HEAD COACH JIM CALDWELL (opening statement) * *
"I think we did come out and play a little bit better than we played the week before. We certainly moved the ball a lot better on offense and our defense played pretty solid. We'll take a look at the film and look at it closely. I think we'll certainly be pleased with a number of things that we saw. There was some real solid play out there. Had a few too many penalties. That was one thing that kind of jumped out at you. Obviously we want to be the kind of team we expect we can be. That will have to decrease. But we can build upon that. So it was good to be able to critique after a win as opposed to after a loss."
HEAD COACH JIM CALDWELL (on if he saw what he wanted to see on offense)
"We did. We had kind of in mind somewhere around between 15 and 20 plays. They had a couple real good solid drives in there, performed them pretty well. We were pleased with what we saw."
* *
HEAD COACH JIM CALDWELL (on Curtis Painter)
"He's been pretty solid. I just think he grows every week. It's not an easy offense to run. There are a lot of decisions to be made almost from every single snap. I think he's doing a decent job of handling those things. He's not perfect, obviously. But I think he's developing and getting better every week."
HEAD COACH JIM CALDWELL (on the offensive line)
"The offensive line did a nice job. They protected well, which is something that is obviously very, very important to us and we stress. I think when there were opportunities they certainly created some holes for the backs. I know we didn't run it a whole lot during that stretch. But never the less they were very, very effective and certainly did their job and did it well."
HEAD COACH JIM CALDWELL (on the defense)
"We had Antonio (Johnson) and Ed Johnson at the same time. Those two guys did a nice job playing off the middle. But overall our defense ran to the ball well. We were a lot better, I think than we were the week before. That's one area of improvement that we did try to stress during the course of the week. It's good to see some results. We saw a few results in that area. The interior of our defense was pretty solid. Dwight (Freeney) played well out there. He was in a limited amount of time but did a nice job. Good effort out of our linebackers as well. Brackett (Gary) was good and solid. Overall I think it was a pretty solid performance. And then towards the end we just got a little sloppy."
QB-PEYTON MANNING (on tonight)
"I thought the players challenged themselves this past week. Coaches challenged us to come out and be a lot sharper. Thought we had a lot more intensity all the way around. Started in the pregame and kind of started with the first drive. It was good that we saw some different situations, saw some third downs, we got some red zone work, which is always key. We were backed up, got it out of there, then I fumbled after that, which was kind of disappointing. Then bounced back with a big play. So some different situations. Great work against the blitz. Going against Philadelphia you get great work against multiple blitzes that they do. A good thing to learn from."
QB-PEYTON MANNING (on playing more plays tonight compared to the Minnesota game)
"I think everybody wanted to be in there. The entire offense felt hungry after last week. So we wanted to play more, to play better this week. I thought we practiced well last week and kind of carried onto the field. Sure there were some mistakes we'll learn from, but there were some good things we can benefit from. It was around the twenty plays that we talked about. I'm sure we'll play the most next week against Detroit, which is what we usually do. I thought this was something we could build on going into next week."
QB-PEYTON MANNING (on getting multiple guys involved in the offense)
"You get to the regular season, you try to throw it to the open guy. In the preseason, ideally what I wanted to do was to throw some passes to guys I haven't thrown to before. To get some passes to (Pierre) Garcon, to (Jacob) Tamme. Try to get (Austin) Collie involved in there. I don't think Collie ever got one from me. To get some passes to (Anthony) Gonzalez out there on the right. I thought that was good that we got a little bit of everything. Its one thing to throw a pass to Pierre Garcon in practice, but to throw it in the game is a different deal. From that standpoint I think it was a positive."
QB-PEYTON MANNING (on the play of the offensive line)
"I don't think anybody offensively was really happy about what happened last week, starting with me and the entire offensive starting unit. Everybody came back and did a better job tonight. Like I said, there are still some things we can learn from, but overall it was a step forward."
WR-REGGIE WAYNE (On being sharp for the game)
"No, we still have some things we can get better on. Compared to last week that was a good starting point. We have to build on that and go from there."
WR-REGGIE WAYNE (On having good speed for his touchdown catch)
"Yes, you know, I'm the forgotten guy. I'm just doing my job, if the ball comes to me, I try and make a play."
WR-ANTHONY GONZALEZ (on the game tonight)
"I was just happy to play. It's never fun sitting on the sidelines. Last week was kind of tough. It was nice to be out there, and I'm glad the offense got the ball moving pretty well."
WR-ANTHONY GONZALEZ (on his touchdown reception)
"That was just a simple fade route, nothing fancy. (I) just ran the route, hoped to get open and catch the thing, nothing exciting."
WR-ANTHONY GONZALEZ (on touchdowns always feeling good)
"They do, they do. They certainly do. They never get old. Hopefully there are more to come."
DE-DWIGHT FREENEY (on sacking QB-Donovan McNabb)
"It's something about Donovan. I've had some success, in the Pro Bowls, in the practices back at Syracuse. I don't know. It's pretty funny."
DE-DWIGHT FREENEY (on if the team was sharper tonight)
"Yes, I think so. It's the second game. Obviously, in the first game you try to get those bugs out and get comfortable with hitting again. This game both sides of the ball were moving."
DE-DWIGHT FREENEY (on how important preseason games are)
"For me, it really is (to shake the rust off). You need to really shake that rust off. Get back to the rhythm of playing the game. You need it. So, the first game you get out there and you aren't a step behind. You're right where you need to be."
DE-DWIGHT FREENEY (on how close he is to being ready for the season)
"I feel pretty close. I think (head coach) Jim (Caldwell) has done a great job of making sure guys get the reps in practice and making sure that we're out there, so that we can go out there and perform in these preseason games."
DE-DWIGHT FREENEY (on DB-Melvin Bullitt saying that now he knows why Freeney likes getting after the quarterback so much)
"Listen, I've seen him out there get a sack and now he knows how it feels. Just save some for me."
DE-DWIGHT FREENEY (on his sack in the first quarter to force a turnover)
"I knew I had a rookie on me. I knew that much and basically, I'm just going to give him some and baptize him a little bit."
DE-DWIGHT FREENEY (on if he feels better this week with the way everybody played) Thursday, August 20, 2009
"Yes, both sides of the ball were moving it. Special teams did a great job. I think it was an all around effort today."
DE-DWIGHT FREENEY (on if he likes sacking QB-Donovan McNabb)
"In practice when I was a rookie at Syracuse, and then when I was a rookie here, I got him a couple of times. It's fun. He was on the other sideline, kind of, giving it to me a little bit today. 'Come on Free, we're supposed to be Syracuse guys' and all of that. I told him I didn't slam him down. I went for the ball."
DE-DWIGHT FREENEY (on if the first team got enough reps today)
"Collectively, yes, but you have to watch and see how your body feels after and then see what the coaches say after. I feel great, kind of what you want to feel after the game, obviously, I only played two plays. Two plays, I made them count."
DE-DWIGHT FREENEY (on if he feels good about how preseason has moved along so far this season)
"I think things are moving along right where they need to be. Guys are going out there now and understanding that we have two more games left. We have to really sharpen up, and I think we showed them that today and hopefully next game will be even sharper."
C-JEFF SATURDAY (on the offense)
"I was talking to (tight end) Dallas (Clark) about it. We're a different offense. (Wide receiver) Marv's (Harrison) gone. We're moving guys along the offensive line. We've got a new back. We've got new receivers coming in. It's a completely different offense. You have to work together to get an understanding of what we look like. What are we good at, what are we not good at, understand what your team really looks like. I don't think anybody on this team is scared to play. We just need time to go do it. I think (head coach) Jim's (Caldwell) very bright about when we wants us to play, how he wants us to play and then get us out and keep us out."
QB-CURTIS PAINTER (on if he's getting to play more than he thought he would)
"Yes, very fortunate to have that opportunity, getting a lot of snaps and getting a lot of experience. It's time for me to really take advantage of those and just do as well as I can and learn as much as I can in this time that I get."
QB-CURTIS PAINTER (on if he's thought about being the third quarterback on the roster or practice squad quarterback)
"Not really. It's just about getting better for one, but just being in position to help this team out. Whether I'm out there or on the sidelines being able to be there and just help the team win. If I'm fortunate enough to do that than hopefully I'll be along and can contribute."
QB-CURTIS PAINTER (on if he's had enough snaps yet to get settled in)
"It's still a little new, but I think you get more relaxed every time. I think we did a pretty good job today. We moved the ball well, and hit some guys for some big catches. I don't want to say it gets easier, but maybe you're a little more relaxed and not so nervous."
QB-CURTIS PAINTER (on his passes tonight to TE-Jacob Tamme)
"It's one of those where you are taking what they are giving you and they gave us that quite a bit. That was part of a couple big drives, just getting it to him and letting him run a little bit. He did a great job."
QB-CURTIS PAINTER (on if the protection was better tonight)
"I think we had a good grasp of what was going on, made some checks to pick up some of their guys. That's one good thing. We had some time and we were able to get some good balls."
