Eric Mangini grew up in Hartford, Connecticut approximately 100 miles away from Gillette Stadium. On Sunday afternoon, the first-year head coach will lead the Jets in postseason action against the Patriots up in Foxborough, Massachusetts. During Thursday's presser, Mangini recalled his childhood when asked about his beloved father, Carmine Mangini.
"He was such a huge influence in my life as your parents often are. He was very determined at everything he did. He believed in finishing things," Mangini said. "I had two brothers, so he was good at conflict resolution. Whenever we would get into beefs, we would be sent down to the cellar to clean it up and you couldn't come up until it was done. Usually you'd spend the first half hour fighting: 'you get that side, I'll get that side.' Then it's just get this done and get out of here, and you came up feeling really good about each other because now you had worked together.
"There are so many things: his kindness, his compassion for people who were less fortunate, I could go on and on. He was a very special man, and I hope that I can be the same type of father to my kids."
Read below for Coach Mangini's complete press conference transcript
New York Jets' Head Coach Eric Mangini, 1.4
Opening Statement…
We placed Jaime Thompson on IR. We moved Ed Blanton up to the active roster and we signed Charles Missant, an offensive lineman that we had during training camp, to the practice squad.
Mike Nugent will be named AFC Special Teams Player of the Month. We are happy for him. He has done an excellent job. Chad (Pennington) was named the AP Comeback Player of the Year. It is a testament to how hard he has worked and all of the things that he does not just professionally, but personally to put himself in the best possible situation to succeed. We are very happy with that as well.
In terms of practice yesterday, overall we are off to a good start. There are some things that we need to address and fix. As you know, it is a very game-specific team, so there are a lot of things that we have to get ready for. Today will be a regular Thursday. We will be focusing on third down and reviewing some of the blitzes both offensively and defensively. We will also review and introduce some new things based on the first and second down packages.
On penalties…
It is a significant emphasis. We have the officials here every day and they call practice like they would call a game. We monitor that and when they do call a penalty we find out who it was on and what the reason was. With Mike Westhoff's understanding of rules, and not just he rules but also the interpretation, that gives us some insight into how the game is going to be called, how things are going to be looked at by the league and by the officials. We try to look at things that way.
On if there are ever good penalties…
One that saves an interception could be a good penalty. You could make that argument if it avoids a turnover.
On Pennington making a comeback…
Each injury is different and I don't know what others have had, but in Chad's mind there was never any doubt. He was extremely committed to doing everything that he could possibly do to put himself in a position to come back from those injuries. There was no precedent, so there was no formula to look at to say, 'this is what he needs to do to come back from the injury.' He consistently worked at it. Knowing Chad and his approach, that is what really drove him.
On Pennington's rehab…
The medical staff did an excellent job. The trainers, the doctors and Chad all worked together to put together a plan. It was a situation where everyone was open minded, trying to explore as many different options as we possibly could as to what was the best path would be. It worked so it was a good path in terms of what the formula was.
On Pennington's arm strength…
He has hit some deep balls. He threw a couple of nice deep balls last game that didn't quite hit. It is like anything else with Chad Pennington; if you underestimate him, he is going to end up hurting you.
On being impressed by Pennington…
Some of the best examples are him coming down to the training room. We had a new system in place. It didn't matter what time I was passing through, if Chad was getting rehabbed, he was multi tasking with his playbook. It was like a mobile-study-center where he was getting worked on and working at the same time. That is always impressive, where a guy is getting things done while achieving things. He was studying that playbook so that he would be ready for training camp. There was no doubt at any point.
On Mike Nugent…
We talked about it (Nugent's missed field goals at Tennessee) after that week. About his approach and his professionalism. A lot of times we go through different struggles, whether it is a bad call, a bad decision or a bad play. It is how you respond to those things. Mike responded the right way. He went back to work and he evaluated the things that he didn't do as well as he could have. His approach was to fix those mistakes and move forward. That's what we are always looking for. When adversity strikes, how do you handle that adversity? How do you respond? Are you able to put it out of your mind and look at it as an opportunity for growth and learning or do you let it linger and effect your next opportunity to be successful?
On bringing players in for workouts…
We bring guys in all the time. Sometimes they are not particularly guys that we need, but guys that we want to get to know. We want to meet and work out and have a good sense of where they are at in case something does come out. You can see week-in and week-out that has been part of the program.
The case with all of these workouts is you need to have an answer in case the question comes up, and you always want to be proactive with that answer instead of responding to the situation after the fact and not having that information. Mike (Tannebaum) and JoJo Wooden (assistant director of player personnel) do a good job of bringing those guys through, keeping a list current, keeping the list detailed so that when a decision does come up, we can address it.
On if a kicker would have been looked at if Mike Nugent had not missed the field goals in Tennessee…
I'm sure there would have been a kicker, that's how Mike (Tannebaum) is. He always wants to stay ahead of the curve.
On the origin of Mangini's coaching methods…
Any time that you go into a new position, there are a lot of things that are borrowed and I borrowed a lot of information from great people along the road. I've been fortunate with the guys that I have been able to work with, and you're always going to draw on experiences to handle situations that you've never had to handle before. The important thing was taking what I liked from those experiences and then pulling it all together and trying to put together the best program for the Jets. As well as make decisions based off of the way that I viewed things, not necessarily the way that those people at that time viewed things.
On what Mangini has learned about Pennington…
It was more reinforcing what I had seen on tape. When you watch a player like Chad and his huddle presence, the respect that he gets from the guys on this team, the way that he's able to attack defenses, the way that he understands his offense so thoroughly. Immediately you see that he details everything and he's hard-working, because those things don't happen by accident. It's too complicated for it to be an accident. That was the impression I got from playing against him. As I came here and got to know him and got to learn more about him, it just confirmed all of the things that I thought prior to getting here.
On how Pennington handled the four-way quarterback competition during training camp…
It just reinforced his character. Throughout that competition, I thought all those guys handled it extremely well. They were competing with each other, but at the same time they were helping each other. They were being good teammates while the competition was going on, and that's what you look for in any position, but you look for it, especially, in the quarterback position. That character to go with the competitiveness that all of those guys showed.
On Pennington believing the quarterback job should be his…
Whenever you enter into a competition, you should always go into the competition with a mind-set of, 'I'm going to win this and this should be mine.' That's why you're competing, and if at any point you're willing to concede a position or a contest to someone else, then really, the competition's over before it ever starts. Part of that whole process was a process that everybody went through and it's a process that's ongoing. I believe that competition is extremely valuable and I believe that it helps get everybody better. It helps make everybody that much sharper. I was really proud of the way those guys all handled it in such a professional and team way.
On experiencing a moment where he didn't feel close with Belichick anymore…
I've never experienced that moment. The way I feel about Bill is the way I've felt about Bill since I first got to know him and it's not going to change. Really, it's the same as what we talked about in the first two games. My feelings have not changed one iota.
On Mangini and Belichick's handshake after the first game…
We do a lot of self-scout after the game, what we did well, what we did poorly, and I didn't really evaluate those things. I thought my handshake was strong. (Laughter) Firm. My dad always told me it's important to have a good handshake and I try to be consistent with that. I've experimented with a couple other different kinds that haven't worked for me.
On Mangini not being able to confide in Belichick…
We're in the same division, so it's harder to call people in the same division because you don't necessarily want to help someone that's trying to beat you. There are guys who are not in the same division that have been very supportive that I've talked to quite a bit. Bill Parcells has been outstanding in terms of offering advice or if I have a question, being able to call him. Guys like Charlie (Weis) or Kirk (Ferentz), Romeo (Crennel), also. Different guys throughout the years have been great. Lovie Smith called me the other day just to wish me luck and I thought that was extremely nice. Other coaches have done the same thing and I just think that sometimes in the division, it's tougher and there are a lot of people that are not in the division that are extremely good resources and have been able to bounce ideas off of them.
On lessons from his father…
He was such a huge influence in my life as your parents often are. He was very determined at everything he did. He believed in finishing things. I had two brothers, so he was good at conflict resolution. Whenever we would get into beefs, we would be sent down to the cellar to clean it up and you couldn't come up until it was done. Usually you'd spend the first half hour fighting; 'you get that side, I'll get that side.' Then it's just get this done and get out of here and you came up feeling really good about each other because now you had worked together. There are so many things: His kindness, his compassion for people who were less fortunate, I could go on and on. He was a very special man, and I hope that I can be the same type of father to my kids.
On if Belichick was a father-figure to Mangini…
Any time you have a mentor, there are elements of that. My high school coach after my father died, Graham Martin was very supportive. My Uncle Frank was like that. There are a lot of people that fill a void when the void is created at such a young age.
On Belichick mentioning Mangini by name on a conference call…
It didn't really change anything. We're still going to be competing on Sunday and they are still going to be trying to beat us and we are still going to be trying to beat them and somebody is going home. That's really where we are. So what I want to do is get our team as ready to go as we possibly can. That's the important thing.
On if Nick Mangold should have received Rookie of the Year…
I don't really vote on that stuff. He got center of the year for us. (Laughter) I was happy with his progress and things that he's done. Any of those accolades that come out, any of these things that happen after the season, they are nice and you appreciate those things, but the real meaning is in what the team accomplishes. There are thousands of guys that would trade Pro Bowls and Players of the Year or whatever the case may be for team success because that's what's special.
On Nick Mangold…
He got a little bit of work yesterday and he'll get a little more work today. It will be like everything else, we'll just gauge it and be smart with the injury so that we don't reaggravate it, but make sure that he's getting the preparation he needs to be as effective as possible.
On Andre Dyson…
He made a lot of progress last week and he's making a lot of progress this week. It's the same thing. You're monitoring it and making sure that you're building as you go and being smart to not reaggravate it and make sure that he's at his peak level for Sunday.
On some coaches being better suited for college…
I've never coached in college. I don't know what that experience is like. I could tell you about the Kew Colts and the Australian Football League. I would do that again. That was a great experience. Not looking to go to the Kew Colts. I'm happy to be with the New York Jets. (Laughter). I'm just telling you how I feel. It was a great experience at 22 years old, I couldn't have asked for a better introduction to football and a better group of guys. I don't really have a basis in terms of what the college experience is like, and I've really enjoyed being a professional football coach. So it's hard for me to give you a comparison.
On Tom Brady…
You can't say enough about Tom Brady. He's just an incredible person to go with the fact that he's an incredible player and he's another guy that came in, not very highly drafted, but he just worked and worked. After practice, he worked in the meetings; he's a great example of the combination of ability and hard work translating into great success. I'd group David Givens into that, as well. Those two guys would work every day after practice and sometimes it didn't look very good. But it looks pretty good right now.
On talking to Brady…
He called me when I got the job here. He did call to congratulate me. We had a good relationship and we have a good relationship. During the season, you don't talk to the players that are on other teams, but he's always been very supportive and nice. I really like Tom a lot as a person.
On Curtis Martin's situation going into the season…
We were always very hopeful that it could work out. It was one of those things where you wanted to give him the most time possible and keep all of the windows open.
We really liked Leon (Washington) in the draft and felt that he had the potential to do a lot of positive things, which he has done, and it was something that we had addressed in the draft and through the trade for Kevan (Barlow). The guys we had here, we understood that things may not be a traditional package but a package that we could definitely be successful with.
On if Dyson will play…
How we have him listed on the injury report is how he is.
Thursday Injury Report Jets Questionable: FB B.J. Askew (foot), RB Kevan Barlow (thigh), CB David Barrett (hip), WR Laveranues Coles (jaw), CB Andre Dyson (knee), FB James Hodgins (knee), C Nick Mangold (knee), OL Brandon Moore (ankle), S Kerry Rhodes (knee) & DL Dewayne Robertson (knee)
Probable: *LB Matt Chatham (foot), *RB Cedric Houston (calf), *QB Chad Pennington (calf), *DB Eric Smith (foot) & *DE Bryan Thomas (shoulder)
Patriots Out: S Rodney Harrison (knee)
Questionable: WR Bam Childress (ankle), RB Kevin Faulk (knee), CB/S Chad Scott (back), TE Benjamin Watson (knee) & NT Vince Wilfork (ankle)
Probable: *QB Tom Brady (r shoulder), *CB Ellis Hobbs (wrist), *DL Richard Seymour (elbow) & LB Mike Vrabel (back)
*Denotes players who participated in practice
