Q. Brandon, when you woke up this morning, did you feel like it's going to be one of those days? Did you feel like everything you threw is going to be on point and putting in small windows, the way you played today?
BRANDON ALLEN: Yeah, I think I always feel that way going into a game that I'm going to make all the throws that I need to. Obviously, it's never going to happen, and you need to hit as many as you can. I always wake up on game day with the confidence that we're going to make all the plays we need to to win the game.
Q. Take us through the progression of early you were attacking the sidelines with the outside passing game, the screen game, the quick game, all that. Then it progressed to ripping down the football field and attacking the middle field. How did that progression take place? What did you get them doing?
BRANDON ALLEN: I think early on they wanted to play a little bit of soft cover three. Obviously in that area, you want to throw that outside. Then they started mixing in some two, and that's when we were able to hit Alex Erickson down the middle. I think kind of the rest of the game they started mixing in between cover three, man, and cover two. So really we had just some good progression plays where you can decipher what they're going to be and you know exactly where you need to go with the football.
Q. Brandon, you had a career high in passing yards and passer rating. Was this the best game, you believe, in your career?
BRANDON ALLEN: Yeah, I think I've had a couple bad games too, so I'll take this with a grain of salt and just keep trying to get better.
Q. Do you have a favorite throw from the game? I mean, you hit some deep ones that this team hasn't been able to do. Do you have one that maybe is your favorite instant reaction?
BRANDON ALLEN: You know, I thought one of the biggest plays -- I don't know if it would be my favorite, but one of the biggest plays we had was the third and -- I don't know what it was. Third and like 10 or 12 or something like that, and A.J. made that contested catch on the sideline, and we were able to hit two shots from there.
So really him making that aggressive hands catch on really tight coverage and getting us to first down is what really got us going during that second half and getting those big shots down the field. Without him making that play, I don't think we get those big shots. We don't get a chance to.
Q. It looked like you and A.J. were looking to get to each other early, were able to get that connection late. What have you seen out of him in your time playing with him over these last several weeks?
BRANDON ALLEN: Yeah, continuing to be on the same page with A.J. Obviously, early on, missed two balls I should have got to him down the field. I just needed to make better throws on those, but like I said, the more and more I'm able to throw to him and get the timing and the way he wins leverages and things on certain routes, then I can be better and give him a better football.
Q. The way the game unfolded today, Tyler Boyd would have been tough for them to handle. I mean, he would have gone off today, there's no doubt, but Alex Erickson steps up, another step up in his play. Talk about what they did for you.
BRANDON ALLEN: Yeah, Alex was huge. Obviously, you love having a player like Tyler out there, but when your number's called, you've got to step up and perform well, and Alex obviously had been doing it for a few years now, and he's Mr. Reliable really. You can put him, I would say, anywhere on the field, and he's going to be in the right spot, run the right route, do what he needs to do, and on the big one he caught down the middle, that's a play where he has to see the coverage and know exactly what to do on his route. He played it perfectly, and we were able to give him the ball.
Q. Every week after losses throughout the season Zac has told us that he still sees this team moving in the right direction. You guys are one play away. To win twice in one week, how big is that for the confidence to see proof that you guys are moving in the right direction?
BRANDON ALLEN: Yeah, there's never been a question within this team of us moving the right direction. Like you said, there have been a few games where we're literally one play away from it being a win, and so those are tough, but you have to be able to move on and approach the next week like you're going to win it again. I think you kind of can see in these last two weeks that this team knows how close it can be, and we've finally been able to have two really good games and put them together and get wins. We can just take that momentum and move it forward.
Q. What is it like -- there's a lot of surprise on the outside from fans and from the media when a lot of the guys who are supposed to be starting for this team aren't starting, and then you go win two games in a week like this. Is there some vindication for that, for you, a guy like you, Brandon, who gets to start and win a game like this knowing that no one really gave you a shot this week in both of these games?
BRANDON ALLEN: There's always going to be that side of things that you really try not to pay too much attention to, I guess. Obviously, we put together a great game last week with Ryan in there, and he played perfectly for that style of game and got a big win there. Then I think him getting that win against the Steelers really gave guys such a boost of confidence, and then even this week, going into this week, there's such a high level of confidence that we can beat any team we go play, and I think we're such a connected team in that locker room, and we kind of keep all that other outside noise right where it is, outside.
Q. Brandon, what do you like about this offense? You obviously signed up with Zac. What do you like about it? What do you think it allows people to do? It's the second week in a row you haven't had your main guns, and you put up some big numbers.
BRANDON ALLEN: Yeah, I think this offense, it's very similar to the offense I came from from L.A., so I was already pretty familiar with it when I got here, which helped a smooth transition when I first got here, kind of already understanding reads and understanding certain play calls and things like that. So I think it was smooth in that area.
It's really good about making certain plays look identical, but it being a different play. One could be a run, and one could be a flash and pass and one's a flash and screen, and it all looks the same to the defense. I think there's so many things you can do with this offense. It's very quarterback friendly. If you can run it, you find completions, and completions are going to get you moving down the field, which you kind of saw today.
You don't always have to have that big shot as long as you're playing smart, and obviously the run game was on point today, and that obviously helps. Any time you can get the multiple dimensions of the offense going, you can be explosive and win a lot of games.
Q. This is a hard question to answer less than an hour after the game, but how big is this game for you and your future, whether it's in Cincinnati or somewhere else?
BRANDON ALLEN: Yeah, I don't know. We'll see. Obviously, I do love it here in Cincinnati. I'm really right now just focused on next week now after this big win and getting ready for the Ravens, obviously not being an easy game. So that's kind of where my focus is going to right now.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports