Everything the Tennessee Titans said after losing to the Dallas Cowboys on Thursday

Everything the Tennessee Titans said after their 27-13 loss to the Dallas Cowboys on Thursday night at Nissan Stadium in Nashville.

All quotes are courtesy of the Titans and Cowboys media relations staffs.

HEAD COACH MIKE VRABEL

Was the decision to start quarterback Joshua Dobbs to see how he compares to quarterback Malik Willis or because you believed Joshua Dobbs gave the Titans a better chance to win?

Probably a little bit of both. Last week seeing - really it was a great opportunity to evaluate Joshua (Dobbs). We’ll make a decision going forward. He did some good things. We certainly would like to have a couple throws back. We will kind of see where things are here in a couple of days.

When did you know Joshua Dobbs would start this game?

Early in the week I told both of them

How did you like how the defense performed and did penalties end up being your downfall on defense?

We just beat ourselves too much. It is too hard to beat the Cowboys or any good football teams when you beat yourself. We competed. I was extremely proud of the way that the 47 guys who we had up tonight competed, certainly not without mistake, but we gave ourselves a chance. Then again, we just did too many things that that hurt us and stole drives or allowed drives to continue. We didn’t get the drive stop with a field goal down there in the red zone

Once you made the decision to go to Joshua Dobbs was there ever any thoughts to go to back Malik Willis if performance dictated so?

Yeah

Does bringing in Joshua Dobbs from the practice squad to start say anything about Malik Willis’ progress?

We are excited about having Malik (Willis). We are excited about some of the things that he has done. We will continue to digest this over the weekend and make a decision. Malik (Willis) has worked hard, but then we just have to see where we are at with the quarterback position here going down to the last week of the season.

Was there panic from some players in some big moments like on cornerback Tre Avery’s 51-yard penalty?

We just had a critical penalty. You think guys panic? They are out there playing their butts off, man. They made a mistake.

You had three pass plays over 30 yards tonight and that is something that hasn’t been a part of your offense in recent weeks.

We protected well. Throughout the course of the game – I mean, there were times where it was obviously a passing down, but there was time for Joshua (Dobbs) to progress through and move the ball downfield. Treylon (Burks) was held, I think his left arm was grabbed. The same guy who called the 50-yard pass interference penalty. I didn’t see it the same way on our sidelines. I don’t know what to tell you. I thought there were opportunities where we could have helped Joshua (Dobbs) out as well. We couldn’t come down with a catch. There were also other times where we made plays down the field, hit the screen versus pressure, and all those things. Hassan (Haskins) had one of the better runs of the year on fourth-and-two. He ran over a really good player and fell forward for a first down.

Did the roughing the passer call on Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott and the no call on Joshua Dobbs seem similar?

Those are judgment calls and I think that was bad judgment.

Did safety Kevin Byard ask to play and how do you think he played?

I value Kevin (Byard)‘s opinion. I value his role on this football team as a captain. You have to make decisions. I felt like where we were in that case, that he was going to play. He wanted to play. That was the plan. He played. He took advantage of his opportunities when the ball came his way, whether it was deflected, tipped, or whatever. He tried to tackle and come down for support. All those things aside, I appreciate his leadership. It was a different week. The whole circumstances with next week and trying to prepare a team. I am proud of the way that they fought. I am sure that everybody expected us to just lay down. I know that we didn’t do that.

Was there anything that you took away as positive momentum moving into the regular season finale?

There were things when we didn’t beat ourselves or we didn’t extend drives or penalties. Third downs were a little bit disappointing. We stopped the run with whoever we had in there, with whatever group or front. We stopped the run. They even had the one big one. It would have been much less than that if we had just done our job and been where we were supposed to be, we wouldn’t have given up the long one. That were some positives. Certainly, the penalties are a negative. Being able to avoid some of those. Offensively we got into a rhythm. We kept competing. We need to run the football better, but that is kind of been where we’ve been the last couple weeks. Doing some good things, just not consistently enough. Then unfortunately beating ourselves. The margin for error when you do that is pretty thin.

How did quarterback Joshua Dobbs’ play pump some life into the offense?

Guys were – Woody (Robert Woods) had a big third-down catch over there on the sidelines. That was a good ball and needed some protection to get there. We will see where it went and watch the tape. I thought that there were some good. I wish Treylon (Burks) would have been able to come down with that one. It was a little behind him, but I think he expects to make that catch. I thought the timing on it was good and it was going to the right spot.

How impressive that Joshua Dobbs had this impressive of a night after only being here for a short time?

Eight days or nine days. He was excited for this opportunity to get his first start. Something that we’ve always said since I’ve been here is that it doesn’t really matter how you end up here or how you get here. The only thing that matters is what you do when you’re here. We have had a lot of guys take advantage of those opportunities. Joshua (Dobbs) wanted to try to do the best that he could. Unfortunately, we lost and I’m sure he would like to have the interception back, but he did some good things just not well enough.

What has to happened to be able to flip a switch and win next week?

We just have to get some guys back healthy and clean up some of the little details that show up. You only get one opportunity sometimes with a call on offense or defense versus the same exact look. It is going to happen in the game and if you don’t hit it you can’t say, ‘Oh darn, we will just rep it again in practice.’ We have had far too many of those, but we will get them cleaned up. We will have to eliminate big plays on defense, run the football, and take care of it. The same thing we always say, just do a little bit more consistently. I’m excited to watch these guys walk back into the building next week energized, recovered, and rested. I’m excited.

Do you feel like you got more from everybody that you challenged them to give after last week?

I think so. I haven’t watched the tape, but I felt like the guys - some of the leadership was really good. They had some good performances just not good enough. Buying into the meetings and buying into the details. You never know when you’re going to get your opportunity to make a play and be ready to make it.

Was the team operationally smoother tonight?

Without looking at the tape, maybe. There were still a few times where you have to fix those mistakes. Everybody is responsible for that, whether the formation gets called right or wrong on a play, you have to know the gameplan well enough to know where you line up and hear the call. There were some mistakes like there is every week.

Did you have a chance to talk to quarterback Ryan Tannehill before putting him on injured reserve?

Of course I had a chance to talk to Ryan (Tannehill). It is always difficult, but you have to be realistic as well with where we are at, with what was a realistic expectation for him to come back is, how long that would be, and what that may look like when he did come back. That was the decision that we made. He was obviously disappointed. We talked about his toughness. No different than all the other guys that we have had to put on injured reserve.

QUARTERBACK JOSHUA DOBBS

What are your initial thoughts about getting the win?

It’s awesome. Great feeling getting the win coming off that against a divisional opponent. Ready to go home for Christmas.

When did you find out you were going to start?

After the last game. It was Christmas Eve, and I was actually driving home, and Pat (O’Hara) called and said, ‘Hey, can you come in tomorrow? Just to be prepared to play. We just want to go through the gameplan. I was trying to figure out which way we’re going to go, but if you’re playing, I just want you to see this stuff as soon as possible.’ So, I go home and spend Christmas morning at home, and then turned around, around noon, and drove back up. I had a car finally, so drove back up, and then we started diving into the gameplan. And then the next day, they said they, ‘Were probably going to start you, so you’re going to take all the reps throughout practice.’

How big of a challenge is it to start a game after just being here eight days and how in your mind you think you did?

It’s a unique situation and it’s a wonderful opportunity that I really embrace and have a lot of fun with. There are obviously things that I know that I can do better and be better, especially situationally. I’m looking back to the game, and we’ll dive into that because I know we’ve got a big one coming up, but I thought through the preparation and the guys, just how we fought throughout the game, it was great to see. We’re throwing routes out there on the field that haven’t even thrown practice with it being a short week. Just being able to make those plays, make crucial plays throughout the game will propel us to this upcoming week where we actually have a full week to prepare for the game.

What was it like for you waiting six years for an opportunity to start a game and then finally getting to do it?

Yeah, man, it was a long time, that’s for sure. It was a long time. A lot of working out and you’re like, ‘Dang, I don’t even know.; Especially, you’re in Pittsburgh for so long, and Ben (Roethlisberger) is playing at a high level still. So, you’re like, ‘Dang, I don’t know when I’m going to get a shot.’ Every week though I give everyone the analogy. It’s like this is, you know, you have an algebra test every Friday. You have to prepare for the test. You prepare, you do all the homework on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday. You go through the process, do the actual work. You go to after hours and everything. And then Friday comes, and then you just don’t take the test. Then you repeat process, and you never know when you have to take the test. I prepare every single week, as if I were going to start whether I’m dressing, not dressing, starting, not starting. As I said, there are things I could definitely do better out there on the field, but I love how I fought personally, I love how the team fought, tool advantage of the opportunity. I’m excited for the next one.

Finally getting the opportunity to start, did you have like those early anxious moments? And if so, what was it that you did to allow yourself to settle in?

For sure. When you haven’t played a live snap of football since August, and then now it’s December, that’s a long time, especially when you’re in a new team, new receivers, new timing new offense. They’re there. I’m human, they’re going to be there. In those moments, I just try to take a deep breath, stay present, stay in the moment, lock in on the gameplan. Same thing I told the guys was, take it one day at a time. You do that. You focus on that play, make it the best play possible, move on to the next one, then not get overwhelmed by the moment. There’s a lot of guys out there, not just me, making their first start or first time back on the field in a long time and just watching how the guys responded to adversity, responded with success. It was great to see, and it definitely was a building opportunity for us to know.

You had a relationship with Malik Willis before he got here. What was he like through this process?

He’s been great. Just helping, especially a new quarterback, a guy that’s been in there being able to just talk about procedural things such as cadence, snap count, communication, code words to the guys, especially when you’re going no huddle up tempo. He’s been a great resource, so has Kevin Hogan in the room as well. We have a really good group, the guys do their job well and it’s been good to rely on those guys, as well as Pat (O’Hara) and Todd (Downing) to help with my preparation.

Building opportunity obviously a nice thing, but still a sixth loss in a row. Is there a feeling in the room that something’s turning tide wise and that in ten days you can change the result?

We control our own destiny. Every single person in the locker room understands that. We go out, play a good game, we play how we know how to play football. We don’t hurt ourselves. We go play good, clean football in Jacksonville next Sunday, whenever the game is, and we come up with a win. Then we’re in the playoffs and we’re getting rolling from there. We control our own destiny. Guys understand that. Obviously, every time you step on the field you expect to win, you want to win. So, it’s tough when you don’t get the job done. Now we’ll go through our process, review the film, review the tape. We have a long week before preparation for the Jacksonville game and we control our destiny. We go out there and play the football we know can, win the playoffs and AFC championship.

What do you think the thing or maybe a couple of things you’re going to be focused on this week?

Situationally, as I look back throughout the game, I fumbled the ball, put the ball on the ground in the red zone. We have points. I mean, you just can’t do that. You know, that’s an opportunity where you have to get the ball out, take a good clean sack, kick the field goal, get points, there’s even tighter game. You’re going to the fourth quarter. Little things like that. I took the sack on a keeper in the second quarter, throw the ball away. It’s little things like that situationally that already I’m aware of that know I can get better. Of course, that comes from reps and being out there, or getting hit for the first time in a while. I’m not too worried about those, I know I’ll clean them up. I’ll be excited to dive into the tape with the coaches and continue to grow and improve as quickly as possible. Give the team the best chance we have to win.

How much difference might be having Derrick Henry possibly available in that game in Jacksonville?

No doubt. I mean, he’s the highest paid, best player on offense. Any chance to get him out there healthy, and playing the football he can, will be tremendous for us. I thought the young guys though, today, did a great job holding the rock. Situationally tempo, getting the pile moving forward, they did a great job. And obviously having Derrick (Henry) back would be a great asset for the offense.

How did you end up with the football after your first career touchdown and did Robert Woods know?

No chance. There’s no chance he knew. Everyone was obviously extremely excited. I just asked him and was like, ‘Yo, can I keep this? This is my first one, please.’ He was like, ‘Yeah, you got it. You’re good.’ We just celebrated from there. Good to have. I’m going to give it to the fam so they can take it back home and find a nice spot for it.

You go from kind of waiting for an opportunity like this for so long to now getting the opportunity and now looking at potentially the biggest opportunity there is, right? Playing for a spot in the playoffs. How good was it to get one under your belt before that big one for all the marbles?

100 percent. It was great to get out there obviously, just get the jitters out, get the anger. To actually get hit sitting in the pocket, so completely different when you’re in practice. They can usually run by you and sack you. It was a whole different environment, especially then playing situational football from there. As I said, get the stuff that I know out there cleaned up. It was good to get out there and get this opportunity because the next one is for all the marbles, man. It’s like you grow up, you dream about playing playoff football in the NFL, you know? And to have that opportunity is one you never take for granted. Because just in my career, my six years, and I’ve been into the playoffs, thankfully three times, but the three years I haven’t, the two years I haven’t, I guess this is year six, really are tough because you put in a lot of hard work throughout the season. We go out there, we control our own destiny. It’s good to get these reps, now let’s make the most of the next opportunity.

Did you ever feel like you had a chance to show what you can do in this league?

No, I didn’t honestly, just given my circumstances and the lack of opportunities. It’s definitely been tough. Especially when you pour everything into it and you don’t get the opportunity, it’s always tough. I was thinking about it earlier today, is like your current position is not your destiny. You keep working hard, the opportunities will come. You never know when they will come. But you for sure better be ready when they do come.

Do you expect to start next week?

That’s up to the coaches. I think they’re going to put whoever gives us the best opportunity to win out there. I respect their decision. So, we’ll see when we regroup over the weekend and go from there.

SAFETY KEVIN BYARD

How you made no bones about it this week that you’re playing because you wanted to help lead and kind of set the tone and clearly did that with a couple of picks?

Yeah man, people had questions, like said some stuff like, ‘Oh, you should sit out,’ or whatever. I play this game for three reasons. I play this game to glorify God, I play this game for my family and then I play this game for the people this room right here. If I’m healthy and I’m ready to go, I’m a go. Because like I said, these guys are busting their behinds out here every single week. Some of these guys aren’t a hundred either, but they go out there and fight. I’m going to do the same exact thing, and that’s my job as a leader.

Just about Joshua Dobbs, just the boost he gave this offense tonight and what did it do for the defense?

Yeah, man, I think he did a really good job of just – Coach (Vrabel) always talks about the operation. I think Todd (Downing) did some good things kind of moving him outside the pocket doors and doing some things like that. He had some really good throws, obviously he’s only been here for a week or two. But I definitely, you know, as long as he continues to progress, am sure we will see him next week.

Last Saturday night, it was said this team owed the fans. How important was it to you and this team to give (the effort) to them tonight?

Yeah, I mean, like I said, it’s still disappointing we didn’t get the win. We went into this game to get the win, trying to win this game. You obviously saw with the effort that we played with, so we’re disappointed. But I can guarantee you this, I’m going to make sure that everybody, and we’re going to have a couple of days off, but (has) the mind mentally, physically, get prepared to go win a playoff game. That’s pretty much what it is, a playoff game. You win, you keep playing. You lose, we all go home.

DEFENSIVE LINEMAN DEMARCUS WALKER

Four point game going into the fourth quarter. You guys were right in it.

Yeah, I know. I definitely believe in these guys every single day. Just challenging these guys every single week, every single day. They stepped up. And I’m just so proud of these guys.

What does tonight tell you, and give you momentum-wise, heading into the Jaguars’ game, knowing you’re going to get dudes back?

A lot of positive things to take into this week. A lot of guys are down on themselves, but we showed those guys that we’re still here. Had our game going. Held them to under 100 yards rushing. Held them to 13 points in the first half…

WIDE RECEIVER ROBERT WOODS

With Josh (Dobbs) having six years of experience, it felt like everything just moved a little bit quicker, crisper?

I’ll say, him just being able to see on some of the quick throws or three steppers, Josh (Dobbs) was able to stand in the pocket, being able to deliver it in a timely matter. On some third downs we were able to catch and get vertical. He put the ball in good spots to allow us to make plays.

I think you had three consecutive drives where you guys had a 30-yard completion or more and that’s been missing from this offense?

I got to say, just keep giving us opportunities to make plays throughout the whole game.

With (Joshua) Dobbs, how impressive was I think he has been here a week. I mean, seems to have a pretty good command of the playbook, at least from our perspective. Do you feel that way?

Yeah, I would say so. He’s been here eight days. He has been able to pick up on the offense and come in and start a football game, so that’s a start. We’ll see what we can do next week, but we’ve got more time to prepare, more time get where we are going to throw, more time to capitalize and go out and win a game.

Do you say anything to him (Joshua Dobbs) after the touchdown?

Just way to pull the trigger. I sat in the zone, kind of kept running, felt a soft spot, Josh (Dobbs) was ready for it, being able to throw it, being able to score. He said, ‘I need that ball, that’s my first one.’

Did you know that was his first career touchdown pass?

I did not, but definitely gave him the ball so he could cherish the touchdown.

RUNNING BACK HASSAN HASKINS

Regarding (Joshua) Dobbs what did it seem like from him, from the word go? Did he seem in command? I mean, he’s had a week to learn the play. Tell me about that.

No, I was surprised. You know, he was in command. He was in control. He knew everything that was going on. And like you say, you only had like a week. He did real good.

I know it’s a loss, but how can you guys use this momentum going into next week? Everything’s on the table.

True. We’ve just got to take it one day at a time, keep building as a team. A lot of players come back next week and feel confident we’ll get the job done.

I mean, how big is your first year here? You’re playing for a division title. How big is this game that you’re about to go into next week?

No, it’s crazy. I never expected it, but I’m ready, ready to go out there, whatever the thing is they need me to do and do it. Do my job.

CENTER/GUARD COREY LEVIN

What’s Joshua (Dobbs) like in the huddle? Kind of, from day one? Does he have a presence?

Yeah, so it’s another guy with another calming presence, you know? He’s not a big rah-rah guy, but he gets the guys locked in and there’s a confidence about it. We feel good going in with every play.

Is this something to maybe build on going into next week? Not only is the offense working a little better, but you’re getting dudes back next week.

Right, yeah. It’s definitely something to build on as long as we can protect and get balls out and run the football how we know how to, we’re always going to have a chance. Especially when our defense plays that way. We’re always going to have a chance.

So what did Joshua (Dobbs) bring to the huddle tonight, and then with his performance on the field?

Like I just said, he brought a confidence. You don’t want to be calm in a football game, but he brought a calming presence. Like we were never out of it. Like I said, there was just a focus and I thought we did a pretty good job other than penalties and things like that. There’s obviously always stuff to work on, but as far as Josh (Dobbs), I mean, he gave us a great chance to win.

OUTSIDE LINEBACKER RASHAD WEAVER

Just for you guys, what do you take momentum wise into next week with this (defensive effort)?

I mean, we stop the run every week, that’s nothing new. We didn’t expect for it to change with a couple of guys out. Some guys stepped up, but it wasn’t enough to get it done. So, we’ll build off of the positive this week. But there’s a lot to clean up when obviously you lose, and again this was another opportunity to win which is what we wanted. But now, it is behind us, 24-hour rule and then next week is a playoff game.

What do you think about Josh Dobbs’ performance tonight and just how much does that kind of pump you guys up from the sideline seeing those drives?

Yeah, I mean, for a guy who just got here to go out there to put some points up against a good defense like that and then stand in there and take some big hits with the pass rush that was all over him. That’s what you expect out of a guy, for him to go out there and show that he’s ready to compete with his team and can do some good things is always positive, because it’s going to be a team, collective team endeavor, effort.

What positives do you take from tonight’s game?

I got to watch the film. Sometimes you think you did something good. Some plays you think are terrible, couldn’t get it right. We hold to under 100 yards rushing for an elite back. But I won’t know the true positives until I watch the film.

Did you feel like there was anything different? There was no one outside of this room that gave you a shot. It felt like there was some juice for a long time, did you feel you could do something special here tonight?

Yeah. I mean, for me, which I went to the heart of two days ago, KB (Kevin Byard) said this is a great opportunity, not because of guys being down or young guys or other guys getting an opportunity, but because it’s the next game. I think we just went in there to prove a point that, like you said, when no one believes in you, you’ve got to go in there, hold your own, and let them know it won’t be a cakewalk.