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Aaron Dobson, Wide Receiver**
On the difference between the first and second half...
"I feel like penalties hurt us a lot in the first half, a couple personal foul penalties down close to the red zone. It definitely set us back."
On the final minutes of the game...
"We had confidence. There wasn't a doubt in our mind that we could go down there and do it. We did it before so I felt like we were very confident."
On the last play...
"I really didn't know what was going on. I saw the flag being thrown, I got kinda happy but they just called it off. So I really don't know what the call was or what it was going to be."
On what the post-game locker room message was...
"Hold our heads. We can't dwell on it for too long. We've got a quick week."
Rob Gronkowski, Tight End
On the final pass...
"It wasn't completed...I've got to rewatch the play. I don't even know what the call at the end of the game was. I think they threw a flag and then they ended up waving it off. I thought it was going to be pass interference, given a replay. It is how it is now. You can't do anything about it; that's not where the game is won or loss. They're a very good team; they played tough all four quarters."
On the dlag being waived off...
"When they threw the flag, that's what I thought it was going to be. It was waived off so I can't do anything about it; got to ask coach about it. I've got to watch the replay; I haven't seen the replay either. Sometimes when you're live in the action you can't even feel anything, you just try and react. I've got to rewatch it."
On being held...
"It just wasn't completed and there was no flag. I mean there was a flag but it got called back. I don't even know why they threw it and there's just no excuse. I'm not trying to be here to make excuses. They're a good football team, they scored more points than us and they beat us straight up."
On the second loss due to waived flags...
"We don't make excuses. I'm not trying to sit here and make an excuse that he held me at the end of the game. The game is four quarters long. It's won throughout all four quarters not just the last plays of the game. We've got to just keep working hard, keep sticking together, and keep on fighting."
Devin McCourty, Safety
How tough was it to get off on third down?
We just have to find a way to get off. We are going against good football teams, it's getting later in the season, we have to find a way.
On tough penalty calls...
We can't do anything about that. We just have to play smarter, avoid penalties. That's on us. We just have to play smarter.
You had an opportunity to bounce back?
We just fell short. We have to play better throughout the game. You can say this was a winnable game, but you just couldn't make the plays, make enough plays. I don't really believe in that. You either win or you lost, we lost today.
Stevan Ridley, Running Back
On tonight's game...
"We needed to hold onto the ball, we couldn't have penalties...their offense holds onto the ball and they eat up the clock. So for us we had to play mistake-free football, me, myself personally, didn't do that. Gave it up down in the red zone and they turned that into three points. You can look at how close the game ended up. Every drive was critical and that's what I'm learning from this; keep trucking along, and really keep driving. They're a good team; you can't take anything away from Carolina. They just played better."
On the call on the final play...
"I let the refs make the call, I just play ball. Unfortunately it didn't end up the way we wanted it to but they call what they saw and that is what it is."
On Shane Vereen's return...
"Shane looks like he never missed a beat. We missed him out there and it shows how critical he is for our offense. On crucial plays he's in the game and he comes down with a few catches. For him, he's a player. I know he's wanted to be out there and I'm just happy he's back. It's good to have him back."
Shane Vereen, Running Back
How would you assess how you performed in your first game back?
I came out and tried to do the best I could for the team. We came up short. You have to tip your hat off to Carolina, they played well. We have to go back and keep working.
How did you feel physically?
I felt fine.
The last drive, what was the approach and confidence level in a loud atmosphere?
We go through situations like that every week in practice. It just came down to execution and unfortunately we ran out of time.
On the last play...
I'm not too sure. I was too far away from the play. I couldn't really hear, and it was too loud.
Did you expect to have as much involvement coming into today's game?
I didn't really have any expectations. When my number was called I just wanted to go out there and do what I could. That's about how I took the game.
This has to have been a frustrating 8-9 weeks.
Very frustrating, it was good to get back out there with the guys.
