QB Derek Carr. Photo by Tony Gonzales
HEAD COACH DENNIS ALLEN
On the game: "Obviously, I thought we played well in the first half. Disappointing to open up the game and give their offense the long drive, but I thought we showed some signs of some things that we can do really on both sides of the ball. One thing that was real positive about the whole deal was tonight I saw some guys making some plays and that was something that we'd been wanting to see. I saw some guys that rose up and made some plays today. There were a lot of positives; certainly some things we have to continue to work on to get better at, but I thought that was a step in the right direction to get ourselves ready for the Jets next week."
On starting QB in Week 1: "I think the great thing is we have three guys I think that can be starting quarterbacks for us. I'm very happy with where we're at with the quarterback room. I think the biggest thing is we have to see where Matt [Schaub] is when he comes in on Monday."
On Schaub's status: "I don't think he would have been ready to play if we had to play today, but it's really pure speculation. He's really throwing on the side mostly. Listen, what you're trying to do on your football team is you're' trying to get as much depth as you can at all positions. I think that's one of the positions we have a lot of depth at."
On if Schaub's health is the only factor in him not starting Week 1: "That's been the plan all along. But obviously, Derek [Carr] continues to get better, continues to improve and, like I said before, I think we have a good situation in that room."
On if Carr's play changed the plan: "No, I mean, I thought Derek obviously went out and played well today. I thought some guys made some plays for him, so that was a real positive and real good to see."
On how much of Carr's success had to do with guys making plays: "I think it was a little bit of both. I think we have a lot of different factors that led to us being up 35-21 at halftime. There were a lot of factors that played into that. I thought Denarius Moore made a couple of really nice catches. It was a nice catch that Mychal Rivera made for the touchdown on the deflection. Derek obviously made some really good throws, a couple of 3rd-and-long conversions, which was really good to see. I thought there was a lot of factors that went into it and I thought overall as a football team, I was pleased with the way that we played."
On the defense: "I thought really with the exception of about three plays in the football game, I thought they played really well. Obviously, like I said, I was disappointed in the first drive of the game that we gave up two explosive passes early in the game. I thought we kind of settled in a little bit. Was really disappointed with the touchdown there at the end of the first half, but I thought they came out and continued to respond. I think Seattle presents a lot of challenges from an offensive standpoint because all their quarterbacks are mobile, can move around. That creates some challenges defensively. But, I thought overall, it was solid."
On concern with the cornerback position: "I wouldn't use that word, but obviously, there's still a lot of young guys trying to learn how to get better. I think anytime they get an opportunity they have a chance to gather something from that and get a learning experience from that. Hopefully they will. We made a couple mistakes that we need to make sure we get it corrected and part of it, couple of those plays, those guys made some nice plays. The first play of the game, I believe it was [Jermaine] Kearse, I think he went up and made a heck of a play down the field. Then the slot receiver there on TJ [Carrie] again, I thought he made a heck of a play too. So it wasn't like guys were running wide open. There were some things we can do from a technique and a fundamental standpoint to help them be able to finish down the field a little bit better. That's the defending world champions and they made some plays."
On Carr's confidence challenging Richard Sherman: "I think he's got confidence. We're not going to shy away from anybody. He's a heck of a player, but we're going to go out and compete, give our guys opportunities to make plays and try to compete against the best."
On where Carr needs to be to challenge Schaub for starting role: "Listen, there's always a level. Lets not bury our head in the sand, but I haven't changed anything. I think we're in good shape where we're at, again, with all of our quarterbacks, I feel good about being in the position that we're in."
On if Khalif Barnes has moved to right tackle: "No, listen, Menelik [Watson] has still been nursing a little bit of a hip flexor. We worked that way all week during practice and that was something that we wanted to look at the first part of this game."
On Sebastian Janikowski's health: "I think Seabass is going to be just fine."
On positive momentum heading into regular season: "Absolutely. And I think the way we were able to do it against a good football team…I certainly think, obviously anytime you win, when you win against a good team – and that's a talented team that's got a lot of depth – for us to come out and play the way we did, I think it gives us some confidence going into next week."
On Latavius Murray: "I really like what I saw out of Latavius Murray and I've liked what I've seen out of Latavius Murray all of camp. I think that was very positive to see and I think with him, along with MJD [Maurice Jones-Drew] and Darren McFadden, I think that's a pretty good backfield."
QB DEREK CARR
Q: How did it feel to be out there tonight?
Carr: "It's just a blessing to be finally back out there on the field. During the Green Bay game I wanted to be out there and help the team win, so that was tough. Honestly to step back on the football field was so nice."
Q: How did it feel to play against their first team?
Carr:"I was really excited that they played. We didn't know if they were going to play or not. You always want to play against the best, and they've got the ring to prove it. That's what we are chasing and that's what we want. So to go out there and play against them... I was happy they were out there. They fly around there, they are fast. The Legion of Boom is right. They are fast."
Q: Did you surprise yourself out there?
Carr:"Honestly I go out there and expect myself to complete every pass. So if I miss one, I'll be pretty upset. There's been times where my wife will go, 'Great game, great game,' but I missed this one in the second quarter and I can't sleep for another hour."
Q: What are your thoughts on being the week one starter?
Carr:"Honestly that is something for Coach Allen to talk about. My job from day one, and what he said was, come in, compete and help this team win. That's what I'm doing. No matter if I'm in the fourth preseason game or on the bench, it doesn't matter, I'm just going to help us win."
Q: You're out here to compete and I'm sure you want to be the starter. Do you feel like you showed well and took a step maybe in that direction?
Carr: "I don't know. To me, I wanted to come out and just get better. It sounds, like, so cliché, but the more you know me, the more you'll know that's true, the more that I'm not just giving you an answer to get by. I honestly wanted to come out here – there were some throws I missed in practice. I sailed one to Marcel, hit Charles Woodson right in the chest in practice, so I wanted to come out in the game and correct those things. To be completely honest with you, that's the kind of stuff that goes through my head. I don't want to hit Charles in the face, you know? I want to hit Marcel."
Q: Did you feel like you were in a groove tonight?
Carr:"I did. I felt good in pregame also. I felt good during the game, especially against a great defense. You want to go out there and compete and see if you can beat their coverages – all the rookie things. Did I do something completely different that I can't see? All those things go through your head. But I did, I felt good. Our receivers were getting open. The offensive line – if you watch that first third down, I'm just sitting back there patting the ball. We can talk about a great throw on third down and all this, but if that protection's not there, it doesn't happen, because those guys, we had so much time that I could throw that. It felt good, but at the same time, I felt our whole offense was feeling that way, too."
Q: Last game you were a little over-amped when you came in with the first-team offense. Were you a little more settled this time?
Carr:"I was, and 'Wis' [C/G Stefen Wisniewski] told me I was less rookie today, so that was good. I was less rookie and as long as we can continue to get less rookie, we'll be good. But Wis told me good job for that."
Q: Even in games like this when everything goes really well, there's always a play or two in the game that make you use sleep. What play in this game will stick with you?
Carr:"There was one down on the goal line, I hung on the route but I just ran a little bit too long, probably should have went backside, and ended up having to just throw it down, you know, throw it away down at the ground for the incompletion towards Brice in the end zone. I just held on it too long and I was wrong for that. I need to get back and those are the kind of things that when you sit back you go, 'Dang, why did I do this?' But no one is every going to be perfect, but I'm going to do my best to try and get there knowing I'll never be perfect."
Q: You had some guys go up for some balls today. How did it go during the week and how did that further your experience?
Carr: "This is the ultimate team game. We can all sit back here and throw a great pass and have it dropped or they can get wide open and I can overthrow, sail it, and hit Charles Woodson right in the face. It's the ultimate team game, so when we're out there and [WR Denarius Moore] goes up and makes a great catch like that, the one in the end zone, the corner route that he caught, it's team football. Football's a team game. We can slice it anyway we want. Other guys have to make plays as well. They made all the plays. Give them all the credit. They made me look better than I am. They did a great job today."
Q: You seem to have a real rhythm, a real chemistry with Denarius Moore. Is that something you had in practice coming in, or is that just how the game unfolded?
Carr:"Yeah, I mess with D-Mo all the time. If he's not in with me, I be like, 'Bro, when you're in, you help me look good. Can you get back in there?' So in this one, he catches the deep ball and I was like, 'Man, I really appreciate you being in there.' Obviously, we're all just joking around. But D-Mo's a good receiver. He's obviously fast. He ran that go-route right by that guy. He's someone that I trust and someone that I feel good going to. But to be completely honest, all of our receivers, I have that same feeling with all of them. He just happened to be in that position versus that coverage."
RB GEORGE ATKINSON III
Q: You saw your first real NFL action at running back today. How did that feel?
Atkinson:"It felt good to get out there and show the coaches what I can do, what I can offer to the team."
Q: You had a big 45-yard kickoff return. Do you think you can make a name for yourself on special teams?
Atkinson:"Definitely. Coming in, I thought that was my whole mindset, show out on special teams and get the attention of the special teams coach and make your role, or make your spot on the roster."
S TYVON BRANCH
Q: You had your first sack of this preseason tonight. What did you see on that play?
Branch:"I don't know. I just rushed off the edge. He held the ball, pump-faked. That gave me time to get there.
Q: What did you see out of the defense tonight and in the preseason as a whole?
Branch:"We played solid, man. We had a few mental errors, a couple mistakes here and there, but it was a good win regardless of that fact. It was a good win out there.
Q: When are you going to start working on the Jets? Branch: "Tomorrow, pretty sure."
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RB LATAVIUS MURRAY
Q: How did it feel getting started quickly today?
Murray: "We always want to start early, start fast and set the tone. I definitely think we did that and responded to the touchdown."
Q: Did that first scoring drive give you confidence?
Murray:"It meant a lot. I definitely wanted to go in there against those first-team guys. That was big for the offense and definitely showed I could go out there and compete with those guys."
Q: Talk about the running back competition going on right now.
Murray:"Without a doubt, it's a good healthy competition, but I'm here to compete with those guys. I am here so that they can make me better and at the same time I can make them better. And they've been doing that."
S USAMA YOUNG
Q: You finally got back out there for your first action of the season. How did it feel?
Young:"Man, it felt great, but my lungs – it took a little while for them to get going. It was a long one for me, but it felt great to get the pads back on."
Q: Physically, how is everything holding up now that you've caught your breath?
Young:"It was good. Everything held up well. I came out of it healthy, couldn't really ask for more. I wanted to go out and make some plays, didn't quite make any plays, but I played sound ball."
Q: How ready is the team to get started working on the New York Jets?
Young:"Everybody's excited, man. Everybody's excited. I think, of course, we're not quite ready to play, but we will get ready to get this game plan going in and get ready for Week 1."
