NASHVILLE, TN -- Players spoke in fits and spurts after New England's 34-13 win against the Tennessee Titans. Here are a few highlights from the post-game sound.
Devin McCourtyon preparing for second-year quarterback Jake Locker:
"For us it was really, 'Don't make it easy for him.' We tried to give him different looks and keep things moving on him. When you come in wiht a new quarterback, you don't know how he is going to adjust. You're not fully aware of what he can do. Just wanted to keep things moving and, for us especially in the secondary, to be fundamentally sound and not let them take advantage of us trying to guess and do the wrong thing."
Locker completed 23 of 32 passes for 229-yards, one touchdown, and one interception. He showed poise at times and could have stretched the effort further if not for suffering a shoulder injury at the beginning of the fourth quarter.
Rob Ninkovich on rookies Chandler Jonesand Dont'a Hightoweras playmakers:
"This is why they're here. I think you don't get drafted in the first round if you're not."
Jones impressed with 5 combined tackles, a sack, a forced fumble, and one tackle for loss. Hightower had the fumble recovery -- which he ran in for a touchdown -- as well as 5 combined tackles, and one tackle for loss.But a solid point made by the veteran linebacker Ninkovich.
Nate Solder on what happened on the sack that hurt Tom Brady's nose:
"I think he got flushed, and Titans DE Kamerion Wimbley ran him down from the back, and I don't really know what else happened. I'll have to see the film."
Solder on why the O-line did such a better job today than in the preseason:
"It's hard to say. I don't know -- you'll have to ask the coaches. I think it's a work in progress. We'll keep getting better and working to improve.
Brady was sacked just once Sunday, an 8-yard loss on fourth-and-4 in the second quarter. Not bad, considering he was taken down twice in the only preseason game he played, and considering Tennessee's 13 preseason sacks was a tie for fifth best in the league. Wimbley was acquired in March to bolster the Titans pass rush.
Aaron Hernandez on the way New England opened its 2012 regular season:
"I thought we started better than the past two years that I've been here. Good start. A lot to learn from and we have to get better every week."
The receiver has a point. Though the Patriots won its season openers in Hernandez's first two years in the NFL, this season's victory in Tennessee was done so far more decisively. The team beat Cincinnati, 38-24, in 2010. The following year, New England won by the same narrow margin in Miami. Hernandez can't be a glory hog because his six catches for 59 yards and one touchdown is a drop from the 103 yards and TD he put up in last year's opener.
Rob Gronkowski on botching his famed touchdown spike:
"The thing slipped right out. But I played it off pretty well."
It was strange, really. In the second quarter, Brady found Gronkowski in the end zone for a 2-yard reception and a touchdown. The big tight end lifted the ball high in one hand and prepared to bring it down unto the earth with wicked force. It's a move he executed with violence so many times in 2011, and it failed -- the ball just plopped out of the back of his hand.
Hernandez on if he'll give Gronkowski grief about it:
"No, that will be something we laugh about. But it was a great catch, great throw and we have to keep making plays.