Transcripts of conference calls by Andy Reid and Donovan McNabb with New York Jets reporters on Wednesday:
PHILADELPHIA HEAD COACH ANDY REID
On how many injured players he expects to return this week …
I'm not going to make any excuses. The Giants beat us, they flat-out beat us. We have some good young players that had an opportunity to play. We expect everyone, whether they are veterans or young guys, to step up and do a good job. That is the first thing. The second thing is that we are getting healthy and guys are coming back. We will just see how this week goes.
On QB Donovan McNabb …
Donovan is a very competitive guy, as are the rest of the guys. We are all trying to do our job better and that starts with me. We are all in this thing together.
On the mood of the team …
The record doesn't matter once you start the game. Everybody just plays their tail off and tries to win every game.
On his team's 8-0 record after the bye …
It is just the opposite going into the bye, so I don't know. If I knew, I would fix the other one and continue on with this one. Who knows? Thank goodness we have been here long enough where I can have a stat.
On whether more players are getting hurt because of the new field surfaces …
I don't know the actual stat on the FieldTurf now. I did that a few years back to see if artificial surfaces had the same number of injuries as natural surfaces. There really wasn't a difference between the two. As many people got hurt on the grass as they did on the artificial surfaces. I can't tell you that on the new FieldTurf fields. You guys can do the homework on that. I know with the other stuff there wasn't that big of a discrepancy between the two.
On Jets QB Chad Pennington …
I have always been a Chad Pennington fan. He is very smart and good with the football. He plays in a tough media area, so you get scrutinized just a little bit. He's had a lot of success. I've had a chance to follow his career. Barring the injuries, I think he's had a heck of a career.
On reports that Reid is considering resigning …
I just told our media this. I'm not a blunt guy, so I don't know where this information has come from. This isn't how I'm thinking. Whoever wrote that just happened to pick the time when the players were leaving me, so I had no access to stand up in front of the team and tell them this isn't true. I made that statement so my team would understand there was nothing to it. Other than that, I have no comment. I don't know where that came from. It wasn't from me and that is not how I feel. I'm a Philadelphia Eagle.
On whether he plans on coaching next season …
If Mr. Lurie wants me here. I'll be here.
On RB Brian Westbrook …
He's a good football player. He's one of those guys who make the NFL fun to watch. He is a great teammate to the players around him. He does a whole lot of things for us offensively.
On Westbrook having a chance to rest for two weeks …
We needed to do that. He was hurting so he couldn't play. If he could've played, he would've been out there. The nature of the injury did not allow that to take place. He wanted to be out there worse than anybody against the Giants because of that rivalry and he wants to be out there against the Jets. The two weeks has helped him with the injury.
On the injury status of S Brian Dawkins, CB Lito Sheppard, TE L.J. Smith and Westbrook …
We have to see on all of them. Dawk and Lito will not practice today. The rest of them will have a chance of practicing and we will see how they feel. L.J. and Westbrook, I'm confident they will be there. I have to see how they do through this week.
PHILADELPHIA QB DONOVAN McNABB
On how the Eagles are playing …
With the mistakes we made in the last game compared to the Detroit game, it was just that there were constant mistakes. When you're playing a team that you play twice a year, we kind of have an idea of the things they like to do and things they have done over the previous years. For every single person on the offensive side, there were too many mistakes made. That's something that we look to correct. We look forward to the opportunity of stepping back on the field again.
On how good the bye week was for the Eagles …
It was important for all of us. In the beginning we were upset when we found out when our bye week was, but it came at the right time for us. The first quarter of the season, we had guys banged up and sore. It's given us an opportunity to rest our bodies and refocus coming off the bye week against a team that has a sense of urgency like we do. The Jets are a team that looks forward to trying to turn their season around just like we are. It's going to be an important week for us to prepare ourselves for a game which there are two teams battling to take a step forward.
On how he thinks he has played this season …
I'm not excited about the way I've played in the four weeks. It wouldn't matter if I had completed 80 percent of my balls and 4,500 yards passing in four games. We still sit at 1-3 so there is no way you could possibly be excited. Also with coming off of injury, there are a lot of different things that obviously when I was healthy I was able to do quicker. It's something I'm working on and when all of that is going on, we all have to elevate our game to another level to compensate for the things that have happened to us with injuries. I'm not excited about the way I've played. I'm not playing bad, but I'm not playing great, either.
On T Winston Justice …
I have communicated with Winston, told him that I support him 100 percent and not to worry about it. I've been through games where I haven't played well and games where I have. In this league you have to have a short memory. Remember what it is that happened, learn from your mistakes and be able to come back and correct them the next opportunity. He is a great player and a hard worker. He's a guy that has had success playing the tackle position at USC.
It's unfortunate that it was his first game that that happened, but it wasn't all just Winston Justice. It was the 10 other guys as well. For all of us, we didn't play well. In a situation where a guy is starting for the first time, they were doing a lot of different things where we could have taken the pressure off of Winston but we didn't do that.
On what RB Brian Westbrook means to the offense …
He means a lot. All of our guys mean a lot. When we are all together and clicking, we are one of the best offenses in the league. Obviously, we showed signs of that in the Detroit game. If we continue to stay healthy and jell each week, we wouldn't be sitting here the way we are, but my guys are coming off injury to the point where the younger guys understand and prepare well because you never know when your name is going to be called. You could step in there, whether it's on the line or in the backfield, and you have to be able to keep the train moving because we have the confidence they will be able to do that.
On advice he has given to L.J. Smith on dealing with a sport hernia …
It's a tough injury. Anytime you're dealing with that area of the body for the men, it's kind of tough. I told him the scar tissue in that area will not go away quickly. He has to continue to rehabilitate it and be patient because some days you feel great and the next day you could be sore, then you'll get tight. It's really inconsistent. As it continues to get better and better, you stretch and get that position worked on and you'll feel better. He's had the surgery, he's rehabilitated and is working on making sure he's doing the right things. When he steps on the field, he has to make an impact.
On the Jets' defense …
They are a young team and coming off of a tough loss to the Giants. I watched them a little bit against Buffalo and New England. They are a team that's out there looking for an identity. When they fly around the ball and guys are making plays, they are an excellent defense. I think sometimes you get put in a tough position and guys can be just a step away from making the play. Watching them on film, they are a good defense and I think what we have to do to is counteract that and take full opportunity of advantages we are given.
On advice to Jonathan Vilma doing the Campbell's Chunky Soup commercials …
He took my spot. I'm a little upset about that [laughs]. That is great for them and I feel like the elder of the bunch. It's time for the young guys to get a little taste of their chunky soup.
On the criticism NFL quarterbacks come under ...
I don't really focus on that, but it's just the position. People love you when you're winning and when things aren't going well, the first person they point at is the quarterback. It may not all be the quarterback, but it's just something that comes with the position and that doesn't bother me at all. Week in and week out I strap my helmet on just like everybody and I look forward to having a great game.
On those who want Chad Pennington replaced as the Jets' starter ...
I talked to Chad in the preseason and it must be this whole radius with Eli [Manning], Chad and me. Everybody seems to have a great time talking about us and getting us out of here. You have to take it with a grain of salt. And statistically, Chad is not doing badly at all. He's completed 71 percent of his balls, although he would like to have a couple throws back.
I think one thing for Chad, and I told him this in preseason, is for the team to stay focused and not to worry about that. Those same people who talk badly about you or down to you are the first ones to pat you on the back when you are doing well. You can't really focus on that. You have to focus on your job and make sure the other guys understand and have that confidence in knowing that you are prepared and ready to go at all times.
