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Broncos 34 - Titans 20 -- Post-Game Quotes and Comments

DENVER BRONCOS HEAD COACH MIKE SHANAHAN -


General -
"I'm really pleased with the effort of our football team.  I thought we played extremely hard.  Offensively, we went up against a tough defense that has been very consistent throughout the course of the year, and we had to come up with some big plays which I thought we did throughout the game.  Defensively, we didn't play as well as we would have liked to in the first half.  We did the things we had to do to get them off the field.  We needed to win the turnover war and I thought we did that.  Special teams, except for that dropped punt, we kept improving.  Overall, I thought we fought hard, and now we'll see if we can get a win in Chicago [vs. the Bears]."

On this Season's Best Performance -
"I thought this team played very well against Pittsburgh [Steelers].  I thought we played good today.  Offensively it was one of our better games, and like I said, I'm glad with how we played in the second half, and we kept improving on third downs."

On Different Players Making Big Plays -
"When [RB] Selvin [Young] went down that was our last tailback, and we had to put [RB] Cecil [Sapp] back in the game.  [RB] Andre Hall took advantage of all his opportunities and made some nice plays.  I thought [WR] Brandon Marshall did a heck of a job.  We needed a big play and needed to get it done, and that's what the running game is all about.  You keep on pounding and every once in a while you'll break out one of those.  Tennessee has one of the best running defenses in the league."

On QB Jay Cutler's Improvement -
"We have talked about this from day one, I thought Jay has done a great job of managing the game.  I think he is continuing through this process, and continue his learning experience.  He works at it and puts in a lot of great effort and shows a lot of poise."

On Cutler's Potential -
"You could see that last week in Kansas City when he missed that hand-off and then ran 15 or 20 yards down the field.  You could see it in the preseason and some of the games this year.  He has the ability to make the play in the clutch.  Those are the characteristics of a great quarterback."

On Watching Tennessee Game Film -
"Well, usually they don't spend too much time allowing people to drop back.  They have such a tough pass rush, and that's one of the reasons they've been so consistent.  They've gotten turnovers and these were the front four [players] to have been able to do that."

On the Running Game -
"When people go down [injured players], other people have to step up.  We kept on fighting to make the plays when we needed to.  A guy like Andre Hall who doesn't have a lot of experience came in and took advantage of his opportunity."

On Calling the Time Out before the Replay Challenge -
"What they [Tennessee] tried to do was substitute at the last second.  We had to call a time out for the ability to get our people out there."

On the Defense's Containment of Tennessee QB Vince Young -
"In the first half he tried to scramble to make some plays and he did a great job.  In the second half we did a great job of making some adjustments [and containing him]."

DENVER BRONCOS PLAYERS

QB JAY CUTLER -


General -
"Coach Shanahan challenged us this week. We wanted to put 30 to 40 (points) on them. Our special teams stepped up and got all phases of the game going.

"I felt good. I thought we had a great game plan tonight. We were on Monday Night football on a big stage and after everything it's nice to be tied (for first place in the AFC West). There is a lot of football left."

On being Tied for First Place in the AFC West -
"It's been a long season.  It's been up and down.  A little panic in Denver, but we were able to pull it together tonight.  We had two big wins these past two weeks, and we need to keep the momentum and keep playing well offensively."

On RB Andre Hall -
"He was huge.  He had some big runs.  He works so hard in practice and is such a force out there.  It was good that he could get a little confidence in him."

On Personal Confidence after this Game -
"I thought we have been playing better and have been able to make big plays in the passing game.  We've been able to convert some third downs.  I felt good and was fortunate enough that our offensive line played so well.  I'm just really proud of our guys."

On Improving in Third Down Conversions -
"It's just experience.  You get better and better with age.  You're always going to make some mistakes out there but Coach [Shanahan] always puts us in a good position to do well."

On his Leadership Role -
"I definitely have had to increase it [the role of being a leader] with the amount of guys we've had go down.  On having a new center when [C] Tom Nalen went down, and a new running back when [RB] Travis [Henry] went down - I just think everyone has done well.  I talked to [CB] Champ [Bailey] and [S] John Lynch and they wanted me to be more vocal, and I think I've been able to do that.  This team has so many older guys and so many veterans that we expect to go out and play well each and every week."

On Titans QB Vince Young -
"I thought he threw the ball very well.  They had a few really big drops and our defense was able to step up.  He stayed in the pocket at times and then ran when he had to, and made some big time throws for them.  They just have to catch the balls and make some plays."

On going up against Titans QB Vince Young -
"We were both high draft picks and on Monday Night Football the stage doesn't get bigger than this. I'm just glad I got the win."

On facing Chicago next week -
"We've been going against tough defenses all year. We just have to believe in the system and we'll be okay."


LB D.J. WILLIAMS -

On Titans QB Vince Young -
"He's a great athlete. He has a lot of skills both passing and running."

On defensive improvement -
"Early on in the season we had communication problems. Now guys are communicating better and we are able to just fly around and make plays. The key has been simplifying our defense, getting in gaps and making tackles."

On being tied for the AFC West lead -
"With our defense and the talent we have on this team, I'm not happy with our record. But at 5-5 everything is still in our hands."


WR GLENN MARTINEZ -

On his punt return for a touchdown -
"It was a low line-drive punt and I had a lot of space in front of me. Guys blocked well, gave me a crease and that's all I need. I'm giving (the ball) to my wife and my little son.

"We've always come close (to scoring on special teams) this season. We've really worked hard on special teams in practice and it finally paid off."


WR BRANDON MARSHALL -

On QB Jay Cutler -
"Jay is probably going to be one of the best in this league. Hopefully he starts getting more respect but we all see it."

On being tied for the AFC West lead -
"This is our division. It's always been our division. Before we had myself, before we had (WR) Rod Smith and before we had John Elway. It's always been ours and we just have to take it back."

General -
"This is one of those times where we have to buckle down. We'll enjoy the win but it's a short week and we have to get back to work."


CB DRÉ BLY -

On improving as a team -
"We took it upon ourselves in the Kansas City week to change things. We're practicing harder and bringing more focus to our play. Getting back to .500 is a great feeling."

On preparing for Titans QB Vince Young -
"You can't simulate him unless you put a DB back there (at QB). But then you can't simulate him throwing the ball."

General -
"We have a veteran team and guys who have been successful all their careers. We played well last week and tonight and we just have to keep this thing going."

On Monday Night Redemption --
"The way we lost to Green Bay, we got beat. I got beat. That's not the way you want to lose. To play a team like Tennessee who is 6-3 and at the top of their division with Indianapolis...I think we dominated them in all phases."


TE DANIEL GRAHAM --

General -
"We play four quarters here. Tonight the offense, defense and special teams played together as one. A lot of guys stepped up tonight. When you have four scores over 40 yards it gets the guys going and it gets the crowd fired up."

RB ANDRE HALL --

On his 62-yard TD -
"I saw the hole and that's about it. All I saw was (WR) Brandon Marshall kicking his guy out and that's all I needed to see."