Titans Players (9.8.19)
TITANS PLAYERS
WR A.J. Brown:
On connections with QB Marcus Mariota that ignited the offense:
“I just try to get going whenever my number is called. I just try to get going. I had a matchup. I just try to make plays for the team.”
On whether or not the Titans came in with a chip of their shoulders because of the hype around the Browns:
“Most definitely. Most definitely. There are good players on that team. We were just trying to get going. Just trying to get going early to slow everything down and play football.”
On winning Week 1 the way the Titans did on the road:
“We were going to play and play hard. That is all I can really say. We can’t speak on down the road from now. When we are going to come in, we are going to play hard against the other team.”
On the team’s discipline taught by Head Coach Mike Vrabel:
“We were obviously trying to keep our head. In football, plays like that happen. Things happen. We were just trying to stay discipline and just stay focus.”
CB Malcom Butler:
On how they took the crowd out of the game:
“That’s the mentality you have to have when you are on the road. You have to take the air out of the stadium if you can. You know it is going to be tough but you have to keep fighting. You have to make plays, do things the crowd doesn’t agree with, like sacking the quarterback or taking the ball away. It’s all about momentum.”
On how aware they were of the preseason hype behind the Browns:
“It was fun. You can look real good on paper but it has to add up when you get on the grass. I’m pretty sure they are going to continue working just like we are. But don’t believe the hype.”
On what made the team go today:
“We work real hard, we believe in each other and we are here for each other. We don’t care if someone makes a bad play, we are still going to be there for them. We are real acquainted with one another, we love each other and we play for each other.”
On how proud coach was of them outside the locker room and if he reacts like that all the time:
“Definitely, he does that a lot. It depends on the game sometimes but for the most part yes.”
S Kevin Byard:
On how successful his defense was:
“I knew I had to come in and make plays today. I think as a defense we came into this game expecting to play great. I understand there was a lot of hype and things going on, but we had no panic. We gave up a touchdown the first drive and I came back to the sidelines and settled down. I told myself ‘I think we can get this thing going’ and that’s exactly what happened. I made a play and (CB) Logan (Ryan) made a pick and then it was raining cats and dogs at that point. We visualize this. I don’t think it’s anything anyone is surprised by. We came here to win, we came here to do our job, we played titans football and no penalties. We played great. I’m happy about the win but it’s on to Indianapolis now.”
On the Browns frustration:
“We don’t get caught up in that. We knew coming into the game we were going to play super aggressive, but penalty free. We had a couple penalties, but at the end of the day it wasn’t an enormous amount. We always know Week 1 with it being the beginning of the season, there are going to be a lot of penalties. We did great in that aspect, so I am proud of our guys.”
On how excited they are about their Home Opener and honoring Alumni next week:
“It’s going to be huge. We are going to do whatever we can to prepare for the Indianapolis Colts and get ready for the game. You know Eddie George and Steve McNair, those are pioneers for the Tennessee Titans and probably two of the greatest players in our franchise history. We are definitely going to try and get a W to honor them.”
On the anticipation on this game:
“We treated it like its business. We knew it was going to be a hostile crowd and some chaos. We were able to settle down after that a first drive and play our brand of football. That’s penalty free, doing what we have to do on defense, making plays, offense playing complimentary football and we are proud of what we did. At the end of the day, we are blue collar guys who are going to go to work and after we get on this plane it’s on to Indianapolis.”
On if they were concerned after Browns successful first drive:
“Not concerned at all. We play with great poise. We knew they were going to make plays, that’s a talented roster over there. We knew it was going to be a long game, it’s a four quarter and 60-minute ball game. I think we were able to settle down and understand that if we do what we do, we’ll get back in this game.”
On the hype around the Browns on this game:
“We don’t get caught up in hype, we ignore all noise, positive or negative. We play our brand of football no matter who we are playing against. We understand it’s a great team, our secondary was going to have to play big and we were able to accomplish that today.”
OLB Harold Landry III:
On responding to the Browns’ opening touchdown:
“We were not really stressing about it. We knew it was going to be a four-quarter game. We knew we just had to keep our composure, keep battling, keep fighting, and keep competing. We ended up coming out with a big win.”
On knowing the Titans were the more composed team:
“We knew that one of the main goals was to just go out there and be as physical as you can. We knew that was the type of game we wanted to play. Just be physical, play all four quarters, and finish. We did that today and came out with a win. It felt great.”
G Rodger Saffold:
On how the game finished:
“I think what it came down to was our confidence continuing to start to grow. It felt really good to be able to put a win together, also to score points. We scored 34 points today on offense, with a lot of help from our defense as well. It is great to be able to have that type of team effort that continues to gain points, get touchdowns, and take advantage of our situations.”
On if he felt the Titans were wearing down the Browns’ defense with the run game:
“It was more of the way the game was going. That mentality to be able to fight through all of the adversity that they had to go through with going against us, the referees, the penalties, and all of those things. You can see that it was kind of taking the gas away from them a little bit. I think what it came down to was our tempo on the field. We run to the line of scrimmage. We try to pound the run, pound the run, and pound the run. And the next thing you know, you see it start to open up. It helps (QB) Marcus (Mariota) out on the pass. The protection starts to get better once we started getting in rhythm. We are happy with the results.”
S Kenny Vaccaro:
On the start of the season:
“We played good complimentary football. It was a good start, we won game one and are 1-0, but we are going to put this to bed and move onto the Colts.”
On Titans’ reaction to Browns successful opening drive:
“We have always weathered the storm. We know the first 15 plays – it’s the first game of the season. We don’t know what they are going to run and there’s going to be some stuff. Don’t panic, stay calm and once you get past those first 15 plays, then we will get into our rhythm and flow. I think we were able to do that and execute. Guys did a good job and we were able to get a couple turnovers. Anytime you get four turnovers, it’s going to be a tough game for the other team.”
On what led to him getting kicked in the face:
“We hit each other. I knocked him over and he kicked me in my head. I thought it was funny. It’s going to be a hefty fine, I feel bad for him. I didn’t want him to get ejected. We were taught on this team, no dumb penalties. The second guy is always the one to get caught. I didn’t really start anything, but at the same time if you respond you are going to get caught and that’s when you get a penalty.”
On how pleased he is with their low penalty ratio compared to the Browns
“We are the least penalized team in the league last year. That’s being coached and that’s the culture. That’s what coach preaches and that’s what we do.”
On their play in the second half:
“It was fun. Once it starts flowing and turnovers start racking up, you build momentum. You start talking back and fourth and feel like you are on top of the world. It gets out of control quick, but that’s how you win games.”
On whether or not they were the favorite coming into the game:
“Of course you guys are going to hype up the Browns. It’s cute. (WR) Odell (Beckham Jr.), (WR) Jarvis (Landry) and (RB) (Nick) Chubb are all there. We are going to keep working, I bet no one picked the Titans. Keep on not picking us, we’ll be the underdogs all year.”
On what this says about the 2019 Titans:
“Nothing. We are just 1-0.”
TE Delanie Walker:
On what changed as the game opened up:
“We just stuck to our game plan. We did not do anything different. We came into halftime and talked about we were just going to keep doing what we have been doing. We felt like we were the better conditioned team and it showed at the end.”
On if he felt people were sleeping on the Titans and not giving them a fair chance:
“They sleep on us every year. What is new? That is a question you already knew. We like being under the radar. They were who we thought they were. If you want to crown them, crown them. They still have play football. Today we showed that we play better football.”
On the team’s mentality coming in knowing they knew what it takes to be successful:
“We were not listening to anything outside of the locker room. We knew what we had. We knew what we were capable of doing. We just had to show people. We came out here in Cleveland, in the Dawg Pound, and got the W.”
On how much the team used the hype around the Browns for fuel:
“I am going to tell you again. They were who we thought they were. If you want to crown them, crown them. Do you get what I am saying? They still have to play football. That fueled us. That is why we went out there and played off of that. It is funny that you can doubt someone and you have not even played a game yet. That is what we do in this league. We hype teams. We hype them. That is the normal.”
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