That's the goal.
On Jeremy Hill…
That's what we want. That's the Jeremy I watched at LSU, as an LSU alumnus. We saw (growth from) his rookie year to last year. I think he's a guy that is ready to have a big season. I think he's prepared and excited for that opportunity.
Cincinnati Bengals G Clint Boling
On Cedric Ogbuehi…
He's a young talented guy. We have high expectations for him, so hopefully he does well all year. We'll see how he did this week and hopefully be able to build on it and go from there.
On series of offensive adjustments…
(The New York Jets) have a great defense. We were able to go out there and just grind it out over the course of the game. They played really well. They've got a great front. It was a challenge.
*Cincinnati Bengals WR Brandon LaFell *
On making big plays...
Going into the game we knew the Jets would bring a lot of pressure and we would get one-on-one coverage. We knew Darrelle Revis would follow A.J. Green around so whenever we got one-on-one coverage we took our shots and we made plays.
On overcoming negative plays…
Well, a lot of guys on our team, it's not their first time playing football. Over the course of a game and a season there are going to be ups and downs. We were just preaching to stay the course and to play Bengals football. Stay calm and when you get the chance, make the most of your opportunity.
On Mike Nugent's missed field goal…
It happens. I looked and saw we had time on the clock. A.J. and I looked at each other and said next time we get the football we have to score. We got into position for Nugent to make another one and he came through for us.
On Green's performance…
He's amazing. Anytime a ball goes his way I feel like it will be a big play. Anytime we call his number I think it will be a big play or a touchdown. It's just great playing with that guy, he attracts all the coverage so I love it.
On his impressions of Andy Dalton before he joined the Bengals…
I didn't have one because I never watch offense. The only time I've seen him is when we played against him when I was in New England and he looked pretty good. When I got here I saw he throws on time and he's accurate.
