**
TITANS HEAD COACH MIKE MUNCHAK**
(On the turnovers dictating the game) – "I think it's a credit to these guys (players) -- the way they responded to a very hard week for everybody. It went bad for us last Sunday and we stuck together, hung together, came out and knew how important the game was and came out and made the plays on both side of the ball. And, yeah, I think everyone knows the obvious happened – last week we hurt ourselves and this week we got four turnovers. It was exciting to see how we responded to a tough spot. This thing could have gone a lot of different ways during the week, like we talked about all week. They practiced hard. They played hard. They believed they were going to come out and play much better, which we did. (The Dolphins) are a good football team, on the road. We got a huge win which was exactly what we needed."
*(How much pride was brought into today's game after last week's disappointing loss) - *"I think we realized that we didn't play poorly; it was just we gave the ball up. We were sloppy with the football. So it wasn't that we weren't structurally sound (last week). We knew that we were doing good things. We felt we could have run the ball better. There were a lot of things we thought we could have done better last week. We realized there was a lot of stuff wrong and it was up to us to fix it. We said that all week. We knew it was our own fault. And only the team can dig ourselves out of the hole. It was only one game, but we needed this one. There's six more to play, now. We have a break for the week (bye). It's a great way to go on the break, playing well."
(On QB Jake Locker's performance, especially after missing six weeks) – "That's why we're excited about him. He made some plays a lot of quarterbacks couldn't make, especially early when we went for it on fourth-and-2. We knew coming in that there would be some plays here and there, just to get him used to playing against live contact for the first time in six weeks. He played hard. I think the players rallied around him like we thought they would. I think it was a great start for him. He was into the game from start to finish. The good thing is we were able to get him out of the fourth quarter because we had the lead. I think it was great for him to have that kind of success, as far as us winning the game. We needed to win the game, and he was the quarterback out there running the show. Now we have (an extra) week before we have to play. It gives him a couple of weeks to get his health in order."
(On the style of play he encourages for Locker) – "He's not going to change the way he plays. I think you saw a very courageous guy today. I think that's what he's all about. That's what we saw when we drafted him. He's a competitor. His health is the least of his concerns when he's playing football. He wants to find a way to win. He wants to make plays. He's smart. When he ran, he slid. He does a great job with that all year. He took an early sack, which is probably good for his confidence. I'm sure he's sore from that play but that's who he is. It's not about stats. It's not about any of that stuff. It's about winning football games. And he helped his team win today in a big way."
(On RB Chris Johnson's performance, especially on his 17-yard TD run) –"That's something that he's special at. He's one of those guys that can stop, change direction and get back up into gear to score. These guys (the Dolphins) are No. 3 in the league at stopping the run. We knew that was going to be a huge challenge. He's the first back in 22, 23 games to have a hundred yards on them (the Dolphins), so he accomplished that. He's been doing that now against Chicago, Houston, Pittsburgh … I think he's showing, and the run game is showing, what we thought it would be. This year it's much better. Much improved. It's a credit to those guys sticking with it and not getting down on people who were trying to get them down. You know, trying to blame someone. We did a great job of staying together with the run game and realized we were much better than the numbers were showing. And now (Johnson's) getting opportunities and the numbers are much better. I think he'll finish with six-strong weeks."
(On LB Colin McCarthy returning from an injury and then scoring a TD) – "He's that kind of guy. People ask what have you missed. Well, he got hurt in the first quarter of the first game of the year. He's one of those guys … the Bears have (Charles) Tillman that everyone bragged on for creating turnovers. (McCarthy's) our guy that seems to have a knack for making fumbles and making plays … the interception for a pick-6 after he comes back from getting hurt. All three linebackers had interceptions, which was fun to see. Zach (Brown) had one. Akeem (Ayers) had one. And that's what you need. We saw what turnovers do. Our defense got four. We didn't give up any. In a lot of areas we played some good football."
(On the need to win today, especially after the previous week's loss and the upcoming bye week) – "We needed to win. We needed to win two weeks ago when we lost to Indy. We realized where we are. We know we're 4-6. We know we're not happy about 4-6. But we needed this win in a big way for a lot of reasons. Because the way we lost, and lost at home last week. Losing two at home is hard to take … for fans, for us, for everybody. We know our backs are to the wall, obviously. …This is only one win but it's a good win. This is one we needed badly. We speak a lot about character. You always wonder what kind of team you have. I think we've shown that (we have character). Unfortunately, we've created holes for us throughout the season and we've always come back and played well when we had to. We've just got to see if we can do that for two, three, four weeks in a row because for us to get back into the conversation for what we want to accomplish this year we have to win a lot of games in a row here. It's a good start. We get the week off and we need it. And we'll get back to work for Jacksonville."
(On the impact of the critical comments made by the Titans' owner had on the team) – "I think that the guys (team) handled everything well. The good thing about it is I don't think it really upset anyone. We were already upset. No one had to tell us how they felt. From the fan base to coaches … we all felt that you don't play like that. You can't give up 50 points at home and turn the ball over six times in this league, and we did it. So we were disappointed how we played. All of that factors in. I think it's a matter of us having a good week of work, concentrating, and coming back and playing much better than we did last week."
(On if the team can continue with its current momentum) – "We need to. We did a lot of things well today, and when you do that you see what the outcome is, no matter who you're playing. That's what happens in this league. Now the challenge for us, when we get back to work next week, would be can you win two or three in a row. We did two-in-a-row this year but can we build on this one and come out in Jacksonville and then Houston (and play well). We have to. We can't sit here and say we've got 12 more games to play. We don't. We have six. We can't afford, really, to lose any of them. We realize what our challenge is ahead."
TITANS LB AKEEM AYERS
(On if the linebackers were making good reads to get the three picks) –"Yes, we were pretty much. Everybody was just where they were supposed to be. Nobody chasing plays, just pretty much doing our job. And that's what we talked about all week, just doing our job and the plays will come to you. And you see when we do that, everybody's in the position to make a play."
(On coming in as the last rated defense and coming out with such a great effort) – "Everybody was doing what they were supposed to do. That's pretty much what we preached all week because there have been games where we were supposed to be in a certain position and nobody was there and that's when they made the big plays on us. That happened a lot to us during the season so we pretty much wanted to take it by the basics, that's what Coach (Jerry) Gray talked about. He said don't worry about it, do one's job. Don't worry about trying to make a play or chasing a play. I got mine, I was on my man, I just stuck to my man. I wasn't worried about anything else. Zach Brown was in the right place and Colin (McCarthy) was in the right place. Like I said, we do that and we have a pretty good defense.
(On if he was able to get a hand on the interception by Colin McCarthy) – "Yes, I was initially guarding the tight end. He stayed in the block so I stayed right there. Then I saw the quarterback throw it and I just wanted to try and get my hands up to deflect the ball and see it turn out good for us."
(On how bad the defense needed a performance like that) –"I think today we were playing how we know we can play. Everybody did what they were supposed to do. We came out, we played hard from beginning to end. We pretty much had a good week of practice too, especially after the loss we had this week. We just made a dedication to ourselves that we were going to come out and do the right things and play hard and not worry about the outcome, just play and we'll see what happens after the game."
TITANS WR KENNY BRITT
(On what the biggest difference was today) –"The offense, the special teams, and especially the defense stepped up big and had four turnovers. The offense then made points off of those turnovers. I am happy with the win and the fact that next week is our bye week."
(On where the team goes from here) –"Forward; that is all we can do. We will go back and look at the bad things we did wrong, correct those, and continue to improve on things we did well."
(On what the goals of the BYE Week are) –"The goals of my bye week are to rest, spend some time with family, and get my mind off of football. It has been a long season and this is what everyone needs right now. After that, we will get ready for next week."
TITANS TE JARED COOK
(On the biggest difference today for the offense) - "I think it was a week of great practice. We knew we had to come out and have some game changers. It was our chance to bounce back. We needed to do something different. We put our mindset to that, and everybody came out ready to play and had a great game."
(On the goals for the BYE week this week) "I think I am ready to relax and take some time off, but at the same time we will prepare for the job and something big. We are going to keep improving on our record and take on the next opponent."
(On his touchdown catch) "It felt awesome. It's been a while and for me to get in the end zone and for Jake (Locker) to see it felt awesome."
TITANS RB CHRIS JOHNSON
(On rushing for 100 yards against a team that had a streak against that) –"I was asked that question all week. I know they (Dolphins) have not given up a 100 yard rusher in like…two years ago. Everybody wanted me to have 100 yards against them. It was really a best man win type scenario."
(On how important it was to have QB Jake Locker come back this week) – "It was really important because you see a lot of those drives he extends by using his legs to get first downs. It was a situation where we would not have been able to stay on the field if he wasn't able to stay on the field."
(On his 17-yard touchdown run) – "I was trying to hit the hole and I saw color. I tried to bounce outside and I saw color again. Instead of me just dropping and taking a 1 yard loss, I was just trying to make a play and those guys up front kept grinding and gave me an opportunity to come back to the outside and score."
(On how well he is running the football compared to years past) – "Honestly, I still don't feel like I felt the year I ran for 2,000 (yards). Honestly, that year was kind of the feeling 'nobody can stop me.' The reason why I say that is cause we hit the ground running every single game. It was a situation this year where we had to dig ourselves out of a hole. But right now I feel real good running the ball."
TITANS QB JAKE LOCKER
(On his ability to make plays today) –"It wasn't perfect, but we talked about it before the game, our goal wasn't to come out and play perfect football, it was to play winning football. I thought that our defense put us in great situations all game and we were able to put some drives together offensively and put points on the board."
(On some of the early runs) – "It wasn't pretty at times but we found ways to move the chains and that's the name of the game."
(On warming up in the second half) – "Being able to come out at the start of the second half, we didn't get great field position on the kickoff, and I think it was an 85-yard drive or so. We were able to go down and put seven points on the board. That was huge for us, and I thought that was something that hadn't shown yet, the ability to put a game away. When we had the opportunity in the second half, I thought we did that pretty well today."
(On the team's ability to come out today after last week) – "I thought we did a great job of looking at what we did last week and fixing our mistakes. We turned the ball over last week and we didn't have any turnovers this week. We didn't create a lot of turnovers last week and we created a bunch this week, so I think in all phases of the game we took what we struggled with last week and really improved on it. That's encouraging as a team."
(On his extra nerves before the game coming back) – "It's always a little bit more exciting when you've had to sit and watch for four or five weeks. It was just awesome to be back out there with the guys and competing with them."
(On not trying to do too much in the game) – "I was just trying to do what we needed to do to be successful on offense and not worry about what your stats are going to look like. You just want to find a way to win games and put some points on the board, and I thought we did that today. I thought everybody had the right mindset throughout the week and came out and had the right mindset today. We went out and performed."
(On their ability to run the ball) – "Anytime you're able to run the ball it allows you to be a little bit more productive on offense. It makes you two-dimensional and it keeps them guessing, and it allows your play action stuff to work a little better. We were really able to move the ball efficiently on the ground, and that's great as an offense."
(On Chris Johnson's 17-yard touchdown run) – "That was a great run. He didn't have a whole lot on the front side and he was able to bounce it all the way backside and was able to find a crease and scored the touchdown for us in a big situation. It was a great run and a great effort by him and it was a good job upfront of continuing to block and to get the receivers downfield making key blocks to spring him."
TITANS LB COLIN MCCARTHY
(On playing in Miami again) – "It was great. I have a lot of family, friends, guys I went to school with here at the game and to get a touchdown and pick six, it was good. … It was a homecoming. I knew if I came down here, I had to make some plays in front of the old stadium I used to play in back in college. You know, to score a touchdown, make some plays, throw [the University of Miami hand signal] up a little bit here and there. It was a great game for me."
(On if there was any question if he was going to score on his interception) – "Never a doubt."
(On playing against former teammates RB Lamar Miller and LB Olivier Vernon) – "Seeing Lamar a couple times. He's a heck of a (running) back. He did the same thing at (University of) Miami, making plays. He's tough to tackle. I've seen him break some tackles. (He is) hard to tackle open field. A week before that Oliver [Vernon] was AFC Special Team Player of the Week. We're (former University of Miami players) representing well."
(On the game overall) – "We played great all three phases. I'm excited to go back to work and you know we got six games left. … To start the fourth quarter they ran a slant and I just missed (intercepting the pass) if I could have picked that one off and run that one back that would have been picture perfect. But, to get the win the way we did, to play as solid as we did all three phases as a team, it says a lot and we'll try and build off this one for our last six games."
TITANS CB JASON MCCOURTY
(On the importance of getting off to a fast start) - "That's key, I was talking to Kendall (Wright) and he said to me, when you guys get turnovers and we score points it makes the game flow a lot easier and that's what we were able to do today. Get a forced fumble early, in their territory, and the offense takes it down for a score. As a defense we need to continue to create turnovers and opportunities for the offense."
(On the best way to explain today's dominating effort) - "Focus, we talked about last game, out of the 70 plays, on 45 of them we did a good job, I think we let up 13 points, but it was on the other plays when at least one guy did something they were not accustomed to doing, so for us it's about focus, nothing more, nothing less."
(On if today's win was a confidence builder for the defense) - "I believe so, I believe we got off to a fast start in the Bears game, but didn't finish. This week we got off to a fast start and we continued throughout the game, and that continues to remind us that we can play good, we can go out there and make plays, and we can go out there and win a game by a big amount. For us, we need to continue to build off it and take the bye week to rest up, get back healthy and be ready to roll when we get back."
(On if it was a role reversal to be creating turnovers this week) - "It was huge, we saw with the Bears' defense last week, creating turnovers and giving the offense a short field. It just creates a lot of opportunities for the offense and gives the team a buzz. For us to be able to create a fumble and recover early in the game and then Colin (McCarthy) gets a pick six those are huge plays, momentum builders, so I'm just happy we were able to build off that today."
(On the forced fumble he caused on a third-and-13) "That's demoralizing for an offense, third down they pick it up, we create a fumble, and now it's our ball and now we're going into score. Offense did a great job today on all our turnovers, capitalizing; they did a great job staying on the field. Start of the second half me and Griff (Michael Griffin) were on the bench and we were just relaxing, we had to get up and warm your legs up, and that's huge. We were able to create turnovers, and they were able to take advantage of them."
(On if it's a good time for a bye week) "Yeah definitely, need just a little time to get away, its Week 10 so it's been a long drive right now and I hope everyone is able to get away from it all for a little and when we get back we're ready to work."
TITANS WR KENDALL WRIGHT
(On this week's win) – "We know it's a bye week coming up. We can go in and rest with the win, then come back and pick up where we left off."
(On QB Jake Locker's performance) – "He made a lot of plays. Jake was awesome in his first week back. We're going to have a lot of good plays going forward."
(On the way it feels between last week's loss and this week's win) – "That was us last week (the Dolphins). Everything that we did last week, that was them this week."
(On where the team is) – "I have no idea. We're in the locker room. No, we're in this week. Last week is in the past."* *
(On capitalizing on the redzone opportunities) – "When we get it that close we want to score. I mean three points is good, but when we're in the redzone we want to score, and the defense played great."
(On the first half offense) – "Coach was dialing it up and we were just rolling."
DOLPHINS HEAD COACH JOE PHILBIN
(Opening Statement) –Obviously, we have to congratulate Tennessee. They came in here and played a very good football game. The way we are now, when you're minus four in the giveaway/takeaway ratio, it's very difficult to win games in this league. In the four games we've won, we've won the turnover margin in every single game. We've lost the turnover margin in three games. Clearly today we did, we lost the game, we were even in two others and we lost those games. But, credit them, they made a lot of good plays, they deserve to win.
(On if the team was ready to play in this game) – "I thought we played better. Our week of preparation seemed good. I didn't really see signs of this coming. When you've got a whole lot of football – we put our defense in some bad positions. If you look at the statistics sheet, it wasn't that one-sided. When you add in four turnovers, it gets one-sided pretty quick."
(On if he or the team felt helpless on the sidelines) – "We've had better. The sideline has been better at times, no question about it. We didn't respond as well as I would have hoped. I thought in the second half we could hopefully come out – I believe it was a three-possession game at that point and time. We could have come out…if we'd gotten a stop and did something offensively…we had the wind in that quarter. Not that the wind really had that much to do with the game; it didn't. But we just couldn't make plays to get off the field. We couldn't stop them."
(On the play of RB Reggie Bush) – "We had planned to – we've got a game coming up real fast – we had planned to use guys. We'd been using [RB] Daniel Thomas and we used Lamar [Miller, RB] sparingly last week. Our hope was to, not for this reason, but our hope was to spread the plays out a little bit."
(On what he said to the team after the loss) – "We all have to accept responsibility for the performance today. It's not one person's fault. It's a team loss. We win as a team, we lose as a team. A team consists of players and coaches. It's not a finger-pointing game, but obviously we need to do better. It starts with me."
(On what he hopes that QB Ryan Tannehill learns from this game) – "Don't throw it to the other team. I hate to be a smart aleck. … We'll have to watch the film. We've got to study the tape and take a look at what happened."
(On if this game was an example of growing pains for QB Ryan Tannehill) – "I suppose that's one way to look at it. He had gone. … I don't want to jinx the kid, but he had gone 98 throws without them. So I don't know that you necessarily have to throw three. I'm not blaming him for every single one either. I don't know that it's absolutely mandatory to have a game like this."
(On if there was anything aggravating or disappointing about this game) – "Yes. Seriously, again, it appears that we don't play great run defense at the present time. It appears that we're not very good at third down on offense. We converted; we fumbled on one of the ones we converted. We're just not very good at third down defense as we were two weeks ago when you look at the stat sheet. Do penalties concern me? Absolutely. We're not in the position where we can have a lot of negative plays or giveaways or a bunch of penalties. It's not a good formula for us."
(On what he spoke to the team about at halftime) – "We had talked about – look, that team we all watched for thirty minutes wasn't the same team I've been used to watching for eight games. Give credit to Tennessee. They made a heck of a drive. I think that's the one where they hit us on a touchdown pass to 89 [TE Jared Cook] if I'm not mistaken. And that's good execution on their part."
(On the penalties in the game) – "All were frustrating. I'm not sitting here telling you that we're going to go through a season and not have any or go through a game and not have any. I think you're going to have a couple. Our field position – I don't have the sheet or stats in front of me – but my guess is we had a long field and they had a short one a lot of times."
(On today's game being out of character for the team) – "I would agree with that."
(On the play of the offensive line and their struggles over the last two games) – "I think everybody did. I don't know that right now, this minute, it doesn't really feel like anybody played a very good game. I'm sure, as we watch the tape, that some guys put together a very good performance. But offensively, as a whole, I don't know that anybody, really that I saw, is playing very well at this stage. There might have been a couple of guys but right now I don't see any. And I would say that they would be part of that. I wouldn't say it was them, but I think they probably have some responsibility."
(On this week being a short week with the game in Buffalo on Thursday) – "I think it is what it is and we're just going to deal with it. We're going to go back to the facility and we're going to get to work and we're going to put together a plan for Buffalo and we're going to get this thing corrected, no question."
(On if he has a halftime policy about Dolphins' players speaking to players on the opposing team) – "Not necessarily. No, I haven't."
DOLPHINS RB REGGIE BUSH
(On if something was said to him about not going back into the game after he fumbled)– "No, but I didn't deserve to be back in the game. I fumbled the ball and I've had two fumbles lost this year, so I've got to do a better job protecting the ball. I've been in this league long enough to where I know protecting the ball is the most important thing as a running back. I didn't even deserve to go back into the game."
(On if he said anything to the coaches about going back into the game)– "No."
(On if Jason McCourty surprised him when he was able to force the fumble)– "He surprised me a little bit, but still I've got to protect the ball. I've been in this league long enough to where I know that."
(On how he makes sure this loss doesn't result in things spiraling out of control)– "It starts with the leadership from the veterans on this team. We've got to get back to work very quickly. We've got a game Thursday, so we don't have time to sulk and kind of think about this loss too much. We've got to forget about it as quickly as possible and get ready for Buffalo."
(On if he's ever been in a game like this where things went poorly quickly after his fumble)– "I've been involved in plenty of games like this before. The biggest thing we can do is forget about it quick and get ready for the next game."
(On what he said to Ryan Tannehill during this game)– "It's tough. Sometimes, it goes like that. Sometimes, you have those types of days and all we can do is just stay positive. That's the main thing – stay positive (and) stick together as a team."
(On if he had any sense that the team would be flat today)– "No, not at all. I don't think you go into a week thinking that you're going to come out flat and it just kind of happens that way."
(On what he says to the younger guys who might not have experienced anything like this defeat)– "Just to forget about it, stick together. It's a team loss. It's not one person's fault, but we've got to find a way to get better very quickly."
(On when was the last time he sat down for a half)– "I don't know. I can't think of one."
(On talking about getting the running game back on track during the week and whether his struggles are a result of him still being injured) – "No, not at all. I feel good. I feel great. My leg is good. I'm ready to play and I feel healthy. Not at all, I'm not hurt at all."
(On if the message between now and the Buffalo game is about getting things back on track)– "We've just got to forget about this one. We've got to correct our mistakes in the film room and we've got to find a way to get better. These games only get bigger every week. Now, we've got our backs against the wall a little bit here and we're going to have to find a way to come out with a win Thursday."
(On if he doesn't feel he was benched after his fumble)– "I'm sure I was, yeah. I was benched and, like I said, I deserved it. If I was a coach, I would have benched myself."
(On if a short week coming up is a good thing for the team)– "Maybe, because you get to get back into quickly. You don't have to spend a whole week kind of preparing for another team. You get back into it really quickly and, before you know it, Thursday's going to be here."
DOLPHINS LB KEVIN BURNETT
(On issues that need to be fixed before playing Buffalo) –"Winning. Just win. We got to win the football game. Period."
(On extra motivation after a big loss) –"Extra motivation? I don't know if we need extra motivation at this point."
(On why the game was so lopsided) -"Total embarrassment. We got embarrassed today, point blank."
DOLPHINS CB NOLAN CARROLL
(On the Titans first play of the second half and how they went right down the field) – "Yeah. That's just on us. We take pride in trying to get off the field. The fact that we couldn't get that done, that's probably the most disheartening thing: that we came out in the second half and we couldn't get them off the field on their starting drive."
(On if there was a sense at halftime that the Dolphins were still in the game) – "That's what we felt. Yes. We felt if we could get a stop, offense gets the ball and score, then we would be back in the game. But it didn't turn out like that."
(On Titans Quarterback Jake Locker hurting the Dolphins defense) – "Yeah he did. His feet. We knew what a top athlete he was and what he was capable of doing. He didn't disappoint. He was able to escape the pocket, and use his legs, and extend plays, and get those first downs converted on third down. That's probably what killed us more than ever."
DOLPHINS LB KARLOS DANSBY
(On if this was one of those weeks where the Quarterback just got out of the pocket and made plays) – "Yes. They made plays, man. They had to. They kept drives alive. We didn't get the opportunity to limit them and make them one dimensional."
(On if this is one of the worst games the Dolphins have had) – "Oh yes. By far. This is the worst game by far we have ever played as a defense and as a team."
(On getting motivated for Thursday night's game in Buffalo against the Bills) – "We got no choice. Thursday is around the corner. We ain't got long. We ain't got long at all."
(On not getting a stop on the Titans' first drive of the second half) – "That's a momentum killer like you said. They kept the ball alive. Kept drives alive. We weren't able to get them off the field."
On if there were any signs the Dolphins would come out flat this week) – 'No. We don't come out to play a game like that. It just happened."
(On how he feels, and if he feels embarrassed) – "'How do you think I feel?' That's the question. (Member of the media says not happy.) Alright then. There it is. I'm leaving it at that. I'm leaving it at that."
(On this being the worst home defeat for the Dolphins in 44 years) – "We put it out there. So now we gotta go out there and right our wrongs. We got an opportunity so we got to take full advantage of it."
(On if there are any positives coming out of the fact that there is a game on Thursday) – "Oh yes. Definitely. Definitely. Like I said, we have to have a short memory. We got to get on a plane Wednesday and go get ready to play a game Thursday."
(On if there was any difference in playing Titans tailback Chris Johnson in comparison to other tailbacks the Dolphins have played this season) – "We didn't make tackles. We wasn't discipline in certain calls. We wasn't discipline at all, and it showed. He made us pay."
(On how difficult is it to defend certain backside runs as a linebacker) – "It's very difficult. You are counting on people to be certain places and everybody's got to rally to the ball. We can't just stop to think we go to tackle, we just got to rally and get to the ball as a defense."
DOLPHINS G RICHIE INCOGNITO
(On his unsportsmanlike penalty) –"It was a power play. I pulled around and the guy cut me low so I thought the play was still going on, and as he was getting up I gave him a shove. It was a late shove and I take full responsibility for it. It hurt the team and pushed us out of a scoring opportunity, and we were in a dog fight early. It's just a dumb mistake on my part."
(On the reason for the team's struggles in the game) –"It's too early to tell, we have to go back and look at the film. We had a good week of preparation leading up to this, no major changes in that sense. To come out and take a thumping like that is always a surprise."
(On the team's ability to handle adversity) –"I think we played four hard quarters of football. I don't think we were exact, I don't think we played precise football, but I've never questioned that with this team. They would never go out there and just lay down."
(On the team's inability to score) –"We had a really hard time moving the ball. We were just concerned with picking up first downs and getting the ball moving and picking up some momentum. In the second half we were just dropping back and passing and it's hard to score points when you get out of your game plan."
DOLPHINS S RESHAD JONES
(On the outcome of today's game) – "Those guys, you just have to give credit to those guys. They made plays and we didn't."
(On if there was anything the Titans did that stood out) – "I don't want to say there was nothing special that they did or we did. Like I said, those guys, they just made the plays. Especially on the defensive side of the ball, those guys came out and made plays, and we didn't make the plays that were there."
(On what the Dolphins have to do to get ready for the Buffalo Bills on Thursday night) – "Have a short memory. We play them Thursday. I'm going to go home and watch film on Buffalo tonight. So just have a short memory, and put this game behind us, and keep moving forward."
DOLPHINS OL JAKE LONG
(On the overall team's struggle) –"We gave them too many opportunities with the giveaways and couldn't get anything going on offense. Then in the second half we had to play catch up. Now we have a short week and we have to get it corrected."
(On bouncing back after this loss to face a short week of preparation) –"We have a great group of guys here and we're not going to give up, and we're not going to hang our heads."
(On turning around a poor performance during the game) –"You just have to keep everyone with their heads up and keep everyone working. It didn't go our way today, but the guys on this team don't quit. We didn't get it done, but we will come back and get it corrected."
(On if the short week is a good thing for the team) –"We're going to come to work hard tomorrow and Tuesday and get ready for this Buffalo team because it's going to be hard going up there. Our backs are against the wall, but these guys in here are going to work to get it done."
DOLPHINS WR MARLON MOORE
(On what was missing for the team in today's game) –"I really can't call it. The best way to describe this game is, we got beat. We were beat in all three phases of offense, defense and special teams. It's not a good feeling at all. The best thing is we have a game in four days and we can come back, rework some things and come out firing."
(On having a short week of preparation) –"It's a lot of motivation because we can put this game behind us if we can come out well against Buffalo. We just have to prepare like we always have. Watch film and correct the mistakes so we can play better going forward."
(On the team's penalties on special teams) –"Everything that could have gone wrong did. I don't know, but it was definitely not a good day for us on special teams."
DOLPHINS QB RYAN TANNEHILL
(On how he would describe his performance) – "I'm embarrassed by the way we played. Myself, I didn't play well and we didn't play well as a team. At the end of the day a loss is a loss and we have to move on. We have a big divisional game this week in Buffalo, so we have to learn from this, take everything we can from it, but get over it quickly and have a big game this week."
(On how the offense changes when Reggie Bush is not in the game) – "I think we have our plays to be run no matter who is in there. Obviously Reggie brings some things to the table, but we're not thinking about who is in the game and who isn't in the game, we're just calling plays to be run."
(On whether this was the toughest game he has had) – "Obviously it's frustrating when you can't get anything going and you're turning the ball over. I felt confident the whole game, it just wasn't meant to be. The turnovers, like I said we couldn't get anything going offensively. We were excited coming into this game about the opportunity we had, and we're going to see what kind of character we have bouncing back this week."
(On what kind of messages Coach Philbin was trying to send when he took Richie Incognito out of the game after his penalty and Reggie Bush out after his fumble) – "I don't think there was a message with Reggie. I think that he is not going to tolerate unnecessary personal foul penalties that are after the whistle. Obviously we want to play physical and be a physical team in between the whistles legally, but he doesn't tolerate anything outside the whistles."
(On how much of the loss today amounts to just having a bad day) – "You can't take anything away from Tennessee; they made the plays that were there. They did a good job doing what they do, but I don't feel like we played our best game."
(On what happened on each of his three interceptions) – "The first one we had a little hitch route out to the right. The linebacker didn't rush, he just stood at the line and jumped a tipped it. The guy happened to be in the right spot to pick it. He made a good play. The second one, the guy was draped over (Anthony) Fasano. We were trying to get a flag there, you know his back was turned to me; he had Fasano hugged, but I guess it wasn't a flag. So that was that one, and the last one the guy made a good play on it. We had a read on the outside, the corner fell off and my read was to throw the under, and the backer made a good play following my eyes out to the under."
(On whether he felt there was a time in the game where guys were not ready to play) – "No, I feel like we were ready to play. Every time we ran out on the field no matter what happened I fell like the guys wanted to keep fighting, keep scratching. Obviously it wasn't our day and we could sense that late third quarter, fourth quarter. We knew we were just going to be playing for our character at that point. I never felt like the guys didn't want to be out there."
(On whether he felt like this game was a snowball effect) – "No I don't think it was a snowball effect. I think we realized what it was late in the third quarter, early fourth quarter that we weren't going to be able to come back at that point. But coming in at halftime down three scores, we still felt good about going out and making it a game. We felt that we could move the ball offensively, our defense was going to step up and get some stops and we could make it a game. Obviously it didn't turn out that way."
(On how you go about putting this loss behind you with a short week before Buffalo) – "Like I said we have to learn from this loss, take everything we can from it, every detail that we can, but we have to get past it quickly. It was an emotional loss for us not performing the way we have all season obviously. We have to get over it quickly, come in tomorrow ready to work. We have a big divisional game on the road, so we have to get over it."
(On whether he thinks more can be learned from success or from failures) – "I think you learn from both. I think you can learn every snap, whether it is a good snap bad snap, a hand off. There is something you can learn from every snap. We've got to learn from these mistakes."
(On whether he feels that his lack of experience was the reason for his performance today) – "No. I don't think it played any part in it. We go through our reads and make plays, but I don't feel that lack of experience was any part of it."
(On how he feels mentally and physically) – "I feel good. I got a little banged up a couple weeks ago, but I'm feeling healthy, I'm feeling good. Mentally, I'm still grinding away. I don't think I've hit the supposed rookie wall yet. Hopefully I won't hit it, but at this point, I'm excited for a big divisional game this week and I'm ready to get to work."
(On whether he thought the offense would have to pass to get back in the game the second half) – "Yes. I think anytime you are down three scores you want to come back and make it a game. You've got to be able to throw the ball and move the ball quickly down the field. They did a good job of taking away the deeper throws by the coverages they were playing. We were kind of having to dink and dunk all the way down the field, but it obviously didn't work."
DOLPHINS DE CAMERON WAKE
(On who gave them the most trouble running today) –"Anybody running the ball gave us trouble today. It was an embarrassment all around. What more can you say?"
(On only allowing 120 yards in first half, but being down 24-3) –"I don't know anything else that could have gone wrong. Fumbles, interceptions, penalties; all over the place, it was just a bad day."
(On where all the miscues came from) – "I was more surprised than anybody else. If I knew, it wouldn't have happened. It was very uncharacteristic. I've never had this happen. I can't remember a game like this. That's one thing we've been very good at is going out and playing to the level of the league, regardless of whether it's the Super Bowl champs, or whoever, it doesn't matter. To go out here today and have what happened, it's terrible."
(On the most disappointing aspect to this loss)– "There is a long list. What's not disappointing would be a shorter list. There was no aspect of the game where we really did what we were supposed to do."
(On what allowed Chris Johnson to get free for runs)– "We didn't execute at all. Outside, front side, pass game, pass rush, pass coverage, special teams, offense, defense- I mean, it was embarrassing to say the least."
(On whether Jake Locker caught them off guard) – "Running the ball, got to stay in your rushing lanes and contain. I mean it's basic, simple, fundamental football. There's nothing dramatic about it."
(On explaining how flat they were) – "Can't explain it. There's no explanation and no excuse."
(On short week helping get this loss out of their head) – "If there is anything good to take from today, it would be that. The coaches are on the way to the building right now to watch the game. It's behind us. We have a game in four days. I mean, this has to be in and out, and we got to move on. We have a division game away. I mean, that has to be the primary focus. This game is over and done with; there's nothing you could do about it now. Do the best you can to correct it and move on to Thursday."
