Tua Tagovailoa, quarterback (New England)
(Tua, how did you feel about the glances you were getting?) – “I wasn’t surprised by what they wanted to do.” They seemed to want to throw an umbrella over our two speedy lads. Then, as the game proceeded, they began to return to their typical running patterns. However, I believe they do an excellent job of adapting in-game. And, you know, that’s a huge, huge issue I’d say for any Bill Belichick defence when they go out there. You may see one thing, and then if you strike an explosion or whatever occurs on that, you can anticipate things to change. So how they guarded one of our plays at the end of the game was different from how they defended it the first three or four times. They were modified. We received a call and were able to get down there.
(Do you simply take what the defence provides you when you see that?) – “Yeah. The most significant aspect of playing this defence is that they will not allow too many bombs. They are desperate for you to work for yardage. And it’s very definitely a take-what-they-give-you defence. They also play good football. So they’re attempting to make you make errors.”
(That’s a 2 and 0 start, with both victories coming on the road. What does this indicate for the team, in your opinion?) – “Well, I think it’s a big plus if you can win any time on the road.” In this league, it’s difficult to win games on the road. But, you know, we’re still figuring out who we are as a team, offensively, defensively, and on special teams. And we’ll keep watching films, learning, and becoming better. I believe the defence did a lot of amazing things for us, allowing us to get the ball in the end zone. We failed to capitalise. And I think our offensive line played well. Our ground game was strong. So, accepting what they offer you, you know, I made an expensive error that could have been devastating, but it’s a team sport. So I’m just glad we were able to come out on top.”
(There were a handful of times when it seemed like the momentum was shifting from you guys to the Patriots, and each time the team responded. Was anything mentioned by the coaches in the huddle?) – “Yeah. You can’t anticipate a blowout when you’re playing prime time football. When you face an NFL club, you always anticipate it to be a tight game. They have excellent men on their side, and we have good guys on ours. And it all comes down to who performs the best on both sides of the ball. As I already said, I believe our team performed well. We are overjoyed to have won. But there are many things we may learn from.”
(Isn’t it lovely to receive 121 yards from Raheem Mostert?) – “Yeah. That speaks volumes about the individuals he’s surrounded by. It’s a credit to Tyreek Hill, Jaylen Waddle, and Rob Hunt. I’m going to keep calling them Austin Jackson and Connor Williams. We have Isaiah Wynn. We have Kendall Lamm and Alec Ingold. It’s a testimony to all those people who, you know, essentially told us, “hey, if you’re going to beat us, you’re going to have to run the ball,” by throwing an umbrella over our players. So, you know, I’m sure Raheem would agree, but it’s well earned in every element of the run game.”
(I believe Kendall Lamm fared well in the absence of Terron Armstead. Andrew Van Ginkel played quite well tonight in the absence of Jaelan Phillips. What do you think that indicates about the level of skill on this team?) – “Yeah. It speaks a lot, in my opinion. The belief that those players have in coming in and filling spaces with really, very talented players and players who have earned a name for themselves in this league. However, no one blinks. The NFL is involved. Those men understand what is expected of them when they walk into that position. Kendall [Lamm] has done an outstanding job. Gink [Andrew Van Ginkel] did an outstanding job. And the wonderful thing is that they don’t receive much recognition, but they are some of the hardest working men you’ll see in the building on a daily basis. They maintain a low profile. They don’t say much, but they let their play speak for them.”
(I’m not sure if you watched the replay of Jaylen Waddle’s helmet to helmet. It was clearly a blunder. What level of worry did you have for him?) – “I’m always concerned when one of your guys goes down.” But I got to visit him, and he seemed to be in high spirits. So here’s to hope for the best for him.
(What happened with the mismanaged snap at the end?) – “Yeah. That is all my fault. There were certain things I was altering that I shouldn’t have. And I’ve got to rectify it with C Connor [Williams].
(Your record against Bill Belichick’s defence is currently 5 and 0). What are you doing correctly?) – “I believe our team is 5-0 against Bill Belichick.” It’s never about me. It’s never about me. And I don’t believe we ever consider it in terms of “oh, we beat them once, twice, five times in a row.” It’s always a challenge to play against Coach Belichick’s club. And we know we’ll receive their best effort. But it’s difficult to compete against such a club, particularly on the road in Foxborough. We’ll accept them in whatever form they come. And we’ll keep moving ahead with whichever team we have next.”
(What were you thinking, last play, Mike Gesicki, a player you like, has the ball, reaches for it, and laterals it?) – “Yeah. Mike [Gesicki] made a good play knowing he didn’t have the first down by doing that. But it was amazing to watch Mike walk out there. He seemed to be having fun while making various receptions, including some key catches. Another old teammate, it was great to watch DeVante Parker, DP, go up against X [Xavien Howard] all over again, exactly like practise. They do, however, play really hard. They performed well. And that was fun. It came down to the wire, so thank you very much.”
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