JH: Good to see everybody here. I can't say that the way it started and the way it played out was what we expected, but I'm not surprised from this football team, and what they've been through this year, and the challenges they have fought through, and what they've made of themselves. It was a tremendous victory against a great opponent and we have tremendous respect for the New England Patriots, what they stand for, the way they kept fighting, even though they got off to a bad start. They fought from the beginning to the end. And I think that speaks well about a Bill Belichick coached team, the New England Patriots organization [and] everything they've accomplished over the last 10 years and that's exactly how they fought out there today. But we are sure proud of our guys.
Q: Were you shocked by the developments in the first quarter?JH: We don't get shocked. As you know, I think to start off with the big run was a statement by our offensive line and by Ray [Rice]. To start the run by the offensive line and to finish it the way Ray did, obviously, that a huge statement. And then, in the first quarter, I think it was 17 points off the turnovers in the first quarter, 20 or so points for the game. You know to get the turnovers and then capitalize on the turnovers – that's really how you win football games and it's most definitely how you win playoff football games. But that's the players. I mean, this was a player's win and our guys, obviously, they came to play. They always do, but they executed really well.
Q: Coach, you've had a lot of proud victories, where does this one rank? I know you don't like to rank them, but…JH: And so we won't. We won't rank them. I think it's real meaningful for the organization. I think it's meaningful for Steve Bisciotti and what he's building. I know he has a lot of respect for this organization and he's learned a lot from the Krafts and we want to be a first-class operation — Ozzie Newsome, everybody, it's just a big deal. It means a lot to us, but it's the first step in a journey in the postseason. It's the second season and now we have a huge challenge in front of us, obviously, on a short week, and then we've got to work on the Colts — probably tonight.
Q: Talk about the defensive game plan and the way you guys were able to take away some things from Tom Brady that he would normally be able to do.JH: I just think Greg Mattison and his staff — to start off — put a great game plan together. It was just a real precise game, the pressure was real precise. It was effective the way in how it attacked their protection. We got to [Tom] Brady early. We hit him a lot throughout the course of the game and then we decided to cover toward the end. And I thought our guys did a great job of covering. You've got Dominique Foxworth out there on [Randy] Moss most of the game and [he] did a great job on one of the best receivers in the history of the game. I thought we did a great job underneath; Chris Carr underneath on Julian Edelman and he runs those routes as well as Welker does. We did a nice job with the linebackers on [Kevin] Faulk. I mean, those are the matchups that you got to prepare for and I thought our players did a great job on their one-on-one matchups.
Q: Can you describe the energy and emotion on the field in the first quarter?JH: Well, it's interesting. You talk about the energy and emotion in the first quarter. I thought our guys did a good job corralling all that. Our guys were excited to make the plays, but it's on to the next play. The next play is the most important play, whether you have a negative play or a positive play and our guys did a good job of moving to the next play.
Q: What did you pick up from the first game you played that helped you today?JH: I think matchups a little bit, maybe. You get a feel for how your guys line up and play against their guys. But other than that, they change their scheme up every week. They scheme you better than anybody in the league, so you really can't count on the scheme from one week to the next.
Q: It looked like Joe Flacco played through some tough pain today?JH: I think Joe did what he had to do to win the game. And Joe, like Tom and all these guys this time of year, they are all beat up a little bit. But Joe is very tough, very physically and mentally tough. He operated the game well. He understood the situation of the game. He had a huge completion to Clayton down there, whenever that completion was. That was gigantic, so he made the plays when he had to.
Q: You had a bunch of penalties when you were up here last time and you only had three penalties today, you have to be proud of the way your guys kept their composure and played defensively?JH: I thought we played with great technique on defense. I think we had … The one defensive hold was all we had. Our guys played with great technique in the back end, and the offensive line, as well with the running game. To block them with good technique that was impressive.
Q: Was there a lot of difference in the game plan without Wes Welker?JH: Honestly, no. We have a lot of respect for Julian Edelman. He's a real find and obviously he's trained under Wes Welker. He's picked that offense up and those techniques up really well. So it's really the same type of player.
Q: Can you talk about your victory lap a little bit with the fans that made the trip up here?JH: To be honest with you, coming off the field, I was surprised there were that many Ravens [fans]. I don't know how many there were, you probably know. There were thousands of Ravens fans all along the end zone and over the top of the tunnel. It just overwhelms you when you see that. You see that sea of purple and the looks on their faces, you just had to go over and be a part of it. Baltimore's got the best fans in the National Football League. Our players feel that. It means a lot to our players.
Q: [On the muffed punt that you didn't challenge]JH: We didn't have anything on that. If we had something, we definitely would have challenged it, but we didn't have enough.
Q: How important was it to go up 24-0, but you also win the second half?JH: To me, that was our goal coming out. You say it's a 0-0 game, but we wanted to win the third quarter. We wanted to at least be up by 17 or more at the end of the third quarter. I don't know if we were, but it was 19 at one point there. So that was really the challenge and I thought our guys did a good job of that. We didn't go into a shell or anything like that.
Q: As great of this win was for your team did you think this might signal their dynastic run?JH: No way. You watch the way they build their team and I would say they're in the process. They have a bunch of draft picks coming up. What they do with their draft is amazing and we pattern ourselves after that a little bit. They have a bunch of draft picks in front of them, so they're building for the future.
Q: [On Todd Heap's injury]JH: I don't think it's real serious, but we'll have to see.
Q: [On the next game]JH: We're looking forward to it. We can't wait. It will be Saturday night. The Colts game, we'll be here, right on time.
(On feeling healthy enough to contribute)
"I wasn't sure honestly, I just tried to do everything with the trainers and my doctors, as much as I could to be back for this moment. I am still not 100 percent, but I feel good and still have some treatment to get done."
(On jumping ahead early)"Not against this team, we knew they were going to fight. You knew they have the team to fight, they have a great team over there and great coaches. To jump up like that, it's a compliment to our offense scoring the points first and foremost and our defense and special teams just holding on. Hats off to those guys, we just came out and just tried to execute our game plan."
(On where this win ranks)
"It's special, but this is just another win. And honestly we are on to the next game right now. It's over and I am not even thinking about it anymore. We are going to enjoy it, but I know what's next, I know who's next, I know 18 is coming [Peyton Manning]. He's got to know I am watching him and I know he knows. Here we are."
(On the lack of success against the Colts)
"We have had success, we have run the ball good and threw it good and played great defense. It isn't we haven't had chances to win the games, they have just came out on top. They are a great team. My brother plays for them, Reggie Wayne, he is a great player and they have great players around him. You have to come out and execute, it's going to be a 60-minute ball game."
(On being more physical than the New England offense)
"I think overall we came out and did exactly what we wanted to do early. Anytime you can jump out on a team like that, you need the points first and foremost, but to come out and to continue to execute and to keep that focus. That part right there makes the difference in keeping us going. "
(On what they did against Brady in the first quarter)
"Nothing. No, there was nothing. It was guys playing and doing their job and playing their position to a 'T' and giving you a chance to make a play here and there. With Domonique (Foxworth) doing what he did today, [that] was a huge job and other guys playing their keys and reading their keys because they knew what we were going to do to [Randy] Moss and we executed everywhere else. [Julian] Edelman is a great receiver and he still got his, which we knew, but we knew he wouldn't kill us."
(On the defense feeding off Ray Rice's run)"We knew it. We knew they differed and the offense comes out and scores, that is unexpected for them, they were the one's that had to recover. Defensively, we were still focused. We knew what we had to do and executed our game plan."
(On what he saw on his interception)"I saw Domonique [Foxworth] made a great read and tipped the ball up. It's all about finishing in this game and that's what it was, just finishing on the play and hoping it would stay up there a little longer. Honestly, I was hoping he would tip it, because that is the only way I would pick [Tom] Brady off and he knew it. I am sure he is shooting himself in the foot."
(On getting off to a start like that)"We practiced hard all week and one thing as an offense, we want to start games fast. We have been through our ups and downs this year, we have been through a lot as a team and as an offense. For me, I wanted to be the guy today to start this game off fast, whether it was a five-yard run on the first play or an 83-yard run. I wanted to be the guy to say, 'This is going to be a fast tempo game.' We wanted to put points on the board. We want teams to play catch up to us. We have played from behind this and we have overcome it. It's a little different when teams have to play catch up with our defense tends to get a lot of turnovers when they are up like that, they feel good. It's easy for them to make their checks."
(When did he know it would be more than a 5-yard run)"As soon as I got the cutback, the safety was about 15-to-20-yards deep. Once I got there and got on their back, they had already done their job already. That's any running back's dream. I made that first guy miss and after that it was a foot race. I keep telling the guys, for the first 40 yards I am one of the fastest guys. And after that it's a horse race, but I pulled it out. I think if I get to the one-yard line, I am coming out, so I better get to the end zone, I am just being honest."
(On how big the hole was on his big run)
"That is one thing about being a runner, not every play is a hard-hitting, fast play. [That] play was a slow to fast through. You've got to stretch that defense and once you hit it you got to go."
(On what they have to do differently against the Colts)"I think we have to go out there and play our game against the Colts. The playoffs are simple. It's our will against the next team's will, X's and O's are only going to play out so much. I am expecting it to be a four-quarter game and this game was a four-quarter game, no matter what. If we don't come out in the second half and score points, the game is a little different. Playoff football is just a little different than the regular season. You see guys making plays that in the regular season those plays weren't being made, but we have to pick and choose our spots against the Colts. We ran the ball well this week and I am sure we will have to run and pass, and do everything well next week."
(On beating the Patriots)
"The Patriots are still going to be a great team. Their era is not over, they have won and they know how to win. I think for the Ravens, when you beat a team like the New England Patriots, it sets high precedent for any Ravens team. We will always remember this win. It's hard to win on the road, especially here in Foxboro. They expect the playoffs every year and I am sure when they are in meetings, they are expecting Super Bowl. That is the same mentality the Ravens need to have — the ultimate goal is the Super Bowl. Beating them up here really puts us toward that goal."
(On how demoralizing was that play for the Patriots)
"It was the first play of the game, so you never know how a team is going to respond to that. I know our defense played and we got field position and started scoring and kept scoring. We had a feeling that if we score, we controlled the game and we played clock management now. They are not a team that gives up. Brady came back and scored, they were getting first downs on fourth and long. It was a total team effort. That first run just sets the tempo for the game. We are going to play fast, we are the Ravens. We passed a lot early on in the year and I think our run game really helps the pass game as well."
(On the game plan for the playoffs)
"I think we need to be physical. It starts with being physical and its starts with scoring points, whether we pass 30 times or run 30 times. We have to set tempo for games and expect ever game to be physical. We expect every game to go four quarters, but with all the adversity we have been through, we expect to win these games."
(On success in the first game running the ball)"You need to pick and choose your spots to run the ball, especially against this defense. They have only allowed six rushing touchdowns all year. It's a base play in our offense, no wrinkles or anything we did special. When you get that first run, it's hard to shy away from running the ball. You want to stick with it for a little while until they stop it."
(Thoughts on that first run)
"The first thing you think about, is there a flag. For us to start like that, I truly take my hat off to our team. To get started like that and to get us a lead. It's kind of hard for any team to jump out on the gate on somebody like that. You have to take your hat off to that young kid (Ray Rice), he's played like that all year."
(On the field position the defense gave the offense)"That is something that we definitely we talked about. If we can grab a lead early, we can make them climb that hill and anytime you can get something going like that it's just huge and you are in an opposing stadium. The bottom line was, we took the crowd out of the game. As soon as that happened the crowd was flat for a long time."
(On shutting down Tom Brady)"Overall, we have been through so much this year. We really came out and had fun, that's kind of my message all week, have fun, grab those moments and have fun with these moments. We understood that Brady was their key and just like next week, Peyton will be their key. So the bottom line is, if you can get to Brady and rattle him early, you have a great chance."
(On the defenses effect on the quarterback today)
"I think you can tell simply with the adjustments they try to start making during the game. We kept coming, a lot of players were making individual plays. Coach Madison drew up great schemes this week against him and just things we really wanted to show him different than last game and we didn't blitz him that much last game. I take our hat off to our coordinators who really did a great job to put us in some great positions."
(Thoughts on beating the Patriots in their building)
"Being in this league for so many years, I have watched the greatest of the New England Patriots, so you have to tip to your hat to them. They are one of the top notch programs in professional football, three championships in the last 10 years. You have to erase all of that and just come play football. It was huge from that aspect, putting all of those things in one basket and we came out and played a heck of a football game today."
(On emotions to see 24-0 on the scoreboard)
"We took the crowd out of the game, they weren't as loud. We you get up by that many points you really take the crowd out of the game. In Baltimore, our 12th man in the most important thing we have in Balitmore."
(On physicality on secondary against the receivers)"That is one thing we discussed this week, no free access. Play physical from the line and let us do our work up front and let our front seven do their work and get to him. If you saw the way we bracketed (Randy) Moss and took away his deep threat. With all credit due, it's hard to replace a Wes Welker, no matter what you do, with that type of capability, we you don't have him we can shrink the package and keep everything in front of us. So I think our secondary did an absolutely incredible job."
(On worrying about Peyton Manning)
"I will be on film on the plane going home, I give my team the 24 hour rule, but for myself it's back to work. This journey has been up and down, we are on a great journey right now, we know what is going to be coming up next week playing in Indy. We know that he that he is probably best quarterback in the last 10 to 20 years. I mean anytime you have that type of reputation, you will go in a play the game as clean as it's going to be. So here we go again."
(On coach taking about precision of pressuring Brady)
"We he talks about being precise, he talks about timing your blitzes. He likes to do a lot of double count and things like that. I held my blitzes until my last snap of the ball, once you do that, you really get to a quarterback. If you show your hand way before then, he is too good, he will check out of that and go to something else. Precision came from when to run blitzes and when to show out blitzes. I think we did a great job."
(On leg injury)
"It's my quad. I don't know if it's just the fluid running down and doing that to me or what, but as the week went on, it started to feel a little better. I have to make sure I take the next couple of days to give it a little rest and then get ready for Indianapolis. I feel like I'll be feeling great and moving 100 percent when we get there next week."
(On adrenaline kicking in on scramble for first down)
"Definitely. When you're out there playing, you don't think about that kind of thing. So you don't really feel too much. I looked over after they spotted the ball and Cam (Cameron) is yelling at me to dive. The thing is is that I thought I had the first down guaranteed even when they went back and spotted it at the six, I thought it was going to be the five-and-a-half. But we got the first down and that was the important thing and we extended the drive a little bit. That was big for us."
(On being up 24-0)
"You expect to go out there and play a physical game and give it to them and put some points on the board, but you never really expect something like that. Like I said, the way our guys got after it today, I can't be more proud of them. We just have to enjoy this a little bit and get ready for Indianapolis. "
(On winning against Tom Brady)
"Definitely. There are a lot of quarterbacks that grew up liking him. Tom was that guy throughout high school – kind of when he emerged. Tom's been that guy for a little while now so obviously I've always liked what he's done. To come in here and beat them means something, but we beat their team today. We played a good game all around today and I can't be more happy and more proud of our guys."
(On Ray Rice's long TD run)
"He slipped through the crack — the initial hole — and after that I didn't really see what he had to do to beat the guys in the secondary so I looked up at the big screen to make sure he wasn't going to get caught up to and he did a good job of outrunning those guys and getting to the end zone. To start off the game like that was huge. It gave us a boost and it gave our whole team, our defense a boost. Our defense came out playing today. They got us turnovers so that was big opening up, but once you get a turnover, big punt returns, stuff like that and giving yourself a short field, it's huge for an offense to put points on the board the way we did. It was just a credit to those guys."
(On the game and the Patriots missing Wes Welker)
"They basically have the same guy in Julian Edelman. We felt like they weren't going to miss Welker that much. Look he (Julian Edelman) had two touchdowns today and there isn't much more you can do, he had a great game. We felt pretty much that we shouldn't have lost the first game. We really felt coming into this game that it should be a win. We prepared well all week and the guys were so confident coming into this game today. It wasn't even a thought in our mind that we could lose this game. We felt we matched up well and had a great game plan. Our coaches go an extra step and put us in the best situation to succeed."
(On Tom Brady's three interceptions)
"I credit the interceptions to the defensive line. Our defensive line got great pressure with their three and four man rushes. We didn't even have to blitz them with our defensive line. We liked our match-ups and all the credit for the interceptions go to the defensive line and the pressure."
(On the game)
"Our guys just came out today and played their technique and did the things we did in practice. We came out with a little chip on our shoulder and we executed well and it showed. We kept preparing as the season progressed. Early in the season we would have given up the big plays, this time around we knew we were going to be prepared. We just came out and executed our game plan."
(On the Ravens defense)
"Each and every week we are getting better. We are just trying to improve and our ultimate goal is to get to Miami. We are just taking it one step at a time. "
(On the Game)"I think we came and executed today. The defensive line did a good job of pressuring the quarterback. We got him (Tom Brady) off rhythm and we got him to throw a couple of balls that we were able to redirect. We had a great team effort. Our coach called a great game plan, it looked like all of our pressure pretty much worked today. When we had the chance to make the plays we made them. "
(On the game)
"I wouldn't call it revenge; I would call it unfinished business. We played them earlier in the season and we let that game get away from us. This game today we came out and were aggressive and our defense caused some turnovers. We started out good running the ball and from there it was all downhill for us. We had to come in here and play our game. We understand that this was a team capable of being beaten. I don't think anyone was intimidated by the New England Patriots or their mystique. We just wanted to come in and play mistake free football, which we did, and don't turn the ball over and we had a good shot of winning the football game."
(On playing the Indianapolis Colts)
"We are confident. It all depends on whether we can go down there and duplicate what we did here today. That means don't turn the ball over and have no penalties and we will have the opportunity to win the football game."
(On emotion)
"I think we were more ready to play emotionally than they were. It has nothing to do with game plan or anything. They have coaches and we have coaches, but psychologically, we were ready to play. After that first run, you could tell it was going to happen. It's hard to overcome that. That's a psyche killer."
(On pass defense)
"When you lose a guy like Welker, that has something to do with it. They have a guy just like him. It almost seemed at times like we had more people on the field than they did. We were coming from all angles."
(On pressuring Brady and turnovers)
"It's a big emotional boost. Anytime you can get to a guy like Tom Brady, a quarterback that doesn't want to move, and the pocket and you can make him move, you got a chance. We had a lot of pressure and he had to get rid of the ball quickly. It doesn't always mean you tackle him, but it means you get close enough to rattle him and make him make a decision very quickly."
(On being up 24-0)
"They definitely had to [change what they had to do]. We're up in the first quarter and they don't want time to run so they pass the ball more. We became a more pass rushing defense and our DBs did a great job covering those guys and giving our D-line a chance to get to Brady. It was great all around."
(On Welker's absence)
"I think it affected them a bunch just because he is great at getting yards after the catch and he is great on third down. He's usually the guy they go to on third down. That (Julian) Edelman guy did a good job today. He scored two touchdowns. But we did a great job containing them."
(On his expectations with Wes Welker out)
"I expected us to play the way we did today, really. In the first game Wes (Welker) didn't beat us too much. I felt that was my best game all year, against Wes. Their style of offense really plays to my strengths. (They use) a lot of quickness and side to side. I had a very good game against Wes so I was confident I could go out against Edelmen and play well. He did have a couple catches but they were on deep scrambles and stuff. For the majority of time we contained him. He is a very good player. I thought if we could stop the run and we don't blow any coverages like we did in the first game we could come out here and play well and we did. Everyone in the defensive secondary was confident we could come out here and shut this team down. Everyone expected to win. The more we watched film, we would tell each other during the week that we felt we were better than this team. We feel like we have more talent than this team. We knew that if we played like we are capable of that we were going to win. It showed out there. We expected to win and it showed. I was surprised we were up 24 to zip."
(On the defense)
"I thought we did a good job of mixing it up. We did a lot of four-man rush. They had a hard time picking up exactly where we were coming from."
(On the Patriots playing from behind)
"I don't think it affected them a whole lot. They seemed to stick with their game plan. We got up so quick, so early that they knew they had a ton of football left. It's a good thing (having a lead) but it is kind of a nerve-wracking thing because you have a tendency to calm down. We still had three and a half quarters left. It's a confidence builder. That was great football team we beat right there."
(On next week)
"I think we have to jump on them quick. I think the main thing with Indy is the battle to control the clock. They make it their ball game. If you want to beat them you have to control the clock. You have to run the ball. You don't get a trophy for winning wild card games."
(On a victorious return to Gillette Stadium)
"It is good to come back and we came up short last time here, but we knew if we came in and executed we would have another week. From start to finish we beat them down and did what we wanted to do. We knew if we ran our offense, played our defense and ran our special teams we would come out on top. Just execute. It is always good to go against your old team. Going out there with Brandon Meriweather and getting into it, McGowan or whatever his name is. He tried to make a play or something like that. But yeah, we beat them up. We out played them. I was telling Ray Lewis in the two years I played here I had never seen the defense execute and not have an answer. Our defense, it was almost like they had cards up knowing the plays. They broke up plays, intercepted the ball."
(On Ray Rice's 83-yard touchdown run)"That was as fundamental as it gets. It was a great run. That's what playmakers do, they make big plays, especially in big games. It was a good start to the game."
(On why they were so successful running today)
"I don't know. It was nothing tricky. It just comes down to execution. The backs ran hard."
(On being up 14-0 early in the game)
"You want to start fast, especially on the road. We certainly did that today and it was a big help against a good team like that."
(On the pressure on Brady)
"We got him a little bit. The main focus was to get him off his spot. We didn't want him comfortable. We wanted him to think we were blitzing when we weren't and weren't blitzing when we were. We just didn't want him to get comfortable because he is one of the greatest in the game. We did a pretty good job, but our secondary was on point today. It was like the ball was going our way for once and they just played phenomenal."
(On getting off the ball so quickly)
"When the quarterback gets in a rhythm, they want to hike the ball around the same time, especially their offense, it's based on timing and once he got in that rhythm I just wanted to get off so I was just looking at Koppen the whole time."
(On whether his adrenaline helped him today)
"No. This is a playoff game, it's playoff football and you always have to turn your game up. We are a pretty good team in January and a lot of things can happen for us, we are just trying to keep our season going. Next week we have another challenge. We got the two best quarterbacks in the game back to back and we definitely have to bring our 'A' game."
(On the running game)"We had a good running game coming in, but busting the first run just opened everything up. We had three different styles of runners coming in and we just switched it up and they didn't know how we were going to run the ball. It was a great feeling and you have to thank the offensive line. They were doing a great job moving those guys and moving to the next level. Without them it wouldn't have been possible."
(On the play of the team)
"We have gotten better and better as the season has gone on."
(On the first run for 83 yards)
"Ray called it. He said he was going to bust it open and set the tone."
(On the running game)
"We just came out with the mindset that we were going to run the ball. Our whole offense did their job today."
(On difference between the first game where they threw the ball 47 times and today when they only threw it 10 times)
"I'm all for the running game. We did a great job today and it's something to build on for next week."
