**
BENGALS HEAD COACH MARVIN LEWIS**
ML:Alright, I think [in] all three phases we got outplayed tonight. No question about it. We didn't execute and make third downs, which were huge in the football game. The turnovers came at bad times for us, and you know, we didn't get off the field defensively on third down and that was the story of the football game. They were able to keep their drives alive and eventually, early on, work for the two touchdowns and then the field goals later in the game. But that was probably the biggest thing. We got some things right, did settle in and do OK, but not good enough. So we have got to go back to work.
Q:Marvin, those first two series, did you feel like they were just a step quicker?
ML:Not a step quicker, we've just got to settle in and play. You know, the tempo, we have to understand that and get going and be sure everyone gets on the same page. And we have some plays that we didn't get it executed as well as we should have.
Q:Was there any thought of making taking the tempo away and starting with the ball in this game?
ML:No sir.
**
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
Q: **Are you surprised at how well they were able to run the ball?
ML:Well, I am surprised. We will see on tape why.
Q:Is that something that you were worried about coming into the game?
ML:Well, we figured they would try to run the football. And you know, we will see what we didn't do right.
Q:The inside has had such a tumultuous week, there's been so much [inaudible]. Are you fearful of that?
ML:Well, I can't be fearful; it is not in my control. All I can do is control what we can do and we didn't play well enough to win the game tonight.
Q:Let's see how you guys respond now…
ML:That's exactly right, Tom.
Q:These kinds of games have happened a little earlier in the NFL, and there have been a lot of them. Big spreads, big differences in the game, is there a reason it's been happening more and more?
ML:I have no idea. I know if you turn the ball over and you don't make any third downs, you have a chance to have this happen to you as we saw. You know, there was a 14-point swing there very quickly after we scored a touchdown. And we were in good position, and we have a 14-point swing where we don't stop the drive, then we fumble the kickoff and when we get in the football game, then we are back out of it again. Or at least we have the look that we are back out of it.
Q:Marvin, at 20 to 10, you had them backed up at the 14, did you think the way you turned things around, that you had a chance to make a stand and were going to make a stand?
ML:I'm sorry, I can't remember right now, you know, those things. Again, I said, after we scored the touchdown, we were back in the football game. I don't know if that was where it was 20 to 10 or not.
Q:Were you surprised about how you guys came out?
ML:Well, we came out to the game fine, they just scored. They scored a touchdown, Butch. That's all.
Q:They scored two.
ML:They scored two, we didn't score any. We had a chance and we didn't score, we missed a field goal. We had third down, we didn't convert. We moved the ball right down the field as well and we didn't convert on third down. And you know, we had some penalties, some pre-snap penalties that hurt us on offense early in the game. And those things set you back.
Q:You guys hadn't really been challenged so much this year, 48 seconds is all you guys have trailed coming into this game. How much did the lack of adversity set you back?
ML:You know, you know you are going to face adversity in the season. So you aren't going to sit around and be psychologists about that. We've got to play through anything that happens.
Q:What did you take from Andy Dalton's night?
ML:Well, again we had some balls we had to make. He made some good throws, but he made some throws and the ball got out. We had some balls we've got to keep on the field of play, give us a chance all the time. And I think that's important. You know, we dropped a touchdown in whatever quarter that was and we ended up settling for a field goal there. So, you know, there's good things and we've just got to keep playing and go back to work.
BENGALS QB ANDY DALTON
Q:What were some of the challenges tonight - specifically the matchup of Darrelle Revis on A.J. Greene?
AD:I think the biggest thing was that we got down early. We knew we were going to get their best, especially after the game that they had last week. Unfortunately for us, we got down early and we tried to come back, but we weren't able to do enough. At the end of the day, that's the story of the game.
**
Q: **You had some throws there early... do you think you would have liked to have them back, like the one to Giovani Bernard?
AD:I felt like I had to get that out a little bit sooner and he got hit on his route. Obviously, yes, I'd like to have that one back. I wish I would have hit that one, but it didn't happen that way. We've got to find ways to get down there and score. At the end of the day, we didn't make enough plays to be in this game.
Q:You mentioned getting down early. How much did that kind of change your game plan? Did it throw a lot of what you wanted to do off?
AD:It was still 14-0 in the first quarter, so you can't completely change the game plan at that point because there is just still so much game left. We tried to stick to the plan as much as we could, but at the end of the day, the more we got down, the more we had to throw it and do certain things. Yeah, we did have one plan going in and we weren't able to stick to it the whole game because of the way the score was.
Q:Revis has been playing a lot of zone early in the season here in New England. Did you anticipate getting man coverage on A.J. tonight?
AD:Yeah, I mean we figured, there had been times when Revis stayed on one side and there have been times when he's flipped, but just because he was on A.J. didn't mean we weren't going to try to throw to A.J. because A.J is really good. I didn't feel like A.J. matched up with anybody and so we got a lot of looks there that we thought we were going to get. We just didn't make enough plays.
Q:A.J. was saying that overall, not just on him, but overall the rhythm felt a little bit off with the offense tonight. Did you kind of feel that as well?
AD:We had opportunities; we had chances. You can't turn the ball over. I said earlier, [that] I wish I could have had some throws back - you can't have drops - there are so many things that can go on in the game. You've got to find ways to make the plays and we didn't make them.
Q:When Devin McCourty went down and Revis was out momentarily you guys seemed to go right after those positions once they got their backups in. Was that something you guys saw or was that just coincidental?
AD:I mean it's a little bit of both. We knew that Revis wasn't going to be on A.J., but there's no telling that if he wasn't out there the play would have changed. We had a good play call with what they were playing and made plays.
Q:Is it a sickening feeling just not to play your best again as a team on a primetime stage?
AD:Yeah, I mean obviously you want to come out and play your best. It's not like we were just playing some nobody - we were playing a really good team. You're on the road in a tough environment and you've got to come to play and if you don't it turns out how it did and so, at the end of the day, this is just one game. We're still on top in the division and we've got everything on top of us, so we'll be ready to go next week.
Q:Was it difficult to have a bye week so early especially after you guys got off to such a good start?
AD:We've had a bye week later on in the season ever since I've been here and so this one is early - who's to say it is tough having it so early? I don't think that the bye week was the reason for the way that we came out today and played the way we did. I think just at the end of the day, there weren't enough plays made and I keep saying it, but that's the truth to it.
Q:You guys haven't been down much this season until obviously tonight. How do you use this as a learning lesson and help you guys moving forward?
AD:You've got to take advantage of opportunities when you get down, you've got to find ways to even it up, and maybe if you don't even it up, you've got to find ways at the end of the day to make it a game or win a close one. There is a lot of stuff that we can learn from this. We'll go and we'll watch the tape. On all phases of the game, we will watch the tape and learn from it.
Q:Do you feel like there was an opportunity lost? That there is kind of a vacuum at the top of the AFC and you guys had a chance to take control?
AD:Yeah, but it's still early. We've played four games. There's still a lot of time for that to happen. At the end of the day, this is just one game, it's one loss, but we've got to learn from it, we've got to get better from it and we have to move forward.
Darqueze Dennard, Cornerback
(On getting into the swing of things after the shoulder injury in preseason)
"It was tough at first but the training staff did a good job making sure I was healthy before I was thrown back out there. Right now I'm just playing special teams and doing anything to help the team win."
A.J. Green, Wide Receiver
(On playing against Darrelle Revis)
"He made some plays but I also got open. He played a heck of a game. They were not giving up the big plays. Nothing I haven't seen before, we just didn't play well. We had too many turnovers and couldn't get into a rhythm."
(On if the Bengals underestimated the Patriots)
"No, we didn't underestimate anybody. We just had a bad game. You can't win if you have four turnovers. It just happened like that."
(On if they were rusty after the bye)
"The bye didn't throw us off, we just didn't play well. We don't make excuses, we got our butts whipped."
Leon Hall, Cornerback
(On what went wrong in the game)
"I am not sure, we will have to take a look at it. We just didn't play well. There were a lot of points on the board so we have to go figure things out. I am not sure at this moment. We have to take a look at things when we get back to Cincinnati. We didn't take them lightly, we just didn't play well. Again, I am not sure, we just didn't execute. Any time you lose on national television it is hard to take but it is not the end of the world."
Jeremy Hill, Half Back
(On catching up with Stevan Ridley at the end of the game and trading jerseys)
"Yeah I just congratulated him and was reminiscing on some old stuff."
(On the challenges against the Patriots' defense)
"They were pretty simplistic in most of their looks. We've just got to make plays, and they trusted their defensive backs and their linebackers to make plays. They didn't do anything crazy; they just matched up to man to man coverage. They spread it all the way across the board. We just had to make plays and not turn the ball over."
(On fumbles killing their momentum)
"Yeah definitely, I think we had some momentum going in the third quarter. We had some fumbles and special teams had some fumbles as well. When we do that you put yourself into a position to not win the football game. All the credit goes to them, they made the plays, they got the turnovers when they needed them and that's why they won the game."
George Iloka, Safety
(On how frustrating it is to have another bad performance in prime time)
"We hate losing in general, but this one stings a lot. We came out flat and they came out fired up. They had a tough loss last Monday and the whole nation was watching and we didn't play Bengals football. We have to lick our wounds, watch the tape and bounce back like they did. That's a good example, they got embarrassed last week and look how they came out this week."
(On whether the Patriots came out stronger than they expected)
"No, they were fired up. We knew it. We thought they took their best shot early, but every time we started catching some momentum, they made a big play here or there. It was tough, we were playing catch up the whole time and it's tough to come back, especially on the road."
(On how the Patriots were successful)
"They didn't run anything different. They didn't really get too many big chunks of yardage, it was just a missed tackle here or there and a few lapses in coverage. I couldn't tell you, they just converted every third down they needed to and won the plays they needed to."
Reggie Nelson, Safety
(On why he thought the Patriots got off to a fast start)
"They came out and played a good game. You can't take anything away from them. We just have to come in tomorrow and see what we did wrong and try and fix things."
(On how the team responds to the loss)
"We'll see next week."
(On how disappointed he was with the loss)
"It stings. It hurts. We just have to move on to the next one."
Domata Peko, Defensive Tackle
(On the game)
"They ran over one hundred yards on us and then they went way over and that is something we need to correct. That starts with us up front here, the defensive line. We all have to be on the same page and they got us off kilter in the beginning of the game. They got us today and they were the better team tonight. We have a strong team here and we have to bounce back from it."
Mohamed Sanu, Wide Receiver
(On the loss)
"They just played better than us. Offense, defense, and special teams, they played better than us. They executed, they made plays. We turned the ball over way too many times. That's not like us, we gave up a sack, and we can't do that. They capitalized on the turnovers and made plays."
(On getting this game behind them)
"It will happen overnight. We've got to come in tomorrow look at the film, and look at what we did wrong and fix all the details that we need to correct. We've got to come back and bounce back and get a win next time."
Devon Still, Defensive Tackle
(On being told Robert Kraft donated $25,000 to the Cincinnati Children's Hospital in his daughter's name)
"I didn't know he gave a donation. That's great. It's great how everybody has been stepping up, not just from here [Cincinnati], but across the country. It has just been amazing and it is great for the cancer community."
(On the Patriots cheerleaders wearing his jersey)
"I was surprised. I didn't know they had the jerseys on. And then they played the video. It definitely made it emotional to see the cheerleaders take off their jackets and to see the jerseys definitely took it over the top for me. We came here to play a football game with an opposing team and I didn't expect them to show the support that they did today. It was amazing what they did today. It shows this fight is more than about football. Everybody is trying to chip in and step up for the cause."
(On the game)
"We came here and we didn't get done what we needed to do. All we can do now is go back to the drawing board and try to fix our mistakes and prepare for next week."
Brandon Tate, Wide Receiver
(On his kickoff return miscue)
"It is just one of those things, it just came out. I just have to hold onto the ball. This game is behind us and we have to move on to next week. If I can catch the ball in the front without backing up coach said I can take it. I just have to hold onto the ball and that is about it. I just have to hold onto the ball if I am going to take that chance."
Andrew Whitworth, Offensive Tackle
(On the game)
"We didn't make some plays and we dropped some balls and it is what it is. We just have to make the plays. We have said it before, when you get in these situations they made the critical catches and runs tonight and we just didn't have any."
(On losing on a nationally televised game)
"I don't think we think about it that way. We think about coming into New England against a team that just got their teeth kicked in and they were going to play their best game possible. They came out hot and ready to go with the crowd. You can tell this was a game they were prepared for and you knew you were going to get their best…they came out and wanted it more in the end."
(On the first loss)
"It is football, so it didn't surprise me. I know it was possibly going to happen at some point and we are just going to have to respond. I felt like we started to turn it around and we just couldn't ever seem to get momentum enough to turn it around all the way."
