*(on if New England has settled into a groove) *

"There are always things that we can work on and do better. We'll find out this week. It certainly is a big challenge for us coming out to Indianapolis and playing an undefeated team. I'm sure there will be a lot of energy and excitement in the stadium Sunday night. It'll be a huge challenge for us. I think whatever we've done to this point is not really at the same level of what we're going to face Sunday night. We'll find out."

*(on WR-Randy Moss) *

"Randy has had a real good year for us. He's made some big plays, deep plays, red area plays, third down plays, run after the catch, blocked well. He's done a good job. He's certainly attracted a lot of coverage from our opponents, as well. He continues to work hard and is an impressive player for us."

*(on if he had any concerns about QB-Tom Brady coming into the season) *

"Tom's really been back since day one. He did everything in the offseason program that all of our players did. In the spring practices and mini-camps and all of that, he did everything everybody else did, and in training camp, he did the same thing. He went out there and practiced, played in the preseason games. He really hasn't missed anything all year. He's been with us from day one and hasn't had any limitations."

*(on if he looks back at previous games in the series) *

"Certainly, we know it is a big game, but I think defensively things have changed a little bit in Indianapolis with (Defensive Coordinator) Larry Coyer coming in there. Schematically, they are a little bit different. Certainly, I think there is some relevance in some of the other games, particularly on offense, but defensively it's a little bit of a different look. I think we have to take that into consideration. We look at some of those games from an educational standpoint on how things matched up, on how our players matched up against their players, even though the schemes may be a little bit different. We all know each game takes on its own personality and its own set of adjustments and its own unique plays. It's part of the preparation, but we know it will be different this time."

*(on if he ever got any secrets from QB-Peyton Manning when the two talked at the Pro Bowls) *

"I had a great opportunity to spend some time with him in the Pro Bowl after the 2006 season. We talked about a lot of things. He has great insight and certainly a great passion for the game and a lot of intelligence and understanding for this game. It's great to talk football with him. He understands and has a perspective on things that I have a lot of respect for. It was very interesting to talk about. We exchanged some thoughts. I don't know if it was anything that was monumental, but it's certainly interesting and good to get a perspective from somebody that you don't usually get an opportunity to spend time with and talk to. That was a very special weekend, from that standpoint, for me."

*(on if when he talked to QB-Peyton Manning he kept quiet about some things) *

"I think as well as we know each other, I don't know that there's a whole lot of secrets out there anyway. When you play a competitive football game, you put your best out there on the field; whatever your strategy is, you put your best coverage, your best pattern, your best game out there. Certainly, in the games that we've played against the Colts through the years, they've all been very important, and we've always done our best to try to do what we can to be successful. I know they have, as well. I think that's really where the real truth is and that's really what counts, what you do when you have to have it, when it's a critical situation in a critical game. You can say whatever you want in January, February or the day before the game, but when you really get into those situations you can't bluff anymore. You have to get out there and play your cards and do what you want to do in that situation. That's where you see what teams and players and strategies, that's what they are really all about."

*(on if he thinks he shares a common background with QB-Peyton Manning in that both were raised in football families) *

"Sure. I think we both have a passion for it, and it's been in our blood and our family since the day either one of us was born into those families. There is a lot of history there. We've had a lot of history against each other and certainly a lot of history against other common opponents and coordinators and players and things like that. It was particularly interesting, even though it was the Pro Bowl, to game plan for the game. To work with him, in terms of plays and matchups and that kind of thing. It was kind of our offense because we were coaching it, but he was quarterbacking it, so he had some interesting insights into the overall game planning, not that it was a big game plan thing, but just how to look at plays or look at defenders or utilize our personnel and the receivers that we had, Chad Johnson, guys like that. It was kind of a unique situation for all of us. We were putting some different pieces together than what we normally had to work with."

*(on TE-Dallas Clark) *

"He's a terrific player, very hard to defend. He pretty much can do everything that you would ask a tight end to do. He's a great vertical receiver. He can get open on the short and intermediate routes. He's a good possession player on third down and in the red area. He's good after the catch. He does a good job blocking, both on the line of scrimmage at his normal tight end position and when he's flexed out, which those are both hard blocks to do, whether they're against bigger people in line or against some of the more athletic corners or outside linebackers and safeties that he has to block out in space and hold those blocks for two, three seconds until (RB-Joseph) Addai can get out there and run off of them. I think he's got a real good combination of skills. He's a smart guy, very competitive. (He) came back from the injury he had against us (broken leg in 2003) in his first year. It seems like every game he makes big plays to help them win, in some way, whether it's blocking, catching, third down, red area, as part of a decoy route that frees somebody else up, whatever it is. He's been a very productive player for them in a lot of different ways. He is very hard to defend."

*(on if it is different preparing for QB-Peyton Manning than any other quarterback) *

"I think every quarterback we prepare for is a challenge. Quarterbacks have different skill sets. Some guys do things better than others. That's not a knock on anybody, it's just that we're all different, and we all have different strengths and weaknesses. Every team we prepare for, every quarterback we prepare for, we try to prepare in a way that gives us the best opportunity against that particular individual, that quarterback, that receiver, that running back, that pass rusher, whoever it is. Peyton's outstanding and what I just said about Dallas Clark, presents a lot of different problems, and he can beat you in a lot of different ways. He is very hard to defend. He is a good decision maker, he's very accurate, he does an excellent job of managing the game and running his team. Is that hard? Absolutely, it's very hard, but we have challenges every week. I don't want to slight any other quarterback because we have trouble with them, too."