Linebacker Tae Crowder
Q: What was it like hearing voices in your head during the game?
A: It was fine. Hearing it in practice, switching it over in the game was kind of different just because a game is way more serious. It was a great experience to have.
Q: Did you like that it had to happen so quickly? You really didn't have time to think about what was going to happen and sort of the pressure of having to run that defense.
A: I feel like the coaches do a great job of preparing us each day by giving us all the play calls helmet and just being prepared for if someone does go down being ready to step up and be the signal caller.
Q: Did you actually have to switch helmets?
A: Yeah, I did.
Q: You knew that right away, huh? I could tell you were telling them you needed the helmet.
A: No doubt. We always talk about it before the game who the next man will be up is. Like I said, the coaches do a great job doing that, so I was prepared.
Q: When (Linebacker) Blake (Martinez) was healthy in camp and he's obviously out there with it on, do you still wear it in camp or how does that work?
A: Yeah. We have like three signal caller helmets just in case.
Q: Do you literally have to take a separate helmet, or do they apply the thing to the helmet?
A: They just have a backup helmet with the signal caller thing already in there and we just switch it over as soon as we need it.
Q: Is it one size fits all then?
A: We kind of make the adjustment.
Q: How much does your role now in your mind change? You have the helmet change, but do you do some of the stuff, aside from being the signal caller, that Blake was doing? You're in for more plays, obviously you played every snap the other day. How do you view that? What changes for you?
A: I think it's the same, just prepare, keep preparing, and just come to work each day of practice. Just do what I've been doing, do what the coaches are telling me. Just come out and work hard and just keep going.
Q: What's the biggest thing you guys lose with not having Blake?
A: It'll be tough. Blake is a leader. He's one of the captains of the defense, so that's always tough losing a captain of the defense, but it's a next man up mentality.
Q: After these last drives over these last couple ball games, do you guys feel like you have something to prove as an overall group?
A: Each game we want to hone in on being better the next week. We know where our weaknesses are, and we just want to do better. It starts in practice.
Q: When you look at these late drives, can you put your finger on what you think is going wrong during that time? You guys played really well the whole time and then late in the game it just kind of broke down for you guys. Is the stress getting to guys? Are guys trying to do too much? What do you see there?
A: I don't really see like something necessarily going wrong. It's just we've got to work on finishing as a group. That's probably one of our weaknesses, just finishing. That's something we've got to do in practice, and we'll keep improving on it.
Q: How do you work on that though? How do you work on finishing?
A: Like I said, just coming to practice, finishing drives, and finishing two-minute situational stuff.
Q: What is the mental aspect and the challenge of just knowing that you guys have to dig yourself out of an 0-3 hole?
A: We always hone in on that something might happen in the game, a sudden change. If that happens, we always want to be prepared on that end. That's kind of what we just do. We work on it in practice.
Q: What do you see from (Saints Running Back Alvin) Kamara? You obviously see the highlights from him, but what do you see studying him on film?
A: He's a great back. He can do a lot of things. He's a great player, obviously, and we've just got to do a good job of preparing for him.
Q: Do you look back on the last couple of years and say, 'Wow, I've gone from being Mr. Irrelevant to now calling plays'?
A: I really don't even think about it. I just try to be the best player I can for the team and come to work each day and be the best version of myself.
