Saints Coach Kellen Moore
Opening comments
“Good win for our team. Again, we’ve talked a lot about making December football meaningful, and I feel like our guys have really been jumping on that opportunity. To win a few down the stretch here and have a couple more opportunities—the energy, the juice, the way our guys are playing together—is really, really special. It’s a special group in that locker room.”
On the defensive performance
“Just phenomenal. The shoutouts took a while in the locker room. There were a bunch of guys making plays today. I thought it was just credit to our guys—the relentless effort, the finish, the way they’re playing together. Those sacks, there’s coverage associated with that and the way our guys are covering on the back end. The guys just took advantage of opportunities, and it was really cool to see.”
On how many players received game balls
“I don’t know. I’ll have to tally them up later. It was a healthy list.”
On the importance of winning the final home game of the year
“It was a big part of our whole entire week, starting on Wednesday—last opportunity in the Dome for this year. Let’s finish it off the right way. It’s been an awesome place, and we’re building something really special. When we play in this dome, special things can happen. We’ve allowed the last couple of wins to really get the crowd into it, which has helped build from there.”
On all three phases playing complementary football
“I think it’s just the focus, the habits guys are creating. We are simply playing better football. In all three phases, we talk about complementary football—working together, playing off of each other, feeding off of each other in big moments. Again, I love the energy that’s in the locker room.”
On the offensive response with limited run-game personnel
“I thought it was great. Taysom (Hill) stepped up and contributed in a really positive way. That was just a really special game by Taysom. All the things that he did and that he was asked to do were incredible, for him to become the first guy in the NFL in the Super Bowl era with 1,000 rushing yards, 1,000 receiving yards and 1,000 passing yards. He’s just a special guy. Then, the young guys hopped in there. When opportunities presented themselves, we were still able to get a few runs in there. It was not always pretty; it was dirty. In the pass game, we were able to create some explosives as a result of that.”
On whether they were trying to give Taysom Hill a touchdown late
“The opportunities were certainly going his way toward the end of the game, yes.”
On building confidence
“I think the confidence is growing. We’re creating habits and creating meaningful December football. Winning is contagious, and you want to create those winning habits. It starts with every opportunity you have, and it’s really cool to see our guys doing this.”
On matching last year’s win total
“I have not thought about that. Our guys are playing better football down the stretch, and we just have to keep building on that. We still have a couple more opportunities.”
On DE Cam Jordan’s performance
“Just awesome—relentless, two sacks, around the ball a ton, making plays. It was a really special day.”
On going for the fake punt instead of challenging the previous play
“We talked about it. We felt like the fake punt felt pretty clean. We felt confident about that, and we talked it through.”
On how close the team was to a complete game
“It was good. We have to finish some drives and score more touchdowns in those situations. Special teams-wise, Charlie [Smyth] did an excellent job kicking the football. We made some big plays there against a really talented unit. Our defense was relentless. I loved the way all three phases worked together and competed for four quarters.”
On DE Cam Jordan and QB Taysom Hill
“Those guys are the best. They’ve done this for a really long time in this league. They lead by example, and the young guys get to look up to them. You can see it on the field—they’re playing really good football right now.”
On QB Tyler Shough’s performance
“He did a really good job. Playing quarterback in this league brings ups and downs, and for him to stay steady through the process, I thought he did an excellent job.”
On the passing game plan
“It was just the way the game was flowing. You’d love to run the football more, but from a pass-game perspective, it was cleaner and more efficient. That’s credit to those guys and Tyler executing at a high level.”
On injury updates
“We’ll see. Bryan Bresee had a knee issue. We’ll evaluate Foster Moreau tomorrow with the ankle and hip-drop situation.”
On K Charlie Smyth signaling for one more kick
“Charlie’s awesome. He’s playing really good football, and the team is rallying behind him. He’s got a bright future.”
On Taysom Hill’s touchdown pass to Chris Olave
“The threat of Taysom running it was there. We had the option to run or throw based on the look, and it turned into a touchdown.”
On how unique Taysom Hill is
“This league talks about trying to find ‘Taysom Hills,’ but no one can duplicate it. His ability to play every phase of the offense and contribute on special teams is really special. He’s an A-plus person, an A-plus human being and an A-plus player. Our young guys can learn a lot from him.”