 |
Kevin Kaesviharn has a knee contusion and he'll be questionable this week. We'll have a better idea Wednesday. Rich Braham, Levi Jones and Kelley Washington will be out this week. Everybody else is basically probable.
Q: Is there a good chance for Anthony Wright to practice?ML:
He'll be cleared and ready to go this week.
Q: What do you make of the couple of guys who were frustrated after the game?ML:
You just hit it right on the head. We're fine. We are on to the Baltimore Ravens. It's an important game for us.
Q: Is frustration all it was?ML:
It's that normal thing that the players go through, 'It's not me, it's got to be somebody else'.
Q: Do you see any merit to the idea that Rudi Johnson was frustrated because he touched the ball six times on the first possession and then:ML:
Rudi touched the ball 50 percent of the plays that he was in. That's pretty good.
Q: Both Rudi and Willie Anderson wanted to really pound Atlanta on the ground:ML:
We did pound Atlanta until they hit us for a seven-yard loss in the third quarter. Second and 17, I don't know how much pounding we are going to do at that point. We did pound. We went up and down the field. We do certain things on offense and I appreciate their thoughts. But if they were always 100 percent right, we would really be in great shape.
Q: Is that something that irritates you?ML:
It comes with the territory. It doesn't surprise you, and it certainly doesn't surprise me.
Q: With Atlanta this week, were you trying to push the ball more vertically?ML:
We pushed the ball vertical a bunch of times this week. We completed one and had a chance at a couple other ones. We didn't have the throw, the catch, the protection, whatever it is. We failed to get it, but we are not going to push the ball into the coverage. We continue to do the things we need to do in our offense. We did a lot of good things but not consistently enough on offense, defense, or special teams. We've got to keep building on it. We are in good shape where we are, we just have to play better. If we keep doing things the right way all the time, then good things will continue to happen. All we can keep doing is work hard at what we are doing.
Q: With regards to Chris Henry and Chris Perry, how difficult is it to mesh them into the offense when they come back?ML:
They have to earn responsibility and time. If you put Chris Perry in for one series and make you (media) happy, then Rudi is standing by me and he's not happy. It kind of goes with the territory a little bit. If you want to push the ball vertically, then you're not doing what Willie or Rudi want to do. You can catch-22 on this all the time. We've just got to win. That's what it comes down to. When you win, you look kind of foolish when you are sitting in there complaining.
Q: With regards to Michael Vick, how would you approach it differently?ML:
We just have to finish. We have to finish on him, and we have to finish in the coverage. He does a good job of that. That has been part of why he's been successful as a quarterback. That is a big part of Michael and his abilities. He threw the ball very accurately on the run, on the move, and he made some plays.
Q: You've only gotten three takeaways in the last four games. Do you chalk that up to the bounce of the ball?ML:
Well, a little bit. A couple bounced the other way yesterday.
Q: How disappointing is it that you are not able to protect home field like you want to?ML:
It's disappointing. I don't know what else to do differently except go out and buy a shotgun. You want to win the games at home and our fans have been outstanding, loud and great. I like when I can keep people off that escalator; that's the key to my job.
Q: You seem pretty upbeat for the coach of a team that has lost three out of four. Why is that?ML:
We won the first three and I was just the same. We're not going to change. Unfortunately, there is only one team that has gone undefeated in the NFL. You are going to lose games when you are playing good teams. You are going to come up short once in a while. But if we keep doing things the right way then we are going to be right where we want to be at the end of the year. We've got to keep doing things right, do it better, more efficiently, and more often. And make sure we're doing with the right people, and keep getting after it.
Q: If you win at Baltimore, you would be 3-0 in the division compared to their 1-1. That would be a big deal at this stage in the year:ML:
That would be a big deal.
Q: Has the Ravens defense been kind of the gold standard for NFL defenses over the past few years?ML:
I would say Tampa Bay's defense has been a little bit ahead, but they've been very good. They always have been. They make a lot of plays. When you have a leader there, like they've had in Ray Lewis, as well as Ed Reed, Adalius Thomas, and Terrell Suggs now, they've got some good players. They play aggressive. It's what they do. We've got to go play good football against them this week.
