TITANS vs COLTS
Thursday, Nov. 12, 2020
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Q. I know special teams compromised things as the game progressed, but it seems as an offense, you guys started off strong in the first half and kind of tailed off again in the second half. What changed over the course of the game for you guys?
RYAN TANNEHILL: We had some things early. We didn't come out and execute well in the second half. Had some opportunities, shot ourselves in the foot a few times. I think the pass I missed to Jonnu (Smith) wide open on the corner route, early opportunity there in the second half and just really couldn't get it going.
Q. What's the overall team frustration level like at this point? And what does the mindset have to be if you guys are going to get back in this thing through the second half of the season?
RYAN TANNEHILL: We have to clean up and start playing better. Plain and simple. Just inconsistent. We have done some good things. Defense has done some good things. We're just not consistent enough as a team playing complementary football, playing off of each other, and just not making enough plays. So we're going to have to clean that up, really get healthy this little extended week we have here, and be able to clear our minds and our heads and come back ready to go on Monday because we can't wait around any longer. We have to take it up a notch and be ready to play our best football every Sunday from here going forward. So the onus is on us to take a critical look at ourselves and do whatever it takes to clean it up and make the plays on Sundays.
Q. The numbers would suggest that the offense has not performed as well without Taylor (Lewan) in there. How much of a factor has that been the last few games as compared to maybe other issues with the offense during that time and then also going up against tougher defenses?
RYAN TANNEHILL: Yeah, no doubt Taylor's a good player and we miss him. Obviously have a ton of confidence in Ty (Sambrailo) and what he brings to the table. Yeah, I don't know, obviously we miss Taylor, but have confidence in Ty. We just have to get it done. There's really no excuses. We had, Roger (Saffold III) was in and out. Ben (Jones) was in and out tonight. We're banged up a little bit. But we just have to be able to find a way to push through those tough situations. We have guys playing through some injuries and showing some toughness and laying it out there for the team, but on the whole, we just have to be able to execute better and make the plays that come up. There's opportunities there and we're just not making enough plays when we get those opportunities.
Q. What's going on with the drops with the receivers? Obviously A.J. (Brown) had a big one today, had another one. Corey (Davis) had a couple last week. It seems like it's really starting to kill some of these drives.
RYAN TANNEHILL: Yeah, it's been all types of different things, whether it's a drop, whether it's a throw, a missed block. It's never one thing or one person. But when you add the things up, you're killing drives, you're stalling out, you're not scoring points. So that's what I'm talking about. We have to start making the plays and take advantage of the opportunities that are there, whether it's a throw, a catch, a block so we can hit a crease. A lot of times we're one guy away and there's too many almosts, whether they're, like I said, throw a catch, a block. Almost doesn't get it done. We have to be able to make it happen on the whole, 11 guys working together, and when we do that, we move the football and we make plays.
Q. Wonder if you could talk us through the hit from Justin Houston, how hard that might have been to get back up from, and what it's like to not finish a game the first time?
RYAN TANNEHILL: Yeah, obviously the hit hurt. It stung a little bit. Knocked my air out. Jonnu (Smith) made a good play, got us into a short yardage situation there and Derrick (Henry) was able to convert on third down. So, yeah, the hit hurt, but I was able to get up and kind of shake it off. And then just being in that situation in the game, obviously you don't want to be out of striking distance at the end of the game. We need to play better earlier in the second half to put ourselves in position to win the game at the end. When you're down three scores at the end, obviously it's a sick feeling and not one I want to have again.
Q. Do you feel that you guys on offense—you were winning a lot of shootouts early in the year—are you guys maybe pressing a little bit trying to get back to that level and that's maybe why things aren't as smooth as they were?
RYAN TANNEHILL: No, I don't think there's any pressing. I feel like we came out, we moved the ball early, we scored points early, did some really good things in the first half. And then in the second half, we didn't. We got to give credit to the defense. They did some good things. Made it tough on us. But we didn't execute well enough and move the football and make the plays that were there. When you play against a good team, a good defense, and you don't take advantage of the opportunities that are given to you, then you're going to stall out and have to punt and give the ball back to them.
Q. How much have (the defenses) sped you up with pressure the last few weeks?
RYAN TANNEHILL: Yeah, I mean obviously there are certain situations where you're feeling the rush come in and the clock's going off, you want to get the ball out. Sacks kill drives. Don't want to be taking unnecessary sacks. So a lot of times you're feeling the pressure, feeling the rush, and trying to get it out before they get there.
Q. Pretty emotional night for your wide receiver, Corey Davis. He was able to come into this game, and obviously saw some good catches from him tonight. But what did you guys say to him as a team leading into this game with just everything that has happened in the past couple days with him and his family?
RYAN TANNEHILL: Yeah, just told Corey, I love him, support him, I'm here for him. Really just a really tough situation, a sick situation that you wouldn't wish upon anybody. He's so close to his brother, and his brother meant so much to him, so I can't even imagine what he's going through right now emotionally. But appreciate his effort and the way he battled through that and played for us tonight. He played a heck of a game, made some big plays for us, so he showed a lot of toughness. But it's tough, you know. The game's over but those feelings aren't gone. So definitely my heart goes out to Corey and David Long, as well. Just two terrible situations and I'm sick for them. I'm sick for him. I just want him to know that I love him, I care for him and want the best for him.
