Q&A with DAMON HUARD - 9/25

Sep 25, 2008, 3:20:02 PM

Q: How do you approach this week now that you’re back in a starting role?

DAMON HUARD: “It’s all about getting back out there on Sunday and getting a win around here. That’s just what it’s all about now.”

Q: Are you 100 percent healthy?

HUARD: “Well, I’m not going to sit here and talk about injuries. Everybody as the season rolls on gets a little nicked up. I’ll be all right.”

Q: Have you been in a situation where there’s been so much movement at the quarterback position?

HUARD: “Not that I really remember. When you’ve lost as many games in a row as we have, you’ve got to do that. You’ve got to make those sort of moves and try figure a way to win a game. At the end of the day, that’s what it’s all about. I think that’s expected. I haven’t been on a losing streak like this at any level. But I think that’s kind of what happens when you struggle. You do whatever you can, turn over every stone to try to win a football game.”

Q: Are you surprised that you didn’t start last Sunday?

HUARD: “Not necessarily. I didn’t play really well in the Raider game. Whatever my role is, whatever week it is, it’s just taking it one game at a time and trying to get a win here.”

Q: Is that fair if that decision was based on two possessions against the Raiders?

HUARD: “I’m not one to argue or question or debate. That’s not my style, my philosophy. Whatever they feel is the best way for our football team to win a game that week, that’s what we’ll do. This week I’m up and I have this opportunity, and as you get older and play this game, you don’t know how many opportunities you’re going to get. All I know is that I get a chance to go out there and play on Sunday, you know, go out there and do my best and try to help this team win a football game.”

Q: What do you do to avoid turnovers against Denver?

HUARD: “It’s risk and reward. You try to manage the game. You try not to force it. But at the same time you’ve got to trust your instincts. When the opportunity is there, hopefully you make the throw. There are tight windows in this league and balls get tipped and interceptions happen. When that does happen, we can’t panic. I think that’s something we’ve done here, myself included. We’ve gotten behind and we throw interceptions and get down. Sometimes those things happen, but when you look at the statistics, the teams that don’t turn it over are the teams that win football games. That’s why preaching that point is so important.”

Q: Is it hard not to get caught up with Denver’s offense and their productivity?

HUARD: “Yeah, certainly. They put up 38 points a game. They’re firing on all cylinders on offense. That’ll be a challenge for us to go out there and score some points and keep our defense off the field. That’s one thing we’ve really struggled with this year. We’ve had so many three-and-outs, we haven’t been able to sustain drives, and that puts a lot of pressure on the defense. Obviously against the Broncos, you can’t do that. You can’t let your defense be out there all day. They’ve got so many weapons and (Broncos QB) Jay’s (Cutler) is playing at such a high level. We have to keep them off the field.”

Q: Is it amped up now because you’re playing a division rival?

HUARD: “It’s amped up now because we’ve lost 12 games in a row. We need to go out and find a way to win a football game.”

Q: What do those losses mean to you?

HUARD: “It gets old. It’s tough and takes it toll on everybody. All we need is one. Start with one.”

Q: Head coach Herm Edwards said a victory would be like three Christmases rolled into one. How would you describe it?

HUARD: “I’d agree. It’d make the working environment certainly a lot better.”

Q: Is there a black cloud hanging over this franchise because of all the losing?

HUARD: “I’m not going to say it’s a black cloud, and I really shouldn’t say the working environment’s bad. We’ve got so many young guys and so many guys that weren’t a part of the final nine last year. So, to say a black cloud, no way. Guys are out practicing hard, they’re still working hard trying to find a way to get a win. Certainly getting off to an 0-3 start is a tough pill to swallow.”

Q: Do you think these players will be good players down the road?

HUARD: “Oh yeah, no question. We’ve got a lot of young players with a lot of talent. You certainly look at our first round draft picks. Guys here in their second and third years making contributions and playing at a high level. So there’s certainly a lot of talent around here and they will grow and get better as things move along.”

Q: Is there more pressure to get something done right away in the game for a guy like you?

HUARD: “I don’t know. There’s always pressure. Dan Marino told a long time ago before my first start, he said ‘Damon, you think there’s pressure? Well, there is.’ You know what, that’s pro football. That’s really what it’s all about. There’s always pressure on all of us every week to go out there and win. Hopefully you thrive on it and grow from it and use it to your advantage.”

Q: Last week RB Larry Johnson did well in the second half. Is that something that can be started earlier?

HUARD: “Yeah, you hope so. We got that running game going there in the third quarter. That’s when we’ve been our best around here is when we’ve been able to run the football, play-action pass, minimal yardage on third down and stay out of third-and-long. Obviously it’s hard to convert third-and-longs in this league. When we’re able to run the football and get Larry going, that’s when we’re at our best.”

Q: Denver has given up a lot of yards. Do you see some opportunities for the offense?

HUARD: “They look really good. When your team is scoring a lot of points, like they are on offense, it usually means the other team is playing catch-up and throwing lots of balls in the fourth quarter and two minute drill. They have given up some yards, but if you look at their first-half stats, they jump out. I think they’ve only give up like six points in the first quarter on defense. They’re a solid defense with two unbelievable corners that’ll present a great challenge for us on the outside. They have a lot of team speed, they can really really run around. So it’ll be a big challenge for us, there’s no question.”

Q: Would a solid performance in this contest give your entire team a boost?

HUARD: “Like I said earlier, it’s about getting that first win and then you get some of that confidence and then some of that respect. But hopefully, this week all we can do is work hard during the week and prepare and help to give ourselves a chance to win on Sunday. Hopefully some of these guys get their swagger back.”