Chad Pennington cooled off in Jacksonville last weekend, throwing three interceptions. When he met with reporters Wednesday, he talked of forcing the issue.
"I was trying to do too much. It was a simple case of a quarterback trying to do too much and trying to make more out of something that was there. That was the one issue," Pennington said. "And that's why I was disappointed in myself, because, like you said, that's not normally how I play the game. Normally I try to let the game come to me and let those opportunities come when they present themselves, not try to force those opportunities. And that's why I did, I forced those opportunities and it hurt me."
Read Below for the Complete Pennington Transcript
On Daunte Culpepper pushing too hard to come back…
Well, we're all competitive as athletes. And the game of football, you know, most of us look at it as, as long as we can walk, we can play. And as long as we don't have any broken bones and major injuries going on, we can play, because there's a lot of people who play with injuries and play injured and play hurt. So I'm sure that was his mindset, as long as I can be out there, I want to be out there. That was my mindset. Because that's a tough call to try to hold yourself back. That's just not in our nature as athletes. That's a tough call. He made the same decision I made.
On if the second shoulder surgery changed his mentality…
It didn't change my mindset or mentality. I just had more time. I had more repetitions, four extra months, to help that out. And also I gained a little bit of knowledge on how to rehab and different things to do to change it up. But as far as my mentality, it definitely stayed the same.
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On when he moved on from the JAX loss…
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Last night about 7:00, because I take losing hard. I take pride in what I do and I take pride in how our team performs, and that falls on the quarterback with his performance. When I don't perform well, I look at that analytically and criticize myself and take it very hard and see where I can get better and help our team win. I use Monday and Tuesday to look at that and learn from it. And now I've moved on to Miami, once I got the game plan, and started looking at Miami yesterday.
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On if he got the game plan for MIA at 7 p.m., last night…
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Right. That's when we can change gears, so to speak.
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On the versatility of Brad Smith…
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Well, he's definitely a special athlete. He is a guy that is very exciting with the ball in his hands. Anyone who holds 69 conference and NCAA records as a football player in college is a pretty exciting player, and that speaks a lot. We're excited to have him here. And he does present different issues for the defense and he gives us different ways to be multiple and to exploit the defense and use him creatively, and he's done a good job so far.
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On if he thinks he may receive a pass from Smith…
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I don't know. I was born to walk, so I don't know if I'll be running too many routes.
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On his performance during the JAX game…
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I was trying to do too much. It was a simple case of a quarterback trying to do too much and trying to make more out of something that was there. That was the one issue. And that's why I was disappointed in myself, because, like you said, that's not normally how I play the game. Normally I try to let the game come to me and let those opportunities come when they present themselves, not try to force those opportunities. And that's why I did, I forced those opportunities and it hurt me.
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On if he is looking forward to two consecutive games at home…
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We're approaching this week like we do every week, it's the same approach for us, which I think is very important for our team to learn and to use. To take the same approach is very important for our team, is what I'm trying to say. Because win, lose, or draw, you have to take the same approach because that produces consistency, and that's what we're looking for with our team, consistency. Coach has done an excellent job, win, lose or draw, throughout these last five weeks, teaching us how to take the same approach, your preparation, the things you do before you get to the game on Sunday, doesn't change. Now, you learn from the mistakes from the previous game and try to fix those things, but your approach stays the same. And that ultimately, produces success. That's what we're focused on. It's important. It's a division game. It's the next game. It's very important, so we need to perform well.
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On what challenges are ahead with the MIA defense…
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After a week like last week versus Jacksonville, it doesn't get any easier for offense this week. You're playing against a defense that's only giving up 91 yards rushing. And even more impressive, they're only giving up 172 yards passing. They do an excellent job of playing good team defense. Everyone knows about Jason Taylor, Zach Thomas. But across the board they do an excellent job, they understand how to play defense and communicate really well and they've been very successful so far.
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On how the team will respond to the JAX defeat…
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Well, I think with the leadership of Coach Mangini and our coaches and with the players on our team, we'll respond the way we should and not let it hang over our head. We've let it go and we're moving on. I know I've let it go and we are moving on and we have to make the best out of it. The best thing for us right now is we have 11 more opportunities, and the opportunity in front of us with the sixth game of the year is the most important. So it's not like it was the end of the season and we didn't have any more chances. We are in a good position to do some good things.
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On comparing the coaching styles of Nick Saban and Mangini…
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I think they obviously do have different styles, but at the same time they have formulas for success even though they may do it a little bit differently. They've been successful and they know how to win football games and they know how to reach their players and get their players to respond, and that's most important.
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On Mangini's demeanor…
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Well, I think the best thing about Coach Mangini is his same-approach attitude. When we win, he's not real high;,and when we lose, he's not real low. He's on an even keel. So that creates consistency from our head coach, which we as players see, so we don't go from one extreme to another. It keeps us on an even keel, too.
On if he has regrets from playing before he was ready last year…Absolutely not, because this game and this profession is not like a normal profession where you can plan out your career and say this is where I want to be in ten years. You never know when this is going to end. You never know when your last play is going to be. So you just try to seize the moment and worry about the present, because you don't know what the future holds in this game. It's so fickle as far as injuries are concerned. And when your career is over, you just don't know. Will you have a three-year career? Will you have a 15-year career? Well, we're all competitive as athletes. And the game of football, you know, most of us look at it as, as long as we can walk, we can play. And as long as we don't have any broken bones and major injuries going on, we can play, because there's a lot of people who play with injuries and play injured and play hurt. So I'm sure that was his mindset, as long as I can be out there, I want to be out there. That was my mindset. Because that's a tough call to try to hold yourself back. That's just not in our nature as athletes. That's a tough call. He made the same decision I made.
