On if he can speak to what he has seen from Darrelle Revis this season…
No (joking). I'm just going to go with the yes and no answers the whole time, how's that? No, I'm just kidding. Obviously, he's a great player and everybody knows it. I'm sure everybody realized it the day he showed up there. I find it hard to believe that people are just now recognizing the talents of him. That's probably not real accurate. On if he would consider Revis one of the most valuable players in the league…
I don't know about that. If I comment on him then I'll get in trouble commenting on somebody else's player. I'll just say he's an excellent player and let the experts figure out where he belongs in that discussion.
On if Revis looks more comfortable compared to their first meeting…
Well, I think their whole defense has changed quite a bit since the last time we played them. They brought in a couple big guys. Obviously, Chandler Jones never played against us, (he's) a tremendous player. The coverages, I recognize a lot of different coverages that they haven't really played in the past that they're playing now.
On if he worries about his players' effort or preparation this week…
I don't ever have to worry about them, regardless of who we play.
On if they have a lot to play for and a lot to prove…
Well, we're professionals and we get a chance to play a game and it's a game that we love and we're going to play it to the very best of our ability.
On the Patriots playing coverages he has not seen before…
Well, no, I've seen them before. I've seen them before, I just haven't seen them play a lot of them.
On if the Patriots are playing different coverages because of Revis' presence…
I don't know. You'd probably have to ask them. I think they'd be the ones who would be able to tell you that. They're with Darrelle every day. I'm not.
On the Patriots being close mouthed…
Oh, okay. I never realized that (laughter).
On if what coverages he is referring to…
No, there is a couple of different ways of playing man coverage and things, but they're starting to do some different things in the man. It is kind of hard to explain, but we recognize it and things like that. They're doing a good job of it.
On how tough this season has been on him…
Well, anything that is swirling around inside our team, I'm proud of this team. We have nothing. Some guys' reports are as far off as any I have ever seen. This team is tight. Our record is the only thing that stinks. We have a great group of guys that care, that prepare, practice hard and it is just unfortunate that our record is what it is, but it has nothing to do with the type of character in this room.
On how he views his place in the Jets/Patriots rivalry…
Where my place is? I have no idea. We all know what is getting ready to happen in this game. We know that both teams give their maximum effort against each other. I don't think either team particularly likes each other, but it is on. Regardless of what the record is, we could be playing for first place or whatever. It is the same effort always. It is usually a close game and it is usually a physical game.
On why he doesn't like the Patriots…
No, I respect the heck out of them. It is six years in a row that they have won the division. I am a little envious I guess, but it is what it is. They're the ones that you chase and things like that. We respect them a great deal. They're lead by a Hall of Fame quarterback and a Hall of Fame coach, so they are hard to beat and we recognize it. That doesn't mean that (our approach will be) we'll take our rightful place underneath them. That is not going to happen. We're here to beat them. That is our mentality every time we play them or anybody else for that matter. They're going to get our best shot and we're going to get theirs. We understand that about each other.
On how difficult it is to go up against a defensive line that can rush the passer and drop into coverage…
Well, obviously sometimes it is hard to identify and things like that. That's really what the league is going too. You are trying to get these players that have those kinds of abilities and things like that. It's certainly not a new concept.
On if he is disappointed that they weren't able to sign Darrelle Revis again… I am not going to touch that. I am focused on the players that are here, and obviously he is a tremendous player and he is playing for a different team right now. So I am not going to say this or that about it.
On how much he has relished competing against Bill Belichick…
Yeah, I don't know how I have fared that way with him. You like to be, as a competitor, you like facing the best, and that's what he is. Obviously, I like doing that just as any competitor would. So it's not different. Obviously, I wish I had more success against him, but they do a tremendous job in all phases of the game. I say they are a really well coached football team, and his assistant coaches are outstanding as well. They have been around a long time with him. Obviously it is a huge challenge, but yeah to say that as a competitor, and all that kind of stuff, yeah absolutely I enjoy the preparation and the battles against him.
New York Jets RB Chris Johnson Opponent Conference Call Transcript
**
On the importance of finishing strong the last two games of the season…**
Anytime going into the offseason, you've got a couple games left and you're not making it to the playoffs, (we're) always saying we want to finish strong and try to get some victories going into the offseason mode.
On the team still playing hard for Coach Rex Ryan…
Yeah, of course. Anytime we go out there we're going to want to play hard. (We) kind of want to put our best foot forward and just try to get victories. At the end of the day, we still have to go out there and play, we're still men and (we're) not just going to let anybody run over us because we're out of the playoffs.
On the Patriots defense…
They're like when we played them last time. They've got a lot of confident guys over there, some veteran guys, some smart athletic guys and we've got our work cut out for us. We're going to have to practice hard this week and pay attention to the small details and hopefully we can have some success on this defense if we go out there like we did last game our offensive line pushed those guys and opened up some lanes for us to run.
On whether he thinks this is a good matchup for them…
Yeah. It'll be a good matchup. We've just got to go in there and do what we've got to do, what we're supposed to do and we'll be alright.
On the mood in the locker room…
Everybody is trying to stay positive. The years not over, so it's a situation where we're just trying to stay positive and make the best out of the situation.
On how difficult it has been to stay positive…
It's been difficult, but we're a close-knit group. We've all got one mindset and that's trying to get a victory.
On the team's ability to run the football…
It's just us coming in here we've wanted to run the ball. There's been games where we've hadn't had opportunities to run the ball and just whenever we get a chance we just have got to make the best out of the opportunity.
On whether this is an easier game to get up for because the Patriots are a division rival…
Yeah, of course. They're our rival, for us a rival to the Jets. It's my first year here and just seeing how everybody feels about this game that gives us something to look forward to playing against those guys this late in the season.
On whether the chance to knock them from the number one seed in the AFC plays into the motivation…
No, we're just making it (like) we need victories over here, we're trying to get a win and that's what we're going to try and do. We know we're not going to the playoffs, so we're looking at all our games as if our playoff games have started now.
On Percy Harvin…
He's brought a lot. A guy that can run the ball, run the reverses and still at the same time he can stretch the field and catch the deep ball. He's been helping us out tremendously.
On the challenges towards the end of the season when a player is attempting to rushing for 2,000 yards…
It just gets harder and harder. (You're) starting to get eight, nine people in the box. They know you're going to run the ball and it's just something you've got to overcome. And then you've got to go up against time. You've got two games left. I'm not sure how many more yards (DeMarco Murray) needs to get there. But, it goes to a situation where at the end of the day when it depends on what team you're on. Do you all have a chance at the playoffs, do you not? What's more important, getting 2,000 yards or getting to the playoffs? There's a lot of scenarios that go in to it and the situation that you know that the defense knows you're going to run the ball, so you've just got to have a situation where you stick with the run. It might not always look good. It might be getting only two, three yards, but if you stick with it eventually it will break.
On how proud he is of the accomplishment of rushing for 2,000 yards…
Oh yeah, that's definitely number one. There's only been seven guys to do it. Only currently, two of us in the league right now. That's a running backs dream, so to do it here at the biggest level that you can reach, that's a great accomplishment. So, that's my number one.
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