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Q&A RB Priest Holmes - 11/19
11/19/2003 3:21 PM

OAKLAND CONFERENCE CALL
Q: Why are Chiefs-Raiders games always close no matter what the teams’
records are? Do both teams know each others’ schemes that well?

HOLMES: “The thing is that when we play Oakland the game always changes
once we line up against each other because it’s such a big rival game. I
think with other teams they do struggle at times with the run. However,
when they come into Arrowhead or we are in Oakland I think that it
changes and they begin to be a lot more aggressive and are able to work a
little bit better with their defensive schemes. They really know us
because of the number of years we have been playing.�

Q: Will it benefit you that the Raiders may have some new people in the
lineup due to injuries?

HOLMES: “No, not necessarily because you never know when you have a new
guy that steps up. He is going to show you a different look, he is going
to be excited, he is going to have a lot more quickness, his legs will be
a lot fresher, those guys are dangerous just as much as the regular
starters. You do know that typically when a new guy comes in he will get
himself out of playing leverage and that’s when we can take advantage of
him.�

Q: In some respects, is it a good thing that the talk of the Chiefs
winning streak has come to an end?

HOLMES: “With the streak ending, what it allows for us to do is to
refocus. I believe that because of the streak and because of the games we
had been winning, we took on a entirely different type of team. Everyone
wanted us to go 16-0, there were teams and personnel that would like for
us to have our first loss by their team. Now we have a chance to have
that out of the way there is not too much that a team can put towards us
as far as leverage. They can’t say ‘we are going to be the first team to
defeat the Kansas City Chiefs’ they can’t say ‘they are riding high
because they haven’t lost.’ We have experienced a loss, we have
experienced defeat and now we are ready to start playing.�

Q: Do you regret making some of the comments you did after the game about
the Bengals organization?

HOLMES: “I don’t necessarily regret how they felt and I definitely do not
take back any of my words. I stand strong by them. The one thing that I
really wanted to point out was just the fact that for them to have the
largest crowd this year with over 64,000 people, to me just showed the
lack of respect I had for the organization because I don’t think their
commitment to winning has been there. I do believe that with Marvin
Lewis, now they will have an opportunity to win and also with the players
believing in his goals.�

Q: Was it frustrating losing to a team that has had such a track record
of losing?

HOLMES: “No, what was more frustrating was that we needed someone to
really inginite us on offense and defense. We never really had that
particular play until the second half. By that time, with the time of
possession, and the type of offense they were running, they were really
able to tire down the defense and control the clock.�

Q: Have you been frustrated with the amount of touches you’ve been
receiving?

HOLMES: “Well, I haven’t really been frustrated because I know that with
any win how many carries I may have will not be the biggest talk of the
week. Definitely when it shows up as a loss and there were 16 carries,
definitely then you can point that out. We are still in stride to do
everything we are set to do. As far as with Coach Vermeil and the
coaching staff using me on different downs and using me more as far as a
receiver or a running back is up to them.�

Q: Has there been a concerted effort to keep down your touches to keep
you fresher?

HOLMES: “I don’t think it’s a matter of keeping it fresh because I
believe that whatever type of stress you put the body under it will go
into a frame of mind that it can handle it. So, it’s just a matter of
what they ask me to do and definitely I am willing to do it.�

Q: Do you feel like you’ve finally found a home in Kansas City?

HOLMES: “Actually I found a home here two years ago when Coach Vermeil
asked me to come out and that is exactly what I needed was a head coach
asking me to be his running back. To be able to be put into this
situation and then have the gameplan designed around me on certain
aspects of the running game really increases my level of success.�

Q: Are players in your locker room upset about allegedly-confidential
information leaking out of the league office?

HOLMES: “I’m not too familiar with which players actually were found
breaking the (rules) within the NFL, I’m not even sure of that. I’ve just
heard from talk around the locker room that different players have shown
up positive. I really do not know. As far as the confidentially in the
league, there is no such thing.�

Q: What is your opinion on the league’s policy in regards to supplements
and the like?

HOLMES: “I do know that whenever the league decides to shutdown, or to
really pinpoint a certain aspect of breaking certain by-laws within the
NFL, they are definitely going to find a few people, and once they do you
just hate to be the bearer of bad news on that end. They are definitely
sticklers and when they have their mind set to do something they really
will. A year or two ago they really started to cut down on cut-blocks and
that was something they really pinpointed on. Guys that have normally
cut-blocked several players in a game, now they are showing up with
fines. It is something that it would be wise for the team to tell you
‘hey this is what the league is focusing on’ and it would help teammates
out.�

Q: How do you approach a rivalry game like the Chiefs-Raiders?

HOLMES: “I look at it as a UT vs. A&M game (Texas vs. Texas A&M). It
doesn’t matter what the score is. Either side of the ball can get excited
enough and get enough momentum to come back no matter how much they are
down. That is just the type of game it will be on Sunday and you
definitely want to be on the side where you have momentum the longest so
by the time the fourth quarter comes around you can definitely feed off
of that.�

Q: The Raiders have really made a commitment to run the ball the past two
weeks. As a running back, is that something you feel offensive linemen
get excited about?

HOLMES: “This time of the year you always look to run the ball. Offensive
lineman definitely get excited because it’s the one time they can
actually t-off on the defense and they don’t have to set block and allow
a defensive end to crash into them. I think for most lineman, especially
when you have injuries and different guys coming into the line-up
whenever you can run that gives them a little more confidence to go
forward instead of always having to sit back.�

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