Will Blackmon:
On the ability to focus on the game:
“All the young guys are surprisingly extremely mature. I think us veterans especially do a good job just leading by example. I mean everybody, I can’t name them all, they get after it. All the young guys step up. The guys who we signed late, step up. That’s the one thing – whoever comes in here – they know what we’re trying to accomplish. There are no weak links.”
On the play of the defense in the third quarter:
“You knew they were going to come out and try to do some things. That’s how it is. There’s a lot of momentum swings. They have a lot of great players on their team. You knew they were going to try to do something but that’s when we have to bring that extra percentage of attitude to make sure it doesn’t happen. Credit to them for coming out and trying to make something happen. The one that’s a constant theme this year with the team is we’ve been able to handle adversity. I’m very proud that we were finally able to put two games in a row and finish off at home.”
On how much the team’s confidence level has grown over the last couple of weeks:
“I think confidence has always been there. It was just a matter of us just doing the little things. Like, for me, for example, I had a couple of technique errors last game you know where I got beat off the line of scrimmage. Then, I had some mental errors where I wasn’t in the right spot. It was just fine-tuning those things because especially this late in December — fortunately, I’ve played a lot of December football, where it matters — it’s the little stuff we need to take care of because everyone is confident. Everyone is going to play hard. They’re going to try hard. It’s just a matter of honing in on your assignments.”
Alfred Morris:
On his big run today:
“Any run is good, just to keep the team ahead of the chains. Any opportunity I get, I do my best to make the most of it. And I was able to get a big play. Also, I could’ve gone out of bounds, if I wanted to be nitpicky about it, to save us more time. We could’ve scored again before halftime. It’s always good when you get your number called and are able to capitalize off of that.”
Preston Smith:
On his sack today:
“The guy tried to cut me. I defeated the cut block on the backside. After that, it was a free sack. I just had an open run. I saw Ryan [Kerrigan] put pressure on him and I had the chance to secure a sack.”
On what they were able to take advantage of against the Bills’ offensive line:
“Once we get going, a lot of things fall into place for us. Once we play downhill, you can see a lot of great things. When we play together as a team, a lot of things fall into place. Going forward, we’ve got to keep this momentum going. We’ve got to keep getting on the film and stay healthy and take care of our bodies and do things the right way.”
Ricky Jean-Francois:
On his first sack of the season:
“I didn’t know it was a sack actually. I just wanted to make the play and make sure Tyrod Taylor didn’t get up field. T-Knight [Terrance Knighton] came up to me and told me, ‘You know it was a sack, right?’ We started laughing and he told me to hit the dance. I hit it because of T-Knight.”
On what it means for this team to get back-to-back wins:
“We finally put that to bed. That’s the first thing. Now, it’s going to be three in a row. That’s another thing we’re going to have to put to bed.”
Jay Gruden:
On QB Kirk Cousins’ development after not starting for three years:
“Yeah, it hasn’t hurt. Anytime you’re in the NFL, you’re getting mental reps and you’re studying the game. That’s the good thing about Kirk – he’s never lost confidence or faith. At least for the amount of time I’ve been with him, he’s studied the game and worked to get himself to be a starter in this league. Hats off to him to get himself ready.”
On how TE Jordan Reed and WR DeSean Jackson benefit each other:
“They all complement each other. Throw Pierre [Garçon] in there and [Jamison] Crowder, and our running game also. It’s about complementing each other and it’s about the quarterback throwing to the right guy. Kirk was very efficient with his eyes today – his progressions, his reads. When the ball was up in the air, our receivers made them right a lot. Even though DeSean’s touchdown was under thrown, he came back and made a great catch. Pierre’s fade was a little bit under thrown – he made a great catch. Jordan made a great catch on the fade ball down there in the red zone. Guys are making plays, and Kirk is starting to trust the fact that these guys are great players and they are making plays for him. So it works hand in hand. Kirk has to pull the trigger, but the receivers have to make the plays for him.”
On the intelligence level of the defense:
“They are smart. They study. Their coaches do a great job of getting them ready – getting them prepared to play. But those players out there who are playing do an excellent job of getting ready. We gave up some big plays – some big hits in the running game. [Tyrod] Taylor was outstanding with his legs scrambling. Overall, I think our guys were in the right positions with the exception of three or four plays. It’s just a matter of guys being accountable in the meeting room, studying the game, watching practice, learning off our tape, and then going out and competing. Today they competed, flew around to the football, made some big plays happen. That’s a great offense over there – they’ve got weapons across the board. For us to stand up like that and play as good as they did defensively, hats off to the coaches but most of all the players.”
On peaking at the right time:
“As a coach, the whole idea of your team is you want to get stronger as the season goes on. I feel like we had a lot of injuries early on and we’re getting some guys back. Guys are playing more together. We’re learning and starting to feel better about the system on both sides of the ball and special teams. I feel like we are getting stronger. Right now we’re 7-7 tied for first with the [New York] Giants, maybe the [Philadelphia] Eagles. Who knows what’s going to happen? We still have a lot of work to do. As long as we stay focused at the job at hand – and that’s Philadelphia – we’ll be OK.”
On watching Cousins emerge and the “You Like That” chants from the crowd:
“I’ll tell you what, man, the fans are outstanding. Coming out here and listening to them chant, I had to turn my headset up a little bit because I couldn’t hear our play calls and all that stuff. The fans were great so I want to thank each and every one of those guys for coming out today. As far as a love fest with Kirk, you know, Kirk understands that it’s a business at quarterback. You just have to keep the ball rolling and keep playing with consistency. We’re happy the way Kirk is progressing, but this is a one-week deal, man. They love you one week and who knows what will happen the next week. But I feel good about where Kirk is or where his mind is at and now it’s just a matter of putting this game behind us, learning from his mistakes and getting ready for Philadelphia.”
