HEAD COACH JOHN FOX
On Manning's record
"It was great, to see a guy that's worked as hard as he has throughout his career and I know for a fact – the two seasons we've had him, almost two complete seasons – pretty remarkable and pretty exciting to be around. To see a guy that goes about his business like he does get rewarded with success – very humble. He said the best news he heard in there was that we'd won the AFC West for a third straight year and we have first round bye. We still have to play for home field but he's – number one is team success and he's gotten us to 12-3 and 13-3 a year ago. That's pretty good on his part."
On comparing this championship to the other two
"They're all completely different. The first one was unique, last from where we started to where we finished I thought was unique. We had higher expectations coming into this season. I think everybody in our city, state and region did as well. So they're all completely different probably as much for those three reasons as anything."
On what happened in the third quarter
"These things, they're all hard. Sometimes, maybe when you look at the final score, the end of season record or whatever. Each one of these is a new test, very difficult. You're always playing against good players, guys that are good coaches. I thought the turning point was the Mike Adams interception. It was a tremendous play over there on their bench. It was a three-point game and you have those plays in games. I can go through just about every game this season and pick out that play. The good news is that it happened in our player."
On his interception
"The receiver was running a wheel route and stopped, and I was fortunate enough to read the quarterback's eyes and I jumped it. That definitely was a game-changer, and we started getting things rolling from there."
On the defense holding the Texans to their fewest points of the season
"Definitely happy. We always pride ourselves on making strides and just getting better every week. This was a great stepping stone for the next season to come. We're worrying about the next game, which is the Oakland Raiders, but this is a great start."
On the sideline's reaction to Manning's 51st TD
"Oh, we were ecstatic. Everybody was like, 'Why aren't we running the ball? Why aren't we running the ball?' I'm like, 'Yo, the record, baby. The record.' Then when he got the record, we all just came up there. We were so happy for him. It was a great moment for him."
CORNERBACK CHAMP BAILEY
On winning the AFC West title
"Absolutely. That is a big accomplishment for us – one of our team goals starting the season. Got that one done. I'm glad [quarterback Peyton Manning] got his 51. He definitely deserves it. He put the work in and I can't believe he did it in his 16th year. That's crazy. Unbelievable. The guy is great."
On the defense's performance in limiting the Texans
"Well, I think on defense, we needed to make some plays. And Mike Adams got us started. When he got that pick, things just turned up from there. There was no looking back."
On how he felt about his first game back since Week 13
"I feel good. I liked the role I was playing. I didn't play every snap, which is probably smart at this point. I felt good and I'll just try to do a little more next week."
WIDE RECEIVER ERIC DECKER
On whether he knew Manning's record-tying touchdown was coming to him before the ball was snapped
"I had an idea. I had an idea it was coming. I was making sure I was getting in the right spot because if I wasn't there and didn't have a chance to catch it, I know I would have heard about it. That was a play that was kind of designed to kind of come to either me or [tight end Jacob] Tamme. Happy I made it."
On how people gameplan to try to stop the Broncos offense
"Well, we've seen – whether it's disguising and moving at the last minute, or if it is playing two safeties on top, man coverage, trying to press, get on us and make it tough for us with the timing routes. I think the other thing is trying to get after [Manning], trying to get some hits on him. I think, overall as a team, we did a good job of keeping him upright and making plays when we had the chance."
DEFENSIVE END SHAUN PHILLIPS
On whether the team will celebrate the AFC West title
"Of course, we celebrate it. You celebrate every victory you get in this league for 24 hours. A win or a loss, you celebrate or you mope for 24 hours. Then you move on and get ready for the next game. I mean, we played a good football team. Their record isn't indicative of how good that team is. But that is a good football lteam. They were 12-4 last year or something. But that just goes to show you that you have to be on it week-in and week-out, and year-in and year-out."
On Manning's record-breaking touchdown passes
"Yeah, it's huge. I mean, lucky for me, I got a chance to experience the single-season rushing record with [former Chargers running back LaDanian Tomlinson] and then I get to be a part of the single-season passing record with Peyton. It's huge. Anytime you're on a team, individual accomplishments are a bunch of team success, too. Peyton is one of those guys that – he didn't pat himself on the back – he thanked the defense for getting turnovers, he thanked the offense for blocking, he thanked Julius for catching the ball. That is why football is the ultimate team sport – because it takes everyone to do their job in order for one person to succeed."
On safety Mike Adams' interception shifting momentum in the game
"That just shows you it's a team game. Football is a team sport."
GUARD ZANE BEADLES
On being a part of Manning's record-breaking campaign
"This is cool. Everything that Peyton has done, the work that he's put in to get to this point, has been awesome. It's an honor to be a part of that and to be able to get him to that with all the work that he's put in over the years and especially during this season alone."
On winning the AFC West
"Absolutely. I think Peyton's record is a team record that goes into it, but more importantly, we got that division and we're getting closer to our ultimate goal."
On the work that Manning puts in
"People don't understand how much work goes into even a single play during the week. It's a lot of work but that's our job and Peyton is the best at doing that kind of stuff."
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