TITANS QB STEVE MCNAIR

"I'm doing great. About five hours after the surgery I was walking, it was a great relief that the surgery was complete. I think the guys up there did a great job. Now I'm being patient and taking my rehab seriously to get back as soon as I can. They say it's going to be six weeks but you never know.

(On if he knew after he threw last Friday that he was hurt)

"I knew it then. There was just too much pain. I couldn't stand to put any pressure on my left leg. I knew something was wrong. I knew something was wrong and I knew that I hadn't felt this feeling before. That's when I said 'Let's get this thing taken care of. And let's get it taken care of quick."

(On if the prospect of having surgery was a shock)

"It was no shock. I knew from that standpoint that I had done all could do on it. The next best thing was to go ahead and have surgery. Without surgery, I probably wouldn't have been able to play a game this year. I went ahead and had the surgery and hopefully that cleared up everything. I'm feeling fine right now. The incision is a little sore but other than that I feel fine. It took a lot of pressure off of my back.

(On if his pre-surgery conditioning will speed up his return)

"Yes, definitely. Even the doctor said that due to the circumstance I had been doing these exercises for eight weeks. My muscles had really strengthened to the point where it really wouldn't be a problem once the fusion of the disc and incision heals. It wouldn't be a problem for me to start exercising and progress quickly.

(On if it's hard to watch the team going on without him)

"It's very hard. The two games that I sat out in the preseason were very strange and very awkward to me because I've never done that in my life. As a junior high quarterback, as a high school player, as a college player I've never done that in my life. And now as a pro to have to sit out at least five games. That's what hurts me a lot to know that my team battles every Sunday and I can't be a part of it. I can't be a part of it where I can help them in certain situations where they need help. It hurts me to the feeling of where I know now that I'm a big part of the ball team and I've got to hurry up and get well. I've got to get ready to get better to get back on this field to play and help my team win.

(On not travelling with the team to Jacksonville and San Francisco)

"The four hour trip isn't good for my back. I think I'll miss these next two weeks of going to see them play. But the team knows that I'll be there in spirit. I'll be cheering for them and I'm 100% behind them. That's what they need to know is that I'm still behind them regardless of not travelling with them for the next two weeks.

(on upcoming games)

I think the team has prepared themselves to be in a position to go and win these two ball games and come back and be prepared to play against Baltimore. They have that in mind and this team is a different team from last year from when they first came into Nashville. They expect to win and know they can win regardless of what team they play. That is a big key and a big part of this ordeal.

(On his possible return on Oct. 31 against St. Louis)

"Hopefully, after the bye week I can start doing things it will take to get back to play. After that I hope to do things to get back into the starting role again and be back on the field and do the things that I can do best.

(On whether he was nervous going into surgery)

"When I left here Friday from practice I was in so much pain I wasn't even thinking about being nervous. I just wanted some sort of relief. I wasn't nervous at all. The people that were surrounding me-my wife and my mother, I think everyone on that side was more nervous than me. I was just happy to get up under the knife and get it over with."

(on immediate recovery plans)

"Right now they just want me to do a lot of walking for a few weeks until the incision heals and I can start back on ground level doing my basic exercises to straighten up my abdomen and also my back. "They've walked me up the stairs. They really don't want me doing too much to let some of the fluids come out of the fusion. They just want to keep it in and let it heal. I'll start doing my workouts the Monday after San Francisco."

(On whether he'll have to wear a flak jacket)

"I don't think so. This is a part of your body where you don't have to wear a flak jacket. I wear rib protection and I think that will protect it more. I'll probably just have to wear a heating pad to keep it loose. They said that after the fact it would probably stiffen up during the course of the rest of my life. But that's normal. I've been stiff all my life."

(On whether it will be hard to watch the team win without him)