Vikings-21, Browns-17
Q. 140 rushing yards today, is that something you are going to go back and work on?
JONATHAN GREENARD: Unacceptable. Ultimately, that's the main thing. We have to stop giving up the big runs, because obviously we had about three, four big runs that added to that big total, but I think ultimately, in the midst of all of that we have to still kind of stay in the moment and not let that be it, because obviously we had a big stop that kind of shut it down and obviously get the ball back to the offense.
It's a matter of just getting off blocks, communication, focusing on the technique, understanding how guys are going to run things on us. Obviously it's the same runs every week that kind of goes -- it's kind of like our kryptonite in this defense. I don't like kryptonite. We're going to figure it out somehow and just make plays and do a little bit more to get a guy on the ground.
Q. When you are behind, you always kept it to a one-score game. It was always a one-score. You're never two scores behind. You are always one score. That give you belief throughout the game that it was only a one-possession play even when you were behind?
JONATHAN GREENARD: Yeah, sure. I think ultimately, I always kind of use the saying, it can always be worse, it can always get worse, so let's put the fire out now.
Judkins is a good running back, young running back who obviously knows how to read defenses and obviously has a good jump cut. He's a young back who hits and gets north and south, but ultimately, man, we're going to face even better competition. Obviously no disrespect to him, but we have to figure it out.
I think ultimately we're going to be in these one-possession games, and obviously we have to make sure that it doesn't get a field goal or doesn't turn into a two-possession, because if you look at our offensive weapons that we have, all we have to do is continuously get them opportunities, and something is going to happen.
Q. Can I ask what you made of Judkins?
JONATHAN GREENARD: He was good, man. We talked about him all week. We knew he was a good running back, good jump-cut, hits it, like I said, north and south, stocky running back that's not going to go down on the first contact.
I mean, when you are running behind those guys and their O-line, and obviously hats off to them. They had a really good game plan. Coach Stefanski has a great game plan every time when I played him. I played him every single year in my career. To see his run game evolve and stuff like that and to have another younger running back like that, it kind of reminded me of Chubb of my rookie year when he was playing. Kind of how he gets through the hole, a physical back.
I'm excited to see him build. Obviously I didn't want to see him build against us, but's a good with back, man, really good back.
Q. (Indiscernible) -- how can that help the issue in the running game?
JONATHAN GREENARD: I think ultimately we knew that it was going to be another grimy game because of how we played in Pittsburgh. We kind of just knew, Hey, listen, they're going to copy the same exact things they did before.
When it comes down to it, like you mentioned, the communication aspect is really where sometimes we can kind of have a little bit of a lapse. We run a lot of things on the defense to where we're always trying to check into certain things. Communication is always going to be huge.
That way no matter what environment we play in, we just have to make sure we're on the same page, and that will obviously limit those big plays.
Q. That's two weeks overseas. Two games in ten days. How would you describe the overall experience? How excited are you to get home?
JONATHAN GREENARD: Yeah, it was taxing. I think ultimately we've been out here for ten days. I've been away from my daughter for about ten days, but she ain't forgot who I was. She keep blowing me up every second.
Man, it's a tax. Ultimately, this is what we signed up for. We're the first team to do it. We could sit here and make a bunch of excuses that, Oh, man, we're just exhausted. We are tired, but at the end of the day everybody is tired.
We understand this is the expectation. No matter what happens, we have to put out a good product. The hospitality has been great. I feel like the staff has been really good. They had a good plan for us to make sure our bodies were really good and we got our sleep schedule adjusted.
Man, I can't say enough. Definitely it was tiring, but obviously the crowd here and the environment here, man, it made up for it a lot, man, because to bring the game over here, obviously this is our second year. I'm 2-0 over here, so hopefully I look forward to being 3-0 if we ever come back out here.
Q. Just on that, would you in the future if you are going to do back-to-back games -- if you are going to come here twice in a season, would you prefer it back-to-back so you just have it out of the way and then you can just go back?
JONATHAN GREENARD: I'll be the first to say I would not like to do back-to-back, but that's not in my control. Ultimately, man, somebody had to do it. It was us, but at the end of the day, we made the best of it.
We could sit here, like I say, Kevin is always making a point of all week of, You want an excuse, you're going to find it. You go looking for it, you're going to find it. We didn't let that affect us.
Obviously we took an L in Dublin. Came back down here and was like, listen, we have to get back right coming into the bye week, and it always feels better to have a W coming into the bye week.
Q. Two sacks, and it looks like only one pass completed over 20 yards by Dillon Gabriel. One other pass completed over 15 yards. A lot of that is probably because of what was happening up front. How did you kind of design your pass rush game plan kind of knowing what you were up against?
JONATHAN GREENARD: Yeah, I feel like they were going to use him the same way teams were beating us before, with A-rod obviously last week and who we played the week before. I can't remember. That's been the MO is getting the ball out, just making sure they don't take a sack.
Somehow these quarterbacks don't want to go down whenever I wrap them up, but they want to either dirt the ball and get out of there, but that's the game plan. You don't want to take any negative plays against us, because obviously that just plays right in our hand.
We just have to make sure that whenever we don't have the lead that we still instill -- you know, uphold the standard of stopping the run, making sure we don't need to be calling exotic stuff every single time. We can just play straight up and make these plays so we don't have to become what they want to see on film.
We've put out doing everything on film. Sometimes you just want to play straight up, and I think we get a little bit better in and it helps us only in the back end.
Q. What do you like the flight is going to be like?
JONATHAN GREENARD: I'm going to be counting sheep. Listen, I hope to be sleeping and by the time I wake up, we're there. It could be a lot worse. Obviously if we took that L, but we're going to definitely enjoy this one.
Obviously build some camaraderie on the plane there. Obviously we're always talking trash, and it's always a great time, but everybody is definitely looking forward to getting back home.
Q. How did the long punt down to the one really give you guys a boost?
JONATHAN GREENARD: Listen, Ryan is always there when you need him. He's always been that guy. He doesn't really speak much, but at the end of the day we know Ryan is going to go out there and deliver, and I think that's the biggest thing we can always count on him. It's huge. It flipped the field. It was good for us to keep him down there and flip the field so that way the offense had a short field and that led to us getting a W.
Q. What's your assessment of Dillon Gabriel's first NFL start?
JONATHAN GREENARD: I think he did pretty good. Ultimately, he didn't do anything for them to lose the game, so I think that's the ultimate part. I'm pretty sure they told him, just take what they give you, don't create negative plays, don't try to do too much, don't be a hero. I think he did just that.
The kid has a really good arm. I love lefties. I love the way they throw the ball. It's just weird. Since I was a kid. Big Michael Vick fan.
Yeah, man, he's going to be good. I think ultimately they have a good game plan for him every single week. Obviously they're going to continue to keep him there. Yeah, he's going to be good.
Q. The very last play of the game -- this happens a lot obviously in the NFL, but Isaiah Rodgers has a pick. It doesn't count.
JONATHAN GREENARD: Yeah, what happened there?
Q. There was a time-out called right before.
JONATHAN GREENARD: Who called the time-out?
Q. Kevin.
JONATHAN GREENARD: Our coach?
Q. Yeah. Good thing you didn't know that.
JONATHAN GREENARD: I didn't know what was going on. Yeah, I'm not --
Q. When you have to reset in a situation like that, and you have done it before, but how do you stay motivated to do that?
JONATHAN GREENARD: Listen, honestly for real, stuff is going to end the game and get a sack, this and that, but I was just fine that they didn't score. I don't care what else happens.
I could not get a sack for the rest of my career as long as we don't lose on a last play, because that's never happened to me. Knock on wood, hoping that's not happening any time soon for sure.
Q. Jonathan, before you leave the podium, we're going to get a lot of bling just about coming to the podium. We can see sparkles. Do you want to show off yours before --
JONATHAN GREENARD: No, because when he come out -- because when he come out here, I'm going to look like a little kid out here. I'm going to stay in my lane when it come to that.
I'll stick with the watches and stuff like that and the little subtle stuff, as my wife will say. I'm going to leave that to the guy who y'all want to see. Appreciate y'all.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports