JAGUARS VS. TITANS POSTGAME QUOTES - OCTOBER 27, 2016

**

TITANS HEAD COACH MIKE MULARKEY**

(opening statement)

The only note of injury from the game was Demarco Murray and he returned to the game. I think he's going to be alright based on, it's a toe, second toe. Not sure what foot, but I think he's going to be all right.

(on how enjoyable it is to have a cushion in the game to allow the players to play freely)
I've been in a lot of games in my career and I don't know if there's any cushion, but it was—when we came out at the half, it was the full game plan. Nothing was going to change, we were going to play the game. I've been around long enough to know, don't get comfortable. It was nice. I'm very happy with the way these guys came out on a short week and they had a good week of preparation and it carried over into the game again.

(on continuing to score in the second half after the Jaguars scored a touchdown)

That's important, that was an important drive, more than you know. That was important, because I think you talk about having momentum coming out in the second half and they've been going right down the field. For us to go right back says something about our team.

(on the team's preparation after losing to Indianapolis on Sunday and the short lead-up to tonight)

I thought it was good to have a short turnaround because it was a difficult loss that we had against Indy. So we had to get the focus right on these guys immediately, especially on a primetime game where we want to come out here and show what we're capable of doing and show the country what we're trying to do here. Again, I'll say this, we're doing things good, there's still a lot to do, but we're on the right track and that's what I like about where we're at. We're making strides.

(on the touchdown pass to Kendall Wright in the second half)

That was a great play, great time for the play. The quarter change helped us a little bit, let guys catch their breath, but we felt like again that was a play that when that was installed, we had a shot at a touchdown. We were trying to get really in that range where we hit it and it looked good in practice, looked really similar to some things we've hit earlier on touchdowns in practice, and they're showing up in games. That's a good sign.

(on if winning helps build confidence)

It can't hurt confidence. We didn't play well last week as a team, as a whole. Tonight I thought we played three phases. I thought we played better. We played all three really complementing each other. That's what we have to do. Compare the two (last week versus this week), and if you don't, you end up on the short end like we did last week.

(on making comparisons week-to-week versus season-to-season)

I don't know, I'm not really into comparisons. There's a pack here right now at this stage of the year with a lot of teams around with wins and losses, and we're going to try to stay in it and come out of this pack at some point. We need to stay in it and we did that tonight.

(on what this win means to him personally)

I'm proud of our guys, I'm very proud. I'm proud of the way they do things. We wanted to win this quarter, that was important, and we had a home stint. We let one get away last week and it was important to come back with three at home and we wanted to do good here. We haven't done well here. I think that's a good start, what we're doing right now, for at least half the year.

(on if he would have accepted being 4-4 at the midpoint if he was told that was where the team would be at the start of the season)

Yeah, I mean for us right now, yeah. I see bigger pictures, but I always have.

(on Marcus Mariota's performance)

I thought he played well. He put us in a lot of good positions, made some very quick decisions that were positive plays, big plays. We've been talking about taking what the defense gives you. That play to (Phillip) Supernaw, that's a big play to Delanie, and they took it away as soon as Supernaw turned to get under Delanie (Walker) he didn't even hesitate, he hit Supernaw and you could see if you take what the defense gives you, you've got a chance for big plays.

(on if Delanie Walker was further up on that play)

Delanie was further up, it was a high-low. I was afraid, I saw the safety bailing on Delanie and I thought oh boy, this could be bad,  but Marcus (Mariota) immediately went to flat and we had a big play.

(on why Derrick Henry got early reps if it was a short week)

We wanted to get him a few more reps and DeMarco (Murrary) was running the ball pretty effectively. But it was good to get him some reps.

(on what Derrick Henry has accomplished with limited carries)

It's been impressive. It's to come off, not be the guy that he's been, and he does come in there and he's so effective from play one on, which is a good sign. It's just what you want, a one-two punch in the backfield.

(on pulling Taylor Lewan after the personal foul penalty)

I wanted to calm him down and he'd had enough at that point and he calmed down and went in to finish the game.

(on if he thought the penalty was a cheap shot)

It was not very … You know it was a lead-up, there were some things earlier. No matter what he did, at some point it was going to be, and it did, it was very slight, but…. I don't want him out of the game because one more foul and he's out.

(on the botched extra point for the second week in a row)

That's got to stop, again, they go down for a drive in the second half, score, we respond and score back on them and then miss the extra point. It's a momentum killer, I don't care what the score it.

(on if it's an ideal way to finish a game on a short week by sitting starters)

Yes, getting them rest, definitely. This is coming right now at a good time. You think about it we've been going since July 27, they've been going pretty hard at it. This is good for us; we need a break.

(on the plan moving forward)

They will be off until Monday morning and we'll have a full morning and have them done by probably 1:30 Monday and give them Tuesday off again. Treat it somewhat like a bye, not the four days they get during a bye, but this is a good time for them to get some rest.

(on if that schedule was the plan no matter what)

No, it was to be determined.

(on if he feels confident going on to the next game in San Diego)

I think we have to feel confident with what we've done. It just confirms when we do some things together as a phase, each phase, it confirms what we're trying to do here.

(on if the offense found balance)

Well, yeah, we were doing some things to try to keep them off balance in the second quarter. There were some great runs, we had some holes that weren't there, we had some great runs with the backs on their own but I thought we had a great rhythm. Again, I've said this before, when you can run the football it's a lot easier calling plays as a play caller. You can get into a rhythm. When you can't run and you're struggling, it's hard to get into a rhythm as a play caller.

(on if the extra incentive of time off was motivation)

Certainly doesn't hurt. I know I see the reaction, and they've absolutely earned it for the way they've worked from day one of training camp.

(on if plan B was to practice tomorrow)

No. Plan B was to come in tomorrow, watch the tape, still have them out by 1 o'clock I think was my schedule.

(on one thing he wants to see improvement on in second half of the season)

Self-inflicted wounds, things we do like the first drive, the fumble, the penalties, things like that. Things we are in complete control over that stall drives.

**

TITANS QB MARCUS MARIOTA**

(on how good it feels to start fast and keep the pedal to the metal tonight)

It was huge.  I'm proud of those guys in the locker room.  I think today was really the first time all three phases played a complete game.  It's all you can really ask for.  Those guys deserve all the credit.  Now, we just have to continue to roll and take it one day at a time.

(on the five consecutive drives in the first half that produced points)

We built kind of a rhythm.  I thought we ran the ball well.  We were able to make some third downs which gave us an opportunity to continue those drives.  I mean, really that's the goal every week, is to score on every drive and we had an opportunity to do that in the first half.

(on his protection being pretty good behind the line tonight)

They just did a great job.  They handled the blitzes up front.  Those guys did an awesome job of establishing the line of scrimmage in the run game and just communicating and identifying who everyone was working to.  Again, those guys deserve a lot of credit and they played really well tonight.

(on the block on DeMarco Murray's reverse course touchdown and what the coaches said to him about it)

When you have a playmaker like DeMarco (Murray), the ball can kind of go anywhere.  I saw him kind of bouncing out to the left.  Really, I thought if I could just get out there and give him the back, he could score.  He really did all the work.  I just kind of got in the way.

(on the bigger pass plays tonight being overdue)

The receivers did a great job.  I thought Kendall (Wright) with contested catches.  I think being able to convert third downs built a rhythm.  It was huge and hopefully, we can continue that this season.

(on the play to Phillip Supernaw with Delanie Walker behind him and making the choice to throw)

It just kind of came down to how the defense reacted.  Delanie's (Walker) a great playmaker for us and we thought we had an opportunity to get him matched up on a safety and maybe even a linebacker.  What ended up happening was the safety ended up turning and running with him, which left a huge hole underneath and Phillip (Supernaw) really did the rest.

(on turnover issues at home and how it felt to not have them tonight)

It's nice and that's the goal, week in and week out – to take care of the football. The position that we play, you can't give other teams another possession.  You can't put your defense in bad spots so being able to do that, I thought was great for this offense.

(on what does it mean to play this well at home)

I think it was important to give our fans an opportunity to see how this team could play.  It was huge.  Hopefully, this will build a foundation for the rest of the year and give the fans what they really want.

(on his thoughts about Derrick Henry's night and his effectiveness)

That's the expectation for him.  I think that's what guys believe he can do.  I think for him, he really believes that he can do that every single time.  For us, if we can continue to have that from both those guys, him and DeMarco (Murray), we can be a really versatile offense.

(on the team being 4-4 and if he is happy at the halfway mark)

I mean, yeah, somewhat.  We let some games get away from us but that's kind of typical of an NFL season.  To stand here and be 4-4, to be in the thick of it with our division is really important.  That's all we can really ask for now and just take it one day at a time.

(on his thought process coming back after the upcoming break)

Well, I don't think the mentality changes.  You know, for us, we just want to continue to win and continue to get better every single day.  It's important for us to take it one day at a time and focus on one game at a time.  Eventually, hopefully, we will pick up our heads when the season's done and like where we're at.

**

TITANS RB DERRICK HENRY**

(on scoring his first NFL touchdown)

The offensive line and everybody else did a great job to allow me to do that. It felt good, it's something I'll remember for the rest of my life.

(On racking up 200 rushing yards as a team)

Yeah, credit to the offensive line, they controlled the line of scrimmage. We just want to play physical and run the ball.

(on the momentum the team has)

We want to keep the momentum going from this win. We'll get a couple of days off and then get ready for San Diego next week.

**

TITANS T TAYLOR LEWAN**

(on the offense in the first half)

It was pretty awesome. I think we can always do better. There's always going to be something we can be better at. I think we played well, we played physical and aggressive but there's still some things to clean up for sure.

(on Marcus Mariota throwing a block on DeMarco Murray's touchdown)

Yeah I got pushed in the back on that play so I was looking to throw a block too but 91 pushed me in the back. I guess I deserved it, I don't know. So, I really didn't see anything but that's pretty cool.

(on Tennessee being 4-4 for the first time in 5 years)

2016 man, it's going to be a huge, huge change this year. Guys are playing hard, there's not that many different people on this team. We're just sick and tired of losing man. Sick and tired of being a push over in this division. I think we've had some games that were close and shouldn't even be .500, we should be over .500.

**

TITANS WR RISHARD MATTHEWS**

(on the offense in the first half)

We had the running game going, we were throwing it well. That's when, if we handle our assignments and get clicking, it's hard to stop us.

(On Marcus Mariota's performance)

He's just been inclining. When everybody is on and he's on it's even better. It makes everything a lot easier, he finds people and does things with his feet. He had that long run for the first down, that's just Marcus being Marcus and doing his thing.

(on Tennessee being 4-4 at the halfway point)

It's improvement. I think we're trying to show people we're a different team this year. We're definitely trying to win the division. That's a great step, getting that first win in the division. So I just think we're improving.

**

TITANS TE DELANIE WALKER**

(on not letting up once they got a lead)

It means we play to win. We always say we want to play physical for 60 minutes. That's something we want to be able to carry over and do every game.

(on 354 yards in the first half)

I feel like that's a point we needed to get to. I think we can be better than that. It showed that we're capable of running the ball, scoring touchdowns, moving the ball, our defense stopping them, the sky is the limit.

(on what the win means for the team)

It means that even though it's a short week that guys can answer. We all felt that we had to come and answer. It just shows that guys understand what the culture is and we're proving it.

JAGUARS HEAD COACH GUS BRADLEY

(opening statement)

The first half was inexcusable. We didn't come out to play. I don't know what the answer is. Do we play with some anxiety? Yeah, I can say I felt like we pressed too much but some of the plays that weren't being made had nothing to do with anxiety.  I don't know if it's focus. We have a high standard and we didn't meet that standard. There's not a lot to be said, but it wasn't good enough, obviously.

(on expecting to be the head coach next week)

Yeah, I do.

(on the team not playing hard)

I can't defend that part. It didn't look like it. My talk at halftime was to rally together and come out and show your spirit. When you're talking like that at halftime, you know you didn't play with great effort. It's challenging. I think there are some anxieties that are part of it. But again, enough plays, when you look it really didn't have anything to do with anxiety. It was more just focus and play that we are capable of making. So, I am making excuses. It was bad.

(on the tank being empty)

We didn't respond very well. We talked about quick to recover. We just didn't get in our rhythm offensively or defensively. Give them credit, they did a nice job with their run game.  We knew, we expected it to be over 30 runs in the game and we knew we had to stand up to it and not give up some explosive plays.  I can't deny that, after that run and after the pass, we looked like we got punched in the mouth and we didn't adjust real well. All of us take responsibility. There are some coaching things there. There are some players' things. I think we all need to take responsibility. We should not be allowed the blame game. I think we each need to look at ourselves and see what we can do.

(on Jalen Ramsey's penalties and the team's lack of discipline on penalties)

Well, we got him out of the game. Penalties you can control. Arrelious Benn had a penalty. That's unfortunate. That's an effort penalty. But these are decisions you have to make and they effect the team. And those two penalties were like that.

(on if he is concerned about job status)

No, I worry about this team and why did we perform like that in the first half, and figuring out, OK, how can we get it right? We have an extra day, really, compared to most weeks.

(on running out of solutions)

There's always solutions. This period right here – it happened and we've got to take a hard look at it. It's not something we're going to brush over. It's not something we're going to talk about the team and then, OK, we've got to move on quickly. I think this is some soul searching. We need to find it out and find out what's the issue. Shahid (Khan) came in and talked; we talked as a team and it was an hour meeting. It was good, but we need more. We need more. We need to find out if there are any issues that are involved that's keeping us from playing at our level. I'll still say it's a high character room, and we're just not playing like we're capable of playing.

(on QB Blake Bortles' confidence)

Well, I think all of us are frustrated in our play. He's a pretty confident man. I know he has belief in his capabilities just like we all do on our team. I think, how does this happen, why is this happening to us, what are we doing wrong? It's those type of questions that may pop up and this is what we've got to find the answers to.

(on whether Blake Bortles was frustrated early)

Well, I think we played frustrated early as a team. So, it was a team deal. We can't look at the defense and say, well, they played pretty good – they didn't. You can't look at it offensively, we played well. So, to point out one guy…I think we all need to take responsibility.

(on frustration on tonight's result after the meeting with owner Shahid Kahn)

Well, I think it's a results league. It's the NFL. We all know – everybody in that locker room knows we've got to be successful. So, it's how are they going about doing it. I know they care for each other and I know they care for what's taken place here, and obviously, when the owner comes in it hits home. It's very important. And the message sent, message received. So what happened? I don't know. I don't know if it was they played tight. It sure seemed like it, but like I said, I'm not solely putting it on that. There's a lot of plays that were made that were technique things and just being focused. So, it's a combination of things.

JAGUARS QB BLAKE BORTLES

(on whether the team's recent struggles have resulted in frustration or a lack of confidence)

Frustrated for sure. Like I said earlier in the week or last week, you know, confidence isn't an issue. I believe in myself and this team 100 percent. It's just a broken record. It's a lack of execution, it's mistakes, it's the same stuff every week.

(on if he thinks some of his teammates are losing confidence)

I don't know if it's a lack of confidence or if it's guys pressing or guys trying too hard. I don't know what it is. I can't speak for them. I just know it's hard to watch a team play on Sunday that you know can perform better than what we're putting on tape every Sunday.

(on Gus Bradley's job status)

That's football and we get it. I know I'm 100 percent behind Gus (Bradley). I believe in him 100 percent and what we're trying to do here. Gus isn't the one committing dumb penalties. Gus isn't the one turning the ball over. Gus isn't the one not making plays. That's on us as a locker room and as players. I understand it's a business and somebody's got to take the blame eventually—I get that. It's just like anything, you know, I'll play as hard as I can until I can't play anymore and Gus will do the same. He'll coach his tail off until they tell him not to coach anymore.

(on whether or not he thinks about Gus Bradley's job status)

No, not at all. I don't think about it at all. Gus (Bradley) has been my head coach since I've been in the NFL and I would love to play my NFL career for Gus Bradley. And, if something changes, then you deal with that when that happens, but I 100 percent support and have confidence in Gus.

(on the Jaguars slow start to the game)

Yeah, I don't know. Do something different. It's hard; it's hard for me to sit up here and answer this for you guys. You guys know everything I'm going to say and I don't know. I tell you the same stuff every week. It's difficult, it's frustrating, you know, to play a team on Thursday night on live television and they bring in the back-up quarterback halfway through the third quarter or whatever. It's embarrassing.

JAGUARS WR ALLEN HURNS

(on if there was a lack of effort in the first half)

I wouldn't say that I saw [a lack of effort]. I am real close to my group and that is who I watch as far as wide outs. No matter what, during the course of a game, whether we are up 40 or down by 40, we always say that we have to put it on tape. No matter what happens, once you turn that tape on you would know that the wide outs played today.

JAGUARS LB PAUL POSLUSZNY

(on the team not being able to respond after falling behind early)

I wish I had a good answer for you. I know they executed a lot better than we did. Our fundamentals broke down and we didn't get off blocks and we didn't tackle like we have. That was the difference. They had a great game plan going in and they have very good players. There is no doubt about that. We give them credit for how well they played, but we just did not perform up to our standards at all.

(on if he is worried about head coach Gus Bradley's future)

I'm worried about this for all of us. We can't put performances out there like that. We have played solid in the past, and to have a break down like that it is very disappointing.

JAGUARS TE JULIUS THOMAS

(on three-and-outs in the first half)

It's becoming too often having three-and-outs. You can't play offense in the NFL and you can't help the team that way.

(on the concern for head coach Gus Bradley's future)

You have to focus on things that are under your control. The decisions that are made with management are outside of my control, as well as the rest of the team. We have to focus on what we are doing on the field and make sure as an offense we can stay on the field.

(on having 60 yards of offense in the first half)

It's unacceptable. It is not a standard that we have set. It is not what we practice and prepare for. We have to do a better job.