Transcript of Wednesday midday conference calls from Baltimore's Ray Lewis and John Harbaugh with Jets reporters:
RAVENS LB RAY LEWIS
On the connections between the two teams and if he is excited…
I think you kind of have to be. It's going to end up being the same thing, a lot of familiar faces on both sides. We know each other very well. Who was once over here is over there now. It has natural fire by itself.
On both teams boasting about being the best defense and if it makes the game mean more...
I don't think so. I think for years when we talked about being the best defense, we always kind of let the numbers speak for themselves. That's kind of the thing. We know what they bring, they know what we bring. It's kind of very similar because you have the same kind of background and different things. But I think the game always just overrides all of that, whatever trash-talking is going to be done.
On if the Jets offense has changed to a pass-first team…
That's probably the biggest identity that you do see. Mark Sanchez is throwing the ball way more than those running backs are touching it. Even when those running backs are touching it, they're touching it more from the backfield, out of pass sets and different screens and things like that. It's definitely a changeup from what you saw the last couple years, which was run-run-run-run-run.
On Joe Namath's comments about Ryan…
First of all, I don't know if I can comment on the Joe Namath thing because I don't know what that's all about or whatever. I just know that when Rex was here, he had a certain confidence that he believes in his players. Some people keep it to themselves, some people vocally say it, but the bottom line is, if you feel however you feel about it, say what you feel and carry it from there. But I don't believe players should be affected one way or another. I believe the game still has to be played by the players no matter what the coach says.
On the crossroads in Ryan's career and if he thinks about Ryan taking Bart Scott with him…
His decision was to take Bart with him and start fresh, whatever he wanted to start in New York. It's not like we didn't have real conversations with each other. He had to go. He used to always tell me that Baltimore will always be where I always end up at, bottom line. So when that opportunity came for him, I was more happy for him that he got the job there than anything else.
On if he felt Baltimore is where he would always be…
Absolutely. I don't know what could ever pull me away from here. That would have to be something so incredible to pull me away from here and actually leave this city and everything I've already built here. For a coach it's kind of different because they can travel different places and start over in new territory. For players I think it's totally different, definitely, when you're trying to leave the legacy that I'm truly chasing.
On the void left by Derrick Mason…
I think you talk about a veteran presence from the receiver position, a guy that has been consistent for so many years, year in and year out. When you leave Baltimore, you leave that open. As you saw last week, we started a couple of rookie receivers and things like that. But that's the transition of the business as well. Mason is always a heck of a teammate, somebody that you know you can rely on, but now he's on the other side, so now we have to get ready to defend him.
On if he tried to convince Mason to come back…
I don't think you could try to convince him at that period because from that point, the organization had kind of made their mindset that they were going to move on, and from that standpoint, I talked to Heap and talked to a couple other guys that knew that they were going to possibly make some decisions to do some other things. With that being said, it's kind of hard to say, "You should come back here." Whether we would have put in a phonecall to say "come back" or not, that would have been totally up to him, to Derrick's decision, and he made, I think, what was best for him, what he felt was best for him.
On the Jets offensive line and if that's something they can exploit…
I think it all comes hand-in-hand, whether you're running the ball, whether you're throwing the ball, whatever it is, it kind of goes with the identity of your ballclub. I think if you put them out there to do things they don't normally do, I think people can exploit them. Last week, I think if you watch the game, Oakland just made a lot of plays. A lot of people were running free and things like that. But I'm pretty sure that Rex and them are definitely going to correct those holes that were in the offensive line and really try to get back on track this week.
On if he recalls a game where they didn't have it defensively and Ryan's reaction to it…
It's been very rare that we had a day where the total defense played bad, but he's just an honest guy. He's just an honest guy, he's just straight-up honest. Whether it's a missed tackle here, whether it's a blown assignment here, whatever it is, he's going to say it to one person, he's going to call out that one person. If it's the defense, he's going to call out the defense. That's just who he is. He's a straightforward person, he's going to give it to you the way it is and tell you, "Now this is how we're going to correct it." And they're going to move on.
On if he remembers the game against the Giants a few years ago…
Yes, I remember we put so much overemphasis on "Don't do this, don't do that" and we didn't do what we normally do, which is just put people in front of us and just play football. We saw our defense overrun so much and then people just cutting all the way back and things like that. And that's just not the way we play. And then when he came in afterwards he was like, "Look, I'm going to take all the blame because I was talking about this and moving guys out of position and doing things like that." But then when you come back and you settle in, and like I said, he always settles in, to say, "All right, let's move forward, this is how we're we're going to it." Once he corrects it, he's right back to being himself and it's over.
On what he has seen from Mark Sanchez compared to his rookie year…
I think the consistency of his reads. You see he's very decisive on where he wants to go with the ball. That's what you see in a veteran quarterback as they grow and grow. They always start to get comfortable to where they look you off one way or here, and they know where they're actually going to go with the ball. You look at one of those big plays that he had in Oakland last week, just looking the guy off and then coming back to Plaxico [Burress] and things like that. So I think his progression reads have definitely gotten better.
On how big a loss it is if Mangold can't play…
I just think for them, I know the center word is kind of cliché, but for him being the cornerstone of their offensive line, I think that's huge for them losing that guy, because he is a guy that gets everybody lined up and gets everybody where they're supposed to be going. And when you lose a presence like that, you really have to try to figure out who is going to be making those checks and who is going to be making those calls. So I think that's an adjustment that they're going to have to work with for the next couple weeks until he gets back.
On why the Jets have not run the ball as much recently…
I can't tell you. I really can't tell you, because they can be whatever they want to be, but if you're not running it, then it's purely on decision-making. You can't really get into the why-this-why-that. As a team, they have to figure it out, because from the outside, you don't figure that out. From the outside you watch their tendencies, you watch what you get, you watch what makes them successful. When you see those running backs getting the ball, you see Dustin Keller getting involved, and you see No. 10 [Santonio Holmes]. That's the way they run their offense. That's the thing they're struggling to balance, and what they've been trying to do.
On how he has been able to stay in the NFL for so long…
Well, it's a combination of a lot of things. God is the creator of all things and he has everybody's journey paved out. I just carried that part of it, and really respect Him from the aspect of taking care of my body, and really the way you should go above and beyond taking care of your body. And that's the difference of me being in the league as long as I have, and so many other guys coming and going, because I've seen so many different times, because a lot of them go straight off of talent. I don't go off talent. I've never been the biggest guy, strongest or nothing, but I just go off of straight work ethic.
I think when you get into this business, you realize the harder you work, yeah, we all get older, but as you get older, you can definitely get wiser and you can definitely get better. That's the thing that I've taken so much pride in, in taking care of my body and making sure that I understand this is a true business. I've studied more film than anybody that ever studied film. When my tests come on Sundays, my test is just to go through what I've been through, stay in physical condition the way I should be, and then study the way I study, and those combinations by itself, that'll keep you around a long time.
On how much longer he wants to play in the NFL…
You could never put a number on mine. When you love the game, you love it. One thing about it is when it's done, it's done. That's the one thing about the careers that we choose. Any other career you could probably have a comeback in a couple of years and you can go back to school for it. You can't go back and redo this. When this is over, it's over. Until something happens or God shows me something else, that's when I'll leave.
On if he has memories of something inspirational or funny Ryan said while with the Ravens…
I think it's everything about Rex. It's not just one thing. It's always a number of things that make you laugh about Rex, that make you want to play for Rex or want to be around Rex. He's just one of those personalities.
On what type of emotion Ryan brought to the Ravens and what type of greeting he will receive in Baltimore…
I don't know what type of greeting he will get from the crowd. He's the New York Jets head coach. We're the Ravens. I don't know if people are going to be standing up and applauding or whatever like that. Not the fans I know. The fans I know are going to be doing the opposite. But when it comes to players and things, he left a mark, he left a heck of a mark.
RAVENS HEAD COACH JOHN HARBAUGH
On his relationship with Rex Ryan…
We were together in Cincinnati when he came there and we had a chance to work together. I got the chance to get know him and what a good coach he was and how much I enjoyed being around him. I really learned a lot from him. Then we kind of stayed in touch, on and off. We've known each other, so we were around each other and stuff and always had fun together. Then in 2008, it was where I really came to respect him as a coach and a person. I just had a great year with him. It was a very valuable year and I really appreciate that year.
On if it was competitive when Ryan was recruiting Bart Scott to come to the Jets…
Not really. It was kind of quick. We asked Bart to come back, gave him a contract offer. I think the relationship, obviously, was a big one and the role he was going to play in New York, but also the contract was a big part of it, too. I didn't take it personally at all. I understood what Bart was thinking. I talked to him about it since. I understand why Rex would want him. Bart's a good player, and a good guy. Not at all.
On how similar he thinks the defenses are…
That's a good question. I think probably there are a lot of similarities. It's not exactly the same, obviously, because over three years, they grow in directions and we grow in directions. You're always evolving in this league. You'd better be, and they have and we have. I think there are a lot of differences and there are a lot of similarities, but the biggest thing is players. Players are really, in the end, what make a defense. I think coaches do a great job of building their ideas around the players, so that kind of takes it in certain directions as well.
On what he wants to exploit in the Jets defense…
What we're hoping to exploit? I could fax you the game plan [laughter]. All I've seen is a few plays. I think that they are the same defense. They fly around. They have great players. They have a great scheme and they just got hit on a couple of plays. Like Oakland, you have a back that runs as fast as that guy does and you have to catch an edge. That can happen, just in a heartbeat. We've had the same issues. We were worried about that two weeks ago, down in Tennessee. Those are the kinds of things that can happen in the NFL. Every week stands on its own two feet, but I still think they're very well on defense.
On what it means for the game if C Nick Mangold is not playing…
Obviously, a great player like that makes a difference. I think they'll still run the same plays and all that kind of stuff, so we just have to prepare for the scheme. A guy like Nick Mangold is a great player, so it makes a difference.
On the Jets' running game…
I don't know if I could really specifically [tell you] because I haven't studied it from that aspect. You study it more from the standpoint of how are you going to try to defend it? When you think about trying to defend it, you look at all the things you do well. They have two great backs. Shonn Greene is an all-around back. He does everything really well. They have LT [LaDainian Tomlinson] — obviously, he's a gamebreaker. He does everything, too. He runs between the tackles, he screens, so I'm a little bit nervous about the run game. I think it's something they're committed to doing. Our job is to make sure we defend it on Sunday, so what happened the last three weeks, that's just kind of for us for planning purposes. They'll have to answer the other questions.
On what the Ravens defense has been doing to get after the quarterback…
I think our guys have been winning some 1-on-1 battles and they're all across the front. Obviously, Terrell Suggs has done a great job, but the other guys, too. I think, at times, we've been covering a little better. The game that we didn't get the sacks, the Tennessee game, was a game where I didn't think we covered very well. That presents a big challenge because these guys have playmaking receivers all over the place. Covering those guys is going to be very important.
On what he expects if Anquan Boldin is matched up against Darrelle Revis…
I expect a titanic battle between two great players. They are both really strong guys and they both have really good feet, good body control and good ball skills, so I think they are similar kinds of guys in that sense. It will be a very interesting matchup.
On what he has seen that is different from the Jets offense this year as opposed to the last couple of years…
I think they're throwing it more. The schemes are very similar, but they've done just more of it. I think it's the players. I think if you have a receiving corps like that, a tight end like that, you have backs that can protect and can catch the ball out of the backfield like they do, along with Mark [Sanchez] growing as a quarterback, why wouldn't you throw it? They have weapons all over the place and that, obviously, makes you nervous as a defense.
On why they let go of Derrick Mason…
The original issue was that it was a salary cap issue. We had to move four different players. Right out of training camp, we decided to do it. We really had no choice, capwise. As it worked out, a couple of weeks later, we had the opportunity to possibly bring him back, but he decided to go with the Jets, so that's what happened.
On if he is surprised that Mason did not return to Baltimore…
No, I never get surprised. I like Derrick. I'm very, very proud and I felt honored to be associated with him for three years there, and I just count those blessings.
On what he expects the atmosphere to be like Sunday night…
It's going to be great. Our stadium is unbelievable. If you guys have ever been down here to M&T [Bank Stadium], I may be biased but I think it's the best atmosphere in football. It will be rocking, anyway. It always is. Then, you add the night game, the fact that we're playing such a good team, then you add the personalities, I think that all will make it really fun, really exciting.
