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Footballguy
RB Brian Westbrook
November 28, 2007 | Last Updated: 11/28/07 2:10 PM ET | Comments (0)
On whether the quarterback situation affects his approach this week: "It doesn't really change my approach to the game. I feel like I still have to go out there and play my game no matter who's back there at quarterback; whether it's (QB) Donovan (McNabb) or (QB) A.J. (Feeley)."
On the seemingly better rhythm the team had with A.J. Feeley: "We did have a little rhythm there on Sunday. We've had rhythm during the season. When we're on top of things, everybody brings their best game and we can play against the best. (The Patriots) are the best team in the NFL and we brought our A-game. We had a rhythm and it really showed in the game. We've had rhythm other times, but I think, more so in that game than in other games, we sustained it throughout the whole game."
On keeping that offensive rhythm: "Now we've seen what we can do. We did sustain the rhythm throughout the entire game, and I think during that game we got a little bit of a swagger. We have to try and continue that swagger throughout the rest of the season."
On the playing differences between McNabb and Feeley: "I think Donovan and A.J. are both very capable leaders. Obviously A.J. does a lot more passing inside the pocket, while Donovan is able to move around the pocket a little more with his athletic ability. The plays that we called, the guys making the plays, A.J. making a good throw, all contributed to us having a lot of success on the field."
On whether he will play or not this week with his injury: "Yes."
On the new approach the Eagles had against New England: "When we went into the game, we wanted to win the game. That was our goal, that's what we set out to do. We did a lot of good things on offense that we should be able to carry over. We're still disappointed with the loss, but we did some good things out there. If we carry over those things, then we can move forward in the right direction."
On his thoughts on why there is a quarterback controversy: "I think because A.J. came in and played well. He's not the starting quarterback, and anytime a new quarterback comes in and plays well, you're going to have a little bit of a controversy. Because A.J. came in and played well people want to back A.J. because he's the second-string quarterback. Everybody seems to feel that the grass is always going to be greener on the other side. I still have confidence in Donovan, and I have confidence in A.J. that he'll do a good job if he's in there. For us as a team, we have to support whoever's in there, and we still have to go to war with whoever's in there."
On whether or not the players are curious if A.J. will start: "I don't know about the curiosity part, but I do have the belief and faith and confidence in A.J. that, if he does get a second start, he will do a good job. I think that Donovan, if he gets the opportunity to get in there, I think that he'll do a good job, too."
On the Patriots defensive scheme against the Eagles and Westbrook: "I got hit by a couple linemen here and there. The defense, they allowed us to throw some balls down the middle because they were trying to check me a little bit closer with their linebackers. With that, (WR) Greg Lewis is going to be open over the middle, (TE) L.J. (Smith) is going to be open and we were able to throw the ball. For us, it turned out well; we did some good things on offense. Of course we wish we had a couple plays back, but we did some good things and hopefully we can get back to being more productive."
On his ability to block and pick up the blitz: "We spend a lot of time on blitz pickup as running backs. For us, in our offense, at some point we're not going to get the ball and we're going to have to protect the quarterback. It's very important for us to be able to block. In the game we have a lot of people to check from the strong-side linebacker to the back-side linebacker. It's just one of those things that I've picked up over the years. (OL coach) Juan (Castillo) has done a good job of helping the linemen and helping me as well."
On Sean Taylor's passing: "I was shocked, just like everybody else, and disappointed that someone's life was really cut short. He was four or five years younger than me. Anybody who passes away in a tragic way like that is definitely something that you pray about for his family. I really didn't know Sean very well at all, but whether I knew him or not, my heart goes out to his family; his daughter as well as his fiancé. It's disappointing that the violence has gotten to this point where we're having deaths of young people right now. Not just in the football community, but the worldwide. It's gotten out of control. I think it's time that we as players and we, as a community, say that enough is enough. It has to start now."
On his experiences with Sean Taylor: "I really can only speak about Sean as a player. He's the type of guy that when he's on the field, you have to account for his presence. When he's out there, you always want to know where he is. He improved every year that he was in the league. When he was a rookie he was good and this past year, when he wasn't injured, he was very good as well. He was a presence in the NFL and he probably would have been a Pro Bowler for the next five to ten years. It's disappointing to see something like that happen to a guy who was doing so well at this point in his career."
On talking with his brother Washington Redskins DB Byron Westbrook about Taylor: "I talked to him briefly about it and the team is grieving a bit as can be expected."
On violence in the African-American community: "I feel as though everybody is vulnerable to a certain extent. You have to watch the company that you keep and you have to watch the situations that you put yourself in. I know that I have made a concerted effort to watch my company that I keep, my friends, as well as watch the things that they're doing. You can't be around people, and I don't know Sean's situation--I'm just speaking for myself--but you can't put yourself in a situation where your friends are doing bad things and then you hang around those people. At some point karma catches up with you. You have to be so vigilante in watching everything and watching your surroundings. It's hard for an athlete to go out and enjoy yourself a lot of times, because of the people that you have to watch and being worried about getting robbed. With Thanksgiving just passing, this situation really lets you know that you have to appreciate and cherish every moment that you have with your friends and family. I try to tell the running backs every week that you're not going to be in the NFL for long. During the season you try to get out of practice early, or do other things, but you have to cherish every little moment that you have here. You never want to die, you never want someone to pass away or be a victim of a violent death. Hopefully he enjoyed his life and lived a prosperous life while he was here. Hopefully the guys in the NFL and the people in the community will understand that you have to enjoy every day that you have; almost like it's your last."
On the knee injury and any long-term effects: "When you play a game, especially on turf, you try to get your body to recuperate to 100 percent by Sunday. If you keep pounding on your body every single day it's hard to get your body back to where you want it to be on Sunday. In an effort to try and get my knee back to where I can compete at a high level on Sunday, (head) coach (Andy Reid) sometimes gives me an opportunity to get a little rest."
On the effect of the new surface at Lincoln Financial Field: "I don't know what kind of stuff they put down, but hopefully it will be good for us."
On replacing the old turf: "It needed to be done."
November 28, 2007 | Last Updated: 11/28/07 2:10 PM ET | Comments (0)
On whether the quarterback situation affects his approach this week: "It doesn't really change my approach to the game. I feel like I still have to go out there and play my game no matter who's back there at quarterback; whether it's (QB) Donovan (McNabb) or (QB) A.J. (Feeley)."
On the seemingly better rhythm the team had with A.J. Feeley: "We did have a little rhythm there on Sunday. We've had rhythm during the season. When we're on top of things, everybody brings their best game and we can play against the best. (The Patriots) are the best team in the NFL and we brought our A-game. We had a rhythm and it really showed in the game. We've had rhythm other times, but I think, more so in that game than in other games, we sustained it throughout the whole game."
On keeping that offensive rhythm: "Now we've seen what we can do. We did sustain the rhythm throughout the entire game, and I think during that game we got a little bit of a swagger. We have to try and continue that swagger throughout the rest of the season."
On the playing differences between McNabb and Feeley: "I think Donovan and A.J. are both very capable leaders. Obviously A.J. does a lot more passing inside the pocket, while Donovan is able to move around the pocket a little more with his athletic ability. The plays that we called, the guys making the plays, A.J. making a good throw, all contributed to us having a lot of success on the field."
On whether he will play or not this week with his injury: "Yes."
On the new approach the Eagles had against New England: "When we went into the game, we wanted to win the game. That was our goal, that's what we set out to do. We did a lot of good things on offense that we should be able to carry over. We're still disappointed with the loss, but we did some good things out there. If we carry over those things, then we can move forward in the right direction."
On his thoughts on why there is a quarterback controversy: "I think because A.J. came in and played well. He's not the starting quarterback, and anytime a new quarterback comes in and plays well, you're going to have a little bit of a controversy. Because A.J. came in and played well people want to back A.J. because he's the second-string quarterback. Everybody seems to feel that the grass is always going to be greener on the other side. I still have confidence in Donovan, and I have confidence in A.J. that he'll do a good job if he's in there. For us as a team, we have to support whoever's in there, and we still have to go to war with whoever's in there."
On whether or not the players are curious if A.J. will start: "I don't know about the curiosity part, but I do have the belief and faith and confidence in A.J. that, if he does get a second start, he will do a good job. I think that Donovan, if he gets the opportunity to get in there, I think that he'll do a good job, too."
On the Patriots defensive scheme against the Eagles and Westbrook: "I got hit by a couple linemen here and there. The defense, they allowed us to throw some balls down the middle because they were trying to check me a little bit closer with their linebackers. With that, (WR) Greg Lewis is going to be open over the middle, (TE) L.J. (Smith) is going to be open and we were able to throw the ball. For us, it turned out well; we did some good things on offense. Of course we wish we had a couple plays back, but we did some good things and hopefully we can get back to being more productive."
On his ability to block and pick up the blitz: "We spend a lot of time on blitz pickup as running backs. For us, in our offense, at some point we're not going to get the ball and we're going to have to protect the quarterback. It's very important for us to be able to block. In the game we have a lot of people to check from the strong-side linebacker to the back-side linebacker. It's just one of those things that I've picked up over the years. (OL coach) Juan (Castillo) has done a good job of helping the linemen and helping me as well."
On Sean Taylor's passing: "I was shocked, just like everybody else, and disappointed that someone's life was really cut short. He was four or five years younger than me. Anybody who passes away in a tragic way like that is definitely something that you pray about for his family. I really didn't know Sean very well at all, but whether I knew him or not, my heart goes out to his family; his daughter as well as his fiancé. It's disappointing that the violence has gotten to this point where we're having deaths of young people right now. Not just in the football community, but the worldwide. It's gotten out of control. I think it's time that we as players and we, as a community, say that enough is enough. It has to start now."
On his experiences with Sean Taylor: "I really can only speak about Sean as a player. He's the type of guy that when he's on the field, you have to account for his presence. When he's out there, you always want to know where he is. He improved every year that he was in the league. When he was a rookie he was good and this past year, when he wasn't injured, he was very good as well. He was a presence in the NFL and he probably would have been a Pro Bowler for the next five to ten years. It's disappointing to see something like that happen to a guy who was doing so well at this point in his career."
On talking with his brother Washington Redskins DB Byron Westbrook about Taylor: "I talked to him briefly about it and the team is grieving a bit as can be expected."
On violence in the African-American community: "I feel as though everybody is vulnerable to a certain extent. You have to watch the company that you keep and you have to watch the situations that you put yourself in. I know that I have made a concerted effort to watch my company that I keep, my friends, as well as watch the things that they're doing. You can't be around people, and I don't know Sean's situation--I'm just speaking for myself--but you can't put yourself in a situation where your friends are doing bad things and then you hang around those people. At some point karma catches up with you. You have to be so vigilante in watching everything and watching your surroundings. It's hard for an athlete to go out and enjoy yourself a lot of times, because of the people that you have to watch and being worried about getting robbed. With Thanksgiving just passing, this situation really lets you know that you have to appreciate and cherish every moment that you have with your friends and family. I try to tell the running backs every week that you're not going to be in the NFL for long. During the season you try to get out of practice early, or do other things, but you have to cherish every little moment that you have here. You never want to die, you never want someone to pass away or be a victim of a violent death. Hopefully he enjoyed his life and lived a prosperous life while he was here. Hopefully the guys in the NFL and the people in the community will understand that you have to enjoy every day that you have; almost like it's your last."
On the knee injury and any long-term effects: "When you play a game, especially on turf, you try to get your body to recuperate to 100 percent by Sunday. If you keep pounding on your body every single day it's hard to get your body back to where you want it to be on Sunday. In an effort to try and get my knee back to where I can compete at a high level on Sunday, (head) coach (Andy Reid) sometimes gives me an opportunity to get a little rest."
On the effect of the new surface at Lincoln Financial Field: "I don't know what kind of stuff they put down, but hopefully it will be good for us."
On replacing the old turf: "It needed to be done."
