On his calm demeanor following the team's loss to the Broncos:
"I think it's important that players see that I'm going to be consistently the same way on game day. I let them play, but I'm in the foxhole with them. During the week, in practice, I'm a little bit more intense, but that's part of trying to provide the external stress that you're going to have on game day. I try to put as much stress on them as I can during the week because, on game day, no one makes a mistake on purpose. We made a couple of mistakes [against Denver], on the two big runs [by Broncos RB Tatum Bell], that cost us the game. It's hard to stomach, but we have to get over it and get to the next game. The fastest way to do that is to put it behind you. The players recognize that. They get in here [after the game], get it corrected, and get on with the next [game] plan. We have a heavy, heavy test this week in Kansas City and their offense. I have so much respect for [Chiefs head coach] Dick Vermeil and what he has done in this league. I went against him quite a bit [when he was] in St. Louis and, now, in Kansas City. They provided a tremendous test--a very stout test--for us."
On whether opposing offenses' long plays or long drives are more easily corrected:
"It's all in the same bag. They're similar in the fact that all of those mistakes can be corrected. They're dissimilar in the type of mistakes [that are made]. The best teams, and I think [Patriots head coach] Bill Belichick has said and done this as well as anyone, get the players to execute under pressure. If [the players] can make the right plays and decisions under pressure, that's when you win good, close ballgames. We've been very fortunate in this six-game run--the last two [games] of last year and the first four this year--that we have won four of the six games that have been decided by a field goal or less. If we can continue to do that, then we'll have a special season. Some of the special seasons that I and some of the other coaches and players have been involved with on other teams [occurred] when [our teams] won a vast majority of those close ballgames. It kind of puts you on a roll. We have to try to put [the Denver loss] behind us and get back on a roll. We need to get back on another winning streak."
On CB, #27 Walt Harris' attempt to return from an injured calf:
"He has practiced well. [Redskins director of sports medicine] Bubba [Tyler] and the [athletic] trainers have done a tremendous job of getting him back and making sure that he is up to speed. Of all the places I have been, these guys do a great job of having a protocol and system that [a player] has to go through to get back on the field."
On CB, #22 Carlos Rogers' attempt to return from an injured ankle:
"He's coming along. Tomorrow [Friday] will be another big test. [He has] to get out there and get through the whole week of practice."
On CB, #24 Shawn Springs' attempt to return from an injured shin:
"I don't worry as much about a guy that has played in that division [with Seattle] and against some of those players. Tomorrow [Friday] is big. We do believe that you have to practice before you get out there and play on Sunday. Kansas City, coming off their bye week, is going to be rested. They're going to be anxious to play. We're going to have to match their energy and tempo at the start of the ballgame. It's a tough stadium [Arrowhead Stadium] to play in. We expect that the fans will be tough on our offense. It's not as tough on the road when you're on defense as at home. It's fun to play at home, but our communication is harder [at FedEx Field] because your 12th defender is your home crowd. [The home crowd] helps the defense in that way by making the [opposing] offense struggle, but it's hard on our communication. We're going to have to match [the Chiefs] tempo early."
On whether a common problem unites the defense's missed opportunities to create turnovers:
"Each one of those situations is different. The coaches and players have studied it long and hard. We may lead the league in [passes thrown away against]. In our first four games, we've had 11 balls just blatantly thrown away [by opposing QBs]. We took away the [quarterback's] first, second, and third options. The quarterback had a chance to avoid a sack, so he threw the ball away. We've had some balls that have hit us in our hands, though, too. We have to come up with those, but there is no one constant [that unites the missed opportunities]. Once it starts happening, it happens in bunches. When those things happen, you don't see one, two, or three-point ballgames. You usually see bigger scoring games because you have an opportunity to score on defense. We need to do that. As well as we played last year, we waited until the 49ers game [on 12/18/04] to score on defense. The take-away part of the game is what this defense has to improve upon. They are very cognizant of that. They know that and we're working very hard on it."
On S, #21 Sean Taylor's few opportunities to create turnovers:
"It's been funny to see teams stay away from him a little bit-- and they really have, with the exception of the double-move and the gadget play against Dallas. He hasn't had many opportunities in that way. We'll see [whether he gets more opportunities]. [His few opportunities] have a little bit to do with how much pressure we put on people, too. When we put on a lot of pressure, there aren't a lot of extended routes [by opposing wide receivers] down the field. In order for him to make a play, he has to make a one-on-one play. [The plays] really haven't gone in his direction much."
On opponents' fear that S, #21 Sean Taylor may hit them:
"Playing good pass defense is an intimidation factor. If you want to catch the ball inside the numbers on us, our safeties are very aggressive--and not just Sean. All of those guys in there--[S, #41] Matt Bowen, [DB, #25] Ryan Clark, [S, #23] Omar [Stoutmire], and [DB, #20] Pierson [Prioleau]--will rock you. Those [hits] do go on film. We like the fact that those things are on film when other people have to watch us play."
On whether LB, #56 LaVar Arrington has received more reps in practice this week:
"He had the same [number of reps] that he always has. He gets his fair share just like all of the guys on our [second and third teams]. He steps up."
On covering Chiefs TE, #88 Tony Gonzalez:
"We'll move [players] around [to cover him]. We have a lot of respect of him, especially in the red zone-- not that he's not as dynamic in other parts of the field, but in the red zone, he's had a history in Kansas City of really surfacing. But look at [N.Y. Giants TE Jeremy] Shockey, [Philadelphia Eagles TE] L.J. [Smith], and [Dallas Cowboys TE Jason] Whitten. We have some good tight ends in our division. That helps us, so [facing Gonzalez is] not something that's going to shock us all of a sudden when we get in there. He is a threat. He's very athletic down in the red-zone area. We always have to know where he's at."
On the comfort from having S, #21 Sean Taylor to defend Chiefs TE, #88 Tony Gonzalez:
"That's one of the reasons why we drafted him. Looking at our division, we're not as worried as much about that match-up. We're never at an advantage on defense because it's a pass-oriented league. It's an offense-oriented league. Any ticky-tack touch that happens down [field] is a new set of downs. It helps when you have a presence [in the secondary]. That's why big corners help with big receivers. We're not going to see big receivers on Kansas City, but [rather] speed receivers. For the big tight end match-ups [though], you have to have big safeties. It helps having Sean."
On Chiefs RBs #31 Priest Holmes and #27 Larry Johnson:
"They have different styles, but their effectiveness and production are [both] outstanding. They have a young player in Larry Johnson who has taken a while to get his feet wet. All of a sudden, he has come on with a splash. He has been very impressive in the film that we have seen [of him]. He had a couple of runs in the pre-season that were awesome. But I think Priest Holmes is one of the best backs in the NFL. He's another guy who you can't measure just with a stopwatch or height and weight scales. The guy has a lot of heart. He runs so tough. He smells the goal line when he gets down in the red zone. A couple of years ago, he set the rushing touchdown record. He has a great feel for the goal line. We have our work cut out [for us] this weekend. We're going to have to do as good as job of stopping the run as we didn't do last week [at Denver]. We thought we played, outside of [Broncos RB Tatum Bell's] two long runs, pretty salty against a good running team. We think that [the Chiefs] are just as capable of running the football, with maybe a more physical offensive line. [OT, #77] Willie Roaf is now coming back, and I've seen him make a lot of defensive linemen call, 'Uncle!' He's made a lot of defensive linemen tap their helmets to come out and stand by me on the sideline. We have to push them to get back out there. We're going to have our hands full with this solid line. I think [Chiefs offensive line coach] Mike Solari does a great job of coaching them, too."
On the frequency with which the defensive line rotates players during games:
"[Defensive coordinator--defensive line coach Greg Blache and I] had not coached together until we came here. We just knew each other. We went after him because he has a similar style and personality for how we want our defensive line to play. We started that [style] where I was at back in the early '90s. We made sure our defensive line was fresh. The hardest thing to do in the NFL is to rush the passer [near] the end of the fourth quarter. The only way to do that is to make sure that you rotate people through [during the game] to make sure that there is gas left in the gas tank. Greg does a good job with that--as well as anyone I've been around. He keeps his eyes on his guys. He does a good job of rotating. Each [position coach] does a fantastic job. I don't have to stick my nose in on them very much during the ballgame. I can just keep thinking about the game. When I do go down there and talk to the defensive linemen, it's like, 'Will you hurry up and get out of the way because we want to listen to Greg Blache.' He does such a great job with how he coaches those guys. He coaches them hard, but they respond well. They believe so strongly in him. I really believe it's because he has taken, arguably, journeymen guys and made them very productive in this league--his whole career, wherever he has been. That's a compliment to him."
