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I think so. At times you go into games like this and come into a game plan where you're going off the previous week, and it's all about identification. As long as you ID the front you're fine but if you have trouble identifying it and one guy is off here or one guy is off there, that's where they get sacks. Like you said, from Cleveland and all of the teams we've played in the past within our division, a lot of the stuff you see from Pittsburgh, you see the same things with these guys. It's all about getting IDs right and getting on the same page, and figuring out a way to block it. If these guys figure out a way to confuse you at all, they can get to the quarterback. I think they're third in the league in sacks (per pass play). They do a good job of that. So with a new center, we have to do a great job of pointing guys out, figuring out who's who - who's a defensive lineman, who's a linebacker - and getting the big guys on the big guys.
Q: T.J. Houshmandzadeh leads the league in receptions, but how cognizant of that are you, and how much would you like to get that for him within the scope of winning the game?CP:
The first goal is to win. Everybody is worried about the win - T.J. is worried about the win. I'm sure in the back of his mind he'd like to get that, and as an offense in the back of our minds we'd like to get that for him, but nothing comes before a win. No personal stats or records or anything. I hope for T.J. that he gets it, and I hope that Chad gets the yardage deal, but first and foremost we're going to Miami to get a win.
Q: How tough is it to block Miami's record out of your mind and take this as dangerous game?CP:
It can be, and it would be if we weren't in the situation that we're in. It's not like we're 13-2 coming into this game. It's two average teams going at it, and we have to play better than they do on Sunday.
Q: Are you glad that they finally have a win coming into this game?CP:
Yeah, it takes a little bit of pressure off of us going into that game, but any time you see a fellow division team lose it's a good thing. Seeing Baltimore lose that game was good.
Q: Would you be surprised by any coaching changes?CP:
No, I won't be surprised.
Q: How many changes do you think there will be?CP:
I don't know. I'm not worried about that right now. I'm worried about Miami. We've got too much to worry about with what they do on defense and the looks we see. I'm just trying to get the game plan studied right now, figure out what we're going to do on third down and then tomorrow move on to the red zone After the season is after the season. We're still playing, we're still going into Game 16 right now, so I'm not worried about what's going to happen after that.
Q: Which players would you like to see re-signed?CP:
To be honest, it's the same situation. I'm not going to talk about that until we're in that situation. Right now we're just trying to find a way to get that next win.
Q: It must be exciting to play in nice weather in Miami after what you've played in lately:CP:
I can't wait. Chad and I were talking about how the last five or six games have been either a ton of wind or sleet or rain or whatever. The field conditions have been bad. He gets to go home - we have a couple of guys on our team from Miami. We already checked the weather; it's supposed to be 80 degrees. It makes you jealous of the West Coast teams and the teams from the south that get to play in that weather, and of course the indoor teams that play half of their games in perfect conditions. We're excited. As a passing offense, any time you can play in the sunshine with fresh green grass that isn't dead, you have an advantage.
Q: Not mud:CP:
It's not mud, it's still alive, it's still growing. You don't have to worry about sleeves or wearing tights underneath your football pants. It will be 80 degrees. It will be nice.
Q: As a senior with the USC Trojans you beat the Iowa Hawkeyes. What do you remember about playing in Dolphin Stadium?CP:
I remember it's a beautiful stadium. It's the best grass I've ever played on. Actually in the Sports Illustrated players poll, it's always rated as the best grass in the league, them and Tampa. It's a beautiful stadium. I remember seeing a lot of Cardinal and Gold in the stands, and the other half was black and yellow with Iowa fans. It was humid - humid at least for the wintertime - but it was great weather conditions, and we're looking for the same this week.
Q: Has the running game suffered due to injuries?CP:
I think so. In past years we've been extremely confident in the running game and gone into games knowing Rudi (Johnson) was going to get 100. It was just whether it was going to be 120 or 140 or 150. We've struggled for a number of reasons in that area this year. Anytime you're not as successful in one category as you've been in the past, you're at a loss, and obviously that was a big part of this year. We've got a lot of work to do. We've got a lot of work to do in the running game and in the passing game. Marvin consistently talks about stopping the run on defense and running the ball on offense, that's how you win, so we know that's a key to this organization, getting back to where we need to be. That needs to be a huge focus for us this offseason and we're going to work extremely hard in all of the OTAs and all of the camps and practices we're going to have in the offseason. It's a number of different of things.
Q: Would you like to see Willie Anderson come back next year?CP:
Oh, yeah. This team loves Willie, and we're definitely a better offense with Willie on the field. I can't imagine why he wouldn't go into the Hall of Fame. A lot of guys we've played against have said he's the best they've played against left or right tackle. That's putting Willie up there with Walter Jones and Jonathan Ogden and a number of guys playing either tackle position. Any time you lose a guy like that you'll be hurt, so we'd love to have Willie back.
