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Q: What do you know about your situation?
TB: I think I always take the same approach that I am going to be in there playing. Whether it be a situation like last night where you are coming off of the bench or a situation where I am starting the game and be ready regardless.
Q: Can you talk about your readiness to start?
TB: Over the last seven or eight months I have really worked hard to put myself in a position where if I am called upon to go in there and play I am very capable of doing that. Whatever the situation is next Sunday, like I said, I am going to be ready to go. Certainly Indy is a great team and we will be ready for them.
Q: How much do you think your preparation will change now?
TB: It won't change at all. I prepare as hard as I can every week. I was ready to start last night if they told me to start last night. I will be just as ready this week.
Q: How much will you rely on the experience of the veterans?
TB: A lot. We have got a lot of veteran guys on this team. I am always looking for a little insight. Certainly guys have been in this league and have been successful playing and as a second year guy you can always use as much help as you can possibly get.
Q: It is one thing to be a backup quarterback and think that you are one play away from going in, but it is another thing to have it materialize. Any difference now in your mindset?
TB: I just think that you are expecting to go out there and start the game when they are telling you to start. Whereas if you are coming off of the bench, like you said you are one snap away. Throughout the game last night I am sitting there on the sidelines ready to go in when I was called upon. That situation, where there are two minutes left in the game, that is the time you are in, you go in and you fight it out as long as you can.
Q: You walked out with Drew last night when he was being brought out. What did he say and was he hurting that badly?
TB: He took a pretty good pop. I don't know the extent of the injury. I just know that he is not here today and hopefully he is going to be back as soon as he can.
Q: Were you nervous last night?
TB: Not a bit, not a bit.
Q: Why was that, do you think your experience at Michigan playing in front of 80,000 has helped?
TB: Well it was 112,000. Yes that helps. I played with a lot of guys that are playing now. I have played against guys that are playing for the Jets and guys that are playing for the Giants and the Redskins. I have been playing with those guys. So that gives you confidence knowing that you know the guys across from you and you have played against them and you know that you have been successful against them.
Q: For people that haven't seen you play, can you give us the scouting report? What kind of quarterback are you?
TB: I think I just take a lot of pride in moving the sticks and scoring touchdowns. I think that is the trait of any great quarterback. You can get it done a lot of ways. I think there are a lot of pro qb's that you see that have a lot of different talents that are able to get the job done. As long as you win the game I think that is the mark of any great qb.
Q: Playing behind a guy like Bledsoe who is so durable, I would imagine that backups would either become complacent or are stunned when their time comes. How have you stayed away from that?
TB: I think the way that I have always approached it is that I am going to prepare as hard as I can every day to play. If they put me in the game I am going to be prepared. I am the type of person that if I ever got that opportunity and didn't play as well as I thought I was capable of I'd be kicking myself until I got another opportunity. I have always told myself if you ever go this opportunity, because you never know how many you are going to get, and when you do get your opportunity you better be ready to take advantage. Especially how competitive this league is and how good every team you play is.
Q: Bill was saying that in preparing all the quarterbacks were doing the same things, does that help?
TB: That is exactly the case. We run the same plays in practice. We have the same game plan. We are studying from the same call sheet. We have the same coaching. So we are all getting the same type of plays. If Drew is out there playing and they put the second guy in and they expect him to go out and play as well as Drew could play. And if the third guy goes in they expect him to play as well as the other two played.
Q: Did you ever imagine that your chance would come this fast, especially in New England?
TB: I never thought about that. Like I said I just worked on what I could do to be better. Never worried about what the coach says or what you guys say or what my family says or what my friends say I just worry about what I think I need to do to get it done.
Q: Coaches have always said about you that you took charge and led the young guys, do you think you are going to be able to do that with the veterans like Troy Brown and Charles Johnson who have been in this league for a number of years?
TB: You certainly hope so. You certainly hope that they respect you when you get in the huddle and like I said I approach things one way and that is with everything I have got. If guys see that and they want to follow you, great and if they don't then maybe you have to re-evaluate your leadership style. I certainly hope that, I don't hope, either you have got it or you don't, you've got it or you don't.
