What The Texans Are Saying About The Seahawks

Check out what Texans coaches and players are saying about the Seahawks before the two teams meet in Week 8 at CenturyLink Field, via houstontexans.com. Head Coach Bill O’Brien (On how he feels about his team coming to Seattle for this weekend’s matchup...) “We feel good about where we’re at right now. Just like a lot of other teams, we wish we were 6-0, but we feel like we’ve improved. We’re coming off a win [against Cleveland], which is important, I think going into your bye to have a win. We were able to study a lot of different things, and hopefully improve our team, but at the same time, we know that this is a huge challenge; going to Seattle and playing a great football team within all three phases, the coaching staff that they have, the players, we know that it’s going to be a very difficult challenge.” (On Seattle’s secondary…) “They are very, very smart. Very well coached, very athletic, they have length, they do a great job of communicating. I mean where do you begin? You start with the two safeties, Earl Thomas is probably in my opinion one of the best safeties to ever play the game. He’s got great range, great tackler, great ball skills. You know, he reminds you so much of the guys that had the unfortunate deal of calling plays against Ed Reed, and Troy Polamalu, who just had that type of skill set. Then you have Kam Chancellor who just, he’s just got great length, athletic ability, tough, good tackler. Then you go to the outside where you’ve got Richard Sherman. You know, I think you just put the film on and he’s a guy that’s very, very difficult to get open against. He’s very smart, he studies tape, he knows what’s going on and you better keep him guessing because if you don’t it’s going to be a long day. So they’ve got a lot, they’re very, very good in the secondary.” (On going against Russell Wilson…) “It’s been a common theme for us that we have to get better with all the guys. It’s been Blake Bortles, it’s been Alex Smith, it’s been a lot of the guys so we have to do a better job of that. You know, when you look at Russell Wilson, obviously he can throw from the pocket. When you let him escape and extend plays, it’s going to be a long day. The other thing about him is, he’s the highest rated fourth quarter quarterback in the league right now. I mean, he plays great in the fourth quarter which shows you what a winner he is. So we’ve got a big challenge ahead of us, and one of the things we have to try to do is try to limit the times that he scrambles.” Quarterback Coach Sean Ryan (Similarities in Deshaun and Russell…) “Their mobility, their athleticism. They’re two guys that obviously move around well, they both have the ability to extend plays. Why they extend plays, I think they’re able to keep their eyes down the field and make throws down the field as well. They both have good arms, strong arms, can push the ball vertically down the field. I think those are probably the main things.” (On playing in Seattle with it being so loud…) “You just emphasize within the huddle. You always have to make sure its simple things, your eyes have got to be up, your lips have got to be up so those guys can hear everything that you’re saying. So there’s some really small things that seem matter of fact but you just kind of have to harp on him, and keep reminding him all week long. He’s pretty good with it, he understands the situation, but those little things usually help.”Wide Receiver Bruce Ellington (On the defense…) “I’ve been watching film. They’ve got a great scheme on defense. The players work real hard, I mean he’s good at what they do.” (On the noise at CenturyLink…) “It’s not overrated at all. I told the players it’s going to get pretty loud in there but you know, we’ve got a great scheme, we’ve got a great quarterback. He’s going to do the job getting us the play and we’re going to play football.” Wide Receiver Will Fuller V (On the game…) “It’s going to be a good matchup. I’ve been watching these guys since I was in high school. A guy like Richard Sherman, or Earl Thomas, Kam Chancellor. Like I said, it’s going to be a fun game to play against people who I’ve watched for a long time.” (On what makes the defense so good…) “They’ve been producing for a long time. They’ve been some of the best cornerbacks and safeties in the game since I’ve been watching them so, they’re still producing and doing a great job out there.” Quarterback Deshaun Watson (On the secondary and Richard Sherman…) “Veteran guys. I know Griffin is a rookie but he’s around a lot of veteran guys that are gonna teach him, make sure he’s prepared. It’s going to be a fun task because these are guys that I’ve looked up to, who I’ve watched over the previous years and actually got to know so it’s going to be fun going against those guys and competing with them.” (On Russell Wilson…) “Yeah, he’s a Super Bowl winner. He’s a guy that does a lot of things I can do. Run the ball, make the right throws, make good decisions, very composed, and a guy that leads his team.” (On taking the challenge of shutting the crowd out…) “Of course. That’s every offense's goal, is to go on a roll and try and shut the crowd out and quiet them. But it’s going to be a tough task, and we understand that. We respect the Seattle environment and their defense. We’ve just got to go up there and focus on our job and try to do that.” (On what is most impressive about Russell…) “His leadership obviously, but probably his decision making. The way he operates, and takes control of that offense. I mean you’ve seen it as a rookie whenever he was there. Where he came in, he knew where everyone was at. He’s demanding greatness out of every player and that causes the whole offense to execute at a high level and be successful. Just looking at that and going back to his older days and even now, it’s even better. It’s special.” Offensive Lineman Breno Giacomini (On playing at Seattle…) “What I call a previous employment. You know, it’s cool to go back and go out there and play. I’ve done it before so it’s nothing new so it’ll be exciting and once the game gets going all that, even now all that’s kind of behind you. You’ve just got to prepare and keep getting better.” (On the defense…) “They’re a good defense. They’ve got a lot of speed, a lot of speed. They’ve been playing together for a long time, a lot of continuity there. It’s never about them, its how well can we prepare. How well can we get tips on their alignments and their blitzes and how can we see them through the same set of eyes and be on the same page. It’s never about the other guys, it’s always about the guys in this locker room.”

What The Texans Are Saying About The Seahawks

Check out what Texans coaches and players are saying about the Seahawks before the two teams meet in Week 8 at CenturyLink Field.