PRESS CONFERENCE COLTS - RB JOSEPH ADDAI - ingles

Super Bowl XLIV – Tuesday, February 1, 2010

QUOTES FROM INDIANAPOLIS COLTS PRESS CONFERENCE

RB JOSEPH ADDAI

(on the Saints’ comment about hitting Peyton Manning and getting into his head) “I haven’t heard it, so I really don’t know. With us, regardless of who’s playing, it’s really about what we can do. That’s what’s been the biggest key as far as us winning this year. It’s what we can do, how can we play different guys. It’s not about how we can adjust to them, it’s always about us. Always giving credit to the other team, because they do play hard. As far as the comment, I can’t really make any comment on that because I haven’t heard it.”

(on why Manning is so good at avoiding the rush) “Peyton has been doing it for a long time. It comes with experience, I think [he’s in] his twelfth season. I’ve been able to play with him for four years, and each year he’s been able to get that much smarter. It’s more of a feel thing in football. It’s not too much thinking, and that’s what Peyton’s been doing.”

(on the success of the running game against the Jets last week) “It’s always good when you get the running game going so you don’t always have to rely on the pass. Whenever [the] coaches call our number - when I say our, I mean the running back group, we do pretty well as far as answering it. You have a great player in Peyton Manning, so you want him to make a lot of decisions. He does a great job of making a lot of good decisions. It comes down to trying to get that ‘W,’ and that’s what we’ve been doing.”

(on how he handles the criticism of the running game as the starting running back) “I’m human, but at the same time, you have a chance every Sunday to go prove yourself. Do I feel like I bring something to the table? Yes, I feel like I bring something to the table. Numbers? The numbers are not where we want them, but I think when we do run the ball, we do have a good chance of making yardage or making something happen. That’s kind of how I look at it.”

(on if the Jets’ blitzing style allowed for the run game to be more successful last week) “ Not only with the Jets, but I think all year, we really just take advantage of what they give us. It’s just about taking what they give us. I feel like that’s what we’ve been doing. Me, Donald [Brown], Mike [Hart], Chad [Simpson], all of us have been taking advantage when we do get those opportunities. I feel like we will need the running game in this game coming up. It’s a huge game and we know they will bring their ‘A’ game, so we’ll be on top of our keys as far as running the ball.”

(on if he can imagine the team without offensive line coach Howard Mudd) “I haven’t looked that far, honestly. I know what Howard Mudd brings to the table, but I haven’t honestly looked that far. Right now we’re obviously focused on the Super Bowl, and that’s what we’re trying to win. When we get that far ahead, I think we kind of lose focus. Not having him, he would be missed because he brings a lot to the offensive line.”

(on what it would mean for the team to send Mudd out with a win) “Not only him, we want to play hard for all of the coaches. He’s been a guy, when he played, he played well. When he coached, he coached his guys well. This being his last game, you want to send him out the right way by going hard out there in the game, so I think regardless, it will still be the same each week. Stay with the game plan, but understand that we want to send our coach out with a bang.”

(on the difference between this Super Bowl and his first one three years ago) “I really can’t say, this is the first day down here. In [20]06, that was a long season, I was a rookie that time. This time, I’m older and it’s going faster. I think as you get older in life, things start going fast and you start to understand the concepts of it. Now, the first day here, today [compared to the] first day four years ago, I feel like I’m more comfortable right now.”

(on if he feels the running game doesn’t get the respect it deserves because of the dominance of the passing game) “I don’t know. It’s really how you look at it. If you just watch the game, and you say, ‘that’s a nice run, that’s a nice run,’ but you look on paper and you see something different. It’s really how you look at it and what we have to work with. Like I was saying earlier, you have a great player in Peyton Manning, so you want him to make a lot of decisions, and he does a great job. It always comes down to getting that ‘W,’ and that’s what we’ve been doing all year.”

(on the Saints defense’s ability to force turnovers and strip the ball) “If you watch the Saints all year, that’s what they try to do, get the ball out, knock the ball out. As far as us, we’re just trying to be aware, but not trying to change too many things. I think if we start focusing on one small part of the game, it throws us off. I think we’ve been doing a great job as far as protecting the ball and not giving the ball to the opponents. If we just understand what they bring to the table, then we’ll be fine. Not trying to press, not trying to make more things happen than usual.”

(on the importance of TE Dallas Clark to the offense) “Dallas is a team player. As good as he is, he’s a team player. He practices the way he plays in games. Just having him blocking, even him running routes, you have a lot of defenses scared of that, so it can open up the run game. You have to look at it in so many ways. Dallas is a valuable player, he’s a threat on offense. I think he brings a lot to the table.”

(on if he is staying in the same hotel room at the hotel a she did three years ago) “No I’m not. Last time, I was next to Cato [June], with the little door that you could open inside [the adjoining room]. I don’t have that door this time, so I’m not in the same room.”

(on if the game feels like a road trip, as the Colts played at Miami earlier in the season and at the same site for the Super Bowl in 2006) “It seems like it, but I know a lot of guys from the Saints have been to Miami before too [they played in Miami earlier this season], so I won’t say we have an advantage [just] because we played here in 2006. I feel like we don’t have to get used to what’s going on. I feel like that wouldn’t give us a edge as far as the game.”

(on if his stellar performance in the 2006 can carry over to this game) “Not really. That was ’06, that’s over with. The time that I’ll really talk about ’06 is when I retire. Regardless of what happened in ’06, if we lose this, we’ll feel bad. As far as ’06, yeah we won it, but I want another one. Me myself, I won’t think about it until I’m done with football.”

(on if it was difficult to get used to Manning’s audibles) “Honestly, I think him doing all that is easier than him being in the huddle, because when he gets in the huddle, he gives you about two or three plays that you have to remember. When he just calls out plays, there’s only one play. If you can understand that part, you have the play rather than try to get this long sentence. It’s a little bit easier as far as if you can get the gist of what’s going on, you’ll be fine.”

(on how much Manning actually changes the play, and how often he is bluffing) “95% of the time, it’s real, 95% of the time.”

(on how much pass protection he has done this year as compared to previous seasons) “I think more now. I remember one game where I probably had to block a linebacker 13 times or something. I think that’s one of my strengths. I won’t say I like it, but I think I do that pretty well. Like it or not, I don’t want to hit those guys, they’re too big [laughter]. This year I feel like I did more. I don’t complain about it, it’s just part of the game.”

(on playing in his second Super Bowl in four seasons) “I’m really blessed. I’m happy about it because a lot of people don’t get a chance. A lot of people go through their career and don’t get tot play in one Super Bowl, and me, I get a chance to play in my second Super Bowl. I’m happy about the situation that we’re in. Regardless, it’s still another game, that’s how we’re looking at it. We have a lot of distractions, we have a lot going on, but we still have a game, so we still, have to go out there and do what we’ve been doing.”