HE[AD COACH JIM CALDWELL (on DB-Marlin Jackson receiving the Ed Block Courage Award) *
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"Marlin had gone through a situation where he had obviously repaired his ACL, and through hard work and dedication and discipline came back in a very short period of time. He hurt it in the middle of (last) season and was back for training camp (this year). He has done a tremendous job with his leadership and presence, not only on our team, but in our community, as well. We want to honor him for being (the Colts) recipient of the Ed Block Courage Award."
HEAD COACH JIM CALDWELL (on OT-Tony Ugoh being inactive the last four games)
"It's not because of injury, it's just a matter of us trying to get the 45 that we need to function in the game out there and available to us."
HEAD COACH JIM CALDWELL (on where yesterday's comeback win over New England ranks)
"It ranks right up there with some of the real shootouts that we've had. When you think of the comeback versus Tampa in 2003 and down in Houston (2008), we had a pretty good size deficit and bounced back in a short period of time there. This one was a memorable one, really probably important to us for our younger guys. Oftentimes I've used as example illustrations dealing with those two games. In one case, I did show some film clips from, actually the Houston game, to talk about what it takes at the end of the ballgame. DE-Raheem Brock made a great play, knocking a fumble loose and then getting a recovery and (LB-Gary) Brackett picking it up and running. They saw it, but a lot of young guys weren't part of it. The guys that have been around here were. So, it's always great when you have a tangible sort of experience that they can refer to, that you can also use as an example. Now they can draw upon that experience on how to conduct yourself during tough times and when things look a little bleak, but never lose faith, just keep plugging, no complaining, no pointing fingers; 'Let's keep trying to get it done.' It was a great effort by our guys."
HEAD COACH JIM CALDWELL (on if he thought New England was actually going to go for a first down or if he thought they were just trying to draw the Colts offsides)
"I didn't really know. Initially, they had started to send out their punt team, so we also were making the exchange and just anticipating that we were going to have to have a two-minute drive to try to win it. Then all of a sudden, we saw kind of a change in personnel. Their offensive line came running back out on the field, so we were scrambling trying to get our defense back on. I was actually talking to one of the officials, just making certain they were going to give us time to do what is supposed to be done according to the rules, give us a chance to match up. I was focusing more on that aspect of it, making certain we were in place. Then, things run through your mind, well they're probably going to try to draw you offsides because all they need is five yards to get a first down. You didn't quite know exactly what was going to happen, but yet, also, in case they did run a play, was it going to be a run or a pass? We had to be in position to defend. That was really what we were focusing in on and trying to get them stopped."
HEAD COACH JIM CALDWELL (on if he would go for it if he were in a similar situation)
"I just think that every situation is different. There are certain things that you have to weigh that you really don't know that maybe he was dealing with as a head coach, taking other things into account that aren't readily visible to the public. I'm never going to be one to try and pass judgment upon anyone's decision. All I know is, he's won more Super Bowl Championships than most folks even dream about. He knows what he's doing, that's for sure."
HEAD COACH JIM CALDWELL (on the game living up to the hype)
"It sure did. I think our guys tried to keep our viewership entertained, and they did a tremendous job of that. The game, as always, every year we've had shootouts with them. You have a lot of great players that play this game that were part of the game last night, and they all put on a great show. For us, not everything was perfect, but I think it did show poise, confidence, patience and sticktoitiveness that was important in getting the win."
HEAD COACH JIM CALDWELL (on the team's position in the conference and the division)
"Well, we can't be in any better spot, that's a given. The fact of the matter is there's still a lot of work to be done. If you take a peek in the rearview mirror there are some teams that are behind us, but not far behind us, particularly within our divison. You can see everybody in our division has gotten pretty hot lately. So, we better make certain that we stay on our toes and continue to try and get better. That's really important because they're trying to close that gap. The other part of that is all we have to do is look down the road to next Sunday and see who we're playing. That will crystallize your focus, as well. It's an outstanding team in Baltimore. It's going to be a tough battle."
HEAD COACH JIM CALDWELL (on Baltimore being better than their record indicates)
"There's no question, they are a talented team. That is like a lot of teams that we're seeing right now, they're certainly ready to explode and move forward. I think they're ascending. We better get ready for them."
HEAD COACH JIM CALDWELL (on trying to help the younger guys prepare for undefeated talk)
"You hit it right on the head when you said younger guys, because the older guys, (it's) maybe the third time they've been 9-0. It's not anything really new to them. We'll have to do a job to get that message across to the younger ones, but our young guys are catching on pretty quickly. At some point in time I'm going to stop referring to them as young guys because a lot of them have gotten pretty seasoned here, particularly with some of the games that we've had that have been so close. I think they've learned their lesson, and certainly understand what's required of them to be successful in this league. I think those things are taking care of themselves as the season goes along."
HEAD COACH JIM CALDWELL (on the secondary's play against New England)
"I think early on (WR-Randy) Moss gave us some problems. He did indeed stretch the field and made some big plays on us. I think overall when it came down to it, our guys settled down. They were able to control, I think, the passing game a little bit bitter, although (QB-Tom) Brady is very, very tough to keep from moving the ball down the field into scoring position. I think our guys did a fine job coming up with an interception and knocking the ball loose on a fumble. The young guys on the perimeter, I think, held their own, and I think they learned a lot. (DB-Jerraud) Powers had a very good game. He played extremely well. DB-Jacob (Lacey), also, held his own. Overall, I think that's an area that we're going to have to continue to look at to make certain that we're improving, but we were pleased with the effort we received from them."
HEAD COACH JIM CALDWELL (on staying calm during the closing moments of the game)
"I learned a long time ago that if you don't stay focused in those critical situations that oftentimes you can miss a few things here or there. So, I try to concentrate as much as I possibly can until that final whistle blows because there is just so much going on. You have to keep all of those things in perspective. Oftentimes, I'm listening to something going on either with our offensive or defensive side of the ball, or in our kicking game. It's kind of like an air traffic controller. I have to stay rather focused at that time. The other thing is that it's in those waning moments where the difference is made in a ballgame. I think that takes a really critical focus. Therefore, I try not to get too excited until it's all over with. Now, that locker room was pretty jubilant when it was all done, and I certainly enjoyed that."
HEAD COACH JIM CALDWELL (on the possibility of bringing in RB-Larry Johnson)
"At this point, we're pleased with who we have in that position, and they're doing a good job for us."
HEAD COACH JIM CALDWELL (on if he thought about attempting an on-side kick after scoring to make it 34-28) Monday, November 17, 2009
"I thought about it, considered it, also considered who they had at quarterback, as well. At 2:23, if they recover it, the game may be over. They could be in position to kick a field goal. We wanted to give the appearance that we were going to onside kick it, and (then) kick it deep. P-Pat (McAfee) had a heckuva kick and it worked out well for us."
HEAD COACH JIM CALDWELL (on OG-Kyle DeVan)
"(He's a) fighter, a very tough minded individual. He will scratch and dig with the best of them. He's been improving constantly. It's been a good competition between the two (DeVan and OG-Mike Pollak). It's not over yet. We talk about this being a result-oriented business. We tend to not just give that lip service. We look at it every single week, as critical as we would if we were losing. If somebody is not playing quite up to par the way they should, we need to address that issue. (We) take the ego out of it, and I think when you do take ego out of it you have an opportunity to look at your weaknesses honestly and address them."
HEAD COACH JIM CALDWELL (on what he told the team after the New England game)
"It was nothing unusual. Obviously, we just talked about some of the things we discussed during the course of the week, what it was going to take, that it was going to be a heavyweight fight, it was; that it would take 60 minutes and be a grind, it was; that we had to capitalize on some of the opportunities they presented to us, I think we did, and we had to finish, and I think we did that, as well. I also told them that I was very proud of them and the way they fought. Thus, they get a victory Monday."
HEAD COACH JIM CALDWELL (on WR-Austin Collie and WR-Pierre Garcon dropping some passes against New England)
"That's one of those things, that although we talked about, 'Hey, this is a situation where it's the next game,' and so forth, the atmosphere didn't feel that way. The crowd was extremely loud. Our 12th man was strong and vocal. The atmosphere was electric. I think they were trying to run with it in a couple of cases before they caught it. I think you'll see that every once in a while with some young guys, just a lapse in concentration, and that's all it really takes." ]()
