Houston Texans Media Conference

Sunday, August 14, 2022

Houston, Texas, USA

Jeff Driskel

Postgame Press Conference


HOUSTON TEXANS 17, NEW ORLEANS SAINTS 13

Q. Jeff, can you talk about your overall performance tonight?

JEFF DRISKEL: Yeah. Definitely up and down. Turned the ball over three times there and got to get those cleaned up. But, you know, for a quarterback, I think they were throwing errors; right? They weren't like bad reads. They weren't mental errors. So that's something that I've got to get cleaned up. Those can't happen. But I would rather have those kind of picks than mental errors. And then, you know, NFL games come down to two minute. So we went out there and made a couple plays and found a way to win.

Q. Probably just because you've worked with them a little bit more in practice. But Jalen and Johnson are two players that have been trying to make their way to the final 53. For them to have the extended amount of reps they did and to be able to show up in certain ways with touchdowns and plays, what does that do for the confidence and strengthen their case?

JEFF DRISKEL: It's huge, right? I mean, they've been making plays all training camp. But it's a little bit different when you're out there under the lights and playing games and the bullets are live. So, I mean, I thought it was awesome for those guys to go out there and figure out a way to get the ball in the end zone. It was awesome for Johnny to bounce back. He didn't hang his head. He knew the ball was going to come back his way and had a couple huge catches down late to help us win.

Q. Jeff, a couple things. First off, how hard is it when you're coming in a game where you see 30 or 40 players that you played against on defense probably tonight minimum? And then how good does it feel to be able to put that last drive together, 90 yards to win the game with seconds left in the game?

JEFF DRISKEL: It's a hard business. It's definitely not an easy thing to do. But, you know, playing quarterback in this league, there's only one starter. I've been around long enough to where I've had to come off the bench. And that's just part of being a quarterback is being prepared and ready to go no matter the situation and coming in and playing and playing well.

What was the second part of your question?

Q. The last drive?

JEFF DRISKEL: Oh, yeah. We practice two minute every single day. It's something that we're super comfortable with. Most games come down to a two-minute situation. And Chad Bebe fair caught the ball on the 10. Thought that was an unbelievable decision. You know, that ball hits the ground, bounces around a little bit and we're backed up on the 1 or 2 yard line, it could be a different scenario. That was huge. Defense obviously getting the stop to force the punt. And just going out and executing. That's what it's all about. The players are out there. We've just got to go execute. And we did that at a high level on that drive.

Q. Jeff, last year you were a quarterback, then you went to tight end, and now you're back at quarterback. How was it for you to go from position to -- how was it for you to go from position to position? Was it a little bit frustrating?

JEFF DRISKEL: I wouldn't say frustrating. You know, I'm a competitor. I want to figure out a way to get on the field and help the team win. And last year that way was playing special teams, playing tight end. And this year, it's playing quarterback. So, you know, I want to figure out a way to help this team win and do what I'm asked to do. So definitely not frustrating, but, yeah, it's pretty cool to be able to have the skill set to be able to do multiple things

Q. You talk about your skill set. What makes it for you to have that ability to play position from position and to actually have the opportunity to help this team in multiple different ways?

JEFF DRISKEL: Yeah. I mean, that's what we're all here to do. Right? Everybody in our building is here to help the Houston Texans win games, no matter how that is. It doesn't matter. Go out and do what you're asked to do and do it at a high level. So I'm just going to keep doing what I'm asked to do and, you know, keep competing and try to win games

Q. Jeff, you've been in the league for a couple of years now. For you to be able to be inside of a locker room and be in those situations where Johnny gets a drop. Did you tell him anything before the next play?

JEFF DRISKEL: He knew that the ball was going to come back his way. I walked over there and gave him a little pat and said, Hey, don't hang your head. He was far from hanging his head. We've all played enough football to know those things happen. And NFL games are back and forth; right?

He got a chance to go out there and make a couple plays to help us win the game. I think he had two or three spin moves on one of the plays before he scored the touchdown. So he's a really good player. He's been making plays all training camp and, you know, you'd like -- everyone wants to make every play, but that's just not realistic.

Q. You're a former Florida quarterback and your running back is a former Florida running back. What do you see from him and just to know that he has that power and elusiveness, how does that --

JEFF DRISKEL: Dameon has had a great camp. But it's kind of hard to tell when things aren't live. Like is he down? Is he not down right there? Dameon wasn't going down on first touch tonight. He was running the ball extremely well. He saw the cut back lanes. He has great natural cutting ability. And he loves the game of football. So he's a constant learner. He's in here early every day. He's a great person to be around. He's a really good player and a really good teammate.

Q. For you, I know it's preseason, but you did lead that game-winning drive. How does this make you feel internally?

JEFF DRISKEL: It's great. Coach Smith said before the game they're keeping score. We want to go out and win. That was our intent all night was to go out and win the game. We did what we came to do. We won the game. Obviously, there's things we need to go back, watch the film, correct. But it's a great feeling to go out and win that game with this group of guys.

Q. I know it's preseason one game. But the performance you went out there and had. Does it mean something more for you even though it is preseason, the performance you went out there and had will give this team an opportunity to look at you and say this is a role that he can actually help us win in 2022?

JEFF DRISKEL: Yeah. I mean, I think everybody on the roster right now, you know, has ability, has great ability. And it's a great chance to go out there and showcase that. And it's about making plays. I wasn't worried about anything besides going out and executing at a high level and going out and win the game. We still have a long training camp, two preseason games left, so a lot of opportunity to improve and get better.

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123748-1-1822 2022-08-14 05:07:00 GMT

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