New England Patriots wide receiver Randy Moss addresses the media during his postgame press conference at Gillette Stadium on January 12, 2008.
Q:What were they doing defensively? Your production was a little bit less than what we've seen.
RM: Well, I think they got back to the old way to cover me, and you know, that's putting two and three guys on me for the whole game. And they were beating me up a little bit in the first half. I think I made that fourth down catch where I inside released the cornerback and ran an end cut, so that was the end of me seeing the ball. I think their focus was to really not let me get inside release. So, they did a great job of controlling me, but they did a bad job of controlling the [rest of] team.
Q:It's been a long time since we've only seen one ball thrown to you through the course of the night; are you rested and ready, and how difficult was it to see the action keep going on the other side of the field?
RM: It was kind of weird because throughout the regular season I really didn't see much of that. You know, [in the] playoffs it's a one game season. You know, we got a first round bye, so that means that we have, hopefully, three games to win the championship. So we've got one out of the way. You know, it's a hard road for us to climb. You know, we are just going to keep chipping away at it. We've got a great group of guys here, and I think they know, as far as what happened to last year's team in the AFC Championship, I think these guys--the team is very, very focused to really not let something like that slip again.
Q:Did tonight give you even more respect for Tom and what he can do?
RM: I told you when I first got here, I've always been a fan of Tom's and I've always studied him as a quarterback. You know, the things that he's done up to this point and even tonight, I'm happy to be on the guy's team when you have a quarterback like that. But to answer your question, no, he doesn't surprise me, man, [and] not just me; I think we expect greatness out of our leader. So, you know, he does what we expect him to do.
Q:With the season you've had, were you surprised you didn't see more defense like this down the stretch?
RM: No, because I think first it goes with Coach Belichick and his coaching staff and then it trickles on down to the football team. You know, we've got a hellified offense here to be able to move me around to be certain coverages, so what I've seen tonight, man, it didn't frustrate me whatsoever. It was just something I haven't been used to for four quarters. We got a victory and proud of that.
Q:(On what the next game means with a Super Bowl trip on the line)
RM: You know what, I really haven't had that much time to really think about it. Because I think that it's been a long time for me to get to this point with the playoff atmosphere. So you know, most of the week, and even today, waiting all day for the game I was kind of nervous not knowing what to expect and how it was going to play. You know, the regular season went so good and [I] didn't know how my first playoff game in a couple years was going to be, and to look at next week, I haven't had time yet. We have a couple days off; I think in a couple days that's probably when I'll start honing in.
Q:The ball barely touched the ground when you guys were on offense. Is that like a typical practice for you guys?
RM: Yeah, it's a point of emphasis on dropped balls. You know, you name it, I mean, Coach Belichick is a great coach, man. So what we did out there as a unit, I mean, it happens sometimes. Sometimes you you're going to catch them all and sometimes you're going to drop a lot of them. It's playoff time, so you've really got to put your best football out on the field. No telling what you're going to see next week. Hopefully it's going to be good.
Q:(On talking to Tom Brady on the sideline)
RM: No. I think it's just conversation. Most of the time we're out there wanting the defense to get us the ball back. Then when it's third down and the other team gets a first down, we're like "oh." It's mostly football. We don't really talk about anything else while the game is going on, but it's not pertaining to us or the offense or trying to get me the ball. It's just football talk, that's all.
Q:(On comments by Jacksonville that Tom Brady's accuracy tonight wasn't impressive)
RM: It wasn't impressive? I mean, of course, when you lose, you're going to say things that are really inappropriate. You're talking about the MVP, that's Tom Brady. I'm not even going to respond to that. I'm not even going to get started. Tom Brady led us out there and he led us to a victory. I didn't really see anything wrong with his passes. I didn't really see anything at the quarterback and as a coach, you want your quarterback to take what the defense gives you, and that's exactly what he did tonight.
Q:I really like your outfit. Where did you get that?
RM: Come on, man. (Laughter).
Q:I love your fashion sense. Can we see your pants? It's awesome.
RM: They're NFL pants. I mean, you just bring something out of your closet, man, wear it to the game. Being here at home, we don't really have to dress up and I like that. But on the road we have to be suited and booted. (Laughter). That's one thing I really don't like doing because I like to feel comfortable. And, you know, when you have a long plane ride on a road game, an away game, you want to hurry out and get out of that suit and loosen your neck up. Coach Belichick lets us somewhat freely wear what we want to a home game. So I just be free.
Q:What are you going to wear next week?
RM: Next week I think it's supposed to be in the mid-teens. Might have shorts on with a tee shirt and hat on. Is that all right?
Q:How friendly were you with Brian Williams in Minnesota?
RM: I call him "B Will." We used to go against B Will everyday, one on one, seven on seven. I know what type of guy he is; he's feisty and strong at the line. I kind of felt a certain way of how they were going to play me [because] I was with Coach Tice for seven years. I think he told them a little bit about me, so they just didn't really want me to bust the game wide open putting two and three guys on me. Like I say, we win as a team. I've never been a greedy guy and [I'm] not going to start now. So hats off, 17 0, what else can you ask for? Thanks.
