Colts 20, Chiefs 17
Q. Matt, I think the last preseason game you talked about (indiscernible). After today, how much does that just give you more trust in what they did today?
MATT RYAN: Yeah, I think it's huge. For young players to step up when you need it, at the end of games, and to make the plays that Alec made on converting a 1st down for us to get into that low red area and then Jelani coming up -- we took another shot to Alec, too, where they had a pressure coming off the right side and almost got it, but then to go back and Jelani come up with the game-winning touchdown, that's huge.
I have a lot of belief in those guys. I really think they're going to be good players in this league. They've shown it on the practice field. Maybe haven't seen it as much in the games to start this year, but I really think there's going to be a lot of improvement from them, but they stepped up, and the one thing, you just don't know until you're in those situations if guys have no flinch, and they just keep battling. Both those guys showed that today.
Q. What was this past week like with everything on offense? Did you meet with the guys individually? Did you address them? What changed this week because it wasn't perfect for most of the game --
MATT RYAN: No, we still have a lot of improving to do. You know, and what I've found throughout my career is you continue -- you usually continue to get better as the year goes on, and you clean things up, but you've got to find ways to win along the way as you're improving.
That's what I'm proud of today.
As far as this past week, I think it's just -- sometimes it happens in this league where you go down, you have a game where it just -- it's just not right, and you have to get back to work. You have to have the right mindset. You have to tighten things up, and you can't be uptight.
So I think there's a great sense of focus but also a looseness of I believe I'm going to make those plays. I believe we're going to get this right.
I felt across the board, we had a really good mindset all week. We still have a lot of things to clean up and a lot of room for improvement, but we're excited to come out and get the job done.
Q. Where does your short memory come from, putting bad plays behind you so they don't seep into the next one?
MATT RYAN: I don't know, I think some of it has kind of always been there since I was young. You know, some of it is learned along the way, too, of there's still time on the clock, we're still in this game, there's still belief that you're going to make the play. You're going to make the play the next time. I just have this belief in myself and in the guys around us, and there's an internal confidence that's there, and just regardless of how games shake out, I've just seen it too many times where you just give yourself a chance, and at the end you can find a way.
Now, we would love it to be different than it was today, and we certainly had opportunities to come away with more points than we did, but there's always time, and there's always time left on the clock, and there's a belief that I'm going to make a play.
Q. So the confidence level was high going out there the last drive?
MATT RYAN: Yeah, I think so. It's amazing, we have a group -- you can see it when you're in the huddle. You can feel it when you look around and you see how people are looking at you when you're calling a play or the belief or what you're saying to them.
I kind of said it last week, it's a proud group. Guys take pride in playing well, and there's certainly a lot of self-belief in our locker room. But a lot for us to clean up, too.
Q. What did Christian say to you?
MATT RYAN: I don't really know.
Q. Did he say a secret word?
MATT RYAN: He said something, yeah. He was saying something. It was a big penalty. You've got to keep your cool sometimes in those situations.
Q. (Indiscernible).
MATT RYAN: Yeah, pretty much. (Laughter.)
Q. When that extends the drive, is it resolved now to make it matter?
MATT RYAN: Yeah, we had a lot of opportunities that we need to make matter, and we did on that one. We got a second chance on that last drive, and we did, we capitalized. But if we're going to be the team we want to be, there were a couple of instances like that throughout the game that we have to do better at.
Q. You talked about confidence earlier. The young receivers and tight ends, talk about doing it on the practice field, preseason, whatever, is not quite the same. What does it mean for them to do it out there in that moment moving forward?
MATT RYAN: It's huge. You know, it really is. We talk about having trust in your preparation and your practice habits and doing it in practice and just doing the same things that we do in practice when it comes up in the games, but it helps when you make them in the critical situations, right, that creates more belief that yeah, there's no doubt, I'm in these situations, I'm that guy. I'm going to make the play. Both those guys did it today.
They've had that throughout their entire life growing up playing. They've been those guys.
It's different in this league, but really if they continue to be themselves, the same people they've always been, I truly believe they're going to make those plays in those kind of situations.
Q. Jelani said he grew up watching you. I don't want to date you --
MATT RYAN: I'm quite comfortable with where I'm at. (Laughter.)
Q. But having kind of come full circle for him, to be a part of that moment, how does that feel?
MATT RYAN: It's cool, it really is. For him growing up in Atlanta -- I mean, it's weird for me because I never knew him, but that's a lot of his experience of growing up, and I've just tried to treat him like a treatment, like one of the guys. He's been awesome. He's a great kid. He works extremely hard, super confident, but it is cool to play with a guy that grew up being a fan of yours.
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