Rex Ryan, Head Coach
Opening statement…
That's what I'm talking about. This is a big victory and keeps us alive. We obviously have a ton of work to do and need to improve a great deal as a football team. We understand that. At the same time, it's great to get a win, especially against New England.
It came down to situational football. They did a good job driving down at the end for the field goal to tie the game. It was a great team effort. I'm a little worried about our offensive coordinator (Marty Mornhinweg) because all he wants to do is run the football. We had 52 rushing attempts. That's what I'm talking about. We were at 69 for runs and completions, and you're going to win a lot of games that way. We know we had the benefit of overtime as well. New England was at 42, which was good. It's tough to beat (Tom) Brady in the quarterback rating, but we did today, which was a huge plus.
It was a great team effort. It was a great balanced effort by our team. The defense played outstanding, especially in the third quarter. (Defensive coordinator) Dennis Thurman made some adjustments and did a great job. When you look at it, it was a great game. I looked and Bilal (Powell) only carried the ball three times, but (Chris) Ivory had the hot hand and we fed him. They are great compliments as running backs. We rode Ivory a little more than normal, but it was just a good game.
The pick six was real unfortunate, but other than that, I thought Geno (Smith) had a tremendous game for us. We had some drops, but again, I'm proud of our guys and the effort we gave. We knew we'd give everything we had. Our fans were outstanding. It was loud and that played into our hands as well. I want to tip my hat to our fans.
On the play of the Jets defense in the second half…
Our staff does a great job. Dennis and (Brian) VanGorder (linebackers coach) and all of those guys with the exception of (defensive assistant Jeff) Weeks (joking) does a great job. They really do. They made a couple of adjustments that they thought would help us, and they did. You're playing against a group that knows what they are doing with the football. The fact they were 1-for-12 on third down was good. We can put that in the good category, but I think it was more about our defense than about who wasn't there and everything else. And I'd like to say, our defense actually stepped up at times. I don't know if that was noted the last time we played them. We finished the job this time and that's the important thing. I'm really excited about that.
On running the ball on third down before the 56-yard field goal attempt by Jets K Nick Folk…
We have 'Folk Hero' and we thought he could pop one on them. At the end of the day, we believe in our guy. He's a great kicker. The wind picked up a little more than we anticipated, but unfortunately, they had a foul on the play. We'll take it.
On the play of Jets KR/PR Josh Cribbs…
He looked pretty good, like the old Josh Cribbs. I was just happy that he was on my sideline and not the other one. For a guy that's been out, you see those great return skills. Man, he gets it up in there.
On how the Jets are looked at with a 4-3 record…
Hey, we don't care how people look at us as long as our fans know that this team is going to compete every single day. That's in the classroom and everything else. I told them last night how proud I was of them because they're a team that works their tails off. They're great teammates. With that, I know we're going to get better. We're not where we have to be. We're not even close. But you know what? We're going to keep making strides and keep making strides, and who knows what happens at the end of the day. We're certainly much better than what…I guess it's not hard to be. We were picked 32nd. I think we're better than that.
On two third-quarter scrambles by Smith…
It's interesting. David Lee is a great quarterbacks coach, one of the best in the business. I think he's under contract for a couple more years, and he's the best in the league. He told Geno before the game that he would have to make two plays with his legs that are going to win the game for us, and I'll be darned if that didn't happen. He has the run on third down and then the touchdown run. When he ran in for the touchdown, I thought 'David Lee is pretty sharp!' I really thought about it as soon as Geno made that run. That's something the young man has. Most young quarterbacks will force the issue – throw one into coverage, maybe throw a pick in the red zone, but Geno tucked that ball and ran for a touchdown. (It was a) tremendous play by him and I'm really proud of him.
On defeating Patriots QB Tom Brady…
It's always satisfying to beat him. It's always hard. It's only the fourth time we've beaten him since I've been here, and it's my fifth year. The numbers aren't very good. We're 1-1 this year with this team. It's a tough team to beat. They're a smart, very disciplined football team that is well coached. We just found a way.
On his reaction to the penalty on the first overtime field goal attempt…
I was fairly happy about it (joking) (laughter), thus my reaction. But I was like, 'You know what? It's about time we got a break (joking) (laughter).' That's really what I was thinking. It just worked out.
On when he saw the flag on the first overtime field goal attempt…
I saw it right away, but I was saying, 'Oh, please be on them, please be on them, please be on them (joking) (laughter).' I think my reaction was just like our fans because I think I heard the whole stadium saying, "Please be on them, please be on them (laughter).' That was everybody's reaction.
On Smith's performance…
We can do without the pick six. But he was playing great the whole game. He played terrific. That throw right there (was) probably ill-advised, but it's easy to sit back in this chair and say, "He shouldn't throw that ball." No kidding, Brady shouldn't have thrown that other one. But you know what, things happen. You have to give the defense credit. The kid (Logan Ryan) made a nice play for a touchdown.
On the perception Smith outplayed Brady…
He is a fearless guy, but I wouldn't say he outplayed Brady. I think that's a team effort and I wouldn't think, obviously, nobody is going to outplay Brady, maybe Peyton Manning. But I think collectively as a team, that quarterback rating is a team function. That's how I look at it and that's how our team looks at it.
On whether the win counts a little bit more than one-and-a-half games…
Maybe one-and-three quarters (joking) (laughter), because that's the team you chase. That's the team we've always chased. You're tired of looking up at them, but at the end of the day, they've earned that. We want to win it, just like anyone wants to win their division. We're no different. The Patriots have won it the last four years.
On using Antonio Allen primarily to cover Gronkowski…
Great adjustment by DT (Thurman). He's a guy that's a long body. He has playmaking skills. I know he was a SAM linebacker at South Carolina. But he's baller. The guy's a football player. We knew he'd be challenged. That kid (Gronkowski), when he's covered he's open. We thought about (Isaiah) Trufant (joking) (laughter), but we were like, "Oh, maybe not." We had to go with some length on him and that's really why we made the move.
On being proud of his team…
It's just that they don't listen to the noise out there or anything else. They never heard it. They just work hard. From day one, we challenged our guys. We know we can out-prepare people. We might not have this, we might not have that, but we can out-prepare them, and that's exactly the way we go about our business. Whether we do or not, I don't know, but I know our guys are competing in the class room, they study their butts off and they do a great job. They are prepared. I think the coaching staff is outstanding, and they're just great teammates. They push each other, but they take care of each other. They don't stop believing, period. Outside people have no idea about this group. I'm just telling you, I know it's special. How that means we're going to finish record-wise? I don't know. But I know we have what it takes, in my opinion, to do something great. You have to start with it right here. The guys have to be close. Any good team I've ever been with has been like this (crosses his fingers), and that's how I see this team.
On his thoughts being down going into the second half…
We have to keep fighting. We knew that it wasn't going to be easy, but we knew it wasn't over by any stretch of the imagination. We knew that we had to play situation football. We did, and the guys just kept coming back. We did it our way. We never altered our plan as far as offensively. We stayed the course. I thought we did a good job.
On whether Ivory got so many carries because of Powell's injury…
I think both guys are excellent backs. Initially, maybe during the week, we had to see where he was. But Ivory was running extremely hard. We thought it was a good matchup for us and that's why we rode him.
Antonio Allen, S
On the importance of getting a turnover…
We knew we needed a turnover. We were trying to get one. It was only our (third) one this year. We knew we had to force a turnover in order to win the game. We did that, got the spark and everybody is on their high horse.
On the plan to defend TE Rob Gronkowski…
Be physical with him at the line of scrimmage. Put my hands on him. Try and get the ball away from him. He catches a lot of balls in the red zone. He is a good guy and I think he did a good job on us today.
On competition for the safety position…
I know what type of player I am. A playmaker. (I can) make plays when the ball's thrown in the air. I've been battling since day one. We're still in a battle because JJ (Jaiquawn Jarrett) is a good player and he's my teammate. So we're going to get it right. We're switching in, switching out. It doesn't matter.
On the exciting week he had with the birth of his son and a touchdown in today's game…
I had to get one for him. It was exciting.
Willie Conlon, OL
On the play of the offensive line in overtime …
Well, we just understand that we just have to take it one play at a time. The one thing we have to do is communicate, snap count, (we) can't have penalties, (we) can't have sacks. Like I said, they put it on us and we were able to get it done
On how much the win means for the team …
It's huge, it's a huge win for us. But the biggest thing right now is how we progress from it. We don't want to go to Cincinnati and drop an egg. That's the biggest thing. We have to come back to work, pay attention to detail, have an intense practice and get it done. We can't take it for granted.
On the team's penalties…
I think, honestly, we were beating ourselves. The penalties we were having in the first half, everybody knows we do a million push-ups at practice because of those penalties. At some point we have to take a stand and just focus in. For that defense to come out in the second half and play lights out, it just talks about their character and their will to fight. I'm proud of our defense.
On the importance of preparing and working hard…
It's true. You can't look past your opponent. You have to be able to come in every week, prepare hard, give it your best every week and lay it all out on the field Sunday. That's our job. It doesn't matter what the nay-sayers say, it's about not hurting each other as far as penalties and turnovers and getting it done
Nick Folk, K
On getting a second chance at a game-winning field goal…
I wanted the long one to go in. I wish the game would've ended on the long one. That would have been fun, but luckily we got closer and I got to put it through and beat the Patriots.
On the thrill of winning in overtime over New England…
It's good. Any time we can get a win is good. I'm excited after every win, not just the ones I get to kick a game winner. I'm excited all the time whenever we get the chance to win. It's tough to come by some wins sometimes, and luckily for us this year, we're putting some good ones together.
On whether he knew what the penalty flag was for after his first kick…
I didn't know what it was for right away, but as soon as I saw them conferencing, I knew it was either for a push or leverage. At first when I saw the flag, I thought it might have been 12 men on the field, but it was for the pushing call, which is a new rule this year. You can't push on a field goal. They're trying to protect guys. The offensive linemen and the snapper just have to sit there and take it. They can't really fire off like you would (on) an offensive play or something like that, so you've got no chance to protect yourself. It's a good new rule and they just ended up breaking the rule.
On competition for the safety position…
I know what type of player I am. A playmaker. Make plays when the ball's thrown in the air. I've been battling since day one. We're still in a battle because JJ (Jaiquawn Jarrett) is a good player and he's my teammate. So we're going to get it right. We're switching in, switching out. It doesn't matter.
On the exciting week he had with the birth of his son and a touchdown in today's game…
I had to get one for him. It was exciting.
Chris Ivory, RB
On whether he expected to have games with a high number of carries when he first came to the Jets…
Well, I didn't really know what to expect, but I'm ready for whatever game plan they have. Going forward, whatever they have, I'm going to be ready for it.
On what the coaches told him about playing the rest of the game…
They didn't tell me anything. I just knew I was in the game. So, I was in the game and I (played) my role.
On what getting consistent carries does for his game…
It helps get in a rhythm and just get more of a feel for the scheme and the running lanes.
On whether his success on the ground convinced Marty Mornhinweg to keep giving him touches…
I think he has confidence in me. If he didn't, I don't think we would've ran like we did. That's what we did and we came out on top.
On whether he knew he would run that many times in overtime…
No, I didn't. I didn't expect it at all, especially coming from as far as we did. But we did and we were successful and we sealed the game.
Jeremy Kerley, WR
On the importance of a win against the Patriots…
It's a big push. That is a division team. We definitely want to get up in the division but a win like that against an opponent like that is a big motivation and hopefully a drive for the next some odd games.
On if the defense helped spark the play of the offense…
It was a big spark. We needed them to make plays and time and time again they did it. It was a big spark.
On QB Geno Smith making big plays…
That is huge. It shows his special abilities and when we need him he is able to do so. It was good.
Sheldon Richarson, DT
On how big of a statement win this was…
It was another win for us. Simple as that.
On whether they proved the team is a contender…
Keep putting us as underdogs. We like it.
On what was changed at halftime…
Nothing really. We had to put more hands on Gronk (Rob Gronkowski). He was still being Gronk, but we pulled it out at the end.
On the three straight three-and-outs forced by the Jets defense…
That was huge. They were gashing us starting off the game. (They) had a few good offensive positions, but we turned it around real quick. We bend but don't break sometimes.
Geno Smith, QB
On Coach David Lee telling him earlier in the week that his ability to run with the football would be the difference in the game…
I think Coach Lee may have a good job being a psychic or something because he did tell me that and he said it early on in the week. When he says it, I'm usually like, 'Yeah, we don't know how the game's going to go." But, he was 100 percent right. It took a lot of effort from every single guy in this locker room to get this victory. The defense played phenomenal. The offensive line basically put us on their backs late in the game. Chris (Ivory) ran the ball extremely tough. Wide receivers did a great job, so it took every single man to get the victory today.
On what he was doing during the two field goal attempts at the end of the game…
I had my helmet on. I was watching the field goal and I saw that he missed it, then I saw the flag. (I) didn't really know what was going on until they announced it. It's great to get the help (on) something like that to get us the victory. I think every single guy deserved it today because we worked extremely hard throughout the week of practice. We prepared our butts off for this game and every man came out focused and enthused. I think it was well deserved.
On whether he was surprised that the call was to run the ball on the third down before the first field goal attempt in overtime…
I think Marty (Mornhinweg) may have decided that that was the best option for us. In those times, we run the play that's called and we try (and) attempt to pick up the first down. If it was a pass play it would have been the same reaction, there's no difference.
On the first scramble for a first down…
I was trying to figure out, should I dive then rr maybe try and cut back or do something. The guy ended up making a pretty good hit. But, I didn't go down, so I just tried to stretch out for the first down.
On whether winning a game like this signifies that he's made big progress as a quarterback…
I mean, every single win is big. My progress is judged by my decision making and the way that I improve in that area. That comes with patience. That comes with time and a ton of reps, a ton of game reps. But, I think I've improved steadily from week-to-week. Now I don't think my games have been telling of that, but I do believe that I've been improving.
On what it means for the team to have just beaten the team that's first place in the division…
I think it says that we're a tough team. We don't look at any records. We go out there and we fight and we fight as a team. That's every single week, that's our mantra. That's what Rex (Ryan) wants us to do and that's what we try and do every week.
On David Nelson…
David did a great job. First of all, he's a tremendous blocker. I don't think he gets enough credit for that. The guy blocks on the edge – him, Stephen (Hill) and JK (Jeremy Kerley). He did a great job of getting open and finding space today. He was running hard. He made some tough catches in some crucial situations. David helped us out, just as every single man did, and I'm just proud to see that his efforts have paid off.
On whether it means anything to him watching Tom Brady make the same mistakes that he made…
No. Anyone who watches football knows that every single quarterback makes those mistakes and it hasn't anything to do with age. I think at times it just happens and even the best do it. The key thing to being a good quarterback is to move on from it, to not let it affect your game play moving forward. I'm pretty sure Brady does that and I know I'll always do the same thing. So, I think that's what's most important.
On what a win like this means for this team…
I think every single win is graded out about equal, but I think this one means a little bit more to us. You could just get that feeling in the locker room and around the community. Everyone knows about this rivalry. I think it's a great one because it's always two well-prepared teams. They usually know one another and it takes a last second field goal or something like that in the end.
On why the team responded well throwing the interception that was returned for a touchdown in the first quarter…
I can't speak for anyone else, but I just know my own personal demeanor. I'm never going to crumble, no matter what happens. That's just not in me. My thing is, it's much harder for me to give up then to try. So, I always go out there and give it my all. I'm not going to ever focus on the previous play, whether it was good or bad, and we just move on from it. I have a ton of great teammates who give me support. Marty, Coach Lee, they give me a ton of support and they allow me to see things clearly, put it into perspective and just move on.
On why he and Kerley were able to be successful on third down…
The protection was great. The offensive line did a great job at seeing the blitz and picking it up. Jeremy just was finding ways to get open. That's something that he has a knack for. I believe he's a really good slot (receiver) and he always finds ways to get open. He makes yards after the catch and he's one of those guys that you can depend on.
On what Coach Ryan said to the team at halftime…
We made some adjustments at the half and we wanted to go out there and put ourselves in a position to win this game. It was going to take a clean game, a clean half and it was going to take every single guy, which it did.
On how he was feeling about the offense at halftime…
There (were) a lot of positives to look at, just as you said. We were able to move the ball on a stingy defense and we were able to get down there in the redzone. I had an interception, that pick-six and the other two times we put points on the board. So, we were very optimistic about that. We knew that we could come out and move the ball in the second half. We came out and stuck together and stayed the course.
On Antonio Allen's interception return for a touchdown…
It was huge, to put points on the board, to cut the deficit to four. The defense came out that second half and played a phenomenal game. My hat goes (off) to them because they really sparked us.
On what it means for him personally to beat Brady…
There is none. Tom Brady is one of the greatest quarterbacks to play this game and I'm a rookie quarterback in this league. So, the personal satisfaction for me is to get a victory for every single guy in that locker room and to be able to move on and put ourselves in a pretty good position moving forward.
Muhammad Wilkerson, DL
On what type of statement that game was…
Pretty much we just played Jet football at the end of the day. That's all Rex (Ryan) asked for us to do, play Jet football, protect the ball, create turnovers and play hard. And we did that today.
On the Jets' improvement after halftime…
We just made some minor adjustments and we got after it. We kept fighting. We didn't give up. We didn't pout. Everybody believed in their brother next to them and it showed.
On the crowd at MetLife Stadium…
It was great. I call it "JetLife Stadium". Jets Nation was proud today. And we loved it out there. Great effort from (the fans).
On Antonio Allen's interception return for a touchdown…
It was great. It was a turnover. We've been having trouble creating turnovers and we created one. He made a statement by taking it to the house and that was a big momentum-changer for us.
