*COLTS HEAD COACH TONY DUNGY CONFERENCE CALL *
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(your media guide states that you and Peyton Manning the most successful coach-quarterback combo since the merger. Were you aware of this statement?) "I just saw that actually today. Someone put that in front of me. I don't know if that means anything other than we've been on some pretty good teams."
(what has it been like coaching Peyton Manning?) "It's been a lot of fun because he's a guy that just comes to practice every day prepared and ready to go. He works hard and he's been really a joy to watch in the games. I've never seen anyone operate quite like he does and when you see it in practice and see it come to fruition in the games, it's quite a bit of fun."
(on yours and Manning's personalities meshing well together) "We have and I guess I really appreciate him as a player, number one, and as a leader and a captain, and number two, I played in this offense, it wasn't quite obviously this way but it's the same offense where the quarterback had a lot of control. Tom (Moore) coached me college and we did the same things and I understand what goes on with the quarterback during the week and during the game. I guess I had more of an appreciation maybe than anyone. So it's been good and we think the same. Peyton is very old school in the way he thinks about the game of football, so it has been a great relationship actually."
(when you called plays, did you walk around the way Manning does?) "We didn't have as much noise so we didn't have to be quite as loud and didn't have to have as many hand signals."
(did you finally feel the Jaguars defense in the second game last year? They got those two quick touchdowns. In the first game they did pretty well against you.) "They're a good team and you can't make mistakes against them. They're very sound. They don't beat themselves and you have to execute. We played them probably six times, I guess, and three or four times they've out executed us and a couple of times we've out executed them. But they are always good games and close games and I like the way they play because they do what they do and they don't try to fool you and you have to line up and play against them."
(are the Jaguars are similar to the Steelers in that regard?) "No. They are the exact opposite of Pittsburgh. They are going to line up, they are going play their defense. Pittsburgh is going to give you a lot of looks and try to get pressure by bringing a lot of DBs and different guys. These guys believe in their front people and they believe in their system and they just play it really, really well."
(in the first game last year against the Jaguars, they started with a three-man line with eight guys back. They were determined to take away your passing game then you finally ran against them in the third quarter.) "They played a little different in that first game. They did give us more three-man line. They gave us a little some in the second game but not as much, but that's not what they do. They have John (Henderson) and Marcus (Stroud) and they play to their strengths. Those guys are really tough to block and they utilize them inside instead of going to a three-man line. It takes one of their best players