ROSEVELT COLVIN
LINEBACKER
Q: Is it tough to play the perimeter with all the bootlegs Denver does?
RC: It's not difficult if you're just doing your job. Whoever's job it is to contain the quarterback then he has to contain the quarterback. Whoever's job it is to cover then he has to cover. I think if you can get a good read then it makes defending plays a lot easier. You just have to make sure you're focused. Hopefully you're focused on every play and get a good read and put yourself in a position where you can help the defense whether it be covering or containing.
Q: Has chasing Doug Flutie around in practice helped you prepare for Jake Plummer?
RC: Anytime you have a guy back there who can give you a look throughout the week, regardless if it's an offensive tackle, running back, quarterback or receiver or anyone on the offensive side of the ball - somebody that can give you a look at really how it's going to be in the game then it helps you in your preparation and then what you hope is that your preparation that you've done all week long can help you on gameday.
Q: Are you excited about having Tedy Bruschi back this week?
RC: Yeah we were excited about having him back last week. I don't think he had an opportunity to get out on the field. But if he gets an opportunity I'm assuming he's going to go out there and play lights out and play at a high level. That's what we need. We need a bunch of guys who can show up on gameday and get the job done. Whether it's Tedy, Willie [McGinest], Monty [Beisel] or Larry [Izzo], anybody who gets the opportunity we hope that they'd come up and play big for us including myself. We have to continue to prepare and put ourselves in a position so when we show up on gameday everything's second nature and we have fun.
CHRISTIAN FAURIATIGHT END
Q: Can you compare this Patriots team to the one that played in Denver in October?
CF: I definitely want to think we're a better team. But I still think there are a lot of things we can get better at. We're inconsistent sometimes during a game. For the most part, we're playing good football. I think if we played the way we played last week offensively, even though we put up some points and did some good things, I don't think we'll win this game. We have to play much better than we did last week. Definitely much better than we played the last time we played them.
Q: How does the offense have to improve?
CF: It comes down to the little things. In the playoffs, it usually ends up being that one play that makes the difference in a game. So taking time to get your footwork down, watching more film to make sure the stuff that happened to you the first time won't necessarily happen again. Maybe you'll see it earlier or maybe you'll be ready for a pass that's low. It's all those things that go into preparing for the week. The speed picks up, the intensity, what you're playing for picks up - that's the playoffs.
Q: How important will the first drive of the game be for the Patriots?
CF: Our first drive is always important. I don't think you want to play from behind with anybody, especially these guys. They get so much momentum when they get up on people. We don't want to get out of our offense after the second quarter, like when we played them last time it was 28-3 and we were running the two-minute drill. We want to stay in the game and keep it close. We don't want to be playing our two-minute offense in the second quarter.
Q: What makes Denver so tough?
CF: The main thing is they're a good team. I think that's the most important thing. They play well at home, they're 8-0 at home. We know what that's like, you have that momentum when you're playing at home and you just feel invincible. You throw in their crowd noise and not being able to hear and all those other things - it's tough. The most important thing is they're a big, physical team and they're even better at home - most teams are.
