Defensive coordinator Chuck Bresnahan addresses the media.
Q: What does Buffalo like to do on offense, coach?
Bresnahan: They really have a bunch of things they do. They don't line up as a traditional offense does and just run a couple things that they get very good at. They spread you out and they try to keep you on your heels and try to set the tempo for the game. So, we've go to respond to that, and we feel like we have a good plan. Like I said last week, I'm excited to go out and see where our guys are at and see if we can again, build on the foundation we laid last week, and improve in the areas we need to improve in, and that was the pass coverage.
Q: If Huff isn't available, does it change how you have to play things at all on the backhand?
Bresnahan: Nope, we keep going, next man up principle. It doesn't matter, the next man will step in and we will be ready to go.
Q: How worried were you about your guys against the run going into that game, and how happy were you to see the way they performed against the run?
Bresnahan: You know, I was excited to see it, and to be honest with you, not having the offseason, I wasn't very sure on where we would to be. I had a feeling on where we would be, but until you get live, watching those guys step up and do what they did, it was exactly what I anticipated, even a little bit more. I'm excited to see where we progress each week even in our strengths, not just our weaknesses.
Q: Going 8-9 deep in the defensive line, what does that allow you to do scheme wise?
Bresnahan: It's not the scheme, its keeping it fresh. You see what happens towards the end of the game, you wear them down. The second half we wore them down, in my opinion, on the offensive line, and that helped to dictate the tempo of the game, and helped us get to Orton the entire game. Now if we clean up some of our coverage aspects, we have something special that we can build on, as long as we build on the foundation.
Q: How rare is it in the NFL that you know from the other teams, that you will use as many as eight guys in a game?
Bresnahan: I think it all depends on the personnel. I have been on teams where we didn't have five, and you were counting on the four and you have to put pressure to do it. To me ,you utilize the playmakers on your team and if you got a overload on one position you rally them. It's tag team, its like ultimate fighting, come in and tag him the wrestling and the next guy comes and you stay fresh for four quarters. It's an exciting thing to have, both in the run game, because they can stop the run, but then you have 8 guys that can go after the quarterback, so it's a plus.
Q: Sometimes a guy will say hey, I don't want to go out, this is my time, but I would think that veteran players that is something they embrace?
Bresnahan: Mike Waufle's first comment to me after the game was how unselfish they were in the game, they went in, and people talk about the altitude and all that type of stuff, our guys just continued to go. There was an unselfish approach to it, and they all got plenty of reps and they were fresh at the end of the game went it counted. So to me it's a great veteran group with veteran leadership, but some young guys that they can mold as they go along.
Q: Can you talk a little bit about [Matt] Giordano's interception, and just how key that was and how important it was to show that offense, defense and special teams all go hand in hand?
Bresnahan: Well its not just that, but the other thing we talk about and Hue does a great job here. When you're with a good team, I think they practice this way, they hit situations. The game of football is a situational game and on Thursday that week, we had a two minute drill and ironically Matt picks the ball off on the second play, this is competitive against our offense, and he picks the ball off on the second play on the left side, toe tapping it, and we go into Denver and the same thing happens. So hopefully practice makes perfect, but that is giving your players a chance to experience the situation and now carry through to the game. So it was exciting, because it took three points off the board and we turned around and put three points on the board, and the difference of the game was three. So, it's always huge.
Q: Chuck, what did he show you in the preseason, during training camp that convinced you guys that hey we want to bring him back as early and quickly as you guys did?
Bresnahan: Well, it really wasn't just that. I've studied that kid as a player in the league; he has played some football in this league. So the experience level, the way he approaches things, the professionalism in which he handled, not just coming to us for the preseason, but even when we released him, he was a pro about it. He wanted to come back at any possible chance and we jumped at the opportunity when we had it, and it was a plus for us.
Q: Is it a plus Chuck, the way that Buffalo handled Kansas City, in terms of guarding against overconfidence that they dropped 41 points on the Chiefs?
Bresnahan: It is to a degree because I think its an eye opener to everybody around the league, but at the same time, I'm one that preaches in our meetings and on the practice fields, I don't concern myself with what they do. I concern myself with what we do and how we handle the opponent. If we concern ourselves with everything they are doing, we're not going to focus on what we need to do to be successful within our defense. I want to dictate the tempo, I want our guys executing our defense based on our knowledge and expertise of what were doing rather than try to react to something they do and not being totally confident and aggressive. I'm more concerned about us.
Q: Is [Ryan] Fitzpatrick one of those quarterbacks you see ready to take that next step?
Bresnahan: I've been with him, I was with him in Cincinnati, and the kid is one hell of a competitor. He really is a mobile quarterback, more than you might think, and he is a guy that will keep plays alive. He is a guy that is going to manage the game, he's a smart guy, he's going to manage the game well and try not to lose the game. They're not asking him to win the game by himself, they're not doing that. I think that's smart, but he is a competitive guy, a very intelligent player, that's going to manage the game well. We have our work cut out for us, looking forward to it though.
