Transcript of quarterback Mark Sanchez's news conference at his locker after the Jets' Wednesday afternoon practice at the Atlantic Health Training Center:
On the challenge of playing New England at Gillette Stadium…
They have a great crowd and they're efficient at home. They play some of their best football at home. It's really one of the best teams at home, on the road, one of the best franchises in the NFL. They're always tough to play. They always bring their best. They find ways to win. So it's on us to take care of the football, hopefully keep on running the ball like we did last week and we'll see how things turn out.
On New England's defense…
They force turnovers. They've given up some longer drives, but they don't let a lot of teams into the end zone. They've played sharp for the most part. It's always a good challenge and they're highlighted with great players every year, obviously [Vince] Wilfork up front, [Brandon] Spikes and [Jerod] Mayo in the middle there with the linebackers, [Patrick] Chung, [Devin] McCourty and all those guys who generally play well.
On DT Vince Wilfork…
He's big, not just in stature, but it's important for us to block him well. [Nick] Mangold always has a tough job doing that. He's going to have to bring his best and I know Nick will. He's one of those guys that can really disrupt your running game, disrupt your protection up front. It's always a good matchup. He's a heck of a player, a great motor. He's always a standout player on their defense, so we're going to have to play well.
On if the Patriots look like a team with a 3-3 record…
Just seeing the way some of the games have gone, that's kind of the way the ball bounces sometimes. Every team is victim to that kind of stuff. There have been some late-game big plays. You look at the Baltimore game, teams are in it at the end and they make you earn it. It's not like they're just running away, beating these guys. That has traditionally been the way it is, and they make you earn a win. That's what we'll have to do.
On Coach Belichick's ability to change defensive schemes…
I think that's what makes him so good. He's so multiple, not only with his schemes but his personnel. He can change up coverages, schemes from week to week. It's something that you just deal with, but you tip your hat to the guy. He's a heck of a coach and that's why he has been so successful for so long. The most important thing, just like every week, is taking care of the football, hopefully running the ball well and being efficient in the passing game.
On playing the Patriots…
It's a big game for us, just division standing-wise. We want to win those games in our division. We've been successful so far, but we're going to have to play well this week. It's always a good road trip. It's a familiar place and you can't stress enough just controlling the football, playing our very best in all three phases. That's what the coaches are preaching.
On needing to score touchdowns on red zone possessions…
That's huge. You have to come out of the red zone with points. When you play one of the best teams in the league, one of the best defenses and one of the best scoring offenses, you have to come away with seven points. That's our goal, but most importantly it's points. We'll just keep at it, hopefully build off of last week and prepare to play a great game.
On what offensive tempo they will play at…
You have to ask Coach Sparano. Whatever he likes to do is what we'll go with. We've been fairly efficient so far, we just have to keep it up and be more efficient in the red zone like we were last week, just to build on what we did last week. As for the pace of things, we'll go as fast as we can and as fast as Coach likes.
On stringing together drives to keep the defense rested…
That's every week, to try to control the football, control time of possession, especially against a team that can run upwards of 70 plays a game. When you look at that stat, it's staggering how many plays they get off. It's really incredible, the way they do that. It's important for us to play well.
On how running the ball well helps a quarterback…
Any quarterback will tell you, you rush the ball for 252 yards, that makes your job a lot easier. No doubt, it's nice when that happens. It's not always like that every game, but that's what we're striving for, to be able to rush the ball the way we did and pass the ball efficiently. Whatever it takes to win, if it takes a late game comeback, we have to have that in our bag too and we have to be able to do it all.
On how working with Tim Tebow has been going…
I've never really been a part of something like that, so I didn't really know what to expect, but I think every week has gotten better and better. We're only getting better at practicing a lot of that stuff and it's not something we did the entirety of training camp. It's something we're still getting used to, but I think Tim has done a good job with it. We're all doing our best to adapt and trying to hit that stuff at the right time.
On if they will throw on the Patriots…
We have to be balanced, I've always thought. Again, I'll defer to Coach Sparano, but the way we rushed it last week was nice. It always makes my job easy, but if we need to throw it, we'll throw it. Whatever we do, we need to be efficient and take care of that ball.
On if they will take more shots down the field…
We'll see, take what they give us. We have to be sharp in the passing game. If it calls for a long ball, we have to be prepared for it. We just have to be efficient whether it's underneath, intermediate or down the field. The same thing in the running game, we have to be able to sustain drives, convert on third down and be sharp.
On building off of Sunday's win…
You look across the league and there are a lot of teams 3-3. I think we're doing all right. We're right where we want to be in our division with a big game this week. I'm a pretty positive guy, so I don't look at it like that and I know this team doesn't. We're a really positive group. We're just building off of last week, we're excited about the way we played at home before this road trip. We'll keep those positive vibes going and keep rolling.
On what he thinks of his team's performance so far… You are what your record says. We're 3-3. That's something we're going through just like a lot of other teams. I really think we've positioned ourselves well in the division and this is another good test for us.
