BB:Alright, well that was obviously a satisfying night tonight. I thought our coaching staff really did a good job this week on the short week. You know, really worked hard to get our team ready and I thought the players really went out and played hard tonight. It wasn't perfect - certainly [there are] a lot of things we need to do better but we played hard; we made a lot of plays against a good football team. Cincinnati has a good - that's a good club. Marvin [Lewis] does a good job with that group. Tonight was just kind of our night. A lot of things went in our favor. We made a few things happen and that was good. We just have to really give all the credit to the players for the way they played. They're resilient, they're tough and they worked hard this week and they played hard tonight. I'm proud of them for that.
Q:How needed was this win and solid performance from you guys tonight?
BB:I don't know. It was the next game. It was good to win.
Q:Can you talk about the tone Tom Brady set from the get-go? He seemed emotional that first drive.
BB:I thought our whole team played well. I thought our team played well: we ran the ball, we threw it, pass protected, we caught it, ran after we had it. We scored 43 points. I thought the whole team did a good job.
Q:When you have the number of penalties that you had, is that something that you obviously want to play with an aggressive mindset, does that go with the territory?
BB:No … No … No.
**
Q: **Did you see something in a matchup with Tim Wright? He had a breakout game. Was the plan to get the ball to him early and often?
BB:No. [We] ran the plays we ran, Tom [Brady] hit the guys that were open. Plays aren't designed to go to one receiver. We have everybody running a route and depending on what the coverage is, the quarterback's option to get the ball to the guys that are open. Tom does a good job of that.
Q:Your offensive line blocked well and pass protected well.
BB:I thought the whole team played well, yup. Ran the ball well, had good balance - ran it, threw it - blocked them, ran after we had the ball. We had a lot of guys play well. Give the players credit, they did a great job; played hard and had good results.
Q:Can you can talk about the job Darrelle Revis did on one of the best receivers in the game?
BB:I thought we played well defensively. They have a lot of good players, a lot of skill guys. It's hard to match up on them. They're really in, with [Jermaine] Gresham they're really in four wide receivers and then with [Giovani] Bernard back there, it's really five wide receivers, to tell you the truth. It's a very, very hard team to match up with defensively. I thought all our guys competed well - secondary, linebackers, linemen - against a lot of spread out looks; a lot of space to defend in there. I thought we were competitive in the running game, competitive in pass coverage, made them work for their yards, turned the ball over a few times. That was good defensively and in the kicking game. It was a good team defensive effort. Revis did a good job. I mean, we had a lot of guys play well.
Q:Was there some juggling with Dont'a Hightower out?
BB:We brought Ja'Gared [Davis] up Saturday from the practice squad so he played in the kicking game. The other guys did what they - it was a lot of nickel out there. They had a lot of 11 personnel, a lot of three receivers on the field. When we were in our regular 4-3 defense, [Deontae] Skinner was in. When we weren't, then he wasn't. I don't know how many plays that was, but they were in three receivers a lot more than they were in two receivers.
**
Q: **Were you proud of the focus the team showed this week?
BB:Yeah, I was proud of the way the team prepared. I thought they showed a lot of toughness all week in terms of coming back off a short week and a disappointing game Monday night. Prepared hard, played hard. The players did a good job. The staff, the coaching staff, did a good job too. Short week, a lot to get ready for, Cincinnati is a good football team - guys did a good job.
Q:Were you pleased with the way your defense turned the ball over?
BB:It's always good when we protect the ball and turn it over. That's always a good way to play. We did a good job of that tonight. Held on to the ball and were able to take it away a couple times. It was great.
Q:Brandon Bolden showed a lot of emotion on special teams.
BB:Yeah, Brandon's one of our best special teams players; plays on all the units. He's been a solid contributor there since he's been on the team the last three years. That was a big hit he had and Kyle [Arrington] on the scoop and score. That was a big play for us. Our special teams made some plays. We gave up that long punt return [and] gave them good field position before their touchdown but we made some plays, created some, covered kicks well other than that one. Again, that's a good unit. Pacman [Adam Jones] is a tough returner. They have good special teams. They're well coached. [Special Teams Coordinator] Darrin [Simmons] does a good job and it's a tough matchup against that group. They're strong in all three phases of the game. I thought our special teams met the challenge tonight.
Q:There was one apparent fumble early in the game. Did they tell you that you couldn't challenge it?
BB:Right. Forward progress.
Q:What was the difference for you guys offensively tonight? Was it just a matter of execution or did you get more favorable matchups?
BB:The difference with what? I thought we played well tonight. I thought our offensive team played well. I said the coaches did a good job - Josh [McDaniels] and the staff. Players played well. We executed well in the running game, we executed well in the passing game. We did a good job tonight against a good defensive football team. Players played very well and we made a lot of yards after contact or through the line of scrimmage, plays like that. We got some extended plays with the guys with the ball in their hands. I thought they did a great job.
Q:Did you see a lot of extra emotion tonight from your team?
**
The New England Patriots take on the Cincinnati Bengals during Sunday Night Football at Gillette Stadium on Sunday, October 5, 2014.
New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski (87) runs after catching a pass from Tom Brady in the first half of an NFL football game against the Cincinnati Bengals Sunday, Oct. 5, 2014, in Foxborough, Mass. With the completion, Brady becomes the sixth quarterback in NFL history to throw for 50,000 career passing yards. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)
Tom Brady, QB --Â There is no doubt that Brady is having a great year despite dealing with the injury challenges to his line and, now, his weapons. No. 12 has had a few turnovers in recent weeks, which is less than ideal, and must clean that up with a surrounding cast that continues to change.
Malcom Brown, DL -Â The Patriots first-round pick has been improving by the week and has impressed Bill Belichick of late. Brown is a key cog in the middle of New England's No. 2 run defense that will be the defensive key in this meeting with Rex Ryan's ground-and-pound Bills.
Ronald Darby, CB --Â Buffalo's rookie cornerback has been on the rise in recent weeks and playing very good, physical football. Tom Brady now has to deal with a pair of impressive corners in Darby and Stephon Gilmore who are allowing the Bills to be a little more aggressive and creative defensively.
Rob Gronkowski, TE --Â New England's all-world tight end almost always has a big game against his hometown team, including 113 yards and a touchdown back in Week 2 in Buffalo. The Bills supposedly have a plan to take Gronkowski out of the game on Monday night. Good luck with that.
Brandon LaFell, WR --Â With Julian Edelman sidelined and Dion Lewis on IR, the Patriots will be looking to diversify the passing attack. After opening the year on PUP, LaFell is working his way into midseason form and could be ready for a bigger role in offensive game plan.
LeSean McCoy, RB --Â The former Eagles star seems to be settling into his role as the centerpiece of the Bills offense. Now healthy, McCoy is coming off his first two 100-yard games in Buffalo and has averaged better than 5 yards per carry in three of his last four games to pace the Bills No. 2 rushing attack that will take on the Patriots impressive rush defense.
Rex Ryan, Head Coach --Â Buffalo's blustery coach is always at the center of attention for every game his team plays. Ryan, who has lost seven of the last eight against the Patriots, got a little snippy with the New England media this week. Ryan's game plans have given the Patriots problems in the past and an upset this week would certainly make waves across the NFL.
Tyrod Taylor, QB --Â Statistically, Taylor is having an incredible season as a first-year starter in Buffalo. But is he capable of making enough plays in the air at key times on the road in New England to lead his team to victory? That's still very much in question.
Sebastian Vollmer, T --Â The veteran tackle was one of three injured linemen to return to practice this week. If Vollmer can get back on the field, likely to play left tackle, it would be a big step toward stabilizing the offensive line in this battle with an impressive Bills front.
Mario WIlliams, DE --Â The Bills only have 14 sacks as a team, but Williams has three of them. The veteran $100 million man challenges the edges with a combination of athleticism and power, an issue regardless of who lines up at right tackle for the Patriots in this prime time battle.
New England Patriots tight end Rob Gronkowski celebrates his touchdown catch against the Cincinnati Bengals in the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Oct. 5, 2014, in Foxborough, Mass. (AP Photo/Stephan Savoia)
New England Patriots vs Cincinnati Bengals October 5, 2014 at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, MA.
Photo By: KEITH NORDSTROM
BB: **I don't know. When you score, you're going to have emotion. When you don't, when you give up scores and turn the ball over and don't do well, you have to generate some plays to generate that. We went down and scored, of course, we're excited. We should be. It's hard to do in this league. I think there's a lot to get excited about.
Q:You guys lost by 27 last week. You won by 26 this week. Is that just part of the nature of the NFL and how competitive it is on a weekly basis and there's no carryover?
BB:We played two different teams.
Q:Was this a satisfying victory given all the criticism and questions that were asked this week about the team?
BB:Criticism from who?
Q:The media. People in this room. The fans.
BB:With all due respect, I mean really. Look, we have a job to do. We're focused on doing that job. We're not going to sit around and listen to what everybody else says. We try to do the best we can.
