Tampa
Bay Buccaneers
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TAMPA BAY
BUCCANEERS QUOTES
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 30, 2002
Head Coach Jon Gruden
(on injured players)
"Keenan McCardell and Joe Jurevicius did not practice. Their status
is unchanged. Brad Johnson took a few reps. He says he's feeling better.
Rob Johnson didn't really take any. He's still got some soreness in there.
They tell me that Ryan Nece's surgery went well, as did Anthony McFarland's.
Kerry Jenkins did not practice, either."
(on if it
looks as if Brad Johnson will start at QB on Sunday)
"Well, if he's healthy, he's our starting quarterback. He's moving
around much better. Before I can commit on anything, we're just going
to see how the week goes. Shaun King took some turns today and if need
be, he'll be the starter. But Brad did move around pretty good and appears
to be closing in on being back and ready to go."
(on what
Brad Johnson's return would mean to the offense)
"Well, you get a guy in there who's got a good command of what we're
doing. He's a proven winner, not only this year but previous years. He's
a leader, a captain on this football team, and a guy that has taken the
majority of the snaps, at least for the last couple months. When your
starting quarterback returns, that's got to be a plus."
(on whether
the receiving situation will sort itself out quickly)
"We'll have to wait and see. Jurevicius and Keenan, again, look to
be questionable at best. Until we see them out here running around and
proving that they're ready to play, we're going to go with the other guys."
(more on
Brad Johnson)
"He looked good to me. Again, I don't want to commit any more than
that until I see how he feels tomorrow morning and how he performs here
in the next 48 hours."
(on if Karl
Williams would start and Reggie Barlow would be the third receiver with
Jurevicius and McCardell out)
"That's right, yes. And, obviously, Charles Lee would be active,
and he's a guy who's been impressive on our practice field. Those would
be our receivers."
(on looking
at previous Minnesota games)
"We always do. We always look at past performances, especially by
some of your individual players. But, at the same time, Minnesota's got
a lot of different guys on defense. They've got a different head coach
and it doesn't do you much good, honestly, other than if you want to check
up on year's past. You can do that, but we're not going to count on last
year giving us any juice this year. We're going to get what we deserve
and we've got to play a lot better."
(on Kerry
Jenkins' status)
"I don't believe he's going to need surgery, which is a good sign.
There is some optimism that he'll be able to return after the bye. But
he's wearing sunglasses around and he's got a legitimate injury that we're
concerned about. As soon as the swelling subsides a little bit, we'll
get another diagnosis to see if he can indeed come back and play against
the Panthers after the bye."
(on whether
the bye week and potential extra rest for Brad Johnson figures into the
QB situation)
"We're not talking about the bye. We're going to continue to be short-term
goal-oriented. We've got to concentrate on this game. The schedule, in
terms of where the bye is, is going to take care of itself at a later
time. We've got to get ready to play a real physical Viking team coming
off a real impressive win."
(on Brad
Johnson getting over the virus)
"We had a lot of that going around. John Lynch had a little bit of
that over the weekend. Buck Gurley was inactivated because of that virus.
Stecker and Dwight Smith had it early last week. Hopefully, we can get
that resolved here and we won't have any more of that."
(on Buck
Gurley, Chartric Darby and Ellis Wyms playing defensive tackle)
"All those guys are going to contribute. Darby has been impressive.
Ellis Wyms is about a three or four-position guy, honestly. He keeps a
lot of guys fresh. We think Gurley, if he can get healthy – he got
hurt in the preseason and was ill the other day – if he can show
up healthy and ready to go, we think he can play. But we do miss McFarland.
The guy's an inspiration there and we're going to miss him."
(on the chance
to go 7-2)
"That's the only goal we have, to be a 7-2 team, because that's the
best we can do. We want this game desperately. We're very much looking
forward to playing in front of our home fans. We need to start the second
half with a win. This is a huge game for us."
LB Derrick Brooks
(On Randy Moss’ deep threat)
“He can catch the ball short and run it long too, now. He’s
a tremendous talent, but we just need to make our plays. If he catches
the ball short, everyone should come up and tackle him. If they throw
the long ball to him, guys should make a play. You can offset that by
doing what we do. Stopping the run and create pressure in the process.”
(On liking
playing the Vikings)
“If they are on the schedule, yeah (I like playing them). At the
same time, they are a tremendous group. I guess I’ll miss them in
the future, because I know a lot of their players, but that is not what
I’m thinking about right now.”
(On the team’s
injuries)
“You just have to show perseverance. We would be naïve to think
that we would go the whole season without guys getting hurt. It provides
opportunity for other guys to step up and win. And that tells you the
character of this team and the depth of this team.”
(On possibly
tying the best franchise start)
“I’ve never been 7-2, that means a whole lot to me. As coach
said, if it doesn’t mean a lot to guys here, then they don’t
need to be playing. We could start the third quarter 1-0, and go 7-2,
something we have never done, take a week off and keep ourselves in good
position.”
TE Rickey Dudley
(Difference in preparing for Rob Johnson and Brad Johnson)
“We are always going to prepare the same. You really don’t change
your approach, it’s more or less the individual quarterback that
has to decide if he is going to change anything or not. I don’t think
it is any other player but that quarterback that’s changing.”
(Is there
a learning curve in the offensive system?)
“I think there is a learning curve, but there is a difference between
(here and Oakland) because we had some older guys out there. Here we have
a few more younger players as far as on the line and receivers, so it’s
a little bit different.”
(Are the
younger players holding the offense down?)
“I don’t think it’s holding us down at all. We’re
winning games.”
K Martin Gramatica
(On kicking four field goals against Carolina)
“If I don’t have a line, snapper or a holder, I couldn’t
do it. They all did an outstanding job. I didn’t feel any pressure
from (Carolina). Our line held them from getting any penetration, then
the snaps were great, and Tom (Tupa) put it down perfectly, so it was
a great effort from the whole field goal unit.”
(On winning
the NFC Special Teams Player of the Week award)
“It’s nice, definitely. But maybe I’ll look at it more
in the future when I have some kids. Right now, the W is the most important
thing and it was a tough one. (Carolina) had a good team. Their defense
is fourth in the league, I think, and they play good football, so to get
a win out of there was good.”
QB Brad Johnson
(on how he's feeling)
"This weekend I had such a bad virus. I was laid up in the locker
room eight hours on Sunday. I felt like I was about three nails away from
my coffin shutting on Sunday. I was hurting. So the last three days have
really been an emphasis on getting over the virus. My whole family's had
it. But I feel pretty good. I sweated it out. I felt like I threw the
ball pretty well today for taking a week and a half off. I feel good about
the way things went today."
(on how his
ribs feel)
"I feel pretty good. I'll probably wear rib pads in the game like
I always do. That won't change. I'm really not afraid to take a hit. I
feel like I threw the ball fairly well. You never know how Jon (Gruden)
is with things. He's got a wild hair about him. I just kind of got through
it and felt good. The big thing has been the virus, more than anything.
I don't think you understand. I keep telling you about it, because that's
what it's been."
(on whether
Coach Gruden has told him he's starting)
"I've never gotten anything out of Jon since February. I'm still
working on him. But Minnesota is bouncing off a big win for them. They're
coming down and they've got to get a win and we've got to get a win. That's
my biggest emphasis of this week, and playing against the team I used
to play for."
(on the virus)
"It kind of went around the team. I gave it to Lynch and he's given
it to a couple other guys and so on and so on. The virus is pretty bad,
so stay away."
(on certain
throws that might be difficult)
"I felt pretty smooth today for the most part. I threw all the throws
that needed to be made and felt pretty good."
(on getting
the zip back on his throws)
"That day was kind of a compounding thing. That was right when the
injury happened and I kind of took a beating on that all day. That was
the beginning of it, and that was a couple weeks ago."
(on if his
velocity is back)
"No one ever gives me much velocity anyone, so I don't know what
you're comparing. I guess you can ask Keyshawn and those guys. The true
test will come tomorrow, Friday and Saturday and then the game on Sunday."
(on if he
could have played Sunday if his ribs weren't hurt)
"With what I had, I was on the locker room floor for eight hours,
so I wouldn't have played."
(on if he
thinks he'll be able to play on Sunday)
"I would think so. But, again, I've tried to get things out of Jon.
I keep working him for plays, keep working him for different things. But
we'll see how it goes."
(on who got
the reps)
"Jon splits things up anyway, every practice. He tries to get everyone
ready, just in case of emergency. Last week was a great case of that,
with Shaun coming in the game. He tries to get all three of us ready."
(on the reasons
for recent offensive struggles)
"That's a good question. We talk about that a lot in the meeting
rooms. The thing about it is, we're doing a lot of good things but we've
had some crucial penalties, we've got to work on our pass protection,
we've got to get our running game going, we've got to be more explosive
in the passing game and when we get down there we've got to score in the
red zone. There are a lot of things that go into it. We've got to be more
of a physical team. We've got to be able to pound the rock. We've just
come up a little bit shy here and there. We've played some good teams,
especially in Philly. I feel like we've done some good things, but we've
got to get better if we're going to go where we want to go, especially
at the end of the year."
(on where
that improvement begins)
"It starts right here in practice. You don't give up on each other,
you don't point fingers. We've got a lot of injuries, but you deal with
it. We've had guys step up. You just can't give up. The thing about it
is, it's going to keep coming around. Jon puts pressure on us every day,
and it's contagious. Right now, we've got to believe in each other. Regardless
of what people say and what people think, it's really up to us."
QB Rob Johnson
(On how his injury feels)
“It’s a little better (than after the game). It would be different
if I was playing the whole year, but when you only get a couple of starts
here and there, you’re going to push it a little more than if I was
a starter. But I’ll be ready to go this week. I’m fine. I’m
going to suck it up and if I hurt it worse it won’t be that big of
a deal because Brad (Johnson) will be back if not this week than next
week.”
(On who the
starting quarterback will be)
“I think Brad (Johnson) will, if he is able to. I think (Coach Gruden)
is going into the week and seeing which one of us is more healthy, then
going from there.”
(On the play
he got injured)
“Actually (the play where I got knocked out of bounds) was not the
play I got hurt on. It was the play when I got my helmet ripped off. I
got hurt then, and when I had to sprint real hard, I pulled it some more,
and when I got knocked down it kind of locked up on me.”
(Last week’s
win against Carolina)
“Winning is the most important thing. Offensively we need to play
a lot better, obviously. If we want to go where we want to go, the Super
Bowl, we are going to have to play better on the offensive side of the
ball. We just have to pick it up a little more.”
(On offensive
play)
“It is something everyone has to work on. There’s really no
excuse for it. Everyone has to look at themselves and try to play better.
There are a lot of excuses for how things are going, but no one wants
to hear that stuff.”
(Frustrations
with the offense)
“I think anyone would be (getting frustrated). I think the players
are getting frustrated. We have one more week before the bye week, hopefully
pull out one more win, and go into the bye week and fix some things.”
S John Lynch
(On team’s position halfway through the season)
“We need to tune out all the negative. I like what Coach Gruden said,
that he likes the fact that people have high expectations and complaining
when we are 6-2. That’s all right because we have the same expectations
for ourselves. We ‘re never satisfied, never complacent, and we need
to be 7-2 going into the bye week. That would be real sweet.”
(On playing
at home)
“It’s been a while, but we love playing at home. We feel we
have the best crowd, we have a huge home field advantage when we’re
at home, and we are looking forward to sticking around here for a while.”
(On Randy
Moss and Daunte Culpepper)
“It’s funny, because everyone has talked about their struggles
and you look at the statistics this morning and they have the No. 4 offense
in the league. They still have #11 and #84, and they have had a lot of
plays on offense because I think their defense has been struggling, giving
up touchdowns rather quickly. So they have averaged a lot of plays in
a game, and they are also converting third downs at nearly 50%. So you
need to get off of the field with these guys.”
(On containing
mobile quarterbacks)
“We spent our whole offseason and mini-camp focusing (on mobile quarterbacks).
We had a lot of rules that we built into our system where we have the
ability to adjust. Some weeks we might use our extra plugger to help out
(against) receivers, or just to plug the quarterback and it has worked
out well for us. Our defensive line is doing an incredible job of not
getting themselves out of rush lanes and staying level with the quarterback,
and hunting those guys down. The combination of those things have made
us effective. It’s a fact of life in this league that quarterbacks
(can) not only can throw the ball, but are very effective runners. We’ve
seen Donovan McNabb go for 100 yard games and Michael Vick is tearing
it up. Daunte has carried the ball 45 times already. So quarterbacks are
running the ball more and that provides a challenge, but it’s one
we have to prepare for.”
DE Simeon Rice
(Excited about where the team is)
“The possibilities are real cool right now, but you can’t look
too far ahead. You just have to take it week-by-week, day-by-day, minute-to-minute
and that’s how this game is played, and that’s how it is supposed
to be played. But in the back of our minds, we really know what this is
about and we know what we are really trying to accomplish.”
DT Warren Sapp
(On Chartric Darby replacing Anthony McFarland)
“It’s just what we do, just another bullet. We’re all interchangeable
and we are going to keep firing until we don’t have anymore, now
it’s Chuck’s turn. He came in and played an excellent game for
us in the second half, all day long, and I don’t expect anything
else from him this week. That’s what he’s supposed to do. He
should be ready to roll.”
(Tutoring
Chartric Darby)
“(I don’t say) nothing. I don’t know what he is seeing.
My plate is full. I have my gap to contain, and secure and squeeze, and
Chuck has the same. One time in the game, he didn’t have his gap
and I tripped over him and hit my head. I looked at him and said, ‘come
on wake up,’ and he was like, ‘O.K., I’m with you baby.’
And from that point on we had a game going. That’s usually how it
goes, you have to get in there and get your feet wet. He got in there,
got hooked one time and it never happened again. We got us a good victory,
and I expect him to do the same this week. We don’t coach back-ups,
we coach starters.”
(Attitudes
entering the third quarter of the season)
“The thing we want to do is continue what we have done the first
eight games of the year, and that is win. We have two 3-1 quarters coming
out and we are starting our third quarter this week. We just want to come
out with another tremendous effort, get us a win, come out 7-2, take us
a breath, line up and then go get it again. We put ourselves in a position
to make a run, let’s go get it.”
(Satisfaction
on season so far)
“No, because we are still looking at the first game (versus New Orleans)
and the game before (versus Philadelphia), we’re two or three plays
away from being 8-0. We’re 6-2 and we need to find the silver lining,
and the silver lining is Sunday, one o’clock at Raymond James, let’s
go to work.”
(On playing
the Vikings)
“You like (playing the Vikings) because they have the white rhino
under the center. You don’t find a guy like that too many times and
you have the galloping gazelle out wide. But we need to have a good game.
We need to eliminate the big plays and his scrambling ability, and we
should be fine.”
T Kenyatta Walker
(On Sunday’s game versus the Minnesota Vikings)
“They are a good team, but it is basically about how we come out
and play, how we come out and perform. We just need to do our job. Right
now this is a big game. We’re trying to be 7-2 going into the off
week and we need to go through Minnesota to do that.”
(On the offensive
line’s play)
“We have work to do.”
(Challenges
Minnesota’s defensive line possesses)
“They have speed, some fast guys up front. They have a pretty good
defensive line with size and speed. They look forward to third downs.”
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