ZAC TAYLOR
Head Coach
What did you think of that win?
"It's good to get a win. I thought the defense, after that first drive, did a great job buckling up, making them punt, creating turnovers. Really did a good job allowing the offense to play aggressively and get some points on the board and play with a lead, and the offense did that. We kind of hit a lull there in the late third, early fourth quarter, but I'm just proud to see the way that we finished it there in the fourth. I know they had that last drive, but (we had) turnovers and (capitalized) with points. This was a win we needed going into a short week. So again, we'll capitalize on this and keep building going forward."
Is this one of the more complete performances they've had?
"No. Maybe this season, but my point being, there's a lot more we can do better. Just some little things here and there that stunted some of the drives on offense where I think it could've been a bigger output day, had we just been on the same page with some communication things. So again, there's always things to grow from. We've hit the midway point in the season now. So now we need to start playing our best moving forward."
How important was it for that first drive after they came out and scored to go down and answer?
"Always big. It's always big to match them and then allow our defense to take a deep breath and get the stops that they then got. So again, the first drive, they've done that I think several of the last (few) games — they've scored right out of the gate, Las Vegas has — so (we) weathered the storm and put ourselves in a great position on that third-and-10 with DJ Ivey. Got a DPI call. That's just the way it goes sometimes, so then you just got to recover and try to find a way to get a stop. But I thought the rest of the first half, everybody played really well."
What did you think of Joe Burrow's performance?
"I thought he did a great job. There was a tremendous rhythm we had there on offense going to the midway point in the third quarter. Again, some things that were frustrating that stunted our drives there on the three or four. Jack Jones made the same play against the Chargers last year, so he's an aggressive player and sometimes he catches you on stuff like that, and they capitalized on that. But I thought overall, he did an outstanding job."
How important was it for the way he extended plays especially in the red zone?
"That's the red zone, man. There's scheme, you try to give yourself the best scheme. But about 50 percent of the time, you're scoring on scrambled or extended opportunities, and so the great quarterbacks in this league understand that. The great offenses in the league play off of that, you know with the receivers. Our receivers, our running backs and tight ends, I think they all caught scrambled touchdowns today, did a great job being in-phase and Joe found them, and the line did a great job protecting him. That's a tough group. Their defense, man. They show up to play every single week. I've got a lot of respect for them, and I'm proud of the way our guys handled that pressure."
Trey Hendrickson has had a number of really good games in his career here with you. Where would you put today's performance up there?
"Four sacks, seven quarterback hits. That's tough to match. So again, those moments where we needed that big stop on defense, and a lot of guys came up big for us, but Trey came up the biggest. And we're counting on him to make those plays, and he did that today. Proud of him."
You had a receiver step up today in tight end Mike Gesicki. Talk about his performance today ...
"Gesicki is a guy we've been able to lean on. And I know there was a lull there in the season where he didn't get a lot of targets, but that's just the way this offense goes sometimes. Joe (Burrow) does a great job dispersing it to wherever the concept is calling for and what the defense gives you, and Mike has done an excellent job capitalizing on his opportunities."
Is that part of being a pro — that you don't know when your number is going to get called, but when it's called, you have to be ready?
"There's no doubt. There are always conversations we're having with guys. Everyone's human. Everyone wants to be involved and help us win. And so, there's always stretches where we're not winning, and there's a lot of guys on the team I want to make sure (they know), 'Hey, you're opportunity is going to come. And I know you want to help us win, and we're going to find ways to do that.' And I think a lot of guys did that today for us."
Third time this year you've double-dipped with touchdowns before and after half time. You did it today. How important was that?
"It's critical. For us, there are times we take the ball to start the game to try and set the tone on offense and get seven (points) and put them in a hole, and today was one of those days where we're ready to defer and do what we just did at the half, and I think it gave us a lot of momentum. And it played out perfectly, scoring with 31 seconds left in the half and the defense holding them, and then the offense being able to bump that up to a two-score lead (after the half) ... was a big part of the game."
Jermaine Burton was a big part of the game plan coming into today. Can you explain why he was inactive?
"Jermaine was a big part of the plan. And as the week unfolded, there was a lot of positive things people were saying about him. It was all true. And then late in the week ... we've just got to handle business the right way. And so, I can sit here and say it was a difficult decision to make him inactive, but it was absolutely the right decision with all the information we had. He's a guy who's going to have a really good career here, and we're going to support him, and he wants to help us win and do things the right way, and today was just a necessary step we had to make. But we're going to get him back in the fold and keep him moving along in becoming a pro. And there's a lot of things to love about Jermaine. His best days are in front of him, so we're going to make sure he achieves that."
Was Jermaine Burton going to be a part of the game plan before he was made inactive?
"Jermaine was a big part of the plan, and as the week unfolded there were a lot of positive things people were saying about him. It was all true, and then late in the week we've just got to handle all of our business the right way. I can sit here and say it was a difficult decision to make him inactive, but it was absolutely the right decision with all the information we had. He's a guy who's going to have, I think, a really good career here, and we're going to support him. He wants to help us win and do things the right way. Today was just a necessary step we had to make, but we're going to get him back in the fold and keep him moving along and becoming a pro. There's a lot of things to love about Jermaine, so his best days are in front of him and we're going to make sure he achieves that."
Is there any discussion of further discipline for Jermaine Burton?
"No. We'll handle it the way that we handle it."
What was Jermaine Burton's reaction when he learned he would be inactive?
"Jermaine understands the situation."
When you drafted Jermaine Burton, you stood at the podium and said the organization felt really good about the pick, knowing the character concerns that came with it. Do you still feel that way?
"I do. I still think that his best days are ahead of him. We're going to help him get there. He wants it for himself, we want it for him as well. Sometimes, you have to do things that are like what we did to help him get to that next part. He understands that and we're going to help him get there."
Is it perplexing that when he's in the game plan and his number is called, that he doesn't make himself available?
"Again, we're there to to support him and we're going to make sure he gets there."
Losing Erick All Jr. today, how critical was that?
"I hate to think about it. I don't know all the information yet with Erick, because he was having such a tremendous rookie season. He's just an all-around great football player. He's got that mindset, and he means a lot to this offense. When he went out, it certainly affected a lot of things. In the middle of the drive, it affected a lot of things. That's why we've got the best tight ends coach in the country in James Casey, and we've got the smartest tight end group in the country with the guys we have. They problem solved it in the drive, they problem solved it during multiple drives, halftime. We had a lot of 12- and 13-(personnel) in this plan, and those guys did an excellent job handling that. Sometimes you would see a little quirkiness on the field , (like one situation that) led to a delay of game. There's some things that you try to iron out in the moment that wasn't always perfect, but I have utmost trust in that group to overcome a loss like that and find us a way to get through the game, and then we'll move on accordingly."
Do you fear Erick All Jr.'s injury is severe?
"I worry about it. I don't have all the information yet, but I'm concerned about it."
Do you have any injury update on B.J. Hill?
"Not yet. I'll wait until tomorrow to take that one."
What did you think of Chase Brown today?
"Kept with it. He took a nice shot to the ribs at one point in the game and was able to come back out there and do a great job for us. He's a tough guy. To get over 100 yards, that's a credit to him, that's a credit to linemen and the receivers and tight ends. Great job with the scheme there by Frank (Pollack). I'm just proud of the effort, (he) allowed us to lean on that. But when you can play with the lead, you're able to keep hammering that and get some runs like we got. We haven't given ourselves enough of those opportunities lately. This is a game where, when you finally get a two or three-score lead, you can lean on that and wear them down and get some bigger runs. We afforded ourselves those opportunities today."
How did you feel about the offensive line today?
"I thought they did a great job. I thought guys really stepped up. Devin Cochran stepped up. We ran the Amarius (Mims) slip play, so he's got to come out on the next play. Devin came in, was able to hold it down, (we) get a touchdown. Cody Ford stepped up at left tackle. Matt Lee goes in there in some of our big groupings. And then our force inside that's always in there with Amarius has (been) really impressive. Maxx Crosby, I've got as much respect for him as I've got for any player in this league — just down in, down out, what he brings to that team. He was a huge concern of ours, and I thought our guys were all hands on deck, trying to do everything we could to make sure that we the could limit the effectiveness over there on that side."
Did you have a problem with the late hit from Maxx Crosby on Joe Burrow?
"I could see that Burrow didn't, the way they were talking afterwards, and so I think it was just a unique situation with the timing and the whistle and (Crosby playing) full speed. I wanted to (take issue), but I think I might've been close to overreacting when I saw how it played out."
Did you have a different approach on short-yardage situations after last week against Philadelphia?
"We always try to create the best plan we have, and sometimes it's not going to go your way. Those are always going to be huge decisions that are second guesses. So, we put the same time and energy in this week that we always do. I thought it was a good plan. Our guys did a great job executing it."
JOE BURROW
Quarterback
Overall thoughts about how the game went for you?
"Some good. Some bad. Just like every game. The first half plus half a quarter was as good as we've played. And then I felt we could have played better after that. So, some good, some bad."
A big part of that conversation heading into this game was Jermaine Burton and the fact that you publicly endorsed him on Wednesday. He was supposed to be a part of the game plan and then, obviously, things happened and and he became inactive. As the leader of the team and on offense, how do you help him along and then get him going in the way that you need him to?
"Yeah, Jermaine is going to be a great player. You just have to do the little things right. He's a guy that has a demeanor that you like. You like his energy. He practices hard. He has a chance."
You talk to him. How do you help him specifically?
"We'll have discussions. And just like any young player, you're going to try to help him in any way that you can. And, as he gets older, he'll understand things in a different way. He's a young guy right now."
How frustrating is it that someone doesn't put himself in a position to be able to be available for a game like this?
"We had guys step up today. We had guys get their first playing time, make their first catches and make some big-time plays for us. So I was confident in the guys we had out there."
Mike Gesicki just told us that you are one-of-one type of quarterback in terms of your intensity, your competitiveness. Even when the scoreboard looks great, you have a different approach on the sideline. What is your approach? What's your mentality like in a game like today?
"I'm going to have my standard of play, and I'm going to have my idea of the standard of what we should live up to as an offense — the coaching staff, and myself, and everybody. When I feel like we live up to it. I'm going to let us know. And when I feel like we don't live up to it, I'm going to let us know too. Like I said, (there was) good and bad today. So, (there isn't) any time to sit and dwell on the good we had today. It's a short week. We have to learn from the bad and move on."
You threw that fifth touchdown pass and you looked pissed. You didn't look happy ...
"We didn't exactly have a very good third quarter."
You seemed pretty upset. What else did you not like ...
"There's just a combination of things that I felt like we didn't do good enough"
It's a short week. Is that part of it? Do you just have to instantly shift your focus?
"Well, I think that's part of it. I'm not just going to ignore the bad and dwell on the great that we did today. I don't think that's a recipe for improvement. I don't think that's a recipe for getting better. I'm going to be hard on myself. I'm going to be hard on us to execute the way that I feel like we need to. And I feel like we didn't put ourselves in great positions in times of that game to finish off the right way. We ended up doing it. The defense came up big, but I think we could have done better."
How much of that is just knowing what it takes to win a championship and having that top of mind in games like today?
"Yeah. I think just how the season has gone, knowing what's ahead of us, knowing what we're going to have to do to get back into this. One win isn't going to make or break our season. So, I'm going to strive for perfection every — every day and every game. So, until that happens, what's there to be happy about?"
Do you think this would've been good enough to beat a better opponent today?
"I don't know. I don't know about that, but it's good enough today."
You didn't have Zack Moss. How did you find a way to protect on the pass?
"For the most part, I think we did a good job. There were some mental lapses there in the third quarter that we have to get cleaned up. But I think we handled them for the most part all day. If somebody lost, they didn't give up on the play. And I was able to slide and move in the pocket to find some space. So, I think for the most part, we were good today"
Without Jermaine Burton, how big is it for Mike Gesicki to have the game that he had today?
"Yeah. Mike is going to continue to make plays, and he just continues to get open in zone. He wins versus man. He makes big time catches. He makes contested catches, and he continues to show why I have so much trust in him. He continues to make plays for us. So, his role is going to continue to increase."
I think there were eight different pass catchers today from you. With Tee Higgins out due to injury, is there added pressure on Ja'Marr Chase, where you're just saying, 'I'm just spreading it all around'?
"That's just how the game played out. They mix up their coverages a lot. And when you do that, it's hard for me pre-snap to understand where the ball is going to go. So, I'm just reading and reacting. And with Max Crosby over there, you have to play the game quickly and process quickly and get the ball out. And so, I was happy with how I did that today. I got sacked a couple times. One or two times; I'm not exactly sure, but those were different situations. I think, for the most part, I read and reacted to the defense very efficiently today."
Going back to the offseason when players were asking for trades, and Ja'Marr Chase not practicing during training camp, and then the Jermaine Burton — there's been a lot of off-the-field stuff you guys have dealt with this year. Do you feel like the focus is where it needs to be inside the locker room?
"Yeah, I would say it is. Things happen in the offseason, and the good players and the great players know when to lock in and when it's time to go. Young guys have to learn that I think — the rookies are still adjusting to what an NFL season is like. It's not for the faint of heart. It's difficult and it's challenging and it's daunting. And it's tough to stay disciplined every single day, with your routine and your process, and taking care of your body, and getting to meetings, and putting in extra work, and understanding what you have to do on every play. It's not easy. That's why there's not a ton of great players throughout the league. The great ones know how to handle it."
TREY HENDRICKSON
Defensive end
Did you ever have four sacks in a game at any level before today?
"I'm not really like a big stat guy. I like to do my job. That's for you guys to pull up. (I'm) very blessed."
You hadn't won at home this season and you have Baltimore on Thursday night. Joe Burrow said this was a must-win game. Did you agree with that coming into today?
"Anybody who's rooting for the Cincinnati Bengals knows it's a must-win game. We had a good plan. There's things we need to correct and obviously we're going to have to do that on a short week."
Does it feel like Wednesday already because of the short week?
"It is. Whether it feels like it or not is irrelevant."
You are now the NFL leader in sacks as of the conclusion of today's game. Does that mean anything to you?
"You know, if they gave out midseason awards, that would be something you could get excited about, but they don't, so it's on to the next challenge and that's the Ravens."
What do you think made you so effective today?
"I'm blessed to rush the passer. It's something I love to do. I give full credit to my Lord and savior Jesus Christ. He's the wind in my sails. My wife keeps me very humble and ready to work. Anytime you have people in your corner — my sister, my brother, my parents, my wife, this team that believes me week in and week out — it's something I'm blessed to have on my side."
CHASE BROWN
Halfback
You have to be impressed with the offense's output today ...
"Honestly, I feel like we could have done so much more. Joe (Burrow) said after the game, we needed to win that game 10 out of 10 times. I'm glad we got the win, but it's already 'Wednesday' today (because of the short week), so now we've got to get ready for 'Thursday.'"
You guys have Baltimore on Thursday. What is the approach heading into that game?
"It's a divisional opponent. It's a must win-game."
What does having a 100-yard rushing game mean to you?
"I'm just doing my job, man. Today was 27 carries and I'll do whatever it takes to help this team win, so if that's what I've got to do next week, I'll do it."
Did you know how many yards you had as you were getting closer to the 100-yard mark?
"You kind of pay attention, but the offensive line was blocking their (tails) off today, so they were making my job easy (by) opening up running lanes and breaking tackles to make them bigger. It fees good — (we've got to) continue this energy into Thursday."
Did you feel you were going to have a big day right off the bat?
"We were super efficient, which (was) one of our points of emphasis this week. We established the run."
MIKE GESICKI
Tight end
You guys made so many plays on the move today, especially in the red zone ...
"Yeah. I feel like you've got to give Joe (Burrow) a ton of credit for what he does with his feet. I feel like he doesn't get that a lot, the recognition he should for the way he keeps plays alive. I think the first play of the second half, he had that 10-yard run, so he does a great job. Obviously, I can't say enough good things about Joe and what he does but (I'm) just trying to continue to build trust in what he does. If there's a little bit of time and he creates a play, I can go make one for him."
How does it feel to get that first win in front of the fans at home?
"It feels really good. They deserve it. We've let one or two go here, so they deserve a win. They deserve something to cheer about. But it's a short week for them, too. It's already Wednesday for the fans, too. I hope they had fun today but it's time to roll."
Can you describe the final touchdown catch you had that put the game way? Was there some sort of blown coverage assignment by the Raiders' defense?
"I told everybody I just feel like I'm living right because that happened. My wife could have probably scored on that play (laughs) ... honestly, a lot of credit goes to Ja'Marr (Chase) because of how much attention he gets. It was just a fake screen, pump the screen to Ja'Marr and Joe (Burrow) put it out there and like I said, (my wife) Halle could have probably scored on that one."
MIKE HILTON
Cornerback
Do you feel this game gives you guys momentum heading into Thursday's matchup against Baltimore?
"It's a win against an AFC opponent, so that's a big confidence builder going into Thursday."
You were very active today with multiple tackles in the backfield. It seems like you had a good feel for what they were trying to do ...
"I did. My film work throughout the week set me up to make those plays and once I get on the field, I just trust what I've seen and let my instincts take over."
How would you describe Trey Hendrickson today?
"Elite. One of the best in the league. Ninety-one — some guys are just different and he's one of those guys."
In your opinion, what's more impressive — five touchdown passes by Joe Burrow or four sacks by Trey Hendrickson?
"Trey Hendrickson. Obviously, Trey is just one of those elite guys, you know what I mean? Once he gets rolling, he's hard to stop and he makes our job on the back end a lot easier."
You had a tackle and you then did the "too small" hand gesture, which we've seen you do multiple times this year. Is it ironic coming from you to do that to someone else?
"Ninety-percent of the time, I'm the smallest guy on the field, but when I make plays I'm going to let it be known. That's just me being an instinctive player."
