INDIANAPOLIS – Thursday brought the second day of practice for the Colts and Patriots with just one final session coming Friday.
New England was still without their starting center in rookie Bryan Stork who left the Divisional Round game with the Ravens due to an ankle injury.
Here are the likes of Tom Brady and Darrelle Revis, among other Patriots, speaking to the media on Wednesday.
PATRIOTS QB TOM BRADYQ: What impressed you the most about how much the Colts defense was able to disrupt Peyton Manning last week?
TB: They've done a number on a lot of teams this year. They've got a good rush. They've got a couple good edge guys, really athletic linebackers, and one of their corners is in the Pro Bowl, two experienced players in the secondary. Mike Adams had a great game against us last time, and [Greg] Toler has had a great year, really an underrated player in my estimation. He does a great job. So, they challenge you at all levels. I think that's the important thing is nothing is easy. They want to get up in your face and make you make the plays. So, that's what we'll have to be ready to do. We have to be ready for that type of challenge. Hopefully we can go out there and execute against it, but they make it tough on you.
Q: A lot of times, Andrew Luck seems to go out of his way to congratulate guys that hit him. We don't see a lot of that from you. Is that not in your makeup?
TB: Not much, yeah, I don't do that much. Whatever his style is I think works for him. You've got to do what works for you. He's a great guy. In the times that I've got a chance to talk to him, I really enjoyed it.
Q: What kind of interaction do you have with players that hit you?
TB: I try to be polite. I don't want to do anything more to instigate or antagonize them. I try to butter them up all the time.
Q: Jonas Gray lit up the Colts last time and hasn't done much since. Where has he gone, and might we see him again this weekend?
TB: Well he's fought through a couple tough bumps and bruises over the course of the year. Hopefully, we have all those guys ready to go, and we're going to need them all. We have a good backfield, whoever is in there, whether it's Shane [Vereen] or LeGarrette [Blount], Brandon [Bolden]. Brandon started the game last week. Jonas has done a great job when he's in there and gotten opportunities. Whoever is out there, hopefully they run it well, and if they run it well, I'm sure they'll get more opportunities as the game goes on.
PATRIOTS WR JULIAN EDELMANQ: What do you see from their secondary? It looks like they like to play it tight and physical at the line of scrimmage?
JE: Yeah – they do that. They like to play press when they do man-coverage and they also have a bunch of other stuff that they like to do. When it's a 'gotta have it' situation it seems like it's always man, but of course against us that's changed, if you go back and look at all that stuff. You've got to be ready for everything against them. It's a new game, [it's] a different situation; it's the higher stakes. We'll see what they have to do and we'll be ready to adjust.
Q: What's different about the Colts now than when you played them back in Week 11?
JE: Well going into that game I believe their time of possession was the best in the National Football League. Their defense is getting offenses off the field, and their offense is staying on the field. They had kind of tailed off, but they've definitely gotten back to that formula winning these games. They've got a couple players that have stepped in. It's always a little different when they play us, a lot of the teams, you'll see tendencies and this [and] that, but they usually change. We're going to have to be able to adapt and be able to adjust on the fly and see what they're doing. You can be prepared for what they've done, but you don't know if it's going to be that. It's a whole new game and they're coming off two wins. This will be the best team we've played all year – two playoff wins. You can take that and run with that.
PATRIOTS DE CHANDLER JONESQ: Going against your brother Arthur on the Colts, how is your family going to feel in the stands?
CJ: My mom and dad are pretty excited. They get to go to the Championship no matter what. But, it'll be a good family gathering, and everyone will be there, so that'll be fun for our family.
Q: Have they figured out who they will cheer for?
CJ: They'll probably root for both of the defenses.Q: Has it become a family ritual now, seeing that you've faced your brother before when he was with the Ravens?
CJ: They scheduled to come down to the game, and every year that they do have a chance to come down to the game, it's always a family gathering. With both of my brothers being professional athletes, we very rarely get a chance to see each other. For a weekend like this for us to go out there and have a family gathering, it'll be a good time.Q: What's it like when you play against your brother? Will you talk to him before the game or after the game?
CJ: No, I don't see too much of him. I really don't see a lot of the other players before the game.Q: But you'll talk to him after the game?
CJ: Probably, yeah, I will.
Q: Describe your brother as a player.
CJ: Well, I could describe him as a big brother. No, no, he's a good player and I've been a fan of him since he started playing football. He's the reason why I started playing football. I followed him into the sport, and we've made it this far.
Q: Who's the bigger trash talker? Have you guys been talking this week at all?
CJ: We don't talk too much trash.Q: Have you had any conversations with him this week?
CJ: No, actually we rarely talk. But that's how it is usually. We're both very busy, so we rarely get a chance to see each other.
Q: How hard is it to bring down Andrew Luck in the pocket?
CJ: Andrew Luck is a phenomenal player. He's a great player, and he's had some postseason success. For me just being a fan of the game, I've watched him, and even from studying him, he has a strong arm, he can run the ball, and he's strong. As far as running the ball, he's strong. It's just our job as a defense and as pass rushers, [including] myself, just to try to contain him and give him hell.
Q: Andrew Luck is a guy known for congratulating defenders when he gets hit. Have you ever been a recipient of some of his praise?
CJ: No I haven't. I have not actually, and hopefully he'll be doing some patting me on the back on Sunday.
Q: Does that take any steam out of you?
CJ: I don't get into too many mind games and conversations on the field. We have a job at hand, the task at hand, and we try to accomplish it.
Q: What kind of challenges does your defense present a young quarterback like Andrew Luck?CJ: I really don't see Andrew Luck as a young quarterback at all. I know this is his third year. We actually both got drafted the same year. But this guy, he plays like a veteran, and I'm pretty sure you guys see it as well. He's a great quarterback. For a guy like Andrew Luck, our biggest thing is our execution. They're going to come out with a game plan and we're going to do the same thing. It all boils down to who plays the best. That's what we're going to try to do on Sunday.
Q: What kind of big brother was Arthur growing up?
CJ: Growing up, it was very fun with us three – me and my two brothers. But my brother Arthur, he was the oldest brother and he would always look after us. He was always the older brother figure. So, playing against him Sunday will be fun, but I'll speak to him after the game.PATRIOTS T NATE SOLDERQ: What do you remember about your success running the football last time against the Colts?
NS: We've done a lot of great things throughout this season, but what's going to matter the most is how we play during the game. Really, what we did before is not going to affect that.
Q: What are some of the strengths of the Colts front seven?
NS: Well, the guys play extremely hard, and that's not diminishing their talent at all because they're all very talented. And I don't think there's really a drop off because you've got seven or eight guys who can come in there and play really well. There's a large group of guys that they can rotate in there that play good ball.
Q: What have you seen from Arthur Jones and Jonathan Newsome and their impact on the Colts defense?
NS: I think both of them are tremendous players. [Newsome is] a young guy and he's making a lot of huge plays and he's going to be a huge challenge for us.
Q: What is the biggest difference between the Colts you played in November and the Colts now?
NS: I think they're a much better team. They're playing great. Their defense has been stopping a lot of people. I think they've figure it out what they are and they're playing it well.
CORNERBACK DARRELLE REVIS(On how the Colts have changed since the Nov. 16 game in Indianapolis)
"You can tell they made a couple of changes. It's a credit to their coaching staff. They're believing in each other and improving as a team." (On putting T.Y. Hilton on his Instagram page and whether that means he has his eyes on him)
"No, just promoting the game."
(On why he chose Hilton)
"It's me and him on the pictures. The NFL made it. It's a promotion."
(On what makes Hilton difficult to cover)
"He's a great receiver who makes a lot of plays."
(On the challenge of playing against Andrew Luck)
"He's very talented. He's a rising star and he's very unbelievable. The passes he throws [inaudible]. He's great; we've just got to give him credit. He's worked hard, he's brought them this far and this is the matchup we've got, so we're looking forward to it."
CORNERBACK KYLE ARRINGTON(On the difference in the Colts now compared to the Nov. 16 game)
"Well, the atmosphere is different, everything is different. You lose these games and your season is over, so you can tell they're a hungry team, [their] attitude is different and they've had the emergence of a couple of guys like [Donte] Moncrief, who has stepped up his performance over the past couple of games; getting the running game going, especially when you get the running game going, that opens up the whole playbook."
(On how difficult it is to cover T.Y. Hilton)
"He's about as tough as there is. They don't get easy, especially at this point of the season, so we have a big challenge on our hands. They line him up everywhere, too, so guys on the team have to be aware of where he is at all times."
(On whether it is bizarre to concentrate more on Hilton rather than Reggie Wayne)
"They're all tough. Whether it's Hilton, Moncrief, Reggie, those two tight ends, running back out of the backfield, so like I said, everybody's job is [of] utmost importance this week and we just try to focus on winning our one-on-one matchups as many times as we can."
WIDE RECEIVER BRANDON LAFELL(On what he expects from the Colts secondary)
"They've got a good group of guys. Their top three corners match up with anybody's top three corners: Darius Butler, [Vontae] Davis and [Greg] Toler. Guys got long arms, very, very athletic and guys go out there and compete their butts off. And they're playing great ball at the end of the year."
