**Q: Could you talk about going into Denver with the atmosphere, the fans and the altitude? Throw in Monday Night and it is a pretty good mix.

TB:** It is a great place to play. We were there two years ago at the new place and it is a great field. Those fans cheer and playing at eight or nine at night, I'm sure they will be riled up. It is a hostile environment, so we have to go out and really shut them up.

**Q: Personally do you have a little retribution that you need to take care of from that game two years ago?

TB:** That wasn't my best day on the field, but I think we have come a long way since then. I think that this team is getting better each week. We just have to keep trying to shape some things up and going out there and trying to be smart and tough and hopefully it works out for us.

**Q: What do you see from the Broncos defense that impresses you the most.

TB:** I think they have very good speed. It seems like every week, Coach [Belichick] stands up there and says they are first in this and second in this. I'm saying 'didn't we play those guys last week?' I guess they are third in red area defense and right up there in the top of the league in defense. It is a tough test. They have a lot of guys that play hard and hit hard. Al Wilson is one of the best middle linebackers in the league. They have some very good corners and a very good defensive line. Trevor Pryce is right up there as one of the top defensive tackle spots. It is going to be a test.

**Q: I think schemes are one of the themes for this game. Bill [Belichick] and Mike [Shanahan] have all sorts of schemes. Do you prepare differently for the Broncos probably more than any other people just because you may not know what you are going to see?

TB:** I think on their offense it is probably a little bit more different than their defense. I think offensively they mix it up quite a bit, but defensively they do a couple of things and they do it well. It is kind of similar to the last two teams we have played where they play two or three different coverages and they play them very well. We have to go out there and execute our plays very well if we want to put some points on the board.

**Q: Do you think your offense is ready for a breakout game? Albeit on the road, it is pretty safe to say nine points is not going to get it done.

TB:** No. Last week, we really moved the ball pretty well. We just didn't execute very well in the red zone and that is why there was only nine points. It could have been just as easy 28, if we make a few plays. That is a lot of "ifs" in there, but I expect us to go out there and play well. I think we are getting better each week. I think we are doing a good job of getting different guys each week and it really hasn't mattered much who is in there or the positions they are in. It is just a matter of moving the ball and putting points on the board.

**Q: If you look at this Denver team. They are without [John] Mobley and Ian Gold. They have lost three of four. Danny Kanell was coaching high school football two weeks ago. If you look at the straight match up, you guys should win the game.

TB:** You look at that on paper, but as we all know I don't think that correlates as much as you would like to see from a favorites standpoint. I think we have been that wounded animal before, too. You kind of rally around each other. I think the thing about it is they have great coaches, they play well at home and they are very good on defense. I don't think it is going to matter too much who is out there. They are all professional football players. I don't mean that sarcastically, but they are all good. They wouldn't be on that team if they were not good.

**Q: You had an end zone, red zone pick in that game in 2001.

TB:** Yeah. I remember it well.

**Q: It wasn't that bad?

TB:** I kind of stepped up in the pocket and scrambled out to the right and tried to throw back across. I think it was Denard Walker you picked it off. It was to David [Patten] and I thought he had it. He snatched it from him.

**Q: You haven't had many red zone, end zone picks over the last two years. Can you count how many you have had?

TB:** I think that was probably it.

**Q: The ironic thing is that you go back in there this week and you have thrown 132 passes without a pick. You went in there a couple of years ago on a stretch without one in 150 or so. What are you doing now to take care of the ball?

TB:** I think just doing a better job of seeing the concepts of the play. Understanding where the defensive guys are. I just haven't been making as many bad decisions and I would really like to keep that up. That is something you can be very good at. It is not something fluky where you don't throw picks. I mean some guys throw a lot of picks and some guys don't throw many picks at all. I'm trying to be one of those guys that hardly ever throws them. It is just about throwing the ball in the right spot and making sure that if your guys don't catch it, they are not going to catch it either.

**Q: Is this an important game too because you are heading into a bye week and you have won four in a row and what a great feeling it would be if you head into this bye week with five straight wins?

TB:** That may be part of it. I think when the schedule came out and you see Denver on Monday Night, you are thinking oh my god this is going to be a bear on the schedule. I think we are very confident because we have won four straight there are a lot of good feelings. There is a feeling that we can win away, at home. We can win when it is hot and cold, when it is rainy with the first string guys in there, some of guys that have stepped in to become first stringers. I think we are learning how to win. Now whether that is going to transfer over to this week that remains to be seen. I would certainly love to think so, but it takes a lot of preparation. It takes going in there and playing well, executing early so maybe you can take the fans out of the game and instill some confidence in the team that this is a different trip to Denver.

**Q: A lot of Boston fans probably had their attentions divided for the first eight weeks of the season because of the Red Sox and Grady Little. I think you guys are number one again. Did you feel that split among the affections of the fans or did you not even notice because you had 60,000 people cheering you on every week?

TB:** Yeah, you feel it. You definitely feel it. You see the newspaper and you are on page 30 of sports. I think we realize that whether who is showing up or who is cheering, I think we have to go out and give them reasons to cheer. The better we play, the bigger the crowds, the louder they are going to be and the more excited there going to be to come watch us play.

**Q: What did the fans miss for the first eight weeks of the year?

TB:** We are a team that goes out there and plays pretty smart, tough ball. When we don't do that, we lose. I think people are going to be … if they haven't been paying attention much, they better start paying attention.

**Q: Talk about the interchangeable parts you guys have. You guys are 6-2, but not 6-2 because of one guy. It is because of one or two guys each game and they are different guys.

TB:** I think we have a lot of depth on the team, whether it is Mike Vrabel coming in last week with the three sacks, the young corners, [Dan] Klecko, Ty Warren, they're playing well. The running backs are all playing well. I think it is a team full of guys that can go out there and play when the heat is on.

**Q: Talk about your offensive line. Very quietly they have been extremely consistent not only protecting you, but also starting to open holes for Kevin [Faulk], Antowain [Smith] and Mike Cloud.

TB:** Definitely. You look at the Dolphins week and them doing a great job … even starting back to the Tennessee week. That was a very good defensive front we played. They really did a good job on those guys. Then the Giants, the Dolphins and this last weekend against Cleveland, they have been consistent. They are a bunch of tough guys with Joe Andruzzi, [Damien] Woody and [Matt] Light. They are a bunch of goof balls, but they are pretty darn good football players.

**Q: Are you taking care of them?

TB:** I do whatever I can. Maybe just a Whopper and fries takes care of those guys.

**Q: A guy like Vrabel, how big of a boost is he coming back after missing three weeks and do what he did?

TB:** It is a big spark. I say it is since he has fresh legs from not practicing for four weeks. He loves playing and I think it is evident when he goes out there and runs around. He doesn't shut up either. I'm glad he is off the scout team now because I have been listening to him talk for two weeks.

**Q: Any thoughts on what you guys can do to counter their red zone defense, specifically on third down? They are the best in the league on third down.

TB:** It is one of those weeks where I am glad we have the extra day to prepare for the red zone and third down. Any team that is good on third down, it is a tough test because you want to stay out on the field and wear them down, but think a lot of times this team because they are so good on third down it is like 50 to 55 plays per game. You want to get them up there and make them play quite a bit. That is going to be controlling the ball and making sure those third downs are manageable.

**Q: Have there been opportunities to hit the big one at a semi-consistent rate where you can put some big numbers per quarter?

TB:** Definitely. I think there have definitely been plays to be made that we have left on the field the last couple of weeks. Coach pointed it out to us this morning. I think everyone walked out of that meeting feeling beat up. I think he is getting a point across saying eventually it is going to catch up to you if you keep making dumb plays like this it is going to happen where the other team is going to figure out how to beat you guys. But if you go out there and take advantage of these, you are on the 6-yard line on the second play of the game and we get three out of it, you just can't do it.

**Q: Do you feel you are getting better every week and when Week 16 comes hope to be hitting stride?

TB:** I am feeling better each week. I think I'm just getting more prepared. I think I understand this team better. I think I understand my role better. I think I'm throwing the ball better, making better decisions. So it is getting better.

**Q: Has the role changed from Game 1 to where we are now?

TB:** Maybe in a sense. I think I have better control now, not necessarily more control, but the control that I did have I think I am taking more advantage of it, which has given the coaches more opportunities to call plays that I like. When you really believe in a play, and you really love the concept of a play and I feel I read it well, I think those plays get called quite a bit more.

**Q: Is there anything to the high altitude in Denver?

TB:** Hopefully it takes that long ball a little farther. It hasn't bothered me much.

**Q: Being 6-2, I know you have a long way to go, but what is the vibe like it the locker room? How do you feel right now with the way things are going?

TB:** I think there is definitely confidence. I mean guys feel we can go out and win no matter who we play. But as Coach does point out, six wins don't get you a darn thing. Last year, we started off 3-0 and you can go just as quickly to 3-4. With 6-2, you can go the other way pretty quickly if you don't take care of the things that we need to care of. We are going to need to put together a good week to beat these guys because they are a tough team. 7-2 sounds a lot better than 6-2.

**Q: Is the confidence growing with each game?

TB:** Yeah because I think we are winning different ways. I think we are winning with some different type of passes. We are winning with runs. The defense is playing well. They have been very consistent. I think there is a lot of confidence that we can win in different ways.