RICHARD SEYMOUR, DL
(Seymour on how the Patriots will try to slow down Colts offense)
That's a tough job. They're riding extremely high right now. Peyton Manning's very hot. They've got some great receivers. Edgerrin James is doing a good job of running the football. Our work is going to be cut out more than ever. We played them before, we're familiar with them, but they've got to play ball on Sunday.
(Seymour on getting the Colts offense out of its rhythm)
I think the best thing is to just try to keep our offense on the field. They've been doing a good job all year for us. I always say that's one of your best defenses. But our coaching staff put up a great game plan and we're ready for that challenge. It's going to be a tough challenge, but that's what you get when you get the two best teams in the AFC.
(Seymour on why the Patriots are hard to score on at Gillette Stadium)
I think we've just been doing a good just whether it's here or away. When you add in all the factors and you concentrate on what you have to do whether it's home or away it really doesn't matter. I just think at home, our crowd's been doing a tremendous job for us and kind of been the 12th man.
(Seymour on whether a great defense beats a great offense)
I always think great defense wins championships. Do a good job in all three phases of the game and I think you can be successful.
DAN KLECKO, DT
(Klecko on having played the Colts once already)
I just think you know each other better. That's the only thing. I don't think you can really feel comfortable with that offense on the field. You just go out there and try play your best game of the year.
(Klecko on Edgerrin James)
He's a great back. Same thing with Peyton Manning. You just got to go out and hope to play your best game against them.
TEDY BRUSCHI, LB
(Bruschi on Ted Washington's effect on the Patriots' defense)
Sometimes he just clears it up. He clears it up sometimes when the offensive linemen are paying a lot of attention to him. I can just go ahead a run and sort of be free. So he's been a great addition for us this year. He's out there making tackles, too. I mean, Ted's the type of player, he's not just going to take a block and he's done. He's the one that he's going to take a block, shed some blocks and also make tackles.
(Bruschi on Peyton Manning's clock management and audibling)
It seems like nothing throws him off. The crowd in Kansas City is one of the loudest in the league and he's out there making audibles and adjusting on the fly and doing a great job of it. He was just playing in a comfort zone where he could communicate well with his guys.
(Bruschi on his not fitting the usual mold of an NFL linebacker coming out of college)
The two things I depend on playing football are instincts and intelligence. I didn't have prototypical numbers coming out of the draft or anything like that as a defensive end. I knew how to play the game. I knew how to play defensive football. That's getting to the ball and tackling whoever has it. I felt like I had a feel for that. It took me a couple of years to get used to it once they switched me to linebacker but now I feel I can use my instincts and intelligence and start making some big plays for us also.
(Bruschi on the margin needed for victory in the playoffs)
Looking at the regular season in the NFL, a majority of the games are close. No matter who is playing, one of the top teams or one of the lower echelon teams. So in the playoffs it's just magnified. I expect every game to be close from here on out.
(Bruschi on the goal line stand versus the Colts last time the teams played)
I'm sure that's a motivating factor for them right there, 'We were one yard from beating these guys, so let's get that one yard.' We're over here saying, 'You're still not going to get it.' That's what's going to be decided on Sunday.
TYRONE POOLE, CB
(Poole on the significance of this game compared with the last time the Patriots played Indianapolis)
Conference game or AFC Championship, there's more emphasis placed on this game, but our preparation, the way we approach the game, it's not going to be no different than the way we prepare for all our other games.
(Poole comparing the Colts offense to other great NFL offenses in recent years)
They're real explosive. Each team, throughout each season, year or decade has different tendencies, different appeal, different ways that they do things, but the bottom line is yardage production, touchdown production and they rank right up there with all the top offensive teams that have played in the NFL.
(Poole on whether he still knows the Colts offense well)
I don't make it a point of trying to take with me things to remember from other teams or whatever because if I did that I wouldn't be able to remember what I have to do here. Basically, football is football.
JOE ANDRUZZI, G
(Andruzzi on Russ Hochstein)
We're very confident in Russ. He's stepped in all year long. He's been in and out, he's started a couple of games here and he's been stepping in there and doing a great job. He understands the offense real well, and is going to get out there and do his best for the team.
(Andruzzi on potential adjustments from the offensive line if Woody misses the game)
"It's going to be a little change, but it's not going to be a big huge change because we have players on this team who know their roles and Russ has been called upon a lot this year to step in there and he's stepped in there and done a great job. And he knows he's got to step in there as if nothing went wrong. So he knows he's got to step in there and do the best he can. It's going to be a lot of hard work this week at practice and get out there and communicate along the offensive line and get everything down pat."
(Andruzzi on the injuries to the offensive line this season)
As an offensive line, you know, we lose (Mike) Compton, we lost Damien (Woody) for a couple of games earlier. Like I said, there's no one here collecting a backup role check. People know their roles and, when called upon, know what has to be done.
TROY BROWN, WR
(Brown on the weather affecting the game)
They've beaten some good football teams the last couple of weeks and beat them pretty decisively too, so, I don't think it's going to be a factor at all. Weather is weather. We're going to be cold too. So it doesn't even matter. I think it's very overrated.
(Brown on handling the cold)
Just go play. There's nothing you can do. Just go out there and play. That's what we get paid to do - play football in whatever conditions it is. That's what we were given so you just have to go out there and perform.
DAN KOPPEN, C
(Koppen on Russ Hochstein potentially seeing action)
We have trust in Russ, if he is in there. Every week when Russ is in there, he gives great effort and he is a guy that we count on to know what is going on just like everyone else that steps in and fills in for a guy that goes down during the season. Russ is a guy that we have trust in and we figure that he will get the job done if it happens.
(Koppen on the team's depth and ability to overcome injuries)
I think the guys just take their job seriously. The backups prepare like they are going to start and play every snap. If a guy does go down, that is what this team is about. It is about character, and stepping up when guys are down and making plays.
(Koppen on the importance of continuity on the offensive line)
Continuity for an offensive line is really important. It is about building up trust and knowing what they are going to do. It is really about making the most out of the reps that you have with the guys that are in there, trying to get the hats on the hats with communication to get it done.
EUGENE WILSON, CB
(Wilson on the time spent preparing for the Colts' multiple offensive looks)
You can only prepare with as much time as you have. You have to prepare the best you can to face these guys. They have been putting up real good numbers all postseason and [Peyton] Manning is going to be an exciting guy.
(Wilson on the players in the Colts' offense)
They have Pro Bowl caliber players. Manning is a great quarterback and he makes good reads. It starts with him and just trickles down from there. He is hot right now. My hat's off to him. We are going to have to try to pose some problems for him. We are just going to have to go out and play our game.
(Wilson on the opportunity to play for the conference championship as a rookie)
I didn't know what to expect. I knew we had a good team and I knew we had a chance to do it. We have been playing good all year. This is what has paid off for it.
CHRISTIAN FAURIA, TE
(Fauria on the keys to the game)
The most important thing is for us to play well. It doesn't matter what else is going on or what other outside influence there is, we just have to practice our game plan and execute on Sunday.
(Fauria on staying relaxed one game away from the Super Bowl)
Most of the guys have been through this before, but it's a new deal for me so I find myself getting a little anxious, but I find a way to calm myself down once the game starts. I just tell myself to calm down and quit being so silly. I don't want to play tight. I want to be loose and focused on what's going on.
(Fauria on the Indianapolis defense's lack of star players)
They get it done. It's funny, I was looking at the film of the last time we played them and we had a really good first half, but in the second half we threw two interceptions, lost a fumble and that was us executing poorly and them playing good defense, it depends on who you talk to. But for the most part we scored a lot of points in the first half and I think we only scored once in the second half. Once they figured out what we were doing they tightened things up and really came after us and gave us a lot of trouble so that's the defense we're expecting to see on Sunday, not the one we saw in the first half.
(Fauria on whether he expects a shootout)
I think it's going to be a tight game whether there are not a lot of points scored or there are a lot of points scored. I think each team is going to respond accordingly. I don't by any means think it will be a blowout, whether it's low scoring or high scoring.
RODNEY HARRISON, S
(Harrison on Eugene Wilson's prior struggles against Indy)
The game is about making plays. You can play 10 games in a row that are excellent, but you're going to make mistakes. I've had games when I've struggled this year so it's not about singling out Eugene because he's a rookie or because he's made a couple of mistakes. We all made a couple of mistakes, we gave up over 30 points that game and I think over 400 yards, so obviously it wasn't just Eugene, it was all of us.
(Harrison on the big challenge the defense faces this week)
Nobody is picking us to do anything. I mean like Marcus Pollard said, you might as well give them the ring. So considering that no one gives us a chance, that's what we like. We have to go out there and prove ourselves time and time again and that's what it's about, having to go out there, have an opportunity and take advantage of it.
(Harrison on whether a great defense will beat a great offense)
It depends on who makes the most plays that day. It doesn't matter if you've been a great defense for 16 weeks and then you go out there on Sunday and stink up the place. It all comes down to that individual day and who makes the most plays. It doesn't matter what Peyton did last week, it doesn't matter what we did against Steve McNair, the only thing that matters is what happens on Sunday.
(Harrison on what Willie McGinest has meant to the defense)
He's just been tremendous this year. He's healthy, flying around, I mean the type of spirit he's playing with, the confidence, it's been great for us. It shows on his pass defense as well as his pass rushing. People said he was too old and couldn't do this and couldn't run, I mean time and time again he's shown what he can do.
