Chiefs 27, Vikings 20
KIRK COUSINS: I'll start and take any questions. Difficult to lose. Difficult to be 1-4. I thought there was a lot of fight. I thought guys played hard. Made plays. Gave us a chance. Coaches, as well. But we just didn't make enough plays. Didn't play well enough and there's a lot we need to improve upon, be better to be able to get back on track. So take any questions you have.
Q. Were you frustrated at times at the pace of the play calling or plays coming in?
KIRK COUSINS: I mean, I think it's important that Kevin gets to see the personnel and gets some things clarified. It's kind of a part of the process a little bit to just make sure we are getting the right call and the right look and gather the right information.
Q. Just sitting at 1-4, what are one or two of the biggest things the team needs to address to turn the tide and get back going and the way you want to do it?
KIRK COUSINS: We need to start faster. First quarters need to be better. We need to protect the football. You know, we need to make plays when they are there, and I think there have been a lot of plays there to be made and we're making a lot of them but there's more that we've got to go make.
Q. Do you feel like self-inflict wounds are more of the problem? Do you feel you're doing it a little bit more to yourself that than having it done to you?
KIRK COUSINS: I think it's a little of both. Certainly at times I feel like there's opportunities where we are capable of being a much better football team. And when you feel that's the big part of it, then it's very fix I believe, or it gives you a hope, encouragement that we can turn it around because you feel like you have the players in the room to do that and the coaches in the room to do that.
Q. How big did it feel when Jordan --
KIRK COUSINS: Yeah, Jordan is the real deal. We hit on that draft pick. He's a great player. He's the real deal. Has great hands and runs great routes.
I've played with some really good skill groups in my career, been fortunate enough to do that. When I look at our group right now, it's as good as I've ever been with. So with progressions and things, a lot of times, No. 1 gets the ball but it doesn't mean the guy that's third or fourth in the progression isn't a really talented player and isn't capable or deserving of being No. 1 in the progression and we're fortunate to have that be the case. When Justin goes down, which is tough, he's a special player, there's a lot of confidence that K.J. and Jordan and Brandon Powell and our tight ends and our backs can really fill that gap.
Q. Going into one of those final drives, you start that drive --
KIRK COUSINS: Well, again, I just think there's a lot of confidence in the other guys, T.J. and Justin are special players for a reason. I was impressed with Brandon. Was no surprise to me, though. He's a great athlete and great with the ball in his hands.
K.J. is special. I find myself coming out of games more last year and this year wishing we could get Jordan the ball more, K.J. the ball more, because I know what they are capable of, Brandon Powell, but it's just hard to spread it all around.
But we definitely have a lot of talent on the skill positions.
Q. How is it working with Garrett?
KIRK COUSINS: Yeah, it was good to have him back. Slope did a phenomenal job the last several weeks but there's so much time on task with Garrett together. I thought he did a great job. It's tough to be out and come right back in like that and jump back into it. He did a great job.
Q. I know it's a tough start, but as a leader what do you say to your team on Monday knowing that everything you want to accomplish is still in front of you and with division play?
KIRK COUSINS: Yeah, division play, going on the road, that's a challenge, divisional opponent.
You know, we take the same approach win or lose. You have to treat them each as individual efforts. You put this one to bed. You've got to learn from it. You've got to get better and then you go to work getting ready for Chicago, and it's kind of its own entity and you just do that 17 times.
You know, we've got a long ways to go but we don't really think about that. We recognize that but then we go to work on Chicago and just kind of stay in that world the whole week.
Q. Is it more frustrating to know that you have the talent, knowing that you have the weapon hanging there and you can't get there?
KIRK COUSINS: Yeah, I believe you come out of these games and you say, there's so much more production out there to be had, no matter what, no matter how good it may have been, and I don't think it was all that great tonight but when it's really good, even, I find myself getting on the bus in an away game or getting in the car here and saying, we left a lot of plays out there, there's so much more that we can do.
So I'm saying that again tonight.
Q. On the throw to K.J. in the end zone there, Kevin was talking about the progression.
KIRK COUSINS: Yeah, I was early. I was early. I saw Justin getting doubled. I think in hindsight, I'd probably just take Justin in the flat even though he's doubled because I think he gets the first down. I saw him getting doubled and I thought, well, let me progress. By getting off Justin so quickly I was ahead of where K.J. was, and I felt like, let me just put the ball out there with touch but a knew that I was ahead of it, so it was a lot to ask of K.J. to get his head around and make that play.
I wish I had worked Justin in the flat. I wish I had taken a little longer to get back to K.J. and I wish I had thrown a little more touch and put it out in front of K.J. more. Even with coming through it so quickly, if I put it out in front of him and put some touch on it, I think he still catches it.
So I wish I would have -- I mean, I probably watch -- if I watch the film, I probably had a dozen plays where I would say that.
Q. What do you see with T.J. a few times, he was hard on himself in the locker room about some of the missed connections. What's going on there?
KIRK COUSINS: I don't have anything to say. I think he's a great player and I think he did a great job tonight. I think my ball location tonight was too high. I felt like it was consistently high and I don't have a great answer for that. But I felt that it was showing up and yeah, maybe catchable, but it shouldn't be that hard. The ball need to be right in their chest. I was frustrated that -- and it was early and I thought we'll settle in and I felt as the game went on it was still that way.
So that's when you say, you go back and look at it and fix it, that's one of the thing you fix; the high ball, that's got to stop.
Q. Even with the depth at receiver what would change if you had to play without Justin?
KIRK COUSINS: Yeah, next man up is sort of the mantra but it's really a group. It's not any one person. It's the whole group. You know, Justin did a phenomenal job for the last three and a half years of staying healthy and being out there every week, which is hard to do. And so even this injury, it makes you pause and be grateful for how healthy he's been.
But yeah, K.J. gets an increased role, Jordan gets an increased role, our tight ends do, our running backs do, Brandon Powell steps up, N'Keal, Trishton, the list goes on, and I think we have the players that can try to fill that gap. It's big shoes to fill, but as a group, I think it can be done.
Q. Fourth down throw to Jordan in the end zone, what you could see --
KIRK COUSINS: Cover 0. Ball needed to come out. I believe the third down throw is the one that's really bugging me. Going back to that, I wish I would have just worked K.J. on a shadow cross over the ball. That was the one that really bugged me I think on the fourth down, they zeroed me again and was just trying to give somebody a chance. You know, that sequence was a frustrating sequence to not -- I think that's what I was talking to Don just a few minutes ago, there's plays you go home and say we should have made that play and we should be on the field and we should be scoring points. That's just one of those moments where you felt like the third down sequence -- it should. It did. They beat us. Those are the ones that frustrate you.
Q. Is there frustration after --
KIRK COUSINS: Yeah, I was trying to get out to my left because that's where the throw was going to be. Felt hike I couldn't get out and was trying to say, okay, I'll step up. Felt like I couldn't and so I'll get right and that was when I got hit.
You know, it's always a hazard of the business on Hail Marys is you know you have to buy time to get down there but they are rushing, so there's no guarantee you're going to have that time. I'd have to watch the film to tell you what I could have, should have done. I'm sure there was someplace I could have moved or something I could have done to buy time because you certainly want and need the ball to get up there and at least give you the chance.
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