Three downs with …
Baltimore Ravens quarterback Kyle Boller
Baltimore Ravens quarterback Kyle Boller
1. On how Willis McGahee’s success affects the passing game: "Willis, when we can get that running game cranked up, they’re going to have put some extra guys in the box. Therefore, we get one-on-one coverage on the outside and that’s all you can ask for.
"I’ll take our guys against everybody. When we get those runs cranked up, keep ourselves in manageable down distances and win on the outside, it makes it fun.â€
2. On auditioning to be the Ravens’ quarterback next season: "I don’t necessarily look at three weeks from now. I look at the Colts game. Every game is very important, and we have a great task this week against the Colts. "It’s an opportunity for everybody to go out there and prove what we can do, prove as an offense that it’s just not one week. We can do this on a consistent basis. So, every week from here on out is going to be huge.â€
3. On studying quarterbacks like Tom Brady and Peyton Manning: "You always look at different guys, and Peyton is a scientist. He picks apart defenses and just a great guy to watch. Fundamentally, he’s right on, he’s very accurate.
"You just try to take little things from each guy and go out there and play your game at the same time. You don’t try to imitate or be like them, but take little things from them so that you can get to the same place.â€
Three downs with …
Indianapolis Colts safety Bob Sanders
1. On if the Colts feel pressure to repeat: “Not at all. This is a new year, let last year go. We won a Super Bowl, it was great, everything’s good. We got new guys around here, it’s a new atmosphere, new feeling. It’s totally different.
"There’s not a champion yet, so we’re working toward that. That’s one of our goals. We don’t feel pressure. We’re just going to continue to work hard, do what we’ve been doing, and just keep trying to win.
2. On missing Dwight Freeney: "It’s really tough to replace Dwight. He’s an excellent player. He’s done a great job this year. It’s tough to see him go down. He’s a leader on our defense, and it’s always tough when you lose a guy like that because you want somebody in there who can play as good as Dwight.
"It’s tough to plan, but we’ve done a good job of getting guys in there to get the job done. The guys who are in there playing, some are young, some have been around, and they’re playing pretty good. So as long as we continue to move forward, I think we’ll be fine.â€
3. On the confidence the Colts built by beating Baltimore last season: “I think it was huge. It had just set the tone for us the rest of the way. I think we really showed ourselves and anyone else and the world that we could play well as long as we stayed on the details and we did the things that we needed to do.
"It was tough during the regular season, but the good thing is that we made it in the playoffs and we started from scratch and we just continued to move forward. It was a positive game for us, and we just kept building upon that.â€
