WP:Quote Sheet

[TK]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/sports/redskins/longterm/2003/week10/quotes10.htm

Compiled by Gene Wang

washingtonpost.com Correspondent

Web Posted: Sunday, Nov. 9, 2003; 8:15 p.m. EST

Coach Steve Spurrier

Q: What did you think was the biggest play of the game?

A: There were a lot of big plays in this game, but the biggest may have been when Laveranues Coles stripped the defensive back who intercepted it and looked like he was going to score, and Randy Thomas fell on it to give us the ball back on the 20-yard line. Otherwise, we're down 21-3 and look like we're in dire straits and going nowhere.

Q: What are your thoughts about the win?

A: Overall, our guys played with a lot of effort. They played a lot smarter. We didn't have near the number of careless penalties that we've had most of the year. That certainly gave us a good chance. It was an interesting game. Our guys played hard, and I'm proud of them.

Q: Can you talk about Rod Gardner's touchdown pass?

A: We've been throwing that pass [in practice] all year. It's a pretty good play when they're playing man-to-man because the ball is thrown, and sneak your back out the other side. We decided that this was the time to go to it. It worked out.

Q: What about going for it on fourth down on your 25?

A: We only needed a little bit, and it just seemed like we needed to keep the ball. It seemed like they weren't scoring, but they were moving. I just felt like we needed to keep the defense off the field at that time if we could and try to get something going offensively. When you've lost four in a row, you don't have to play too conservatively or carefully. You've got to try to make something happen to win the game. Just about all of the players said "Let's go for it." They were excited.

Q: Can you talk about Hue Jackson calling the play?

A: Hue is a very excited, enthusiastic coach who has really helped get the line going. He gets everybody going. He's a high-energy guy, and he wanted to come down to the sideline and provide some of that for the team. I said "Shoot, I'll try anything." If I have to bench the play-caller, then I can do that. So I benched myself.

Q: Did the Seahawks' defense play as you expected?

A: They didn't quite blitz us as much as we thought they might. They haven't been a real big blitzing team. They didn't do the all-out blitzing we thought they would. We thought that they would do a lot stuff that Dallas did. They stuck to what they have been doing.

Patrick Ramsey

Q: Can you talk about the winning touchdown?

A: It's a play we've had forever. We ran it last year against Tennessee, and we've had it in the game plan for each game or at least a majority of the games we've played this year.

Q: What about the fourth-down conversion?

A: I think that was a confidence booster. We were in there, and coach put his confidence in us and the game in our hands. Rock made a nice, hard run off the line and got the first down, and then we ran it down the field.

Q: Were you surprised by how well Cartwright played?

A: Rock was huge today. Especially on that last drive. He ran the ball so very hard. He broke some tackles, and he got the tough yards. He deserves every bit of credit he's going to get for what he did in today's game.

Q: What was the difference in Hue Jackson calling the plays today?

A: There were a few more run plays today, but I don't know who was calling the plays really. I got the calls from Coach Hue, and I think he called a lot of the plays. That's who I was talking to, but I think it was a real team effort.

Q: How do you feel physically?

A: I feel good. I think the thing today was that I had an opportunity to run the offense, and it was a good feeling to get into a rhythm. Today we were in a rhythm, but there are some throws that I could have made. I'm going to go watch tape and learn from it.

Rock Cartwright

Q: What is the attitude of the team after the win?

A: We had been struggling for four games, and we wanted to come out and turn things around. We came out and got a victory today, and that was what we wanted to do.

Q: Where do you go from here?

A: We need to keep winning. The main goal is to continue to win. We've got Carolina next week and a good back in Stephen Davis, so we have to go out and play and try to get another win.

Q: What was the difference for the offense today?

A: The coaches told us that we were going to be put in positions to make plays, and that is what happened. They put us in a position to make plays, and guys made plays. We stepped up, and we needed a win today, and that's what we got.

Rod Gardner

Q: Can you talk about your touchdown pass?

A: It was a good call. It couldn't have come at a better time. We showed them about five or six screens today, and this time Trung got open, and I had to get him the ball. I didn't want to throw and interception, so I made sure it was wide open.

Q: What about the offense today?

A: I thought Hue did a great job calling play today. We came out and mixed it up today with run and pass plays, which gave us the opportunity to make some big plays.

Q: Did the Seahawks play as you would have expected?

A: Seattle came out and played aggressively. Throughout the game, we made plays, and then they came back and made plays, but our defense came through in the end, and we came away with a victory.

Jon Jansen

Q: Can you talk about the win?

A: We put some things together today that worked for us, and hopefully we can continue to do that. We're all in this thing together, and we want to go out and win as many games as possible, and coach is no different. He wants to give us the best chance to win, and everybody did what they had to do this week to get the win.

Q: What about Hue Jackson calling the plays?

A: We run the plays that are called. Who calls them doesn't matter. We just go out and try to execute. We did some things differently to make sure that we go the ball out and kept Patrick protected.

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