MARVIN LEWIS
Head Coach
Initial comments ...
COACH LEWIS: Think the best lesson learned today for our football team is you just got to keep playing, regardless literally of the situation, football game, where we are, what's going on - just keep playing, go to the next down and keep playing.
You know, that's a good takeaway. Obviously not winning the football game, there's disappointment. We had opportunities, both sides of the football, to win the football game. You know, for the time and energy and everything invested in it, that's what you want to get. So there's some disappointment in there.
Again, it's another learning lesson of things to just keep playing, it's not over. But obviously we had opportunities today and we didn't make good on them. We've got to continue with that. You know, we can't have turnovers, basically the turnovers today offensively, penalties on defense, we miss a PAT, miss a field goal, those things eventually come back and they get you beat.Q. On the tie:
COACH LEWIS: You don't get the win but you don't get a loss either. We know at the end of the year that pays dividends. We just handle our business. If we still handle our business, we're fine.Q. How frustrating are the penalties?
COACH LEWIS: Well, I think three of them were defensive holding. You know, so, again, I can't define, go through each penalty. But we can't retaliate when things happen. That's my only message; don't retaliate, let it play out.Q. On Tyler Eifert opening up the defense:
COACH LEWIS: Well you know Tyler, and Andy does a good job of reading the coverage and putting the ball where it belongs. That's the most important thing. Those other guys were making those catches as well. That's what we have to just keep doing, is Andy always doing a good job of recognizing the coverage and getting the ball where it belongs.Q. On what worked early in the game that the Redskins counteracted?
COACH LEWIS: Well, we got to do a good job of -- you know, we had opportunities, as I said, they converted a couple third downs with a penalty. They converted with a catch-and-run. You know, I mean, it's hard for me to remember all the things right now.
In general, you know, defensively we've got to do a better job of understanding and getting our jobs done, particularly in the perimeter, in coverage. Linebackers, secondary, everybody fitting together, making sure everything fits together the right way all the time.Q. On if it was a defensive victory at the end:
COACH LEWIS: Well, obviously when we end up with the ball down there, you know, they had the one before halftime; we were able to get off the field. So we had a couple opportunities today where we actually defended the goal line pretty well, which are positives for the defense today.
There at the end there was a missed field goal, caused again when we fumbled the ball, make a play, push it back. They have the one play left.
There's some positives to coach from. We've just got to correct some of the negatives and continue to press forward. There's always going to be something we're not happy with, but we've got to continue to press forward and keep going.
Thank you.
Andy Dalton
Quarterback
Q. Did you change the play on 3rd and 1?
ANDY DALTON: The play that they sent in, we, you know, had it. Just couldn't hold on to the ball.
Q. Did someone misread that?
ANDY DALTON: I don't really even know what happened. I tried to get my second hand on it, and it got ripped out.
Q. Do you feel like you let it slip away, this one?
ANDY DALTON: Absolutely. We had so many opportunities in this one that could allow us to win the game. We weren't able to make the play. I had a big part in that. Obviously the fumble at the end. The last drive of the fourth quarter that we had.
Again, opportunities, but just let it slip away.
Q. Was it nice to have Tyler Eifert back to throw to over the middle?
ANDY DALTON: Definitely. You know, Tyler, it's great to have him back out there. He's such a good player. I mean, it showed with the way he played today.
So, I mean, it's great having him back. I mean, he's a big part of this offense.
Q. Is A.J. able to go toe-to-toe with the best in the league?
ANDY DALTON: A.J. is the best receiver in this league. Anybody that's out there, you know, A.J. is going to do his thing.
I missed him on a couple that could have been big plays for us. But, you know, there's nobody else in the league like A.J.
Q. What does this do for the rest of the season, set the tone?
ANDY DALTON: Yeah, it's obviously the weird feeling of we didn't lose, but we didn't win. Feels more like a loss than anything.
But we'll come back from the bye, and we got to get things going for the last eight of the season.
Q. What did Tyler do for you in the middle, Andy?
ANDY DALTON: Yeah, I mean, for Tyler, he's so big, runs such good routes, that you just got to put it around him, make good plays.
So, you know, his ability that he can do everything from the tight end position is a big matchup for us. I mean, I feel like we can try to get him involved as much as we can.
Q. On the touchdown:
ANDY DALTON: Yeah, we ran it several times. He made a great catch.
Q. Do you feel like the offense is starting to find itself?
ANDY DALTON: Yeah, I mean, I feel like today we left a lot out there, too. You know, we feel like we obviously did some good things today. But we got to correct the mistakes because that's what will really take us and make us have a big jump.
Q. That was your first interception in 155 throws or something. Was that a reaction to the blitz?
ANDY DALTON: Yeah, I mean, was trying to just get the ball out of my hands. Bad play on my part. I've got to put it in a safer spot.
REDSKINS POSTGAME QUOTES
OCT. 30, 2016
WASHINGTON AT CINCINNATI
Jay Gruden
Head Coach
Initial comments...
Injuries, Blackmon had a thumb fracture, dislocation and he came back in. Duke had a concussion. Morgan Moses has an ankle sprain. Niles Paul, shoulder AC sprain, clavicle. DeSean had a head contusion, he passed his concussion testing and Breeland had cramps.
Q. On his feelings about the tie:
COACH GRUDEN: I don't know, I said I don't know what to say after the game. Should I be upset or happy or whatever? But I think the one thing I'm happy about is the way we competed and fought. Some guys came in and played hurt, and that was a dogfight. That's a heck of a team over there in Cincinnati, a 72-minute game today, and it was a grinder, 75, whatever it is, I can't add. But we fought, made some good plays, made some dumb plays, made some things happen, but couldn't get it done at the end.
Q. On their amount of passing attempts:
COACH GRUDEN: We had our runs a little bit. We went into overtime so we got another 15 attempts, too. I don't know if it was a record after four quarters, but we were hitting them pretty good through the air. Protection was pretty good for the most part, too, so we thought we had some holes through the air. But I think Robert Kelley still had 21 carries for 100 yards, so he did some good things also.
Q. On the opportunities in overtime:
COACH GRUDEN: Yeah, yeah. There were swings, that's for sure. It was a great play by Compton to get the ball out on Dalton, and I'm sure they're over there talking about their missed opportunities as we are over here. Both teams had a great opportunity to win that football game and neither one of us could quite get it done, but like I said before, emotional game and the majority of our games have come down to these close wire-to-wire plays and somebody has got to take them and today both teams made just enough to tie.
Q. On his reaction to the tie:
COACH GRUDEN: I don't know how to react. I didn't think it was possible to tie. I know there was a tie last week in Arizona, but I was like, "How the heck did they tie?" Now we know. Like I said, we're 4-3-1, which doesn't count for a loss, but we need to rack up some wins. In the NFC East right now the Cowboys are leading with five games won already. It would have helped to win this one, but I guess it's not a loss. I don't know.
Q. On if he likes the team's progress so far in the season:
COACH GRUDEN: I think so, without a doubt. I think we're 4-3-1, like I said. The bye is coming at a good time. We need the bye. We need to get away from each other for a little bit, get their minds right, get their bodies right. We have some guys that are banged up and fighting through some injuries, so we're excited about it, but I like the progress of our football team, no doubt about it. I like where we're going. I think every goal that we still have is still in place and I feel good about where we are.
Q. ON where he sees the most progress:
COACH GRUDEN: I see progress everywhere. I see attitude, I see passing game, running game, special teams. We've made a lot of progress. There's still a lot of work to do, no question about it, but I think progress is being made without a doubt.
Q. On Robert Kelley:
COACH GRUDEN: I think he ran the ball hard. I think he was a little bit impatient on some cuts, but for the most part he runs hard. I liked the way he ran. He protected the ball, had some big runs there. That big one in overtime was a huge run to get us down into field goal range. I think he had a couple opportunities to pick up some blitzes, did a good job, so I thought he played well.
Q. On Dustin Hopkins:
COACH GRUDEN: I don't know. I don't know. I thought the one at the end of the half, he had plenty of leg to get that one, he just toed it a little bit, was just a little short. Then the one at overtime I think might have been a bit high - wasn't quite the rhythm that I normally see with the snap, the hold and the kick, and then he missed it. And Hops had a great year. He's going to have a great year for us, but I thought it was the right play. I tried to let as much time go down. I didn't want them to get the ball back and score on us, but unfortunately we missed it.
Q. On the officiating in today's game:
COACH GRUDEN: That's a great question, too. That's one I don't have an answer for. I don't know. I'll have to go back and look at the film. Some of those calls, I don't know. I've got to see them. Hands to the face, holding, whatever, then they call offensive pass interference on us at the end and I don't know.
Q. On this being the first overtime game in London and the explanation for the fans:
COACH GRUDEN: You know, down on the field we couldn't hear the loudspeaker, so I couldn't hear for the anthem and stuff, couldn't really tell what was going on up there, but we knew the rules. Hopefully the fans had a good time. It was a great game, two quality teams going at it, guys laid it on the line, so that's as good a football game as they'll see, but unfortunately we didn't get a victor.
Q. On if the offense needs to get bigger plays:
COACH GRUDEN: Yeah, yeah, those would be nice. I think in this day and age against quality defenses, it's hard to move the ball 12 plays and 85 yards. Sometimes you're going to get a holding call or something like that or something might break down, so it's important to get those chunk plays and we try hard to get as many as we can in a game. It's a lot easier said than done. You can't just go back and say I need a 30-yarder, give it to me, but when they're out there, we have to take advantage of them and I think Kirk did a great job today. I think it was one of the better games he's played since I've been here, so hats off to him and the offense. They did some great things, but you're right, we do need to get some bigger plays.
Q. On Jordan Reed:
COACH GRUDEN: Yeah, I think it's quite obvious. He's a heck of a player. He's good in the running game, and obviously he's a weapon with all of the things that he can do. He can line up in nickel, defensive back, safety, it doesn't matter who's on him. He's very, very effective in whatever route he wants to run.
Kirk Cousins
Quarterback
Q. On how he processes the tie:
KIRK COUSINS: It's a unique experience, but now we move forward. I think that's the key is that you always look towards what's next, what's the next challenge. We don't live in the past in this league, so it is what it is and what I'm proud of is the fact that so many guys laid it on the line and gave us everything they had and I was proud of the effort and the mental and physical toughness that guys showed through the course of the game.
Q. On the importance of going into the bye week on a positive note:
KIRK COUSINS: We certainly want to go into a bye week with a good taste in our mouths, and while it's not a win, it's certainly better than a loss. I know it's a cliché thing to say, but I've really run out of words. I think that's the best way to describe it. We'll take from this game from an offensive perspective that a lot of good things happened, a lot of plays were made, a lot of yards were produced and we just need to keep going, keep learning, and hope that the second half of the season we can get in a rhythm where we finish strong.
Q. On the play calling and amount of pass attempts:
KIRK COUSINS: It's just play to play. Obviously on the interception it didn't open up for them, so we just don't want to be greedy and just take what they give us. I think, again, we completed just under 70 percent of our passes, pass attempts, and were moving the football and producing a lot of yards. I'm pleased with the way Sean called the game and with the way the guys executed.
Q. On what he said to Dustin Hopkins:
KIRK COUSINS: He's such a talented kicker, certainly wasn't expecting a miss, but welcome to the NFL. I just told him, "You're okay." Do you know the number of times I've walked back to the sideline and felt like I was the one who let the team down? It happens multiple times every game. It's part of playing in this league. It's a tough business. It's going to test you, and he knows, but we'll remind him going forward that we're 100 percent behind him, and we know he's a great kicker, and he makes that kick 99 out of 100 times.
Q. On the personality of the offense:
KIRK COUSINS: I think it's so much week to week in this league that it's hard to have a broad scope of the offense as a whole. I think we had 500, 600 yards of offense today. That's pretty good. Guys made some unbelievable plays and if we don't do that against the Vikings, then I think the narrative is going to be that our offense is sputtering and we're not doing enough. So it's so much week to week, but we certainly did a lot from a yards perspective today, and we're always going to want more points and come away with touchdowns instead of field goals, but players are making plays and players are giving great effort and they're just locked in and competing play in and play out and that's what you love to see.
Q. On playing in Wembley:
KIRK COUSINS: It was a phenomenal experience. That stadium is incredible. The atmosphere is incredible. Every seat appeared to be filled. The fans were engaged. It was electric. It did feel like a normal NFL game but maybe even more electric in the sense that it felt like such a unique atmosphere.
You know, it was unique changing the time zones and adjusting to London, but I worked hard this week. I worked with a neuropsychologist, Dr. Royer, who worked me through how to study the sleep patterns and make sure I was ready to go and I think physically my body was ready and mentally my body was ready to go through the game today and I was pleased with the preparation and the fact that it worked out.
Q. On how he dealt with the up and downs of this game:
KIRK COUSINS: I think you deal with it or handle it by expecting it. You know, I never walk into a game and say, "We're going to win by two touchdowns and things are going to go smoothly and I'm going to play at a high level play in and play out." I think you go into games and moments in overtime saying, "This is about to be a roller coaster. This is going to go up and down and we're going to have a penalty and it will be 2nd and 15 and then it's going to be 3rd and 1." You just have to go and react to each situation and become a master at each individual play that presents itself.
Q. On Robert Kelley:
KIRK COUSINS: Yeah, I've alluded to many players today laying it on the line, and while the offensive line is first and foremost in that group and the receivers, Rob Kelley is another one that fits right in there. I had a front row seat every time I hand the ball off to watch him read the holes and make the cuts and attack and keep his shoulders downhill and take on contact, and I was very pleased with the way he ran the football, the toughness he showed, the way he competed, the way he fought for extra yards. I enjoyed the front row seat that I had today to watch him run.
Jamison Crowder
Wide Receiver
Q. How comfortable are you with a tie:
JAMISON CROWDER: No, this is actually my first time being in a game that ended with a tie. It's kind of tough. You know, I feel like in a way, I feel like we lost, but at the same time it's like we didn't lose, so it's like we -- like you feel like we didn't do enough. You know, it's a strange feeling.
Q. What was it like to play here compared to the States:
JAMISON CROWDER: It wasn't as different. I felt like the fans were really into the ballgame. Fans were cheering for the Bengals, cheering for the Redskins. So I wouldn't say that it was as different. It was just -- I felt like it was kind of -- I guess it was a Bengals home game, but you really couldn't tell because I feel like the fans were there for both teams, so it didn't feel different at all.
Q. What part of not winning this game was on your team:
JAMISON CROWDER: A lot. A lot of it. There were some situations where we had a penalty that was all on us. You know, there was a lot of calls that were questionable, but there were some plays, some calls that we kind of put ourselves in a bad position. You know, you really don't think about those type of things, but you know, we had a chance to win the ballgame, and we just fell short and ended up tying.
Q. How frustrated are you:
JAMISON CROWDER: It's tough to get -- drive all the way down the field and to not come away with a touchdown, you kind of get tired of just getting field goals. That's definitely an area that we have to go back and revisit and really spend a lot of time on so that we can improve and obviously put up points.
Q. What positives can you take from this game going into the bye week:
JAMISON CROWDER: I mean, we're out there and competing. We know that we didn't -- we just didn't come through when we needed to, but you've just got to -- that game is in the books now. It was a tie. You've just got to take the good things we did on film. We drove the ball down the football field, just weren't able to put it in as much as we would like to in the red zone. Like I said, we've just got to go back and really look at the things that we can do better in the red zone so that we can produce points and just try to work on those things and get ready for the Vikings.
Vernon Davis
Tight End
Q. On his feelings after the tie:
VERNON DAVIS: Well, of course whenever you play a game, you play it to win. We couldn't really pull it off today, but I have to give a round of applause to all the guys in the locker room because they fought. They fought so hard and they didn't let their guards down. They kept fighting and it was quite a battle. It was quite a battle.
It was one of those games where you just look at it and it's almost as if we didn't really play it, any time you tie a game. Because the only way and the only thing to do is to come out with a victory. With that being said, you just kind of leave it behind and just know that we put up a good fight and we did give our very best.
Q. On his experience playing in London:
VERNON DAVIS: Well, this would be my third time playing here. I played here twice when I was with the San Francisco 49ers. This has been quite an experience playing here. We love it. We think it's a great opportunity to come over here and just show another country what the NFL has to offer. And not just what the NFL has to offer, we kind of introduce everyone on this side to the game. It's great and of course it's great to put up a good fight and play a football game.
Q. On the Washington tight ends playing at a high level:
But today, Jordan Reed, he comes out and does it. He comes out and does what he does every single Sunday. He gives his very best. He's a tremendous talent. Niles Paul, tremendous talent. We as a group collectively, we went in and handled our responsibilities and played football.
Q. On if they would have won if they could have one or two plays back from the second:
VERNON DAVIS: Well, we know as an offensive unit, we know that we have to put up points. That's first and foremost. In order to win games, you have to score points. Whether we like it or not, it has to happen.
I mean, we can't beat ourselves up. Like I said, I think we did a great job today of fighting, staying in the game. After the bye week we have to come back in and just make an assessment and correct some things. Some small things, but I strongly believe that we can get back on track and do some great things as a football team because we have the weapons, we have the guys, and we can get it done.
Q. On what he said to Dustin Hopkins after the missed field goal:
VERNON DAVIS: You guys see everything, huh? Wow. Wow. Well, for me, they brought me in here to be a leader, to just pretty much pick guys up when they need it, and that's life, man. It's all about helping the next man, and when he's down, you lift him up. You give him some encouraging words and just make sure that you can do all you can to help him, motivate him, inspire him to do better. All I told him is that I was in the same position that he was in last year when I was with Denver. The game was on the line, they counted on me to make a play and I didn't come through. It builds you, it builds your character, it builds you as a football player and the next time he will do better. You can't beat yourself up because it's only - it's one time. It's one time. It makes you better, makes you stronger. That's all I had to say to him, just some encouraging words, lifting him up.
Trent Williams
Offensive Line
Q. How do you react to this result:
TRENT WILLIAMS: Honestly I think you've just got to take it for what it's worth, especially when there is no win or loss. We played a good, hard-fought game. It was a physical game, a lot of emotions flying. I think the team over there plays extremely tough, and I think we pride ourselves on playing tough, so it was a clash. I mean, it sucks to come out without a victory, but I guess the only bright side is that it isn't a loss.
Q. Some guys see it as a loss:
TRENT WILLIAMS: Well, I mean, no matter any game, you can always look back and say we should have did that, we should have did that. Hindsight is 20/20. You can't really live in that world, especially in the professional football world because you'll drive yourself crazy.
Q. How's your leg feel:
TRENT WILLIAMS: I'm walking. I am walking under my own power, I guess. It's probably going to be a tough morning, but it was worth it. It was worth it playing through the pain just to be out there with the fellas.
Q. On his leg feeling better:
TRENT WILLIAMS: Definitely, definitely. I think just getting off of it, letting it rest, letting it just heal on its own, I think that it should help me out a lot.
Q. Would you change the overtime rule if you could?
TRENT WILLIAMS: You know, it's a physical game. You've got to put a cap on it somewhere. Obviously guys love this game. They'll play for three hours, four hours, five hours if you let them.
I think in the regular season putting a cap on it, I think it has its pros and cons. It's a physical game, man, and the longer you play, the more fatigue sets in, the more you're exposed to getting injured. I think putting a cap on it is pretty smart, but it always sucks when you have to end on a tie.
Q. How good was Robert Kelley today:
TRENT WILLIAMS: He just kept going forward, man. He's one of those guys that's tough to bring down, going to run through arm tackles, going to give you second, third, fourth, fifth efforts. He's going to continue to keep the power moving. I'm certainly impressed by that. Me as a lineman to feel that kind of power, I've got to let my guy go and start to try to help clear it off, and you notice he's still going. I think that shows a lot of toughness out of him, that he continued to just pound the rock like that.
Q. How did the pass interference call on Garcon affect the game?
TRENT WILLIAMS: I did not see Pierre's pass interference call, but obviously it changed the game. It changed the game a lot, took us out of field goal position. That's tough, man. Any time you make a call like that with the game on the line, I hope that there was demonstrative evidence, and I hope it wasn't like a ticky-tack call because that really sucks. That game could have been won. You never know, they could have blocked the kick and ran it back. That's a deciding factor in that game.
I think sometimes the refs should just let the guys play. I think they threw enough flags for the day. I don't know what the total of the penalties, but I know it was a lot. So yeah, it sucks for the game to end that way.
Will Compton
Linebacker
Q. On if he's disappointed in the tie:
WILL COMPTON: I think you definitely have to be disappointed because you come here to win. You don't come here for anything else but to win, but at the same time we didn't lose, so I felt like our backs were up against the wall at certain points in that game, especially in that second half. I felt like guys fought their butts off to stand tall, get some turnovers, get some points. So you know, we'll watch the film. We'll be upset, disappointed over a few things and we'll be excited about a few big plays that happened, but you want to win, so I think everybody is disappointed. But at the same time you don't lose, so you just don't really know how to feel. You're just kind of talking about it right now.
Q. On Dustin Hopkins and his forced fumble in overtime:
WILL COMPTON: Yeah, man. I mean, Hop is a hell of a kicker. You just basically let him know you love him and he's our guy and stuff. There's nobody in the world right now more upset than he is about it and I think that's what I hate most is you look at him and you want to say stuff to him because you want him to feel okay about it, but at the same time you just know like, man, this dude is just hard on himself right now. That's what I hate most for him.
You know, he missed it. It reminds me of what happened a couple weeks ago with the Seattle and Arizona game. And that play with Dalton, they were in a two-minute drill, he put the back behind him. I didn't really think anything of it. Nobody was going to run the ball because they didn't have any time-outs, so I'm thinking he's just got the running back back there for whatever reason, he's going to drop back and try to throw it to AJ or something like that. But when I saw him sneaking, I just lunged and threw my body in there. Baker had his arm around the ball and it kind of helped me knock it out, so it's multiple guys, multiple efforts in there. We came off the ball, and still, we couldn't come up with the win. But at the same time we had our backs against the wall again. So it sucks, but it is what it is. I don't know.
Q. On the team's progress:
WILL COMPTON: Well, right now I think the strides we've made is playing to - you know - the more you play together, the more you gel in the communication. Hats off to them bringing Whit in. Credit to them bringing Whit in. The guy does a heck of a job preparing. He's kind of like another brain out there communicating and everything like that. There was a lot of good communication things that are going on. That's an area we're really growing in.
When we watch the film, we gave up 34 or 30 something first downs, so that's unfortunate. That's never what you shoot for. I'm sure there will be a lot of things we can correct, but again, I think the more we play together, the better we are. I don't know, I'll have to watch this game more.
Q. On if it felt like a regular NFL game in London and if a team should be placed here permanently?
WILL COMPTON: You know, that's up for the NFL to decide. Me personally, I thought this was one of the cooler places I've ever played at. Right now you feel like it's kind of bigger than an NFL game. It's funny seeing all the fans out there, and you have so many different jerseys of the team that they support. I thought it was pretty cool. It was just a cool experience all around.
As far as the team being out here, I'm not real sure. I know that the travel situation would really suck. It's hard flying in on Thursday and kind of going through that routine, but you know, it's up to them. I thought it was a great experience being out here, though.
Q. On his interception:
WILL COMPTON: Yeah, we had a 3D blitz going on, zone dog, whatever you want to call it, but I'm a 3 player in that situation, and you know, that pick is more for - more on Whit than it is myself. The X is nasty on the right side, so even though I'm 3 player, Whit, you alert the situation of him coming shallow because if he comes shallow I can come off of my coverage and play what's new coming underneath. You know, it's hard to play because you can't look at both sides of the ball throughout your coverage because you've got a speed receiver, I've got to run down the middle of the field with if he runs down the middle of the field. And so I just kind of opened my ears from that alert and was just thinking to myself, just trust whoever yells, whatever that route might be over there, just trust that you're going to hear it.
So you know, I dropped back and was going off the receiver, and I just heard Whit yelling from the background, so I just shut my eyes, the ball was kind of up in the air, I don't know if somebody got a hand on it or hit him or whatnot, and I just made sure to catch it and got down.
But wasn't the best return. Kind of a trash return, but I'm sure I'll catch some heat for that.
Ryan Kerrigan
Linebacker
Q. How do you describe your feelings after a tie:
RYAN KERRIGAN: Yeah, I don't really know how to feel. It definitely feels more like a loss than a win, especially because we had some chances, defensively, offensively, special teams wise, to put it away. But yeah, it's just really awkward because you see ties and you're like, "Man, I bet that would be weird to tie a game" and then lo and behold, here we are.
Q. After the field goal attempt, were you guys thinking it was over?
RYAN KERRIGAN: Not really. We knew we had to get a stop there because we knew they only needed three and that's a couple big plays away, so we knew we had to get a stop, and fortunately we had the big play getting the fumble back and giving us a chance at least. So that was a good job by us there.
Q. On if they thought they were about to win before the field goal attempt in overtime:
RYAN KERRIGAN: Oh, sure. I mean, we definitely thought that because Dustin has been so awesome for us all year. But I think we did a good job after the miss of coming out and playing good defense, getting the turnover there.
Q. On the experience playing in London:
RYAN KERRIGAN: Today was awesome, other than the result, and yeah, the result, but I think playing at this stadium was awesome. I thought the pregame ceremonies with the anthems were really cool, and just seeing how lively this stadium was was really a great experience.
Q. On first half struggles:
RYAN KERRIGAN: Yeah, they just started hitting on some chunk plays, running and passing, and some quick hitters in the passing game. We had to do a better job of limiting those chunk plays.
Q. On what they improved upon after the first half:
RYAN KERRIGAN: We tackled better. We're more gap sound, got off the field on 3rd down better and didn't allow them to extend drives on 3rd down.
Q. On being 4-3-1 and what they can do better in the second half of the season:
RYAN KERRIGAN: That's even weird to hear, 4-3-1. Well, you know, I think we're still yet to play our best ball. We're not in a great position, but we're not in a bad position right now at 4-3-1. We're still over .500 and we know we're still right in the thick of things with the NFC East and we've still got a bunch of NFC East games left. We're right there, we've just got to find a way to get healthy over the bye week and then come back and win some pretty big games we have, starting with Minnesota.
Q. Would you like to play for a team based in London?
RYAN KERRIGAN: I'm just happy with the Redskins right now. I've really enjoyed my career there, so hopefully I can keep that going for the duration of my playing.
Q. On the logistics of playing in London and how it would affect a permanent London team:
RYAN KERRIGAN: I mean, the travel certainly is tough, but at the same time, I think we had a good plan coming in as far as sleep goes. We got adjusted pretty well. Who knows if that'll happen, but yeah, who knows.
Josh Norman
Cornerback
Q. On how he processes a tie:
JOSH NORMAN: Man, what to say? Thank God we came out alive. It was a long game, but since this is an international series and we are over here in London, I brought one of my friends. Come here, man. Come here. As you can see, he blessed me with some Manchester United stuff, so I appreciate him coming out and supporting the team. That's big. We come over here and play, and I like to show them guys a good time.
Q. On it being a great game:
JOSH NORMAN: Yeah, it was. That's how I'm taking it, so whatever. I think I've been in one of these situations in Carolina where we tied it. Here we got a tie, but the game shouldn't even have been that way for me. I can say that. Left some plays out there on the field and that's just not characteristic of me or my game. I know that, and it's not no one-man game whatsoever, so if anybody wants to go at Dustin for missing those field goals, I think you suck, and I think everything about you is nothing you know of football because he had the opportunity. Things come up short, they really do. So if you're putting this game on him, terrible for it and I just want you to know that. This was the entire game, myself included, with all the defensive guys, offense and special teams. It's one unit, it's not one guy. We all try to do our best in our individual game out there on the field, but things fall down and they come up short. We've just got to make an extra play, and dadgumit, I just feel bad about it. It's a tie, whatever, feels like we lost.
Q. On the officiatin gin today's game:
JOSH NORMAN: Yeah, who's 88? I've just got to know. Who is the official 88? He sucked. I'm just going to be honest with you. I'm going to be straight forward. He was terrible. I feel like he should be reprimanded. I feel like some of the plays going on out there, it was terrible, to the point where we go out on the field, Crowder scores, blatant facemask, blatant. We get a touchdown, no call.
Now defense, we go out there, and on the same sideline, we stop them for a run, we get in there, he said we call a facemask, but there was no evidence of that. It was a scuffle. How did you see the scuffle facemask but you did not see the blatant one when it was just him and one other person? Like geez, I'm baffled by it, so to the point where all my teammates are feeling like that, I'll speak on it. It is what it is.
I just feel like they really need to sit down and look at that, because the plays out there that was going on, I never in my life had seven like flash on me ever, and I feel as if I probably had more than that if you really want to be honest with it. Every time he threw the ball, I feel like it was going to be a flag. OK, here you go. Let me not touch the guy. Let the guy push off on me, but let me not touch him. And the flag at the end of the game where Pierre caught a slant, caught a slant route in five yards, got separation from the DB, was in field goal range - flag, coming back.
So was that the only first offensive pass interference we had all game? I need to know, because I don't think Cincy had one of them at all and if you all see the game, there was a lot of that going on. But like I said, I'm not them. I just play the game. I play it, always physicality to a degree. Like that's how we play it, old school football, hands up on you. They know we do this. We come over here in an international game and it seems like, geez, throw everything out the window, what we do. Hit the guy on the line, five-yard penalty. Hands to the face, hands to the face, hands to the face. But yet every time I touched him, he knocked my hand up into him. But I'm telling him, but he's still calling it. How do you play like that?
Q. On the official:
JOSH NORMAN: Come on, man. You go back and watch it. I don't want to sit here and go over how many plays he missed, how many plays he called. It was just terrible to the point where they allowed this guy to get here, I don't know, whatever you can say about it. I don't care. This is just how I'm feeling and how the team feels right now. So speaking on their behalf here or not, I'm just saying. This is how I feel about it and it needs to be watched and reprimanded. They reprimand us, so what's the recommended for them? It's crazy.
Q. On the official's calls:
JOSH NORMAN: You come over here and call - I mean, how many calls did he have? Anybody know? Because I'm pretty sure he had the majority of them. Him. How? It doesn't make any sense.
