Tampa
Bay Buccaneers
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Head Coach Jon Gruden
(on Jeff Christy and Joe Jurevicius)
"We gave Christy about 18 to 20 plays. He looks pretty good to me…
We expect him to play, he's that kind of guy. He'll work more tomorrow
and if everything goes as planned he'll be the center on Sunday. And Jurevicius
looked good today. He still has a little soreness in there. He moved around
good today and we expect him to be ready."
(on whether the offensive game plan becomes more ambitious with all of
the injured starters back)
"We'll always be ambitious, whether it's the starters or a couple
replacement players that have to play. That's just pro football and something
we have to deal with. We're excited about the return of some of these
guys. Hopefully, it helps improve in our execution."
(on the Panthers' offense with Rodney Peete back)
"He's a guy that they move the pocket with. They're a very good play-action
team. If he can stride through his throws, the guy is an outstanding player.
He threw for well over 300 yards (against New Orleans). This Carolina
team is a very dangerous squad. They had Green Bay on the ropes, they
had the Buccaneers on the ropes late in the fourth quarter, and they had
to New Orleans – they had to go 95 yards inside of a minute to win
that game and score a touchdown. Rodney gives them life, I think, gives
them a proven, stable player at the quarterback position. And the guy's
a winner. He's won every place he's been. He's a dangerous guy."
(on the Panthers' defense without Brentson Buckner)
"You watch them play last week and it certainly didn't diminish what
they can do. They still have Peppers, who's got 10 sacks, Rucker's extremely
hot and Jenkins is generating a lot of pressure inside. He's really on
the verge of becoming a household name in the NFL. He's impressive. They've
got a lot of scheme and they're playing extremely well. We've still got
to deal with a relentless pass rush. They do a lot of things to be creative
with the blitz, trying to create physical one-on-ones."
(on secrets to succeeding after the bye)
"We tried to say that last week when the bye was going on. We don't
want to talk about it anymore. It's important that you don't lose center,
you don't lose focus on the bulls eye. The bye can be an advantage if
you take advantage of it. If you come back distracted and you're not ready
to play, you don't get any help from your opponent, that's for sure. We
had a good couple days of practice last week, we got some guys healthy,
we worked hard on Monday, we had a good practice today and we'll get we
deserve Sunday."
(on whether the team has an extra bounce in its step after the bye)
"We have a real bouncy football team, you know what I mean? Some
of these guys you'd like to cool out a little bit. These guys are excited.
They understand what Carolina's about. This is a team that could have
easily won every game they've played, other than maybe the Atlanta game
where they had some turnovers and bad things happened. This team here
will get your attention and they'll force you to have great respect for
them."
(on playing the same team again a few weeks later)
"You pick up the film and watch them play the Saints and you realize
that they've changed some things. They had a bye week in between our games,
so they have obviously emphasized different things on both sides of the
ball. They'll be completely different. They've got new players on defense,
some new scheme issues to deal with, they've got a new quarterback who
we didn't see the last time. It will be a completely different ballgame,
in my opinion."
LB Derrick Brooks
(on Carolina offense)
“I think that Rodney Peete playing with their offense, their offense
will play well. Last week, he went out there and played well against New
Orleans and we are going to try to keep it the same, as we do always and
that’s make sure we tackle. First and foremost in the running game,
stop the running game. Then eliminate the big plays downfield and make
plays when they give you the chance to.”
(on what sticks out between last game and this game)
“They hit us with a couple of plays when we were out of our gaps.
And obviously they are going to come back and run their offense. We just
need to clean up our fits in the running game and make sure we tackle
better. I think we tackled well, except for a few minutes in the third
quarter and we just need to make sure we’re on that and we start
out fast. We need use the bye week as an advantage. A couple of teams
have come off of a bye and lost, so we need to make sure we protect ourselves
against that.”
(on the chances of losing momentum)
“I just want to win. How we do it, is yet to be seen. But the bottom
line is to win. And that’s the only way a bye week can become an
advantage, and that’s my mind set.”
(on the differences in facing Rodney Peete)
“You see the numbers of a veteran, so he’s going to make some
better decisions in reading defenses and throwing the ball. But we can’t
get caught up into that, we just need to execute our defense.”
QB Brad Johnson
(on his outlook for the Panthers)
“It was a big win for us a couple weeks ago (against the Panthers).
I think they are very physical upfront. I think they have the most sacks
in the league. They have three dominant players leading the league, top
eight in sacks, and they present a lot of pressure just from those four
or five guys. They also bring a lot of pressure from different disguises.
They’ll stand at different fronts, they bring pressure from the corners,
they bring blitzes from the safety, so they’ll do a lot of things
on defense and that’s why they are having that kind of success on
the defensive side. Obviously, they lost six games in a row, in the last
minute. They are playing some great ball right now, they just haven’t
come up with the win. So we have a lot of work in front of us.”
(on coming off the bye week)
“I feel about as good as I can at this point in the season. I think
if you ask anyone in the locker room, or anyone in the league, they have
some type of injury or are a little sore. But (the bye) came at a great
time for us. I feel fresh, but you have seen three or four teams lose
coming out of a bye. We talk about the emphasis of going into a bye and
now we are emphasizing coming out of the bye, and it has caught up with
a few teams.”
(on teams losing coming out of the bye week)
“I think some guys have been relaxing too much and sometimes it can
catch up to you. Again, we are on a mission right now. We’re 7-2
and trying to get our eighth win, and that’s the only thing in front
of us.”
(on the chances of losing momentum coming off of the bye)
“I don’t believe in carryover from week to week. I don’t
believe in momentum. Every scheme, every team is different. You face a
different identity every week. So we are going to work hard this week
and prepare for Carolina and what they present for us, and go out there
and make some plays.”
S John Lynch
(on the differences in facing Rodney Peete)
“Well Rodney is a veteran who has been around a long time and has
been playing impressive football. They are a 3-3 team with him in there.
I think you turn on the film and it is evident that the guy is playing
some good ball and he brings the best out of his team. He will be ready
for the challenge. We barely snuck out of Carolina with a win last time.
We had to play hard to do it and it was a great effort, but we certainly
know that we need to bring our game this week and we will not take this
team lightly at all.”
(on how physical the Panthers were)
“It was a very physical, an extremely hard fought football game.
We have a lot of respect for their team. It was a great battle in all
phases, and we are expecting that again.”
(on the NFL cracking down on illegal hits)
“It’s something the league is trying to make a statement on.
We all don’t agree with it, but it’s their mandate now. I don’t
think players are really going to change their style. You hit how you
are taught to be hit and if they are going to give us fines, then I guess
you take them. But I think as long as you use good technique you should
be fine. It’s not in my mind. Obviously you think about it during
the week, because that’s a lot of money coming out of your pay check,
but you just put it out of (your) mind.”
(on coming off the bye week)
“I don’t see us (losing momentum). I think the bye week is what
you make of it. I think coach Gruden gave us a schedule that was real
good. He kept our minds in it, but we gave our bodies a rest, and when
we were out there we worked hard, but we weren’t on the field long.
We’ll come back out this week, and I like the focus so far. This
is a focused football team. We understand what’s at stake, and that’s
where the veteran leadership comes in handy, and the leadership of coach
Gruden and his staff.”
(on the key points in the season)
“I think this is the key game, that’s as far as we’re looking.
We understand that we have a stretch of games that are extremely important,
but we’re looking no further than Carolina and the chance to go 8-2
and do something special.”
WR Keenan McCardell
(on getting back on the field)
“I am looking forward to getting back in the swing of things. I got
a chance to do that a little last week, so it’s feeling pretty good.
I think I’m still letting it heal, up until Sunday. I’m still
going to practice and do the things I know I need to do to get ready,
and I expect to play. I’m (excited to get back on the field). I’ve
been itching to get back and now the week is here. Last week was kind
of slow, so hopefully this week will go fast and get right into Sunday.”
(on Carolina’s defense)
“They are a very good defense. I think they are third in the league
and they are very fundamentally sound. They have people where they are
supposed to be at all times and you very seldom see mistakes and that
keeps the big plays down. We are going to have to be fundamentally sound,
pick up the blitz, make plays in the running game and the passing game,
and we will come out with a victory if we can do that.”
(on being happy at 7-2)
“I’d rather be 7-2 than 5-4. I think we are in a good spot,
where it is up to us. We can handle our own business, we can handle what
we want. What we want to achieve is right in our hands. We need to take
them one at a time and play the teams we need to play to get what we want,
we just need to take care of our business, take care of what the Bucs
do.”
DE Simeon Rice
(on Rodney Peete)
“He’s calculating, decisive, a veteran who knows the offense.
When he’s at the helm they usually put up 300 yards of offense, so
we’ll have our hands full.”
(on the expectations of a less-physical game versus Carolina)
“Not at all. They are going to be amped up. They are ready to show
what they have. Their defense is going to be playing at levels unknown
and they want to outplay our defense. So it’s understood and it’s
a rivalry brewing, we’re going to have our hands full. I think our
defense will set the tone on how the game will be played. It’s about
big hits. They want to earn a reputation, we have a reputation that we
want to keep, and with that on the line, there are a lot of reputations
on the line.”
DT Warren Sapp
(on the differences in approaching Rodney Peete)
“It gives (Carolina) a better chance to win the game because Peete’s
just more experienced. A more experienced quarterback gives you a better
chance to win the game. We just need to go out and do what we do. Peete’s
not an overly mobile guy to where it’s a dramatic change. But he’s
a little more crafty, savvy in the pocket and we are just going to come
after him and keep the heat on him. We also need to eliminate the running
game, and once we get that done, we will be fine.”
RB Aaron Stecker
(on playing time)
“All I do is work hard, and whenever my name is called, go out there
and produce. That’s all I can do. All I can do is what I do. I don’t
know how Mike (Pittman) and Mike (Alstott) feel. They are in a situation
where they want their chances too, just like I want my chances. I don’t
sit around and say ‘I wish I could get the ball’ or ‘I
should be getting more chances,’ that’s not my style. I’m
a team player, and if I get called upon once or 10 times, I’m going
to do the job I know I can do to the best of my ability. Coach Gruden
is always trying to put the team in the best situation to win, and you
can’t second guess his judgment. He knows what’s best for this
team and whatever he decides, we’re going to go with.”
T Kenyatta Walker
(on the health of the offensive line)
“I don’t know. What I do know is that we need to go out there
and play, just go out there and play our game.”
(on the possibility of going 8-2)
“It would mean a lot. Not just 8-2, but to get to the playoffs and
to get to the world championship, those are our goals.”
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