New York Jets' QB Chad Pennington, 9.27
On the Indianapolis defense…
Well, what you have to realize about the Colts' defense, they're very opportunistic and do a great job of flying around to the football, similar to Buffalo in the fact that they're very fast. Any time you stop the frame on the film, you see seven, eight, nine, ten guys around the football at all times. Being able to match their tempo, match their speed during the game is key for us and our execution.
On Pennington's comfort level with the no huddle…
Well, I think we need to contribute that success to our coaches and to our team as far as how hard we've worked in the off-season to master the communication part on the line of scrimmage. It is so important to be able to communicate well, get signals out, everyone listening, being on the same page. That's been really crucial to our success, being on the same page. Even if you're going the wrong direction, if all 11 guys are normally on the same page, good things happen. That's what we've tried to concentrate on throughout the off-season and now throughout practice. Communicating and making sure we understand each other when we're talking to each other on the line of scrimmage.
On if he spoke with Peyton Manning about the no huddle…
Well, you know, I have watched Peyton over the years. We don't have a chance to talk a lot. I'm very aware of how well he's done with it. He has been successful with it. You watch him. It's about communication. That's what it's about. He makes sure that everyone knows what's going on, that the receivers get the appropriate signals, the line gets the appropriate calls. He's probably the best in the business at the no-huddle system right now. They've had a lot of success with it.
On this game as a measuring stick…
You know, right now we're just a hard-working team really. I think our guys have done a great job of just focusing week-to-week on the task at hand. It's so early in the season to start measuring yourself, seeing where you are, because we have another 13 games. A lot of things can happen within 13 games. We're proud of being able to start 2-1, not digging ourselves a hole. At the same time we've got a lot of work to do and, a lot of things we've got to correct fundamentally at this point to play sound football.
On feeling pressure to match the performance of Manning…
Absolutely. We know that our task this week as an offense has to be precise execution. We can't give their offense any easy ones. We can't create good field position for them through turnovers and just bad, negative plays. At any time their offense can score, but also at any time their defense can score because of their play-makers. With their pass-rush, with how they fly around to the football in the secondary and break on the football really well, they do an excellent job of reading the quarterback's eyes. Our execution as an offense is crucial to us having a chance.
On the importance of solidifying someone at left guard…
Well, we're lucky that we do have veteran leadership in the offensive line. I know those guys will get it worked out. We've had guys getting reps. They understand the system. They understand what we're trying to do. That's very important. I feel confident and comfortable that things will be worked out.
On feeling satisfaction from his comeback…
Satisfaction is not even the word. I have a feeling of happiness to be out on the field. I mean, that's what it's about. You miss playing the game when you're injured. I've played this game for quite a while now. This is my passion. When you're not allowed to be out there because of an injury, something that was totally out of your control, it's frustrating. So just having a good feeling of being in the huddle, the feeling of being out there on the field with my teammates, I'm just trying to take that all in, enjoy that every down, every distance, every play, because you never know what it's going to end. Last year really showed me that. This game, there's finality to it. It doesn't last forever. The hard part is you never know when that finality is going to come. You never know when your last play's going to be. Playing your next play like it's your last play, that means something to me because I've been there before.
On being motivated by the negative things that were being said and written about him…
I think as an athlete, I've been told no my whole life. I've had people say, You're too slow. Your arm's not strong enough. Yeah, you're smart, but you're not going to be able to make it to the next level. Just concentrate on what you can do. That type of thing. That's fine. That's the beauty of athletics. You can only prove it on the field. You can't talk about it, you have to be about it. It was a little bit of motivation, but at the same time I have motivation within myself, and really my hat goes off to my support group with this organization, my family, my friends. I mean, those people really built a shell around me and supported me and uplifted me in the times that I needed it and helped me push further when it looked doom and gloom.
On how he remade his mechanics in his rehab…
Well, the one thing that the shoulder injury did do for me, really having two shoulder injuries, it showed some flaws in my mechanics. I always thought I used my body well to throw, but I really didn't. I was really an arm thrower. That's why the ball would die on me a lot. That's why my feet sometimes weren't planted in the ground when I was throwing. The ball would flutter. I really had to look at that. Look at some film. Break it down. My dad helped me look at that. He's seen me throw for 30 years. We tried to incorporate as many people as possible to help increase my core strength, increase my hip strength, which would in turn increase my velocity with my arm.
On how he would rate his velocity compared to years past…
Well, there's no comparison to last year. That's because of the circumstances, the difference in injuries, surgeries, things like that. I'm not for sure on how things would compare six years ago. I would hope it would be better. If it's not, I definitely feel really good. I can say when I step out on the field I don't feel like I've come back from two shoulder surgeries. I don't feel like I've been injured before. I feel normal. Feeling normal feel goods to me because it's been a while.
On the karate that he does as a part of his rehab regimen…
Karate did have a little bit to do with it. It still does. There's so many people involved on the outside that have helped me. That's been one aspect. I really tried to take all those opinions and incorporate that into my regimen and my schedule. What karate has done for me is show me how important a good base, a good foundation, how to incorporate those hips and your core to throwing the football. Throwing a punch is similar to throwing a football. When you really break it down, you really look at it, it's really similar.
On Terrell Owens…
Yeah, that's a shock. I think what a situation like that does is really put life in perspective. It really shows you how important relationships are to anyone's success. No one can do it alone. Life's not about being an individual, it's about having people around you to give you that support. I hope that if that is the case, he has that support system because right now, when anyone in that type of situation needs it, I just wish him the best. My thoughts and prayers are with him.
On being tied for first in the AFC East…
We're proud of getting off to a good start. The way we look at it, we have a bunch of guys in here that have high expectations for themselves. Any time, whether it's win or lose, we really look at the film critically and analyze it and see where we can get better because we've got a lot of work to do. If we want to be able to make a push later on, we've got to continue to get better at the little things. Right now it's too early to really even get excited about what we're doing. But to have at least one division win under our belt and to not be in a hole early in the season, it helps.
On if this will be a high scoring game…
When you go into a game like this, it's weird. You don't know what to expect. What you do is you prepare in a fashion that you know you have to have precise execution. You can't give these guys easy scoring opportunities. You can't allow a defense to score touchdowns. When you play against the Colts, it has to be a total team effort offensively, defensively, special teams. Look at last week, what's the difference in the ball game? The punt return. That's the difference in the 21-14 game. That's special teams. That shows you they are a total team, they know how to score points other than just offensively. They can do it defensively. They can do it with special teams. That's a huge challenge for us to make sure we cover all of our bases and make sure to understand we beat a team as good as the Colts, you have to be fundamentally sound.
