RE: Thoughts on the ups and downs of today’s game
"The ebbs and flows are most certainly getting to all of us. I know it was getting to me. The key was we kept fighting as well. You are talking about a first ballot Hall of Fame quarterback Aaron Rodgers who just doesn’t quit which was exhibited by the fourth downs he converted. He is a playmaker and we have to be better. We have a lot to learn from this ... We have to learn how to finish better. We can’t make it this exciting because we can’t take the chance of a playmaker like Aaron Rogers is going to make a play to beat you."
RE: Experience now with these last second defensive stands
"That is one nice thing is that we are getting some quality work at that. We are getting better. We are building confidence as far as being able to get that done. But as I said you don’t want to put yourself in that position especially when you have a good lead coming up. You have to be able to withstand a flurry. It’s kind of like the ebbs and flows of basketball. If one team goes on a run you have to be able to withstand that."
RE: What does it mean that the team did not get beat?
"I think the biggest thing that it does for us is it show us we can win football games like that. As I told the players, if you don’t believe we can win in spite of ourselves trying to make mistakes we can be a very good football team. We have to take care of the mistakes we made."
RE: Common factor in 4th quarter between this week and last week that allowed the visiting team to come back
"They made plays. We have to give credit to the other team now, too. It’s not just about what we didn’t do but what they did do. Like I said, you are talking about a first ballot quarterback that made some plays, had some playmakers on the field that made some plays for them. We missed some opportunities. We had the ball in our hands a couple times and dropped it. We had the quarterback in our hands a couple times and he slipped through. We had a couple of critical third downs that we missed. We should have stopped them. We had chances to make stops and we didn’t."
RE: How did Cam Newton put the team in position to win in the first half?
"I think he made some really good decisions, put us in some really good plays and then executed it. I think he got a little anxious in the third quarter and tried to force a couple things. Then when he settled in we were able to go down and score a couple more times. We had opportunities and I kept looking up at the board. We kicked three field goals when we had opportunities to score touchdowns. I’ll tell you guys, if you kick field goals, especially against a good team like this with a quarterback like that, you are going to get beat. That is nine points that we got instead of 21."
RE: Offensive distribution this season
"I think it goes back to the whole thing of when we lost Kelvin Benjamin and I think it kind of forced us and Cam to use everybody a lot more. Instead of one guy with 7, 8, 9 or 10 targets you are seeing guys with 3, 4 or 5 targets, 2, 3 or 4 catches and I think that is important because now you have to cover the whole field. You don’t have to worry about running towards one guy."
RE: Devin Funchess making big plays
"It just means that we can have that big presence that we are missing right now. I think it was a big step for Devin, I really do. It’s going to be a big boost for his confidence and a huge boost for Cam Newton’s confidence in him as well as Mike Shula. One of the things that Mike is always looking for is guys who can make plays so he can call their number. It works twofold and that’s what it’s going to do for him and us."
RE: Luke Kuechly and Josh Norman injuries
"Josh Norman got the wind knocked out of him. Luke Kuechly twisted his ankle. Both times it was the same ankle. He was able to come back thank goodness. They both are going to be OK."
RE: Opening statement
"I just want to start by showing my appreciation to the Veteran that I represented today. It was a guy by the name of John Jarrell and I spoke about him earlier and we can’t just forget the things that we represented today. You know, there are times when we have opportunities to make a public service announcement and just for the month of November it feels like the only time we can really salute to our veterans. But it doesn’t go unnoticed, the person that sacrificed his life for ours, the things that a lot of us take for granted, even myself, but yet I just wanted to show him as well as his family the things he did are appreciated and everybody on our team wore a different person. I don’t think the troops get enough recognition and praise. I just wanted to take time to say that. I know as a franchise, everyone in this organization, we take time to pride in shining a light on great things and great people, so that’s what I wanted to do."
RE: Team has never experienced 8-0
"We’ve just got to clean a lot of things up. It wasn’t a pretty 8, but it is 8 and that’s gorgeous in itself. We’ve got to find ways to finish. I’m speaking specifically to myself. Throwing that senseless interception at the end, when I know I pride myself on protecting the football in crunchtime situations, I am thankful to have a defense that’s lights out and playing with unbelievable confidence and didn’t blink."
RE: Kelvin Benjamin loss at the halfway mark in season
"I think we’re past that right now. Kelvin’s doing good. Kelvin’s walking. He’s on the rise as far as his rehabilitation. We can’t keep dwelling on things that happened 10 weeks ago. We’re halfway through the season and it’s time for us to start realizing that Kelvin’s not going to play. We know he wants to play. He knows he wants to play. There have been guys that have stepped up to the plate making big plays out there. It’s great to see (Devin) Funchess have two great catches out there today and we need him to continue to grow as a playmaker in this offense and he will."
RE: Significant win for home field playoff advantage
"We knew this game was going to prove a lot — not only to the league, but to the conference and to ourselves. Playing a great team, a team that is most likely going to be in the playoffs with the talent level that they have there ... We’re doing something that’s hard to do in this league and that is to become 8-0. Are we satisfied? No. We know that a perfect Panther game is still out there."
RE: Report of you tearing down Green Bay banner before game
"It was a Green Bay banner in Bank of America Stadium. It just doesn’t match. No disrespect to any Green Bay Packer. It’s just a respect thing. We take pride in having the edge of playing in Bank of America stadium, playing in front of the Carolinas each and every week. It’s something that I feel … it’s my due diligence to protect this house. It’s a gesture of tearing down the sign, it wasn’t necessarily about tearing down the sign it was a respect. We played in Green Bay last year and I didn’t see any 'This is Panther Country' signs in their stadium. I don’t know why, but yet. I was passing, the sign was dangling either somebody was going to have to take it off or I take it off. Again, it’s no disrespect to no one. It’s more of a respect to the stadium."
What type of respect does this team deserve at 8-0?
"We deserve a lot of respect but it's still halfway through the season and we haven't done anything like go to the Super Bowl yet, but we're going to take strides and continue to grow."
RE: His interception and today’s game
"I cannot not express enough how big (Kawann) Short was in that play and making it happen. It was definitely an honor to go out and play this game today just knowing who we were playing for. Me playing for (SFC) Henry Bacon and his family, it was truly an honor."
RE: Playing Aaron Rodgers
"I’ve played the Green Bay Packers 24 times, somewhere around there, being in the NFC North and this is probably one of the hardest games that I’ve had to play as far as coverage with Aaron Rodgers."
RE: His catches today
"I was just waiting on my moment and it came today on the first long one and I made sure I hauled that one in and kept feeding."
RE: What Devin Funchess brings to this team.
"Size and speed. I mean, come on man, that guy’s big. He’s got good footwork, he’s got good speed and he’s got size. And he’s strong in his hands. That guy, he’s been working his ass off since he came here, so I’m proud of him, I’m happy for him."
RE: If he thinks Damarious Randall got both feet in bounds on the interception.
"No, I don’t. But hey, we didn’t get a lot of calls that were supposed to be iffy. We just keep rolling, we’re 8-0, that’s all we can ask for."
RE: Success the last few weeks
"To beat that team, and obviously they have been at the top of the NFC for the last couple of years, and that’s who we’ve been chasing. To put it all together and again, give ourselves anxiety at the end for no reason. Again, this shows a lot about our guys that we continue to fight and played pretty well up until the end and just an overall great day for our team, our organization and our fans."
RE: Opening statement
"First and foremost, I thank God for allowing me to play for the troops this game. They gave up their lives so we can have freedom in this world and the United States of America; there is nothing greater than that. I just wanted to come out and pay homage to them, the proud and the brave. I wore my shoes today, I may get fined for it but it is what it is, the price we pay for freedom, I’ll take that any day. Big ups to them and everything they do for our country, I can’t be proud enough to be an American citizen."
RE: Being frustrated with himself
"I just set the bar so high for myself; I’m just trying to beat the quarterback in every single way. I think (Aaron Rodgers) got two on me today. I just have to be better. I know one of them was a ball to (James Jones), I was in good coverage, scramble position, I was saying plaster all week. I went to go plaster, I went to the sideline and he went to the sideline. (Aaron Rodgers) threw that thing back over and I came back, stuck my foot in the ground, slipped a little on the ball, I had my hands on it as I was coming down. (James) Jones came over the top and pulled the thing out of my hands man. That could have sealed it for us I think, or at least gave the ball back to the offense and let them drive out the clock. I just have to be better."
RE: Going from the “worst undefeated team” to the team to beat in the NFC
"The media says who they think we are. We know who we are as a team. We know who we are as a defense, as an offense, and we don’t worry about what everybody else has to say and what they rank us and this that and the other, because in this locker room, we think we are the best team whenever we line up."
RE: Why the offense is not where it usually is
"I think the one obvious component on our offense is not where it needs to be. We are not in a rhythm. We are up and down and that is the result of it. So we got into a hole there and came out in it pretty much two minute style offense pretty much the whole second half. It puts a huge stress on your protection unit particularly your offensive line so we need to play better."
RE: What did you see on that fourth and four play?
"When I looked out to Peanut to see if he had eyes in the backfield, because I was worried about him sluffing off and him tackling Randall short of the goal line. Turns out JJ kind of ran Peanut into 25 and Randall was wide open for the touchdown, so that’s disappointing."
RE: Is that what you saw on the screen when you threw the tablet to the ground?
"Oh, they caught that? Yeah, there are frustrations in this game, it’s a frustrating game. It’s exhilarating and also frustrating when you make a mistake like that. I had the easy opportunity there for a pitch and catch touchdown but I got scared by something, I can’t explain it. It was a mistake by myself. I will definitely be thinking about that one on the ride home."