Washington extends for the line
The Jets will begin preparation for playoff football on New Year's Day. As a Wild Card entry, the Green & White will start the postseason tournament on the road. The Green & White posted a 6-2 road record during the regular season.
"We have confidence in ourselves that we can play in hostile environments, but the one thing on the road is that the presence is different," said quarterback Chad Pennington. "Different challenges, different adversities that you may have not faced before. On the road - I don't know what it's going to be. None of us do. How do we respond to the adversity when it strikes now? Will you smile at it, or shy away from it?"
Read below for Chad Pennington's complete press conference transcript
New York Jets Quarterback Chad Pennington
On going to the playoffs…
Anytime you win and you know how much hard work you've put in as an individual and as a team, it always feels good. It feels good to make the post season. This is what this game is all about, playing for a championship. We are excited to have that chance.
On Jets' fans…
Jet fans have been great to me over the years and supported me throughout my career. They have seen me on a roller coaster of emotions. They have seen the up's and they have seen the downs. They deserve this. They deserve a winning team, a team that competes. I hope they are proud of us. I think our guys have done an excellent job of leaving it all out on the field and playing for each other.
On if Pennington deserves this…
Nothing is ever guaranteed. Playing this game is not a right, it's a privilege. I am blessed to play this game and I am extremely blessed to have a second chance and this opportunity. After what I have been through, I try not to take anything for granted, ever. Even though it is hard to enjoy the weeks we lost, I enjoyed working and coming in and being with the guys. That is what it is all about. I am just excited and thankful to have that opportunity.
On last season compared to this season…
We experienced a lot of injuries last season. A lot of bad things. This year we were able to stay healthy. Kudos to my teammates for buying into what Coach Mangini wanted us to do. He came in with a very precise plan and told us exactly how he wanted us to act, play football and go about our business. The guys bought in. We have some talented guys. We have a good group of core guys who have been here for a while and know what it takes to win and have been successful in this organization before. We had a good foundation, we just had to build upon it.
On thinking about coming this far when he was rehabbing…
I couldn't think that far ahead. With my rehab and the hard work. I knew I had to put in, I could only focus on the next day, the next moment because I knew how critical it was not to waste a day, a rep, a lift, a rehab session. I knew how critical it was and if I looked to far ahead I wouldn't get there. I had to take baby steps.
On thinking back to how far he's come…
I always remind myself of how far I've come, how much hard work our team has put in. I continually remind myself and make sure I understand that. We are a team that has worked extremely hard and prepared well. That was the right and just try to remind myself of those things.
On looking back to all of the hard work…
When we were at 5-5 and had just lost a tough one to Chicago and we had played some teams that were very respectable and viewed as playoff teams. We had a chance when we played those teams. We didn't look ahead we just continued to work and focus on us as a team and we would have a chance at that point. Our team looked at each other eye-to-eye, man-to-man, and said, 'let's go. Let's really pick it up and push each other in practice and do all the things we are being asked to give ourselves an opportunity to be successful.'
On doubts after losing Curtis Martin…
We didn't have time for doubt the way that things unfolded. We haven't had the time to doubt ourselves and to ask 'what if?' It's been full go ever since day one. Our young guys who haven't had opportunities before but have had them now, stepped up to the fore front. It's really been good if you look at our team as a total team effort. Each week somebody you know may not have heard of before, who may have been in the background, stepped up and made the play for us. That's what football is all about. I know it's cliché, but to me this is the greatest team game because there are so many intricacies and so many fine details that aren't shown in the stats that are the factors on whether you win or lose.
On playing in the road for the first round of the playoffs…
We have confidence in ourselves that we can play in hostile environments, but the one thing on the road is that the presence is different. Different challenges, different adversities that you may have not faced before. On the road I don't know what it's going to be. None of us do. How do we respond to the adversity when it strikes now? Will you smile at it, or shy away from it?
On clenching a playoff berth at home…
It's always nice to finish off your season the right way in front of your own crowd. It reminded me of the Green Bay game in 2002. The electricity in that place. You could tell from the get-go that the electricity was in the air. The towels were waving and the fans were fired up. I'm thankful that they hung with us through out the entire game because we were playing an extremely talented defense. It was one of those games that we had to remain patient and not give them any opportunities to score points. We had to remain patient and keep chipping away.
On playing all 16 games of a season…
I feel good about it. I'm thankful for it. When I look at my injuries, those were ones I had no control over. I can't think about those in terms of me being durable. I know I am durable. I didn't miss a game in college and took some big hit in college. It is a good of example of how hard work leads to profit, and how hard work leads to good things if you just believe in those things and never look back.
On pride for the team…
I take pride in our team. I think first of all, they have all worked extremely hard, and I could not do it with out them. They come to work every day and they are a joy to play with because they don't cry or complain. They put their head down and work. We work together. We do things together. We communicate together and talk. We talk about situations and it's been nice to work with them. They are a great bunch of guys.
On if this is his most satisfying season as a Jet…
I would probably venture to say that this season feels complete as far as our regular season because I was able to contribute to our team and to our season through out the whole year. They have been able to count on me and I can count on them. That is a good feeling to have and hopefully I will be able to build on that as a player. I hope we can build on that as a team.
On how far he thinks they will go in the playoffs…
It is one game at a time. One great thing our coaching staff has done through out the year is never changing their approach and maintaining their approach. We know we have a huge challenge no matter who we play. They are all worthy of being in the playoffs. They are all championship caliber teams. It's on the road. It's a hostile environment. We have a big challenge in front of us.
On attributing success to the new coaching staff…
I think we all understand that coach (Herm) Edwards had successful years here. We had great seasons under coach Edwards and it was a new opportunity for him and for coach Mangini. I think the biggest thing we can learn from the last year and a half is that it is about the players believing in the coaches, and the coaches and players working together. There are a thousand different ways to win a ball game, there are a thousand different ways to be successful in this league but that doesn't matter if you don't believe, if you don't take it upon yourself to get the job done and be accountable for your teammates. That's what I believe in and hopefully taught everyone around us.
