Washington Commanders 17, Indianapolis Colts 16
Q. Thoughts on your first experience starting in the NFL?
SAM EHLINGER: Yeah, obviously unfortunate. I thought as an offense we had a lot of opportunities. We just shot ourselves in the foot.
We got down on the other side of the 50 multiple times and didn't come away with points. Two turnovers. Got down to the inch yard line and came away with three points, and that's not good enough in this league.
Had some penalties we've got to clean up. So it's frustrating, but we showed that we can be an explosive offense. We had explosive plays, and we just have to keep building from here.
Q. Sam, what were the last 24 hours like for you?
SAM EHLINGER: I was just ready to go.
Q. What does it mean to have two leaders in Frank Reich and Ryan Kelly giving you support for your first start?
SAM EHLINGER: Yeah, it means the world to have leaders on the team that believe in me and have verbally expressed that they have my back and to be able to go out there and... obviously we came up short, but to have Coach and Ryan, knowing that they have support for me, it means the world.
Q. Is it fair to say that Frank Reich opened the playbook up a bit for you down the stretch?
SAM EHLINGER: It's hard to tell without watching it right now because I'm just, like -- it's hard to see it holistically.
Q. But you did take some shots.
SAM EHLINGER: Yeah, we had some opportunities to throw the ball down the field in the second half, yeah.
Q. Operationally, what was it like going against a defense that wasn't holding anything back?
SAM EHLINGER: It felt great. To be out there, it's a good defense, and they brought a lot of different stuff. They threw some mixed coverages in there.
So to be able to get in, first regular season experience. Obviously hate the outcome, and need to grow.
Q. On fourth and inches, are you surprised you didn't go for it?
SAM EHLINGER: One backed up?
Q. (Indiscernible).
SAM EHLINGER: No, that's out of my control. Our defense was playing great, so yeah.
Q. Did you think you had the first down?
SAM EHLINGER: I thought I had it. I thought I had it by the reaction of my teammates, but obviously my knee was down.
Q. Did you need to play as well as you did to prove that you can play in the league?
SAM EHLINGER: Well, I think you asked, How do you know you're ready. And you never know if you're ready until you're put in the situation.
My goal now is just to improve every week. I understand that it wasn't good enough, and there's a lot of things to clean up. Just keep improving every single week.
Q. How much can you grow from this experience? What will that process be like?
SAM EHLINGER: Massive amounts of growth. You know, first start. Obviously, don't ever really know what to expect until you're in there and the live bullets are coming. I think now I know what it feels like to play a regular season game.
I think that there's a lot of potential for growth, which I'm excited about. There's a lot of things to clean up and things to do better. There's a lot of opportunities out there to be had. I'm looking forward to continuing to grow and improve.
Q. What were your impressions some of the guys around you that made some plays?
SAM EHLINGER: I think those guys are playing really well. I think we were really explosive on offense tonight. Parrish did a great job with the ball in his hands. It makes my life a lot easier when you can throw a little smoke screen, and he takes it 50.
We'll continue to grow in our chemistry, understanding how I throw, understanding how they run routes. I think they're doing a great job.
The thing is, we're still so young and they're continuing to get better every week. So there's a lot to look at and improve on. I'm optimistic for the group.
Q. Do you take time to reflect and think about the blessings that have been bestowed upon you at a young age?
SAM EHLINGER: I'm unbelievably grateful for this opportunity and the things that have happened in my life. I think that it's an unbelievable experience, opportunity, and I'm very thankful.
I think that I haven't really taken a moment to take it all in because I'm so focused on getting better and doing what I can to help this team be successful on a daily basis, but I'm humbled and very grateful.
Q. Did you lose control as you were trying to run with it on your fumble?
SAM EHLINGER: I don't even know what happened. It was just a blunder.
FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports