TRANSCRIPT: Mike Vrabel Postgame Press Conference 1/11
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Here’s what New England Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel had to say following the Patriots 16-3 win over the Chargers on Sunday night.
On the fact defense wins championships, and his team had six sacks of Justin Herbert and pretty much made his life miserable, along with how well he thought they played today:
“I thought they played extremely well. I thought they were committed to stopping on the run. I thought the sudden change was critical. It was a very good defense that we were playing, and we turned the ball over far too many times. But what our defense was able to do early in that game in the red zone inside the five-yard line or inside the nine-yard line, I think, really set the tone for them for the rest of the game. It could have been better. We had a lot of scrambles, and we knew that. Again, trying to rush and trying to make sure that those scramble lanes aren’t there. Secondary did a fantastic job with the play extensions and making sure that those plays didn’t get loose. I’m just really proud of everybody.”
On how proud he was to see the effort and the finish towards the end with his defense, and how his lip is:
“Well, we talked to them about being willing to spill some blood out there and that the big dogs come out in January. I think Milt [Milton Williams] took that to heart in the way that he played the game and the way he finished the game. He came over and got me pretty good, but that’s what happens.”
On Drake Mayes’ performance tonight, it looked like he had a slower start, but finished very well:
“Yeah, I mean, again, we got to take care of the football. I thought he came through when we needed him. The tipped pass is something that was unfortunate. That turned into an interception. But the throw to Hunter [Henry], I thought, when we needed him was elite.”
On Zak Kuhr, and the fact the defense played unbelievable tonight, but he stepped in this season with everything that happened with Coach T [Terrell Williams], he’s done a remarkable job …
“He really has.”
Talk about the game he called tonight on defense.
“I would tell you that this means a lot to him. These players mean a lot to him. I think that they want to do well for Zak and for the entire staff. They put a lot into it. I’m proud of Zak for not only the performance calling the game, but the preparation and what goes into it. He’s earned every bit of recognition that he’s getting and should get. Again, it takes everybody. There’s great communication from upstairs, getting it to the players, and they certainly responded. All the credit has to go to them. But Zak was able to change up some calls there at the end, and I felt like that mixed the pressure in because that’s what we felt like we needed.”
On the fact on third down, they were one of 10 defensively, one of three on fourth down, and if that was a specific point of emphasis during the week, along with how much momentum his guys took from those stops in those situations:
“A lot. I think they probably got tired of hearing me talk about them being fourth in the league in third down and what they were able to do as an offense. To be able to do that. But you have to be able to create some longer yardage situations. We were to do that. So that was a real positive. I think being able to get drive stopped. Certainly, the Chargers want to possess the football. They want to wear you down. I don’t think we ever let them do that.”
On if there was a particular aspect of their defense’s performance which you thought was the most significant, whether it was stopping the run, how they were able to pursue [Justin] Herbert, and what stood out the most:
“Well, I think the stop early helped, the fourth down stop, really set the tone. But being able to stop the run, if you look at the runs that they handed off to the running back, that’s kind of where things started. You’re going to look at the rushing yards and whatever it was, but those are quarterback scrambles on passes. Our ability to stop the run and force second and third and long situations, I think, really helped us. Those are only good if you can take advantage of them. We caused some turnovers, we hit the quarterback, and one time it bounces into the running back’s hands, and he’s taken off running, and Harold [:qandry] runs and makes a great effort play. That’s going to go for 12 yards and start it as a strip sack, and then next time, that very easily could be our football. Just the effort, and everybody played, and everybody contributed, and so many guys went down. Other guys in there and stepped up. We play a lot of guys on defense, and I think that they all appreciate that, and I think they all have roles. That’s fun to see everybody contribute.”
On the run game tonight and what he saw from Rhamondre, TreVeyon, and Drake as well, specifically with him on that big scramble:
“It was long enough. I thought that it was good enough. I did. I thought that it was good enough. I thought we were close on a few. Any time that you can finish the ball, finish the game, running the football against the Chargers and a defense like that, I think it’s very positive. Certainly, we weren’t one-dimensional. We were able to run the football. We were able to get some yards on first down. I thought the backs ran hard. I thought they did a great job of taking care of the football. And, Drake, obviously, if he gets the looks that are advantageous, he can take off and run. And just like he did last week, he did the same thing this week.”
On the way the game declared, and when he felt like they got a handle on it:
“Probably, I think after Drake’s pass. After the completion to Hunter and putting us up a couple of scores, I thought that was a critical sequence. I thought it was a great drive. We were into drives. We talked all week about fighting to get the first first down, and then we stalled. And so it was like, Okay, you guys, we’re getting the first first down. Now we have to fight to finish the drive and do that. And that drive we certainly did.”
On, other than the defense, it certainly felt like special teams kept them in the game for a pretty long period of time, and how he feels about their performance:
“I thought it was solid. We didn’t have a lot of opportunities. I thought Marcus [Jones] handled the punts extremely well. I thought the decision to let the ball bounce and get a touchback, those are big decisions that we trust Marcus in to come up and catch the punts, and the way that we cover kick-offs. I thought it was a very clean game from our special team’s perspective. They set the table for everything that we do offensively and defensively.”
(EDITOR’S NOTE: This transcript was done based on the available footage and is subject to typographical errors. If you spot anything, please let me know in the comments below.)
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