**
HEAD COACH JEFF FISHER
Opening Statement
"You got a first-hand look at two outstanding defenses today. It was a great defensive effort on the part of both clubs. I was very impressed with the Bears front 7 and their approach. They forced us out of the run game and Kerry did a great job with the football today. We overcame a lot of issues and problems and still found a way to win against a good football team. I'm pleased to come in and find a way to win. I'm impressed with both teams."
On what the Bears were doing *
"They penetrated the gaps and loaded the line of scrimmage."
On the Tennessee game plan
"We expected we would have to come out throwing. The concern all week was the footing with the receivers, and that was an issue. We were on the ground way too much and we dropped too many balls, but we obviously made the plays we needed to make. Wind was not a factor in the passing game, but it was a factor in the kicking game."
On the favorable Tennessee field position
"Special teams really did a nice job. Field position works two ways: as a result of special teams and as a result of defense."
On Kerry Collins
"He made good decisions. The most impressive part of the whole day was pass protection. Kerry had time, and we have to get there again. We had a mismatch and that happens at times, but if you give him time, he'll usually step up and make the throws.
He is very experienced and he's seen everything. He is very poised. He was out there having fun. He and Mike were on the same page, and Mike did a great job putting him in position to make some good throws."
On the balance between the run and pass game
"We like to carry balance in the ballgame between the run and the pass, but obviously it wasn't working today. Footing was an issue, so we picked it up and threw it. That's what you have to do sometimes. We've done it before – we did it a little last week and at the Baltimore game. We're still a good running football team, but the Bears committed to it and we beat them with the passing game. Everyone contributed, but at the same time, everyone contributed to a mishap along the line."
On Kyle Vanden Bosch's injury status
"It was a good decision to rest him, and we'll see how he is this week."
On Keith Bulluck's injury status
"He didn't practice this week but played today. It is unlikely he will practice this week. He is very sore."
On being undefeated*
"It's not an issue. The issue in that locker room is our next opponent, playing better and correcting mistakes. It's nice to be able to win a ball game and not play well. We sucked, and we made some mistakes. They forced a lot of mistakes on us. But we did some things that are uncharacteristic of us and still found a way to win. We will correct the mistakes, try to get better, and look forward to the next opponent."
KERRY COLLINS, QB
On Tennessee's performance
"We left some things out there, like not scoring a touchdown early when we had the opportunity in the red zone and got stopped on the 1-yard line. There are some things I could have done better. Overall, we found a way to win. I give the Bears a lot of credit. They put a lot of people in the box and stopped our run, and they did a great job of it. They forced us to throw the ball, but we were able to make the plays we needed to make." * *
*On being 9-0 *
"It's great. We found another way to win today. We are able to put the previous game behind us, and move onto our next opponent; that gives us a chance to win every Sunday. Right now, we're making the plays we think we need to make to win. We have another big test coming up next week. We will enjoy this for a day or so though." * *
KEITH BULLUCK, LB
On what he appreciates about Tennessee finding ways to win
"I appreciate our resiliency. The Bears did a great job of executing on their game plan. We settled down. We stuck with the game plan, both offensively and defensively. Special teams did a great job."
On being undefeated
"We are playing consistent football. We are finding ways to win. Each week is a challenge. We get challenged by ourselves, our coaches, people outside our facility and the team we are playing. We do a great job entering the practice week forgetting about [the previous] game, and moving onto the next one. We have Jacksonville next week, which is a division opponent." * *
CHRIS CARR, DB/KR
On the Titans special teams play
"Chicago has an excellent defense so you want to give your offense a short field. You want to go out there and win the field position battle. Especially with a returner like Devin Hester, it's that much more vital for you to go down there and stop him."
On his performance as a returner
"I thought the guys blocked excellent for me today. Everybody's been working hard. Everybody's trying to get better and it showed today. My first punt return of [29] yards set up a score."
BO SCAIFE, TE
On halftime adjustments
"We went into halftime and had to make some adjustments to throw the ball and guys had to make plays."
On Kerry Collins' play
"I loved the way Kerry was throwing the ball around today. We try to get in the right spot for Kerry and he'll put it there for us. The guys are out there every week in practice with him and we see his accuracy. He's a good pick up for us."
JASON JONES, DL
On blocking the field goal attempt
"I was in the A-gap. I just wanted to fire off and get my hands up. We practice that every day and every week - that field goal block. We really teach to get your hands up, and that's what I did. I think it was a low kick, but I just jumped up there to see what I could do, and luckily it hit my hands."
CRAIG HENTRICH, P
On his coverage team
"They've been there for me all year. I'm very fortunate for who is covering for me. I can't get over those outside guys; they get double-teamed and still manage to get down there. On a day like today, that was the key to stopping [Devin Hester] because if you hit it low to him, he's off to the races."
What the thought process for you in this game?
"High and short. I figured if I could average 30-35 yards a punt and nothing bad happened, I think that was my goal, and I think we did that."
MICHAEL ROOS, T
*On if the Titans are capable of continuing this winning streak *
"I think so. As long as we keep working. We made a lot of mistakes this game, and we just found a way to win it. But there's a lot of mistakes that can be corrected off of the film, and we definitely need to do that to get by a good Jacksonville team next week."
On the Titans pass offense
"Well, we really didn't have a choice. They stuffed the run pretty well. So it just gave us a chance to, once again, to go with the pass like we did against [Minnesota] and prove to people that we can pass the ball. So hopefully, down the line, people can put eight or nine guys in the box every play."
LENDALE WHITE, RB
On if the Titans had planned on passing the ball more today
"Yes, we definitely were. Anytime you have nine people in the box with a tenth one coming down, that's how it is. They didn't think we could throw the ball, and we exposed them in throwing the ball. Kerry [Collins] did a great job of getting it to the receivers. You can always take away one [aspect of the offense], but you can't do both. And we showed that today. Every week is not going to be the 'Smash and Dash.' Even though we would love to come out and be that way, we can't do that all of the time. I think that Kerry did a great job stepping up and doing what he had to do to win this football game. You know, the Bears – hats off to those guys – they're a great team, but as far as stopping the run, when you have that many guys in the box, it's not hard."
On people continually doubting Kerry Collins
"I don't know why you would doubt a proven veteran who has played in the Super Bowl before. He is just unbelievable. He's been in these situations so many times before, and he's older now – way wiser. So if you give him this opportunity, which we have, then, he can't do anything but shine. You know, a lot of people have doubted our receivers, but they keep coming up in the clutch… They're doing an unbelievable job."
CHICAGO BEARS QUOTES
HEAD COACH LOVIE SMITH
Opening Statement
*
"It's always tough when you lose a football game, especially a game like that. You have to give the Titans quite a bit of the credit – all of the credit really. They played well; they're a good football team, the reason why they're undefeated. We had opportunities to put ourselves in a position to win the game at the end but couldn't pull it out. Offensively, the field position game hurt us the entire time. We played down close to our endzone most of the time and eventually, if you don't get field position, it will end up leading to points for the opponent and that's what happened today. Run, pass, at times, we were okay offensively. The third downs really killed us and you have to convert them to keep drives going. Defensive side of the ball did a good job of stopping the run. You want to make a team one dimensional, but from there you have to make some plays in the passing game and we weren't able to do that. Special team wise, we're close but still we're just not quite there yet. But you look at the big picture, tough loss today but we know who we have up next."
On the Bears running game in the first half versus the second half
"They made some plays in the second half. It's kind of as simple as that. They're a good defense. We had a chance in the first half to do some things but eventually when you're a good defense playing the run, you can gang up on it and you'll be able to shut it down."
On the Bears pass rush of the defense
"There is only so much you can do. You can blitz, you can play a two-deep, you can play a three-man and from there you have to make some plays. You got to be able to cover them sometimes; that will help the pass rush. It's a combination of those."
On the play of Rex Grossman versus the Titans
"At the end of the football game we were in a position to win, so with Rex there that's what we were able to do. You have to let him work through some of the things – and there were a lot of things going on today. Rex had a little bit to do with it some of the time, but there were so many things that we could have done to help ourselves."
On the play of Brad Maynard and the special teams unit *
"We didn't have a good day. I can talk offense, defense, special teams. We haven't gotten the production from our special teams. Brad [Maynard] has been good for the most part throughout; we just haven't gotten the type of production that we need form any phase. So we can talk about all three phases today. We still didn't do enough to get ourselves in position to win the game at the end and that's what we needed to do."
REX GROSSMAN, QB
On evaluating plays made during the game:
"There were some opportunities out there to make some plays, and they weren't made for whatever reason. That was the difference in the game."
On the Titans' playing style:
"It's always tough when you have three-and-outs. You need to be able to get some first downs to get to the rest of your game plan. We had some nice drives. We had some things working, but too many three-and-outs."
On going no huddle at various points throughout the game:
"On the first drive, we didn't go no huddle, and then got down the field and scored. So it wasn't as much of an urgency to get to that because we felt pretty good. Then, midway through, at the start of the second quarter, we started to go no huddle. We were backed up, which isn't really a time when you like to do that, so we couldn't get that first down to get into a rhythm when we would have gone no huddle. But again, football boils down to opportunities and we just didn't make them today."
KEVIN PAYNE, S
On performance of the Titans
"They made plays when they needed to. We just were not able to stop them. We need to get better at stopping teams when we need to."
On losing to a team with a similar style of play
"They are consistent and that's what makes them so good. They continue to grind and grind for all four quarters and that's what they did today.
On taking pride in shutting down the Titans running backs
"Yeah we take pride in that, but we also take pride in winning and we didn't get the job done; we didn't win."
BRIAN URLACHER, LB
*On being frustrated to not come away with a win after shutting down the run *
"It's always frustrating no matter if they run for 250 or pass for 250. We stopped the run but they got some big third downs."
On being a few plays away from a win
"We gave up a few big plays in the first drive of the third quarter and the drive in the fourth quarter. We just have to make plays when we get the chance. We played good against the run but didn't make plays against the pass."
LANCE BRIGGS, LB
On the defense slowing Tennessee's running attack
"We did our job. We stood up when we were supposed to, but obviously, it wasn't enough today. We just didn't get it done."
On the frustration of keeping the Titans one-dimensional, yet still coming away with a loss
"It's just a big let down right now. It was a good, hard-fought game though, and I think both teams made it difficult for the other team's offense to move the ball or do anything really. Field position was huge. We started with the ball around our 10 yard line pretty much all game long. So from a defensive standpoint, we definitely could've helped our offense with better field position."
On whether today's loss changed his mind about how good the Bears are
"Absolutely not. There isn't a team in the world that could change my mind about the team that I line up with every week. Not a doubt in my mind that when we want to, we will be there. I think we got a good glimpse of our defense playing better today. There was cause for us to do so and we did, even though we weren't able to finish."
On whether next week's game is more important
"It is, because while this game was huge – I give credit to Tennessee and their undefeated record – we'll sit back, watch the tape on this game and get ready for Green Bay."
RASHIED DAVIS, WR
On why the offense struggled at times
"I wouldn't say that things didn't work, but we had some missed opportunities. They made more plays than we did."
On almost beating an undefeated team
"They're doing what they need to do to win games. It doesn't matter if it's close at the end or not, they are 9-0 and that's all that matters."
ALEX BROWN, DE
On what happened today
"We have to do our job and get off the field and we didn't do that today. We didn't come out and clean up, and they ended up marching right down the field and scoring on us, putting us in a deeper hole. They were just better today. They played better and they beat us."
On Tennessee's offensive line
"They're good. Kerry Collins throws the ball fast, but that's what everyone does on us. They take three steps and they throw the ball. Hopefully we figure this out soon. It's not changing. We have to figure something out."
On today's success against the run
"It doesn't matter. If you lose, it doesn't matter what you've done. I know they didn't run the ball that much, but when you give up 7-yard passes, 10-yard passes, and guys are running free and unblocked… We're just not getting there. I don't know. I'm going to stop here before I say something I regret tomorrow."
