S Landon Collins
Postgame vs. Seattle Seahawks, Oct. 22, 2017
Q: Did you know the possession rule?
A: I can’t remember if it was the Green Bay game or something like that. I knew about it but at the same time I came down with the ball on my chest. Once I rolled over, he was trying to fight back into possession for it. Once that happened he had no possession of the ball anymore. It’s crazy.
Q: You thought it was an interception?
A: It was an interception.
Q: Once it was ruled a TD, did you think it was going to get overturned?
A: It had to. Once you saw it, you could blatantly see it was on my chest. Once the referee could see it, it was like he has possession of the ball. I turned over and he was trying to fight into my arms to get it. That was my ball.
Q: What did the ref say?
A: He said both of us were in bounds when you came down with the ball so it wasn’t an incompletion. I guess he didn’t see when I had the ball. He said once I rolled over I was still fighting for the ball. That’s when that rule came up.
Q: How difficult is this going into a bye?
A: It’s difficult but it gives us time to get away from the ball, heal up and get some guys back. Just to try and come back stronger.
Q: You’re on the field a lot. Your offense is short-handed and you know they’re not going to score 30-40 points. What does that do for you as a unit and how hard is that for you at this point?
A: It’s a little difficult but we harp on it. This defense has to win games. We try to and we work each and every week because we know the outcome and we know the situation that we are in.
Q: Do you feel any pressure going into the game?
A: No. We look at it as a boost. We want the game on our shoulders each and every week. We look at it as a boost.
Q: Is that a realistic mentality to have in the long term? That your defense has to win you the games?
A: Yes. It’s definitely long term. It’s just our mindset. We have to do that.
Q: Because of the offensive shortcomings, when they went ahead 10-7 there, did that feel like it was going to be hard to climb back into it and score?
A: No. We knew the offense could move the ball. We knew they were going to figure out some way to get down there. They did it twice. Once, we missed a field goal and the other was a fumble. They got downfield. We just have to continue to do what we do on defense when they’re doing that. They still move the ball and do what they do even when we are down our best guys.
Q: You set up that TD to Engram. That was a spark. Could you talk about that and the frustration that it didn’t carry you all the way through?
A: There’s going to be game-changing moments all throughout the game. It’s not going to always give us a boost with all the game-changing moments. We knew it was going to die down but at the same time we kept trying to make plays. At the same time, I’m glad we got some points on the board and got in positions to put points on the board. If we could continue to keep forcing turnovers and making plays, we’ll be OK.
Q: What was working in the first half that went away in the second half?
A: Guys were kind of wearing down with all the snaps. I think at halftime they had almost 50 snaps. Third downs. They got some good third downs. Breakdowns at the back end.
Q: 1-6 at the bye. Where do you go from here?
A: I can’t even answer that question. We just have to stick together as a team, keep fighting and try and make a good outcome come out of this.
Q: Did you feel like you had a chance to build a little bit of momentum coming off last week’s win heading into the bye week?
A: Definitely. We came out in the first half as a defense and did what we had to do. If we could take it onto the second half each and every week and the offense could just move the ball like they can, we will be alright.
Q: Is it hard to wrap your head around the fact that you have more losses this year than you did all of last year?
A: No. I’ve been through it my rookie year. It’s alright. I’m not used to losing, but I can cope with it just a little bit.
