Head Coach John Fox
On whether the game was tougher than expected
“No, they’re all tough. When you’ve been doing this as long as I have, 24-years worth, you know they’re always tough. We knew this was going to be a tough game. We talked all week – our guys knew. Again, we watched the tape. We knew they were a very talented defense. They played us very tough and we expected it.”
On not forcing any turnovers and not allowing touchdowns
“Well, we did get one there at the end, but that was kind of garbage time. We did get the one interception. But, hats off to our defense. We struggled a little bit on the run, but they’re a very good run team. That back combo is as good as there is in the lead. (Jamaal) Charles came into the game as the fourth-leading rusher in the AFC, so we knew they were going to try to play keepaway and run the ball. I thought our defense did a great job on third down. I think the stats were about 3-of-14, which is going to be critical to get it back and eliminate those touchdowns. They had three trips and again, it’s something we work really hard on – the red area. Holding them to three field goals was key in the game.”
On running back Knowshon Moreno
“We kind of knew that – we didn’t want to tell a lot of people, but Knowshon has had a great attitude. Things haven’t gone perfect for him. I knew he would perform well, his teammates knew he would perform well and he did. We’re proud of his effort.”
Quarterback Peyton Manning
On whether it was harder than expected
“No, it’s a division game on the road. Like I said, defensively, I think this team is better than their record is. They have good players and they’re well-coached. It’s a division game, my first time playing in the division and it’s what we expected, to tell you the truth. We feel good about the win. Like every game, there are things we can build on. I’m really proud of some certain individual efforts. I just have to tip my hat off to Knowshon Moreno. I think after the first two games, he’s really been running the scout team, servicing the defense. But, a real credit to him for being a professional, staying in his playbook never knowing when his number was going to be called, and it was called 8-10 weeks later and he stepped up today and did a heck of a job. Really, really impressive effort by him.”
On being able to run the ball late in the game
“Well, I think we try to be balanced. I don’t know what the split was, but we’ve been fairly balanced all year. I think on that last drive it was a mix. We had a couple of good runs to get us away from backed up and then had two big third-down conversions to (wide receiver) Demaryius (Thomas). We certainly would have liked to not go three-and-out on the two series before that, but Kansas City did a good job. That’s something we can build on. The defense did a good job holding them, but that was a good job there at the end to be able to run some clock and change field position and get the field goal.”
On the touchdown at end of the first half
“It was big. It was a big touchdown. It was a great play by (tight end) Jacob (Tamme). I didn’t see after the catch, but it looked like he must have made somebody miss on the tackle because there was a defender there and it was huge to get a touchdown there, obviously having two opportunities down there in the red zone coming away with no points – I think that’s the first time that has happened this year. That was disappointing. You like to get touchdowns, at least assure you get three and we got zero twice. That was a big touchdown and it was a big one to Demaryius (Thomas) on the takeoff route on the left side. We certainly always want to work on our third-down production and our red-zone production and that’s something we can improve on.”
Wide receiver Demaryius Thomas
On early offensive struggles
“We knew what they were going to do, we just have to go out and start faster. I feel like we were stopping ourselves. We just need to start faster. We kind of knew some of the things they were doing. They showed everything on film that they did today. It’s just start fast.”
On the team’s lead in the AFC West division
“It feels great. We just have to keep going and our goal is just to keep winning and get to the big one. We’re going to take every team one at a time, take it week by week and just going to keep going and try to keep winning.”
On hitting 1,000 yards receiving
“It’s big. My main thing is to stay healthy and stay focused and just keep grinding. I feel like if I stay healthy, I can do some big things. I got a quarterback, I have a good group of guys around me to help me out. Most of the time, it’s not going to be double teams, so it’ll mainly be man coverage because you have Decker, you have Stokley and a good group of guys around me in the receiving corps and a great quarterback. My main focus is to stay healthy and go out and pick my turns out on the field.”
Wide receiver Eric Decker
On six straight wins
“It was a well-fought battle. They came out and played really good. Our execution offensively, we struggled a little bit, but sometimes you’re going to have those games. They’re not going to all be pretty. It’s just nice to come out of here with a win, because this is a tough place to play.”
On a scoring drive in the fourth quarter
“Knowshon ran the ball hard. Give credit to the offensive line. DT made some plays on the sideline. It gave us the chance to really come out with this victory and move on to six in a row.”
On Knowshon Moreno
“He was hungry. I knew he was going to perform well. He’s been having good practices. Obviously his carries and his opportunity to play has been limited, but he’s a guy that’s been successful when he gets in there. It was good to see him have a good day.”
Defensive end Elvis Dumervil
On the victory
“It was a tough game for us, but we got the ‘W.’ Give them credit, they did a lot of good things, but we fought it to the end. We knew it was going to be a dogfight this week. Whenever it is a rivalry game, you know.”
On quarterback Peyton Manning’s leadership
“Yeah, he’s one of our captains and our leader. He does a lot of good things for us. Maybe he’s not making many big plays, but he affects the game and that’s what it’s about. Sometimes a guy isn’t making the plays you want, but they’re affecting the game and that’s what you want.”
On keeping the Chiefs out of the end zone
“That’s big, that’s huge. It’s a four-point swing. We can give up a touchdown or give up three points and at the end of the day, those four points matter. They kicked three field goals and that easily could have been 21 points. Give credit to the guys, we fought hard. The coaching staff – we wanted to emphasize on red zone this week and we came out and executed.”
Cornerback Champ Bailey
On the victory
“We came out of here with a ‘W’. That’s what we came here for. We obviously have some things we need to correct and iron out, but that’s what practice is for and we will make sure to use this week to iron them out.”
On the Denver defense not giving up a touchdown
“Just keep applying pressure. It is really just stopping the run. It makes them (the Chiefs) one dimensional. We would rather put the weight on their passing game, which hasn’t been that great this year.”
On whether the outcome shows how hard it is to win on the road in the NFL
“It’s one game at a time. It’s a division opponent; you have to win. You have got to win those games. It is what is going to prepare you for the playoffs.”
Tags: Kansas City Chiefs, Quotables, Week 12
moreno was killing it today.