Detroit Lions: Jim Caldwell, Players Comment on Win over Chicago Bears
By Zac Snyder
Matthew Stafford
On how much his finger injury limited him in the game: “I don’t know. I just tried to play through it, play as good as I could. I let those guys know that it may not be pretty coming in there, but those guys made some great plays for me. Obviously, didn’t play as well as I can. You know, those two turnovers hurt us, but our defense played great. Then we were able to put together a drive late to go win it.”
On what aspects of his throwing motion were affected by the injury: “Is there a ‘C, all of the above?’”
On what he saw on his game-winning touchdown run: “A lot of white jerseys. I was able to get in. You know, we just – We had to get a score there. They covered us up pretty good initially. I don’t know who I – I felt like I leaned back and took off to run and was trying to find somebody to throw it to, and then once I decided to run, I was getting in.”
On if there is something more emotional about running into the end zone to win the game: “Yeah, I mean, I don’t care how I get in. If we throw it, somebody else runs it, I run it, it doesn’t matter to me. I just knew we needed a play, we needed a touchdown and had it made up in my mind once I started running I wasn’t going to be denied. So it was a good play, but there were a bunch of other really good plays in that game that helped us win.”
On if he counted how many Bears defenders he dodged on his way into the end zone: “Yeah, I don’t know. I just was trying to stay on my feet and find that goal line and it worked.”
On adjusting to throwing with a glove on his hand: “Yeah, you know, just not expecting to go into a game and to have to wear a glove. Needed to, was just trying to figure out what was the best way to manage it. You know, the training room guys, the equipment staff, everybody did a great job. Got me all ready to go and then I just, I haven’t thrown with one in a long time. Trying to get the feel back was a little difficult.”
On bouncing back after his pick-six: “Yeah, you know, I’ve played this position for a long time. I’ve had really good plays, I’ve had really bad plays in tough situations. That was a bad play. Doesn’t matter if they’re good or bad, you’ve got to flush them and move on. They teach you that in Quarterback 101 and it’s something that really pays off. You’ve just got to move on to the next play. I think those guys believe in me. I believe in those guys in the huddle. I think everybody knew it was my fault and just go from there and try to make up for it. We were able to.”