* *
DE – DWIGHT FREENEY (on the difference of postseason play)
"I really think it's just mentality, attitude, adrenaline, whatever you want to call it. You play defense with an attitude. That's how you are supposed to play defense, with energy regardless whether you are home or away, go out there to prove a point every snap. I'm not going to say in the regular season we didn't have that. I know we have that now and going out there and playing how we are supposed to play."
* *
DE – DWIGHT FREENEY (on getting the opportunity to make big plays and making the difference on defense)
"It's every snap. It's from the first snap of the game to the end. Whether it be third-and-five or third-and-twelve, it does not matter. For us, it's just get the team off the field, get a turnover and get the offense back the ball. So, third down has been historically that money down I guess you want to say. I know, as far as the playoffs are concerned, every down matters."
* *
DE – DWIGHT FREENEY (on what (DB) Bob Sanders brings to the defense)
"Bob (Sanders) is a guy who is a Pro Bowl guy. He brings a presence. A lot of receivers know that Bob (Sanders) is coming down and he is going to try to knock himself out or you out. That's what it comes down to. Same thing with running backs. Having a guy like that, as far as our defense is concerned, having eight men in the box and him being that eighth man like a linebacker is very important to this defense. Especially those teams that like to scheme running to that eighth man. So, instead of having a fourth-string guy out there or whatever, you have Bob (Sanders) out there trying to knock someone out."
* *
DE – DWIGHT FREENEY (on the mindset playing against (QB) Tom Brady)
"It doesn't change for us. We have to cause havoc, get to the quarterback as quick as we can, running back, plug up the running lanes and make tackles in the backfield. So, regardless of who we are facing. Tom (Brady) is a great quarterback, an All-Pro guy who has a lot of poise in the pocket. Our job as a defensive line is to create havoc and create pressure ,and it doesn't usually have to translate into sacks necessarily. Getting him throwing off his back leg, get him throwing some bad balls."
* *
DE – DWIGHT FREENEY (on being appropriate having to beat Patriots to get to the Super Bowl)
"I guess if you want to look at it historically, and historically we have had our problems with New England in the playoffs. I know the mindset with us even before this, it didn't matter who we were playing. It didn't matter if we were going to be playing San Diego or New England, we are going out there trying to win the game regardless. Obviously we have had our problems with New England, so, it's kind of funny that we are playing them right now, but at the end of the day, it doesn't matter."
