Transcript: Texans Head Coach Gary Kubiak talks Browns as Teams Prepare for Battle
(On breaking the current three-game losing streak)- “The thing that’s hurt our football team the most this year has been turnovers and we’ve really struggled from that standpoint. They put it on the ground way too much offensively and we’ve turned it over way too much and then haven’t gotten back on defense. We played a good football team last week, battled them to the end and they came up two plays short. We just need to find one or two more plays. They need to stay focused on themselves and continue to get better as a football team.”
(On Steve Slaton being a third round pick)- “One of our big issues from last year was stability with running backs. He had big issues the first year here and they went to Ahman Green and hoped that would stabilize it. It hasn’t, he has had some problems with his health and those type of things. We drafted this young man, and we got right back in the same boat in camp and made a decision in week two that we were just going to go with the young kid. That was a lot to ask of him, but boy he has played well. He has gotten better each week, he got worn down a little bit and he freshened up some last week. He has got a bright future, he’s a sharp young man and plays hard. He loves football, and nothing really bothers him. I think he has a very bright future.”
(On having to use two quarterbacks)- “It has been that way for two years, so we have lacked consistency in the guy that we have had on the field leading the football team. Matt (Schaub) has missed a lot of time as a player and has gotten more time than he has probably ever gotten in his career. He responded very well last year, and played extremely well. He has done some real good things this year, he just needs to do a better job protecting the football. That’s been an issue, but thank god we have them both because we have needed them both in the long haul and having to work through Matt’s injuries.”
(On the effect of the schedule change in week two)- “It seems very far and removed and it would be very selfish of us to worry about ourselves. This city had a horrible situation, and there were so many people without so much, and our guys were part of it. I think the hardest things were just the problems they had at home. It is one thing to just keep doing your job and say we have got to keep going, and that’s part of what we do for a living, and we have to do that. Guys had problems at home but we fought through it and naturally altered our schedule. It took away our bye week which every team in this league needs or looks forward to whether its health-wise or just getting a break. It has been a long haul for us from that standpoint but we pushed through it, we came out of it, and started playing pretty good football. In these last few weeks we have kind of gotten back to turning over the football so hopefully we can get rid of that and start playing better.”
(On Brady Quinn)- “I am very impressed. I really thought the world of him when he was coming out and we had a tough decision to make around here. I went and studied him very hard, was there at his private workout, and talked to him a great deal. First off he is a physical specimen, which in this league those guys are rare but they hold up. He is very impressive from that standpoint and very intelligent. The thing I have been very impressed with the first two weeks when you get thrown in there is the way he has managed the game and protected the ball. I could be wrong but I think he has played eight quarters without a turnover. That’s hard to do in this league so he is doing a heck of a job and it is a great start for him in his career and I think they have done a great job with him.”
(On preparing for Brady Quinn)- “The game has changed from a standpoint of draft choices, free agency and those types of things. Some guys get thrown in the fire a lot quicker nowadays than they have in the past, especially when I played. I think they did an excellent job with him. (Derek) Anderson was playing very well but for him to sit there absorbing for basically a year and a half in their system, I have watched teams put themselves through those situations and ultimately you don’t know if they are ready until they go out there. Obviously he is ready and they did a heck of a job getting him ready.”
(On Mario Williams)- “He is young, he has been exceptional but we have got to get him some help on this football team. He has been there every week, he has been exceptional with his effort. Last week he played 79 snaps and that’s unheard of but that is where we are at physically. He has become a big time player which we had no doubt he would. He weathered the storm early in his career, he is very tough mentally and physically and he has a very bright future.”
(On the Browns defense and Shaun Rogers)- “Everything starts right there because if you can’t handle him inside or slow him down then you are going to have a long day both running the ball and trying to protect your quarterback. It is extremely difficult and the thing I have been very impressed with is their defense and how they have done a great job getting turnovers. That has been one of our problems so I don’t have to look any further than that as we come down there to know that that is something we are going to have to do better. That is the strength of their defensive football team. Romeo has got them playing extremely hard, I know they have been through a few guys kind of like we have, but it all starts with him at the middle. He is as good as there is in the business.”
(On The Browns young corner backs)- “They play a ton of different coverages, it all depends on which game you watch. I’ve seen them play a bunch of two deep, I’ve seen them go after people and pressure people and from our prospective you are never going to know what you are going to get. You have to prepare for both, but I see two kids that are playing hard. We have got some young guys ourselves out there with Jacques Reeves and Fred Bennett and learning to be a successful corner in this league takes time and takes a lot of time on the job. That is what they are getting and we are trying to do the same thing with our kids.”
