Brady: ‘Our goals are still ahead of us’

By Chad Finn

December 27, 2010

4 minutes to read

The blizzard may have kept the Patriots from leaving Buffalo after their 34-3 victory over the Bills yesterday, but it didn’t keep Tom Brady from checking in on WEEI for his weekly appearance on “The Dennis and Callahan Show.”

Here are some highlights from the quarterback’s call from Rochester, N.Y. to chat with fill-in co-hosts Bob Ryan and Troy Brown:

On setting the NFL record for consecutive passes without an interception:

Brady: “I think as much as everyone points at me for that, so much goes into what we’re doing offensively with protection from the offensive line. I’m never forced into rushing throws. We’ve also been ahead in a lot of games so I don’t have to try to jam balls into tight spot areas that you would if you were really desperate in the second half, trying to get back. The receivers have done a great job of securing the catches. There’s a lot that goes into it. It’s been pretty great — we were talking about it this morning — for the last I think seven games or something like that, we’ve gotten the ball 22 times off turnovers and haven’t given it up once. I think that’s a pretty great stat just from an overall team basis. All the guys work pretty hard at it.”

On whether he and other starters will play Sunday against Miami:

Brady: “I’m not sure, obviously, but I’ll tell you this: It’s not going to surprise me one bit for us to go out there and to do everything we can to win this game. I think that’s just the way [Bill Belichick] has been approaching things all year. I would expect nothing different from that. [With the first-round bye], you really won’t play a meaningful game for a couple of weeks [if you don’t play Sunday]. And you know, someone has to play; there’s only 45 guys active each week. It’s not like college when you have a 95-man roster. We’re all a part of this team, all want to go out and play this week, and we’re all excited about the chance at a 14-2 record. That’s a hell of a record, that’s as good of a record we’ve had other than 2007. We have a chance to finish it off against a team that plays us tough.”

On whether he takes time to think about what he and the team have accomplished:

Brady: “I don’t reflect often, maybe at end of season or in March. It doesn’t do any good at this point because our goals of season are still ahead of us. The only thing you are focused on is what you have ahead of you. I learned that from Coach Belichick. That’s where the satisfaction is. I feel we’re not where we need to be. Though we are going in right direction, our toughest games are ahead. We’ve got plenty of time to worry about the playoffs, but the playoffs don’t start next week.”

On guard Logan Mankins, who has played well since missing the first eight games of the season in contract dispute:

Brady: He’s been phenomenal. He sets tone for everyone. He’s a different kind of guy, he goes out there and wants to maul people. He’s been that way since he got here. But what you see on the sidelines, that’s the real Logan. He’s all about the team, all about the teams’ success, and he’s a man of his word. What he brings with his toughness to this group, he’s a huge asset to this offense.”

On whether he envisioned this season going like this when it began:

Brady: “I don’t think anyone realized how it would go. There’s still been a lot of transition over course of season, with Lawrence [Maroney] gone, Kevin [Faulk getting injured], Randy [Moss] traded, getting Deion [Branch], adding Danny Woodhead. Back on September 5, I’m not sure what I was thinking, but I know that in mini-camp and preseason, thought we’d have a really good team. Everyone works hard, no one is bitching and complaining, it’s a really hard-working team.”

On how the offense has been tweaked after the Randy Moss trade:

Brady: Well, if we to asked Deion to do all the things that Randy did, that would’nt work very well, and had we asked Randy to do all the things Deion did, that wouldn’t have worked very well, either. Our offense is always catered to the strength of players. We don’t run a lot of naked bootlegs. I don’t play like Michael Vick. That’s a news flash, I know. I’m not Michael Vick back there. . . . You can still be extremely efficient and score lots of points and still not have every play in playbook.”

On how he feels about being the front-runner to be named the NFL MVP:

Brady: “Well, I think that . . . my feeling always is that [choosing a] Most Valuable Player in a team sport really doesn’t make a lot of sense. I can understand most valuable golfer or something like that. [Michael] Vick, he’s a hell of a player, he best for that team. [The Eagles quarterback is another favorite for the honor and said with a smile that he’d vote for himself.] He fits what the [Eagles] do well, Peyton Manning fits what [the Colts] do well. Unfortunately, it’s a quarterback award. There are so many other great players at other positions who don’t get the recognition. I guess it’s something that they have to do. But the only award I care about is a Super Bowl ring.”