Head Coach John Fox

On winning games in the final minutes
“I think we are rewriting the book on ‘keep fighting.’ Our guys never blink. They remain positive. As bad as it looked today—we didn’t play well—we had some drops, but a guy that dropped a couple passes caught the winning touchdown. That’s kind of the M.O. on this bunch. I’ve said it before, I said it last week, but I want to thank the good lord in that locker room and that staff because they’ve kept fighting and done a heck of a job.”

On the six-game win streak
“I’ve been blessed to have been around really good players, really good coaches and some great seasons. They’re all unique because you’re dealing with people and it’s all different faces. This has been a fun ride. I don’t think we are done yet. It’s hard to really compare. It’s like comparing great players to one another. I don’t think you can really do that, and I don’t think you can do that with teams either. This one is unique and been a lot of fun.”

On his confidence in the team
“Coaches are all different, but they don’t let us get inside the lines. It’s about those guys. The key is I can believe all I want. Until they start believing, you’re not going to be much. And they believe. That’s the key, it’s them.”

On QB Tim Tebow’s ability to lead the team
“I think he’s huge. You don’t have to ask his teammates, but we’ve got a real tight-knit group. I want to give Tim, obviously, a lot of credit, but I think there are a lot of guys in there that are pretty special. I think that’s what good teams do.”

On Tebow’s clutch ability
“He’s a very humble young man. He’s a very hard working young man. Kudos to his parents. I think he is really good in the clutch. He’s one of those guys that, in my opinion, has competitive greatness. He wants the ball in clutch time. I think he’s done it for some time in his career, and he’s doing it now with the Denver Broncos.”

On K Matt Prater
“He’s been great. He’s been clutch. He had a little bit of a slump there about six-eight weeks ago. He worked very hard to get through that. Now he can repeat the swing, and he can do it under pressure. We’re glad he can.”

Quarterback Tim Tebow
On general thoughts about the game
“I guess, first and foremost I’d like to thank my Lord and savior, Jesus Christ, and after that I just want to thank my teammates and coaches. You know, I just want to thank Coach [John] Fox and the coaches for giving me the opportunity and believing in me for the entire game and for the defense for keeping us in it and our receivers and our offensive line, who at the end of the game made me look a lot better than I really am.”

On the dramatic end to the game
“If you believe unbelievable things can sometimes be possible. I think that’s pretty special that we have a team that constantly believes and believes in each other.”

“There were certain times in the game where I was very frustrated and disappointed. Obviously, I thought we had opportunities—we had opportunities for the lead—so it was disappointing we were down 10-0. But great things are only possible if you’re under very tough circumstances. That was a great comeback for this team, and it was led by our defense and coaches and a team that constantly believes.”

On his ability to thrive under tough situations
“I think my teammates make me look a lot better than I am. They really stepped up and came up with some huge plays, and I’m so proud of them. And the way [WR Demaryius Thomas] stepped up on that last drive. You know, just good for him. I’m very proud of those guys. That is a character quality of a good team. When it is clutch and you need competitive greatness, you have to step up and you have to make those plays. If you’re able to do it when it really matters, usually you can find a way. We’ve just got to get better at doing it for four quarters.”

On ‘Tebow Time’
“I don’t think it’s ‘Tebow Time;’ I just think it’s ‘Bronco Time,’ and the team stepped up as a team. We play for one another and continue to trust one another, and I think that makes all the difference in the world.”

On what he told WR Demaryius Thomas after his drop on the long pass
“I just said, ‘Don’t worry about it’ I actually told him—I was wrong—but I told him he was going to score the game-winning touchdown. He scored the one (touchdown) to get us within three, and then he came up with a bunch of huge plays to help us win it. He didn’t technically score the game-winning touchdown, but I’ll still give him the credit.”

On his late-game heroics
“I guess I just gotta get to the stadium and start practicing a little bit earlier. [I’ve] just got to go back to the drawing board and find a way to get a little bit better in practice and try to improve and just try to get better as a quarterback and a player and find a way to get this offense in the end zone early.”

“Coach [Urban] Meyer always preached at Florida, and Coach [John] Fox always says it here. Coach Meyer always said ‘competitive excellence.’ When you’re number is called; when it really matters, you’re going to step up. And Coach Fox calls it ‘competitive greatness.’ It pretty much means the same thing: When you’re number’s called in the clutch time you better step up and make the play. I’m just proud that a lot of the guys on this team are like that, from our receivers to our offensive line to the defense to [K Matt] Prater to [P] Britton [Colquitt]. I’m just trying to improve every day.”

On WR Matt Willis
“I’m proud of Matt. He’s definitely one of the more underrated guys, and he shouldn’t be. He’s a phenomenal receiver, and he’s just so patient and so unselfish, and his approach and how plays—he blocks so hard—and then when you need him in some clutch time he’s going to step up and have huge catches. And you’ll never hear from him. He’ll never say, ‘I was open’ or ‘Throw it to me,’ but when you throw it to him he’s going to step up and make the play, and I’m so proud and so happy he’s on our team.”

On his thoughts on his time as a starter this season
“It’s definitely been somewhat of a whirlwind. [There’s] been a lot of big games, and we’ve been fortunate to find a way to pull out most of them (7-1), and for us we’ve just got to take it one day at a time and figure out a way to improve; figure out a way to put the ball in the end zone earlier in games; and figure out a way to convert on third downs. I thought we did a little better job of that today, but a few other things would, kind of, stall us in drives. Sometimes you’ve got to give credit to the defense, but also I feel like we can just keep improving.”

Defensive End Robert Ayers
On the fumble recovery by DE Elvis Dumervil in overtime
“It was a great play by us. Guys were pursuing to the ball. I don’t know who it was that got it out, but that’s something we emphasize in practice and we got it out. Elvis was there to recover it. We just have to give our offense a chance to win and that’s what we feel like we did today.”

On the comeback victory
“Whatever it takes. That’s our motto and that’s how we feel. Every guy in this locker room, every coach, every staff member – everyone (feels that way). We feel like whatever it takes (we’ll do). We’re going to keep fighting whether it’s a 50-49 game or a 3-2 game. That’s our motto and we’re just going to keep fighting.”

On K Matt Prater
“Prater, he’s doing his thing. We give him a hard time, but he’s a very confident guy and I think as a kicker, you have to be confident and it shows in crunch time.”

Cornerback Champ Bailey
On whether he’s ever seen anything like the current six-game win streak
“No, I haven’t. And I’m enjoying it. I’m just glad we’re on the winning end of it.”

On whether he ever is surprised by the comeback wins
“It does and I do shake my head. It’s like, ‘Here we go again.’ But, we find a way. I have to give my teammates a lot of credit – they never stop fighting.”

On whether he doubted the team could come back to win
“I never have doubt until I walk off that field, losing or winning, there’s never any doubt…You can’t. Once you say that, you might as well just walk off the field and go into the locker room. You can’t stop believing. Anytime there is time left on the clock, you have to keep believing.”

On DE Elvis Dumervil recovering Barber’s overtime fumble
“It’s crazy because he had a free lane to run and then all of a sudden, somebody snatches the ball up. Wow. We made a play when we had to. We hadn’t had a turnover all day and those timely turnovers really help.”

Wide receiver Eric Decker
On the comebacks
“It’s a story tale I think. Someone should take this story and write a book about it. It’s been amazing, just finding ways to win in the last six games. It’s been incredible and it’s fun to be a part of.”

On whether he ever doubted that the team would come back
“No, we knew we could put a drive together, get a score and then who knows what would happen. We were close on the onside kick, but then when Marion Barber ran out of bounds on second down, we’re like, ‘Hey, we’re going to get a chance.’ It’s funny how things work out. It’s amazing.”

On K Matt Prater
“He could line up from 65-yards out and there’s no doubt. When you get to 70, maybe he’ll be close. That guy has a boot and he’s automatic. I’m really happy for him how he’s bouncing back.”

Defensive End Elvis Dumervil
On QB Tim Tebow
“That’s just what he does. He still has a lot to learn and he’s still making steps towards that. One thing you can’t deny is that the guy isn’t a quitter. He’s a winner and he’s fighting and we’re all going to keep fighting with him.”

On the defense’s mindset entering overtime
“All you have to do is give us a chance. The momentum was swinging our way. We went out there and we stopped them. They tried to run the clock out. We were able to make some plays, stop the clock and give our offense a chance. Prater made some big kicks for us. The crowd was excellent. When you get those fumbles and penalties and things like that, guys running out of bounds – that has a lot to do with the crowd being in their heads and it was a great day for the #Broncos.”

On whether he doubted the team could come back to win
“We always believe. That’s the thing about this team. We have a lot of guys with high character. It starts from the top, from Mr. Bowlen down to the players, the people that work around us – we all did it together.”

Linebacker D.J. Williams
On the comeback win
“In a game like this, you can’t make mistakes. You got to play until the very end and we fought until the end victory.”

On if he ever doubted the outcome
“No, the crazy part is, we keep making it tougher and tougher but the guys we’ve got on the team, everybody’s fighting. You never know what’s going to happen until that last second goes off the clock. That’s the type of guys we’ve got here.”

On the fumble in overtime
“It was crazy. I believe he was fighting for extra yardage. Our mentality was strip the ball, get the ball back. I believe it was Wesley Woodyard stripped it, we got on the ball and history from there.”

Tags: Chicago Bears, Quotable, Week 14

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